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Hi all,

 

I just need to double check what a 35% gradient is. By my calculations it is 1 in 3.3

 

Thanks

Far too steep for England, unless its a Funicular, bit too steep for Wales, I think Snowdon is 25% and is a rack raiway

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Actually, more like 1 in 2.86. 1 in 3.3 is 33%.

 

yes that was what I came up with, I put the wrong figures down my excuse is I was up at 3am and the brain is a bit frazzled. im going to make the gradient at about 1 in 3 or 1 in 2.5 I will see how it looks

 

thanks

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Some daft modern/foreign idea! Everyone understands what 1 in something means, but what does so and so per cent mean? It's just the reciprocal of course, but not so intuitive IMHO.

Actually I am the opposite. Percentages work much better, partly because it feels more exotic / continental. Also allows more detail - 5% too gentle, 6% just right, 7% a tad steep, 8% brutal, anything above beastly. (For cycling.) The 1-in approach not nearly as neat.

I also prefer kilometres to miles (makes me seem faster).

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Daft modern/foreign idea- well the UK went metric in 1966 or am I wrong?

 

It's nothing to do with metric. As to metric conversion the origional idea was to completely convert by 1975, but that didn't last long*. They are even allowed to sell goods in pounds again now.. Traders love this as a pound is less than half a kilo....

 

One of the first half hearted measures was to sell wood in multiples of 30cm, so you got about an inch less with every five feet.

 

Don't get me wrong. IMHO the imperial system became obsolete the moment they invented the metric system.

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4/5 of nothing with the reciprocal of 9.3. :mail: :nono:  Gradients are totally useless on model railways and building the base boards to accept up and down hill effects without actually raising or lowering the track and thus not having running problems. :yes:

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Gradients are totally useless on model railways and building the base boards to accept up and down hill effects without actually raising or lowering the track and thus not having running problems. :yes:

 

Good luck with building your flat-earth rack railway (which this topic is about).

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Gradients are fun, when they are supposed to be gradients.  Our main line is 1 in 80, It was level when the shed was built (ish) and a battle of adding lead where DCC decoders once lived, raising and lowering baseboards and jacking up the shed with car jacks and wedges has been resorted to on several occasions.

The branch was designed for 1 in 36 so train lengths are limited to 7 coaches unassisted , still short by prototype standards where 12 were taken over 1 in 36 grades between Newton Abbott and Plymouth but the double heading and banking adds to the interest.

I always wonder whether 1 in 1 is 45% or 90%   Rise per foot travelled or rise per horizontal distance travelled..    To me signs like 12% are meaningless while 1 in 3 strikes fear into cyclists and people with 1 litre petrol turbo engined eco boxes.   (Good one by Grosmont, makes the 2 litre Astra grunt a bit)  and the 1 in 4  25% at Goathland must have made the "Tour de Yorkshire" push bike racers grunt a bit as well.. 

Edited by DavidCBroad
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I designed my tinplate layout for my US trains with grades far too steep but necessary to fit the space available.  It worked well as locos and rolling stock all had knuckle couplers until I bought some Hornby trains.  Loose couplers; so rolling stock especially in a longish train always wanted to get ahead of the engine with the inevitable results so while the US trains can go anywhere, Hornby trains are confined to the flatlands!

 

Brian.

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