Nolwyn Valley Tramway

[drewzero1]

I have also toyed with the signal issue, but as yet not got around to it. Time for our holidays soon and things for the line are in a queue...

The cost of materials are silly at the moment and I am afraid they won't get any better will they. I would go around building sites and see what they are not using, you will be surprised on what they will let you have for nothing or a little bit of beer money....you never know you may be able to build your raised bed and tunnel with very little money.

In my research I found that a lot of small railways operated on a policy of only one loco in steam at a time, therefore no signals necessary. However, I already had the itch to try building one, and my son has been begging to play with the vintage one on my HO layout. Maybe bigger == tougher? Certainly easier to replace, at least.

I'm also checking local craigslist/marketplace listings for stone and fill. There's a farmer offering free rocks, you-pick-it from the field. A local school is being demolished this month and the city is offering bricks to residents as mementoes, so I might go and see if I can get through the line a few dozen times

[drewzero1]

Looks prettier than my efforts

Rik

I took some major shortcuts, nothing a strategically-placed failure to focus can't hide. In the car world we call that a ten-foot paint job: looks good from ten feet away. (Though with my cars it tends to be twenty... or thirty!)

[philipy]

I guess I just needed to run out of filament for a while to remember that I can still model things the "old-fashioned" way!

Yes, I feel like that sometimes, too.

The signal looks really good, and as for whether you need one... you just have to apply the old maxim " My railway, my rules" ... problem solved!

I used the same logic for my 3-way bracket signal some years back ( also leaning heavily on Rik's write up ). Totally over the top for the line, although it did have an ulterior purpose in telling me which way some hidden turnouts were set.
https://gardenrails.org/forum/viewtopic ... ls#p138315

[Andrew]

I'm loving the look of the NVT so far, ands very much looking forward to seeing how it develops...

At some point I plan to make a rusty/decaying pile of signal bits to dump by the line somewhere - the Welsh Highland's predecessor, the NWNGR did have "proper" signalling to start with, but ditched it after converting to a Light Railway to reduce costs.

Cheers,

Andrew.

[drewzero1]

I'm loving the look of the NVT so far, ands very much looking forward to seeing how it develops...

At some point I plan to make a rusty/decaying pile of signal bits to dump by the line somewhere - the Welsh Highland's predecessor, the NWNGR did have "proper" signalling to start with, but ditched it after converting to a Light Railway to reduce costs.

Cheers,

Andrew.

Thanks! And that's a good idea... For anything that fails the toddler test, weather it and call it scrap. It's prototypical!

[Old Man Aaron]

I'm increasingly finding that getting materials from retailers is the sucker's method - not that I've spent much time looking for free stuff.

That stainless rail will hold up well.

[drewzero1]

I'm increasingly finding that getting materials from retailers is the sucker's method - not that I've spent much time looking for free stuff.

That stainless rail will hold up well.

I've been a scavenger all my life and I've gradually learned that while you don't always get what you pay for, sometimes it might be worth it to pay for what you get.

[FWLR]

I have also toyed with the signal issue, but as yet not got around to it. Time for our holidays soon and things for the line are in a queue...

The cost of materials are silly at the moment and I am afraid they won't get any better will they. I would go around building sites and see what they are not using, you will be surprised on what they will let you have for nothing or a little bit of beer money....you never know you may be able to build your raised bed and tunnel with very little money.

I'm also checking local craigslist/marketplace listings for stone and fill. There's a farmer offering free rocks, you-pick-it from the field. A local school is being demolished this month and the city is offering bricks to residents as mementoes, so I might go and see if I can get through the line a few dozen times

Hope you can get the stone you need Drew. I have had many an item from them, including scaffolding boards and the hand rails, which are smaller in diameter than the bigger pipes for use of the actual scaffolding. Also had a few bags of cement over the years, bricks, paving all sorts of stuff and believe me they have been great quality.

[drewzero1]

As the surrounding paver patio takes shape, plans for NVT begin to crystallize. The visible area for the main loop has been set at 9 by 8 feet, with potential for a siding around the corner of the house or a spur along the edge of the patio. All I can say for sure is that compared to prepping the area and leveling all these pavers, building the trackbed is going to be a piece of cake. Not looking forward to the retaining wall though, which will be the next obstacle after all of the pavers are fully leveled and packed in.

Paver patio in painfully protracted progress. The NVT will primarily occupy the space between the fence and the house.

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For comparison, the same area at the beginning of the month. We've been a little busy!

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Rod, my HO shelf layout is built on an old scaffolding board I found in a jobsite dumpster years ago. We've got a great reclaimed building supply store here called ReStore, and I'm hoping I can get some blocks from them for the rear part of the wall (which will be hidden, towards the house). The front of the wall will need to pass approval and there's already an earmark in the patio budget for visible stone.

[FWLR]

That’s going to be an impressive line Drew. Looking forward to more updates when you get around to them.

Nice to hear you have had some skip finds in the past. The recycle store sounds good too, I think I would be in there for most of the day. You never know what you might find.

I am getting more done on our line, but just like the cricket , rain has stopped play

[drewzero1]

We've finally had our first rain of the month, and I was able to get the last of the whole patio blocks laid just in time. Over the weekend I hope to fine-tune the leveling of a few specific blocks, then pack screenings and dirt in-between to fill the gaps. Then for the next few weeks straighten and level the bricks and edging (and an uneven part of the surrounding yard), and begin the pond & railway rockwork. Need to keep these outdoor projects moving along if I ever want to run trains!

