}{R} wrote: }> I am 60 and returning to model railways after 40 years absence. My }> hasn't a lot changed :) }>
}> I always like track building and my father [now deceased] was }> particularly good at building TT point work when he retired. }>
}> So I decided to try 2mm Fine scale and build my own track using the }> 2mm association jigs. }>
}> Woe is me, my first attempt with the 2mm association track jig is a }> disaster :( see
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oh deary me a }> real c*ck up. } }I'm afraid that one is toast. Don't waste time trying to recover it.
Yes I was quite proud of how badly I cocked up :)
}> Obviously I am seriously out of practice, as I used to be an }> electronics engineer I can solder much better than that, but never so }> small :) } }> If any one here knows anything about the 2mm association track }> building jigs I could use some basic instruction. } }Might do better asking on the 2mm Virtual Area Group (its a Yahoo mailing }list, links via the member's pages on the 2mm website).
Yes I know I read it as a list, but I am a Usenet fan have been for years since before there was spam and email lists were Ezmlm, none of this easy web s**te + bloody adverts and posers and all :)
} You'll get a couple }of hundred experts there, all willing to help the beginner, rather than }hoping I've spotted a 2mm question here.
That was the plan but you have done just perfect thanks ;)
}> How do I get the bugger out without ripping it out ? }>
}> Any tips on my woeful small scale soldering would be welcome, my eyes }> are not as young as they used to be but I an most unsure how to even }> get this solder into the jig :( } } }There is a book, called "The Beginner's Guide to 2mm Modelling", from the }2mm Scale Association shop, which costs a mere ô. About 1/4 of it is }devoted to building plain track and turnouts, with photographs, step-by-step }how to do it, as well as some theoretical background. I recommend you get a }copy.
Got one, I will read it yet again :(
}Things which people don't necessarily spot on the track jig. } }1) There are some small holes underneath. They are so you can prod the }sleepers from below with a pin or bit of rod held in a small pin-vice. Prod }a small bit at each hole at a time, or you'll bend the track.
Yup that would work missed that trick :(
}2) Thermal contraction. If you put sleepers in jig, then rail, then start }soldering at one end, then to the next sleeper, and so on, the whole rail }heats. It expands a tiny bit. Then as it cools, it contracts and tends to }lock everything into the jig. Because there is variation on manufacture (of }both jig and sleepers) it affects some people (and their jigs) more than }others. Way out is to solder a sleeper at one end, then the other, then one }in the middle. From then on you can go alternate ends of the jig.
Missed that one too :(
}4) Solder. Use 60/40 lead/tin, or 188C solder paste. I've not tried modern }lead-free solders in the jig, so how it behaves is unknown.
I have a big store of 60/40 lead solder. F*ck the government nobody takes any risks any more :(
} But the sleepers }(and jig) are SRBF based, and thus not as tollerant of the higher }temperatures as fibreglass PCB (*).
Yes but I don't think that affects me, I am running the Soldering iron at
420 deg C.
}Shouldn't need lots of additional flux (don't really need any if things are }clean and using multi-core solder or solder paste). If flux is needed, I }would suggest Carrs Green Label, applied with small paintbrush. }Advantage of using multicore without any additional flux is that one can }form a chair-like blob, which looks pretty convincing when painted.
Yup that is just lack of skill on my part I will get better :)
}5) Cleanliness. This is a difficult balancing act, because if you clean the }rail really well, the solder tends to flow along it, and you don't get }"blob" solder to represent chairs. But, on balance, I would recommend you }run the rail through something to clean it before soldering. Wirewool, or }very fine wet and dry paper, or a GaryFlex block.
Yes this makes sense, I did wonder about that before I "had a go".
}In general, clean the sleepers before use (again fine wet&dry or Garyflex, }(or glass-fibre pencil if you like splinters in your fingers)).
Yup, I don't. I think a brass cirular brush in the Dremel would work ?
}6) Chair sizes (the solder blobs). Multicore solder can be cut with a knife. }So cut a few dozen (or hundred) little cubes/spheres off the reel into a tin }lid. Make each chair by picking up a lump with the soldering iron and }rapidly transferring to the jig. Perhaps with practise you'll be able to }grab the right amount directly from the reel with the iron, though that is }quite difficult to do reliably.
Well I will try the "chop up" system but I ought to be able to contol solder, it is just pracice and I haven't done any for years.
}7) Soldering action. Bring the iron initially into contact with the side of }rail, aim for halfway up the rail side, then rock it downwards to hit the }sleeper. That should give a decent joint without delaminating the copper }from the sleeper.
Yup that would work :)
}8) Iron size. I have built lots of track with an 18W Antex. My iron of }choice these days is an Antex 50W temperature controlled, but its a bit }pricey at around ñ00. Your Antex looks fine for the job, bit size not }dissimilar to what I use.
That's what it is, only Digital control :) 238 UKP in total from Antex.
}Don't mix the soldering tip with different solder types; certainly don't use }a tip which has been on whitemetal, and I am inclined to keep lead-free and }lead-based solder tips separate until the use of lead-free is more fully }understood by modelmakers.
I have yet to meet this problem, but your point is well made, thanks.
}9) Until used to it, I would put the jig in a vice so it stays still. The }recommended way is to put the jig in a vice with the sleepers vertical, and }work on one side. Then turn over. }( I tend to only use the top of the jig to initially locate the rails and }the first few sleepers, then I take it off and work on the bench. I use an }old screwdriver as a prodder to push the rail down near where I am }soldering. )
Ah! Yes this I can do :)
}10) Some Jigs can be tight. Talc can be used as a lubricant. If its }excesively tight, then maybe its made out of tollerance. Discuss matter with }2mm shop keeper who could get it inspected.
It felt fine, pushing the sleepers in, but I had missed the Temperature change effects and the holes under the sleepers, thanks.
}11) Cleaning up afterwards. If you used any flux, which includes the }multi-core solder or solder paste, then you need to clean up thoroughly. If }using Powerflo (don't**) that means within 30 minutes. Others can be }cleaned within a few hours. I clean up with a toothbrush, JiF abrasive }cream cleaner, then finish in water. Also clean the jig at the end of a }session. I think Powerflo can be cleaned with meths.
Good Idea, thanks.
}12) I would try to find someone locally who's done it before. There are }Area Groups, and there are others who are usually willing to offer }help/advice.
I usually go to Usenet first :)
}(* and the man who chops the sleepers to size can't chop fibreglass as it }will wreck his machine. He supplies lots of scales, not just 2mm, so the }issue will be the same for them all ).
Yes I noticed a little variability bit not nearly sufficient to even think of complaining.
}(** its brilliant for plumbing, but far too agressive for most modelling }work. And its tendency to do damage if there is a spec left is }horrifying. ).
Thank you so much I have a much better idea what to do now, thanks very much indeed.
{R}