Soak testing

Have spent the day round at Trevor's, setting up "Parnhams" fiddle yard with trains to create the standard load, and to make sure the layout works.

A full hour of delay while we traced a missing circuit, which turned out to be a wire that had come adrift inside a chocky block connector, then some delays due to a pair of fiddle yard points that wouldn't stay over, but eventually we got testing and fettling.

The afternoon did emphasise the need for a test track and wheel cleaner to be taken to shows. Not a major issue but one which we mustn't forget to act upon.

What we've ended up with is nine trains running clockwise with a light engine in the tenth slot, plus eight going anticlockwise with a light engine and brake in the ninth slot. the "missing" anticlockwise train is due to making a 27-wagon coal train, which is the longest that can fit into the central sidings in the fiddle yard. Since the clockwise circuit includes the passing loop that needs to have the extra train. Of the 17 trains ten are Trev's and seven mine, though I'll be providing more of the locos.

One thing we have decided is that in order to make the call-on system work effectively both trains in each road in the fiddle yard will have the same make (Union Mills, Farish etc) of loco on the front as far as possible. This means that the train being called forward will usually run at the same speed as the train in front of it.