St Agnes .

Group member Nigel has been modelling St Agnes for some time.
He produced a continuous circuit which was shown at the Ilton Westfest 2010.
However, like me he has little faith on PECO Hom curved points which have caused both of us to rejig layouts.
The latest incarnation of St Agnes is a fiddle yard to fiddle yard layout of approximately eleven feet in length and will fold over to ease transportation.
Nigel is seen the task of wiring one of the baseboards which will have the pointwork controlled by slide switches and wire in tube.

Hornby Push-Pull set.

 Yes I know this is 4mm but bear with me.
I have owned one of Hornby's 0-4-4 M7 Tanks for some time and have had this set on order since it was announced.
Having the Worsley Works kit for this type of set, I also have now recieved the kit for the M7 from the same source.
The Hornby set will help me build a 3mm replica for use on Teignford- nothing like a faithful representation for copying.
I am told that because the Hornby coach set is sold out I should put it on e-bay. But then I wouldn't have my crib set! Later I will post about the building of the M7.

Trees

 One of our most recent members, Colin, has a talent for tree making.
He kept that quiet until he brought some examples with him to our recent meeting.
Modelled to 4mm scale- the examples have improved as he has made more.
So much so that he will have his work cut out to keep up with the groups demands.
Made from twisted wire for an armature he has found a new type of covering which looks very promising.
More on this as he progresses.

Dorset Modelling Society.

This Saturday, the 23rd June, see's the next meeting at our Pullman Coach at the old Hurn Railway Station.
The photo is of a previous layout of mine, East Boldre.
This was to 4mm scale and I am being encouraged to recreate it but in 3mm. I already have an M7 and Maunsell Push Pull set in kit form plus an 02 tank.
So- who knows. I hope to start either on Saturday so if you have some spare time, pop along and visit us.
I have already had some response to the piece in the current Railway Modeller so hopefully the group is on the up!

3MM in Railway Modeller

The July edition of RM is to hand and contains many pleasant surprises.
Firstly an excellent article on West Harptree followed by an overview on the history and current status of our Society.
The editorial by Steve Flint provides a taste of what's to come in 3mm scale over the next few months. Proof indeed that there seems to be a feeling within the trade that 3mm is an overlooked scale and an opportunity to do some real modelling.
Another picture of Hennock was also a surprise together with an entry within the club news section about the Dorset Modellers Society meetings.It goes without saying that those who take the time and trouble to produce fine layouts are much appreciated are to be congratulated when shown in the Model Railway Press- Well done all !

Teignford is on the straight and narrow!

 I will carry on the saga of building Teignford as I don't have the time to keep two blogs going. Until I can work out how to transfer the entries on the sister blog it will remain.
So- two new boards have been built, both with integral legs and 9mm ply tops.
Alignment is fairly good using my usual alignment dowels.
There is the option of having a branch line along the front of the fiddle yard but this has not been decided upon as it will cut down the amount of non railway infrastructure that I can display.

Legs

Support for any layout can be many and choices vary.
I always look for the simple way and believe that the system I use is about as basic as it comes.
The legs are attached to the baseboard with hinges and fold under and secured with a turnbuckle.
A plastic block, two holes one way and one the other, from most DIY outlets are attached- one to the baseboard frame and one to the leg. These are measured for positioning by a piece of steel which has been bent at 90degrees at each end.
The two ends simply push into the holes and to date have not come adrift. Simple provided the stays arn't left at home!

Cambrian Dogfish Ballast Hopper.

Robert has not been idle.This intricate kit has been started and the picture shows how he had progressed at our last meeting.
After checking that the stantion heights were all the same, assembly could be commenced.
Pin point bearings have been inserted into the Solebars and then the ends butt joined to each side , when cured the two halves are joined together to create a box- it has to be ensured that the axle boxes line upand the inserted axles are square.
The operators platform and the Vacuum cylinder end platform are also glued at this point enabling adjustment whilst the glue cured.
As can be seen, all is square and sitting correctly on the track- more after our next meeting.