[user=269]MaxSouthOz[/user] wrote:

 Pan heads might be even better. :thumbs

Sorry Max,

Pan heads :question EDIT: it's OK, I googled it.

Probably would be better then the counter sunk ones, gets the pressure down on the top of the sleepers and less likely to spread them apart.

neat idea, I'll give 'em a go when I finally get around to the Newcastle Emlyn station.

good to see the layout again,nearly forgot you had one!!

the rtr buildings look ok, i still think of the old ones,really must move
with the times. 

:sad::???::roll::cool:

No wurries, cobber. :thumbs

[user=15]owen69[/user] wrote:

the rtr buildings look ok,

For N scale mass produced RTR they aren't too bad at all Owen.

They will make good place holders for the time being.

The kits have better detail and as long as you can paint a straight line in N scale should come out better :roll:

Marty

Nice to see the buildings positioned on the layout looks like you engine shed is a scratchbuild looking forward to regular updates again now Marty

Are those N gauge uncoupling magnets in the track ?

I am looking for  a wicked way to fire some  points on the narrow gauge either way

magnets and reed switches are one thing i could use are they available wordwide?

cheers Brian

 

Pretty good detail on those buildings Marty, especially for N gauge, will you use an airbrush to paint them with? I have a habit of being a bit heavy handed with the brush and a lot of the detail gets gobbled up :???:

Am saving up for an airbrush and compressor, but that will be next year:sad:

Yeeeessssss!!!
Some nice shots there,Marty.Are you going to put your buildings on a cork base to bring them up to the same level as your track?
Its just that the cork looks so thick…I bet it makes for some nice quiet running though!!

Cheers,John.B.:thumbs

Marty,
Excellent work, really like the station area.

[user=52]henryparrot[/user] wrote:

Marty

Are those N gauge uncoupling magnets in the track ?

I am looking for  a wicked way to fire some  points on the narrow gauge either way magnets and reed switches are one thing i could use are they available wordwide?

Screws to hold the track down Brian, magnets will come later. Got to work out which coupling system I'm going to use first.

It's a global village these days, unless the govt has banned the import we can get most electrical bits and pieces.

I'm looking forward to playing with leds, reed switches, relays, etc, etc once I get all the track down and working satisfactorily.

[user=33]Lawrence[/user] wrote:

Pretty good detail on those buildings Marty, especially for N gauge, will you use an airbrush to paint them with? I have a habit of being a bit heavy handed with the brush and a lot of the detail gets gobbled up :???:

Am saving up for an airbrush and compressor, but that will be next year:sad:

Hi Lawrence,

An airbrush is on my wish list too. One for me and one for No. 2 son. I promised him one for his birthday.

Until then I think that a light wash of acrylics or gouche water colours via a brush and then a dusting of pastels will make a big difference to those Lyddle End buildings.

Just got to have the paitence to use thin layers of paint as I too have been guilty of overloading my brush and wiping out too much detail.

[user=201]georgejacksongenius[/user] wrote:

re you going to put your buildings on a cork base to bring them up to the same level as your track?
Its just that the cork looks so thick…I bet it makes for some nice quiet running though!!

Cheers,John.B.:thumbs

Hi John,
Definitely going to raise the rest of the yard and station area up to the level of the top of the sleepers. Looks odd as it is for sure.
I found some cork tiles (not the bathroom ones :roll:) hiding under a shelf at Bunnings (our B&Q) hardware store. Same thickness and construction as the roadbed cork I've used.
The tiles will be cut to fit between the track and then either polyfiller or waterputty will be added to bring the level up to the sleeper tops.
When I do the Newcastle Emlyn Station the cork tiles will go down first before the track so I don't have to muck around filling in the gaps.

It's still a little "hollow" when running over the Henllan station board, despite the cork roadbed. The quietest running is along the laminated mdf spline sub-road beds.

[user=302]IE 201[/user] wrote:

Marty,
Excellent work, really like the station area.

Thanks Tom,

Just copied the prototype station layout, makes life easier as long as you can compress the bits you need into the space that you have.

All the buildings and rolling stock have been packed away and the Henllan Station board removed.

 

L-girder construction and modifying a gradient, bank or slope.

