Mid-Cornwall Lines - 1950s Western Region in 00

[Barry O]

1 hour ago, St Enodoc said:

For the past few (many) months, a number of RTR wagons have been cluttering up the top shelf in the study room. These include some that I've bought new, some that I've bought secondhand and quite a lot that I bought at auction from the estate of my late friend Harry Howell. I decided that it was time to start fitting couplings to these to reduce the stockpile. I started with some Airfix/Dapol/Hornby ones where the tension lock coupling is held on by a plastic clip. Removing the clip and the little spigot under it leaves a nice flat platform to screw a DG coupling to. The coupling needs cranking by about a millimetre to get the right height but otherwise it's a very quick and easy job.

 

Except...

 

...when some of the droppers fall off the loops. This seems to have become more common over the last year or so and is quite frustrating. I'll have to clean up the offending droppers and loops, then resolder them with a little more flux and probably a little more heat - but without soldering anything up solid like I did a few months ago.

 

As the cricket from Melbourne has finished for the day, I'll leave that to tomorrow.

are you "tinning" the droppers with phosphoric then use fluxite?

 

Did the horsebox come from th estate? If it did it has travelled a bit farther to Leeds...

 

Talk tou you in the (Oz) morning!

 

Baz

[St Enodoc]

Just now, Barry O said:

are you "tinning" the droppers with phosphoric then use fluxite?

No, I've run out of phosphoric so just Fluxite. I've got some Carr's Red Label but I don't think that will help. I might try to get some phosphoric from somewhere.

 

2 minutes ago, Barry O said:

Did the horsebox come from th estate? If it did it has travelled a bit farther to Leeds...

I can't remember! It probably did as I can't think why I would have bought it otherwise.

 

3 minutes ago, Barry O said:

Talk tou you in the (Oz) morning!

Yes, if I wake up in time...

[Barry O]

Try rustall or similar?

 

Baz

[St Enodoc]

I just took part in the Leeds Model Railway Society Eating & Drinking Section Christmas Drinks, which this year took the form of a Zoom meeting. It was good to see the old gang, even though I was drinking coffee (from an LMRS 40th Anniversary mug of course) rather than beer. Andy M from South Australia was also there, so a 100% turnout from the Antipodean membership. Excellent!

[St Enodoc]

18 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

I've got some Carr's Red Label but I don't think that will help.

I was right and I couldn't get any better flux this morning.

 

The LMRS Brains(?) Trust told me earlier that they've started using soft iron wire again, as we did on the old-style couplings before we converted to DGs about 30 years ago. I know I've got a few feet somewhere but couldn't put my hands on it. However, I was lucky enough to find some different steel wire in one of the spares boxes, which did respond to Fluxite, and so I finished the five wagons I started last night. Now to make up another fret of couplings, for another eight wagons.

[St Enodoc]

I made another 16 couplings last night and, from a simple pull test, the droppers appear to be staying attached. I didn't feel like fitting any today though.

 

Instead, I made the next tentative steps towards extending the Branch by setting out, at full size on removalists' wrapping paper recovered from our house move in 2012, the curved crossover at Porthmellyn Road (41 points). That was fairly straightforward, as the Up and Down lines maintain the same spacing throughout. At the St Enodoc end it is less simple, as the Up and Down lines spread out to pass either side of the island platform, while the Loop in turn leads off the Down line. I'd drawn what I thought was a fairly good design at 1/10 scale but it didn't look quite right at full size. After quite a lot of head-scratching, I thought it might be a good idea to look at the St Enodoc baseboards themselves, where I soon realised what was wrong - I'd drawn the small-scale plan with the platform tracks at 120mm spacing whereas in fact they are at 145mm. I really have no idea why I'd done this, except to say that the so-called master plan for the last St Enodoc layout showed the wrong spacing and I'd just copied it. Consequently, I've had to redraw the 1/10 scale plan and I'll transfer it to full size next time I'm in the railway room.

 

This will mean redrafting the Down end of St Enodoc too, where the Loop, Down and Up lines merge into the Single Line to Treloggan Junction and the Wheal Veronica branch. That will take a bit more time, as there are several different radii and four reverse curves involved so there'll be a bit more trial and error in the early stages of setting out.

[St Enodoc]

Well, that was interesting. I just measured up the actual alignment on the second St Enodoc station board, ready for the redesign, and while I was at it I thought I'd check the overall size of the board. Guess what? The drawing showed 825mm x 600mm whereas the actual size is 805mm x 620mm. I now recall, vaguely, that I changed the sizes slightly to get the best out of standard sheets of ply but obviously I'd never updated the plan. Never mind - all is well now and the slight reduction in length will actually help at the Down end where the 180 degree curve back towards Treloggan Junction was a bit tight as far as the gangway width between it and Nancegwithey Viaduct are concerned.

