James's 7/8ths thread...

[James Hilton]

What a good Friday, what lovely weather, and the Dyfrdwy Tramway has seen a little action this afternoon, with three diesels in action and help from my youngest...

Operational constraints include the fact the Simpex isn't allowed past the mill siding, and the G-series can't pull more than two wagons on the gradients, and can't pull the inspection saloon, all providing some entertainment.

The sunshine was lovely, here is the Simplex 40S and the original item of rolling stock I built in 7/8ths with the chassis courtesy of Si Harris last year, seen glimpsed through the trees down at the wharf...

The G-series and a short train at the mill...

...and on the way back down to the wharf...

...where it met the other pair of diesels on the tramway. With a Hudson Hunslet in progress, and another pair of diesels planned this year, there will be quite a choice of motive power in the future. More soon...

[James Hilton]

The Hudson Hunslet is a prototype of a batch of large scale 7/8ths (1:13.7) models I'm producing this summer, and my own locomotive is now fully assembled and primed, awaiting the completion of the wiring and further painting...

It's a multi-media product, with scratch built styrene, laser cut styrene and acrylic and 3D printed acrylic and nylon parts combined with Slaters wheels, a small gear head drive and Delrin chain and sprockets, powered by 4 AAA rechargeable batteries and controlled by a Deltang based R/C system from Micron Radio Control.

Now in primer all the multitude of parts tie together beautifully and all the love, care and attention to detail has paid off, with the locomotive coming to life, and at least to my eye, capturing the character of the prototype beautifully. My own model will be open cabbed, so you can see the controls in the cab that I've painstakingly copied from drawings and prototype visits, but some of the production run will feature cabs. This one will end up bright (Humbrol 131) green with black and red parts picked out, and I can't wait to make a start on this once the etched brass radiator fan turns up from a custom order through Narrow Planet.

The chassis is now proven and will allow me to produce many other small diesels in the scale in the coming months and years, I've a few exciting commissions already for 2019 and 2020 in 7/8ths, a scale I very much feel is a 'modellers' scale.

For now, the crisp early morning sun has captured the prototype in grey and I hope you'll be as excited as I am when I begin to add some colour. More soon...

[James Hilton]

Every self respecting quarry is in need of something destructive! The Dyfrdwry Quarry Company is no different, and they required a means of transporting the dangerous gunpowder from the wharf to the storage shed at the quarry...

The solution, as at Penmaenmawr (see below - uncredited photo, if it belongs to you please let me know and I will acknowledge or remove accordingly) was to re-work an older wagon with an enclosed body on top.

I started with a Model-earth budget flat wagon, modifying the axle boxes so it sat a lot lower and matched the other rolling stock, without fitting smaller wheels. I then modified it to allow me to fit a slate wagon body (seen top left), but with cut down strapping and no lifting eyes. The upper body was then added, secured with L angle at each end to a bolted plate on the chassis, hinge and locking bars made from styrene too...

The wood grain was created starting with a razor saw and then working this with a knife and scalpel. The bolt and rivet heads painstakingly added from MENG and Cambrian, and the roof is a piece of toilet paper soaked in dilute PVA.

Here given a coat of primer you'd never guess this wasn't all one material, and the roof worked particularly well, sinking down over the planked detail. Then a quandary, what colour to paint it...

Well, after canvassing opinion I decided upon a faded red. I started with an undercoat of Humbrol 100, then wine Humbrol 73. Bare wood was touched in with 72, and I dry brushed a bit of wine 73 mixed with white 34 to show more pink areas. Once dry, and after a No.10 was added with a Posca pen, a liberal dose of undiluted track colour 173 was painted on, and rubbed off! Finally metal work picked out in a mix of black 33, gunmetal 53, chocolate 98 and Metalcote gunmetal 27004. The line now has a decrepit but serviceable gunpowder van, and operating sessions take on another level of interest... More soon...

[James Hilton]

Summer is here, and the tramway has been in action this weekend with two of my kids playing trains and testing out a few ideas I had for operation...

