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Saffron Garden Railway


StevieG
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3 weeks after starting the construction I now have the up line in place with passing place/platform. Eventually it will be double track all the way around with station and sidings. The railway is 25 metres long, which if my maths is correct equates to about 1.3 miles scaled up. My indoor railway is based on Mallaig so most of the stock I have is West Highland based at the moment. I’m not restricting the Saffron Line to any place or period so looking forward to buying some more varied stock. 

Today was the first running session and all went well without too many problems. All the time making good solder joints was not wasted!

Next job is some covers for the station area where the points are. Current thinking is to rig something up with square black guttering. Has anybody down similar or have any suggestions?

Hers a few clips of today’s trial run. The bridge over the pond will eventually have some structure around it. Looking for inspiration now.

 

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That's excellent progress and it's all looking really good.

I'm not sure that any of us here use covers over parts of the layout, although perhaps a wooden shed can be considered that? How are you intending operating the points because with just a little care they are absolutely fine outdoors - it's just any electrical connections that need some form of protection.

Great video's by the way - it's always nice to see some movement and it illustrates things in a way that static photos can't. The only thing I would have done differently, and this was one of the aims I set out with, would have been to have larger radius curves although it does mean the layout encroaches into the garden a bit more. I sometimes wish I'd made mine even larger than they are now especially on the scenic sections around the viaducts. I had less option to the rear of the shed but used all the space I could to smooth the curves out as much as possible.

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11 hours ago, mick said:

 

I'm not sure that any of us here use covers over parts of the layout, although perhaps a wooden shed can be considered that? 

I use covers over parts of my layout. 

I've covered a curve with roof of transparent plastic, but more to keep the leaves of the bushes and trees away from the tracks.
In addition, I took a part along the terrace with under the sun roof.
The sunscreen keeps even light to medium rain.

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Edited by ThomasI
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18 hours ago, mick said:

That's excellent progress and it's all looking really good.

I'm not sure that any of us here use covers over parts of the layout, although perhaps a wooden shed can be considered that? How are you intending operating the points because with just a little care they are absolutely fine outdoors - it's just any electrical connections that need some form of protection.

Great video's by the way - it's always nice to see some movement and it illustrates things in a way that static photos can't. The only thing I would have done differently, and this was one of the aims I set out with, would have been to have larger radius curves although it does mean the layout encroaches into the garden a bit more. I sometimes wish I'd made mine even larger than they are now especially on the scenic sections around the viaducts. I had less option to the rear of the shed but used all the space I could to smooth the curves out as much as possible.

Thanks Mick. 

There is one curve in particular that is too sharp and I am going to alter. I am a little constrained by the shape and size of the garden and the planning officer of course! 

Next step as well as a cover is the bridge across the pond. Think of some sort of box bridge cosmetically added to the track base.

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14 hours ago, ThomasI said:

I use covers over parts of my layout. 

I've covered a curve with roof of transparent plastic, but more to keep the leaves of the bushes and trees away from the tracks.
In addition, I took a part along the terrace with under the sun roof.
The sunscreen keeps even light to medium rain.

 

 

Thanks for the ideas Thomas.

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16 hours ago, ThomasI said:

I use covers over parts of my layout.....

Apologies Thomas, I should perhaps have made reference to your overhead canopy but I was thinking of something closer to track level much like Roy attempted with his 'long departed' Faulconwood railway several years ago now.

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He built protective covers over his raised baseboards that folded back to allow operation of his layout. I believe the blocks on top were to prevent the wind blowing them open.

Probably not what Steve was thinking of(?) but another take on the subject.

2 hours ago, StevieG said:

...I am a little constrained by the shape and size of the garden and the planning officer of course!.. 

Yes that's totally understandable . The larger the curves the more of the garden it's going to consume and when it's even slightly raised above ground level it creates a barrier. I'm lucky in a way that the part of my layout closest to the house is at ground level so it's easy to cross over by means of the raised path creating the tunnel for the trains. Not so lucky in the fact that at ground level it tends to get dirty more readily than the raised areas but it's not a big deal.

