Given the position of the faulty electric point there was no way of really investigating what was going on. It was just a matter of watching the engines derail every now and then. So having removed the offending point and replaced it with a manual one I set up a small test track to try and find out what was happening and see if I could correct it. A picture of the test track is shown left.

The test track faithfully reproduced the problem which is shown in the second picture. The engine was jumping off the track just after it had been through the point. I looked and felt and checked and looked again. Nothing was obvious but out came the fine wet and dry paper and polishing of all of the possible surfaces was done to ensure that there were no protrusions even if I couldn’t see them. After a fair amount of polishing replacing, derailing more polishing I finally got the 0-6-2T to go through the points 30 times without derailing. I thought that I had cracked it. So out came the other problem engine, the Silver King and it worked a treat for the first 3or 4 times and then it derailed. A little more polishing and checking made no real difference.

Two things

1) It could be that the rail at the end of the point goes slightly out of gauge and some engines can cope and others can’t

or

2) The wheels on these two engines are slightly out of gauge.

There are no other points on the layout that causes problems for these engines so it really must be the point. But I don’t think that it is repairable.

I had my new points on order so it was a matter of waiting for them.

Judging by the comments received on the website, I am attracting new people to the hobby rather than those who have been collecting or running for some time. This is hardly surprising as my collection has no Dublo gems and a lot of other makes which probably doesn’t appeal to the collector and for the runners they have all been there and done it before and survived the problems.

So if you are not a member of the HRCA and can’t access their collection of literature and you want to know how to wire an electric point, with or without a signal then this will give you the information

My layout has no electric points. I never saw the need for them as I can reach all the manual points although some with the aid of a metal bar assister. However on the extension layout there is one point into the main sidings that is a stretch and is behind another line of trucks and is therefore difficult to reach without knocking over something. So, as I had an electric Left Hand point in my track box I decided to put it in that position.

Rough wiring was put in place and I used the passenger bridge to guide the wires over the track. Having put it place the engine testing started. All seemed to work well on the dodgy engines. Dodgy engines are defined as those which have a history of de-railing at the slightest opportunity. The worst is the 2-6-4T with its front bogie when going forwards and is rear pony when reversing. This is a well known problem engine. The second one to check is the Duchess of Montrose when reversing as its rear pony wheels are prone to derail. These two were fine. So like a fool I decided to put in permanent under board wiring before completing the test work.

Wrong.

After spending an afternoon putting in  the wiring and crawling under the track I re-started testing with the other engines as well as the tricky ones. 2-6-4T, no problems, Montrose, no problems, the converted Hornby Schools class, no problems, Metro Vick the same. Whats left well I ought to try an A4 and although its bound not to be a problem and an 0-6-2T as well.

You guessed it – problems.

The tank would not go throughthe point at all when reversing from the siding onto the mainline, it just stopped with bang every time. Point or engine? Well after a lot of head scratching and checking I noticed that the three rail pick up was slightly not parallel so I adjusted it and bingo all was fine, Engine then. Turn it round and drive it through  the points forwards and it derails just after the point. Not every time but about 10% of the time. Dodgy engine so lets move on. Silver King is put to the test. Reverses into the siding fine but again de-rails about 1 in 15 attempts when leaving the siding.

Out comes the sandpaper, minor smoothing of rails and joins, make sure that the check rail is clear of debris and wide enough to allow the flange through, all of this done by stretching right across the layout. Minor adjustments made, time to re-test. Out comes another A4 from the stable. In and out 20+ times – no problem. Sorted. Silver King comes into play and after about 10 times it de-rails. Now Silver King sits on the layout in the engine shed and to get in and out it has to cross 5 points in and 5 out and has never de-railed once in all the time that it has been stabled there. So its not the engine but the point.

Out it comes to be replaced by a manual one from the box, Try the 2-6-4T and it derails the pony wheels every time. Remove point and replace it with on of the boxed and very good isolating points which I bought especially for this application and which I soldered a wire between the main line joints so it is now non-isolating. Testing has restarted,

What I now need though is an excellent electric point.

I have now painted the extension so that it is ready to start the layout. After that it was off to a visit to the local train fair and the purchase of some rails and points. I then had a follow up visit to one of the dealers houses to buy the rest of the track needed plus a chance to have a look at his train room in the loft.

Amazing layout and an amazing amount of stock. He has been collecting for many years both dublo and Triang and he runs 3 rail and 2 rail for his Triang and 2 rail HD. Fantastic collection with rarities in profusion. How about 3 St Paddys, 4 southern 0-6-0T’s and much more. Jealousy knows no bounds when you see a collection like that. A prewar Mainline station and two of the modern plastic mainline stations one in use as a Terminal and one in use as a through station. Breathtaking.

Back to the mundane of my layout.

With the new rails I was able to loose lay what I think will be the final shape of the track, The first train to run soon showed that I had put isolating points between the mainline and the sidings – Wrong – they have to be non-isolating otherwise the engine will not run into them. I found that out on the last extension but forgot all about it. Still re-laying track is always fun.

I have added an additional power point to each set of tracks and have also added a remote controller for each track so that I can work within the new extension and not have to keep going back to the main controller. This has resulted in smooth steady speed running throughout the layout. The total layout now has 4 electrical inputs to each of the tracks reducing the effects of voltage drop. The current wiring is of course very temporary as it will be under the base board when we have checked out the layout for good running.

