The Skebawn and Castleknox Light Railway and Tramway

laalratty · Post by **laalratty** » Fri Oct 28, 2011 9:26 pm

Narrow Minded:60485 wrote:
DWR:60480 wrote:Looks really good

May I direct you to the first post of this topic Greg, whilst also reminding you that DWR is a new member

Narrow Minded · Post by **Narrow Minded** » Sat Oct 29, 2011 1:12 am

laalratty:60488 wrote:
Narrow Minded:60485 wrote:
DWR:60480 wrote:Looks really good

May I direct you to the first post of this topic Greg, whilst also reminding you that DWR is a new member

DWR · Post by **DWR** » Sat Oct 29, 2011 8:04 pm

Narrow Minded:60515 wrote:
laalratty:60488 wrote:
Narrow Minded:60485 wrote:
DWR:60480 wrote:Looks really good

May I direct you to the first post of this topic Greg, whilst also reminding you that DWR is a new member

I dont get it haveI done something wrong? but the railway does look good though

Pretoria · Post by **Pretoria** » Sat Oct 29, 2011 8:13 pm

DWR:60531 wrote:
I dont get it haveI done something wrong? but the railway does look good though
Nope -- it was Narrow Minded being short-sighted. A visit to Mrs FC is warranted I believe (for DWR's benefit -- Mrs FC is an optician!)

DWR · Post by **DWR** » Sat Oct 29, 2011 8:56 pm

ah right thanks

Narrow Minded · Post by **Narrow Minded** » Sat Oct 29, 2011 10:43 pm

Pretoria:60533 wrote:
DWR:60531 wrote:
I dont get it haveI done something wrong? but the railway does look good though
Nope -- it was Narrow Minded being short-sighted. A visit to Mrs FC is warranted I believe (for DWR's benefit -- Mrs FC is an optician!)

Actually I am short sighted and Astigmatic - thanks

Pretoria · Post by **Pretoria** » Sun Oct 30, 2011 8:37 am

Narrow Minded:60541 wrote:Actually I am short sighted and Astigmatic - thanks

My turn -- sorry !

Narrow Minded · Post by **Narrow Minded** » Sun Oct 30, 2011 9:38 am

Pretoria:60542 wrote:
Narrow Minded:60541 wrote:Actually I am short sighted and Astigmatic - thanks
My turn -- sorry !

S'alright fella, as I know only too well, it's easily done - no offence taken so no apology needed

IrishPeter · Post by **IrishPeter** » Sun Oct 30, 2011 1:46 pm

Well, I am not saying that wonders are going to occur, but I made it out into the yard with a camera and took some photos yesterday afternoon. Whilst doing so, however, I realised I had forgotten to leave a space for the points leading to the carriage shed siding!

This afternoon's job - if I don't crash completely after High Mass - is to rectify that. I might even take a picture of the result.

Peter in AZ

Sir Clothem Cap · Post by **Sir Clothem Cap** » Sun Oct 30, 2011 2:01 pm

I look forward to seeing the photo.
I had a confused nephew (DWR) on the phone this morning wondering if he'd done something wrong, I have explained how his post looked ironic but as laalratty had noticed he'd looked at the first post and commented (all understood now

)

It is amazing when you look at your railway as if it was someone else's how much you notice that could be improved.

IrishPeter · Post by **IrishPeter** » Sun Oct 30, 2011 2:14 pm

Funnily enough, I spotted that DWR was new around here so assumed that he had recently read the first page. I know I read a lot of the ralway & layout threads through when I first joined and I assume other folks are afflicted with a similar level of curiosity.

Meanwhile, I am still kicking myself about not putting in the spacer for the carriage shed points! I had cut the requisite 20" bit of track, and then laid it on the wrong side of the set of points leading to the cattle dock! Grrrrr!!!

Peter in AZ

IrishPeter · Post by **IrishPeter** » Fri Nov 04, 2011 5:57 am

I will quietly ask HERSELF to upload the pictures out the camera tomorrow morning. She has had a bad week so she is deserving of the kid gloves treatment right now. If that happens perhaps I will get page 4 of S&CLR&T pictures up tomorrow.

In other news - as they used to say on 'The Two Ronnies'

I have a 'Millie' due for delivery towards the end of the month. She will be dark brunswick green which was the S&CLR&T's livery before the GSR grouping - honest gov - though what she is doing still in that livery in 1937 is a bit of a mystery. She will eventually acquire a cab, and various bits will be painted black quite quickly. When I have finished tinkering she will allegedly be an 1890s acquisition which has lost her sideplates.

The four wheeler in the photos on page one now has a near twin referred to as "No.6" which is a little narrower and has windows in the fore and aft bulkheads. The Irish side of the gene pool shows when I build "identical" vehicles as they never are the same. There is always my inner 'Paddy' making the little change or improvement! The underframe for a 21' four wheeler "No. 1" has been sketched out on some basswood, so she will be next through the Carriage and Wagon Dept. unless I make another three plank wagon first as I am still a bit short on goods vehicles.

