TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

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GTB
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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by GTB » Mon Dec 24, 2018 1:57 pm

In spite of the local climate variation, fitting the decking went quickly and was completed ahead of schedule (just).

The photos were taken yesterday just after lunch. I really must figure out this materials estimating business as it came down to the wire as to whether there would be enough boards to finish it before everything in Aust. shuts down for a fortnight over Christmas and New Year.

This photo is facing north and shows the wye, bridge and small curve around to the long straight on the right. The temp was about 20degC and there wasn't a cloud in the sky..........

Track Supports-14.jpg
Track Supports-14.jpg (208.63 KiB) Viewed 6789 times

The next photo is facing south and shows the rest of the track.

Track Supports-15.jpg
Track Supports-15.jpg (219.59 KiB) Viewed 6789 times

I now have to paint the deck, which won't happen this week, then I can start laying track.

After the last boards were fitted, I committed a neatness in the garage, as my swiss friend would say. I can now park the car undercover again and can also see the top of the workbench, so while the weather makes up it's mind, I'll keep myself amused painting track and doing a few other small projects that are sitting around.

Regards,
Graeme

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FWLR
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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by FWLR » Tue Dec 25, 2018 10:10 am

Merry Christmas Graeme. :reindeer: :santa:

Your track looks so inviting. You have worked hard I can see to have a brilliant line to work with. Looking forward to seeing the track laid and a loco running on it.

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by LNR » Tue Dec 25, 2018 10:37 am

GTB wrote: ↑Mon Dec 24, 2018 1:57 pm I committed a neatness in the garage,
You should be ashamed of yourself, 50 lines for you "I must not commit a neatness again".
Merry Christmas mate,
Grant.
PS wish the fairies would come and commit a neatness in my workshop!!
although I probably wouldn't be able to find anything.

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by philipy » Tue Dec 25, 2018 11:23 am

That is sooo impressive Graeme.

PS I 'm with Grant, I get occasional visits from the neatness fairy and I can never find anything afterwards, either!
Philip

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by GTB » Sat Jan 05, 2019 10:45 am

With the Christmas shutdown and the local weather, progress has slowed further, but I managed to get the track base painted between the rain and the heat, mostly by putting in a couple of hours after tea when things cooled down. I had to give up one day as the paint was drying on the brush between the tin and the board.......

The last section of board got it's second coat on Wednesday evening and the pic. shows it on Thursday, sun directly overhead and not a cloud between here and Adelaide.

Track Supports-16.jpg
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It's not visible in the photo, but the resident Brushtail had already given the boards a test drive earlier in the week, as there were muddy paw prints along the northern curve where he had hopped up from the flower bed and sauntered around the curve before hopping off again.

Still waiting for the brass nails I've ordered to finally arrive, so I can start laying track. Once I get around to painting the sleepers.....

Regards,
Graeme

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by Mitch stack » Sat Jan 05, 2019 10:55 am

Great Work Graeme , Great to see Progress mate! .

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by FWLR » Sat Jan 05, 2019 11:45 am

Every time I see your line it's gets better Graeme...

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by ge_rik » Sat Jan 05, 2019 1:12 pm

Beautifully elegant, Graeme. Reminds me of some sections of the TGV.

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by tom_tom_go » Sat Jan 05, 2019 1:13 pm

Meticulously executed as always Graeme!

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by GTB » Mon Feb 11, 2019 3:27 pm

Progress continues slowly, between heatwaves and storms.............

The weather cooled down for two days last week, just long enough for me to install the turnouts and track of the wye at the northern end of the track.

This pic shows the area after the wye was installed. I screwed up the track base layout for the wye and they had to be extended to keep the curves inside the board edge, which took longer than laying the track.

Track-3.jpg
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One of the things taking time is painting the sleepers into a weathered wood colour. Australian hardwoods are durable and don't require creosote when used for sleepers, so the dark brown colour of commercial track looks unnatural to me. If the weather is to hot or wet to work outside, I spend the time inside painting sleepers.

