bazzanoid Posted August 4, 2011 Share Posted August 4, 2011 As yet un-named..... but here's the plan! As has been discussed, we're intending on laying ballast and track directly onto the stone wall where appropriate. It's double track all the way around, will have an engine shed and goods yard up the back by the town. DCC control, all buildings will be illuminated etc. Two removable / swing sections for the garage door and also at the bottom for the main path from the back door! The plan here shows the general path it will follow, and we're also tackling the task of a 4 metre long viaduct up the right hand side, where the tracks will curve off to the right and go behind the cage you see in the picture. Frustratingly, i couldn't get my CAD program to overlay the inch-perfect trackplan on the garden picture, so a bit of good ol' fashioned Publisher work came in.... Thoughts and comments welcome! http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Picture1.jpg' alt='URL>'> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 That's an impressive plan that should give you some good running opportunities. The stone wall looks nice and substantial so shouldn't pose any problems used as a base for the track. I have found that track located close to plants tarnishes much more quickly than the track out in the open and requires the most intensive cleaning. I'm not sure if it's a reaction with something the plants emit or whether it's due to it being close to the soil but you might wish to bear that in mind when considering running your track beneath the shrubs. There's also the distinct possibility of leaf fall causing derailments. The short section between the two stations looks like it may require some small radius curves as it doubles back on itself to approach the tunnel area. I'd recommend the largest curves you can accommodate, even if it means forgetting about one of the stations. Long trains have a heavy trailing weight and the standard tension lock couplings are extremely unreliable under such tension when negotiating sharp curves - it's not a happy combination. Keep curves as large as possible and the track clear of any potential source of debris and you'll have the recipe for some good reliable running. I'm looking forward to seeing that viaduct! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaybee Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Thank's Mick for the advice. Me and bazzanoid are certainly looking forward to building the viaduct, along with the rest of the railway. We are still up for suggestions but currently thinking of 3-4 metre decking board which the track will be laid upon, supported on 3-4 struts which will be bolted on to the paving, which I discovered is underneath the soil. The viaduct arches will probably be made from polystyrene - but still up for further ideas on that one. I was most inspired by the oo gauge viaducts in Hornby Magazine's recent Garden Railway supplement - they were very impressive. There will also be other raised areas, again using decking board (which will in affect be bridges) in areas where the stone paved wall ends. Some permanent, some removable and as Bazzanoid says 'swing sections'. All what is needed now is a bit of free time to start construction! I hope it will be up and running by Spring 2012 at the latest. That's my target anyway! Jaybee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willo Posted August 7, 2011 Share Posted August 7, 2011 Hey jaybee ive seen a viaduct built somewhere on the net and they put two boards 5ft sections x2 fastened together at each end like you would With shuttering so you have a flawless and topless box all 18 inches high then put your solid polystyrene arches in and pin them in place and then Fill with concrete when all set remove the box knock out the polystyrene and you have a section of viaduct, interesting do you think Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ba14eagle Posted August 8, 2011 Share Posted August 8, 2011 The viaduct mentioned above sounds like the one built in the Model Rail DVD "Garden Railway Expert". This is a good source of ideas and well worth borrowing / buying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaybee Posted August 8, 2011 Share Posted August 8, 2011 I may just have to get a copy of the 'Garden Railway Expert' DVD, unless of course there is a clip of the viaduct on You Tube? I do have the 'Garden Railway - The Series' DVD, which was recently reduced in price. It mainly covers G scale but is still a good source of ideas. Have to say it was watching that which gave me the polystyrene idea for the arches. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesRGR Posted August 9, 2011 Share Posted August 9, 2011 That's more what I'd have liked to do in my garden, but unfortunately it's not my house and not everyone else loves railways... Send me a PM if you want a second person for any of the work, I'm only up the road in Romford so it shouldn't be a problem coming down (riots depending!