My thinking was that with the introduction of the gunpowder wagon, I needed to start thinking about the best way to position stock and move it around. My daughter suggested some real loads, so that's a job for the winter, but in principle she is right, it will give the tramway even more purpose.

The basic premise will be gunpowder can't be transported with anything else and goes from the wharf to the quarry, fuel oil needs to go from the wharf to the quarry, coal to the mill, slab from the quarry to the mill, cut slate from the mill to the wharf.

Anyhow, my son quickly turned things on their heads but he had a lot of fun, even creating this health and safety nightmare...

Finally, I have been pondering building a brake/man-rider wagon so ran out the coach to get a feel for what it might look like, here really showing just how tiny the G-series is!

It's been good fun, and I'm looking forward to many more operating days as the weather improves. More soon...

[James Hilton]

The first sunny weekend for sometime and with the kids out it seemed a quiet chance to play with the tr amway myself. The Andrew Barclay steamed for 40 odd minutes shunting up and down the line, maintaining pressure with the quietest and lowest of burner adjustment...

The first train of the day takes fuel up to the mill and Quarry...

A lovely shot here at the mill with the wonderfully scale flowers (actually a weed in the grass) alongside as the coal has been dropped off and a start made ready for the Quarry...

Back down at the wharf an interesting shot through the trees, as the gunpowder awaits a trip to the Quarry...

Once steam ran out the new Hudson Hunslet had a run to take it through its paces. Despite the fact it's currently unballasted it did very well indeed, no problems at all with my gradients.

All in all, a lovely afternoon, and capturing an image like this make's all the effort worth while, it's a fantastic hobby. More soon...

 

[James Hilton]

For some time I've planned on adding some forestry related rolling stock to the tramway, as in my faux history it's the Forestry Commission whose investment relaid the track and brought powered traction to the tramway...

At the Llanfair show last September (!!) I ordered a pair of 'budget' skip chassis from Si Harris at Model-earth and the went about designing a bolster body for them. A rough concept emerged based on some photos in NG&IRM as well as German feldbahn websites, and I drew parts up in Libre CAD to have them laser cut when I visited my friend Steve... these parts then languished in the must do pile before being assembled and realising I'd only cut enough parts for one bolster wagon! 

That meant again it was sidelined for a while, but with the good weather seventy I gave it an overall spray of Halfords matt black and then have begun weathered with Humbrol enamels - still a little to do on this front but it's passable for now.

The idea is a pair of these will haul a few 'logs' I cut in the garden last year for the purpose, and represent the forestry train. Hopefully it won't take me quite as long to construct the second wagon. More soon...

 

[James Hilton]

I've been working on a 'forestry commission' train now for nearly 12 months, and today I was finally able to test something out on the line...

A few months ago I finally finished the first of a pair of bolster wagons based around the Model-earth budget skip wagon chassis. I designed parts in 2D CAD and had them laser cut to allow a precise and accurate bolster to be constructed.

However, I had forgotten to cut a second set of parts so work stalled!

Earlier in the week I visited Steve and we cut a second set out on his laser - and this morning I stuck it together to allow me to load it up with logs and see if it worked in the garden. Obviously real logs are pretty heavy, this set of three were cut last autumn and look perfect loaded up, but their weight certainly was a good test. They worked perfectly, and followed the contours and curves of the tramway with ease.

 

It was also a test for my Simplex, which has been re-chassis'd with one of my own design having grown frustrated with the worm drive of the original on the steeper sections of my line. The new micro motor and gearbox, despite it's small size, seems to have BAGS of torque and handled the load both up and down with no problems.

 

I need to finish it off now, and find some turnbuckles to allow me to use chains to tie the logs down rather than elastic bands... and then I can get on with the new brake/crew van over the winter.

More soon...

[astropsidings]

Hello James,

 

What motor/gearbox have you used?

 

Looking good, as always.

 

Ian

 

[James Hilton]

It is a small 12v N20 with stacked gearbox from eBay. I normally use the 6v ones from MFA in the UK, but this model already had a 9.6v battery pack so I needed the 12v rating and MFA don't do one...

