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Tuesday 8th January ‘13. The first meeting of the year. The track laying along the front boards continues as does the wiring of track feeds and point motors. Board 3 point motors all tested electrically.

Tuesday 15^th January ‘13. Track laying continued on the OO gauge although a short delay was incurred as a necessary change identified last week was not possible to be incorporated as we were waiting for two points to arrive from the suppliers. In the meantime a start was made on the eagerly awaited N gauge layout following the purchase of ply and timber earlier in the day. The layout will consist of 3 boards and the first one was constructed during the evening. It will still need bracing and ‘fine tuning’ but all involved were pleased. Geoff A took some timber home to do some rebating ready for the other two boards. The evening was interrupted by the fire alarm sounding, however it was a false alarm.

Tuesday 22nd January ‘13. Track and point laying along the rear siding tracks continues on the “OO” layout. Wiring is progressing on Board No 3. Members were reminded about the fact that the “OO” layout still needs a name! Buzzlines coaches have emailed us re their details of an all inclusive coach trip to the Brighton Model World exhibition on Sunday 24th February. Pick up in Faversham and most towns locally for an all in cost of £25.00.

Tuesday 29^th January ‘13. Further point laying along the rear of the OO layout continues. Wiring on board 3 completed and the multi pin connector installed to allow power connections board to board. The N gauge baseboard building is getting well under way. Currently the best name for the OO layout is Bysing Wood Junction.

Tuesday 5^th February ‘13. Track laying on the rear of the layout to the left-hand end has been completed. Attention now turns to the right-hand board where the turntable is to be installed. Wiring of four of the baseboards is now all but complete. Most of the layouts support legs have been stabilised by adding a diagonal brace to each leg. More timber is to be obtained in readiness for next weeks meeting to allow all the support legs to be braced.

Tuesday 12^th February ‘13. The OO layouts wiring commenced on board 4, which will also support the control panel. This means there are more connections to be made on this board than any other board. The track for the branch line has been laid and work will now commence on track laying for the turntable and its loco spur siding. The N gauge layouts baseboard construction continues apace. The two track plans can be seen below.

Tuesday 19^th February ‘13. On the OO layout the sidings area track laying commenced on base board four together with the location of the turntable on board 3A. A large diameter hole will need to be cut in the baseboards surface to allow it to be located.
Control panel link wiring installed and and a start made on baseboard nine wiring.

Tuesday 26^th February ‘13. Baseboard construction for the new N gauge layout continues apace. On the OO layout the Turntables well hole is now cut out and the track prepared for the entrance to the turntable. Wiring on board nine is complete and board eight wiring has commenced.

Tuesday 5^th March '13. Wiring of the OO layouts baseboard eight was completed and board seven wiring commenced. The turntable has been fitted and its approach track aligned. The siding adjacent to the turntable needs now to be laid, as too do the exit tracks from the turntable. The N gauge layouts baseboard continued with the first of the baseboard locking latches fitted together with the boards alignment dowels.

Tuesday 12^th March ‘13. The Club Annual General Meeting was held with the election of club officers and committee members for the next twelve months. The new committee is comprised of - Brian Lambert Chairperson. Colin Hudson Secretary. Kelvin Inge Treasurer. With committee members Bob Bushel, Martin Luffman and Graham Church. The financial statement was presented to the club by Kelvin and was accepted by the clubs membership. The membership present made several suggestions for the future of the club which the committee will take forward for discussion and action.

Tuesday 19^th March ’13. Work on constructing the N gauge baseboards continues. On the OO layout track laying is completed around the turntable area. Wiring on board seven continues and one baseboard has had its rail ends relaid and soldered again having been damaged in storage.

Tuesday 26^th March ‘13. The OO layout wiring continues with board seven now almost complete. A ‘triangular fillet’ of baseboard is be produced to allow a more natural scenic transition around the turntable area. On the N gauge layout some further baseboard alignment work was carried out and then the boards were given a coating of PVA sealer.

