My first steps in O gauge

[cromptonnut]

I plan to document my first foray into O gauge, initially trying the blog format.

 

My first two entries are up.

 

First, a little bit of a "modelling resume" and why I chose to dabble in O gauge.

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php/blog/559/entry-3753-how-it-all-began/

Secondly, my first brass kit construction.

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php/blog/559/entry-3754-part-1-something-to-run-the-shunter/

 

This thread will be updated as and when the blog is with additional entries.

[cromptonnut]

The shunter page has been updated today as I have got the chassis running, complete with a video.

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php/blog/559/entry-3754-part-1-something-to-run-the-shunter/

 

 

[Jack]

Good to see the shunter is progressing! A lot of what you said about moving into O gauge rings true with me. And you certainly can't just buy locos on a whim (well, ordinary folk can't anyway).

 

Will be following your developments with interest.

[cromptonnut]

I hope to settle on a trackplan by the weekend - then the fun really begins I have a left, right and Y point and think I am going to need one more point, but just need to settle on exactly what I am aiming for.

 

I have lots of options - some of them impractical - but I also need to make sure I can fit it in the space I have - I don't want to cut points across board joints, and with a point being over 400mm long I can't fit many on a board!

[Jack]

What space do you have? What plans are you toying with?

 

I am in the process of trying to squeeze my O gauge quart into a OO gauge pint pot too. Have you looked at the Marcway 48" radius points?

 

If your only running shunters* they should be fine and are about 13.5" long (i'll know more when the point plans arrive in the next couple of days) ... i believe that works out at 345mm in new money ... quite a space saving.

 

 

* dunno whether a Heljan 33 will run through them tho

[Dave777]

Ah yes, the do-I-or-don't-I O gauge 'issue'.

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php/blog/309/entry-1242-dabbling-with-the-big-stuff/

 

 

I have flirted with this scale for a good while now, rekindled again recently by seeing the Heljan Hymeks at Railex. I think what I may do is to get the big purchase - the loco - out the way before they disappear at the bargain prices. I can then either go ahead one day or sell it on.

 

I shall follow your progress with interest. I particularly liked this bit:

 

Secondly, it's much more expensive. That might sound odd but in fact it makes me focus - what do I want to achieve? It's very easy to pop into a model shop and walk out with another carriage for £20 - then get annoyed as I can't run a 10 carriage train on my 8ft x 4ft layout - whereas when you're paying £40 for a wagon kit, and £250 for a ready-to-run carriage, you have to think "do I really, really need this item".

 

A very interesting way to look at it.

 

 

[cromptonnut]

What space do you have? What plans are you toying with?

 

I am in the process of trying to squeeze my O gauge quart into a OO gauge pint pot too. Have you looked at the Marcway 48" radius points?

 

If your only running shunters* they should be fine and are about 13.5" long (i'll know more when the point plans arrive in the next couple of days) ... i believe that works out at 345mm in new money ... quite a space saving.

 

 

* dunno whether a Heljan 33 will run through them tho

 

I'm 12ft scenic, currently looking at 2ft 6" wide boards. On one end of that will be a short cassette style fiddleyard.

 

I am also toying with 8ft of scenic, with a cassette style fiddleyard at either end to enable "through running". XTrackCAD is proving quite useful!

 

I'm using the Peco bullhead trackwork, so I only have left, right, Y and single or double slip to utilise Not feeling brave enough yet to try handbuilding points, maybe next time.

 

The basic idea is based on the old terminus part of Chard Junction (the line from Taunton) which was essentially a single track with a run-round loop at the end, with a couple of sidings which connected with the main line - and in fact milk wagons coming in this way were shunted across the main line by the factory shunter (which was mainline certified for that small section) in a sort of double Z manouevre.

 

I'll be ignoring the mainline, and moving the 'milk factory' into the space, and creating something loosely around the dairy sidings- Google Maps view - you may need to zoom in but you've got the double track passing loop in the old station, then a 'kickback' into three sidings for the factory complex, and a headshunt parallel to the loops. This will be highly condensed as I think I worked out to do it to full scale in 4mm was about 30ft long!

 

I'll be using something like a first gen DMU - or perhaps a loco and 2 carriage replacement service if I can fit it in - for the passenger service, and some milk tank wagons (for the time period I have the TMV coded wagons would be ideal. I'll also, for variety, have the occasional fuel tank arriving to fill the boilers at the factory, plus box vans to bring/remove bagged or palleted goods. I have no evidence that this actually ever happened at the real location but there's no reason it couldn't have

 

As I said, I need to look at track plan ideas first, this will then determine what stock I can (or in fact can't) run.

