Time to build a railway...but where?

[FWLR]

Great to see your line again Peter. Looking forward to seeing more builds and even more of your line.

Has you say Peter,

......The best things in life are free.... so why am I doing this?

Because you love Garden Railways maybe......

[ge_rik]

Really great views of your townscape, Peter. You have the artist's knack of good composition. How have the town drains worked over the winter?

Rik

[FWLR]

Peter, you have probably been asked before, but can you please tell me which type of SBR you use. I have seen 501,503 and various others. I want to use it at some point on our line and I don't want to get the wrong one.

I am not wanting to get Anne's wraf again for buying the wrong stuff.......

[SimonWood]

The weather has been wonderful for a number of days now and I took the opportunity to set out all of my structures and accessories which have been in the shed over winter. A few recent additions have been made and it is such a great feeling to see them all out again after such a long time.

Amazing photos Peter. From that angle, and with detail such as the vehicles and miniature plants I really had to check these weren't photos of full size scenes, even though I recognised the buildings as your own! Also it's amazing how the trees in the background blend in, just as if they're a bit nearer (rather than 19x over scale!)

[IanC]

As others have said Peter, fantastic modelling. The photography is good too.

[Peter Butler]

Peter, you have probably been asked before, but can you please tell me which type of SBR you use.

Rod, I use 503 Premium which is advertised in a yellow container. I don't recall seeing other types but they should all do much the same thing.

[philipy]

Peter, you have probably been asked before, but can you please tell me which type of SBR you use.

Rod, I use 503 Premium which is advertised in a yellow container. I don't recall seeing other types but they should all do much the same thing.

I've been using the Cementone product, but that ran out a couple of weeks ago and I bought the Everbuild 503 Premium simply because it was the cheapest I could find at the time. I've used both on a section of track and there appears to be no difference now that it's all dried.

There is an Everbuild 501 PVA Bond, which isn't the same thing at all, being PVA not SBR.

[Peter Butler]

Oh dear..... I think this garden railway bug has infected me after all. Today I had a most welcome visit by Dennis and Julie with her marvellous Merlin Mayflower and I found myself playing trains both during their stay and after they had left. This is something I don't normally do and I might be seeking counselling if it continues?
The weather was slightly cooler than recently but bright and sunny which made it a real pleasure, it was a treat to see the Merlin hauling a train of my coaches, which it did with ease, and ran so smoothly for a heritage loco with single 'stick' controller.....

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[jim@NAL]

Looking bloody brilliant.

[philipy]

The vegetation infilling is really adding to the effect now. Especially the big clump behind the phone box in this second picture.

[FWLR]

Thanks Peter and Phillip for your replies on the SBR...

Peter what a wonderful day you looked to have had and the Merlin sure is a beautiful looking loco.

Your line is looking great again and I am extremely jealous, I think it's the first time I have seen the crossing. Those gates do look good and weathered with the rust and all...

We must at some point in our trips come and see you both......Anne would be amazed at what you have done. She is getting more and more into it....Bless her..

[Peter Butler]

How have the town drains worked over the winter?

Rik

Hi Rik,
sorry for the delay in replying to your question, I seem to have been inundated with visitors since getting my railway 'dressed' again.
The answer is that they coped admirably, there is one small area where a slight dip in the roadway escaped my attention but elsewhere it is perfectly clear. Recently I removed the drain covers to check inside the pipework, the only thing I discovered was some dust settlement where the covers sit on their support, otherwise the pipes were doing their job.

[philipy]

small area where a slight dip in the roadway escaped my attention

Glad to see your local council highways dept is no better than anywhere else!

[Andrew]

Those photos are wonderful! With your railway looking that good it's hardly surprising you've been inundated with visitors...

Andrew.

[Peter Butler]

How have the town drains worked over the winter?

Rik

This is the second time I have answered your question Rik, but this time I can include pictures which I think prove the point. Just as when heavy rainfall carries debris along gutters to a drainage point it gets deposited around the grille and the water runs away in the drain, the same applies in miniature. You can imagine how it would look if all of the water just lay there with all of the detritus it carries.....

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.
More of a concern is the nuisance caused by our feathered friends who fling my track-side accessories everywhere in their search for insects.....

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[philipy]

.
More of a concern is the nuisance caused by our feathered friends who fling my track-side accessories everywhere in their search for insects.....

You have my sympathy with that Peter. Not so much trackside accessories, but I've lost count of the number of times already that I've retrieved and replanted the vegetation along the stream banks. When they fling it actually into the water it then floats downstream and clogs the filter bag in the top of the sump!

[Soar Valley Light]

Our Jackdaws are masters at dismantling a low retaining wall on my line that supports the drainage shingle beside the line. The retaining wall is made with modern standard (35-75mm) 12" to the foot scale track ballast. You'd think they come armed with jacks and bars but I've watched them and its just their beaks they use!

[FWLR]

Well Peter, just goes go's to show how true to life you make your scenes. If we were to be 16mm scale and walking down your village streets we would encounter all that debris.

Has for those pesky birds, not much you can do about them is there, apart from putting heavy stones like you have done on the wagons. Other things, like the logs and stuff. well......

[Peter Butler]

I don't seem to have achieved much recently, other than decorating the living room, painting the house and fences, entertaining guests, attending shows, gardening and other time wasting things, so little to report.... other than my current build, a wooden kit of the 'Rocket' which I received for my birthday in April.
Not much progress there either, except that I decided it should be motorised as a static model so needed a motor with slow running capabilities. Searching good old e-Bay I stumbled upon such a thing with 12v, 1A, 40 RPM spec. At only £13.00 (freepost from China) I thought I would order one and it arrived yesterday.
Having seen it in close-up I have just ordered a second with 90 RPM speed which I can adapt to use on a future loco build as it is possible to fit 33mm diam. wheels directly onto the 6mm axle which is at 90* to the motor and extends either side of the gearbox.

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This unit is amazing for its build quality and power output, I have had it running from an old 'Duet' transformer/controller and it is so smooth and quiet it will be well suited to power a slow running loco. It does need large diameter wheels as the gearbox is fairly big, but it will allow wheels to be fitted easily within 32mm gauge.

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Other voltages/reductions are also available... JGY 370 Speed Reducer Gear Motor.

[philipy]

That looks to be quite a find Peter.
As you say there is a variety of voltages and rated speeds available and I realise that you chose the 12v version to run from a transformer. Have you tried it on a lower voltage, say 7.2v to simulate batteries?