Drawers's Mine and Factory

[Charlie586]

I've been stuck for space the past ten years so the various 4mm GWR layouts I keep trying to build just end up becoming starts and get plonked under the bed. After reading the Boxfile and micro threads the past month (along with several others on Blender, 3d CAD, track building and others) I've come up with a plan...

 

Coupled with this, I broke one of my big toes on monday and due to the nature of the break I'm on very light duties for the next six to eight weeks.

 

So, there's a chest of drawers in the bedroom that is roughly 2'6 by 1'4 (in new money it's 74cm long). It can overhang another 4" at the back but the sides and front are pretty fixed due to other furniture and the room layout. Using the top of the drawers I think I can squeeze in a mine entrance and (low relief) factory. I've always worked in 4mm before, but have always admired 7mm narrow gauge. Using 0-16.5 I can at least reuse some of the loco chasis that make up the boxes of stuff I've accumulated over the years.

 

So a bit of back story.

 

Wealthy landowner, Mr Drawers, discovers something worth mining in a hill (I'll either go for a mineral or something ridiculous like a Marmite mine) and so extends his light railway to handle the mine and also builds a factory next to it to refine whatever it is that's being mined. Being tight, Mr Drawers only runs jalopies on his light railway, with a preference for anything with a vertical boiler.

 

It'll be a basic chipboard sheet on wood. I'm going to try hand building track, but if I prove to be useless at it, I've got enough Peco OO gauge track and points kicking around to more than do the job. I'll try and make my own wagons, vertical boilered jalopy and other bits and bobs using Blender and Shapeways. I'm halfway through the first vertical boiler shell at the moment, but have still got a lot to learn about blender.

 

A first stab at a track plan using Scarm

 

 

The main problem is it's 1m long so I need to lose a quarter of it. I've used Peco OO points and set track in Scarm, which I know are tighter than 0-16.5 but I'll only be running very small wheelbase engines and one or two short wheelbase wagons on each, so I think I'll be okay.

 

Operationally the engine will collect a wagon from the mine and deliver it to the building in front of the factory. It will then collect a different finished goods wagon from the factory, run around the wagon and leave it by the loading dock to be loaded onto a full size 0 gauge wagon. It would be good to have moving machinery inside the factory visible through big windows, but at only a scale 50-60ft long, there's not going to be much to see.

 

As much as I like the run around and 0 gauge track, it's probably going to have to go. Unless I can think of a better plan or another way to lose 26cm.

 

 

[BG John]

You'll soon find that the O gauge track and wagon will evolve into a full O gauge layout. Be warned .

[Charlie586]

You'll soon find that the O gauge track and wagon will evolve into a full O gauge layout. Be warned .

 

It is tempting to think about it. The lack of space would be even worse with a full size 7mm instead of 4mm though

[Zomboid]

You could use a very short turntable to achieve the run round maybe?

[Charlie586]

You could use a very short turntable to achieve the run round maybe?

 

That's be a good idea. I did think of a couple of wagon turntables for the mine part and two separate locos, but making the point into a turntable would save a bit of room.

[rue_d_etropal]

add some mixed gauge and wagon turntables. lots of interesting operating then.

[Charlie586]

After a few hours fiddling with Scarm, trying to work out the position of the eighth or quarter turntable, I ended up working on a diagonal and have just managed to get a run around to fit. It seems Pythagorus was onto something after all.

 

 

This still leaves a few inches spare at the front of the layout, however there are a few problems. the front headshunt needs adjusting, if I make the track curved or change to a Y turnout I'll lengthen it. Some of the other shunts are a bit small as well but just about doable. By mixing left and right hand turnouts, the track doesn't quite line up. This shouldn't be a problem as I will be building the track so will just have to adjust one or two of the points slightly. The biggest problem is I can't see how the standard gauge line will fit in. Not the biggest problem ever, but annoying.

 

The piece of chipboard I was going to use has slightly warped, so I'm scrapping it. As I can't get out and about I'm going to have to build various things before the baseboard. Next step is to order some track and copper clad. I'm thinking of going for code 75 but as I've never attempted track building before, may well chicken out and stick with code 100.

 

The vertical boilered engine is about ready now to be printed by shapeways. I'm just finishing off a few other bits so I can get them all together with free delivery.

 

While waiting for the track and sleepers to arrive, I'll have a look at small industrial buildings and find a window layout I like. Unfortunately, I've not got a printer so will have to either get some plasticard or brick sheet via post. 

[Charlie586]

add some mixed gauge and wagon turntables. lots of interesting operating then.

 

Hello Simon. I didn't see your post until after I posted. I think you're right about mixed gauge, if it's along the front then it would enable a crane to swap the finished goods from narrow to standard. And wagon turntables between the back two lines where they meet the factory would be good. Not sure how I'd get the wagons to move without physically dragging them though.

[BR-Green]

How's the layout coming on?

[Charlie586]

How's the layout coming on?

 

Hello BR Green

 

It's been slow going to be honest. The toe break left me unable to walk without a crutch or drive until the start of August so I never manged to buy any wood for the baseboard. Once august Arrived and the toe was on the way to healing I was fed up of staying indoors and have been on holiday and walking the dog a lot since! I hadn't realised it's been so long since last update. When autumn and winter sets in the layout will see a lot more action. But, following a rethink of the furniture, I have discovered an extra bit of space for an additional board, about 18 in by 8in, so the total shape will now be 4ft wide at the back by 1 ft 4 at the front left reducing to 8in in the back RH corner. A bit like below.

__________

I             ___I

I______I

 

I have fiddled around with different layouts again on SCARM, but haven't yet decided on a final one. The extra bit gives me a decent chance at a head shunt before the points start so I should get the runaround in without it looking too messy. I found a good picture on the net for a factory building, but I don't think I can reprint the photo here because of the copyright, but it's a good size 3 storey building with large windows. I've stocked up on 7mm brick plasticard so that will get built over winter as well. Also I learned to use blender while housebound and have made a few designs for a bits and had them printed by Shapeways so these will come in handy for the layout.

 

 

This is a Kitson style steam tram (the length / width has been modified to become narrow gauge and use a cut down Hornby 0-4-0 chassis) in PLA material - which was a lot cheaper than the WSF version, but it needs a lot of cleaning up first. I'm still not certain if it would have been easier and cheaper to build in plasticard from scratch. Next step is to buy some wood and settle on a track plan.