Angst Lesspork

Hugh Norwood · October 11, 2018, 14:14

Miniature video cam by H Norwood, on Flickr
I had a think about whether I could correct this; I held a close-up lens for my DSLR in front of it and got an improvement in close focussing. So - how to get a suitably-sized "monocle" for the camera? Well, you can get lens attachments for mobile phone cameras, so I browsed online and came up with a kit of lenses containing a macro lens, a fisheye lens and a wide angle lens, with a clamp that holds the lens over the phone camera. I sent off for one.

The clamp just about fitted over the camera, so I tried out the various lenses. The macro lens was unfortunately too strong to be useful, but both the fisheye and the wide angle lenses were great. I decided to go with the wide angle lens as the image distortion was acceptably low.

Miniature video cam by H Norwood, on Flickr

Hugh Norwood · October 11, 2018, 14:15

I cut up the clip from the kit to leave me with the screw mount for the lenses, which I super-glued onto the front of the camera, It covers the six infrared LEDS that can be used for taling pictures in low light, but I

Hugh Norwood · October 11, 2018, 14:16

A Youtube video is here

https://youtu.be/X6NB3GrDgho

garrywhiting · October 11, 2018, 17:11

Quote from: hughn on October 11, 2018, 14:16
A Youtube video is here

https://youtu.be/X6NB3GrDgho

Excellent Hugh!

Garry

engerth399 · October 12, 2018, 07:45

Great, deserves an article in the News.

Peter

rander · October 12, 2018, 11:30

Amazing, from what at first seems a Heath Robinson solution the pictures are far more than just "acceptable". They really capture the atmosphere of the layout. You are far too modest Hugh.

Bill

Graeme Dunbar · October 13, 2018, 09:02

It really shows off the atmosphere and the little cameos - wonderful. I'm impressed by the video quality and depth of focus given the tiny distances involved.

I'm also intrigued by the sound. I hear hall sounds but also a dog barking and gulls. Is that from the layout?

Hugh Norwood · October 13, 2018, 10:54

Quote from: GraemeD on October 13, 2018, 09:02
It really shows off the atmosphere and the little cameos - wonderful. I'm impressed by the video quality and depth of focus given the tiny distances involved.

I'm also intrigued by the sound. I hear hall sounds but also a dog barking and gulls. Is that from the layout?

Yes - I have a background sound track with gulls, barking dogs, distant bells, street cries, a farrier hammering away, horse-drawn vehicles, steam loco noises and harbour noises, I usually keep it at the just audible level, so you only the impression when you are close up to the layout.

Unfortunately the venue had a lot of background noise as well as the next-door layout's rather LOUD bird song (and crickets!) so I turne dup my volume a tad.

Hugh Norwood · January 18, 2019, 20:18

I had a frenetic but very enjoyable weekend away at the Member's Day in Ilton, followed by the Weston Train show.

I decided the horse-apples on the layout had faded rather too much over the years (just like the real thing?), so I spent a quiet hour refreshing them....

Horse apples by H Norwood, on Flickr

Hugh Norwood · February 05, 2019, 19:20

I have made a pair of tank wagons. The tanks were from the late David Monk. I got a pair of Minitrains bogie chassis at the Ilton Memebers' Day (sales stand) the chassis were shortened a tad and the supports fashioned from strip and channel. They are waiting for me to think of appropriate signage for the sides and a bit of toning down.

Tank wagons by H Norwood, on Flickr

Hugh Norwood · February 05, 2019, 19:21

And I have made a windsock for the broomstick users! Many thanks to Garry W for the tissue paper that makes the sock itself. It does flap about in the breeze, too.

Windsock by H Norwood, on Flickr

Hugh Norwood · April 17, 2019, 21:12

Oh dear, I've not been keeping this thread up to date!
I purchased some "Snotty Goblins" from Langley (who knew they did a small range of "wargaming" figures?
Some have been painted in a stone-like colour scheme and so far a couple have been planted on the layout:

New gargoyles 1 by H Norwood, on Flickr
and

New gargoyles 2 by H Norwood, on Flickr

Hugh Norwood · April 17, 2019, 21:13

And I found a wizard on Shapeways:

a new wizard by H Norwood, on Flickr

Hugh Norwood · April 17, 2019, 21:19

But more to the point, I have completed my Popham semaphore tower

Model semaphore tower by H Norwood, on Flickr

On this thread back in 2012 you can see that I mention it as an aside - I went and built the six-light version as it was easier to do.

Well, I did build a version of the two arm Popham system back in 2013, but I was not happy with the belts I used to drive the arms, so it got put to one side.

Earlier this year I chanced upon a supplier (Motionco) of small drive chains and sprockets; after some thought I decided it was worth a go using their chain and the ten-tooth sprockets. The chain is very easy to make to length just by clicking individual link in and out of the chain. As may be seen in the photos, there is some slack in the chain but it does not seem to affect the working (and of course shortening the chain by one link would make them too tight).

The mechanism is fixed to a wooden block which is in turn fixed to the small baseboard. The octagonal building

Hugh Norwood · April 17, 2019, 21:21

I also rewrote the drive program to speed up the operation. I would like to be able to enter a string of letters and let the controller rattle off the message, but until I can work out how to program it to handle strings, that is going to have to wait.

The video shows it showing the letters A to T in order - but without J; Back then, J and I were more or less interchangeable in English - the context told you which letter was meant. I tacked on a spare code for J at the end after Z

https://youtu.be/5O2zZsTQVF0

Angst Lesspork

rander