The (Windmill Hill) Welsh Highland Railway

[Andrew]

It seems it's not just us railway modellers who find it more convenient to glue their ballast in place. Not my photo, but I spotted this at Paddington yesterday:





Quite realistic, don't you think??? I'd like to see the size of the syringe/turkey baster they used to apply the SBR with though...

Cheers,

Andrew.

[philipy]

It seems it's not just us railway modellers who find it more convenient to glue their ballast in place.

Quite realistic, don't you think??? I'd like to see the size of the syringe/turkey baster they used to apply the SBR with though...

Probably use one of those weed sprayers with long arms sticking out the sides.
Great spot though Andrew, priceless.
Think I'll have to make some of those up, 6" intervals all round my line??

[ge_rik]

Bootiful photos, Andrew. Those coaches look just right in the garden setting.

Rik

[Andrew]

Afternoon all!

Apologies, it's been yonks since I've been on the Forum, partly because I've spent the last two weeks away in the beautiful Orkney Islands...

As ever, I got back from holiday keen to crack on with the railway, starting with cutting the grass and tidying the garden in order to find the track in the first place. I had thought about running a train but that's not quite happened, but I did take advantage of this afternoon's sunshine to crack on with the ballasting.

I got the pointwork at the top end of Penlan station levelled, ballasted and glued - here it is with the SBR freshly applied:

Ballasted points.jpg (387.16 KiB) Viewed 13524 times

There's just the stretch of line that goes under the deck and the curve under the swing chair to adjust and ballast now - I might just get it done before passenger services cease for the winter. The locals may not consider this a great hardship - there have been a grand total of two passenger trains so far this year, both on the same day!

Cheers,

Andrew.

[FWLR]

Thats the problem with going away Andrew, doing all those jobs again that you did before you went....
The weather this year is making things grow so fast, especially the grass and those flipping weeds.....

[Andrew]

Hello all,

The weekend's good weather gave me the opportunity to continue with ballasting work. The difficult to reach stretch beneath the deck and swing sofa was lifted, the trackbed cleared of obstacles and the whole lot realigned, before ballasting and leveling with granite chippings. It's been a somewhat troublesome stretch for a couple of years now, so I wanted to give it a test run before glueing down the ballast. I assembled a test train which included my two most track-shy carriages, the FR-style composite and WHR Summer Car, both of which have been prone to the "bow string effect" in the past.

With my Regner loco in charge of the test rake, I'm pleased to report that the stretch of track in question passed with flying colours, even if I did run into problems elsewhere with encroaching vegetation and buffer-locking because I lazily attempted to reverse the whole train back down the line rather than run round properly!

Anyway, here are some pictures, taken as the light began to fade:

Passenger test 1.jpg (434.78 KiB) Viewed 13372 times

Passenger test 2.jpg (353.01 KiB) Viewed 13340 times

Passenger test 3.jpg (415.68 KiB) Viewed 13372 times

Passenger test 4.jpg (265.52 KiB) Viewed 13340 times

The last picture represents the first time passenger stock has reached Clarach for yonks - I'll try to run a proper passenger service before the end of the season...

I liked how the third one came out, very "light railway", and pretty "Welsh Highland" despite the motive power - I was lucky to get it though, a split second after it was taken the loco derailed on that tuft of moss! As I went to sleep last night the afternoon's running was bringing back vague memories of a childhood visit to the Isle of White steam railway in the early 80s - green paneled carriages, a green loco, and green countryside...

Cheers all,

Andrew.

[tom_tom_go]

Brilliant photos Andrew, the best I have seen in a long while that capture running trains in the garden at home.

[philipy]

As Tom said, 'Brilliant', Andrew, just lovely.

[Lonsdaler]

I like the second photo too - all capture that bucolic narrow gauge mood, imho.

[Dwayne]

[DonW]

Good photos. All looking very good. I take your point about the IOW steam railway one of my favourites. Proper coaches.

Don

[FWLR]

Sorry for the late reply Andrew. They are brilliant photos, just looks like a line in beautiful British countryside.

[Andrew]

Thanks Rod!

I haven't been out in the garden much lately but hope to raise steam this weekend if the weather obliges...

Glad to have you back on the Forum,

Andrew.

[Andrew]

Good evening!

As I've mentioned before, passenger services on the (WH)WHR don't generally run during the winter. It feels like an occasion that should be marked, so this afternoon I headed out into the garden with two aims in mind - to operate the last passenger train of the year, and to run my newly-extended Welsh Highland goods train for the first time. The trains looked good lined up at Trefechan, but things didn't go entirely to plan...

End of season 1.jpg (405.4 KiB) Viewed 14035 times

Attempt 1.

The real WHR's WD Baldwin was rough riding and temperamental, so kept to goods work whenever possible. As such, my Accucraft version of the loco seemed the perfect choice for my own WHR goods, so I took it down from its shelf for the first time in months. I think it's fairly likely that the receiver batteries were flat, but I didn't get as far as finding out because the (ludicrously over-complicated) transmitter is shared between the Baldwin and my (more recently used) BH Bertie, and I couldn't remember how to switch between them! It's happened before, and I've resolved it by looking up the instructions online, but with the light fading I decided to go to Plan B...

Attempt 2.

My RH Russell would also look the part on the goods, and go well with the NWNGR 4 wheelers in the passenger rake too, so that came down from the shelf next. I raised steam without too much difficulty and Russell headed down the line to pick up the train. The trip back up to Clarach was fairly uneventful, and the train certainly looked very nice, but trouble lay ahead - I couldn't get the bloomin' loco into reverse! Not sure what the problem is there, but I couldn't resolve it on the spot, and so - with my end-to-end line - the train was stuck at the terminus...

