Garden Railway Forum

Thanks Peter, i have got a better idea now, it’s looks brilliant your layout.

Looking good Peter, you've obviously spent time working out stock movements in your head as opposed to just putting down track. Do I spy the upturned body of a second nice looking passenger coach against the wall and under the rags?
Grant.

The upturned body is a 1:22.3 or 1:24 scale (I forget which) Vossbanen coach I was playing about with a couple of years ago, and never finished. I scaled it off photographs of the two bodies that survive a Grovane on the Setesdalsbanen. If I remember rightly, the originals went back to the 1870s, and were last used on the Vestfoldbanen out of Oslo Vest, which was not converted to standard gauge until 1949. Oslo Vest is now redundant since the tunnel under the city centre was dug and the old standard gauge Ost station was expanded to serve all trains in/out of Oslo. It needs a bit of repair work as it got the rough end of the trip from AZ. I still think I will finish it one of these days, and build a BCo (2nd/3rd Composite bogie) to go with it.

Yes, I do tend to think through the train movements before I start laying track. Then I will have a dry run with track laid loose to see if the brain work was any use. The move that concerns me most is disposing of an arriving mixed train without a lot of fuss. As the anticipated traffic level at Skebawn is 3 trains a day, a second platform was deemed unnecessary, after that there is an element of predestination as to where things need to go. I like the goods sidings close to hand due to the need to shunt them. The loco shed and the carriage siding, but not the loco servicing area, can be a bit out of the way as you only need to get to them at the beginning and end of each session. Basically, the shed can be in a corner, but there should be evidences of a water crane and a coal heap handy to wherever the locos are serviced between trains. I tend to fall into the IMR habit of putting such things on the outer end of the loco shed road. The turntable is a new departure for me, as they were common on Irish NG lines, but not elsewhere in the then United Kingdom.

In this case, mixed train arrives in the platform road, which means the loco can be watered before being coaled and then turned. After that it is run around, move the passenger coaches to the middle road, and start shunting, with departing wagons going up against the passenger vehicles until operations are complete, and the whole train can be moved back into the platform road ready to depart after one last check of the loco's water and coal supplies. Hopefully one gets the shunting done before the advertised departure time.

Peter in Va.

Thanks Peter, I share your liking for things Norwegian, particularly the locos of the Setesdelsbanen. They have a very elegant look to them, something to do with the large spaces underneath them I think.
Grant.

I got interesting in Norwegian narrow gauge through the Isle of Man Railway. It is a bit convoluted, but basically the trail of breadcrumbs starts with Henry Vignoles, who visited Norway fairly frequently and was friends with Carl Pihl, and the fact that the IMR's first set of drawings for their locomotives were labelled 'Norwegian Tank Locomotive.' There was also some resemblance between the original Peel line stations and some of the early Norwegian buildings, etc..

Peter in Va.

A bit more progress in that the 'back of chimney' area has had the bench work erected. I have ended up planning to put the loco shed and the carriage shed at the back of the chimney as the reach over the board to the site by the turntable proved to be a little too long for me. It is also pretty clear that the goods shed is going to have to go about halfway along the goods siding so it is clear of both the point where I catch incoming trains, and the turntable area. [Reminder to self - buy brown emulsion]

Seeing the preliminary track layout on the plywood prairie has got me thinking about the what will be needed in terms of signalling. Of course, it would be totally OK not to bother - the Schull and Skibbereen, and the Castlederg and Victoria Bridge both had no fixed signals - but other lines, such as the T&D were a little more generous. The ground frame will probably need six or eight levers, viz:

1 - Loop to main starter
2 - Platform starter
3 - Advance starter (optional)
4 - Main to Loop X-over
5 - Lock on 4 (optional, could assume 4 has an economic FLP)
6 - goods siding
7 - Down to platform line
8 - Down to loop (elevated shunt signal or an "S" arm)

If I go for the more elaborate option, signals 3, 7, & 8 will probably share a post, and that post will delineate the limit of shunt out on to the mainline.

Photos at the weekend - hopefully.

Cheers,
Peter in Va.

This is getting more interesting by the minute!!
Grant.

Matt dark brown paint bought, and applied liberally to the bench-work (and remarkably little else) this afternoon whilst the wife etc., were out checking the local antique places for deals. Given a choice between a trip to the mall and a trip to the dentist I usually prefer the dentist, so I opted out! I will probably lay the station area in Code 250 rail, but I am debating whether I should spring for new code 250 point work for the country end of the station. That will run me about five hundred so I am thinking that a modest investment in rail clamps might be more sensible, plus I already have three pairs laying around. Next few days I hope to get an hour here and there to relay the station, and have it sorted before I go further with the bench work.

Cheers,
Peter in Va

Any photo updates Peter.

OK. Progress thus far... Not the best shot of the rest of the basement, but this was taken from the bottom of the stairs looking towards the end of bench work, which is just at the back of the hot water heater, furnace, etc.. The area available is about 18' by 10'. Looking towards the void shown in the previous shot. The roads seen here are (from L to R) the mainline, head shunt, carriage road, and loco shed road. Slight change to the original plan there! Reverse shot to the previous one, so the various roads now read from right to left. This is looking from the end of the present bench-work towards the position where the first shot was taken. A few vehicles from the 16mm side of things stored in the loco shed road for the time being. General view down the station towards the turntable.

End of Part 1.

Peter in Va.

