Saturday morning ish

With the convention just round the corner, I thought that a timely reminder of all the paperwork would be in order. This can all be found here.

From my personal experience last time round, here would be a few hints.
-Spend some time creating a folder of information on the prototype you modeled. This apparently makes up a chunk of marks under the guise of 'research'. There's extra marks for creating your own plan (I think) which sort of makes sense but more applies to bits other than the trains (which are more exhaustively covered).
-Indicate clearly which bits are hand made etc. Many moons ago I entered a German armoured 'train' in a competition, and it was judged as a kit as I had recycled a Lima power bogie and an old tank turret, despite the fact I has made the bulk of the body and hand detailed it.
-Make sure that the judges know how solidly built the model is. Apparently the judges were afraid to handle my J sheep wagon.

And the results are...

The numbers have turned up from the competitions and since I said I would, here they are.

First up, the 2 vans (all grades out of 20)

30' 1889 guards van.
Skill 15.5
Complexity 12.75
Conformity/fidelity 12.5
Finish 13
Total 53.75 (67.19%)

47' guards van.
Skill 15
Complexity 13.25
Conformity/fidelity 13
Finish 12.5
Total 53.75 (67.19%)

These 2 entries were supplied with no supporting information. Also both have a wire coupler on one end and someminor flaws in assembly.

Uga
Skill 14.5
Complexity 12
Conformity/fidelity 13.5
Finish 12
Total 52 (65%)

This model was supplied with a journal with the plan and a photo I worked from. might have hurt me a bit

Finally, the J sheep wagon
Skill 16.5
Complexity 14.5
Conformity/fidelity 17.5
Finish 15.75
Total 64.25 (80.31%)

Again, this was supplied with the relevant journal article.

So, what does this tell us all? I think that the lack of historical information hurt me a bit. The finish I'm not too sure about, weathering is very subjective. I could have had a crack at decals for the numbers, but life is a bit short.

I'd be interested to see how Kiwibonds Dx would score in the cutthroat locos section.

Convention report part III; where to from here?

Today some philsiophising type stuff. over the 4 days I was lucky enough to have conversations outside the convention area with a wide variety of people. A fair bit of this was down to the 'local' knowledge' of the fine dinning establishments on Cuba st, but also the high caliber of dining companions that I tend to attract, and Barry Fitzgerald (who at least this time round didn't wear jandles). A US prototype modeler pointed out something that I had completely missed, that it is actually a modeling event for all modelers in New Zealand. From the coverage 9and indeed the entries ) I had always felt that it was an NZR convention with add-ons. The flip side was that the layout tours were predominantly American, with the opinion that one of the tours was one of the highest overall standard tours that the modeler had been on.

Competition trophy's. Some thinking (which I agree with) is that there needs to be some rationalisation of the trophy's. Its rather confusing that models with high grades in particular sections don't 'trophy' by the simple reason that they are in the 'wrong' scale or 'wrong' prototype. I'm not sure why this bugs me so much, as I don't feel I'm an overly competitive person (wargaming aside, which I play simply for the game , not to actually win), but I do enjoy entering the competitions simply to see how my modeling compares with others. Its also comparing the primarily scratch built or kit built NZR models with British kits or US highly detailed RTR. Now I'm not suggesting doing away with some of the trophy's, but maybe stretching the categories for their award outside 1/64.

Another topic was the future of the hobby. This is a bit of an old chestnut, but still topical. One thing that I did notice at the convention was that there were not that many younger modelers coming through. At about 40 I would have been in the lower age section. The problem goes further than getting people into modeling NZR, but getting them into railway modeling at all. Lets face it, its not a cheap or easy hobby. I've been working on Paekakariki for over 2 years now and there is still a lot of work to do (thats a bit of an understatement). How do you keep a new modeler interested for that length of time. Sure there are shortcuts, but they are only really available for track, or for locos and wagons, for those with money. It was also pointed out that we can get too insulated in our own wee niche and don't look at the wider picture. Here at Motorised dandruff we have spent 4 years showing that making models is not that hard, that everyone makes mistakes, and hopefully encouraging you all to actually have a go.