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/N20-DC3V-6V-12V-50-2000RPM-Speed-Reduction-Gear-DC-Motor-with-Metal-Gearbox/273915570626?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&var=573785193839&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

 

I think I got the 12v 100rpm, but if I got another I'd go for the 200rpm one I think, this one is fine, but a touch slow, though that does make it lovely and controllable.

[James Hilton]

The Dyfrdwy Tramway has until now operated without any kind of brake vehicle, and the workforce were expected to walk to undertake any work on the line, as well as the quarry and mill staff not being able to be transported...

I had for sometime wondered about building some sort of man-rider vehicle, initially inspired by the Hare Crag vehicles. These would have been constructed on skip chassis, with simple wooden ends, bench seats and canvas sides. However it was actually a photo of ISABEL on the Leighton Buzzard Light Railway that spurred me into action. ISABEL is a brake van built onto an old Simplex chassis...

I decided to copy the idea, but sketched out my own ideas on layout and construction. The model has been built around the same chassis that is under my Simplex 40S, but without a motor this time. The 20/28 straight frames were assembled from plasticard cut to size. This is much longer than the 40S but the wheelbase is the same. I designed some suitable axle boxes and had these printed by Shapeways, these are now available in my EuroNG store on Shapeways if anyone else is interested...

Bodywork was started with angle iron forming the corners, and enclosing the guards seat. I envisaged the original 'build' had half height panels but due to the weather this was enclosed later with metal and windows around the guard, and then later still some timber added to cut out the adverse Welsh weather.

The chassis top was enclosed with styrene to mimic the arrangement of a Simplex and then infilled where the engine and gearbox had been removed. Rivet and bolt details were added, along with some bench seats, which will be modelled to look like they have hinged lids shortly. Handrails are thin styrene tube filled with 0.9mm brass wire and bent to shape. The roof was a stumbling block until I visited my friend Steve and we discussed options and how it would have been done in real life. Until that point I'd scratch built the body, but the only real option for the rolled angle in the roof was to resort to the laser. Some 40 thou was cut in curves, and then 30 thou bonded to this to create L girders, then glued to framing down each side. End plates were added and cosmetic rivets to these, this means that the roof can remain removable, but positively locks in place. The brake man seat, from Model-earth was fixed in place on plastic angles assembled from bits in my scrap box.

The roof was then formed from a piece of 40 thou styrene that was scribed to plank width. Each plank was then bent to form a crease and this 'curved' the roof and allowed it to be glued in place.

This gives a lovely appearance both inside and outside the roof - the outside will be coated with tissue paper or similar to give the effect of being covered in canvas. The model is very small actually, despite being quite wide, shown here with the existing 'Dalmunzie' style open coach.

Next up I'm awaiting some parts from Model-earth including Simplex buffers and a brake wheel stand. Then adding the roof, fitting some brackets to secure rolled up canvas sides before priming... it shouldn't be too long before I can give it a test run on the line. More soon...

 

 

[James Hilton]

It has turned decidedly autumnal here in the Dee Valley as the tramway burst into life earlier in the week. The Alan Keef K40 was seen with a short works train to check over the line before possible running at the weekend...

Seen down at the wharf (note the foliage behind is in need of trimming in the next few weeks, and the back wall repairing as a result!), the 3D scenic items like the barrel and tank need bringing in over the winter, and may need a little restoration after a hot summer.

Off up the line, the recent foliage cutting doesn't seem to have damaged the track anywhere which is good news...

...although up at the quarry the bush behind has grown a lot and needs cutting back again. I'm pondering adding some more track work in this area, to allow for more stock to be stationed on the line. There isn't much room for more at the wharf unfortunately.

On the way back down the line, the gates are closed behind the passing train...

...before filling the diesel up with fuel before it's next turn of duty (the small shrub to the left has turned into a wonderful little tree. I've got quite a few projects on the go for the railway over the winter, it will be good fun to see them through to fruition in the coming months. More soon...

