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I & HR


roddy
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Waiting for my track to arrive. Track pins and rail fishplates plus a crossover are here, but the exciting stuff isn't. I have spent a day or so making a control console. The base is a cupboard that sat on a computer desk, plus a set of casters that have been unopened in the garage for 5 or 6 years. A few odd bits of wood completed it. Schematic plan painted to a board above controllers using an old car aerosol. Stud and pencil methoud of points control using some left over bolts from kitchen units. Wire salvaged from an old car loom that has been cluttering the garage for I don't know how many years. The little 25 watt soldering iron worked admirably, even outside in a breeze.

All of the track on order is new stuff, but I grabbed 12 Seep pm2 points motors plus 2 CDUs last night for £25. I reckon that using stud and pencil instead of switches will do away with the need for the CDUs. Can't see for the moment how they are supposed to wire in. What do you think?

Need to get some timber offcuts out of the brick shed where the sidings will be. Mrs was moaning the she couldn't get to her freezer tonight. General tidy up jobs until my track arrives. I need the shed clearing anyway as the boards that are in place for the sidings will make an ideal workbench for soldering bonds to track. I have enough cable to do the feed for both track loops and all the points motors. I will only need to find enough to create a wandering extension for my console which will be moved to my preferred operating positin some 12 ft away. This lead will need to carry the point motor feeds and return, and the main track feeds, although the main feeds could be connected anywhere on the circuit. I'm eyeing up three lengths of redundant telephone cable that runs around my house. There is more than enough there but I'm not sure if I can get it away from the building as it's all secured with those metal clip tie things. I have a feeling that it wont just pull out, and I cant reach high enough with my little ladder. Telephone cables might even be too small for the points motors at that sort of distance. I don't know. Just thinking aloud.

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Nice big box arrived this morning. All my track and points. The sun is shining. What more do I need? Just a little patince to set up the points/crossover formation, and it's the long haul round the garden. Expect some photos soon. I'm getting excited now.

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Had a good day tracklaying. I started with the two points and crossover which separates the sidings from the loops. Measured and cut and fiddled and faffed with that little corner until I was happy that everything lined up properly. Marked and drilled slots under the points tiebars for the motors and then nailed the whole lot down checking that the slots were correct at the same time. I then ran 6ft of double track into the shed with two further sets of points to start the sidings, All nailed down after sighting it through. Then I laid the double track a further 4 yards round the water butt and across the Sweet Pea fence. All nailed down. It was a real struggle behind the water butt, but I got it all in. I ran a tender loco with two carriages over everything by hand just to make sure that it was good on joints and clearance because I knew the water butt would be tight. No bonding done yet. Tomorrow I'm planning on going the length of the Ivy fence round a curve and across where a bridge will be. With luck, I shall then have an awkward piece through some honeysuckle and behind the fountain. That could well be ten or twelve yards of double track, but most of those will be straight and uncut. I had better take the camera out with me to show progress. Points motors may arrive tomorrow, but thats another problem.

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Rained off yesterday, but made more progress today. Started by soldering power feeds to both loops of track. Soldered joining wires between rails at fixed and removable portion of one bridge. This allowed me to run a loco around both loops as far as the greenhouse. I found the obligatory high track pin, and a twig that I'd missed, but the only other problem was both ends of the removable piece. I found it difficult to get a true height that matched all four rails. Got it right in the end, but I'm not happy. I'm feeling that the answer is to drive a naail in tight to each rail, and when the rails meet properly fix rail and pin together with solder. Then I got a phone call to hang pictures and another couple of little jobs at stepdaughteer's house. Grrrr. doesn't she realise how important my work is? Anyway, for now it's nice to see locos running for 60ft of the total 75 ft loops, and the forecast is good again for tomorrow.