[Barry O]

And there is me losing weight to get through the gap!

(Her indoors asks "have you never measured it before?")

 

Baz

[St Enodoc]

I rounded off the year's work today by finishing the full size templates for the tracks between Porthmellyn Road and St Enodoc, which was dead easy once I'd sorted out the track centres - surprise, surprise.

 

I also redrew St Enodoc Down end at 1/10 scale with the right track centres and baseboard dimensions, then copied both ends of St Enodoc on to a single sheet so that I can play around with the final location on the CAD (Computer-Absent Design) layout plan.

 

I'm pleased to have finished that, which takes me nicely into my review of the year. Without sounding too precious, the hobby has (like many of my friends around the world) given me some escape from the tribulations of the real world, although it's true to say that even Mid-Cornwall has suffered - most notably in the total absence of any proper running sessions since January. I was hoping that we could start the New Year with a clean sheet but the latest restrictions in Sydney have almost certainly kicked our January session (at least) into touch.

 

It's an ill wind that blows nobody any good, though, and since March in particular, when I stopped commuting to Melbourne and then started working from home, I've managed to do a lot more on the layout than I expected at the start of the year. In fact, for the first time I've achieved all the goals I set myself 12 months ago.

 

In brief:

 

- After our January running session, the first with the full main line sequence in use, I built the MDF fences round the front edges of Paddington and Penzance.

 

- February and early March saw completion of the electrical works on Porthmellyn Road Signal Box, including the Line Clear indicators and switches. I got these working just before our March running session was due to take place.

 

- In April I finished boxing in the lever frame and varnished the wooden frame and casing, which made a huge difference to its appearance. I also started to sort out the first of the three ready-built coaches I bought on eBay. After finishing them in August it felt more as though they'd finished me...

 

- With the signal box complete, in May I fitted the Porthmellyn Road uncouplers and built their control panel, which also operates the three "hand" points at Porthmellyn Road. I also added three more dummy safety points and the viaduct guard rails, ready for ballasting.

 

- Ballasting started in June and went on until August. Strangely, once I'd got into a rhythm and routine, I found it quite enjoyable - which is something I never thought I'd write.

 

- From August onwards just about all my efforts have gone into the Porthmellyn Road signals, which are now all complete and, apart from those for the Branch, fitted and working.

 

- I've also started the first stages of construction work for the Branch itself, which brings me right up to date.

 

So what's next?

 

- Porthmellyn Road platforms are high on the list, followed by some detailing and various structures around the station of which I already have some either built or in kit form.

 

- I hope to get the Branch operational at least as far as St Enodoc and Wheal Veronica, which will let us run the china-clay trains that far. After that, I'll extend the Branch as far as Polperran.

 

- Finally, I plan to spend a bit more time on rolling stock, bringing more wagons into service and possibly starting some coach kits to fill some of the gaps in the sequence.

 

That will be more than enough for 2021, whatever sort of year it turns out to be, so I'll close there by wishing you all, as always, a peaceful, safe and healthy New Year when it comes to your part of the world.

 

 

[Clive Mortimore]

Happy new year Sainty

 

Now I cannot be ar$ed to do a round up of what happened in 2020 to my layout but if anyone wants to find out nip over to Sheff Ex and read the adventures, listen to the songs and if you can make head or tail out of the "chat" can you please let me know.

[5BarVT]

Happy New Year from me too (once you’ve woken up).

Paul.

[Chamby]

And a happy new year from mid-Cornwall...   

 

The A30 dual carriageway was closed between Bodmin and Jamaica Inn today, because of snow and ice.   With strong easterlies forecast for next week, we’re havin’ a good time of it. 

[31A]

And a Happy New Year from York!   Quite lot seems to have happened here on Finsbury Square during the lockdown, but your storming ahead in Mid Cornwall (Down Under) puts me to shame and makes me feel tired just reading about it.   Let's hope you guys can soon get together and put all your hard work to good use.

[bgman]

 

[St Enodoc]

5 hours ago, 5BarVT said:

Happy New Year from me too (once you’ve woken up).

Paul.

Thanks Paul. I think I'm awake now.

Edited December 31, 2020 by St Enodoc
Obviously not awake enough to spot a typo before I pressed Send...

[St Enodoc]

4 hours ago, Chamby said:

And a happy new year from mid-Cornwall...   

 

The A30 dual carriageway was closed between Bodmin and Jamaica Inn today, because of snow and ice.   With strong easterlies forecast for next week, we’re havin’ a good time of it. 

