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FAULCONWOOD AND SPRINGBRIDGE RAILWAY.


cleanerg6e
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Hi Roy, how are you going with that bad storm hitting Sydney areas around Sydney and heading north, hope you just got heavy rain and not that damaging wind.

We had a visitor yesterday, a whip bird have never scene only heard them in the bush and never this close, what happened next was surprising, my wife got the iPad and clicked the button for the sound of a whip bird he flew in closer and close to investigate saids to my wife to stop playing the sound and he flew in close to the pergola, only a small bird, sadly didn't hear him today.

Happy modelling from SE QLD, Tony.

eastern%20whipbird%2001.jpg

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  • 1 month later...
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Having a troll through some old video footage I came across an on board ride behind D0260 Lion. It was taken with the new Sony Action Cam The old 808 key fob cam didn't like bright sunlight and it's lighting sensor would just white everything out.

https://youtu.be/Ao9R_GHk5gg

Although not mentioned in the video text the other diesel in the footage is class 25/3 D7638.

I hope you all enjoy what once was.

Due to my mum becoming increasingly infirm with early stages of Dementia I've been unable to do anything as I'm always going over to see to her needs. I'm trying to get some home care for her because I also have to work so it leaves no time for modelling. I haven't given up on the garden railway idea but with all I have on my plate at the present time it's a long way down the list of "things to do". We're also short staffed at work so I'm having to do extra there too.

I pop on here from time to time just to see what you are all up too. Although not having a garden or outdoor railway at present I won't offer advice to new people. For me that just doesn't seem right to offer advice when I don't have a railway myself at the present time.

Roy.

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Pleased to see you're still keeping in touch Roy. As much as we all enjoy our railways they are of course secondary when it comes to more personal and pressing needs. I know all too well how family concerns can put a hold on everything else but I'm sure there'll come a time when you can get back to what you obviously enjoy doing so much.

You're welcome to keep popping in and even if you decide not to offer advice, a mere post can give others a lot of encouragement.

Wishing you all the best and looking forward to your return.

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I'm trying ( I've been told I'm very trying at times) a little experiment. I bought today online a Peco O gauge, yes O gauge tunnel mouth and a Peco O gauge over bridge. Now this doesn't mean that I'm about to change gauges but as O gauge is twice the size of OO then a double track tunnel mouth in O gauge should or may take four tracks in OO gauge Some may feel that an O gauge tunnel mouth would look odd on a OO gauge railway. But not really, as the early railways had huge tunnel mouths so that early passengers wouldn't feel they were about to be squashed in the tunnel. Choked on smoke and steam yes, but not squashed. I'm surprised that early trains didn't come with a warning " On entering a tunnel passengers in this railway carriage are advised to take a deep breath and hold it".

Roy.

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I agree with what Mick said about you popping in now and then. Always good to have an extra voice on here.

I'll be curious to hear more about things like the whip bird. I used not really think about birds until I met Sara. Her fascination with them has caused me to become more aware. And this awareness pays off in moments like the other day when another peregrine decided to land in my back yard and then pounce on something to eat. I have some photos somewhere, probably still in the camera. Will have to share them. But now that I am more aware of birds I walk through my neighborhood and can identify their different calls, which is kind of cool.

I don't think mixing scales is a big deal at all. There is too much stuff that needs to be explored for the layout. :)

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Hi Griff, yes the whip bird that Tony posted a photo of is I gather one of our native species. It's the male that does the whip. A long note of "G" followed by the whip which sounds like a cowboy cracking a whip. If there's a high pitched cheeping right after the whip that's the female answering. We also have another little bird called a Bell Bird, which makes a tinkling sound and they seem to be in areas of dense bush. There is a hill near me called Bell Bird Hill but due to all the semi's crawling up it in low gear and making so much noise it's impossible to hear the Bell Birds.

Still not to worry as the local hardware superstore has loads of them in the bush behind the store. Oddly enough the tinkling is thought the warn off predators.

I'll put some video in the Plant and Landscaping section of the Forum.

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Hi Roy and Griff, agree what Mick and Griff are saying as well, good to here from you Roy.

Yeah I have seen on other layout them using O scale tunnel portals for more tracks, see that in England a lot in pics as well, are you still thinking of an indoor layout Roy.

It was me that posted the Whip bird here is a video clip of the sound of a whip bird for you Griff.

I am still moving along slowly, last weekend I finished laying track two points and one diamond cross over, most of the layout is complete in the car port, will have to start soldering in feeder wires to the bus wires.

Happy modelling from Tony.

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I'm thinking of a half and half layout. Half indoors with two or three levels and the bottom level going outside on a ground level railway. I have (in model railway terms) a fairly steep slope in the back yard but due to the number of steam locos I have I can always double head long trains.