On another note,=====, I have about 20 Triang wagons. It is known that these will not run across Peco points, but I had to try to see what the problem is. Am I right in saying that there are two problems? One being the depth of flange making it rise above the plastic parts of the points, and secondly, the thickness of the wheel itself making it too wide for the check rails. It looks like new wheels and bearings all round, but not without first trying a fettle by removing the wheels, and turning them down with the help of an electric drill.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Been a bit quiet lately, but I do have trains running. I have a couple of easy to sort glitches in the trackwork that I shall get around to sorting out permanently. These are at the ends of my removable sections. A little track realignment and some sliding joiners is all that is needed to stop the occassional derailments. All of the points are now motorised and working as they should. The other little snags relate to rolling stock. I have a real mixture of Hornby and Triang wagons which have various wheel sizes and couplings. The couplings need to be all the same, so there is a Winter job for me. The wheels on some Hornby and all of the Triang don't like running through points. I have found that one wheel is inclined to ride onto the check rails causing problems. This should be solvable. The wheels and stub axles run on a metal axle. The stub axles allow a variable distance between the wheels. A spot of epoxy glue between the axles seems to cure the problem by keeping the correct back to back wheel distance, but the couplings still lock, disconnect, or bounce apart. Much of this is due to various heights and stiffness, and bentness in some couplings. Easy to sort out with new couplings all round. My wandering console works just as it should, but having used all sorts of odd cable that I had lying around, I could really do with with making them all the same at some time. It works for now, and that's enough.

I shall probably be in hospital for remedial surgery sometime in November. The surgeon informed me that they like to do this via keyhole if possible, but it's only when they have a look in theatre that they can know. The difference is that with keyhole it's only a week in hospital and a fairly quick recovery, or having all the abdominal muscles cut again, a couple of weeks in hospital, and a much longer recuperation. Either way, I have enough to keep me quiet through the Winter sorting couplings and wheels. Fool that I am, I fell off the stepladder yesterday cleaning the downstairs windows. Got some aches and pains today, and scratches where I landed in a rose bed. Fortunately the roses are not damaged beyond redemption. I really must learn to stay on the ground with my walking stick instead of scaling the dizzy heights of a set of steps.

A question. Should wagon weight be consistent for good running? By that, I mean is it better to have all wagons weighing the same, as it seems that some wagons (the lighter ones) don't like running in a rake.

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Should wagon weight be consistent for good running? By that, I mean is it better to have all wagons weighing the same, as it seems that some wagons (the lighter ones) don't like running in a rake.

I tend to find they run better with the heavier wagons at the front of a set.

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  • 11 months later...

Well look at that. It's very near a year since I posted about my railway. Simple reason is that I have done nothing to it. It overwintered well, but has since suffered a lot of overgrowth from ivy and varios shrubs. I had my surgery in February and am happy to say that after 18 months with a colostomy bag, my general digestive system has never been better. In May, I suffered a car breakdown and was persuaded by a couple of good friends to swap the engine. By the time that was sourced and changed, Summer was upon us and I had plenty of jobs to catch up on, and now as we enter Autumn, I realise that the year has almost gone.

During the odd sit on a garden bench, i have mulled over the little railway things that I wasn't happy with last year, and have finally concluded that I need to revert back to plan A which was to have an inside out railway.

During this Winter, I plan to build about 24ft of folding baseboard which will house a branch line station. I like the short trains. I can add some sort of interest to give some shunting possibilities. These can be erected off centre down the length of the garden and link to half of the track that surrounds the garden at present. It is double tracked, and with a little creativity on the portable boards can be adapted to single track working. This allows me to completely do away with two rather tight bends, reclaim the brick shed for other use, and get rid of the two removable bridges that effectively cut the garden into three.

I will increase running length from the same point from about 75ft to nearly double that. This may also be the opportunity to change from DC running to a simple DCC system. I think somethink like the Hornby setup will be OK for running, and I will keep the old DC controllers to power anything else. I realise that means two separate wiring systems, but each is simple enough and can easily be run side by side. DCC for train control and DC for accessories such as points, signals and building lights. The existing track that I retain suffers less with shrubbery growth than the track that I dispose of, so that's another maintenance issue solved. I can prune the roses and honeysuckle easily, and let the ivy carry on doing it's own thing.

So there you have it. I have kept up to date with all of your progress and sometimes commented. The year of watching quietly hasn't been wasted because I have been learning from you all in small doses, and continue to enjoy what others are doing. From American plumbing problems, through Australian loops, to UK kitchens, passing through weekend madness and uses of various materials and components, we seem to cover all topics, be they railway related or not.

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Haha, that's Daddy's little helper. It doesn't matter what I'm doing, she has to be there watching and supervising. Gardening, decorating, in the garage, it doesn't matter. She is never in the way and sometimes I even have the cat joining in. I'm afraid that she has heard many swear words, but never tells Mummy when she comes home.

