Developing sounds for the Loksound v4 chip involves periods of tweaks & adjustments to the various flowcharts followed by a 15 minute wait whilst the chip loads. You then check that the loco does what you want (which invariably it doesn't without further tweaking, but I digress).

Those 15 minutes are usefully spent doing real modelling, and today I've been roofing an old woollen mill with some laser-cut slate roofing tiles from York Model Making. The mill itself is a Walthers 'Background Building' but the roof looked a bit flat so I picked up some of the slates at Doncaster last week and set to work. The tiles come in self-adhesive strips. It's not a quick job to put them on but in an hour or so I've done one side whilst ascending the learning curve. I distressed the odd tile here and there with knicks out of corners and bits missing and it all looks great. Definitely easier than putting them all on individually. Life is waaay too short for that.

Meantime the 73 electric sounds are coming along nicely, and doing what I want most of the time. If anyone has experience of 73's running on the juice I'd be pleased to hear from you and perhaps pick your brains so I can get things just right.