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bazzanoid Posted August 9, 2011 Author Share Posted August 9, 2011 That's more what I'd have liked to do in my garden, but unfortunately it's not my house and not everyone else loves railways... Send me a PM if you want a second person for any of the work, I'm only up the road in Romford so it shouldn't be a problem coming down (riots depending!) be careful - we may take you up on that offer lol - lots of work to do. Mick - interesting about the issue with shrubs... methinks a bit of wire meshing and some thin posts should cure half the problem. With regards to the tight turn, in reality it will be a lot looser, and there will be a large goods yard above, difficult to show it exactly as the perspective scale of the photo doesn't lend itself to proper proportions, will have to get jaybee to stand above the back of the garden from the garage roof or something Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesRGR Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 lots of work to do. I know that feeling, I have so much work to do, but have not even started yet and can't until other people do things (like sort out one of the sheds, so I can demolish it and build a new one in it's place.) - very frustrating on days like today when the weather is good and I'm home alone! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bazzanoid Posted August 16, 2011 Author Share Posted August 16, 2011 Plans are afoot for groundworks to start on bank holiday monday... going to prepare the left side of the garden for track laying and subsequent ballasting We've decided to settle on: Rubber concrete paint as an undercoat on the concrete to provide a non-porous surface for glue to grip. Gorilla glue every few sleepers on the track to secure it Ballast glued with an appropriate floor cleaner. Now just got to decide on just how far to go with the electrics.... setting up block sections with sensors and live signals or not....? Thoughts welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesRGR Posted August 18, 2011 Share Posted August 18, 2011 I'm going to have block sections all the way round, for computer control. I'm dithering about having signals in the station though... Go for it I'd say, then I won't make your mistakes when I start on mine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bazzanoid Posted August 26, 2011 Author Share Posted August 26, 2011 Well, providing the weather improves by monday (currently hammering down here) construction will begin. So in preparation, on sunday i'll be loading my car up with this lot to take to Jaybee's place: camera, charged and ready to shoot (partly to document construction, partly to post on here) Chunky Hammer (the tech name escapes me) Bolster Chisel couple of dozen paving blocks large plastic storage box full of sharp sand bag of pre-mix mortar Soldering iron & associated bits Concrete Rubber paint Couple that with the actual track, wire, fishplates, waygauges etc at jaybee's place and we've got a recipe for tearing a garden apart! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick Posted August 26, 2011 Share Posted August 26, 2011 Forecast's looking better for Monday, at least it is up this way, so you should be able to make a start. Good to see a camera at the top of the packing list but a little concerned about the 2 dozen paving blocks in your car I assume you mean the small brick sized blocks used in block paving and not something like 18in x 18in concrete paving slabs? If it's the slabs, please take a photo of your car with 2 dozen of them inside Have you come to a decision yet regarding the electrics and block sections? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bazzanoid Posted August 28, 2011 Author Share Posted August 28, 2011 Hehe i've had 2 dozen paving slabs in the back of the car before, great fun until you get to a speedbump. These are the small blocks used for driveways etc, they're about 6" x 2" x 1.5" a piece. Add to that the close to 50Kg of sharp sand that was in my garden that is now in the boot..... And wifey uses the back seat and boot as a dumping ground for her work stuff (she teaches outdoors so big coats, sticks, materials etc) We have a great regional email group round this end called Freegle, not sure if they have it further up north, the idea is that anything at all that is unwanted and would otherwise go down the local tip gets put on there, the only conditions are they have to be free and you have to collect. These paving blocks are an example of that - a guy over in Basildon took them up from his garden and didn't need them - close to 250 of them! So naturally when I was in need of some sort of paving solution to lay a path down my garden i snapped these up - borrowed my brother in law and his trailer, and came back with them. used just over 150 for my pathway, keeping 20 or so to one side for a planned eventual extra couple of 'steps' to the path once i take up the ex-council slabs (which came from Freegle) currently underneath a bunny cage! They constantly have offers of wood, paint, hardcore, paving etc on there - i think my greatest 'win' was 200 Yorkstone bricks that had been removed from a feature fireplace - damn they're heavy but my patio wall and immediate borders look great having been built out of them I think electrics are something that jaybee and I will be discussing at length tomorrow after our early morning trip to B&Q for decking planks to use as base and support for the viaduct (the idea is to have a solid trackbed installed and then figure out the best and most realistic way to clad it afterwards) - if we do get as far as getting track down it will likely only be a small straight section up the left of the garden, so as long as the joints are wired and one length of wire is laid in for electrifying that bit we don't have to rush that decision. Above all else this railway has to be made and therefore planned perfectly, especially since any ad-hoc wiring trailing around will be pulled around by the occasional roaming guinea pig and 2 year old!