davebradwell wrote:On cassette couplers there is, of course, the original article by Chris Pendlenton in MRJ 27 and which should ideally be re-printed somewhere. Chris uses an integral coupling or there's the Mike Clark version available from himself. No loose bits to lose. Built-in contact is self cleaning, too. Your loose connectors don't address vertical alignment and with my near 5ft cassettes curving upwards in Winter and down in Summer something very positive is essential.
The cassettes for the layout, indeed the whole layout, were built under ambient conditions with the maximum length of the cassettes is 880mm. So under extreme conditions the deviation in the cassettes is not going to be as great as your 5ft ones. But also I cannot see the layout being operated under those extreme conditions?
At home I would find no pleasure in operating with the temperature being either too hot or too cold. For the former I would find something else to do for the later I would put the heating on. But as I have said previously I only usually use the layout to test things out at home
At an exhibition the dates for those I usually attend, end at the beginning of June and start again in September. So the potentially really hot spells of weather are between these dates. Though who knows what the future will bring? Fortunately the days of winter exhibitions with the heating cranked right up appear to be long gone. In 35+ years of being 'on the road' with various layouts, there has only been one that a coat was needed to keep warm was needed. Fortunately I also had my fingerless gloves with me! But that's a story for apres exhibition......
davebradwell wrote:As for electrical connections you should really put a star washer between the tag and the aly which will cut through the oxide coating on the aly. I've had failures without it, even with our clean Highland air. I think tags are available with the star as part of the hole.
Beware also some popular sources of aly angle which have an insulating anodised coating.
That's a good one Dave which I hadn't thought of. If and when it becomes a problem I will remember that and act accordingly.
I am reasonably sure the aluminium was mill finish, but I went over it with an abrasive block anyway, cleaning up with IPA.
davebradwell wrote:Perhaps someone will explain to me why you might want to screw the Tortoise to a plate which you then screw to the baseboard when they work perfectly well fitted directly as in the instructions. Rubber mounts would be a good thing, perhaps, to reduce noise. I think a resilient layer is desirable under track, though, even at low speeds.
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The Exactoscale base features a recess in which a plastic 'tie bar' runs. Wire droppers from the point blade are inserted into the brass tubing that has an interference fit in the tie bar. Although not required for this layout the brass tubing can be offset to suit the location, which was a absolute godsend for the last layout.
I find the noise of the Tortoise not that instructive, nothing like the 'thwack' of a solenoid point motor. The main use of the layout will be at exhibitions (hopefully!) where the ambient noise to likely to drown out that of the point motor. Again its a personal thing but I find the gentle whirring noise reassuring that something has happened.
The appearance of the Model Rail Scotland mug has nothing to do with where you live Dave. Its to remind me to get on with the layout and to get out on the road again.
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