Rallymatt

The black oil storage tanks are some ones I picked up second hand, they could be Faller European N scale. I have altered them a bit with pipe work etc. the taller ones next to the Thunberg Petrochemical Works are home made, from hydration tab tubes and some extras. The DAPR tanks are low level refilling type. I think he also does a refinery type which are much taller, maybe not in TT yet but Ben will rescale if asked. Thanks for the nice comments too, glad you like it 😁

Please add a track plan and some dimensions to the track plan thread. I hope this will develop into a resource for modellers to gain some inspiration 😁

Ditto

Is this a general change across forum? Some tabs have gone grey rather than red and an alternative font. It’s not an issue I am just wondering if I have done something with ‘fat finger syndrome’ or if it’s a tweak 😁

I am presuming this is a webshop issue you are having? In the forum you just check the forum choices you want to see and that’s it. In the shop I am only interested in TT:120 items these days, so I only select the TT:120 range, and usually that filters out OO. Although oddly if I view a TT:120 item the webshop will suggest ‘other items I might be interested in’ and often they are OO which could lead to a silly mistake 🤣

Been busy soaking up the glorious weather up here in Land of The Prince Bishops with some epic bike rides including along what was Britain’s Highest Standard Gauge line to Blanchlands and down the remains of the Crawley Engine ropeway line (super exciting descent) to Stanhope and check out Weardale Railway. The area is littered with coal and lead mines and Limestone quarries that powered the Industrial Revolution with energy, metals and building materials and the essentials for making steel! Few pics of those adventures and what a damp day today has resulted in 😁

Some superb work there. Great idea to start with a scenic board until baseboard could be installed. The best bit was you saying how much you enjoyed making things, so many are in the same place. Thanks for sharing and I think we are all looking forwards to the next developments 😁

Do they have a spare parts list Garry? With a steam loco there could be differences between the wheel sets other than the traction tyres, so there isn’t a driving wheel without the tyre that could replace the standard rubber tyred one. It’s obviously a lot easier on a diesel 🤣 Manufacturers often say something isn’t possible (or permitted in Germany) but it is 😁

Completely agree with this and well explained. 😁

All good stuff. In modelling it’s all a bit of a bending of reality. That we can imagine and create a story to fit the creations is what it’s all about. I think once steam left UK rails, vegetation was seen as less of an issue once the hot sparks from steam engines were a thing of the past, then it was lack of care, then we don’t use those chemicals…. Technically a bit of smoke and mirrors but the appearance of some sections of track have changed so much

The overgrown sidings looking really good. It’s a real indicator of things changing on the railways. For a long time even sidings were clear but into 70’s it all changed. Now some spurs to factories are so overgrown it looks like trains disappear into a mangrove swamp! I think weedkiller is out of favour these days.

We have had a few new layouts break cover in the forum recently, if those fine railway engineers would like to add their track plans to this thread it would be great. some approximate dimensions and a track plan, hand drawn or from planning software In time it would be nice to then edit out all the chat and make it a Track Plan Guide of our own 👍

A good sized layout to get your teeth into there. BR Blue era is a great subject and very soon Hornby will have a decent range of stock to support it. In a recent interview Martyn from Hornby was commenting on how TT:120 has lead to many layout builds and models are being operated in much higher numbers than OO where there is a significant collector only segment. Great to see all these new and varied layouts appearing 😁 If you wanted to add your track plan and dimensions to the track plan thread that would be great, more inspiration for others 👍

A modeller on YouTube has stumbled across a security flaw in HM DCC that allows third party access to decoders that are linked to owners app/device etc. He hasn’t disclosed how, but in his own words it’s not hard to do. While none of us would do this maliciously there are those that would. He has been asked to contact George at Hornby with the details. For many of us this won’t be a problem but there could be a potential risk on exhibition layouts. I have no doubt it’s genuine and it’s something he has discovered by accident.

On wagons, there is a distinct shortage in the Hornby WebShop. The recent offer seems to have cleared out almost everything! Did you mean headshunt or run around? Anyway it’s a nice track plan with lots of scope for operational fun. Very typical of small station set ups 😁

The range is developing really fast but as Nick says, it takes time and give them a chance. I am surprised you had issues setting sound up on HST, it’s really easy with HM DCC. Consisting isn’t available on the App but if you are using a traditional DCC system you can just consist in the usual way for that system. Class 37 first release livery and versions have not been finalised (they are still a year away) so it’s impossible to say on that. In time I am sure the depth of the range will continue to grow 😁

@Hobby11 I think the plan is to offer both options in the ‘Arnold’ version of 66. @Silver Fox 17, Garry, only 1 axle on my diesels has a tyred wheel, I’m not sure on Steam as don’t have any maybe @ntpntpntp would know (they are probably same in N) So to convert to either tyred or non-tyred is just a case of ordering the appropriate spare parts and swapping. I was thinking of removing the tyred wheels on my continental diesels when I had a lot of trouble obtaining the tyres in UK. I might still experiment with it as I don’t have any inclines and the locos are all quite weighty

As most points have a dead spot, the frog (where rails converge in centre) is isolated on most like Hornby, a short loco like a shunter can struggle to collect current, not always. It’s more a problem at very slow speeds. A power bank or stay alive (same thing) can provide an onboard power source to keep things moving seamlessly. With DCC a loss of power pick up causes the decoder to shut down, in BlueTooth that also means it drops out of the network. Modern DCC decoders restart very quickly but the nature of BT means it takes a few seconds and that can be frustrating. A power bank isn’t a must though. It is a DCC feature not a DC item.

It would be sensible option Nick, most the European makers offer replacement wheel sets in plain and traction tyred versions. Option in the box would be ideal.

Peter of ‘TT:120 Ramble’ had Martyn and Karl of Hornby to mainly discuss things TT:120 but a snippet that’s of interest across the whole hobby is that a substantially smaller Power Bank is in development by Hornby. 40% smaller in physical size was a rough estimation by Karl and although no release dates were given, this could be why the existing version is not being made available before the end of the year. While I am of view many people use PBs to mask other faults that should really be addressed first, they do absolutely have their use and a big purpose is to help BT decoders stay connected to the BT Network as well as help short wheel base locos, and older stock with limited pick ups, negotiate point work. Link to the whole video

You could argue UK had also had a very limited TT market 2years ago. A Jouef TT:120 branded box with a French Eurostar in TT could be an excellent low cost way to open up the French market to TT, especially if it was ready for Christmas

The bulkhead is glued in place, if you carefully prise, it will release and reveal the cut out in the cab moulding. The Stax stay alive, it’s controller, Zimo sound decoder and a speaker will all fit without removing the bulkhead, I did trim a little from the decoder tray but that’s hidden.

Lais or Stax ones work well with the Zimo decoders. I think Digitrains are due more stocks of the Stax ones in next week or so. They also (others probably do to) a soldering service for a few pounds which I think is an excellent idea 😁

Ahh so a DCC communication issue rather than a mechanical one.

I think it’s worth hunting out various Matchbox models, I always loved them, but the scales were all over the place which means there are a few gems for us to discover 😁