Catching the O Gauge bug!

[G.M.R.]

12 months ago to the day, when it was becoming clear that life might be different for a while, I decided that the time may have come to start experimenting with a larger scale. Having an extensive bedroom layout in OO, I felt it time for a change, and I reckoned I could get a 4ft by 2ft board under part of the layout to accommodate something in O.

 

After a lot of research on here and other sites, I decided a small shed scene would suit. I am not much of a loco kit builder so looked for a reasonably priced RTR loco for the project. Dapol were shipping some new versions of their 57xx including one in London Transport Livery. And so I purchased L92 and the fun began.

 

Before we were confined to home, I visited the local DIY store to get a few items of timber to construct a simple baseboard. And then considered what the track plan might be. Being unfamiliar with this scale, it was hard to imagine what could be sensibly fitted in the space. I purchased a single Peco turnout and played a little.

 

I grew up in the 50's and early 60's quite close to Neasden, (London) and my father worked just off the North Circular Road, so I became very familiar with the London Underground. Looking at some wonderful archive photos, I went for a very simplified nod to Neasden Shed. Not a true representation in any way, but something to base things on.

 

It took me 3 months to build, but then I didn't have much else to do with my time. Here are a few photos of the result.

 

I had caught the O Gauge bug. Loved the feel of the larger stock. I knew that I now needed to do more. And so my story continued, but more later.

[F-UnitMad]

Slippery slope, mate, slippery slope.  

 

Start boxing up that teeny-weeny OO stuff to sell for funding more O Scale.

[Mike Bellamy]

 

Well done Geoff. I'm sure you are aware of the Gauge O Guild but you may not know about a new group called the 7mm Scale Society which was set up a couple of months ago to get away from Guild 'politics' and is more about modelling. There is an active forum with lots of help and advice if needed - all for £5.

 

Unfortunately the front page of the website doesn't give any information but follow the link provided there and you will receive a warm welcome.

 

Link Here https://7mmscalesociety.org/

 

Mike

[Andy Ross]

Nice little layout - My current project is a move to O gauge but I have gone in at the deep end. Not very big, but I do need to make nearly everything from scratch. 

 I must Admit I have thought about a small shunting layout so I can run something just to shunt a couple of wagons.  

[sidmouth]

last night my eldest and I went up in the loft . we spent over an hour running trains and shunting around on the layout . His GWR era stock and my BR era . the end of the session saw a Dapol Pannier, B-Set and a couple of box vans departing our branch line terminus . Coach lights lit and the firebox glow apparent and despite my layout being very much wip it was a very evocative moment and one that I have never had in 00 . Everything about O gauge looks and feels right and you lose the compromises that you need to accept in 00

[Piemanlarger]

Nice looking little shed scene.

I have something similar planned to expand Cwm Risca Halt but will build it so it can stand as a separate layout as well.

 

Nice work.

[Guest WM183]

What a gorgeous layout! And in such a small space it doesn't feel at all cramped.

 

Once you got to the "senior scale" it's pretty hard to go back. You lose a lot of the little compromises that 00 makes, and get wonderful running to boot!

Amanda

[Guest Jack Benson]

On 08/03/2021 at 11:33, Mike Bellamy said:

 

Well done Geoff. I'm sure you are aware of the Gauge O Guild but you may not know about a new group called the 7mm Scale Society which was set up a couple of months ago to get away from Guild 'politics' and is more about modelling. There is an active forum with lots of help and advice if needed - all for £5.

 

Unfortunately the front page of the website doesn't give any information but follow the link provided there and you will receive a warm welcome.

 

Link Here https://7mmscalesociety.org/

 

Mike

Thanks Mike, 

 

I just picked up on this in MRJ 282 on page 261, this ties in nicely with Dapol’s announcement of a exLSWR Adams B4. A surge of micro 7mm layouts and 7mm Society membership is the perfect partnership.

 

Stay Safe

[G.M.R.]

Thanks for all the supporting comments. So to continue my adventure into the "senior" scale.

 

Having enjoyed constructing this small layout, my thoughts turned to how I could create something larger. I do like to watch trains running, but whilst the 12 by 12 bedroom I have use of is fine for my OO layout, it would allow any continuous runs for O gauge, and I didn't really want to lose my existing layout with my largish collection of locos.

 

I am lucky enough to have a double garage which is largely empty, except that unusually we do keep two cars in it. Even then at roughly 5 metres square, it is still too tight to have a sensible continuous run. So how about the garden?

