Garden Railway Forum

From Calthrop 'Light Railway Construction' 2' gauge minimum radius open country 150' In sidings and in difficult country 60' (So about 8' and 3'1.5" respectively in 16mm) The 60 foot minimum radius comes from the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, and their longest vehicles are a couple of 32' flat ...

I should not worry about wagon grey, which is what I usually use grey primer for, being different shades. The Great Southern's colour ran anywhere from quite pale through to slate grey depending on how old it was, and the Isle of Man Railway had the '40 shades of grey' routine down to a science, tho...

I can definitely see the Victorian origins in the bogie covered van Peter, don't know how you keep track of the various scales you are using. Grant. It isn't that bad - honest, Graeme! I have only made one clanger in 10 years, and that was with the Saxon coach, but it is recyclable onto the other l...

Mild steel will rust here, as Virginia is rather humid for 6 months of the year, so I don't usually do anything with the wheels - just wait. Stainless, etc., gets a little help from the rusty brown paint pot. I find anything too shiny is a distraction, especially as mine are supposed to be working r...

I decided to have a go at building a bogie covered wagon out of Bristol board. The ancestry is vaguely Victoria Narrow Gauge, but that is more in terms of dimensions than anything else. Peter2.JPG By the time I thought to take any photographs I had got to the laminating the roof stage. The body of t...

p.s. Good news and bad news. The wife must be feeling better - I got busted for spray painting in the basement today!

Peter in Va

I should be fairly sympathetic to Morris given that I have an admiration for Percy Dearmer, Conrad Noel, and the whole Primrose Hill/Thaxted thing. Noel, and IIRC, Sydney Dark, did quite a bit to encourage the revival of Morris dancing in the 1920s, but I have never quite twigged to it. Having said ...

Well, the cycles and the cats are OK. Not so sure about the Morris Dancing - except as an excuse to consume beer.

Peter in Va

I used to cycle quite a bit, but lost my bottle after one too many encounters with a Chelsea Tractor in my old parish. I am sure they were taught to leave three feet between themselves and a cyclist, but they tended to measure it from the pavement end of my handlebars. As the worst stretch was a len...

We have a local possum who takes care of various undesirables such as ticks. Predictably, the Possum is referred to as George. even though he can't sing.

Peter in Va

An unwritten rule in this house is that we hit the local big box craft store for the sales after Christmas. The wife was at her observant best spotting some rubberized 'cobble stone' mat which may have a future in the walls of some building for the outdoor line, whilst I found some plastic corrugate...

Very well thought out production line there Dazza. I think I have you fooled, I am just winging it as I listen to the Indian batsman wear down out bowlers who insist in bowling too short and wide and our 20 -20 batsman who cannot occupy the crease and ............................... "Mix it up...

Sorry about the man-flu. I hope you soon feel better. I usually go down with it after Christmas usually as a reaction to the Christmas schedule of being up a weird times, eating rich food, taking services at strange times, and getting to bed at even odder times. We actually had a very pleasant Chris...

Ah, the joys of clay soil! We have plenty in our garden, but it seems to be broken up enough that it drains... eventually... I hope...

Peter in Va

This particular SAR-SAS narrow gauge carriage was largely a saloon with benches lengthways, as each bay is only about 1250mm, which would cause knee interlock with face to face seating. The first class passengers got a little compartment of their own though. Some of the other Saxon-built 3rds and 3r...

Further progress with the current projects. I decided that the brake van ought to be even more distinctive, so it ended up barn red with vermillion ends. Sorry it is a bit blurred. IMG_4359.JPG The sides, ends, and floor of the Saxon coach have been assembled and painted a deep maroon, which is some...

I keep meaning to go up and have a look at the Cass Scenic Railway, but it hasn't been possible so far. When the missus feels more like travelling we will take a trip. Geographically Virginia is divided into the Tidewater, the Piedmont, and the Valley. The Tidewater and the Piedmont as relatively fl...

Run of the mill wagons are important any railway, they are what addle t'brass - and they are very nice examples of the breed.

Cheers,
Peter in Va

I had forgotten about the 'Vlad the Impaler' finials on MacK & H signals. I am glad to see someone else who favours red ends on brake vans! I do not have to deal with the 30 degrees of frost issue very often, we had two nights of that sort last winter, but it is cold, boggy, and unco-operative h...

I am far enough on with the Saxon to start thinking about what comes next. As a result I spent half an hour or so redrawing the 36' composite brake last night, and came up with a version that would have 6F seats, and 18T with a 10' luggage section, which may be sufficient. I am thinking four carriag...