Tuesday 2^nd April ‘13. Wiring on the OO layouts board seven is now completed and board six wiring commenced. This board will have a 25 way input feed from board five and 15 way connection out to board seven . The triangular fillet for the scenic area around the turntable was completed with just its means of fixing now needed. More timber has been purchased for the N gauge layout. This will, once built, make the trestles and the support beams for the whole layout

Tuesday 9^th April ‘13. Work on the ‘N’ gauge support trestles is well under way with one trestle completed and one support beam hinged mid point along its length. The ‘OO’ layout scenic work was discussed and suggestions made to have one end as open countryside and the other as a small town scene. The station area it was suggested might have an over bridge with a booking office on the bridge and stairs leading down to each platform, The wiring of the multipin plugs and sockets on board six was completed and the 25 way socket fitted to one end of board 5.

Tuesday 16^th April ‘13. Work tonight concentrated on the OO layout. Three of the backboard/scenic backs have now been fitted. Board 6 wiring has been completed. A start has been made on spraying the track with a rusty rail colour. Discussion about the turntable areas scenery and what needs to be added took place, with a suggestion of a low relief engine shed front being one idea.

Tuesday 23^rd April ‘13. On the OO layout further track and rail spraying was undertaken. A low relief engine shed placement was decided and the track leading onto the turntable was repositioned. The control panels means of fixing was installed onto the rear of baseboard four. This board is the next to have all its wiring undertaken. The N gauge trestle construction is nearing completion with their hinges being added.

Tuesday 30^th April’ 13. With the N gauge trestles completed and the three main support beams hinged the baseboard was test fitted . On the OO layout wiring commenced on the main baseboard number 4. This board carries all the wiring from the control panel and distributed the feeds out to all the other boards so it will take a few weeks to complete. Track relaying was undertaken into one of the sidings due to track damage.

Tuesday 7^th May ‘13. Track and rail spraying continues on the OO layout. The turntable exit tracks fixed in place together with the actual turntable. Board four wiring continues and this board together with the control panel which fits onto this board will be displayed at the forthcoming Shepherd Neame Model railway exhibition on Saturday 11^th. The three N gauge trestles have had adjustable feet fitted and further work was undertaken of the main layout support beams.

Tuesday 14^th May ‘13. Track rail spraying is now fully completed. Wiring on board four completed and a start on the wiring has been made on board 4A. The N gauge support trestles is completed with anti leg splaying chains fitted to each trestle. One of the main layout support beams has been re configured to allow it to become more rigid.

Tuesday 21^st May ‘13. The N gauge layout track plan has been printed to full size (thanks to Kelvin) and was laid out onto the baseboards. Checks were made for possible board joint conflicts with any points and the plan will also ensures that no underneath cross bracing is in the way of any point motors. The OO layouts wiring continues with the wires all run on board 3A and the twin bank of connecting sockets prepared on board 4.

Tuesday 28^th May ‘13. Work on the N gauge baseboards underneath support struts got underway. Wiring on the two baseboards 4 and 4A on the OO layout is nearing completion with two 25 way multipin connectors still to be fitted to board 4A

Tuesday 4^th June ‘13. On the OO layout work began on the back scene for the right-hand end baseboards which will have a country scene with tunnels allowing access to and from the loop tracks. More wiring on board 4A which has four 25 way connectors and fifty through circuit wires, all are installed and work will commence next week on baseboard 5 which is the final board to be wired. No work was undertaken on the N gauge layout this week allowing more time and easier access to the OO layout..

Tuesday 11^th June ‘13. More scenic backboard work on both the OO layouts loop end boards was undertaken. All wiring on OO boards 4A and 4 has been completed. Board 5 terminal blocks were installed ready for wiring. The multi pin connections were added to both ends of the board. Next stage is to connect the cross board wires.

Tuesday 18^th June ‘13. The work on the OO layouts backboards continues. Board five has all of its point motors installed and wired to local connection terminal blocks. One of the three 25 way D connectors has been fully terminated. Still to do is wire all motors form their connectors to the terminals, install track rail feeds and any through wire connections.

Saturday 22^nd June ‘13. We took our OO layout to the West Faversham Community Centres Summer Fete. Those who attended from the club enjoyed the experience of exhibiting a layout and the effort involved in getting a layout ready before the door opened and dismantling it after the event. Some defects were discovered which will need correcting, but the layout looked good and attracted much attention from the public attending the fete.

