Elmdon Heath Light Railway (was EHLR: A small start)

[Narrow Minded]

Brass strip can be had pretty cheaply on fleabay - I bought a coil of it to use for the second lot of shims I fitted to the check rails of my dreaded R1 points.
Even though the R1's work OK now, they still don't "look" right to me, so I'm determined to change them for something wider. The budget won't stretch to buying replacements for them all, so building some (and raising cash from the sale of the R1's I replace) is the way to go - I even have some spare straights and R3 curves which will supply the rails!
Speaking of diamond crossings and fleabay, I was very lucky to snaffle mine - a second hand LGB item on a low "Buy It Now" price that would have cost way more to build

[hussra]

Brass strip can be had pretty cheaply on fleabay - I bought a coil of it to use for the second lot of shims I fitted to the check rails of my dreaded R1 points.
Even though the R1's work OK now, they still don't "look" right to me, so I'm determined to change them for something wider. The budget won't stretch to buying replacements for them all, so building some (and raising cash from the sale of the R1's I replace) is the way to go - I even have some spare straights and R3 curves which will supply the rails!  ;)

Good luck! Not sure I would relish this so much with the heavier rail, nor what I'd do about rail fixings (well, you could use a strip of brass on each sleeper as I did for the diamond, but that sounds a bit more expensive). My soldering iron would struggle with the Code 332 I think! (It's a little 25W Antex, someone will say it ought to be impossible to build points with it, but works fine for me on the Peco code 200, it has a surprising amount of oomph.)

[Narrow Minded]

Unfortunately, as far as I know there aren't any commercially available chairs for LGB code 335 rail
Fortunately, I have a selection of soldering irons, a soldering gun and a couple of gas torches to try

[Pendo Pilot]

Those fittings look superb Richard, certainly very well made. Remind me to keep you away from the couple I have built..

[IrishPeter]

Not having enough time due to three churches?

At least the need for a little constructive R & R seems to have been working wonders for your line, Richard. I wish I could say the same for mine. I hide from my, thankfully small, diocese when I am messing around with mine! Given the amount of aggro recently, I should have most of the Skull and Skibbereen modelled in 15mm scale by now...

It reminds me of the time honoured gag about the Rector whose garden backed up to the GNR(I) mainline near Portadown. Every lunchtime he would walk down to the end of the garden to watch the northbound Enterprise go through. When asked why he did this he replied that it was the only thing in the parish that ran without him getting the complaints.

The alternative punchline is 'It's the only thing in this parish the bloody Mothers' Union does not run!

Peter in AZ'

[hussra]

Not a whole lot to show quite yet, but a little destruction first. The EHLR Mk. 1, originally built to lay out on the patio at our previous house, had the track reclaimed yesterday. ("Can you guess what it used to be yet?")



And just doing a little playing around to see how the "up" end of Llanfair ar y Ffos might fit together. Next up, have a play around outside and get on with more point-building.

[hussra]

Right, some progress to report! Not outside, but in the garage I've been busily building pointwork like it's going out of fashion. (Anyone interested in a write-up?) This should be sufficient for Llanfair ar y Ffos station, unless I decide to put a headshunt or some trap points on one of the sidings.



The intended track plan is as follows:



(IrishPeter may note some slight Lough Swilly influences...)

[IrishPeter]

Erm, yes! Tooban Junction unless I am very much mistaken...

Peter in AZ

[hussra]

Erm, yes! Tooban Junction unless I am very much mistaken...

Good, it works! Not a strict copy, but that end-of-platform scene with the scissors crossing has always very much appealed. (Am I allowed to invent the word "Toobanesque"?)

Quickly laid out for testing...

[TommyDodd]

Ah, and a track diagram that shows the "normal" lie of the points, clearly the work of someone who knows how it's done.

[Narrow Minded]

Impressive stuff Richard, and very Toobanesque
Can't wait to see it in-situ, next spring?

[hussra]

Ah, and a track diagram that shows the "normal" lie of the points, clearly the work of someone who knows how it's done.

More years ago than I care to remember, I produced all the diagrams for the Talyllyn Railway's General Appendix... Here's the one for HMS Brynglas.

Impressive stuff Richard, and very Toobanesque
Can't wait to see it in-situ, next spring?