Thanks Phil. That's a pretty rare event isn't it? Keep warm, keep safe and keep modelling.

[St Enodoc]

3 hours ago, 31A said:

And a Happy New Year from York!   Quite lot seems to have happened here on Finsbury Square during the lockdown, but your storming ahead in Mid Cornwall (Down Under) puts me to shame and makes me feel tired just reading about it.   Let's hope you guys can soon get together and put all your hard work to good use.

Thanks Steve. You have a head start on me with the state of completion at Finsbury Square. It will be a few years before Mid-Cornwall gets that far. I can guarantee that there won't be so much storming ahead when I get to the scenery stage.

[St Enodoc]

2 hours ago, bgman said:

 

Thanks Grahame. I wonder why they chose to show the time as 1002 (or 2202)? They missed a trick I think - twenty-one minutes past eight in the evening would have been neat.

[St Enodoc]

On 31/12/2020 at 20:55, St Enodoc said:

I also redrew St Enodoc Down end at 1/10 scale with the right track centres and baseboard dimensions, then copied both ends of St Enodoc on to a single sheet so that I can play around with the final location on the CAD (Computer-Absent Design) layout plan.

Here is the track layout plan:

 

Bottom left is the double-track approach from Porthmellyn Road leading on to the two existing baseboards, which are shown in outline to the correct size.

 

The stub at the top leads from the Loop to the camping coach siding. I'll finalise the alignment for this once Treloggan Junction is laid, to optimise the horizontal and vertical clearances.

 

The stub at the bottom leads to the two Up sidings, which are already laid and will not be changed. The toe of this point represents the datum point for the track alterations at this end.

 

At the Down end, the three tracks continue for a foot or so beyond the end of the existing boards. A representation of the characteristic overbridge and steps to the platform at Bugle will go here. The tracks then swing to the left through a reverse curve. When I draw out the full-size version I will add a short transition on each of these if I can. There isn't room for a full transition but even a short length  will improve the visual effect I think.

 

The outer track on the right is the Branch itself, which will carry on to Treloggan Junction, while the inner track is the Wheal Veronica china-clay line. I've drawn this at 650mm radius for now but I'll confirm it on site when construction starts. The key criterion will be the embankment between the (falling) Branch at 760mm radius and the (rising) china-clay line. At Wheal Veronica itself there will be two sidings. Again, I'll set out the final alignment for these on site.

 

Once I've fixed this to the CAD plan I'll take another photo to show how it will (should) all fit together.

Edited June 28, 2023 by St Enodoc
Images restored

[St Enodoc]

Do you remember those happy days at primary school where you drew things and then cut them out? I do, and I relived them today.

 

After drawing the first version of the St Enodoc layout plan yesterday, I realised that I might be able to squeeze another few inches off the length by moving the Down end pointwork closer to the station. The critical factor here is the relationship between the platform, the steps and the road overbridge. The platform is already in place on the existing board, so I checked the dimensions of that and marked it on another sheet of paper. The steps are already built, from an Airfix/Dapol footbridge kit, but on the last layout they had to start from the bottom of the platform ramp so that they didn't bridge (ha!) the baseboard joint. That won't matter on the new layout, so I'll be able to copy the real arrangement where the steps started near the top of the ramp, with a short infill piece, and the pier stood on a plinth. For a picture of what I'm talking about, go to:

 

http://abcrailwayguide.uk/images/stations/BGL/bgl-bugle-1263-1200.jpg

 

I don't know how wide the road bridge is so I made an allowance of about 100mm (easily enough for a bus), then added a bit so that the toe of 19A point, where the Down Main and Wheal Veronica branch diverge, will be far enough from the bridge to get a soldering iron in when, not if, necessary.

 

Here's how it ended up:

 

The perpendicular distance from the edge of the existing baseboard is about 200mm. Remember that for later...

 

I then drew out the rest of the layout, resulting in this:

 

As it turned out, there isn't really room for any transitions here but I don't think that will matter as the tangent points of the reverse curves will be close to the bridge, so trains passing over them will be partly concealed and hence the end throws won't really be visible - I hope. Anyway, it is what it is.

 

For completeness, here are the two sections of layout I drew yesterday.

 

Porthmellyn Road Down end is fairly straightforward. Two B8 curved points leading to the circular curve (760/820mm radius) round to St Enodoc.

 

At St Enodoc the inner track (the Up line) stays at 760mm radius all the way round to the A5 point where the Up sidings lead off. The crossover and the connection to the Loop use B8 curved points again to avoid any reverse curves here. The point to the camping coach siding is a B6.

