Garden Railway Forum

Hi I’m finally starting to think about my garden line build, I have some 060 live steamers and just wondered what would be the best radius and if the larger size Peco set track would be sufficient?

My garden also has a slope so for part of it I was going to build a raised bed, I thought blockwork would be fine for the back as this won’t be seen but after some suggestions for the front face of the wall. It will be a reasonable size (up to waist height) and fairly long so cost is an issue. I also need the ability to have some curve to the wall.

Any thoughts and suggestions on the wall? Photos would be really useful

Hi
Wow, two VERY big topics in one. I read your post last night but waited for those with greater experience to respond. However I realise the disappointment of waking up to no replies, so I thought I’d offer some input.

We need more information, such as scale and gauge. Gauge One (standard gauge) 0-6-0s will require bigger minimum radii (eg 7 to 10 feet) than narrow gauge stock of a greater scale eg 16mm. (3ft ish)

Most locomotive manufacturers quote a minimum radius for each model, but this is not the only consideration. A line with tight curves might look fine with short wheel base stock (eg quarry line with Hudson tippers) but would look silly with very long carriages with their excessive overhang on tighter curves. Some idea of the style/size of stock you intended to use would help us to comment tailored to your circumstances. A quick search (using the search box top right) on "minimum radius" will get lots of posts with more general but still excellent advice.

Also bear in mind that if you intend having guests round with stock then an extra tolerance can be helpful.

The second question of raised beds. Raised beds can be quite expensive in time and materials no matter what materials are used. I think the choice is usually a balance of cost versus personal aesthetics. As part of my current planned project I calculated (some time ago) cost per metre of materials for a variety of finishes. All used up several Roundhouse units (little known economic unit relating to cost of pleasure) for a relatively short line.

However the advantages of a raised line are acknowledged by experienced garden railroaders (not as a consequence of experience but of their ageing joints) but many achieve this economically using raised baseboards of protected wood or plastic (eg Filgris). Some object to the fact that the railway doesn't run through the landscape but exceptional results can be achieved by growing shrubs such as lonicera up the sides to create banks of scale leaves beside the track.

A lot of this is personal choice (influenced by disposable Roundhouse Units) and if you let us know your thoughts we could discuss them. A lot of garden railway books will cover examples of the above too.

Sorry for the lengthy response that I am sure hasn't answered your two questions adequately. But lets us know your plans and I am sure you will get lots of discussion.

Also keep posting about your new line as it develops. Peeps will be interested.

Finally you asked for pictures. This is the best I can do: I'm testing my largest stock on a 1.5m radius curve through a possible tunnel.

Trials of loading gauge by Andrew S, on Flickr

Andy S.

Andy S. has given a pretty comprehensive response, and I can only add that the cheapest option may well be placing the railway on legs and planting Box, Lonicera or another scale friendly hedging plant underneath, which will eventually grow to provide an apparently solid raised structure. A friend has his railway constructed this way and it's most convincing, with the advantages a raised line offers, without massive civil engineering undertakings. Alas, it won't be an instant solution, as the hedging will take time to grow, depending upon how mature the plants you choose are.
Good luck anyway!

I agree with the suggestions for raised boards and planting.
However, be careful with Box, nationally it is currently suffering badly from Box Blight and Box Moth, both of which are killers and untreatable.
I'd go for Lonicera Nitida ( well actually I did! ). I have about 20 metres of it hiding raised trackbeds. Once established it actually grows quite fast, and it has the benefits of being trainable to form cuttings and tunnels and soft landig areas for derailments! It is also dead easy to propogate by taking cuttings, in fact I've got small plants growing in various places where the hedge clippings randomly fell and took root.

An elevated line mounted on posts with plants underneath that grow to fill the space is a very good idea.

This gent used electrical cable trays mounted on treated posts as his track support, there might be a few idea contained in here that may help.
https://www.gscalecentral.net/threads/p ... ys.315518/

You may get some inspiration from my elevated line as well.
https://ringbalin-light-railway.blogspo ... age-1.html

I would also add, that the fill, in a raised bed will settle over quite a short period of time..
This means that the 'permanent way' will require remedial work, for at least three years. - Something often overlooked, in the quest to get a new line up and running..

Could be quite disheartening, if there is a major feature built on the raised area.