drmalesis Posted June 3, 2011 Author Share Posted June 3, 2011 cleanerg6e said: Looks like you have nice soil there Duncan and your dog seems very willing to pose for photographs. We'll just have to take you at your word that the pink gloves aren't yours. With that garden implement in the soil and a dog that just want's to play all day, perhaps he's saying to himself "all this preparation for a garden railway?, ahh fork it lets have fun!" Tut tut... willo said: looks like the dogs enjoying it aswell duncan Yes, he never knows when to stop. I sometimes I wish I had a dog like Mick's that just likes to laze around in the garden. Seriously though, he gives us hours of pleasure and company and I wouldn't swap him for the world... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmalesis Posted June 3, 2011 Author Share Posted June 3, 2011 Hi All, Whilst waiting for the car to be serviced today, I decided to take advantage of the glorious weather and walked along the Mawddach Estuary Trail, which just so happens to start in Dolgellau and finishes in Barmouth some 9 miles away. Although my walk was only a round trip of about 3 miles, it was very warm and sticky, and I'm now knackered. I guess what I'm really trying to say is that I've done no further work on the Minffordd Line today. Oh well, never mind - time for a beer in the garden... Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmalesis Posted June 5, 2011 Author Share Posted June 5, 2011 Hi All, Although I was at work yesterday and today, my nearest and dearest (plus pooch) spent their time more profitably clearing a little more of the Minffordd Line. It doesn't look as though much has been achieved, but we are trying to clear away the nasties and at the same time keep the wild plants worth keeping. As such it's rather hard and time consuming work. Anyway, this image shows the outward route (on the left) and one of the possible return routes to the right of the tree (centre right). I haven't checked yet, but as you can see, the land slopes a good deal and the supporting posts are likely to be about 4ft high at this point. If this proves to be too much, I will return from the left of the tree above the purple foxgloves, and compensate by taking the line further out before returning. Your'e not likely to see much for a couple of weeks yet, but I'll keep posting photos of the progress - as long as you want to see them that is... Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick Posted June 5, 2011 Share Posted June 5, 2011 drmalesis said: ...Your'e not likely to see much for a couple of weeks yet, but I'll keep posting photos of the progress - as long as you want to see them that is... Posting of photographs is mandatory! Of course we'd like to see them, but I hope also that it proves to be a decent online record of your progress and that you'll enjoy looking back over it in the months and years to come. I love looking back at the changes to my own garden during the past couple of years and if the photos were hidden away somewhere I doubt I'd ever take them out so the online record is essential to me. When I was looking at your recent photos I was thinking that you really don't need to clear everything because you can use most of the greenery to your advantage so long as you can keep it manageable. The vegetation forms an ideal scenic backdrop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmalesis Posted June 6, 2011 Author Share Posted June 6, 2011 mick said: Posting of photographs is mandatory! Of course we'd like to see them, but I hope also that it proves to be a decent online record of your progress and that you'll enjoy looking back over it in the months and years to come. I love looking back at the changes to my own garden during the past couple of years and if the photos were hidden away somewhere I doubt I'd ever take them out so the online record is essential to me. Right I'll keep em coming then. mick said: When I was looking at your recent photos I was thinking that you really don't need to clear everything because you can use most of the greenery to your advantage so long as you can keep it manageable. The vegetation forms an ideal scenic backdrop. Yes, that's the general idea. I'm really just clearing 2 or 3 feet either side of the intended route for access. No doubt mother nature will fight back, and as long as it doesn't take over, I'll let her. I did do another couple of hours when I got home this afternoon, but it was mainly clearing away tree trimmings left on the ground from last year, and moving the small piles of weeds into 1 big one. Nothing worth uploading a photo of. I don't think we can do much more until we've had a bit of a bonfire to burn the pile we currenty have. If I let it get much bigger, the whole plot will go up. I'll make sure I post a photo of the pile before and after... Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cleanerg6e Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 Your lucky you can have a bonfire, over here in summer bonfires are out. If you light one up you get a massive fine plus a court appearance. In the winter time you can burn off as the authorities do a lot of hazard reduction burning of the local bushland to reduce the risk of wild fire storms in summer. My plot looks dead as I spray a weed killer every two months or so. Roy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmalesis Posted June 7, 2011 Author Share Posted June 7, 2011 cleanerg6e said: Your lucky you can have a bonfire, over here in summer bonfires are out. If you light one up you get a massive fine plus a court appearance. In the winter time you can burn off as the authorities do a lot of hazard reduction burning of the local bushland to reduce the risk of wild fire storms in summer. My plot looks dead as I spray a weed killer every two months or so. Tell me about it Roy. Last year I nearly did set fire to the whole plot when the fire got a little out of hand and spread to another pile waiting to be burnt a little further away. The surrounding trees got a little scorched, and I did something (figuratively speaking of course) that would be too embarrasing to mention here. Given the events of a couple of years ago in Victoria, it's hardly surprising they're not too happy to let you light bonfires down under... Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmalesis Posted June 8, 2011 Author Share Posted June 8, 2011 Not much to report here I'm afraid as rain has most definately stopped play. Oh well, I can always relax in front of the computer and do a bit of window shopping... Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmalesis Posted June 13, 2011 Author Share Posted June 13, 2011 Hi everyone, The wet weather has again stopped any further work on the Minffordd Line. However, I've taken the opportunity to do further planning, costing and sourcing of material suppliers. As you know, I've decided to build a raised track bed to accomodate the slope in the land, and have further decided to construct the track bed from exterior ply. I would have preferred to use Marine, but it's far too expensive. I haven't yet decided whether to paint it with bitumen or to take Ian's retrospective comment about masonary paint and use that instead. Either way, I will be topping it off with roofing felt fixed with felt adhesive. My NCE PowerCab has been sitting around unused since I bought it off eBay a couple of weeks ago waiting for me to install some DCC chips into my existing stock. I haven't managed to get around to this yet, but I have managed raise the cash to purchase a couple of locomotives:- Bachmann's Class 37 248 "Loch Arkaig" in West Coast Railways livery from Olivia's trains. I did fancy the additional DCC Sound version but couldn't justify the £230.00 price tag (including delivery). And secondly, Hornby's R2895XS Black 5 - BR Late Crest (new) off eBay. I'd been impressed with this locomotive's sound since first hearing Mick's early crest loco on a couple of the SGR videos. I must say that the two cylinder DCC sounds seem to be more realistic and convincing than other cylinder configurations I've heard on other locomotives, but the quality of many of the YouTube videos probably doesn't help. Anyway, they should both be with me tomorrow, and I'll be waiting to ambush the postman when he comes in the morning... P.S. I'll submit some piccies and a brief review as soon as I'm able - Yahoo !!!! Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick Posted June 13, 2011 Share Posted June 13, 2011 I only used a small amount of exterior plywood when I built my track base but I did check the price of marine ply beforehand. When I'd collected myself off the floor I felt satisfied that normal exterior grade would suffice if well treated and protected and so far that has been the case. You shouldn't have any problems if carefully sealed and protected with roofing felt. I'm delighted that you managed to get hold of 37 248 but saddened that you had to get it from a retailer rather than directly through the original commissioning company. I paid less to get mine direct and I feel strongly that you should have been able to as well. As far as I know, no other retailers have sold 37248...? If I remember correctly, that same retailermentioned was also selling another Limited Edition loco not so long ago that had been commissioned by a 'major' retailer, again at a premium on the original selling price. It's what I'd expect to find on somewhere like eBay but not what I feel comfortable seeing from a High Street model retailer. However, better not get into all that..... The Black 5 is another good choice and you should be delighted with both. By the way, fitting a sound chip and speaker into Loch Arkaig yourself is pretty straightforward and should save you a few pounds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmalesis Posted June 13, 2011 Author Share Posted June 13, 2011 Duncan mick said: I'm delighted that you managed to get hold of 37 248 but saddened that you had to get it from a retailer rather than directly through the original commissioning company. I paid less to get mine direct and I feel strongly that you should have been able to as well. As far as I know, no other retailers have sold 37248...? If I remember correctly, that same retailermentioned was also selling another Limited Edition loco not so long ago that had been commissioned by a 'major' retailer, again at a premium on the original selling price. It's what I'd expect to find on somewhere like eBay but not what I feel comfortable seeing from a High Street model retailer. However, better not get into all that..... Hi Mick, I know what you mean, but after searching high and low and dismissing several overpriced used versions on eBay, I decided to buy this one from the retailer mentioned at a considerably lower price than the used ones. Yes, it was a little more expensive than a standard Bachmann Class 37, but not too much. Having said that though, there are a couple of very over priced collectors club models I'll certainly never consider at the prices being asked. If you don't mind me asking, which sound decoder have you installed, and what did it cost... Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick Posted June 13, 2011 Share Posted June 13, 2011 The sound chip currently fitted in my Loch Arkaig is one taken from another Bachmann 37 that I obtained with factory fitted DCC sound and it retains the factory fitted soundfiles. The factory fitted one now has a sound chip from a Hornby Duchess that has been reblown with class 37 sounds. Other than my recent Loadhaul set of 2x37s I've been lucky (considering recent prices) in never having paid more than £120 for a sound-fitted class 37. They're slightly more expensive these days. I've only ever purchased one sound chip and that's gone into my HST (still need the other!) The rest of the time I've bought complete locos and swapped chips around before selling on the donor loco if not required. You should be able to get a 37 sound chip for between £94.50 (Rails, Loksound v4.0) and £117.50 (Howes, Howes sound files). If you didn't want the standard files as on the Rails chip then it might still work out cheaper to buy the Rails version and have it reblown with Howes sounds (£12.95 plus £5.50 post) Other chips will be available elsewhere I imagine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmalesis Posted June 16, 2011 Author Share Posted June 16, 2011 Well despite the miserable weather forecast, we had a fairly good day on the Minffordd Line, with just a few spots of rain to cool us down. We started the day attempting to burn the existing pile of rubbish, but all the recent rain has made that impossible. Despite a gallon of parrafin, the pile just refused to burn - it just smoldered for a couple of hours and went out. Plan B was to attempt to map out the levels of the railway, and to get some datum points in place to work from. Surprisingly, the weather did not interrupt and I managed to get the high and low spots at the top of the slope pegged out. The image below shown below shows the outbound line. The posts were temporarily dug into the ground, fencing rails fixed on top and leveled. The run is 30 feet(more or less), and terminates at each end where the curves will start. Note the garden fork propping up the nearest fence rail... This next image shows the far point seen in the image above, and is the highest point on the outward line. I have kept it as low as possible, but high enough to reduce the amount mud etc. that's likely to get splashed onto the track during rain. The final image shows the outward line end on and the spade gives a rough idea of the height of the track bed at this point. With the site sloping to the right in this image, all I need to do now is take the level off the datum point out to the right to determine the height of the posts required to allow for the slope. It's looks to be approximately 3 to 4 feet, or as I originally guessed, about chest height. The radius of the curves required at the two ends of the track bed above will be somewhere in the region of 5 to 6 foot at the far point, and six or seven foot radius at the nearest point. The next task is to install three permanent posts to replace the temporary ones used as datum points in the above images. With these posts set in place, the Minffordd Line foundations can truly be said to have been been laid. However, when that will be I don't know - the weather forecast for the rest of the week looks dreadfull... Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick Posted June 16, 2011 Share Posted June 16, 2011 With all the talk about gardening and weather stations it's good to see one of us is hard at it on the railway front. I'm a bit reluctant to mention the weather for fear of getting sidetracked again but I agree it doesn't look very promising for the next few days - more so for the west of the country (and I know of a decent weather station over that way!) The photos really give a sense of the slope you're having to contend with. I'd suggest making the curves as large as possible as it's great watching trains go round them. The one near my viaduct was the first one I constructed at a 6ft radius but it seems rather tight now. The one at the top end of the garden was over 7 feet and looks much better. Here's hoping the rain doesn't hold you up for too long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmalesis Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 Hi All, Not much to report this weekend, as I'm at work again. However, I did manage a first last night, well for me anyway. When I got home last night, I found a nice little package from the postman containing a DCC Concepts Rolling Road, and more importantly a Bachmann 36-553 decoder. As you'll probably have remebered, I'd originally intended to install a TCS DP2X-UK into D7672 Tamworth Castle, but at £20.00 plus p&P for the TCS, I thought £8.95 for the Bachmann was a bit of a bargain and well worth the risk. The installation was straight forward and took less than ten minutes. After popping her on my short length of test track, she fired up straight away and even went in the right direction. That's now 3 locomotives with DCC decoders fitted. In the meantime, I've been quietly spending a few quid on expanding my small number of