All things come to those who have patience.

No pictures today but a few thoughts! Teignford is at present being wired by my good friend Nigel. It has been converted fron a continuous circuit to a terminus to fiddle yard layout. This is mainly due to the fact that I could not get the curved Peco points to work properly. I am of the opinion that they are not true curved points- for this reason the layout has been changed as described in earlier posts.
However, this is being resolved and with Teignford booked to be exhibited in May things are moving on apace.The buildings are being built and new stock is being sourced. Allan at Worsley Works has produced a new 'B' Set coach kit -one of the original type that was made for the 3mm Society by Ian Kirk. They should be delivered soon after the current festivities and are eagerly awaited.
I have ordered some new etches of windows by Brian Golding, of Brynkits fame, which are of Bodmin station. I have it on good authority that these etches are the Bees Knees and will be used for Teignford and the next planned layout, an Ashburton type Terminus.
I am looking forward to the next Dorset Group meeting when hopefully the main boards and fiddleyard can be reunited and finally work as I had intended .Hopefully the first loco to traverse the rails will be my rebuilt Prairie Tank- Thanks Peter. This will be on the 7th January 2012 at our usual meeting place. If you would like to get details of this please mail me. Look tomorrow for this yaers Christmas Card!

The cutting edge!

 The Goods Shed and Loco facility both will have round top windows (probably a correct term for this somewhere) and cutting these in card with a conventional modelling knife can be tricky.
When in The Grange I found this knife, no makers name on it i'm afraid. The blade swivels in the head of the knife making it easier to produce cuts around curves.
Replacement blades are available and simply push into the cutting handel. Usage can be fairly high but the saving on having a straight curved edge is worth it.

Tools of the trade.

For marking out, these are some of the aids used.
Most important is a straight edge, in this case a 1ft/30cm steel ruler. Also have a six inch rule for use when something a little smaller is needed.
Two types of compass, self explaitory really-large and small. To mark out there is a Rotring propelling pencil with .5mm lead-this I have had for at least 25 years and proves that it pays to get  the best you can afford. A rubber, this one bought in Majorca erases all unwanted lines or mistakes and is fairly soft.
Not shown are the knives I use, mainly a snap off type as the card can be fairly high on usage of blades.

Take a sheet of card.

 Whilst the wiring is being finished it is time to start the many buildings needed for Teignford. For this I use offcuts of Daler Mounting Card obtained as offcuts from my friendly local art shop. These come in various shapes and sizes and the ones being used are approximately A4 size with a slightly uneven finish on one side-this side is also green but no matter as it will be covered with brickpaper anyway.
The lower pic shows the start of marking out with the main dimensions marked.
Next post see's the tools used for this process.

Prototype Inspiration

 Before commencing the construction of the buildings we need a plan-literally. However, the eventual creations will not be slavish copies but an interpretation of those buildings which existed on various locations around my chosen area.
So, a search through my modest library came up with these tomes in the top picture.
These books contain much information and more importantly-Plans! The infrastructure of many railways followed a theme - builders and architects, materials used in construction etc.
The drawings also importantly give a good idea of the size of the finished model- will it fit the available area, nothing more daunting than finishing a model to find it wont fit or the available space is too small (been ther and done it).

 The drawing on the right is from a book detailing the Helston Branch. Included with it are a set of drawings of, not only Helston, but Nancegollan and Praze. These were three sheets attached to the rear inner of the cover. The drawings were to 4mm Scale but a trip to the local printers produced a set in 3mm Scale- for my own use -Not for gain I may add.So now I have a good idea on how the sizes of the buildings will be and can move on to making them.

Worsley Works BR Mk1 Full Brake.

West Byfleet saw another addition to the fleet of coaching stock needed for Teignford.
Another of Alans offerings, in brass, with the tumblehomes already formed. These sides together with a floof, ends, trusses and a roof are supplied. This leaves just, bogies, wheels, sideframes , roof , corridor connections and undergubbins to find. These are easily obtained from the 3mm Society or 3SMR.
The difference is that the Society bogies are sprung whilst 3SMR's offering is rigid but both do an acceptable job.
So out with the soldering iron-Again!

Wiring continues.

 Slow progress is being made, wiring has to be right before I can proceed with ballasting.
The group has been very helpful, Nigel especially.
Seen in the top picture is the control panel, a simple diagram with switches positioned on the drawing.
The wires will eventually be harnessed into a loom with cable ties.
The lower picture shows the controls attached to the main board, the control panel folds up when transported or stored.
All for now, hopefully more in the near future.