Anyway, hopefully photos tomorrow...

Peter in AZ

IrishPeter · Post by **IrishPeter** » Sun Nov 06, 2011 4:17 am

"The best laid plans of mice and men...

Mouse: "And what have men to do with it?"

(Half remembered quote from the TV version of 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.')

Anyway, after belting my head one too many times on a low limb of an oak tree I decided it was time to do something about it - especially as the belting of the head now comes sharper due to the diminishing amount of hair under my flatcap. As interferring with the oak tree would get me the wrong side of the domestic version of DEFRA, I decided it was time for a re-route. A bit of investigation with a screwdriver revealed that I could lower the old summit level by 5", which gives me half a chance to get down to front yard level without creating a rival to the late, unlamented Death Hill.

As we are due a wet weekend it is a good time for making new earth works. Pics will follow in a day or two.

Peter in AZ

IrishPeter · Post by **IrishPeter** » Wed Nov 09, 2011 4:52 am

The wife is in the middle of a big eBay binge - selling, not buying, which is to be encouraged, so the pics are still in the camera. However, that will give me chance to take a few of the new alignment before she empties the camera.

I spent today dealing with those odd spots where things feel duty bound to derail. They seem to divide, roughly speaking, into "wet spots" and "hard spots." A wet spot is a familiar enough beast being a soft spot in the roadbed that causes excessive vertical movement. I think hard spot are a speciality of my yard as they are basically caused by an undetected rock or stone under the formation that causes things to go out of level as the surrounding roadbed weathers and drops. The cure is basically the same - add more soil under the weed membrane on an embankment and then ram hard, or alternatively add more ballast and tamp thoroughly, then check the level. I have had a lot of practice, sonow consider myself adept at the art!

The next stage of construction is going to be interesting - getting down to lawn level without the gradient getting too steep. I already have some 1 in 30 on the line, and I really do want to avoid anything worse than that. One of my engineering rules is that curves and grades should be separate if possible, so I am hoping that the alignment I am investigating will allow me to climb in a straight line, making life easier for the 0-4-0Ts I use. Thankfully being one of the mongrel Irish breed of Tramways, trains tend to be rather short - two/three wagons and two or three coaches. If the 'Millie' breed is as sure footed as I have heard she is going to be earning her keep on cattle market day specials!

Peter in AZ

Narrow Minded · Post by **Narrow Minded** » Wed Nov 09, 2011 3:14 pm

I never said a word

IrishPeter · Post by **IrishPeter** » Thu Nov 10, 2011 6:24 am

Do not worry - pix are on the way! I had a derailment free orperating session on the new alignment today and I am feeling fairly bullish. I will get some more Pix tomorrow and get HERSELF to empty the camera, I think my husband credit is high enough to get away with it! What I have on the camera should give us two or three more pages of Pix of the S&CLR&T! If you can stand that much...

I am going to have to find a book on building buildings next. Anyone know anything about ant-proofing?

Peter in AZ

Pretoria · Post by **Pretoria** » Thu Nov 10, 2011 10:24 am

IrishPeter:60888 wrote:I am going to have to find a book on building buildings next. Anyone know anything about ant-proofing?

Build them out of concrete !

And -- to quote from "The two foot gauge enigma" (the book about the Beira Railway) in which I am currently esconced:

"During this period .... the telegraph line had been completed using iron poles .... to obviate the problems caused by white ants. This did not, however, get over the trouble caused by elephants who found the poles to be excellent back scratchers."

IrishPeter · Post by **IrishPeter** » Sat Nov 12, 2011 6:43 am

Better late than never...

http://www.angelfire.com/ca7/ttac/SCLRTphotos4.html

and

http://www.angelfire.com/ca7/ttac/SCLRTphotos5.html

Peter in AZ

Narrow Minded · Post by **Narrow Minded** » Sat Nov 12, 2011 10:14 pm

IrishPeter · Post by **IrishPeter** » Mon Nov 14, 2011 1:10 am

We had some heavy rain last night, so I have some canine assisted subsidence to deal with tomorrow (day off - yay!) but it is not a big job. Due to lack of cash I am concentrating on extending the earthworks towards the Castleknox end of the line. Unless I get a windfall I am not going to be able to afford any track until after the first of year. On the other hand, a couple of boxes of straight track are not that expensive, and the wife can only kill me once - right? When I have the earthworks extended a bit further I'll post some construction photos. At the moment the road bridge just north of Aussolas is giving me some difficulty as it is a skew bridge and has to be made removeable; the domestic authority sez so! Current thinking is in favour of a metal Howe truss on concrete block foundations. That way I can just undo rail clamps and lift the truss out.

Peter in AZ

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