Granite setts

[MikeWilliams]

Not really "buildings" but this seems like the nearest suitable heading.

Geoff Nicholls has come up with the brilliant idea of making our own sheets of imitation granite setts for trackwork.

Now, you might assume that this sort of thing is already available from dolls house suppliers, but investigations show the range to be very limited in the correct scale, so here is the first resin casting from Geoff's pattern.  As you can see, they interlock to give a continuous strip which is the correct width to go between Gauge 3 rails - but only on straight track of course.  About 3mm thick, they need to be packed to height and to clear whatever rail chairs you have used and are flexible enough to be arched slightly if you prefer.

The plan is to cast and supply these in three forms:
as you see here, scale 4ft by scale 6ft.
double length, scale 4ft by scale 12ft.
2 x 2 giving an area scale 8ft by scale 12ft.

I hope to have some ready for sale at the AGM, but if you'd like lots of 'em please let me know in advance!  Price is guesswork at this stage, but maybe £1 for the largest sheet and less for the smaller ones.  All comments and suggestions are welcome.

Geoff says he's happy to prepare patterns for bespoke surfaces at modest cost, and I'd cast them also at modest cost.  I suspect Geoff might regret making that offer - ... English bond bricks, Flemish bond bricks, diamond pattern paviours, graduated roof slates ..... !

Mike

[midnight miller]

Hello All

Brick and rough stone wall please . In bigger sheets .



                                                       John

[blagdon]

They look very interesting, must take closer look at the AGM

Ian the Gauge '3' Pirate

[hornbeam]

3 large and two small please!

A similar idea for platform edging would be good- not that your already busy enough mike! 

[MikeWilliams]

Bigger sheets may be a problem when making them this way, but we'll see.  Once you get above A5ish its a relatively expensive process and can't compete with vacuum formed plastic sheet and things like that.

Mike

[midnight miller]

 Hello Mike & All

A good quality resin sheet if achievable would be a lot better than vac form styrene .


                                                           John

[MikeWilliams]

Maybe so John.  I'm also keen to experiment bending it.  I suspect that under a hot tap it should be possible to bend the strips to match curved track - and you can't do that with a sheet of Plastikard!

Mike

[Geoff Nicholls]

what Mike says about bending the granite sett strips is correct, you can produce a curve. You have to use boiling water, a good thick pair of rubber gloves, and a lot of pulling. You don't really bend it, you stretch it, but one side.
As you can see I managed to produce a 3m radius curve (that's Cliff Barker's template). I think you might achieve a smaller radius by asking Mike to cast it thinner, or sawing slots in one side.
You can also see I used the Tenmille point lever for my Cliff Barker turnouts. It works very well, but I'm going to conceal it with a fence and a ground signal (anyone else need any GER ground signals, to help me cover the casting costs?)

[John Candy]

Geoff,

I presume the ground signals would be the rotating "Tommy Dodd" type?
What material are you proposing and would they be operational?

John.

[Geoff Nicholls]

I have a drawing of a McKenzie Holland version used by the GER, very similar to the illustrations in the LNER Signalling book. They would be operational, though I don't know how to power the light. My first thoughts on material would be cast brass, for strength if operational outdoors, but I've no idea about costs.

[454]

Geoff,

I find the best way to power lights & give them a more subtle glow is to incorporate into the signal structure a clear plastic light guide & install the lamp (an LED) under the base, sleeve the LED to light pipe with heat shrink tubing to keep out stray light. LEDs of red, white, green, blue  etc are easily obtainable. Fibre optics is another way of describing them. Easy peasy.

Benefit of LED's is low power & no heat.

The age of the filament bulb is over.

Dave
454

[John Candy]

If of the "rotating" type (i.e. the signal rotates about the vertical post, with two discs and lenses of different colours) and in brass (the disc sections would probably need to be etched and soldered to the pivoting post) then I would be interested .... and would (subject to cost) take several.

Regards,
John.

[454]

Using 2 lenses ( green & red ) only one white LED would be required. These LED's are eminently suited to long life, low voltage, low power, and easy to use in the great outdoors.

Dave
454

[MikeWilliams]

Surely the real ones had only one light too - with coloured lenses.

Mike

[Geoff Nicholls]

The drawing I have from the GERS Journal, was of a rotating one at Sheringham, measured in situ in 1970. The lamp unit is square sided, RED, Blind, White(with disc) and green.  Mike's correct, it only has one light. It only turns through 90 degrees.

Although last night's posting was a bit of wine fuelled bravado,  I had already decided to produce one for my (indoor) layout, probably a none functioning exercise in 3D printing. however, even with a clear head it does look do-able, and can be made to operate with a light relatively easily. I'll knock up a drawing and post it.
    This will be a nice little project to think about as I wind down to retirement in five weeks time.
in the meantime suggestions about the suitability of materials outdoors etc would be welcome.