 

We are both retired, and now the garden is very much to domain of my better half. She is very supportive of my railway mania, but wasn't keen to have her landscape modified to take  major civil engineering for a railway. So I made a proposal. How about I built a "Train Set" that could be erected around the perimeter of the grass lawn, and removed again when I had finished playing trains. This was acceptable, so I then had to start thinking about how.

 

The lawn I not rectangular or round. It consists of two offset circles connected by a square. So the design would have to include both curves and straights. I reckoned that I could get a double track run of some 70ft which would include a four track station area long enough for five Mk1 coaches and large loco.

 

I felt that I wanted to use 18mm ply, on a simple 2x1 type of frame, but kept light enough to carry from storage to lawn. Here is what I came up with for the curves.

 

 

Curve Boards.pdf

[G.M.R.]

Taking an 8x4 sheet of ply, I calculated that if I used planks 285mm wide, I could cut each into two trapezium shapes with the ends at 18deg angles so that they could then be fitted together as shown in the diagram.

 

The pair being supported on a simple frame was then reasonably easy to carry, and five of them would form a complete circle. I could fit two tracks spaced at 90mm (more than the recommended 80 to allow for plenty of passing space on the curve). The outer track radius is 1872mm and the inner 1782mm which seemed reasonable for the space available. Also these boards would then fit well into the 4 metre diameter grass circles at each end of the lawn.

 

And so construction began towards the end of last summer.

 

 

[G.M.R.]

Here are a couple of photos showing one of the curved boards with just the inner track laid.

[G.M.R.]

Six months later and a sunny afternoon: -

 

Took 45 seconds for the circuit with Flying Scotsman at full speed.

[F-UnitMad]

First a micrO-layout, next the garden..!!

 

On 08/03/2021 at 11:30, F-UnitMad said:

Slippery slope, mate, slippery slope.  

 

Start boxing up that teeny-weeny OO stuff to sell for funding more O Scale.

 

In my best Black Country, "Ah tode yer, day I..???"   

[G.M.R.]

Lionheart Mk1 coaches arrived yesterday.

 

I think they are magnificent. Although there were some problems.

 

 

[G.M.R.]

They come with buckeye couplings fitted to all the internal rake ends, and the gangways contain hidden magnets to grip the outer ends together.

 

The rake ends on the BSKs are fitted with screwlink couplings, but I couldn't couple up my Flying Scotsman with its gangway tender. 

 

I need a miniature robotic shunter or fireman!

 

[G.M.R.]

There is also a problem with the packaging. The use of stiff polystyrene puts a strain on the gangway ends which resulted in one end being broken on each of the three coaches I received. Fixed with some cyanoacrylate, but could have been easily avoided with a small change to the packaging design.

 

I have too more on pre-order and will cut a piece out of the polystyrene before I attempt to remove them.

[brossard]

5 minutes ago, G.M.R. said:

They come with buckeye couplings fitted to all the internal rake ends, and the gangways contain hidden magnets to grip the outer ends together.

 

The rake ends on the BSKs are fitted with screwlink couplings, but I couldn't couple up my Flying Scotsman with its gangway tender. 

 

I need a miniature robotic shunter or fireman!

 

 

Here's what I did to mine to ease coupling to the loco:

 

 

I pulled out the flex gangway, there are pins top and bottom that have to be overcome.  It leaves an unsightly hole but I am working to make a "door" to plug that.

 

Mk1 coaches were fitted with drop down buckeye couplings as I have done here (not screw links).  I also cut away the bottom of the gangway to ease coupling.  I have tested this with my locos and coupling, while always fiddly, is definitely doable.

 

Finally, I glued the remains of the gangway to the end.

 

Your situation is interesting.  Even modding the coach, I can't see how you can couple to the tender because the gangway will interfere.  One solution does occur to me and that is fitting 0 gauge Kadees to the coach and tender.  Not ideal because, obviously, your loco will be limited in the stock it pulls.

 

Of course, one other thing springs to mind, a non-gangwayed van of some sort as lead vehicle.

 

The Heljan Gresley's, of which I have two, are not much better.

 

Good luck.

 

John

 

 

[G.M.R.]

Probably posted in the wrong thread John, but saw you replied in both.

 

Taking inspiration from your photo, I removed the gangway assembly, refitted the end door inside the coach, and now the hook is exposed making coupling the screwlink from the loco possible.

 

 

Thanks

[G.M.R.]

Set the garden layout up again today. Third time, but today was almost ten degree warmer than previous times. Also strong midday sunshine. Was still surprised by the amount of rail expansion. Had to trim back several sections to remove the buckling that started to occur. Guess that's a problem all the permanent garden layout folk are used to and presumably solve by having frequent rail gaps?