Penhayle Bay

[bigwordsmith]

"First the overnight freight is looped:" - Rick that must be the first time I've heard a 37 with a dog's bark for a horn - boy things really are different in Australia!

 

Great show - hope you have a good autumn/Winter - the weather's just turning round nicely for Spring over here in the sunny ( this morning) Arun Valley.

[Gwiwer]

The dog ...... yeeeeesssss.  

 

The neighbour's dog invariably barks at the sound of the trains which are only the width of the garden fence away but he can't see what makes the noise.  Most of my clips have the dog barking somewhere.  Even in the dark of the night!

[bigwordsmith]

My little Lhasa Apso likes to sit on my knee and watch locos going back and forth at Waverley - she growls when a diesel moves!

[Removed a/c]

Awesome photos Rick, certainly was busy at the Bay  

 

 

Regards 
Scott 

[ian b]

Fantastic! Leaves us wanting more though so keep them coming!

[Gwiwer]

Summer has departed abruptly to be replaced by winter.  Hopefully to be followed by autumn then spring .........

 

There are fewer really good operating days and the weather today proved no exception.  Blinding low-angle sun alternated with black clouds which produced hefty showers of rain and hail.  But the railway was having a good day and everything ran without falling off, slipping coaches or stalling.  Every point clicked across every time including those on the "rare" crossovers meaning there were no dramas reversing trains in the fiddle yard to have them return whence they came but on the opposite track.

 

A couple of click-to-play clips of the action:

 

 

 

 

 

By this time of year I have normally left the fiddle yard to be out of use until the following spring (around October - November here) but have kept it going for the time being simply because everything is running well.  Despite the torrential downpours of today only one spot got even slightly wet and that was the far siding in the yards right up against the garden fence.  Even that didn't stop trains running through; I just had to remember not to park powder-weathered stock there in case of drips!!!

[Gwiwer]

I'm a late convert to the concept of taking moving pictures by phone. The iPhone has better video capture than my "stills" camera but with the penalties of having no zoom (so no control other than on-off over the image captured), crippling file sizes which take forever to upload and of having some shake as there's no tripod fitting on the phone. Even resting it on a solid object it still has to be hand-held. Nevertheless here are some early results.

Those who have been here know for sure but just in case anyone was left in any doubt this layout is outdoors and runs in all weathers. Here's a some of this afternoon's rain making a lot of noise falling on the veggie garden and layout roof but not falling on the layout.



Here's the same train gamely storming the 1:36 up from Penhayle Bay to Nansglaw tunnel.



While in a much more up-to-date scene the Voyager unit tilts (yes, it really tilts - watch carefully!) to both curves coming through the station. In fact the tilt would be disabled in Cornwall as it's only authorised on the West Coast Main Line and immediate "branches" such as the lines via Birmingham and Manchester which are equipped with tilt activation balises. However for a 1:76 scale model I'm certainly not complaining and the tilt does look remarkably realistic.

[Gwiwer]

Today, for the first time in four years, I can run a locomotive of the class matching my age.  The last time this was possible was when Falcon (the unique class 53) ran to mark my 53rd birthday.  Never having had any class 55 or 56 locos and BR having never built a 54 those had to be missed but I marked turning 57 today with a representation of the Night Riviera behind 57604.

 

 

Also out to play was the class 221 which found itself alongside a 47 + 7 set wearing an earlier iteration of Virgin Trains livery.   Some sources suggest it's not possible to find two Virgins in Cornwall but there's a prototype for everything apparently

 

 

The Voyager, one of the small number of trains in the collection not yet carrying any weathering, presents a striking sight contrasting with all the shades of green around it.

 

 

Also today I set up a video showing a sequence of moves through the junction station at Treheligan.  These kept the controller on his toes changing points and ensuring the right train left the fiddle yard at the right time, didn't cross the path of anything else, was at the platform when it should be and then ran back into the yard.  The buzzing noise heard at times is the point motors as I don't use a CDU; I have one but they work better without it.

 

A through cross-country working from the St. Agnes branch bound for Manchester arrives at the up main Platform 2 via the little-used connecting spur and we go from there.  You might find the clip takes a while to buffer.

 

[bigwordsmith]

Thought you were in the depths of winter down there Rick!

 

But then what more could you ask for - Birthday arrives, you get a matching loco and two virgins!

 

Have a good one! Now I'm off out to enjoy the 23 degree summer - better do so now, it ends on Monday!

