Lacathedrale

Harestone? A riff on Caterham's post 1900 layout if I remember but with half the throat off-scene?

Lovely stuff. Will you be able to retrofit the running gear to Eagle? I agree it looks a little sparse!

I've never actually managed to figure out an aftermarket parts coupling system - my 2mmFS wagons still don't have any couplings at all! With my 4mm stuff, I decided to fit three-link and screw-link couplings in the interim, and then whatever system I eventually end up with I can make the relevant modifications as required. I figured I may as well setup something of a torture track for the couplings and see what happens: The particular arrangement like this won't actually be used - but this is the 'worst' possible combination. I did think I gave myself brain damage trying to thread the screw link couplers on though, so may well be a moot point :)

Thank you for those pictures, @burgundy - I saw the same traverser in use at ScaleForum and it appears to have the same issue as mine - the outer ends (on which the deck slides) are too tall and causing lots of friction. The layout at Scaleforum showed obvious signs of having these planed or sanded down. @ianb3174 in addition to the 'oh god do I really want to do this' of actually finally having all the parts and components to hand, I was also a little disheartened to have the 1-2 punch fo Vivien Thompsons 'Eastbourne' and then Michael Ball's 'Ferring' come up sequentially on my reading list - hard to follow those two up, eh? :) I think it was a solid plan to not be drastic though, as with a few weeks removed the positives outweigh any potential drawbacks. I'm still not sold on the gauge, end-on it looks awful - but realistically that's not a viewing angle I am expecting and hopefully with some Mikkel or Nevard-like hard work it will end up looking OK despite the gauge.

Thanks, Bob - I had (before disassembly) fixed the red vee and green vee and the adjacent yellow wing rail together as a single sub-assembly. My idea was that the plane from the diverging route on both the red vee and green vee really must be bang on and so using the jig might make sense. Given that it's now disassembled, that's not such a big concern :) I decided to take it easy from P4 tracklaying by fitting screw link couplings to my LBSCR coaches to test them over the reverse curves of the Edwardian Terminus throat. I'm not sure what possessed me to think that would be relaxing, a large scotch was definitely required.

Thanks John, I did that with 2mmFS but I thought I was smarter than that for 4mm :) @t-b-g I built a B7 in P4 in the spring and it worked really well, though admittedly that was using functional chairs throughout, which I can't really get away with on this one I don't think...

Argh, I can't believe it - I soldered the 1:10 vee in upside down, only noticed when I went to slide the chairs on. Time to put this in the proving drawer for a while, I don't want to get cross!

I set the bends in the wing rails relative to the vee using the EMGS jig and the flangeway gauge, rather than via the drawing. As I said they are a little tight so maybe that explains it? I've re-laid them more closely to where they'll end up and it looks OK to me, to my unedcuated eye? It's bloody tough photographing long lengths of metal against a white/black background isn't it? :) Strange that Exactoscale has nothing at all for 1:9 switches, although 1:8 and 1:10 are described in their chair position diagrams...

The vee blunted puts it in the correct place and with a little curve of the vee it sits well. I also blunted the 1:10 and 1:9 vees off which form the rest of the tandem. Here's the progress today: The flangeway gauge passes through everything but it's a little tight. Honestly, it's only cost me an evening's work so if I have to re-work things that's OK. The components are of course just loosely laid for now! I believe the last step is for this fabrication is to get the wing rails onto the 1:7 vee pictured above, and then it's about getting it laid down with chairs. My minimum radius is 5' and so there's a bit of leeway if I sod up the placement and end up with a sharper angle somewhere, but my understanding for the steps is as follows: Ignore the two 1:8 crossover turnouts on the outside for now Lay the middle-top vee subassembly into position Lay the straight stock rail + first checkrail (using 0.68mm checkrail chairs) gauged off the middle vee using a check rail gauge Lay the bottom vee subassembly in position using a check gauge off the second checkrail and visual alignment of the bottom-vee-wingrail and middle-vee-running-rail Is that about right?