Tuesday 25^th June ‘13. Following the outing of the OO layout to the WFCC Summer fete, several electrical and track alignment defects were noted. Work on correcting these defects was undertaken. Wiring on board 5 continues and board 3A has had a 15 way plug replaced with a 25 way D plug together with the additional ten wires. The multi pin sockets on Boards 1 and 3 were relocated to the underside of the baseboards. Leg support locating pins and their retaining chains have been replaced on some boards.

Tuesday 2^nd July ‘13. Wiring on the OO layouts board 5 continues. All track feed wires installed and the first four point operation wires run in. A start has been made on arranging for the ‘crating’ of the OO baseboards by making up end plates to hold two baseboards apart. Agreement has been reached and an order placed to purchase the track, points, and rail joiners etc needed to make a start on the N gauge layout, delivery of the items is expected in the next few days.

Tuesday 9^th July ‘13. Back scene work on the left hand end baseboard continues with a proposed retaining wall and road above and workshops in the arches of the retaining walls. Wiring on board five continues and all points are now wired leaving the outgoing feeds to board six to complete. The N gauge track items have arrived and all points have had frog feed dropper wires fitted. It has been decided to make the N gauge layout dual operational with either the whole layout being dc or DCC powered. For dc operation three controllers will be required. All points on the N gauge layout will be analogue operation from two control panels. Crating for storage and transportation of the OO baseboards is underway.

Tuesday 16^th July ‘13. Wiring on all the OO boards is now completed. Next week full operational testing will commence. Crating of the OO baseboards continues as too does the scenic work on the left hand end of the layout. The N gauge baseboards were erected and the track plan laid out. Onto the full size plan all isolating sections were marked with their insulated rail joiner positions. This enables the main layouts control mimic panel top to be produced.

Tuesday 23^rd July’13. All the OO baseboards were fitted together and electrical testing undertaken following a sequential testing plan of checking and testing rail feeds and point motor operation from the control panel. Just three defects were discovered. Which will be rectified over the next meeting or so as time permits. Consideration is to be given to providing LED point position indications for the two double slips. As these are the hardest points to visually see their actual position on the layout. Scenic work and planning continues on the left-hand end baseboards. The layouts valance is to have a Velcro strip sewn along its top edge and a matching strip is to be secured to the front and sides of the OO layout. This may also be able to be fitted onto the N gauge layout too?

Tuesday 30^th July ‘13. With all the “OO” baseboards erected, fault finding was undertaken on the defects discovered in last weeks tests. All defects have been corrected but then a new one appeared during train running tests due to one point motor not switching its frog polarity correctly. This will be investigated and corrected at next weeks meeting. More work was undertaken to the left hand ends scenic back boards. The layouts 10 mtr long valance or curtain which covers the support legs was fixed to the layout via Velcro tape fixed to the outer face of the baseboard upper edges.

Tuesday 7^th August ’13. On the “OO” layout point number 3 point motor was investigated for failure to operate and switch its frog polarity. It was discovered the Seep PM1 motor was sticking in one direction, the cause is unclear as it stuck even when off the baseboard. A replacement motor was fitted and wired. During this work it was noted that the points over centre spring was out of its notch in the tie bar and was lodged in the operating pin hole. This necessitated the removal of the point from the baseboard to allow the spring to be refitted correctly. Once the spring was fitted the new motor was tested for correct operation.. Scenic work on the left hand baseboards continues while some across baseboard rail joint alignment was corrected.

Tuesday 13^th August ‘13. The “N” gauge baseboards were set up and a start made on gluing cork tiles to the surface. The “OO” layout was also set up and some rail alignment works carried out. Scenic work on the left hand end continues with a road surface cut for the high level scenic section. Test runs with an old DMU was commenced to show any poor track sections before ballasting can be undertaken. One Seep point motor was noted to have a loose drive pin which will need to be superglued in place before the layout is set up again. This was carried out on the 20^th August.

