The McMullen Coal Company Light Railway

[44690]

Just been out on my line for the first time in months and i've spent a good two hours weedin' and pruning, i'm hoping to get some running done this week. The shrubs have survived the hot spell very well but helped out a lot by the dirty washing up and bath water we saved which came in useful during the hotter spells. There's not much more subsidence although the perimeter fence has leaned over by another two inches at least. Good Friend & fellow forum Member 44690 Ian, recently visited and reckons the live steamers won't fall or tip over just yet despite a few dips and rises in the track!  The grass patches had totally died down and turned Brown but now after a few weeks of rain it had all grown back to at least 10 inch tall, and the pond has refilled. The next time i post here i'm hoping there will be some trains in the pics'    

It certainly doesn't look to have deteriorated and when I visited the severe drought had caused some slight subsidence or heave and a little cracking, but nothing I'd be concerned about. I look forward to hearing how you get on running your trains. 

 

Your pictures show the line looks to be in good condition.

 

Ian

[APOLLO]

Looking forward to some train running pictures Bob. Be careful not to repeat the L&NWR Hindley accident where a train took the junction to fast and kecked owr on't curve !!

 

 

Take it easy and look after thysen !!

 

Brit15

[Owd Bob]

I'll try and keep the speed down Apollo.   Just cleared a bit more up around the line, i had to cut the grass down a bit more with some big kitchen scissors  ...and i've scattered some new ballast around, it's looking like it's going to rain now though so...."its spitting! everybody in"

[Mike Storey]

Continues to be so inspiring Bob, even without any trains. I am in the middle of laying track (about 25 yards bent to shape and laid/connected so far - just need to pack to level and screw down) and about the same amount more to do on the first section. Many of the views of your track and lineside have dictated changes to my original plan, which would have looked pretty boring otherwise. Will not ballast until lineside more developed.

 

Hope you have got your mojo back and we are to see more of your gem!

[Northroader]

The pictures you took of the line without trains look really great, they’ve got a good atmosphere of a railway waiting for the next train to come round the corner, but you don’t mind hanging round for it waiting for it to show, just taking it all in.

[Owd Bob]

Many thanks for the kind replies, your praise helps me keep at it,  Plans are to move the line away from the corner sinking area and although it will be a tight fit and will be a lot smaller moved into the other corner it is solid ground and i should'nt have any more sinking feelings! The coal yard, pit shaft and coal staithes will also be moved and rebuilt in a new position, after all i'll have a lot of track and one valuable set of points to use up    Hoping to make a start on it's partial demolition soon especially now the weather is cooling and the ground is swelling back up to its normal size again, i should make a start within the next month with some help from a mate and a big sledge hammer...... i'm sure i heard the weather man mention they'll be frost somewhere this weekend   

[44690]

Good luck with the rebuild. If you need another pair of hands give me a shout. Hopefully we'll get some more inspiration amd motivation at Llanfair and Yorkshire shows.

 

Ian

[Owd Bob]

Thanks Ian it's surprising how when one of us garden railway-ers makes a posting on this topic that more soon follow as though we are all inspiring each other on, it's more than likely that certain few others see things as a competition and just have to post something to get to the the top of the list... Certain folk seem more interested in their viewing figures I won't or can't rush things anymore! Hoping to catch up with a few so called friends at the Llanfair & Welshpool show and the new Bradford do soon.   I've still not had a chance to run anything due to the rain but it's all cleaned up nice and ready  Until then here's some old pics' to keep things going.....

Butterley a few years back.

[CME and Bottlewasher]

Its often not easy being a railway modeller who sets out his stall in the garden....

[44690]

Bob,

 

For me I read these and other forums for inspiration. I do post to show my appreciation for other's work. It's not about viewing figures or being top of a list or anything else. Your railway is one of those I follow for inspiration. I often look back at your threads. I have visited other lines, but yours, for me at least is the best I've seen. We'll have to arrange a steam up before the onset of winter (just lately on some days it feels not far off!).

Edited August 29, 2018 by 44690

[Owd Bob]

The Black saddle tank was the first thing i ever built from a piece of plastic guttering, it runs on a Swift 16 brass RTR chassis and is controlled by Timpdon radio stuff! (BTW has Timpdon packed in making the electronics side of things?)  At Butterley that day some looked on and said (and others thought it) that it did'nt look to have the power to drag those three plywood coaches around but it did, and all day long on one PP3 9v. battery, and well after some steamers had packed up and gone home.

The handrails have snapped off now and the chimney needs something more realistic looking, but as my first loco' i won't rebuild it or change it too much...it's become a much loved and almost a family member now!

[77philg]

Timpdon electronics has retired  Bob http://www.timpdon.co.uk/timpdon/telec/index.php   phil

[CME and Bottlewasher]

Bob, your work is superb!

 

There was a guy who could knock up similar G scale versions of mainline type diesels in plasticard in just a few hours, he used to post on Western Thunder. My bodging is glacially slow by comparison and not a patch on your work......

[Owd Bob]

Bob, your work is superb!