Stayed up late last night finishing and painting some stock, then forgot to take pictures. I messed up the controller wiring on NVT no. 1 "THORNAS" and apparently fried the voltage regulator, so I need to do some digging for my spares. I ordered a dozen because I figured something like this would happen... Then I put them somewhere so safe I'll never find them.

[FWLR]

( Stayed up late last night finishing and painting some stock, then forgot to take pictures. I messed up the controller wiring on NVT no. 1 "THORNAS" and apparently fried the voltage regulator, so I need to do some digging for my spares. I ordered a dozen because I figured something like this would happen... Then I put them somewhere so safe I'll never find them. )


That happens to most of us Drew. I am always putting stuff somewhere I can't find them, Anne says I am a nightmare...


Forgetting to take photos is another one...When will I learn to keep my phone at least near me...


Hope to see more of how you are progressing with your line Drew, the rain here just keeps on coming, so no work to be done on ours for at least 4 more days according to the weather people....

[drewzero1]

Here's the stock I was working on last night. The GVT brake van was nearly complete but needed a roof, so I formed one out of a cracker box and painted it. The tea van needed the same as well. The wagons are built from popsicle (lolly?) sticks and looked far too clean, though I think I might have gone a bit too dark on the outside.

GVT brake van, open wagons, and tea van out for a jaunt in the yard

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The tea van needs buffers and hooks, but so far it looks like I'm more likely to have a train than a track by the end of the summer.

[ge_rik]

That does look good!!
Rik

[drewzero1]

In my last post I conveniently cropped out the locomotive in the front of the train, as I didn't feel it was complete enough to reveal. I've put some work into it this week and I'd like to introduce "Furcy", the latest addition to the Nolwyn Valley roster:

NVT "FURCY" wearing a temporary face to mark the Awdry Extravaganza (and the diorama contest)

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He's a silly little engine designed to run on the tight curves of LocoRemote 3d printed track, partially as an exercise in pushing the limits of a minimum recognizable steam engine, and partially to put into practice the lessons from THORNAS' many toddler tests (and subsequent rebuilds). To that end, I've simplified the construction and attempted to include stronger joints and bracing where it may be necessary.

The motor was meant to be a geared can motor similar to that used in THORNAS, and should have taken up most of the space inside the boiler, but I came across what looked like a great deal on some cheaper N20 style geared motors and snapped it up without looking at the dimensions. They turned out to be tiny! I modified the plans a bit to make the loco a belt drive, though it's running on rubber bands for testing until I get around to measuring for belts.

The running gear with tiny motor, and rubber bands standing in for belts-- one has already snapped, and they are not easy to replace on this design.

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The motor is rated 3-6V and I'm running it from 3xAA NiMH batteries in the cab. The coal bunker is removable to allow easy access to the battery holder. (Another lesson learned from THORNAS!) Control is currently just a simple on/off switch, but I plan to add a DPDT switch to allow reversing. There should be plenty of room in the boiler to add remote control (much) later.

[drewzero1]

Highlights from initial testing (before snapping the temporary drive belt):

Pulling two wagons, one loaded.

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Struggling to negotiate a tight curve... Some adjustments may be necessary.

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The rear lamp is actually a knob to latch and unlatch the battery door. I had meant to make the coal bunker span the full width of the cab but made yet another error in measurement. How's that saying go again... measure once, cut twice? Something like that.

I think I'll need to learn some video editing soon to show off longer clips... Rik and Nigel make it look so easy!

[ge_rik]

Neat little loco. You could start a trend.....

Rik

[FWLR]

That is a nice little loco indeed. I like how much you have got inside such a little space.

There is something that we used to use many years ago when I was in engineering, setting up high speed wrapping machines that had small motors that drove the date code printing head. It was like rope but it was much more flexible and it was joined by reversible threaded wire. It was very strong and never broke unless it was stretched too much. Unfortunately I can't for the life of me remember what it was called. There are companies though that will make drive belts too any length for you.

[drewzero1]

Thanks guys! Rod, I'll have to look into that... I think I can kind of picture it. I'm thinking for now I'll probably make some slightly chunkier pulleys and find some rubber O-rings that will fit, (as I've done with MOKE, see post #1) but I've also been looking into small chains. Unless I redesign the axle boxes to drop out--as I probably should--it will be a fair amount of disassembly to replace a belt. A chain that could be broken and reattached would potentially save a lot of trouble.

This is all just a bit of distraction from the task at hand in the garden... but it wouldn't do to have nothing ready to run on (eventual) opening day! (Outside: patio proceeds apace, pond placement pending. No sign of roadbed or even alignment at this point.)

[ge_rik]

Thanks guys! Rod, I'll have to look into that... I think I can kind of picture it. I'm thinking for now I'll probably make some slightly chunkier pulleys and find some rubber O-rings that will fit, (as I've done with MOKE, see post #1) but I've also been looking into small chains. Unless I redesign the axle boxes to drop out--as I probably should--it will be a fair amount of disassembly to replace a belt. A chain that could be broken and reattached would potentially save a lot of trouble.

This is all just a bit of distraction from the task at hand in the garden... but it wouldn't do to have nothing ready to run on (eventual) opening day! (Outside: patio proceeds space, pond placement pending. No sign of roadbed or even alignment at this point.)

I've used this company a few times for bits and pieces

https://www.technobotsonline.com/pulley-belts.html

Rik