 

I'm trying to avoid the "typical" small O gauge shunting layout as, frankly, I find shunting a little tedious. I know I'm not going to be able to run 10 carriage expresses - and living in an upstairs flat the garden isn't even an option as, well, I don't have one - but I wanted to make it so I could have something more than just the Ruston pottering about to a seemingly endless and somewhat tedious existance.

 

Although the building is enjoyable, I find the operating fun - and if I don't end up finding the operating fun then I'm afraid I will probably never finish the layout.

[alant]

Are you intending to use some sort of auto coupler? I find operating a "shunting type" layout quite enjoyable when auto couplers work well. I'm currently using the Lincs auto coupler on my O gauge layout.

[cromptonnut]

The decision on couplers has not yet been made - I had thought about proper 3 links but that may prove difficult to operate from the rear (I build with exhibiting in mind).

 

Do you have a link for the, erm, Lincs auto couplers? It may prove to be a useful investment particularly at the beginning of the planning stage.

 

 

[cromptonnut]

I shall follow your progress with interest. I particularly liked this bit:

 

Secondly, it's much more expensive. That might sound odd but in fact it makes me focus - what do I want to achieve? It's very easy to pop into a model shop and walk out with another carriage for £20 - then get annoyed as I can't run a 10 carriage train on my 8ft x 4ft layout - whereas when you're paying £40 for a wagon kit, and £250 for a ready-to-run carriage, you have to think "do I really, really need this item".

 

A very interesting way to look at it.

 

It was, literally, one of those "Eureka!" moments when that clicked.

[Jack]

Marcway do RTP track as well ... and its supposed to be compatible with the Peco stuff. The plans arrived in the post this morning and the 48" points do indeed fit into a 13.5" space

 

I like the idea of your plan, will be very interested to see what you come up with. Don't hold back in posting your XTrkCAD musings, it may give the rest of us some ideas!

 

From experience i would seriously consider whether you want to go down the cassette route though ... they can be quite unweildy at 3-4' and O guage stock can be bulky and heavy, esp if you have metal locos and carriages ... oh, and speaking from painful experience it can be bloomin' expensive if you do drop anything.

[cromptonnut]

I may consider a small traverser instead of cassettes - after all the need will probably only be for about 4 or 5 'roads' anyway, and train length will be dictated by the length of the platform and sidings.

 

I'm still a few hours of fiddlings away from having something I feel happy with 'presenting to the forum' - and if SWMBO has her way, it'll be after the weekend.

 

When you say Marcway is "RTP" do you mean "no building required"? Because that might just help matters along, and it seems a little cheaper than Peco as well.

[alant]

The Lincs system basically consists of bent pieces of wire attached to a pivot under the vehcile. They interlock with each other when coupled. When run backwards (ie no tension between them) over a magnet the hooks are parted by both being pulled downwards.

 

I find them very easy to make as they do not need to be that precise to work. You also need to replace the steel three links (although they are not needed for Lincs operating) with brass ones to prevent them becoming magnetised and "tangling" with the Lincs hooks. One downside is that there is no delayed uncoupling with this type of coupler, the vehicles are uncoupled where the magnet is placed.

 

Hope the pic works, I've not tried attaching one before. This shows the Lincs on my brakevan (I hadn't got around to fixing a brass three link) at this stage.

[Jack]

I may consider a small traverser instead of cassettes - after all the need will probably only be for about 4 or 5 'roads' anyway, and train length will be dictated by the length of the platform and sidings.

 

I'm still a few hours of fiddlings away from having something I feel happy with 'presenting to the forum' - and if SWMBO has her way, it'll be after the weekend.

 

When you say Marcway is "RTP" do you mean "no building required"? Because that might just help matters along, and it seems a little cheaper than Peco as well.

 

I believe so. This page gives details of the ready to use stuff and this one has the kits.

 

I would recommend getting the point plans before you start cutting would or making purchases tho ... i normally make a 1:1 mock of the layout before commencing.

[cromptonnut]

Interesting... the question really is do they look "ok" alongside Peco trackwork, or does it make Peco look somewhat "odd"?

 

I wish they did an equivalent of the "short Y" point that Peco do in OO though, the 72" radius stuff is the same as the Peco O gauge range. Reckon I might well get away with a 60" in the yard.