Well, that's a bit of a ramble, but I guess all the main points are there, maybe. Open to the peanut gallery for comment..

Convention report part II or 'Dude, wheres my layout?'

In this part, here's a bit more of an irreverent look at the convention.

Thursday night we arrive after a quiet drive down from Palmy. First job is to register at the hotel, then off to the convention site to drop off the 1/3 of the layout that I had transported down. The first question, was 'Oi, wheres my layout' (in a text to Cabbage). A bit of a cock up on the communication front, but rectified next morning.

Friday morning dawned clear and sunny, leading to questions about whether we were actually in Wellington. Rolled up to the convention center to be greeted by what looked like the tail end of the million mustache march, turns out it was only Morris and Postelwaite near the door. Get the layout set up. plug in the DCC boxes. Ta dah, there is a short. spend 5 minutes isolating it, then realise I had twisted 2 wires together for tidiness. Take 10 minutes to get the booster talking to the main box, and finally discover that the 2 jump throttles have flat batteries....Apart from that the layout runs nicely. Graham from Auckland turns up and brings his locos along. The Df is 'entertaining' to get onto the rails, and the Dg with sound goes quiet. This later requires surgery on the last day. Can you believe that I didn't take any photos?

The layout attracts plenty of interest, mostly for the construction methods, but also for the track work and models. It also serves as a focal point for all discussions Nz120 and a few others.

The clinics are interesting, but I skip the layout tours. Entertain Brent Hopley instead, who has his 9mm layout at the convention, and is in charge of the hall for the afternoons.

'Damn photographers straying on the tracks...'

This is a part of a much larger layout. All the locos have sound, and I watched while a Wb had the decoder put in. The decoder was larger than my Cb.

The SIG on Friday night was a small intimate affair, bolstered by a few hangers on. First up we all had to escape the larger NZR SIG (at one point I was considering feigning my own death to get out of the room). After a wide ranging discussion on a variety of topics it is suggested that we aim to meet again in 2 years time at the next convention. In that time, we aim to achieve a few things.

1) Get more people making models (it seemed a bit redundant to try to get more people into the scale, as that's what everyone says).
2) Aim to make it easier to get hold of all the bits required to build wagons and locos in the scale.
3) Aim to have a freemo layout based around the MMW end plates come together at the convention to run trains.

Nothing really earth shattering here, but I'm a bit of a believer in baby steps. Now, the 2nd and 3rd aims are ones that we can lead (and I have some ideas for the fremo layout), but the 1st one is up to the rest of you.

To infinity and beyond!

Well that was the quote for the convention, Thank you Mish.

The micro modules were on display with plenty of interest being shown by all scales, the idea of the interlocking ends was a complete hit, 4 pairs of ends were sold including 2 pair to NZ Finesclaes for an NZ64 scale table top layout. Had to break down the examples at the convention to meet demand.

So for the next convention lets see if we can get together and make up an NZ120 layout and run some real trains, so let's take it to the next level and see if we can go "To Infinity and Beyond"

More ends are going to be cut as soon as I can get down to Orrsum next week, the cost has been set at $10 each $20 for the pair.

There is no standard length or width only that each module end is one of the cut ends available through this blog, what you put between the ends is up to you.

With as little or as much track and scenery as you like, some suggestions have been bridges supported on the tables on each side, large shunting senses like Marton or Whareroa and balloon loops for turning.

So let's see what you have

To Infinity and Beyond

2012 Convention report's I

Well, back at Schloss Dandruff tonight, with the car unloaded and the train room to clean up, what was the news from the weekend.

Well, there was allot of it, so much in fact that I'm going to split it up into more than one post.