Now to check for ease of running, de-railments and uncouplings. This will take some time

You will see from the post below that I did a quick layout possibility on Trkcad to see how much track that I will have to buy.

I then used what spare track I had to loose lay the inner track between the old track joining points.

On completion the temptation was to run a train. So I picked the easiest an 0-6-2T and applied the power. Off it went slowing down a little at the far end of the new section, I will need to add an extra power source here, as expected, and completed the circuit. Another couple of engines were tried but no rolling stock, they also completed the circuit. A good start I thought.

Then I compared the loose laid track with the Xtrk and found that I was a 1/4 length rail missing on the bottom track and yet it fitted.

Agood look at the track showed that some of the joints were not totally square and that this was enabling the track to be joined. Squaring up the joints led to gap but not as big as a quarter rail, probably nearer the short rail. It looks as if one is required on the bottom track and another between the curves to enable a proper fit.

But this is still not the same as the computer programme. Now my layout is not square as one of the walls of the workshop is at an angle so this has to be worked out as the track progresses so this is probably the reason. However this ability to join rails and make a track circuit which is not square could be the route cause of the well known problem of phantom decoupling. I will be investigating this further when it comes time to get serious about laying the track.

Thanks to a Christmas visit from the Boy we have a new extension to the layout on which I can build more track. The new extension is very sturdy and able to take my weight easily although I have been warned against standing on it although I am sure that it is strong enough. Sitting and leaning are all that it is likely to have to endure. So for the first time for some years, the last extension was in 2004, I am able to design, built, ballast and add scenery to a new section.

Having just researched the build of the last extension I am amazes that it was built in 2004 it just doesn’t seem like that long ago.

Anyway I am busy with Xtrkcad4 working out possible extension paths from the original layout. I am pretty certain that there will be an extension to the double track mainlines with carriage, freight and engine sidings. I also think that this will be concentrated on the up line as the down line already has the big sidings on the previous extension. The main purpose at the moment is to get an idea of the amount and type of track that I need to buy and then decide whether to go for local sourcing or use fleabay. I have illustrated the first play on Xtrk in whch I have used a Marklin Turntable as the programme does not have the HD one. I am told that they are about the same size. It is just there for illustrative purposes. The unattached track on the far left is there to show the extent that the extension can go without fouling the other sidings on the old board. During the course of this build I will explain more about Marklin track and running their 3 rail engines.

There is a lot of work to do before even considering the track, painting etc but there is a Train Fair in January so it will be good to have the first idea of what is required so that I can go and have a look at what is available locally.

I will be giving ongoing and detailed reports on progress as it would seem from the site statistics that the layout page is the most popular and this will give every one who wants to build a 3 rail layout some hints and tips.

I have added a load of new links so if you haven’t the time to get to page 10 of the Google search – don’t worry I have and the relevant ones are included in the links section. There is some good stuff there as well – good linking.

There are now over 60 links so you should be able to while away the long winter nights.

If you are interested in Hornby trains made by Mecanno then you really should join the HRCA. You get:

A full colour magazine featuring O and OO gauge trains and accessories written by the experts in their field

A yearly publication of all people who provide spares and can repair you trains

and now

Access to the HRCA website which is a magic wonderland of all things Hornby

Pdf copies of all the HRCA magazines from 1969 onwards which you can read online or download

A forum where you can ask any question you want and get a reasoned reply

Copies of track plans, operating instructions and more.

The HRCA has grown up and come into the internet world and is now really worthwhile.

The cost is

Subscription Fees:

The subscription year begins on the 1st May and all subscriptions are renewable by this date. The subscription amount is agreed upon at the Annual General meeting, taking place in February. If you join after May, you will have to pay the full subscription for the current year, but will receive all the journals published up to the date of joining including a copy of the current Spares and Repair Services Directory.

Membership prices (2010/2011):

The Magazine is very good, the Spares Directory has everything you need to keep your trains running and the website is now well worth visiting. Go to the HRCA website and join.

Tim has recently posted 3 comments are the website and they are well worth a read. The Neoprene sheet under the layout is very interesting but it is unlikely that I will follow it uo as it would mean taking up the complete layout and I have no plans for that, but very interesting for someone contemplating a new layout.

He also praises very highly mtrains for their excellent spares service – a very worthwhile recommendation.

Some spam is getting into the website but WordPress makes getting rid of it very easy and it never shows itself on the website thankfully.

This class of loco was introduced in 1930 to meet the need for a powerful engine to work the restricted lines from Tonbridge to Hastings and Chatham to Ramsgate. The prototype had a shortened King Arthur pattern boiler, a large firebox from the S15/N15, 220 pounds pressure and with its low internal friction generated 25120 of tractive effort only 200 less than a Lord Nelson. This made this the most powerful 4-4-0 ever built in the UK. Dover was built in 1931 and spent most time on the Ramsgate shed.

The Hornby model was introduced in 1981 and the Dover version in 1983. Hornby have

now updated this model and a new superdetailed version is available.

This model has been skilfully 3 railed by Neil Medhurst and is an excellent runner despite the fact that it is tender drive.

I have been waiting a long time for a model of this engine and its nice to have one that runs so well and has good pulling power.