Tuesday 20^th August ‘13. Work on both the “OO” and “N” gauge layouts continued. On the “OO” the two double slips operating press buttons on the control panel were re configured to make it a more logical operating method. Scenic work on the left hand boards continues with the high level roadway and two bridges beginning to take shape. Further track alignment across baseboard joints was carried out. On the “N” gauge layout the sheeting over of the high level area baseboard surface with cork was completed.
Next week it is planned to run the “OO” gauge layout under both dc and DCC controls to test prove everything then ballasting can commence.

Tuesday 27^th August ‘13. “OO” layout test running night began well. A couple of cross baseboard rail joints were re soldered and all worked well until one track section failed. The fault was located to a cross board wire on board 4A. This will be corrected next week. After the mid evening tea break DCC running was tested for the first time. All worked well except for the one dead track section. The “N” gauge group undertook the initial stages of track laying.

Tuesday 3^rd September ‘13. The faults discovered on the “OO” layout were corrected. Scenic work on the left hand end boards continues. The quick drying ballast glue was experimentally tested and it seems to work well. Platforms are to be produced from 12mm ply and a top surface of 3mm MDF. On the “N” gauge layout track laying commenced along the rear storage siding area. Dropper track feed wires from two points were installed and copper clad sleepers fitted at the rear storage sidings cross baseboard joint.

Tuesday 10^th September ’13. Track laying on the “N” gauge layout continues with more points and connecting tracks laid to the rear fiddle / storage yard area. On the “OO” layout track ballasting commenced using the new quick drying ballast glue. First impressions are that its looking good and works well, drying time is shortened by using a hair drier over the area glued. Scenic work on the town scene on the left hand end continues.

Tuesday 17th September '13. The ballasting of the tracks on the “OO” layout got well underway with the quick drying ballast glue proving its worth. The speed of the glue drying is increased by the gentle use of a hair dryer. More track and points have been laid on the “N” gauge layouts rear sections. See the Club Layouts page for some pictures of both these.

Tuesday 24^th September ‘13. As this was the last Tuesday of the month, its classified as a ‘Running night’. The “OO” layout was set up in full and tested. It ran well and while a couple of issues with track levels and miss aligned rails at board joints were discovered these were resolved during the evening. The scenic team were able to test fit the station areas over bridge and the industrial areas high level roadway on the left hand boards. Some track laying work was also undertaken on the N gauge and it has now been decided to replace two of the standard points with curved ones.

Tuesday 1^st October ‘13. Further track ballasting was carried out on both ends of the “OO” layout. It was noted that a pair of point motors were failing to both operate from reverse to their normal position. The wiring from the panel to each point motor was found to be sound, so the two motors will be freed from their baseboards next week when the boards can be placed upside down for easier working on the motors. Track laying on the “N” gauge layouts rear storage sections and the the right-hand curved area continued. Storage of all the layouts and club items in the storage cupboard is becoming more and more a problem. We are awaiting WFCC action on installing storage racking in the cupboard

Tuesday 8^th October ‘13. Further track ballasting work was carried out on the “OO” layout especially around the double slips. Track laying on the “N” gauge layout has made good progress this week with three points being laid along the scenic front side of the layout and curved flexi track sections on the right-hand side laid to connect to the rear storage sidings. Two Seep point motors on the “OO” layout were refitted as they were found to be binding slightly. Once repositioned both worked correctly. Next week it is hoped to commence installing the two main line platforms on the “OO” and also lay extra fine sand in the loco yard area which will, once dried, be painted to represent coal and ash etc over the ground of the yard.

Tuesday 15^th October ‘13. The first two platform base sections were measured, cut and fitted to the “OO” layout. This leaves four more sections to fit. Then the platform top surface can be cut from MDF. Further track ballasting and gluing continued around the double slips. On the “N” gauge more track was laid.

Tuesday 22^nd October ‘13. The remainder of the OO layouts platform bases were installed leaving the ramp ends still to be modelled, the platform brick sides were started to be glued in place. One section of damaged track was replaced on the right-hand end and more ballasting was undertaken. While on the N gauge layout further points and track were installed leading to the rear storage sidings. Next weeks club meeting will be a running evening with the OO layout in use.

