The Railway in the Valley of the Mill

[Trevor Thompson]

The plan is working so far. It is going to be a large structure as Rick said. Thanks for the kind comments Gregh, I agree that there is no other way of tackling this.

I have laid out the next section this morning and prepared the ground. It is fitting into the available space, and it hasn't disappeared down into the buildings. What I have built seems really strong and stable. I think it will take about another 12 trestles to complete it. Just hope it lines up in 3 dimensions with the track bed at the other end, but looks as though its going to.

This mornings progress:

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Trevor

[Jimmyb]

The plan is working so far. It is going to be a large structure as Rick said. Thanks for the kind comments Gregh, I agree that there is no other way of tackling this.

I have laid out the next section this morning and prepared the ground. It is fitting into the available space, and it hasn't disappeared down into the buildings. What I have built seems really strong and stable. I think it will take about another 12 trestles to complete it. Just hope it lines up in 3 dimensions with the track bed at the other end, but looks as though its going to.

This mornings progress:

IMG_1731.jpg

Trevor

Very nice

[Old Man Aaron]

Gonna be a hell of a run, when the line's done. Beautiful.

[ge_rik]

. ..... Thanks for the kind comments Gregh, I agree that there is no other way of tackling this.

Trevor

Have you seen Greg's curved trestle? It is indeed a sight to behold!

Rik

[Andrew]

That's going to look lovely when it's done - and with a superb natural backdrop too...

I love how in the most recent picture you can't see the lower end on the line, so it just looks as though the trestle's striking out on its own and could go on forever...

[Trevor Thompson]

. ..... Thanks for the kind comments Gregh, I agree that there is no other way of tackling this.

Trevor

Have you seen Greg's curved trestle? It is indeed a sight to behold!

Rik

No I haven’t but I will look for it now.

Thanks for alerting me!

Trevor

[Trevor Thompson]

Actually now I have looked at it I realise that I had seen it some time ago. I now realise that it has influenced me because I had vaguely remembered seeing the photos of it but forgotten where I had seen it.

So thanks to Greg for inadvertently helping me to solve the problem of completing my curve!

[Trevor Thompson]

The second section of the viaduct is now complete:

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So that is 7 trestles in place and all crossbraced, and the track "bed" glued on.

That has enabled me to look at how the two ends are going to join up. I have set up the template onto the last complete section and set up a straight plank from the other end - to see how near they are both in vertical height and in meeting horizontally:

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You can see that as far as vertical height is concerned the two ends are at about the right height to actually meet. However as far as the two curved sections actually meeting it isn't quite right. I have set the straight plank so it is in line as straight track from the end of the curved bit. I have added 2 straight sections into the template as the sections nearest the last trestle, and where the two meet I have a 6 inch (150mm) gap - sideways.


Trevor

[Trevor Thompson]

Cutting the 6 inches of one of the straight lengths at the trestle end now makes them join!!!!

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So just to think about the gradients, most of the concrete part of this area of the line rises at 1:60. When I got to the trestle viaduct I calculated the vertical height again and estimated the track length - which suggested the gradient should ease to 1:80. Having built the trestle viaduct to 1:80 it seems that the remaining straight section where the plank is should be 1:60. So it meets up, and is as good as I was ever going to get it.

Just another 8 trestles to go.

Trevor

[Peter Butler]

That is looking superb Trevor, just remember the safety netting!

[philipy]

Well done. Hats off, I had enough of a problem with doing something similar with a simple deck boards curved semi circle ona gradient!

[Trevor Thompson]

Yes it is very pleasing that the ends actually look like they will meet!

As far as safety nets go, and Peter has a valid point as there is potentially a 12 ft drop here, I have something in mind.

Looking at prototypes I have noticed that a common way of providing a walkway involves some sleepers being longer than normal, and a walkway laid on both sides, with handrails fixed to the ends of the long sleepers.

So my cunning plan involves every other sleeper being long enough to carry a wooden walkway. On the metal bridge further down the line I used wooden slats left over from a venetian blind to form the walkways. The same seems appropriate here. Last time I glued wooden coffee stirrers on top but this time it is so long I am tempted to just fix the slats on their own. I was a thinking of holes in the end of these long sleepers to take handrail uprights (stansions), and thread a fairly heavy brass wire through them, perhaps 1.5mm diameter. I think the walkway and the handrails should act as a safety net.

I am currently glueing my track down with that polyurethane glue before which I use so much of, and I will do the same on the viaduct in particular.

Trevor

[Lonsdaler]

Not a viaduct, but this prevents trains taking a dip in my pond. Brass model boat stanchions on every 3rd extended sleeper, piano wire for the rails and stainless steel fine gauge mesh for the walkways. Lollipop sticks only lasted a couple of years. The check rails are largely cosmetic, but may be a good idea on a curved structure.

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[Trevor Thompson]

Thank you - that is really helpful. I like those ideas.

I’m going to look for the model boat stanchions - I was really not looking forward to turning up so many of them.

Trevor

[philipy]

I’m going to look for the model boat stanchions -

Try Cornwall Model Boats. Not the easiest site to navigate because they list things by brand, but if you dig for long enough there is an amazing selection of stuff available.