[Ruston]

You ought to be banned from posting this stuff! You're making it difficult to resist having a go at this scale and getting back into narrow gauge modelling again.

[Nearholmer]

The pumpkin orange K40 seems particularly appropriate this evening.

[James Hilton]

The tramway brake van has been on the back burner for a few weeks whilst I got to grips with the last of the Hudson Hunslets amongst other small scale commissions, as well as preparing for and attending ExpoNG...

 

As it is, now things are calming down a little (although Warley is only a few weeks!) I've been priming and starting to paint the brake.

The seats now have latches fitted, before the whole model was sprayed with Halfords grey primer. The roof was covered in a sheet of A4 paper soaked in PVA to simulate a canvas covered affair, before being primed and then a first coat matt black applied.

With the paint hard I decided I'd better give it some running trials out on the tramway. I have added some weight to the chassis, which has improved it's performance, and after a quick tweak of the back to back of the Slaters wheels (the Peco set-track points seem quite tight for them unless you ease them out a little) she ran well and looked the part. The Simplex also has become my new favourite, after I replaced the PDF worm driven custom chassis with one of my own design, modified from the Hudson Hunslet concept.

The plan is for an olive green body, with the wooden end panelling weathered quite a lot, along with a dark grey chassis. We'll see how that pans out in the coming weeks... More soon...

[Zigzag Canyon]

James, I've been following this in the Lounge and here.  Really terrific modeling.  Thanks for sharing your work!

 

Adrian

[James Hilton]

Thanks Adrian!

 

Winter arrived early on the tramway at the weekend, with some sleet on Saturday that actually ended up sticking a little. 

The line was impassable at the top end, and pretty treacherous down at the wharf so no trains ran and supplies at the quarry were running low...

However come Sunday and with blue skies and bright sunshine the snow had gone, so the Simplex 40S was called upon to deliver fuel oil, which gave me an excuse to test out the new brake van!

I wanted to make sure it ran smoothly through the track and pointwork being propelled up the tramway and am happy to say it did, and the lovely layered finish, achieved through three layers of paint and subtle weathering looked great in the low autumn sun.

On board a dolls-house step ladder, a pair of Talisman track gauges and mallet went for a ride... Ideally I'd like a guard for the van too, so I will see what I can rustle up.

The low sun allows photos like this, you can't get them with such crisp shadows in the summer, but it was very cold!

Back at the wharf and parked up, the moss is taking hold nicely in this area, and to finish, a wonderfully atmospheric shot up the tramway to the Berywns in the distance. More soon...

 

[Happy Hippo]

James,

 

Very nice article in the SMT which arrived this morning.

[James Hilton]

After a busy weekend full of children, I was happy to wake on Monday to find some glorious blue sky, and I had the yearning to take my live steam engine out for a run after the modifications and addition of the sand dome...

We repainted the end of the house this summer, a much brighter off white, which means that at the slab quarry, on a bright day, you get a lot of side lighting (shown above) which is slightly odd and incongruous to the shadows, but it does mean that photos like this are possible. It will be less of a problem in the summer months. The glaring error of no glazing in this photo has spurred me on to tackle this next...

The steam effects were lovely with the cold air and low sun, but you try driving and taking photos at the same time! It's not easy! Here a pair of slate wagons are propelled up the line to the mill.

The wharf is beginning to get mossy which is a lovely touch, but it doesn't need a clean up of the bush behind the railway here to get it a little more space, as well as a few more miniature human touches, so ideas for the winter include some sort of shed or garage - and longer term a crane.

Finally, a shot of the gunpowder and fuel oil being taken up to the quarry, as well as coal to the mill. It's the odd hour playing trains like this that makes the effort of creating the railway all worth while. I do hope to add some more scenery to the line in the next 12 months, and over the winter have a few projects to complete. It might even see me finishing the VW van and Bedford lorry I started last winter! For now though, I hope you've enjoyed the photos. More soon...