End of season 2.jpg (421.51 KiB) Viewed 14035 times

End of season 3.jpg (393.43 KiB) Viewed 14035 times

Attempt 3.

Determined to finish the job I returned once more to the loco shelf and retrieved my trusty RH "Little John" - only to find that I'd left it switched on, and so it was without juice...

Attempt 4.

If all else fails, I reach for "Daisy", my Regner Konrad. All wasn't entirely well with her, her pressure gauge seems to have stuck, but - as ever - she got the job done, rescuing the passenger train and trundling the good up and down the line. Phew!

End of season 4.jpg (277.44 KiB) Viewed 14035 times

End of season 5.jpg (384.32 KiB) Viewed 14035 times

End of season 6.jpg (405.54 KiB) Viewed 14035 times

End of season 7.jpg (334.54 KiB) Viewed 14035 times

End of season 8.jpg (355.77 KiB) Viewed 14035 times

We've made it to the end of the season, just, but there's clearly work to be done before next year's passenger services commence!

Cheers all,

Andrew.

[LNR]

Andrew,
I can so relate to your problems, I run quite a few radio controlled boats and it wouldn't be the first time I have arrived at the lake to realise I have packed the wrong transmitter or wrong battery pack.
Those rather large Regner pressure gauges do seem to have sticking problems if not regularly used, and my Lumberjack has suffered the same problem. A very gentle tap with something metal generally does the trick in my case. Upon opening mine up, I see that the gauge has a plastic quadrant and gear with terribly fine teeth in it and think this maybe the cause.
The goods train certainly looks the business, and I do like the weathering on the WD, D class bogie open. I remember when you first posted the pics. of the two of them, I had to put them on file for future reference.
Grant.

[ge_rik]

Good to see you eventually got the train there and back. Reminds me, I really must have a run soon.

Rik

[FWLR]

Glad you eventually got a train running along your brilliant line Andrew. Those transmitters can be a pain can't they.. I have a similar problem with my Deltang Tx, when we run Anne's Tram and the other two battery locos. I solved that little problem with putting those little stickers you can get from most post offices and putting Tr, Pu (PickUp) and Di (Diesel).

Has for the batteries, I am always forgetting to turn them off or even better, removing the little fellows....

[Andrew]

Andrew,
I can so relate to your problems, I run quite a few radio controlled boats and it wouldn't be the first time I have arrived at the lake to realise I have packed the wrong transmitter or wrong battery pack.
Those rather large Regner pressure gauges do seem to have sticking problems if not regularly used, and my Lumberjack has suffered the same problem. A very gentle tap with something metal generally does the trick in my case. Upon opening mine up, I see that the gauge has a plastic quadrant and gear with terribly fine teeth in it and think this maybe the cause.
The goods train certainly looks the business, and I do like the weathering on the WD, D class bogie open. I remember when you first posted the pics. of the two of them, I had to put them on file for future reference.
Grant.

Thanks Grant, I'm glad it's not just me, although my troubles are fairly symptomatic of the rather chaotic way I run my railway... Next year I WILL be better, and in the meantime I'll keep my expectations very low! Luckily, I was in the right mood for such a flawed operating session and took it as an opportunity to overcome obstacles and identify areas for improvement. On another day I'd have taken it as a sign that I should have packed it all in and taken up stamp collecting!

I'll give the pressure gauge a tap to see if it helps. It strikes me that it might have become seized with rust, because the gauge does have a tendency to fill with steam, which then condensates... It may be time to replace it with a smaller one, although they're rather expensive..

Glad you like the D Class wagon. It's funny you should mention it, because once I'd put it on the track I actually took it off again and turned it round so that its "best side" was visible. Those wagons represent my first attempt at adding rust with iron filings and vinegar, and it's a bit of an orange sludgy mess on the other side! I'm pleased with how the "replacement plank" effect turned out on this one, inspired by a (1930s?) photo taken at Dinas featuring a goods train where many of the wagons feature unpainted planks.

I solved that little problem with putting those little stickers you can get from most post offices and putting Tr, Pu (PickUp) and Di (Diesel)

I think you'll take your advice Rod, and stick on some instructions on which buttons to press to change loco. Both engines only have RC on the regulator, so the Futaba kit, intended for flying helicopters etc, is really over-the-top for my needs - at some point I'd like to replace it with a cheaper, simpler system on both engines...

Cheers,

Andrew.

[LNR]

the gauge does have a tendency to fill with steam,

Andrew, if that is happening, it's more than likely that the bourdon tube is split. Although I have soldered one successfully it probably indicates a replacement is required.
Grant.

[Andrew]

the gauge does have a tendency to fill with steam,

Andrew, if that is happening, it's more than likely that the bourdon tube is split. Although I have soldered one successfully it probably indicates a replacement is required.
Grant.

Thanks Grant - I had to Google it, but apart from anything else I've learned what a bourdon tube is!

I've always fancied replacing the huge pressure gauge anyway. I think I'll wait until I've ensured that the line's other engine's are working well then withdraw Daisy for a little TLC. I really must repaint that strange two-tone cab (I'm thinking quite a bright blue, edged in black and lined in white...), and I've got a tender for her half-finished too. Not sure about that, she might look even more daft on slate and skip trains then. I guess I don't always have to use it...

Cheers,

Andrew.