 

There was a guy who could knock up similar G scale versions of mainline type diesels in plasticard in just a few hours, he used to post on Western Thunder. My bodging is glacially slow by comparison and not a patch on your work......

Now i would really pat myself on the back CME if i could make myself an '0' gauge class 76 out of plasticard....but all those rivets!    Shame to hear about Timpdon phil' i have used a lot of his RC stuff, i suppose he had more competition as the years went on with others making/copying a similar sort of RC stuff? I hope the layouts he made are still about somewhere, i'm still laughing from getting squirted in the face by the busted water pipe 

[ossygobbin]

Now i would really pat myself on the back CME if i could make myself an '0' gauge class 76 out of plasticard....but all those rivets!    Shame to hear about Timpdon phil' i have used a lot of his RC stuff, i suppose he had more competition as the years went on with others making/copying a similar sort of RC stuff? I hope the layouts he made are still about somewhere, i'm still laughing from getting squirted in the face by the busted water pipe 

you can still get it from fossworks mark

[Owd Bob]

Cheers Ozzy but i can't find owt about fossworks on the net! Thanks for all the looks, visits and kind comments and support to my thread folks.   

[ossygobbin]

Cheers Ozzy but i can't find owt about fossworks on the net! Thanks for all the looks, visits and kind comments and support to my thread folks.   

www.fosworks.co.uk

[Owd Bob]

www.fosworks.co.uk

Only one 'S'  Ozzy....no wonder i could'nt find it! 

[Owd Bob]

Ossy! Only one 'S' in Fossy but two Zeds in Ossy   

[77philg]

That's a shame Phil. I liked Chris and his crew an awful lot and have spent many a happy hour watching the trains go by on Timpdon Lake. I sometimes take a look at the "Garden Railway Club" on the interweb thingy as one of the Timpdon guys posted a lot there, Phil Sixsmith.

 

regards

Ian

 Know Chris and Phil Sixsmith  really well . We all used to be in a Lads group of 16milers with a little mag produced by chris every month All now Defunct  John fox was also a member

[77philg]

Now i would really pat myself on the back CME if i could make myself an '0' gauge class 76 out of plasticard....but all those rivets!    Shame to hear about Timpdon phil' i have used a lot of his RC stuff, i suppose he had more competition as the years went on with others making/copying a similar sort of RC stuff? I hope the layouts he made are still about somewhere, i'm still laughing from getting squirted in the face by the busted water pipe 

Chris  s layout is still about and stored in his shed so he can run it .I think he has a regular meet at his house every Tuesday. He has a smaller one that a toilet door opens and a chappie is sat there reading his paper, a dog wagging its tail, He runs battery only locos because its an end to end with a traverser  He took that to the first Manchester show when it moved . phil

[Donw]

Chris also built a ride on 5inch gauge line round his normal sized garden

 

Don

[Mike Storey]

That's great Phil, thanks. Its good to hear they are still about. I learned a lot from listening to those guys, they were always willing to share and to chat about trains.

regards

Ian.

 

Timpdon Models is still going strong too (and has a link for the new owner of the Timpdon electronics stuff).

[Owd Bob]

Good news about the Timpdon layout, it looks like it now has another name and new owners. I saw it yesterday at the Llanfair Garden railway show.  A lot seemed to be missing but most importantly O.R. the button for the squirting water pipe has been removed! I wish the new owners well with it, but there just seemed be something missing about the whole layout to me. Chris' the old owner was sat on his own stall directly opposite his creation and selling his other wares.

Edited September 3, 2018 by Owd Bob

[Owd Bob]

Cheers Ian! The show on Sunday seemed very quiet compared to the other shows i've ever attended on the same last day, one stall that was missing stood out a mile by its absence and was a real pity as i and many others really wanted some stuff from it, there was only four working layouts of any size i could see. There was a lot of 45mm 'G' gauge & foreign outline stalls & stuff. I mainly got my servicing bits and pieces from the Roundhouse stand i need for my Katie, young Matt' on the Harecroft stall asked if i had bought anything as he could'nt see me carrying anything and i replied i've just spent nearly 100 quid on bits and they all fit in just one trouser pocket Nice to see Young Matt and his Dad Michael, also Matt Acton on his stall. Loved the look of the new Accucraft WW1 era Hunslet...i found out from Matt' that my old mate 'Narrow Minded' formally of this forum is ok and happy doing other stuff now, at least i know he still lives and breathes, and at the same address   Now i finally know i can send him some stuff back i'd borrowed from him almost two years ago.   So in a lot of ways i was a happy man on Sunday.  The new 'Bratford' show is coming up soon Ian and is a new name and venue for the old Elsecar show, so i better start making a list of bits i'll need again! 

Made a start on stripping my old faithful guttering made saddle tank last eve' The handrails had mainly snapped off and will be replaced by roundhouse knobs, a new brass chimney was bought to replace the plastic tube and brass plumbing olive, a nice pair of sprung buffers should add some weight to it, the smokebox needed extending out a bit, and the buffer beams need thickening & stiffening up, all going well it should be all put back together and ready for a respray by the weekend.