Overall, I found it to be a very good convention. The venue was great, big enough so that everyone was not tripping over each other, but with some nice wee areas to get away from others for quiet chats. as well as that, Cuba st with all its cafes was just around the corner, so I didn't dine in at all. However reports suggest that the on site food was very good anyway. There were a wide selection of clinics which were all well attended (depends on your definition of 'well' I guess). The only beef I heard was a lack of non stop coffee and tea, which if that's as bad as it gets, suggests that it was very successful. Thanks to the organising committee for putting in the hard yards before and during the convention to make it the successful event that it was.

Well, first up, what everyone will want to know about, competitions. The entries were of a very high standard, with some stunning locos (with the eventual winner being an amazing piece of work). As well as the Uga and J5 I decided to enter my 30' clerestory and 47' vans. These were also tarted up a bit prior to leaving last week. Saturday morning I get a text from Amateur fetler asking (from Taupo) 'How are we looking in the competitions?'

'Tiny'.

The competition room appears to be a most secretive area, with the door shut for most of the 2 days. However late Saturday afternoon the door was open, and those who had not gone layout touring ambled in to check the results.

'Well done, you shall be rewarded with a place of honour above the work bench'

'Pack of losers! back to the layout with you!

In all seriousness, I was very happy with the results, as I had not expected to score so well. The J scraped into the gold category by 0.31 of a percent, but its written down, so I don't care. It placed better than other S scale models . The other 3 were in the mid 60's, but again, still good enough for bronze. Not bad for 'layout models' with not much extra work done to them.
I'd also like to thank Amateur fettler and Cabbage for doing the grunt CAD work, so that all I had to do was assemble it. The problem I now have is that the next 19 sheep wagons that I do will have to have the same level of detail.

I'll post the judging sheet marking scheme and comments when I receive them in the mail, so that all of us can see where the shortcomings are in modeling in a smaller scale, and which areas need to be addressed to increase the competition scores to compete with the bigger guys.

So, was the J5 the best Nz120 model in show?

No.

I was beaten by B 0-4-4-0's line side hut which he had knocked up

'The very deserving inaugural winner of the John Rappard trophy'

If you are not here

Well, since by the time you read this I will be in Wellington talking crap (everyone needs a skill), here are a couple of photos of my competition entries.

I think its done, added the hand brake linkage and handrails the other night. There's some things that I would like to change, but that will have to wait for the others. Can't believe I need to do 15-20 of these...


Again, just about forgot to add the handrails, and have since cut the side chains short.
Oh, and there are 2 guards vans as well, but not as well made. It will be interesting to see how they get graded (and if the dreaded optivisor comes out)

All things being equal I hope to try some blogging from the convention itself, we'll see how it pans out.

Conventioning II

A few thoughts on the special interest group meeting that i assume we will be having.

A couple of things I would like to raise (well, one thing) is the sorting out face to face for modular standards. I can see 2 at the moment,. The first is the ones that have been semi thrashed out over at NZ120.org. this is just about done and really only needs the track connections between the modules sorted.
The second is my personal hobby horse, the mini module.

'Oh, hang on, its an ass...'

At the moment I'm leaning towards something maybe 300 wide, and 600-900 long (or in multiples of this). This would allow people with not too much room or time to build a small home layout to build a small scene that could be brought together to run with others. I see no reason why these could not be attached to converter modules for the larger system as an industrial siding or branch line.

Again there needs to be a sorting out of how the track approaches the ends. I've been thinking along the lines of having computer cut ends in 8-10mm ply with markings in where the rail ends sit. However with personal experience I'm not sure how this can be made to work with low profile wheels without a lot of side-to-side rocking or even derailments

What other topics do people think should be discussed?

Conventioning I

Had a chat with a fellow modeler while waiting for the Lady of the house to visit the vampires for a blood test. I was asked, 'so hows your planning coming along for the convention'. I mentioned the Uga's etc and that was about it. later on I had a bit more of a think about it. So just where am I up to;

-Waiting on the chassis for the J sheep wagons and the tops for the Uga's. This is going to require more wheels, bearings and in the Uga's case, the type 97 bogies. requires money.