Today the weather was cool enough to lay another 20 feet of plain track and the railhead is now halfway along the back straight. As expected, the Accucraft flextrack has proved easy to lay, as it doesn't need a track bender and more or less stays where it is put until it is pinned down.

The second pic shows the Fowler PM sitting in dappled shade at the railhead in the great Pittosporum wilderness, after a test run to check for any problems in the new track.

First Run.jpg
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ge_rik wrote: ↑Sat Jan 05, 2019 1:12 pm Reminds me of some sections of the TGV.
I don't plan on running at TGV or Shinkansen speeds, but it also looks a bit like parts of the Melbourne suburban system where some genius in the State govt. has decided to remove level crossings by elevating the railway. Dubbed Skyrail by the affected locals, who are not happy little vegemiters. I'm hoping I don't go out the back one day soon and find the local possums have formed a picket line. :roll:

Regards,
Graeme

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by philipy » Mon Feb 11, 2019 4:17 pm

Very nice, steady progress. Screwing up the width of the curve is very easy to do (how do I know?).
Philip

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by jim@NAL » Mon Feb 11, 2019 8:50 pm

Wow this is looking fantastic looking forward to seeing more

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by Mitch stack » Mon Feb 11, 2019 9:21 pm

Great work Graeme!, good to see progress again mate and hope to see some trains running soon!


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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by GTB » Tue Feb 12, 2019 10:54 am

philipy wrote: ↑Mon Feb 11, 2019 4:17 pm Screwing up the width of the curve is very easy to do (how do I know?).
I forgot that the turnouts were built like the protype with straight rails through the crossing. Which means they don't diverge as quickly as the nominal radius suggests and moved the curve off the centre line....... sigh!!!

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by FWLR » Thu Feb 14, 2019 9:23 am

Looks great Graeme, it does blend in with the boards well. Will you be ballasting the track mate, if you are, you won't see the sleepers hardly at all....

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by tom_tom_go » Sat Feb 16, 2019 9:33 am

You are very dedicated painting individual sleepers in that heat!

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by GTB » Sat Feb 16, 2019 11:13 am

tom_tom_go wrote: ↑Sat Feb 16, 2019 9:33 am You are very dedicated painting individual sleepers in that heat!
I'm not that dedicated, the sleepers were painted inside in the workshop on days when the outside temp was less than 25C.

When the temp got higher than that, I was inside the house with a good book, an ice cream and a cold drink........ 8)

The weather is cooling off here now, so progress should speed up a bit.

Graeme

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by GTB » Sat Feb 16, 2019 11:44 am

FWLR wrote: ↑Thu Feb 14, 2019 9:23 am you won't see the sleepers hardly at all....
Still not sure about ballast, I haven't found a suitable supply that doesn't require it to be delivered by dumping a couple of cubic meters on the nature strip.

Not seeing the sleepers when ballasted is the general idea. If you look at photos of Aust track, wooden sleepers blend into the ballast as they weather.

Graeme

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by GTB » Thu Mar 07, 2019 6:02 am

It's now officially Autumn in SE Oz, not that you'd notice, as it was 38C (100F in the old money) in the water bag last weekend when the bushfires started to the east of here.

Anyway, I've managed to paint another eight lengths of track ready for installation and with the temperature now down in the low 20s today, the track is now 40ft longer. It's now around the big bend at the south end of the track and on the approaches to the bridge.

The attached pic. shows the TVT roadmaster sitting having a quiet smoke in the late afternoon sun, after driving the inspection motor out to the rail head to have a sqizz at the track gang's progress.

First run-4.jpg
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Regards,
Graeme

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Re: TVT - First Turnout and Infrastructure

Post by Mitch stack » Fri Mar 08, 2019 5:55 am

Great work Graeme, is that railmotor a IP engineering Lollypop Range kit? im looking around for small Railmotors for my tramway at the moment.

regards Mitch.
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