loco's and coaching stock. So here a list of my purchases in the last week or so... Bachmann Class 37 248 "Lock Arkaig" - DCC Ready Hornby R2895XS BR ex LMS Black 5 (Black Late Crest) - DCC Sound Bachmann 31-976A BR Standard Class 3MT Tank 82030 (Lined Green, Late Crest) - DCC Ready Bachmann 32-359 BR Standard Class 4MT Tank 80053 (Black, Early Crest) - DCC Ready 11 Bachmann Mk1 Coaches in Maroon - comprising a mixture of 1st & 2nd Class Corridor, 2nd Class Open, Composite, Miniature Buffet & Full Brake... I've been hankering for a rake of maroon Mk1's for several years, as I think they look superb, especially behind a BR Brunswick Green loco, be it express or humble tank engine. What's next on the list of wants...? Well, I was originally (10 years ago that is) looking at a West Country or Battle of Britain class loco, so I'm seriously looking at the limited Edition "Fireworks at Chilcompton" set from Hornby - also the 3 ex LMS coaches will come in handy. Secondly, I want a diesel loco with sound to complement the Black 5 and lend a bit of diesel ambience to the setup. After that, I think it's time to hold on until the layout is completed and I have a better idea of what type of loco I want to expand on. I'll give some brief reviews of these purchases over the coming days. Until these loco's can be run on a proper layout, the reviews will be based on a few photo's and first impressions. Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 I've found the Bachmann decoders to be reliable too. They don't perhaps offer as much in the way of specifications as some of the more expensive makes but they work well, which is the main consideration for me. That's a nice selection of loco's and coaches you've put together. Now all you need are the baseboards completing and some track laying underway and then you can start adding some videos Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmalesis Posted June 22, 2011 Author Share Posted June 22, 2011 Hi All, I'm sorry to say that there has been no further progress on the Minffordd Line. What with work and the continual drizzle or downpour there's not been much opportunity. It's all a little frustrating that I can't do anything, especially with the nights being so light. Anyway, I'll be on holiday for a fortnight starting Monday, and although I have to remove a bath and install a shower in it's place, I'm sure I'll be able to get some track bed laid and some choo choo's running... Mick, after several days of research and soul searching I finally bought a camcorder. Like you I fell on a bargain when I found a bloke selling them on eBay £100 cheaper than the other sellers. I've been playing with it for a couple of days and I'm extremely impressed with it, but I do have several questions I'd like to ask. As some of the members of the forum use camcorders, do you think it's worth starting another thread so that we can share thoughts and experiences... Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 I've been keeping an eye on the 'Minffordd Observatory' so I had an idea that progress may have been halted. There's no wonder you've had so much lush vegetation to clear before getting to work on the railway! A new thread for camcorders sounds like a good idea to me. It's always best to keep specific subjects separate and avoids clogging up other threads. It also makes information easier to find. There are a couple of categories in the 'General Forum' section that could be used - take your pick. Good to hear that you've managed to get hold of a camcorder as you'll be needing it soon when the trains start running. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drmalesis Posted July 14, 2011 Author Share Posted July 14, 2011 Hi All, Well the showers almost completed (this weekend should cap it) and then it's back to business. I've not been completely idle on the railway front though, as I have made several decisions about the layout and spent some cash accordingly. After giving some thought to what era or region the railway will attempt to represent, I'm still sticking with the preservation type of line. This will give a greater excuse to vary the type of locomotive run on the line and keep the interest factor high. However, whilst thinking about a station area on the layout, I came across an almost complete selection of Hornby Skaledale East models on eBay that use buildings from the Settle & Carlisle Railway as their prototype. The station building is very closely based on Dent Station, and the Water Tower, Goods Building on the Hawes Juntion / Garsdale prototypes. I'm not planning on modelling any one station, but it will have a very S & C feel to it. The only thing I don't have is the Up platform waiting room which I'm sure will turn up on eBay at some point. As a main line that carries freight and other modern image traffic, it's a good excuse to diversify the loco collection and still run the 50's and 60's steam / diesel locomotives. P.S. If anybody has or knows of someone wishing to sell the Skaledale East Waiting Room (R8856), I'll be interested... Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cleanerg6e Posted July 14, 2011 Share Posted July 14, 2011 Hi Duncan, I read on the Hornby website that they intend to bring out Dent Station in the Skaledale range this year so you may be able to buy that waiting room Roy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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