 

Peter

Edited May 17, 2014 by bigwordsmith

[Gwiwer]

Winter is approaching.  It's already dark by 5.30pm.  It's been a good week with mostly dry sunny weather and reaching 22C when 17C would be more typical.  Winter lies ahead of us in July and August though it seldom freezes here, typically hovers around a balmy 12 - 15C and usually stays above 5C at night.  The model has coped well with that for almost ten years now and has survived summer maxima when the air temperature has nudged 50C and the rail head temperature has reached 57C on a few occasions.  

[St Enodoc]

Today, for the first time in four years, I can run a locomotive of the class matching my age.  The last time this was possible was when Falcon (the unique class 53) ran to mark my 53rd birthday.  Never having had any class 55 or 56 locos and BR having never built a 54 those had to be missed but I marked turning 57 today with a representation of the Night Riviera behind 57604.

An interesting idea Rick. I haven't got a Hornby class 58 and have no intention of getting one within the next four weeks, but I suppose I could renumber the Polperran branch engine from 1419 to 58 something. Nowhere to run it though at the moment until the builders finish the new double garage railway room.

[St Enodoc]

Winter is approaching.  It's already dark by 5.30pm.  It's been a good week with mostly dry sunny weather and reaching 22C when 17C would be more typical.  Winter lies ahead of us in July and August though it seldom freezes here, typically hovers around a balmy 12 - 15C and usually stays above 5C at night.  The model has coped well with that for almost ten years now and has survived summer maxima when the air temperature has nudged 50C and the rail head temperature has reached 57C on a few occasions.  

Well I had two days in Melbourne on business last week. As a good Sydneysider I took a thick sweater and raincoat with me. Neither came out of the case.

[SRman]

I'm covered for my next couple of years: I am 59 and have a class 59 to run. Next year I can run one of two class 60s I own. After that, I'll have to wait until my 66th birthday!!

[brushman47544]

Great video. How to set non-working signals has always been a dilemma for me. I now set my junction signals to "on", with only those on plain track "off", as I can always claim the signal had failed when a train passes it.

 

And happy birthday. I was 52 last birthday and now have five Dapol Westerns...

[Gwiwer]

Thanks Andrew.

 

Non-working signals are like non-walking people in a video.  They look wrong.  But we are limited in other ways too for example how many passengers might typically get off or on a train at a station stop?  And how many ever do in a modelling video?

 

My three-arm brackets are all hand-worked and are always set correctly for a still photo according to the move being captured.  The double-arm bracket starter featured in the video above is also a three-arm one with one cut off.  All of those are very old Crescent items from the early 1960s I believe.  There are more of their kind around the layout but many signals are Ratio kits which have to be assembled fixed in one position. In the clip the starter is off for the passenger as that is the Class 1 train taking priority over the looped freight.

 

The fixed signals are constructed with arms "off" for a regular move.  The single-arm signals are off for the main line or on plain track but on for moves departing sidings and the pair of three-arm bracket down homes are all set "on" except for the down main to down main platform which is the most common move and is "off" no matter what is happening.

 

If I had the chance to start over I might build them all as wire-in-tube but I don't feel motivated to convert the entire layout now.  It would also mean another 30 or so levers on the frame which already has 47 only three of which are "white" or spare.  That would be a lot of lever-pulling.  But no more or less than the traditional bobby in the box had to deal with every shift of his working life.  I enjoy my "real signal box" feel of working with levers rather than programming a computer.

 

And I also have five Dapol Westerns

[Gwiwer]

Here's something a little different.

 

Another forum I am active in has had a "virtual train" thread whereby members have photographed a train composed of identical or similar stock (allowing for our own choices of scale and era) on their layout and passed it on to the next in roughly a geographical north-south progression.

 

Those of us able to video moves have also showed a bit more including some shunting.

 

Having first had this link cleared by "The Managemement" (thanks Andy) here is my effort ....

 

Sound and full-screen mode on.

 

http://youtu.be/iZOK-VCFIFc

[St Enodoc]

Here's something a little different.

 

Another forum I am active in has had a "virtual train" thread whereby members have photographed a train composed of identical or similar stock (allowing for our own choices of scale and era) on their layout and passed it on to the next in roughly a geographical north-south progression.

 

Those of us able to video moves have also showed a bit more including some shunting.

 

Having first had this link cleared by "The Managemement" (thanks Andy) here is my effort ....