Indoors I want the top level to be a terminus and loco depot and having worked in a loco depot mine will be large. A bit American in style in that it will have a roundhouse for the steam locos and straight roads for the diesels. The terminus will only have two platform roads with a center release road. There will be a round the room railway on the top half and the middle section will be for storage of carriages and wagons.

The bottom section will be four track and will come in one side of the room and do a 3/4 circuit of the room before emerging back outside.

I want to have a helix to join all three levels but similar to one I saw on you tube built by a bloke in N. Ireland. He built his own traditional helix (all 12 levels of it) only to discover that once in the helix the trains are invisible. So he has a 180' gradient at a rise of 1 in 50. In the states it's called a Nolix.

Here's a video of this blokes railway on the nolix: https://youtu.be/zXf_1vwmCYE

Here's a cab ride ascending that gradient:https://youtu.be/ppk6BYuFp2w

This is what I want to hopefully have. If I thought that I had gone though a lot of track on my previous outdoor attempts then I ain't seen nothing yet.

Roy.

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Of course for me it all depends on whether I have the new railway room built on the slope which will mean that it will have to be supported by piers or if I have to cut into the slope and have a concrete slab similar to my garden shed. If I decide on that way to do the railway room the trains may enter the room at near waist height. If that's the case then I will only need two levels of boards. The top level will have the four tracks of the garden railway run and perhaps a branch line above that. The lower level will have the storage roads for all the carriages and wagons. I would have to devise a system whereby trains can come and leave the terminus without impinging on the running of the four garden railway lines. So a system of flyovers may solve that problem.

The branch line would probably only be used on wet days or days of high wind and very hot temperatures so I have something to operate which with the old system I couldn't do.

I also intend to make the new railway room big enough to have two rooms and house a small workshop so I can build kits and weather locos as at the present time I only have the garage and everything has to be set up do the work and then taken down again. All very time consuming.

Roy.

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Hi Roy, that sound like a dam good plan be pretty awesome, you be able to run train inside when it is raining trains at waist height as well with a terminus to.

My layout is the same design as what you are planning half is in under the pergola an rest outside, my layout is lacking a staging yard looking into that later and a loco servicing facility. My station complex is modelled on Sydney central, will have two terminus platforms with middle roads like what you are planning and 4 through platforms , main width is 14feet under the pergola, add on 20ft plus outside and length 56feet, single spiral is outside, laying more track today, slowly pushing ahead.

Have you started drawing up a track and module plan yet.

How's the weather being treating you any snow falls as it has happened in the past in the Blue Mountains, we have had a cold start to winter, zero in the morning to 19 degree days, a bit warmer this week rain coming in.

I sold my duel tender Flying Scot for a very good price, with the money plan to buy four more middle cars for the Thaly's 6 piece TGV set coming from Europe, on it's way, will give me a 10 piece set, DCC ready on both powered locos. Plans are to have one sound decoder and other loco not sound, check out the you tube links from the seller showing me my train running on his layout and test cab lighting switching on and off on both loco's on my post, be my favourite train when it arrives, look good beside the Indian Pacific.

I have a second Flying Scot I plan to do something so I can pull 16 coaches, wont let out let out any more till that happens, will shock everyone.

Looking forward to progress of your new layout plans.

happy modelling form QLD , Tony.

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  • 1 year later...

The reason I want to have a large two room building is to have the layout in one half and a modelling area in the other. There is also another reason. When I get too old for this garden railway game or I have to move out the second building can be turned into accommodation for either a trial basis/permanent moving in of the mother in-law or for a teenager who wants a bit of freedom from mum and dad but can't afford the very high rents of the area. My house is only a two bedroom dwelling and suits me to a tee, but to have another large room where an addition to the family or change living arrangements could be advantageous from a selling point of view. But it won't be cheap to build. It will however be just two rooms and if others after me want to add a shower, toilet and kitchen facilities that's up to them. The furthest I'd go would be a small camping fridge and an electric jug for making coffees. Due to our high summer temperatures it will have to be air conditioned. A inverter split system will do the job. The roof will be colourbond pre painted corrugated steel with solar panels and "spin away" ventilators the same that I have on the house. A little known fact with solar panels is that in the very high summer temperatures that they produce less, yes less electricity. They're only really good to about 30 degrees centigrade. Wind turbines also have a drawback. In high winds the turbine disengages from the rotating blades otherwise the mechanism would wear out too quickly. As for the length of the garden railway, our fatherly figure in the shape of Mick (that should get me thrown off) has advised me to have a smaller length of run. I'm inclined to agree with him. Everybody wants to see a running garden railway but those same people want nothing to do with the maintenance side of a garden railway. As we get more sunshine than rain no doubt the garden railway will be built first with the indoor railway being done on very hot or rainy days.   

       

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