Tuesday 29^th October ‘13. As this was the last Tuesday of the month it was a Running night. The “OO” layout was used. All worked well after a through rail clean to remove ballast glue from the rail tops. Initially two, two car EMUs ran, followed by a Southern T4 loco running as a light loco then pulling two carriages on one line and a Southern 4-4-0 loco on the other line. A refurbished Mainline loco was also run. Several scenic items were also installed on the layout to ensure they fitted correctly, these including the central station areas over bridge with a pub and estate agents buildings installed on the bridge. Some further track laying work was also undertaken on the N gauge layout.

Tuesday 5^th November ‘13. No fireworks at the club just lots of bright sparklers! Work with ballasting around the platform area on the “OO” layout continued. As too did adding brick effect paper to the platform sides. Some further crating of the “OO” baseboards was also undertaken. Track laying on the “N” gauge layout continued apace. Almost 60% of the track on the main board has now been laid.

Tuesday 12^th November ‘13. Work continued on the “OO” layout. Polystyrene blocks have been cut and assembled on the layouts right hand end to represent the beginnings of a chalk cliff and hillside. In the middle station area the four ramp ends have been created so as the installation of the platform surface can be started and towards the left hand end more track ballasting work was undertaken. On the “N” gauge layout further track laying on the main board and storage yard areas is progressing well.

Tuesday 19^th November ‘13. More work on the “OO” layouts platforms was undertaken. All the side walling has been added and one complete platform surface was bonded to its sub base. This has now to be painted a grey colour to represent tarmac. Further work on the right hand ends cliff face and tunnel continued. Track laying on the “N” gauge layout goes well with one of the two left hand curves leading onto the front area laid. Next week, being the last meeting of the month, should be a “running night”, but as there will be two missed club evenings over the Christmas/ New Year period it was decided to abandon this for November and continue with scenic work on both layouts.

Tuesday 26^th November ‘13. Track laying on the “N” gauge continues with tracks along the front of the layout being laid. On the “OO” layout the right hand end hill side modelling is well underway and the two platforms now have their surfaces added. Painting them a grey colour will be undertaken next. The station over bridge was tested for fit onto the platforms and looks really good. Arches acting as retaining walls are to be constructed to fit along the rear as a back scene and these will have low relief house backs added above the walls.

Tuesday 3^rd December ‘13. On the “N” gauge layout track laying has now been fully completed on one loop and the other loop has just a short section of track to be laid to complete that loop. Then the station area siding track work can be laid. Its anticipated that the initial track and point motor wiring can commence early in the New Year. On the “OO” layout the two through platforms were painted a dark grey colour to represent Tarmac. Edging slabs are to be added next week. A good start was made on the making of the high level low relief house backs, and more work being undertaken this week on the tunnel and scenic area on the right hand end of the layout.

Tuesday 10^th December '13. The “OO” itself was left in the storage cupboard and just the “N” gauge layout erected. The final piece of track was laid and this makes both loops complete. The station area is now to be completed track wise. Building construction for the “OO” was undertaken until around 20:30 when a club buffet was consumed along with our normal |tea and Coffee.. After the buffet the 2013 prize draw took place. The major prizes of a Hornby steam outline OO loco kindly donated by Peco and a Dapol N gauge diesel loco donated by Dapol themselves were won by club members Peter and Geoff. Carole was thanked by the club for her dedication in turning up each week and providing the mid evening beverages for the membership.

Saturday 14^th December '13. Fourteen sat down to the clubs annual Christmas meal, held this year at the Sun Inn, Faversham. A great meal was enjoyed by all and mutterings were overheard saying we should do it again next year!

Tuesday 17^th December ‘13. Work continued on the OO layout with scenicing the right hand end with some painting of the hills and further construction of kits for the right hand end. The N gauge track work was completed on the tail chaser section which includes the fiddle yard and station area. Wires were cobbled together and track testing commenced with a Merchant Navy class hauling a rake of 5 Pullmans and 2 Southern coaches. Some minor issues were found and will be put right in the New Year