ZOOM meetings - follow up

[Martin Wynne]

@Phil G

Hi Phil,

It seems I had already implemented your suggestion for the next update, and gone a bit further. All completely forgotten about last night:

will be in the next update. despite my reservations last night i will try to release it today or tomorrow, and just live with any BOX file tangles. otherwise it is going to be too long a break between updates.

martin.

 

[Martin Wynne]

.
i was a bit incoherent about the forced timber-equalizing over-ride in last night's meeting.

the proper explanation is:

with experimental chairing in force:


1. for clip-fit plugs (the default) and snap-fit plugs:

timbering style is forced to equalized incremental if the crossing angle is shorter than 1:7

2. for press-fit plugs (i.e. no socket undercut):

timbering style is forced to equalized incremental if the crossing angle is shorter than 1:6


the style will return to your setting in the menu if the crossing angle is made longer than those limits, or if experimental chairing is switched off.


p.s. no 3pm meeting today. 8pm meeting normal.

martin.

 

[Martin Wynne]

.
last night we talked about the automatic-adjust function when making a double-track transition curve.

the example i used showing the loss of full adjacent track spacing at the middle of an s-curve was a mild example.

for a long sweeping s-curve the effect can be quite dramatic. this is a 8-metre transition in 4mm/ft scale:

here you can see that the double-track spacing has gone so far wrong that the tracks have swapped over in the middle of the curve:

unfortunately templot is unable to modify the laws of mathematics to prevent this. concentric/parallel transition curves are not mathematically possible.

the easiest solution is to split the curve into a series of short sections (move peg, make split at peg). here i have given them rainbow marker colours to be visible:

then you can do make double-track on each section separately:

the result will have some gaps and overlaps, but the track spacing should be reasonably constant:

which in most cases can be fixed with the usual extend/shorten to meet function:

martin.

 

[Martin Wynne]

.
here is the link for the crushed walnut shells ballast material i mentioned:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B097195QM3

4mm stone ballast = Fine grade

4mm ash ballast = Very Fine grade

martin.

 

[Rob Manchester]

Hello Martin,

Slag was used by some railway companies ( including Gods Wonderful Railway ) as it didn't let the weeds grow - probably something to with the temperature it was created at. The only trouble is finding a local blast furnace to make you some.

Probably best not to google 'very fine slag'.....

Rob

P.S. Hope your recovery is going well........

 

[Martin Wynne]

@Hayfield

in the zoom meeting last night we ended up in a tangle in Cura.

the problem was that the end webs were taking one part a tiny fraction over 180mm long.

removing the end webs solved it.

this is a C-9 turnout in EM, split into 3 parts to fit easily within 180mm x 180mm.

we didn't get involved in adding the clips, but they wouldn't significantly affect the space needed

the print time is 8 hours 36 minutes:

martin.

 

[Hayfield]

I was very surprised at what you could get on to a 180 x 180mm bed. I think some detractors will always moan about the print time.

But as it has been said many times, we need to have a different mind set with plugged track. The only thing with the track bed is spending a few mins making the export files, once the printer has started you just leave it alone and get on with something else. Even domestic duties or working.

I think ever since I started track building in earnest using chaired components' its been taking down barriers simply formed by this is the way we have always done it, or that wont work without even trying it. The fact is this may be a game changer in actually dramatically saving time track building allowing us to spend more time building stock/ buildings/ scenery etc

 

[Phil O]

I was surprised that with a bit of thought it's possible to print a straight C10 turnout in one go, on a Kingroon.

 

[BerlinChris]

Thanks for the demonstration of the double track transition which you posted here after our discussion Martin. All clear now.

I'll try to join you this afternoon if you are online.

Chris

 

[Phil G]

Hi Martin,
The photo at the link below is the one that I was talking about today at todays zoom.
https://85a.uk/templot/club/index.p...-understanding-crossing-angels.658/#post-6358

As you can see that can't be a fast crossover given its proximity to the diamond crossings. It could however still easily be a D12 crossover. Thoughts?
The only reason I can see for the crossover is to take trains that were routed on the down fast though the station, and bring them back onto the down slow line. One likely scenario would be a stopping train that would be heading up Reddish branch to be in the station, when a London road bound train would pass on the down fast, before crossing back over to the down slow line.
The photo was taken in 1956 and I believe the crossover may have been repositioned slightly when the new 1955 Heaton Norris box went in.

on closer inspection I think the curve starts a bit closer to the Vee than I thought as well,

Out of interest in that post you mentioned Gimping, which I think is some sort of photo correction software, anyway it got me thinking would that be a worth whist topic for a zoom session? If so I would be keen to use this photo as the example.
Mainly because there are a few other things I still a have not sorted out, not least of which is the turnouts used in the scissors to the left of the down roads.
cheers
Phil

 

[Martin Wynne]

@Phil G

in the zoom meeting last night we mentioned the number of chairs on a raft across the Alkaid printer.

i forgot to mention that you can set the number of chairs in the row, and the spacing of them, at:

the default is 15 chairs at 5mm spacing in 4mm/ft scale, i.e. 30 chairs on a raft.

obviously you need to change the number for 7mm/ft, or the size of your printer, etc.

p.s. the menu now correctly says store and shift, not shift and store.

martin.