 

Sound and full-screen mode on.

 

http://youtu.be/iZOK-VCFIFc

Excellent Rick. Enjoyable, entertaining, educational and above all evocative - although when I heard the music for the first segment I was expecting a 4-SUB EMU to appear!

[Gwiwer]

 

 

when I heard the music for the first segment I was expecting a 4-SUB EMU to appear!

 

Not so many of us would understand that! For all those who don't (1) the music is "Arrival of the Queen of Sheba" and (2) the first batch of 4Sub units, which had higher-than-normal capacity 7-a-side seating in compartments were nicknamed "Shebas".  The nickname - and the use of that piece in my video  - arises from the assertion that "The Queen of Sheba had a very great train."  Quite how great the snug fit of seven overcoated bodies on a bench seat might have been in a winter morning's rush hour has been questioned many times over the years.  A Western with 7 Mk1s and a Thompson on the other hand .........

 

And thank you for the comments also - very much appreciated.  I realise this isn't everyone's "thing" but also that it's a shame to not have it shared for those who so wish to enjoy.

Edited June 2, 2014 by Gwiwer

[brushman47544]

Chigley and Brian Cant...oh happy childhood memories. As well as the Westerns of course!

 

Excellent stuff Rick.

[Torn-on-the-platform]

I really enjoyed the video! Thanks. I've always thought this layout is fantastic - the beach in particular!

 

Glad steam could come to the rescue, and I enjoyed the humour

[KingJohn]

Not so many of us would understand that! For all those who don't (1) the music is "Arrival of the Queen of Sheba" and (2) the first batch of 4Sub units, which had higher-than-normal capacity 7-a-side seating in compartments were nicknamed "Shebas".  The nickname - and the use of that piece in my video  - arises from the assertion that "The Queen of Sheba had a very great train."  Quite how great the snug fit of seven overcoated bodies on a bench seat might have been in a winter morning's rush hour has been questioned many times over the years.  A Western with 7 Mk1s and a Thompson on the other hand .........

 

And thank you for the comments also - very much appreciated.  I realise this isn't everyone's "thing" but also that it's a shame to not have it shared for those who so wish to enjoy.

 

Rick, Simply STUNNING. Regardless of era or types of stock, who could fail to be engrossed by your video. The sound on the 52 at the end made my hair stand on end. When is the next episode please.

 

Roger.

[Gwiwer]

 

 

When is the next episode please.

 

That is a good question.

 

I haven't had any negative feedback; most of the comments made here and elsewhere have been very positive.  The level of response is lower than for many still-image posts and I am well aware that this style of presentation isn't everyone's thing.  

 

It is, to my mind, legitimately creative and adds another dimension to modelling just as those who construct fully operational signalling systems or write the computer software for others to use also add creativity in their field.

 

Opportunities to capture enough useable footage are currently limited by our winter weather and little good daylight.  It also takes a fair few hours to create the movie and many more to upload a 1.15GB file.

 

I can certainly think about another venture at some future time though it might be some months into the future as the layout is being prepared for a winter hibernation while I am overseas for several months.

[john flann]

Rick, as ever a good show from you. What else?

 

You make a valid point about the time and effort required to put such a show such as this on, even a selection of still images takes time and I sometimes think that effort needed is not always appreciated.

 

Thank you for taking the time and making making the effort.

[Gwiwer]

Thank you, too, John for your generous comments.

 

There are probably a great many people out in internet land who take a look - possibly just a glance - and don't bother to leave any sort of feedback.  I do the same myself for many a layout thread and some other topics.  There simply isn't time to fully appreciate and comment on everything.  I try to keep actively involved with my favourites.

 

Therefore I can assume that what I show is actually seen by far more people than I am actually aware of.  You Tube only records a "view" when the complete clip is viewed and my Facebook page generates statistics the same way.  So I see only those figures for complete views and there is no record of the possibly far larger number of people who have taken an interest but haven't watched the full clip for what ever reason.

 

We also need to thank Tony over on the MRC board without whose suggestion of an inter-layout "cross country train" this video would probably never have been made.

[john flann]

Well said Rick, you are quite right in that much more is probably seen than directly acknowledged.

 

And, when posting I forgot to inquire whether the Beatty was pulling or being pushed. If the latter I think the crew would have been in for a rough ride at any speed.

 

Also the 'virtual train' on MRC was a nice bit of fun. More to the point it illustrated the relationship and connections with other railways.