Oh well I'm not sure about that but thank you very much. My scaling is bang on 18.83mm gauge so I don't think it's that, but as @Izzy, @Siberian Snooper and @martin_wynne have pointed out - it's a curviform vee. Thankfully that just means bending the rail gently (thanks Martin!) Speaking of blunting the vee - not a bad shout, I'll check that out shortly. I have a 1:10, 1:9, two 1:8's and 1:7 so I guess there's alot to check out. Annoyingly I've already assembled the 1:8's with wing rails (three times, one of the was accidentally putting the 1:8 wing rails on the 1:9 vee)

Having a bit of a mare with this: This common crossing is 1:7, but when i lay a 1:7 vee onto the plan, it looks very out: Since this vee leads directly into the wing rail for the 1:10 common crossing, I'm a little worried that just using chairs to pin the 1:7 vee rails into the correct position is going to end up in tears...

Thank you, that's very kind. I have the gauges and built a half-crossing and straight track to run my EM wagons over, but for the sake of having a bash at it I'm going to try P4 first. I'm fairly certain as per @t-b-g it will all end in tears as too much hard work, but I think i'd be short changing myself if I didn't TRY it...

My wife has been down for the count with a sore tooth (and forthcoming root canal) and our trip to the NYMR is cancelled. By way of solace I've had a fairly productive evening listening to an audiobook and cracking out some common crossings. Here are the vees required for my little test idea - a pair of 1:8's (middle) and a 1:7, 1:9 and 1:10 which form the single sided tandem I'd like to try out: Tonight was also my first time using the EMGS common crossing assembly jig as pictured on an earlier page: Does anyone have a rule of thumb of where the tip of the rail should lay in the filing jig so it doesn't mushroom and stretch-over while filing? I know @hayfield doesn't file and bend before filing again, but I thought I'd give it a shot. I often ended up with a concave curve instead of a straight line when tweaking and it takes ages to straighten - is there an easy solution @Martin Wynne? I've not yet had a chance to test these subassemblies, but I'm looking forward to it :)

I visited on Saturday morning and aside from the horrific parking situation I thought it was a lovely show. I didn't stay around long, but definitely one of my favourites. This close to ScaleForum, I've been spoiled for the rest of the year...

I would be interested but isn't it a bit weird there's no pseudo-original condition, only the early and later preservation?

Ah yes, of course - I look forward, as always, to the next installment.

Having scraped through Otterburn articles in RM in both 4mm and 7mm, it looks lovely. It definitely has a 'big station' feel even though it's small, although I do note that there is a judicious use of what I've come to know as the "MRJ-Photo", i.e. very close in and cropped photography!

Excellent work as always. How do you align the components together after you've moved them off the canvas?

Hi John, in one of your other threads you show the process of the EMGS alignment jig being used - but those photos are now lost to the sands of time. I've built my own jig after having sat on the etch since January - but I don't want to get myself in a twist doing it the wrong way first time and I can't find instructions anywhere...

Thank you, apologies - this should definitely be in the hand-laid track and templot section!

Thanks @Paul Cram - same question - soldered to the vee/wing rails after the rest of the chairs are threaded on and glued down, or some other method?

I'm using plastic sleepers @Izzy but thank you. I should try the ply method at some point, I do much prefer soldering to fiddling around with functional chairs - but without a punch/press/etc. it seems a bit of a non-starter? @Gordon A - shouldn't I be worried about the heat from the iron melting the adjacent chairs when attaching it? Whereabouts is best - towards the vee tip or further back? Sorry for the stupid questons - I'd just rather not mess it up!

Hi there, I've a made a turnout on scrap wood using only functional chairs in the past and it has come out OK. It would be a simple matter to get power to the wing rails when the turnout can be removed from the wood, inverted and a little wire soldered after the fact - but if, as now, I'm laying a slightly larger formation in-situ - then I can't do that. Unless I've gone mad, it would appear the only realistic way for me (i.e. ten thumbed ogre) to achieve this will be to assemble the whole common crossing using thin PCB in at least one or two positions, those timbers having cosmetic chairs. Is that correct? If so, should I be: Assembling the common crossing off-board using the EMGS alignment jig? (does anyone have any instructions for this anywhere - I've never tried it but have had it for ages) or. Putting the vee in place with functional chairs and then sliding the PCB under after the fact, to be soldered to the wing rails later? Many thanks! William PS. If anyone knows where i can buy some of the 0.67mm copper clad PCB strips, please let me know :)

Thanks John, it was good to finally put a face to a name too. I've got timbers laid so now just to put your tandem advice into practise...

Ah, a useful donor for wheels in that case, then? :)