-The layout has not been progressed much further due to the lady of the houses recent surgery. hopefully this will move on a bit faster, as I now have a source of extruded polystyrene (at a very reasonable price I think). I scored some of the crap white polystyrene from a packing crate at work which will do for the hills. The plywood is another thing that should work out. I need to make 2 end parts, and while I would like to build a couple of return loops, realistically its not going to happen.
Oh, and did I say I've got no idea about how it will get down there? It might fit into the car but...

-Paying for the convention, plus 4 nights board. The lady of the house is keen to come down for the weekend, and so that's even more money. At least nowhere is particularly far in downtown wellington, which is one of the reasons that I really love it. Another plus is that none of our favorite restaurants were named in the bad restaurants in the Dom Post today. Follow me and I'll show you how to dine well for not too much.....
(Oh, and with a second person in the car, there is no way that the layout will fit as well. It would only just fit in with the drivers seat well forward.)

-North yard has come through with some wheels for the bush tram layout. these are a bit steeper than I was expecting, but Markits stopped making them in 2008, so I'm lucky to get them. Plus the brass bits to make the log bolsters that's even more money.

So, as you can see its getting to be an expensive month. Maybe if I stop eating.....

'And the categories are...'

Posted in the comments last week by B 0-4-4-0;

'Never mind the scoring, etc. Lets just get as much NZ120 stuff as we have that looks realistic (and that has never been entered in a competition before) and submit it in an appropriate category.'

I fully agree with this. So just what are the categories that you can enter your pride and joy in?

2.1 Locomotives. Says it all really. By far the most popular of the categories. Also I think one of the hardest marked by the judges, judging by the 2010 convention results. Not sure how my Cb would fair in the section, and quite honestly how any NZ120 loco would fair. Oh and locos get extra points if they can move under their own power? I would have thought it was a prerequisite for entering? As another aside, steam locos seem to fair better than the infernal combustion engine for some odd reason.

2.2 Self propelled. Anything that isn't a locomotive that can still move without the finger of god pushing it. Railcars etc. Not a large category (no entries in 2010).

2.3 Passenger rolling stock, 2.4 freight rolling stock and 2.5 non- revenue rolling stock. I've lumped all these in together as they are all pretty similar. Not overly sure how well an NZ120 model would compete in these as well, but may well find out with one of the J sheep wagons on an etched chassis.

2.6 Trains. Minimum consist of a powered 'unit' and 2 others. Just ideal for the scale provided that you can dredge up enough stock for a decent sized train. At Porirua I entered my unit coal train of 2 Dc's and 7 Cb's The problems came on the public open day when all the competition winning models were to be displayed in a separate room, and it took me 5 minutes to sort out that I actually needed them to run on Otaki to Cass, where they put in a good 8 hour work day. All a bit confusing really. I thought that they were meant to run...

2.7 Rail plant. anything on rails not covered by 2.1-2.5 above. Jiggers snowplows etc. No entries last time round.

2.8 Permanent way. Signals and track. Last time round some amazing models from my friend Graham Venning did very well here and in the rest of the competition.

2.9 Line side vehicles. Trucks and stuff.

2.10 Bridges. Only allowed to include minimal scenics.

2.11 Structures. other buildings. I've got a suspicion that this is one that will start being dominated by the laser cut wood brigade in the next few years (if not this one) as it has been one of the more active areas applying the technology.

2.12 Scenes. 'Composite models forming a scene or diorama'. It can pay to limit the size of this. I once entered Cass (all 16' of it), and I think finished 2nd behind a sawmill. last time won by a model of a cabbage tree (which went on to win a few of the cups as well, despite having a Railmaster cast sheep on the base).

So, there you have it. start sorting out which models you will be bringing and make sure that the painted finish is up to scratch as well, which was one of the failings i noticed looking at the photos last time round. I'm wondering how I will get the smell of sheep into my J for that extra dimension...

Something else I've noticed, there no longer are 1st, 2nd or 3rd awarded in each category, instead a certificate with a colour (which I think has always existed). It was nice to know if you had finished in the top 3 (or 2 in the smaller categories), but maybe its my decades of playing in wargaming competitions where everyone knows where they finished.