 

After 12 – 18 months of “testing” and hoping that Tim’s axe really wouldn’t be needed, the inability of the Dapol 14XX class tank engines to haul more than 1 coach or 4 wagons up the gradients between the upper and lower levels on the layout convinced me that modifications were required. I just wouldn’t be happy otherwise.

 

The 14XX 0-4-2 tank engines were the primary motive power on the branch, one being on shed permanently at the Newcastle Emlyn Terminus. They were restricted as to how many wagons they were allowed to have in a train but it’s somewhere around 14, not 4.

 

There was no point going forwards with the layout until the gradients had been reduced to the absolute minimum.

Making the layout flatter and, eventually, taking the body shell off the engines and adding some weight, should allow something more prototypical in train lengths.

 

The beauty of the L-girder system is that adjustments can be made relatively easily.

Undo the screws of the risers under the sub-roadbed, adjust to the height required, clamp, re-screw… easy… brother!!!!

 

The overpasses dictated the grade. Minimum clearance needed to be maintained. In the photo below the overpass near the Altycefan Woolen mills shows how a small notch had been removed under the laminated mdf spline sub-roadbed to allow rolling stock to pass underneath.
There was at least 10mm to be gained there by cutting out up to the pencil mark.



 

 

The laminated mdf spline is immensely strong, (I can sit on an un-notched section – all 85kg of me).
Below the underpass clearance has been increased and the track below can now be raised up.



 

 

Below is a picture of most of the layout before the gradients were reduced. Each of the risers highlighted in red had to be unscrewed, adjusted, clamped and re-screwed. With the occasional pause to re-solder wiring loosened during the modifications, no wonder it took me all weekend.





 

The other overpass to the south of Henllan station marked but before cutting. Made a real bodge of this one but had to lean over the layout with the dremel power tool while standing on my foot stool. The bridgework will cover the mess.





 

The clearance available was measured against this Atlas track cleaning car which, with it’s roof mounted on/off switches and 1:160^th scale is the tallest bit of rolling stock that I have. This photo is prior to raising the track.





… and this photo is after the track has been raised.





 

Finally, another overall view, the Henllan station board has been removed, showing the risers that have been modified. The gradient at the rear of the layout is probably the best to compare before and after views but other than a general flattening it’s a bit hard to see the difference.




 

Did it make a difference… yes it did. Thankfully.

 

A 14xx with one coach and 4 milk tankers with stiff wheels was able to make it around the loop from top to bottom.

 

Progress I reckon.

 

Next…

 

The Henllan station board and control panel… wiring, switches and a couple of sticky points/turnouts need realigning.

Been a busy boy have we Marty?

[user=95]Sol[/user] wrote:

Been a busy boy have we Marty?

All the aches and pains on Monday morning seemed to confirm it Sol, what with being under, on and through the benchwork most of the weekend. :thumbs

know that feeling to well Marty,but it all melts away when things run
smooooth again…

:doublethumb:lol::lol::lol::cool:

I think we should start a thread on back pain, joint pain and general model rail injuries. I feel the same some Mondays Marty, I feel sorry for some of the old timers on the forum like Phil.

That's a lot of work in one weekend Marty

And it looks good, some very tight curves you have, but I guess that's N gauge for you, will you fill in the holes with light weight hills etc ?

[user=13]Matt[/user] wrote:

I feel sorry for some of the old timers on the forum like Phil.

He'll be right mate, he's GWR thru and thru. Built to last :pedal

[user=285]Alan[/user] wrote:

That's a lot of work in one weekend Marty

Re-inspired by the new buildings Alan, and Adrian Vaughan's "Oxford - the Heart of the GWR" which I picked up cheap at the last train show here in Perth.

I was a bit iffy about the layout and contemplated letting Tim's Axe of it's lead but I like the track plan and the concept so I will finish this layout.

[user=285]Alan[/user] wrote:

Some very tight curves you have, but I guess that's N gauge for you, will you fill in the holes with light weight hills etc ?

Minimum curve standard I've chosen for NE is 400mm/15.5" and so far the only curve that is less than that (the one in the centre of the overview photos) will be hidden in a tunnel under those light weight hills.  :shock: :thumbs:thumbs