The Potters Orchid Railway

A place for the discussion of garden railways and any garden style/scale portable and/or indoor layouts
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Hydrostatic Dazza
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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by Hydrostatic Dazza » Mon Jul 20, 2020 9:49 pm

FWLR wrote: Mon Jul 20, 2020 9:02 am Dazza how pleased you and MAM must be. At last you have got the waterfall running in the, what words can describe that gorge. It has all been said though, wonderful, superb, fantastic, there are loads more. I could lose myself in my imagination if I was there Dazza.

MAM's Lady Anne looked great running over the brilliant bridge. :thumbright:
Thank you, yes, we are pleased, it has been fun so far. It will be so much nicer when the mud in the pathway is removed and decent paths are put in, but that is still some months away. I am on full size steam this weekend, it has been a while. So this weekend is the first in some months that I will leave our home and leave the POR all alone. Friday night steam ups this summer is the goal.
Last edited by Hydrostatic Dazza on Tue Sep 22, 2020 10:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Cheers from Dazza, The Hydrostatic Lubricator 8)
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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by FWLR » Tue Jul 21, 2020 8:10 am

Really looking forward to photos and videos of your Friday night steams with great anticipation Dazza. :thumbright:

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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by Hydrostatic Dazza » Sun Aug 02, 2020 11:17 pm

Orchid House loop at the "Potters Orchid Railway posed some rock supply challenges, but during the week a convenient answer came to mind. At Dazza's family's Brisbane home which is on stumps there is some granite and coloured sand stone rock that lay underneath the front verandah. It was here 50 years ago that a young Dazza who was inspired by a Lady Bird Book on roads created highways from sifted dirt and made into mud and then troweled into a two lane freeway with over pass bridges made from suitable bits of wood for many Lego trucks to travel over. The rocks were part of this landscape in the dirt under the family home, now what better way to use these in the Potters Orchid Railways terra forming process. So a few trips with the Dunny Door station wagon to the family home where Mum still resides, some heaving and dragging had them transported to a new home to the POR. Then the pondering, channeling Slartibartfast, heaving, perspiration, grunts, a plan was formed. Oh, and MAM's ceramic tunnel portals were glued into place.

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Last edited by Hydrostatic Dazza on Tue Sep 22, 2020 10:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Cheers from Dazza, The Hydrostatic Lubricator 8)
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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by Hydrostatic Dazza » Sun Aug 02, 2020 11:37 pm

Saturday arvo, 60kg of cement is mixed to fill the trenches and relocate the main key rocks back into place. More grunting and cursing was echoing over the landscape of the POR. They never seem to go back the same but....#@&!*(%#!!# Then at knock off time, while sucking on a cold Beer as the sun left us the head labourer ponders tomorrow's work plan while the head POR director was grinding the bases of some of her potter creativity.

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Cheers from Dazza, The Hydrostatic Lubricator 8)
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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by Hydrostatic Dazza » Sun Aug 02, 2020 11:38 pm

Along the time line of the past weekend at the POR the head horticulturist, head director and chairperson of the POR was contemplating her Bonsai tree locations, some new plantings and checking the progress of recent plantings. Only one little fella has keeled over so a good report will be presented to the next POR board meeting.

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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by Hydrostatic Dazza » Mon Aug 03, 2020 12:04 am

Sunday morning, the workforce of the POR had a cooked breakfast and the once a month Bacon ration was issued. :-) "Charge and take no prisoners !" was the cry that followed. MAM did a resource/material run to the big green YUK corporation warehouse that we are all becoming slaves to for materials, cement, mortar, mortar colour and more plants :-) . Work progress was on the detail fill in rocks and mortar. Soil fill be added during the week and more planting will occur. With good fortune the rocks and mortar will weather to a pleasing visual effect, considering it is a garden railway, not a scale model railway. To quote from Monkey,
"Time and the pure essences of Heaven, the moisture of the Earth,
the powers of the sun and the moon
All worked upon a certain rock, old as creation.
And it became magically fertile.
That first egg was named "Thought".
Tathagata Buddha, the Father Buddha, said,
"With our thoughts, we make the world."

So MAM and I hope to make this little world for us and others to enjoy.


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Cheers from Dazza, The Hydrostatic Lubricator 8)
The chances of finding out what’s really going on in the universe are so remote, the only thing to do is hang the sense of it and keep yourself occupied. Douglas Adams

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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by philipy » Mon Aug 03, 2020 7:38 am

Thanks Dazza.
I'm pretty sure that I can speak for the "others" when I say that we have all enjoyed the journey thus far and see no reason at all to doubt that the future will be equally enjoyable, if not even more so.
Philip

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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by FWLR » Mon Aug 03, 2020 7:54 am

Just brilliant Dazza, I am soooo jealous of MAM's portals, :mrgreen: :mrgreen: far better than mine.