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Yes that with the crossing of the tracks wants to be well considered.
I led the footpath over the tracks in one place (tracks in the tunnel), at my station in front of the terrace, on the other hand, I made a whole segment removable and designed a passage in the entrance to that station as a gorge with removable bridges.

I am still thinking of putting the ramp down from the station as a loop around an artificial mountain of quarry stone and to make this mountain so that it can be used to cross the tracks.
Alternatively, I consider installing one of these bridges for ponds over the tracks.

 

 

 

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A nice day in South Yorkshire yesterday so I decided to smooth out one the curves I wasn't happy with. Looks much better now. See picture 1. I know green isn't authentic but it does blend in better keeping planning happy. Selection of running videos below as well. On the indoor layout 'Mallaig' I run NCE Power Cab and computer interface with JMRI software/WiFi throttle on my ipad. For the next running session I'm going to set up outdoors and see if the WiFi works reliably enough in the garden.

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Edited by StevieG
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Great to see trains running Steve and the curve looks much better. The green stain looks fine too so I wouldn't worry too much about that.

What are your preferences regarding freight traffic? You've got a decent running length there so will we be seeing any lengthy block freight trains? The trouble these days is the cost of individual wagons when attempting to build a realistic rake. I'm glad I purchased what I did several years ago because the cost today would be prohibitive - just wish I could find the time to run some of them.

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7 hours ago, mick said:

Great to see trains running Steve and the curve looks much better. The green stain looks fine too so I wouldn't worry too much about that.

What are your preferences regarding freight traffic? You've got a decent running length there so will we be seeing any lengthy block freight trains? The trouble these days is the cost of individual wagons when attempting to build a realistic rake. I'm glad I purchased what I did several years ago because the cost today would be prohibitive - just wish I could find the time to run some of them.

I have mainly passenger stock, a mix of Mainline, Lima, Hornby and some new Bachman which are fantastic. I also have some Jouef mark 3’s so just need to convert the old Hornby HST I have somewhere to DCC. I’ll probably put in a CD drive motor conversion.

Re freight I know what you mean about the cost. I have a few old pieces, some from the 1960’s that came with my first train set! I do intend to have freight of some sort and as I had more Airfix mineral wagons than anything else I keep a look out on eBay for them, bought 2 recently so I think I now have 8. They seem to do for £7 or £8. Probably pre date the locos I have by a few years but I can’t afford newer stuff when I still have the down line to complete.

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I used to disregard the older style wagons completely. Anything that didn't have a 'small' tension lock coupling on the end would be sold on but now with just a small amount of basic 'modelling' to change couplings etc. they do prove quite acceptable. In fact the wagon bodies are usually exactly the same mouldings as the more recent releases that have small tension locks. 

As for mineral wagons there's always the unpainted Dapol 16t minerals (Dapol A008) which currently sell in the region of £6.50. A bit of weathering, data panels and a coal load and you've got a decent train. 

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  • 3 weeks later...

After a few days of heavy rain had a running session this afternoon. Relieved that the 2 lift out sections across pathways fitted perfectly after the rain.

i have a soft spot for class 40’s and had a Lima version that always ran well on DC so decided the convert to DCC and fit the Hornby Sound decoder. While the sound isn’t up the the standard of Howes/SWD/Legobiffoman etc I have in my Bachman’s and Heljan, it is very good value and is a good representation of the “Whistlers”. 

Very impressed. Conversion has been fully successful with the old Lima running very well and pulled 11 coaches with erase. 

 

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Great work - the class 40 sounds pretty good to me but I'm no expert when it comes to 40's. I only have the Bachmann factory fitted sound in my class 40's but I'm reaching the point now where I just think it's all getting a bit too pricey so I can't see things changing on that score anytime soon. Some of the TTS decoders offer decent sound at a realistic price so all power to Hornby.

The rain? Yes, welcome to garden railways although looking at your photo and video you wouldn't think it had been raining at all. It's amazing how quickly things can dry up even after a heavy downpour - but there's plenty more on the way for the weekend.

