Our second outing of 2017 and also our second outing with the trailer.
We were setup and fully stocked (all 15 stock boxes!) in under two hours.
A quick modification was made to the turntable controller, which involved installing two resistors and uploading an updated program to the Arduino, this stopped the turntable from randomly turning by itself and the turntable now performs faultlessly.
Elsewhere, it became apparent that the points on the far end of the recently modified upper loop still didn't work properly, so I spent some time during the second day getting these to work. All of the points now work around the back - including the fiddle yard!
Having replaced some of the tracks at one end of the fiddle yard, I decided to begin replacing some of the sections within the (current) centre fiddle yard board, removing some of the cut tracks to improve reliability. Unfortunately a dead-short developed within one of the new sections shortly after I'd finished screwing all the track back into place but this was swiftly dealt with and the transition between the rear boards is now much smoother. A few more tracks need to be replaced but the main running rails are now perfectly aligned.
No casualties at all this time, everything has returned in running order. Clan Line recently had its armature replaced for a home-wound one, this performed much better on the layout this time, as did the two 8Fs which have undergone further work to resolve the sluggish running. Also making a proper appearance for the first time in ages was the 0-6-0 diesel shunter and a rake of petrol tankers. The brick wagons also made a successful return, running quite happily along the top loop.
Finally, the Pacer reappeared, this time on the outer loop as the show came to an end. With everything safely stacked in the trailer, we look forward to our next outing in March at Wimborne, which may potentially be the final appearance in 16ft form...
A few pictures from the weekend:
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| All setup and ready to go |
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| Double heading on the coal wagons |
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| Electric loco + Pullman coaches |
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| Twin 8Fs back in proper running order as the blue & grey EMU storms through the new upper sidings |
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| Brick wagons, coal wagons and the usual long rake of Southern coaches. All four sidings were put to good use! |
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| Busy turntable sidings, lots of moving and turning using the motorised turntable |
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| GWR 0-6-2 being turned |
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| Twin maroon LMS 0-6-2 tanks |
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| Really need to replace that wheel! |
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| Busy station as usual |
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| Royal Scots Grey hauls the petrol tankers, later this rake was reduced in length so that the 0-6-0 shunter could manage it! |
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| Petrol tankers again as the Lima Rail Car trundles along the shuttle line |
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| Back of the rake |
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| The run-through, viewed from the other side of the tunnel |
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| Something lurking in the tunnel! |
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| 80059 makes an entrance |
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| Looking down on the layout |
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| A very busy fiddle yard - the isolated siding sections now fully operational, allowing storage of six complete trains on each side |
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| Also added illumination via an LED strip |
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| And of course the Pacer had to make an appearance once the show came to an end! |
With thanks to the show organisers for their hospitality (and for feeding us!)
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