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  • 10 months later...

Another year has passed by, and like so many others, my railway is well overgrown. I have to say though, that the trackbed of decking boards has remained perfectly stable.

Isn't it strange that after much planning and building, we become unhappy with what we have done. I have looked at my layout for many months now and been unhappy to the point that I haven't even attempted to correct the couple of design faults. I have also adjusted my garden a little, by reclaiming the brick shed which was the start and end point, and replacing the greenhouse with a summerhouse. This has meant cutting out sections of track which hasn't helped in the happiness stakes.

I seem to have an awkward shaped garden being triangular in shape. This makes it impossible to get a decent run without having bridges for access to parts of the garden or even hanging out washing. I have been tempted to just rip out what is there and forget the idea. But I have been having thoughts on how I can salvage some of the existing track and taking a totally different route, not just around the garden, but in the whole idea. I am not ashamed to admit that Rossi's recent video has spurred me to take the tape measure into the garden and a pencil to paper, and I think that I have come up with a scheme that will work for me.

So here's the plan. First I shall reclaim the trackwork that runs down one side of the garden and remove the trackbed. Next will be a severe savaging of the ivy on the other side of the garden. Somewhere in there runs about 25ft of double track. This will all need a really good cleaning to be of any use, but it's there so it can stay. I can then build new much wider boards to run parallel to the old run looped into that at both ends, and I can do this without crossing any access points or interfering too much with moving around in what is a fairly small area.

I now have work to see me through the Summer by way of pruning and clearing, and through the Winter by way of building a new base and tracklaying. That might sound daft, but I am retired and there are many Winter days that are OK for outside work. I shall also be trawling the Bay of E to obtain three or four more locomotives and enough carriages to make up three trains. I'm short in those departments but my goods stock is ample for my needs if still in need of some refurbishment. I probably have enough flexible track (including an untouched new box) for my needs, but will have to purchase points and crossovers. While I'm at it, I shall also aim at going DCC although I shall not be spending much time adding lighting to stock.

So let's hope that as far as I am concerned the lurking days are almost over, and I shall soon have something to share again.

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Roddy,

I think most of us on here have been exactly where you are. Garden railways are not easy to manage; a couple of neglected weeks and Mother nature strides in, unlike the garage/loft railway that only acquires a layer of dust.

I feel slightly humbled that my efforts have given you a new lease of inspiration but thank you anyway.

If you sift through my pages, you'll find that I have constantly battled what the elements have thrown at me.

My railway is nowhere near perfection, I still get derails/uncouplings etc, and sometimes can find no reason for them. (Well, perhaps in truth, it's mostly down to uneven track, however much time I've spent eyeing up the gradients!)

We're probably blessed with better running conditions here in the Canaries than the UK and so regular running does help to keep away oncoming problems.

I can only say that all the effort has been worth it.

Nothing better than being able to sit back and watch a goods train idle around the circuit whilst partaking with a nice cool beer/wine/cup of tea.

All worth the effort.

Rossi

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Please don't feel humbled Rossi. I know how much "adjustment" you have made. There are some great layouts here, but your one just seems to give me what I am looking for. A through station and goods yard with scenics. I haven't measured properly yet and don't really know if I shall do a figure 8 or dogbone. If whatever I end up with bears a passing resemblance to yours please accept it as a compliment. I hope that my budgerigar doesn't take offence at me bringing the Canaries home. Hahaha.

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Building garden railway is a massive undertaking. The volume of work required is enough to put a sensible person off. I'm still amazed that Mick started again when he moved house. Now don't get me wrong, I love my railway, but I had no idea how long it would take me to build when I first started. If I was starting again? Yeah, I'm foolish enough, I'd still do it.

For most of 2013 I was in the same boat as you. I'd built it all except the lift out section over the garden path. I stalled for a year. In the end I ripped out 8 metres of baseboard, rebuilt it with a wider board, and found a solution to the lift out section.

I now have a nearly complete railway, but I fail to notice how big it is. When I go to a show I have to remind myself that my layout is bigger than anything at the show, and most of those show layouts are club builds. Big takes time. What I've had to teach myself is that procrastination gets me nowhere. Jump in. Learn from your mistakes. And always remember, it's a hobby. If you enjoy building something, but you get it wrong, you have a chance to enjoy building it a second time.

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