Plenty of activity in the last few months at Newport, though little of interest to post since it has been repetitive work - trackbuilding, tracklaying, fitting point motors and uncoupling magnets, wiring, testing individual boards. I am now on the last of the Newport Station boards and the attached picture of the underside shows the method I have eventually adopted for fitting Fulgurex turnout motors. This is simple and effective, though obviously I cannot vouch for its longevity. The turnouts are soldered pcb construction with the tiebars connected to the blades by the "Norman Solomon" method involving pivoting steel pins soldered to the blades. The piano wire is 1.15mm and the brass blocks which transfer the drive through 90 degrees are by Modratec. .You will see crudely fashioned (and rather square) Omega loops - the effect of these is to firmly spring the blades against the stock rails. I have not needed any other form of adjustment. As supplied the Modratec blocks have a plastic clutch but I have found these unnecessary and the block is screwed directly down onto the piano wire. As I say, time will tell if the system is resilient.

All that's needed on this board now is the DCC traction power bus and then it will be possible to join Newport to the hidden loops and sidings and test run the whole of the Newport Station complex...... The danger then is that I find it more fun to play trains than to buckle down and get Cowes and Medina Wharf built.

Chris