[Lonsdaler]

I’m going to look for the model boat stanchions -

Try Cornwall Model Boats. Not the easiest site to navigate because they list things by brand, but if you dig for long enough there is an amazing selection of stuff available.

Indeed, that's where I got mine from, although they no longer appear to stock the straight stanchions I had, instead there are 3 rail ball type ball stanchions. 40mm would be the most 'scale' version I think. https://www.cornwallmodelboats.co.uk/cg ... l#SID=2483

[Trevor Thompson]

I have looked at the stanchions. The only problem is going to be the cost - bearing in mind how many I will want.

Peter made a comment a while back that he didn't realise how big this all was until he actually visited. Thinking about stanchions has brought this home to me.
The viaduct is 15 ft long, so its going to need 5 lengths of track each 3 ft long. I use 20 sleepers per length of track, and every other one is going to have a stanchion at each end. That is 100 stanchions - at £0.86 each. Of course 40mm stanchions are a bit short really - I think they would be 3 ft high, so each one requires 50mm of brass - say 5mm diameter. Then there is wire to thread through them so that is roughly 10 metres of brass or stainless wire 2.5mm diameter. I suspect I will be turning the stanchions up myself!

I will come back to stanchions when I get to the track for the viaduct!

All this thinking about track has set me to making track. So perhaps I should describe how I make it.

Firstly sleepers. I like wooden sleepers - they just look right to me - compared to plastic. I could buy them but I make them. I have used the remains of teak garden furniture which makes superb sleepers - but beware the splinters when machining it. Otherwise whatever new wood is available (within reason). Since we have just had building work going on here I have recovered ends of joists and roof timbers. All of the viaduct so far comes from this source. Larch is my preferred timber because it is supposed to last well in contact with soil - and as a soft wood it absorbs preservative. Of course to do anything like this requires a table saw.

The trestles are made from 25mm x 25mm, and the cross bracing from 25mm x 12mm. The sleepers are just a bit thicker than the bought ones. Just in case you are not familiar with a table saw it has guides to enable wood to be cut to repeatable sizes:

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The guide on the left enables wood to be cut to predetermined widths, then adjusted to make the strips into rectangular sleeper strips. Using the left hand guide to determine the length, and the right hand guide to hold the strip square, allow individual sleepers to be made from the strips. Please note that the guard has been removed because I am making joints in kitchen furniture - and have just posed this for a photo.I do use the guard whenever possible.

So a box full of blank sleepers.

The next thing I need are chairs. I am modelling Ffestiniog practice so chairs and bulkhead rail. Cliff Barker is my source of individual chairs in bags of 100, and code 180 stainless rail. The chairs come in two parts because they are really intended for gluing to plastic sleepers, but they have a spigot which fits into a hole in the sleeper. This spigot has to be glued to the bottom of the chair. A boring and repetitive chore. Chairs glued to spigots:

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Next holes in chairs.

Trevor

[Trevor Thompson]

The one thing I have found to be critical is where the holes are in the sleepers, variability here makes the track gauge unreliable and derailments likely!

I have two guides and a jig to help. Firstly an end stop to fit into the vice on the drill bed:

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The first hole has only to be in about the right place. So an old sleeper is my template to set the drill to just go into the hole, when the sleeper is pushed against the end stop.

So I drill a batch of sleepers with a hole at one end.

Next I move the end stop out of the way, turn the sleeper round and insert the pin in this jig into the hole. This guides the drill down into the correct place for the next hole:

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As far as getting the holes equally spaced from side to side I do that by eye and feel as I go along, rather than with a jig to hold the sleepers in place because I find that different batches of my sleepers are slightly different widths!

So a batch of sleepers with 2 holes.

Trevor

[Trevor Thompson]

The next step is to fit chairs into sleepers:

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I used to just push them in - but experience with another make of chair taught me to glue them in place to stop them lifting over time. So that glue again. You can see that if I use too much glue there is some to clean off. I need to be careful to make sure the chairs are the right way round. 2 bolts on the inside, one bolt on the outside.

Then to the garden to lay it.

I have a template to space sleepers on straight track, but this first section is curved. It is easy to get a fair curve by running it through your hands to bend it gently. Then threading the sleepers on and adjusting them so that they are the correct distance apart.

I have connected the first two lengths of track, and pressed the fishplates tight with plyers. I have glued every third sleeper and weighted it with stones - just to support it gently while the glue foams:

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Trevor

[Trevor Thompson]

And finally ballast.

I keep forgetting what I did last time, so its hard to see what worked best! This time I mixed 50% cement and 50% "chick grit". You may know that chickens use grit to pulverise corn in their gizzards. Small chickens are given small grit alongside their food - and they eat it for this purpose. So "chick grit" is available from farmers suppliers in small bags and in big bags. I buy a big bag - which goes quite a way! It is also about the right size and relatively cheap.

So I spoon the mixture between the rails and use an old paintbrush - like everyone else - to spread it. The usual shower from a garden misting gun and leave the weather to set it. The final result:

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I suspect I have used too much cement - and 1/3 cement, 1/3 grit, and 1/3 sand might be better. I certainly think the usual 1: 5 ratio for cement is not sufficient when used this way.

Trevor