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BEIJIAO - a large Chinese HO exhibition layout set in the 21st century


TEAMYAKIMA
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Richard (Ben ?) - you are the original Chinese modeller as far as I know - saw your layout somewhere like Milton Keynes from memory. I don't really classify myself as a modeller - The most I do is weather RTR stock - you built a QJ out of a Fleischmann class 50 - that's modelling!

 

One of the reasons I want to build this project ( as quickly as possible) is that I want to do something different and I want to get it to exhibition before every show has a Chinese HO layout.

 

The five exhibition layouts I've built in the past have been firstly in OO and then OO9 .... by then (late 1970s) I got bored with seeing the same concepts at every show ( GWR branch etc) so my next layout was in American standard gauge O, then in the mid 1980s in was in ON30 (long before Bachmann did On30), then it was ON3 with sound (long before sound was generally available).  Each layout was novel for its time and now every show you go to has an American On30 layout - many with sound! 

 

So Chinese HO may be the final frontier .....I only hope I can get it on the exhibition circuit before it's a case of  "Oh no! Not another Chinese HO layout!"

 

Ta for those kind words! Was getting kind of nostalgic for the Changchun days over the weekend and dug out some of the papers/photos - I may even have restarted a long stalled project for a RM pacific, will start a separate thread on that if there is interest. The shapeways PX48 / C4 are also my designs. The PX48 has worked well, but the C4 has suffered from a lack of proper drawings - that really is currently a stalled project!

 

Most of my stuff was pretty basic to be honest, at the time there wasn't too much available, so you could get away with... a lot! The new rtr stuff is so nice(pricey of course!) that it really is now on a different level, I'm sure your layout is really going to look the part - the fiddle yard looks superb, do keep the updates coming!

 

Regards

 

Richard.

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Just found this topic.

 

I'm just home from operating a friends layout at Lymm Transport Day. His layout is also of Chineese Railways and Lymm was its first exhibhition appearance. I was too busy to take any pictures.

That would be Mark Enderby's layout ... yes am aware of Mark's layout through a specialist China Rail forum. How did the public react to Chinese layout?

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If there are good r-t-r models available (and there are lots of them for Japan), people will build layouts for them to run on.

 

I'm slowly building a Showa 40s-era JNR exhibition layout. In the meantime I'm building, detailing, painting and weathering locos and stock, and having running sessions on my club's layout.

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/94424961@N00/14472601455/

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

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So Chinese HO may be the final frontier .....I only hope I can get it on the exhibition circuit before it's a case of  "Oh no! Not another Chinese HO layout!"

 

Highly unlikely. There are plenty of threads on RMWeb discussing the popularity of overseas models, and the general consensus seems to be the majority of UK modellers want to model 1950s/60s UK. Even if you had an explosion of affordable Chinese models, you could spend ten years building your layout and still only have a handful of other Chinese layouts on the circuit at best.

 

If there are good r-t-r models available (and there are lots of them for Japan), people will build layouts for them to run on. I am sure we will see more China prototype layouts just as we will see a surge in East Anglian branchlines with the Hornby J15.

 

You are right, there are plenty of decent r-t-r Japanese models, but the number of Japanese N guage exhibition layouts can be counted on the fingers of two hands. For the number of Japanese H0 layouts on the UK exhibition circuit; well you can count them on the number of fingers on one foot...

 

One completed you layout will be somehting very different, and I wish you well with your project. I look forward to seeing this develop.

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Went to Twickenham MRC tonight - well alright last night!

I took some Chinese stock just to see how the locos cope with my projected train lengths. Took a couple to new locos inc this Bachmann freight variant DF4HD ..

                                                                                                 post-4476-0-98983600-1404516356_thumb.jpg

This photo shows part of the train I was running .... it shows 29 cars ( my short train length) although by the end of the night the loco was hauling 42 cars with no trouble. The Club's test track is approx. 5ft radius - more generous than my average 30 inch end curves (hidden) but it shows promise that the train lengths are feasible.

                                                                                                 post-4476-0-02277900-1404516363_thumb.jpg

Edited by TEAMYAKIMA
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Here are some before and after weathering shots of a C70 coal gondola ..

Before....

                                                                      post-4476-0-27258500-1404542741_thumb.jpg

After...........

                                                                     post-4476-0-37363500-1404542783_thumb.jpg

And here is the inspiration ....

                                                                     post-4476-0-56914400-1404543142_thumb.jpg

Edited by TEAMYAKIMA
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A day off work and a day's modelling ...

 

Quite a success the work room tidied, some odd jobs and most significantly six tank cars weathered

 

That makes the total stock weathered and ready to run once the layout is finished as follows ...

 

84 C64/70 coal gondolas

 

23 coal hoppers

 

13 steel gondolas

 

30 container flats

 

32 Oil tankers

 

3 Cabooses

 

Just another 45 odd cars to go!

