The Apple Valley Railway (7 1/4" gauge)

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Fri Sep 06, 2013 6:31 pm

Some updates:

The crossing was more trouble than it was worth:

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Fri Sep 06, 2013 6:41 pm

Been working on a very small german battery loco:

And a second passenger wagon:

And a boxcab loco:

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Fri Sep 06, 2013 6:50 pm

A simple wagon:

Been developing an area for a g scale line:

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Fri Sep 06, 2013 6:56 pm

After reading a fantastic book about the driving creek railway in new zealand (and getting nearly 250 bottles for free after my sister's wedding), i embarked on some lineside improvements:

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Fri Sep 06, 2013 7:02 pm

Added footboards to the first passenger wagon, and upgraded the work truck to a drivers truck:

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Fri Sep 06, 2013 7:06 pm

And in case anyone was wondering, the buggy was finished;

But i got fed up with the weather, so rebuilt it as a baja bug:

If you want to see more of this - check my channel "nomis45mm" on youtube.

laalratty · Post by **laalratty** » Fri Sep 06, 2013 8:50 pm

Nice work, good to see the line still progressing. I do like the Driving Creek inspired bottle cutting!

jim@NAL · Post by **jim@NAL** » Mon Sep 09, 2013 8:36 pm

love the railway and the v dubs very good.i hope u give them some good off road action

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Tue Sep 10, 2013 6:59 pm

Thanks for the comments.

The bug certainly does get used off-road - that's why it has a full 'cage

a more recent pic of the bottle wall:

Dr. Bond of the DVLR · Post by **Dr. Bond of the DVLR** » Tue Sep 10, 2013 9:47 pm

Any new videos recently? Progress looks grand. Is there room for a triangle to serve the stub siding?

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Mon Sep 30, 2013 8:29 pm

As requested:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtiX9KtlOcM

Sorry about the sound.....

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Sat Mar 15, 2014 8:52 pm

Sorry it's been ages since the last update

There has been some more slow, but steady progress in the apple valley. Other garden & car projects have taken priority over the railway through the winter, but things are moving again now...

The little ASF loco is now on it's own wheels, with motor and chain drive fitted:

Suspension is by WH Smiths finest rubbers

It really does look tiny compared to "normal" normal sized stock:

Even with everything fitted it is still a fairly easy one man lift, should make it ideal for visiting other railways

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Sat Mar 15, 2014 8:54 pm

I have also done a quick re-build of my flat wagon. It now has new buffer beams, couplings, and a wider deck (18"). Still needs a re-paint, and stake pockets to be added:

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Sat Mar 15, 2014 8:58 pm

This week I have been working on a 4 wheeled wagon chassis - this one will have a particular purpose in maintaining the railway:

The wheels on this one are really for 5" gauge, so are a bit narrow, with quite shallow flanges - might need some more work to keep it on the track

laalratty · Post by **laalratty** » Sat Mar 15, 2014 8:59 pm

The new loco must be about the smallest loco to ever run on 7 1/4 gauge track!

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Sat Mar 15, 2014 9:02 pm

And the decking platform has finally gained it's second track!

which allows for shots like this:

And the big news from today is that THE BOXCAB LIVES!
I finally got around to adding couplings, and rigging up a control system, so with a battery carried on the flat wagon, I drove it around the garden today

Now I need to fit the doors, finish adding details, and wire it up properly. I might enclose the motor and add some sound deadening - a worm drive gearbox inside a big metal box is quite noisy....

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Sat Mar 15, 2014 9:15 pm

The new loco must be about the smallest loco to ever run on 7 1/4 gauge track!

Well I think that the prototype is about the smallest standard gauge loco (not inspection trolley) that I can think of!

A couple of pics of the real thing:

And this is what I hope the boxcab should look like:

Dr. Bond of the DVLR · Post by **Dr. Bond of the DVLR** » Sat Mar 15, 2014 11:55 pm

I like the WHS suspension! Where do you source your wheels and axles and plum blocks from nowadays?

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Sun Mar 16, 2014 12:06 pm

The boxcab suspension is just as high-tech, it uses the rubber stoppers meant for homebrew wine jugs!

Wheels and axles come from ebay, bearings either from ebay or bearingboys.
The 1/2" pillow blocks are about £8 each, wheels vary, but i never pay more than £10 per wheel....

Nomis · Post by **Nomis** » Sun Mar 30, 2014 8:35 pm

I decided to remove the side plates from the chassis of No1:

Although not like the loco that inspired the model, I think it looks a lot more "honest" with the bearings & wheels on show. Plus you can see all the chains whirring around as it goes down the track

I have since sorted out the rust on the chassis & applied a fresh coat of black paint.

Also No2 has finally got it's doors fitted:

And a simple control panel:

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The Apple Valley Railway (7 1/4" gauge)

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