 

[Dorkingian]

Those are all superb pics, James.  You've been really successful in capturing the atmosphere, which is partly down to your excellent rolling stock building and weathering skills, but also to your eye for the nearby backdrop - and the more distant one.  The way you somehow bridge the scale differences between the models and the real scenery is magical.

[James Hilton]

Thank you, that is very kind. I'm lucky in that I can 'borrow' the real life scenery - and young enough to crouch low to get the photos! I'm glad people enjoy them.

[James Hilton]

It's been a good family holiday this Christmas, but not as much 'down-time' as I'd have liked. Looking at the weather forecast for next week which shows rain and cloud I decided to make the most of the cold crisp late afternoon and between cooking dinner and tidying up before school I dug out a train for the garden...

This is the beauty of the garden railway, it's always ready, and after a quick sweep of the track bed the trusty Simplex 40S, the loco that started it all, combined with a few stalwart wagons traversed the line and I grabbed a few photos and enjoyed watching the slow progress along the line...

...whilst day dreaming of projects for the spring. The track bed seems to have held up well enough, the slate fencing too, but the post and wire needs a few bits renewing as do some of the slate slab walling areas. Note down in the wharf another pile of shale ready for another wall - and inside I had a delivery of some corrugated plastic sheeting so the long promised start of some buildings has inched a little closer.

The line has matured well over the autumn, the moss and grass has reclaimed the embankments along the lawn, everything looks much more 'lived in', although I'd love the cement to not appear so 'white' in photos...

Up at the quarry I've got some ideas for a more permanent stone structure, but with the bushes behind and overhead I'm not sure how best to incorporate something. Ideas of a simple stone build powder store are probably the most likely project, built into the rock face.

Heading back down the tramway, this lawn section of line could do with some small shrubs and scenic detail, I've got planning permission from my partner to do this, so I'll sketch some ideas in the spring when the garden is ready for planting again.

I do hope this little bush survives the winter, it's got real character. Here on the left I plan on planting a small 'wood' of similar trees to stop the kids jumping over this part of the garden, and to add some screening from the house.

Down a the wharf I pruned back the cheaper 'thinner' conifers earlier in the autumn but now the tree/bush has lost it's leaves this feels wonderfully scale and exudes 'winter' to me... 

...and the advantage of removable drivers is apparent here, the 40S parked up after an afternoons work, probably wishing it was undercover or better still in a shed. Maybe soon, as I've drawings of a garage that featured on the wharf in Glyndyfrdwy so that might work at the end of the headshunt for the small diesels. Back to work tomorrow, so undoubtedly more soon...

[James Hilton]

Well the kids are off school so work has slowed to a snail pace but I have managed to play some trains in the garden as some sort of mental respite, I'm finding the mental stress and strain of the situation quite overwhelming, especially being self employed so these quiet moments lost in a miniature world are a real tonic...

The Hudson Hunslet is seen here with a train of gunpowder heading for the quarry one evening...

The following day I steamed up the Andrew Barclay, seen here also at the mill, the empty wagons in the foreground are finished slate 'container' wagons as the tramway operated an early form of containerisation...

...seen here later on the way up to the quarry with a pair of empty slab wagons.

Later on and a period switch, bringing us up to the noughties with a train of slate waste brought down from the old tips at the quarry for use in the construction industry in bulk bags. Hopefully in time the train will be strengthened to three wagons.

I hope everyone is bearing up ok - and that sharing these photos puts a few smiles on daces like it did for me playing trains for a short time. More soon...

[dougidle]

It put a smile on my face James - thanks for sharing. I love pictures of your railway and often come back to the thread for inspiration. My own garden railway has ground to a halt for now but yours reminds me of what it could be in time.

 

Thanks for sharing again and stay safe,

Doug

[Dorkingian]

Yes, excellent pictures once again.  Wonderfully evocative.  Thanks for sharing.

[Zomboid]

Highly inspirational. I've not got a useful garden at the moment, but if the current mayhem doesn't wreck everything then I should be moving to a new place where the garden might be much more suited to such activities.