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A day off work and a day's modelling ...

 

Quite a success the work room tidied, some odd jobs and most significantly six tank cars weathered

 

That makes the total stock weathered and ready to run once the layout is finished as follows ...

 

84 C64/70 coal gondolas

 

23 coal hoppers

 

13 steel gondolas

 

30 container flats

 

32 Oil tankers

 

3 Cabooses

 

Just another 45 odd cars to go!

Oops ... forgot the 6 grain hoppers and 18 box cars !!

Edited by TEAMYAKIMA
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Here are a couple of flat cars with containers.. firstly a NX70

                                                                                                    post-4476-0-21087700-1405077611_thumb.jpg

Then a NX17K

                                                                                                    post-4476-0-43876100-1405077613_thumb.jpg

Edited by TEAMYAKIMA
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That would be Mark Enderby's layout ... yes am aware of Mark's layout through a specialist China Rail forum. How did the public react to Chinese layout?

Hi,

 

Yes it was Mark's layout.  Went down very well with the public.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Having posted for a while .... been weathering more silver tank cars ( 30 so far ) but had the problem of a yellow one ( only one thank goodness ) ......

 

Out of the box ...........

 

                                                                                         post-4476-0-46194000-1405870143_thumb.jpg

 

One end ...........

 

                                                                                        post-4476-0-50931500-1405870193_thumb.jpg

 

The other ............

 

                                                                                       post-4476-0-21025500-1405870195_thumb.jpg

 

The prototypes .............

 

                                                                                       post-4476-0-12302900-1405870233_thumb.jpg

Edited by TEAMYAKIMA
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Work on trackwork had been 'on hold' for nearly 5 months due to my stupidity  ... damaging some track ends at the baseboard edge whilst making/fitting end plates designed to protect the track ends at the baseboard edge! :O

 

Being somewhat bored with weathering freight cars, I decided to face up to my demons and get back to trackwork today ...... haven't actually laid any track today working on some baseboard issues and repairing the damaged track ends.

 

I have not laid any China Rail tracks yet, but these posed photos show a BJ Bo-Bo diesel hauling some coal hoppers on the industrial coal/steelworks system.  The train is on the through track with sidings on either side. The concrete sleepered track at the left will be the passenger platform track.

 

                                                                                            post-4476-0-35755300-1406052391_thumb.jpg

 

                                                                                                                                         post-4476-0-38515000-1406052389_thumb.jpg

Edited by TEAMYAKIMA
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One problem is the extreme size of this particular piece of rolling stock - all 32 axles of it!

 

This item will define how we manage to  'hide' the entry from the fiddle yard.

 

                                                                                           post-4476-0-70211800-1406241415_thumb.jpg

Edited by TEAMYAKIMA
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Have been back 'on track' today ..... trying to improve the look of PECO code 83 track/points by fitting cut down C&L 4mm cosmetic fishplates .... was it worth the effort ? Personally, I think 'yes'.....

 

                                                                                                post-4476-0-00735800-1406453843_thumb.jpg

 

BTW the concrete sleepers are deliberately random and generally wider spaced than the wooden ones

Edited by TEAMYAKIMA
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Naughty boy, you should be using Details West six bolt ones :D

 

I've looked at some of my photos and you're right!  I hadn't given it much thought actually .........

 

post-4476-0-73691700-1406462696_thumb.jpg

 

 

I never thought of USA HO ..... I just wanted to try some dummy fishplates to see what effect they had  and I asked a friend to pick some 4mm ones at the Alexander Palace show.

 

The track I'm laying at the moment is industrial so I'll use that as an excuse and it's at the back of the layout  .... and try to source the DW ones for the mainline ( foreground )

 

The only issue is sourcing DW fishplates her in the UK .... buying small items from the USA usually incurs a high (minimum charge) P&P

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I get mine from Andy Reichert's P87 store.  He's on here, send him a pm - he's very very helpful.

Hello again

 

By co-incidence I had already googled them and Andy's P87 site came up , but thanks for the recommendation - I'll follow it up.

 

Paul

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Yes well worth it, how are you joining the rails soldered?

Apologies for not replying sooner. I regret that I'm quite basic .. I line up the rails and just glue the track down in place  ... if I need to make any slight adjustments I just use super glue to glue the rails in the exact position on the sleeper base leaving one end free to allow for expansion. I hope that's clear ... I know what I mean but not sure if that explanation makes sense.

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No quite clear, not sure I'd be that brave to rely on glue but I guess it's easy to re-glue ;)

I guess you're feeding every section with droppers then for electrical contact.

 

I feed every piece of rail from droppers attached under the rail

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An upgraded track plan - r/h end under the road bridge.

 

                                                                                                     post-4476-0-54799700-1406653587_thumb.jpg

Edited by TEAMYAKIMA
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