Glad you like it; yes, can't wait! Small matter of some trackbed needing constructed...

[hussra]

Mind you, it's amazing just how long the scissors crossing has turned out. (Concerned by this, I measured and it's 20 times the size on my 1:20 plan - phew!)

[Narrow Minded]

I measured and it's 20 times the size on my 1:20 plan - phew!

What a coincidence!

[hussra]

I measured and it's 20 times the size on my 1:20 plan - phew!

What a coincidence!

You know how these things are - anyway, it should fit, that's the main thing.

[IrishPeter]

Ah, and a track diagram that shows the "normal" lie of the points, clearly the work of someone who knows how it's done.

It would never have occured to me to draw a signal/track diagram any other way, but having seen how things get fouled up in my working life I am not surprised to hear you express delight at something being done properly. Anyhoo, Hussra strikes me as a fairly smart fellow with an eye to detail so we both got the pleasure of looking at a correctly drawn diagram.

I was happily semaphore signalling the Toobanesque layout in my head both LNWR style (as few sigs as the BOT will allow) and NER style (if you can do it signal it).  Gave me a handy half hour's diversion last night.  The latter led to some very nice bracket signals for reversible working through the loop. The former looked a bit more authentically NG. My quirk when I signal anything for NG is non-working distants.



Peter in AZ

[hussra]

I was happily semaphore signalling the Toobanesque layout in my head both LNWR style (as few sigs as the BOT will allow) and NER style (if you can do it signal it).  Gave me a handy half hour's diversion last night.  The latter led to some very nice bracket signals for reversible working through the loop. The former looked a bit more authentically NG.  My quirk when I signal anything for NG is non-working distants.

Yes, I would hope, in time, to signal the station. Would be very interested in comments from both of you on the signalling arrangements - agree that this is a "less is more" sort of situation. This is my best bet so far - assume economic FPLs where required, to save lever count, and fixed distants.



Up trains run from Rhiw Lleidiog to Hendre (and eventually to Gallt Llwyfen) - left to right on this diagram.

If truth be told, up and down probably should be reversed on the branch (which leads to Tanyperth Jn, which is actually between Hendre and Gallt Llwyfen thus providing the continuous run) but it's just going to make it more confusing to do that so I won't.

1 - Up main home
2 - Up branch home, rel by 6
3 - Up starting, rel by 9
4 - Spare
5 - Down loop to main crossover
6 - Up branch to loop crossover
7 - Goods siding points
8 - Loco siding points
9 - Up end points
10 - Down loop starting
11 - Down main starting, rel by 5
12 - Down home

So the pulls for the through routes would be:

Up main (from Rhiw Lleidiog): 9, 1, 3
Up branch (from Tanyperth Jn): 6, 9, 2, 3
Down main (to Rhiw Lleidiog): 5, 12, 11
Down branch (to Tanyperth Jn): 12, 10

which at least avoids any pull-betweens.

Is this looking half-plausible, or are there any better suggestions?

[IrishPeter]

Would I be right in assuming point indicators or a dolly on the tail rod of the points, rather than full-on Tommy Dodds, for the two trailing sidings? Other than that it looks fine. I would imagine that the signalman uses his flags quite a bit for any 'wrong way' moves.

Peter in AZ

[hussra]

Would I be right in assuming point indicators or a dolly on the tail rod of the points, rather than full-on Tommy Dodds, for the two trailing sidings?  Other than that it looks fine.  I would imagine that the signalman uses his flags quite a bit for any 'wrong way' moves.

Not sure I can even be bothered with point indicators! But yes, there seems no reason to do anything more complex, so long as 10 and 11 lock 7 and 8 both ways.

[IrishPeter]

I have found that point indicators are difficult to do in 15mm so 'the invisible variety' has become the norm on my layouts.  By UK standards your signalling is pretty minimal, but adequate.  

The only thing I think Mr Victor Isle might ping you on is the lack of advanced starters beyond the junction in the 'westbound' direction, and 'east' of the loop points in the eastbund direction.  However, as you are using stacked starters at the platform end, that suggests a late-1880s signalling installation, which gives you an 'out.' Advance starters were not always used then. Provided it got past the inspector then, and there has, in your line's story, been no major messing around with the layout since, you are home free.

Peter in AZ