 

Will have to finish sketching my plans out and see if I can get hold of one - in the meantime, if anyone has any pictures of Marcway O gauge pointwork that would be helpful

[modllr]

Great topic - I've been toying with the idea of O for a while so I'll be watching this carefully!

 

Keep up the good work!

[cromptonnut]

Ok I've tried the trackplan but for some reason I can't get the image to link properly - Photobucket may be having issues.

 

The blog entry is http://www.rmweb.co....-the-trackplan/

 

The trackplan image is attached below in case Photobucket is not playing ball.

[Jack]

Rather than put comments in your blog i thought it better to do it here.

 

I like the plan, but i have two suggestions ....

 

1) I think it would look better if the platform was an inch or two wider. Some of Ian Futer's Scottish layouts have been fab, but let down by a platform which is too thin. Rather than have 4" at the front, I think you'd be better off with 2" at the front and a 2" wider platform.

 

2) Whilst the carpark is a nice idea i think it might look better if you disposed of it and extended the main platform line up to the road. Although you will still only be able to get a 3 car DMU or Loco +2 into the platform, it won't look quite so shoe-horned. It would also make it easier to extend the line across a level crossing and into another board or fiddle yard at a later date, creating a through station.

 

Hope that helps.

[cromptonnut]

I have toyed with the idea of having a through station, but at the moment lack of space prevents that - I'd end up with a 6ft scenic section. I might be able to get creative though - and will give it some thought.

 

I suppose an alternative would be to have the track crossing the road but well rusted, with a buffer stop cutting the track off?

 

Or... just have another 4ft section that "slots in" on the end to enable through running when I'm not at home

 

A few ideas are bubbling through my mind - but until I decide on what DMU to get, I'm a bit stuck as I can't plan "space". I am struggling to find a suitable first gen DMU to run - a 121, 108 or 117 would nicely fit the general area I have in mind, as several of them were allocated to Exeter in the early 80's.

 

I'd also thought about the wider station, and may well put another inch or two on the platform width.

[Jack]

I suppose an alternative would be to have the track crossing the road but well rusted, with a buffer stop cutting the track off?

 

Alla Uckfield or Isfield???

 

Or... just have another 4ft section that "slots in" on the end to enable through running when I'm not at home

 

 

Sounds like a good plan ... hopefully we'll get RMWebmO off the ground at some point too

[cromptonnut]

Your 'modular' idea actually has a lot of merits, especially for someone like me stuck in a much smaller space than they want.

 

Presumably a 'group of sections' (as long as it was in multiples of whatever the board lengths were) would be usable as well, as long as each end was in the right location?

 

Off to play with xtrackcad... brb...

 

 

[Jack]

The plan is to use the Freemo idea as a basis ... all we're looking to do is specify the end connectors & electrickery ... the actual layout length and shape are whatever you choose to make them ...

[Guest Jim Read]

Dear CN,

 

I'm not a constant visitor to this site, but was very interested in this thread as I model in 0 Gauge.

 

First of all and mostly for the other cash strapped visitors to this thread 0 Gauge need not be expensive, it is also the hamfisted (like me) scratchbuilders scale, e.g. vans and wagons can be made from card and paper;

I made this in about 1985 so they do last a long time.

 

Locos can be made from Plastikard and Hornby 00 wheels as in this example, Bristol from the Chronicles of Boultons Siding;

The trackwork is Code 100 rail superglued to card sleepers.

 

If you are using short wheelbase locos the point radius can be taken down to about 30" and simply drawn with a trammel and made in situ. This one is 28" radius and my Manning Wardle 0-6-0 goes through it fine;

Code 100 plus card sleepers again.

 

Having said the above and now caught up with the rest of the posts I must make a comment about the trackplan CN, the headshunt for the goods sidings will only take a loco and one wagon. You will find this intensely boring and it will put you off operating the layout.

 

A solution is a point layout found on the Selsey Tramway;

Not quite a crossing, easy to make and will give you a much larger headshunt and some very interesting operation.

 

Kind regards - Jim

[Dave777]

I think what I may do is to get the big purchase - the loco - out the way before they disappear at the bargain prices. I can then either go ahead one day or sell it on.

 

On Friday Hattons sold the last blue Hymek they had in stock.

 

I'm blaming this thread for a very rash purchase...

[alant]

On Friday Hattons sold the last blue Hymek they had in stock.

 

I'm blaming this thread for a very rash purchase...

 

 

Looks like you've joined the slippery slope to O Gauge. I started with a Slaters wagon - just to see what it was like of course! Followed swiftly on with a loco kit and a couple more wagons etc . . .