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 Good idea with the free stuff group. I may have to try that here. We have a thing called freecycle. Same concept. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bazzanoid Posted August 29, 2011 Author Share Posted August 29, 2011 Well, the weather is just right for building a railroad - overcast but warm! After a quick trip to B&Q this morning for decking planks - 3 for 2 offer and a joist, we piled all our tools and equipment up ready to go. Note the most important bit next to the paint pot: http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Garden%20Railway/P1040401.jpg' alt='URL>'> Before I arrived jaybee had already cleared the side wall down and trimmed a lot of the shrubbery back to provide a good start and clean ground to work with. http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Garden%20Railway/P1040402.jpg' alt='URL>'> We started by digging out the area halfway up to lay a paved foundation for one of the stations, and after much dirty knees and root digging we were left with this: http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Garden%20Railway/P1040406.jpg' alt='URL>'> The question was raised around just how deep the paving needed to go since the track itself wasn't coming in too far, only just to allow the platform to comfortably fit on the edge of the wall. Needless to say we used this as an excuse to get some track out, and we scientifically ran a carriage backward and forward checking clearances, chanting 'choo choo' in our heads as we did it. Incidentally, jaybee found a couple of clockwork locos that are at least 40 years old, so we had ourselves a test mule! http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Garden%20Railway/P1040407.jpg' alt='URL>'> http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Garden%20Railway/P1040409.jpg' alt='URL>'> We decided that by laying whole slabs we would have more scenic options for behind the station, and less work as we could avoid having to cut the slabs (but that was only a secondary reason *ahem*). Dirty hands full of sand later, the slabs were laid. http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Garden%20Railway/P1040410.jpg' alt='URL>'> Out came the mortar and trowel to fill in the gaps and smooth out the wall ready to take the platform and tracks: http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Garden%20Railway/P1040411.jpg' alt='URL>'> While I was busy playing with cement jaybee started on digging out the inclined curve behind the shrubs at the top, and used this highly technical method of measuring the curve: http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Garden%20Railway/P1040412.jpg' alt='URL>'> And then it was lunchtime! And that's the story so far...... but the clouds are coming in, will update again this evening on any more work! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bazzanoid Posted August 29, 2011 Author Share Posted August 29, 2011 jaybee had a thought about using solar lighting for the buildings, so thanks to the 99p store i'm going to be destroyin- errr, i mean dismantling and inspecting a garden solar light to see if the bulbs can be separated from the charging / power unit The afternoon brought more good weather, more cups of tea, several expletives at roots that deny the laws of physics, and more construction. we concentrated on the shrub-a-round part up the back, and even got some paint down on the concrete. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves! Bring on the next day of building http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Garden%20Railway/P1040413.jpg' alt='URL>'> http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Garden%20Railway/P1040414.jpg' alt='URL>'> http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Garden%20Railway/P1040415.jpg' alt='URL>'> http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Garden%20Railway/P1040417.jpg' alt='URL>'> http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i213/bazzanoid/Garden%20Railway/P1040416.jpg' alt='URL>'> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaybee Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Well, what a day! With thanks to Bazzanoid we made a great start. Nice to see what has been thought and talked about for many months finally taking shape. The next stage will see a further paving slab placed in position (which will form the base for the start of the town) and then we will continue laying the bricks which will lead us to a 1 metre (approx) tunnel - very much looking forward to building that! After that the decking boards will be used to carry the track around the rest of the garden. The viaduct will follow, once we have all the decking in place. If any one has any experience on using solar panels to light up buildings etc, then be good to hear from you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traingeekboy Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 The cement paint really cleans up the track bed look. I may have to use some on my lumber layout as a sealant for the wood. How is the track going to be attached? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaybee Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 We are going to use Gorilla Glue to fix the track down. Ballast will then be added. We will experiment first and if that is unsuccessful we will try a different adhesive. Watch this space! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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