A new record?

To be honest I was just a bit surprised yesterday when the page views count for this blog went over 200 in the two days since the blog went live. My blogs don't pick up viewers that fast. I guess that there must be something about really small model railroads that fascinates people. Or perhaps people want to see me fall flat on my face with this adventure.

Thank you for checking in.

So anyway much serious thinking is always going on as I work out the best way to go about working in such a small scale. I've even downloaded Google Sketchup to see if producing locos and rolling stock by 3D printing will be viable in this small size.

The weight of the items is the over riding concern. The items of rolling only have tiny magnets inside them to "power" them, per the linear induction motor system used to make the small trains move. It,s a question of what weight will these magnets bear against the magnetic field of the track and keep moving. Even Ed Lopatinksi, the developer of the system, wonders about this. So I might end up making items of rolling stock in several different materials to find one that works. I have several different materials in line:

1. Thoughts started with matte photo paper or a high quality thin card. This would have the advantage of being able to have a loco livery printed on the paper before folding up to the right shape. The problem being that some folds on the paper might be rather small and awkward to achieve.

2. Architectural foam (Balsa foam or similar). The loco/stock would be carved out of a piece of foam, sealing and painting the foam might add too much weight to the item though.

3. Good old styrene.The thinnest strip possible to save weight made just as you would a larger item of stock but everytime you glue or paint or fill you'd add weight.

Perhaps I'm worrying needlessly about the weight, we'll have to see.

Buildings will be no trouble (famous last words) but if I've made T scale petrol/gas pumps complete with hoses I think I can make buildings and bridges and such like without too much of a problem.

I'm looking forward to having a go at some trees. They were the first thing I did in T scale and I may well find the time to have a go at some nano trees this weekend.