More of the Gory Details Looking from roughly the eventual position of the cattle dock towards the turntable. The roads from L to R are good siding, engine release, and platform line. The area at the back, where the overhead light is plugged in will eventually contain the station building and a row of commercial premises which will include the Railway Bar, also know as Maggie's, or the Buffer and Hook. Looking the other way towards the site of the signal box and the "country end" of the station. The loco shed and the probably the usual Irish open sided carriage shed will occupy the two sidings on the right. Our old friend the little black diesel, and a 16mm scale wagon awaiting their next job, just about where the goods shed will stand, eventually. The LBD really needs to be converted to AWD to be useful on the S&CT&LR as when the unpowered wheels are leading they tend to pick up the frogs of facing points and derail. The turntable area. Looking from behind the signal box towards the turntable. The coach on the centre road is a 16mm vaguely Norwegian job of the Nesttun-Osbanen type. The wagon behind it is an ore wagon which still, two years on, needs it inverted V shaped bottom putting in. The Vossebanen coach, probably 1:22.3 scale, which needs some repairs after a somewhat traumatic trip from AZ. The original was built in the late 1870s for the 3'6" gauge sections of NSB and operated until the 1940s. Two of the type, one a third open (Co), the other a second/third composite (BCo) survive at Grovane on the Setesdalbanen. The carriage body is parked where the signal box will eventually be located.

That's it for now...

Peter in Va.

Impressive area there Peter, 18’ x 10’ Basement wow, i know a few N Gauge guys who would love that space. Love you locos too, very nice.

After seeing this I am looking at my garage in a new light, very impressive.
Just a thought regarding the LBD, could the back to back be slightly out,thus causing the lack of surefooted progress?

Really great to have so much indoor space. Must be reassuring to know you can get things done regardless of the weather.

Rik

Big Jim wrote: ↑Mon Sep 25, 2017 10:46 am After seeing this I am looking at my garage in a new light, very impressive.
Just a thought regarding the LBD, could the back to back be slightly out,thus causing the lack of surefooted progress?

Over or under? I stuck the ruler across it the other day and the B2B was 41mm; the powered end is 40mm. I am half convinced that the 41mm end is 1mm over what it should be, but an attempt to nip up the back to backs ended in failure as I would need to reset the axle bushes to get that dimension, which is more than a five minute job.

The space we have down there is considerable. The main basement is 19' by 27', and then there is an annex 13' by 14' so I make it about 714 sq. ft.. I have lived in houses that size. The 13' x 14' is basically "Herself's" storage area, and the central heating boiler, etc., occupies the middle of the large side, which creates a minor difficulty in that we need to maintain easy access to the boiler and the water heater. Amusingly, the fire irons from the days when the central heating was coal fired are still down there!

Yes, it is lovely having all that indoor space, but honestly, I liked being outdoors better. I am still playing with the idea of both an indoor and an outdoor line. The former for winter and summer, the latter for spring and autumn.

Cheers,
Peter in Va.

I am not really up on 45mm gauge stuff. Perhaps others on here will know the answer.
However, if one is 40mm and works, the other is 41mm and has issues then it suggests that this could be a cause.

IrishPeter wrote: ↑Mon Sep 25, 2017 4:53 am The LBD really needs to be converted to AWD to be useful on the S&CT&LR as when the unpowered wheels are leading they tend to pick up the frogs of facing points and derail.

Conversion from 2WD to 4WD won't make any difference to derailments at turnouts if the leading wheels are wide to gauge. It will improve the haulage capability though, so worth doing for that reason.

The nominal back to back on 45mm coarse gauge is 40mm. If it is wider, the turnout check rails can't pull the wheelset over far enough to clear the nose of the v-crossing (frog). The only fix is to take the wheelset out and reset the back to back.

A simple wheel gauge made by filing notches in a piece of ply, or aluminium, is a useful tool for checking wheelsets before installation.

The G1MRA 45mm coarse scale standard is commonly used for SM32/45 narrow gauge and the dimensions are here. The page also includes track standards.

http://www.g1mra.com/pdf/standard-dimen ... gauge1.pdf

The 16mm Association has published it's suggested wheel standards here

http://www.16mm.org.uk/resources/wheel-standards/

Graeme

IrishPeter wrote: ↑Mon Sep 25, 2017 1:37 pm
Yes, it is lovely having all that indoor space, but honestly, I liked being outdoors better. I am still playing with the idea of both an indoor and an outdoor line. The former for winter and summer, the latter for spring and autumn.

Cheers,
Peter in Va.

Brilliant plan there Peter.

I'm getting strong vibes of Schull station going by the track plan, all it needs is an engine shed at the back perpendicular to the running lines coming off the turntable

It leans a bit more towards Kilkee at the other end of the station with loco shed, headshunt, and a road for spare carriages all at that end. It is one of my exercises in pastiche in that the combination of elements from Schull, and Kilkee produce a very plausible Skebawn. I used to do this with my OO scale stuff with elements from two or three stations belonging to a company being used to make a very plausible fictional station. I still have Grimsby (New Station) up my sleeve if I give 4mm another go! The LNER were going to replace both Town and Dock in the late 1930s but Hitler's war intervened.

The loco shed perpendicular to the main running line off the turntable was an arrangement that the Schull and Skibbereen lived to regret especially as it was too close to the TT pit for comfort. I think they had to winch one out of the hole a couple of times over the years. The turntable bring effectively the access to the loco release appeared quite a few other places in Ireland - e.g. Harcourt Street, Dublin; Athboy; Western Road, Cork; Skibbereen before the extension of BG line to Baltimore, and Kilybegs! A couple of other termini had the turntable at the buffer stop end of the loco run-round, the two that stick in my head are Kilkee (WCR) and Youghal.

Next job it seems is fettle the B2B on the LBD...

Cheers,
Peter in VA