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I was a bit sceptical of the Hornby ones as I have a class 37 Lima with one and I didn’t think it was great. However I also have Bachman class37’s with Loksound and South West Digital sounds which are fantastic. I guess I’m therefore have a comparison where the class 40 is the only one I’ve got. I’m pretty pleased with it, it does whistle just as I remember the real ones. I’ve got a Lima class 31 so will now get a Hornby TTS for that too. My strategy is Hornby “value” decoders for the old Lima stuff and better sounds for newer Bachman/Heljan stuff I have. By the way I recommend better Megabass speakers I have fitted which are better than the Hornby ones supplied.

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After some thought I have managed to work out a way of sealing up the station area for winter. The layout was planned so that all the points are in the station area. For any sessions it only takes a few minutes to undo by reaching underneath and flicking the bungees away. Materials used were a tarpaulin sheet 3x2 metres, available for under a tenner at B&Q. This was cut in half to make 2 pieces 3x1 metres. The planning officer sewed the edges so they won’t fray. We put some additional eyelets in using a kit and threaded bungee through. Cup hooks were screwed under the boards to pull the bungee cord onto. I made the frame to form a tent from leftover bits of wood. It all blends in reasonably well, looks fairly neat and should keep the elements off the expensive points. Pretty pleased with the mornings work!

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The cover looks great Steve - those tarpaulin's come in very useful at times.

I've just had to change a tie-bar spring in one of my Peco points but they've been outdoors for a few years now and initially I didn't even apply any grease or oil as a means of protection against corrosion. I now add silicon grease in the hope that it will prolong the life of the springs as they can be somewhat fiddly to change. Other than that the points have withstood the weather just fine so really it's whatever you're going to use to operate the points that needs protection although the setup of your cover will also offer protection to anything else you're thinking of including permanently in the station area. Have you decided how you will operate the points - remote or manual?

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Thanks Mick. I haven’t really decided as yet. I would like to put point motors on as it makes life so easy controlling from a central location. I’m going to research how I’m going to do it over the winter months and do it when I lay the down line next year. I’ll probably use PECO point motors protected in some way and camouflaged by small buildings. The wiring can then go back to a panel with push switches that I plug in when in use. On cost grounds would also keep as a separate 12v DC system to the DCC system. I have it this way on Mallaig indoors and it works just fine. Looking forward to reading how others have done it on the forum, I know people have posted but any further advise welcome.

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I personally prefer manual switching for operating points as opposed to DCC control. There's just something a lot more satisfying about flicking a switch or pulling a lever rather than typing in a few digits on a handset. I've used DCC decoders in the past but I wouldn't want to change the miniature point levers I installed on my terminus station board for anything. I still use the stud and probe method on my main station board but I will eventually change those to the miniature levers too as they give a visual indication of which way a point is set. My stud and probe method cost virtually nothing really as it's just a number of small nuts, bolts, and washers operated by the probe taken from an old electrical test unit. The DCC Concepts Cobalt S miniature point levers are somewhat more expensive.

I've never used Peco or Hornby type solenoid motors outdoors so if that's the way you decide to go I'll be interested in seeing how you get on with them. The car central locking motors work reliably outdoors but are much larger in size so they would take some disguising.

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  • 9 months later...

It's been a while since I have posted an update about my layout. During the early part of lockdown I managed to obtain enough track & points to finish the double track. I also decided to felt over most areas as although I had painted the woodwork I wasn't sure it would stand too many winters. I have also updated my YouTube Channel which has video's of the Garden Railway and of Mallaig, my indoor railway based on Mallaig station and the West Highland Line.

Now the trackwork outside is finished here are a few pictures. Featured in the video is a newly acquired a Hornby class 50 into which I have put a Zimo decoder with Paul Chetter's Activedrive sounds from Digitrains. Speaker is from the Rail Exclusive range and I think it sounds fantastic.

I also dusted down my ancient Hornby HST and changed the old Ringfield motor for a CD drive. The coaches are the old Jouef mark 3's. While not up to modern standards they are still OK and run nice and smoothly. The powercar did need some additional weight to give it some traction. I have also put lights into the Hornby class 156 and fitted a snowplough which was made from the part for a Hornby class 153. Looks so much better with the plough fitted.

Next phase is to put some platforms in the station area and possibly a storage area for locomotives at the end of platform 3.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kx70EktpbQY

 

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