 

Once I got back indoors I modified the 1/10 scale plan, not by redrawing it but but folding it so that the toe of 19A point is in its new position. Originally it was about 280mm from the baseboard edge but is now 200mm (see above), which taking account of the curves reduces the distance between the curve centres at the Up and Down ends (as shown in square boxes), by about 100mm.

 

This was a very satisfying couple of days' work that has reinforced my confidence that the whole thing will fit!

Edited June 28, 2023 by St Enodoc
Images restored

[KingEdwardII]

I am curious that you prepare your plans on paper. This seems like a lot of work when you need to modify the plans as you have shown in your last posts. I choose to use computer programs for these purposes largely to make the work of redesign and editing simpler and faster. I assume that you have chosen not to use this approach for very good reasons - can you say something about this please?

 

Yours,  Mike.

[St Enodoc]

22 minutes ago, KingEdwardII said:

I am curious that you prepare your plans on paper. This seems like a lot of work when you need to modify the plans as you have shown in your last posts. I choose to use computer programs for these purposes largely to make the work of redesign and editing simpler and faster. I assume that you have chosen not to use this approach for very good reasons - can you say something about this please?

 

Yours,  Mike.

Yes of course, Mike. Quite simply, I don't have any experience of computer design applications and to be frank I've never felt the need to learn. I'm more than comfortable with graph paper, pencil, eraser, ruler and compasses and they produce the results I need. For the number of times I'd need to use it, I suspect that the time spent learning to use a computer application would outweigh any saving of time in producing the actual plans.

 

There has been one, and only one, exception to this on the layout. The "three-quarter scissors" at the Down end of Porthmellyn Road was proving very troublesome and a good friend offered to design it for me using Templot. That did save me some time but only because Graeme already knew how to use the Templot product.

 

Each to their own!

[Oldddudders]

17 minutes ago, St Enodoc said:

Yes of course, Mike. Quite simply, I don't have any experience of computer design applications and to be frank I've never felt the need to learn. I'm more than comfortable with graph paper, pencil, eraser, ruler and compasses and they produce the results I need. For the number of times I'd need to use it, I suspect that the time spent learning to use a computer application would outweigh any saving of time in producing the actual plans.

 

There has been one, and only one, exception to this on the layout. The "three-quarter scissors" at the Down end of Porthmellyn Road was proving very troublesome and a good friend offered to design it for me using Templot. That did save me some time but only because Graeme already knew how to use the Templot product.

 

Each to their own!

It also helps that, as an engineer, you know how to draw. Unlike some of us....

[St Enodoc]

3 minutes ago, Oldddudders said:

It also helps that, as an engineer, you know how to draw. Unlike some of us....

That is true, Ian, and my training pre-dated the days of CAD, which was only just coming into widespread use in the mid-1970s (any BR folk here remember BRIGHTPAD? I couldn't  remember what the acronym stood for but as always Google was my friend: "British Rail Interactive Aid to Production and Design" - see https://coek.info/pdf-british-rail-graphics-systems-.html starting at page 97).

 

Neither at work nor at University was any training in CAD provided to the likes of us. I do have a small (A2) drawing board but for this sort of thing I find graph paper much more convenient and the 1mm grid makes it very easy to scale up from 1/10 to 1/1.

 

One thing I should have mentioned is that, particularly for full-size setting out, I make extensive use of templates, both proprietary and home-made. Today I also used the actual points themselves.

[LNER4479]

1 hour ago, St Enodoc said:

Yes of course, Mike. Quite simply, I don't have any experience of computer design applications and to be frank I've never felt the need to learn. I'm more than comfortable with graph paper, pencil, eraser, ruler and compasses and they produce the results I need.

I have to say that I'm in the same camp.

 

Nowt wrong with computer modelling of track layouts, I hasten to add; like John, the traditional methods works for me. I would also add the following:

 

I spend all my working day looking at a damn computer screen - for my hobby, I prefer to shut the lid of the laptop and give my eyes a rest - or at least a change.

 

I think there's a difference when hand-building track compared to using a proprietary system like Peco. Templot seems to come into its own when hand-building your own track, where the print outs give you the precise location of every chair and sleeper.

 

For my Peco work, I've got to know well the radii and length of the points. I'm not sure you have to be an engineer to count to 3 on a piece of graph paper to plot out where a 3 foot radius , 90 deg curve starts and ends?

 

Once on site, there's always a little bit of 'give' with trackwork anyway to make it fit and fine-tune the alignment. The pencil and graph paper approach is really an exercise in determining whether your plan is in the ball park of being achievable.