Thanks, John.  The idea of including the turnouts in the Blocks has a lot of merit, now I think more about it.

Sorry about the Zipped file.  I didn't realise you don't have AnyRail.

[user=269]MaxSouthOz[/user] wrote:

Thanks, Trevor.  I realised that, but it occurred to me once I thought about it, I could have it as a through shed and gain a bit of track.  What do you think of that as an idea?

Obviously Rule 1 applies and you could certainly have a through shed but I just felt that the existing connection back onto the through track felt a bit 'awkward'

 

[user=946]Chinahand[/user] wrote:

Here's a link to the ABBY Screenshot Reader download site which has a free trial version that you can try out before purchasing.
http://www.abbyy.com/screenshot_reader/

Hi Trevor

I purchased a copy via PayPal, but I can't open the download until I put in the Serial Number.  Can you remember where you found yours?

I've got several emails from them (including an auto-reply to my complaint), but so far no Serial number on any of them.

Sorry. Can't help you there Max. My copy came as part of the software bundled onto the printer installation disc.

Not to worry, Trevor.  I'm sure they'll sort it out.

I downloaded the zip file Max but, although I have AnyRail, I couldn't open it ………  I muit have missed something along the way ……………

We begin.  First, strip off all of the old trackwork.



Tomorrow I'll lift the board and cut the return off it.

Now that's what I call "a shelf" !! :shock::shock::shock:

Is it MDF Max - it looks very sturdy ?

I Wonder ………….how do you manage to play in a band, run a business, learn photography, run a website, rescue dogs AND do all this modelling ………?  I reckon there's at least two of you cloned out there. :cheers

It is, Peter.  16 mm MDF.  On top of that will be glued 30 mm styrene foam sheet and on top of that will be 6 mm MDF.

It's going to be like the old foam sandwich yacht construction.  Very stiff and light for its strength.

I'm going to cut the legs down by 35 mm to keep the track at the same height as before.

Your shelf is a lot bigger than my shelf.
Must be all that sunshine you have.

[user=6]Petermac[/user] wrote:

I reckon there's at least two of you cloned out there. :cheers

Don't say that Peter, it is bad enough with one of him exclam: :pedal

I think we've spoken about MDF before Max - I seem to recall yours is "softer" than the UK stuff.  Here, it's the very devil to get pins into - very sturdy but extremely hard. :roll:

Ours is pretty hard, Peter.  I drill holes for my track pins.

Next, cut the return off and turn the board over, ready to strip the old wiring and hardware.



Pretty straightforward.

Now the board has been stripped clean of wiring and hardware, the steel framework has been dismantled and lowered 35 mm and it has been improved for ease of handling of the board.



The middle cross strut has been removed to stop it being a centre pivot when the board is on its side.  There have been two extra rails added at the far end so the return can be screwed down separate to the main board.

An interesting set up you have there Max.
Is it a permanent arrangement?  You say you have lowered it.  Was that a case of cutting bits off or are the legs extendable?

Thanks, Warren.

It's permanent, well as permanent as it can be.  It's built on top of the existing bench.

I took each of the legs off and cut 35 mm off the tops of them, as the new baseboard will be higher than the old one.

The legs have captive bolts with nuts underneath the bench top.

Does the metalwork come as a shelving kit Max ?  I notice there are some nice plastic plugs in the open ends of each piece - very neat looking work to say nothing of the strength. :thumbs

Nope.  It's just bog standard 25 mm rectangular hollow section (RHS) steel tubing, Peter.

The enclosures are from the hardware store. 

I've been using it for years.  It's easy to weld and in this case it's held together with Tech screws.  They're a type of fastening that has a drill bit on the tip and the head is hexagonal to go into a driver for my battery drill.

The boards will be screwed from underneath.

More pictures to follow . . . . tomorrow.  

I like the bench set up you have Max. Is the lower bench the work bench ? I also like the height, easy on the back and great for viewing. Looking foward to updates, maybe I'll learn something about DCC installation along the way..!

Cheers, Gary.