I will show them when I get a chance to fix them to our tunnel... :roll:

Your photo's are a real pleasure to see and admire. Waiting to see more soon... :thumbright:

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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by ge_rik » Mon Aug 03, 2020 9:20 am

That's an impressive array of brake cables, Dazza. Are they all destined to control signals? If so, that end of your railway will end up like Clapham Junction .....🤭😏

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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by Hydrostatic Dazza » Mon Aug 03, 2020 10:09 pm

ge_rik wrote: Mon Aug 03, 2020 9:20 am That's an impressive array of brake cables, Dazza. Are they all destined to control signals? If so, that end of your railway will end up like Clapham Junction .....🤭😏

Rik
Rik they are for Signals and work off a working interlocked frame. If you scroll back to at least page 16 of the POR thread you will find posts and pics of the process.
Cheers from Dazza, The Hydrostatic Lubricator 8)
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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by ge_rik » Tue Aug 04, 2020 9:18 am

Hydrostatic Dazza wrote: Mon Aug 03, 2020 10:09 pm Rik they are for Signals and work off a working interlocked frame. If you scroll back to at least page 16 of the POR thread you will find posts and pics of the process.
I see that back on p16 I responded about your use of bike cables. :oops: I hadn't realised your signalling was going to be quite so extensive.

BTW, are you using stainless steel cables? (forgive me if you've already answered this)

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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by Hydrostatic Dazza » Tue Aug 04, 2020 9:26 pm

ge_rik wrote: Tue Aug 04, 2020 9:18 am
Hydrostatic Dazza wrote: Mon Aug 03, 2020 10:09 pm Rik they are for Signals and work off a working interlocked frame. If you scroll back to at least page 16 of the POR thread you will find posts and pics of the process.
I see that back on p16 I responded about your use of bike cables. :oops: I hadn't realised your signalling was going to be quite so extensive.

BTW, are you using stainless steel cables? (forgive me if you've already answered this)

Rik
The Orchid House Loop has a 12 lever frame. Potters Junction will have a frame with 23 levers and one spare, but that is a fair way down the time line, at this rate a couple of years. By unhooking two points connections unattended continuous running can be enjoyed. The signals and points are operated by 1.1 mm stainless wire so as to be push pull, running inside Shimano bicycle gear cable cassing. The power supply wires for the signal lamps are yet to be installed, I left these off for now to save possible damage with the size 43 steel capped boots tromping about.
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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by Hydrostatic Dazza » Sun Aug 09, 2020 10:45 pm

Sat morning I searched the internet for inspiration for a bridge to be located at Potters junction on the Potters Orchid Railway. Sat arvo I do the drawings for the stone arch bridge contract that is now submitted to the Potter. I had to draw to allow shrinkage post firing.

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Cheers from Dazza, The Hydrostatic Lubricator 8)
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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by Hydrostatic Dazza » Mon Aug 10, 2020 2:20 am

Sunday at the POR, more planting and the S&T foreman tries to understand what he is trying to achieve with light wires and plugs.

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Cheers from Dazza, The Hydrostatic Lubricator 8)
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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by Hydrostatic Dazza » Mon Aug 10, 2020 2:24 am

We had a friend that was calling in on his way home from Gympie after his weekend of crewing the steam loco hauled trips at the Mary Valley Rattler. It was already dark when he got here but had we waited till his arrival so we could for first time turn on the POR signal lamps in the darkness. YAY. The effect was all we hoped for. A glass of wine and MAM's loco in steam, we sat, told stories and then consumed a roast dinner. It was nice. When we have the paths, bench and awning done then there will be many more afternoons and evenings to come with friends and fellow garden railway enthusiasts. Motivation to press on with more terra forming and filling in the details which will include the signals at Potters Junction.

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Last edited by Hydrostatic Dazza on Mon Aug 24, 2020 3:01 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by FWLR » Mon Aug 10, 2020 8:29 am

That bridge looks superb Dazza, and with MAM's brilliant work it will look fantastic... :thumbright:

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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by Hydrostatic Dazza » Mon Aug 10, 2020 9:54 pm

FWLR wrote: Mon Aug 10, 2020 8:29 am That bridge looks superb Dazza, and with MAM's brilliant work it will look fantastic... :thumbright:
Thanks. The bridge is hoped to disengage the eye looking at the entry to the 850mm radius curve then the cutting and tunnel is to assist the camouflage of this sharp curve :( In the next life I will design the terrace walls to fit 1500mm =+ radius loops. My bad. :D
Last edited by Hydrostatic Dazza on Tue Aug 11, 2020 10:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Cheers from Dazza, The Hydrostatic Lubricator 8)
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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by Hydrostatic Dazza » Tue Aug 11, 2020 10:01 pm

The Potter is working studiously on the POR contract for the ceramic stone bridge to be installed at Potters Junction.

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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by FWLR » Wed Aug 12, 2020 8:35 am

Thats looking great Dazza. :thumbright:

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Re: The Potters Orchid Railway

Post by Hydrostatic Dazza » Sat Aug 15, 2020 10:32 pm

The contract for the Stone Road Bridge progresses. The call was out for a large round surface to use a drying form. Captain Plod rummaged through the workshop, the empty steel hand cleaner tub, used as a rubbish bin will do the job. Plod gave it a good scrub and bingo.

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