Thereandbackagain A OO Garden Railway

This is a description of my garden railway as it came about

It all started when I bought a Hornby Royal Scotsman live steam Locomotive set at a bargain price for £300 but when it arrived and the thought of running it on the dining room table, water, steam and oil….. It was put back in the box.

The thought of a OO gauge running track in the garden blossomed (a pun there) and after a few discussions with my good lady I got the go ahead so in early September 2009 a trip to the local timber merchant saw me return with a load of decking and some new (railway) sleepers.

Notice the apprentice Mac the Cat sizing up the delivery

The track would run along a wall and would be approx 27ft long with two 3ft 9in square planters at each end (the bottom end is 4ft wide)

This would be a single-track dog bone but the centre leg giving the impression of a 19ft length of a twin track run.

Looking along proposed site as it was in September 2009

I began by cutting the sleepers to the desired height I used a circular saw for this which made life easier I then dug small footing’s in which to place them into then using a dry sand and cement mix; which hardened overnight, and then placed the decking on top which gave me my track base a couple of days to complete.

Cutting the Sleepers to form the supports for the decking

Sleepers in position before adding dry sand and cement mixture then left overnight to set a light use of watering can helps but do not over do

Top end completed using decking to aid levelling

Using beach biscuits to extend the decking

Extension in place

Mac likes the height

Top end completed with deck fitted just given it a quick coat of green wood preservative to complete

Well that’s as far as I got in 2009 the house took priority for the next seven months then there was Chrismas, New Year then the rain, sleet and snow.

5th May 2010 back on track at last; it has been a long winter.

A trip to Wicks (to buy two rolls of green roofing felt which was used as “ballast†for the track. There are other builders merchants and DIY stores but not all stock roofing felt in 10m x 250mm widths.

Today was nice and warm and the sun helped soften the Felt; which made it so easier to work with, all seems to be nice and flat although I did wonder if I should have glued it down hopefully it will be fine.

Felt was fixed using felt nails

So from this

to this all in an afternoon’s work and enjoyable it was too

Well the boss did bring a cup of coffee out

And as Mac asks what’s next

I hopefully will begin to lay the track in the next week or so

The plan is to lay the track leaving small gaps for expansion and linking the ends with soldered wire then running a bus around under the decking linked to the track by wire droppers.

The track will be DCC and live steam but not on the same day.

Then (apart from getting some trains out there) on to the next stage or two is to expand the running track into a proper layout no doubt with a West Highland theme but will need some thought on track layout and what material to build the buildings with.