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Mid-Cornwall Lines - 1950s Western Region in 00


St Enodoc
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6 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

 

...There's only about 5mm or so difference along the whole quadrant but that made the gradient about 1 in 70 instead of 1 in 100 - almost certainly enough to make the 42xx locos struggle up the hill with the long china-clay train...

 

 

Should be fine for a brace of panniers or 41xx's though?    

 

I recall that somewhere in the distant past of this thread, you posted an overall plan for the proposed layout... it would be useful for us mere observers if you can post that again, to see how this recent work fits in to your master plan re: where the new branch lines are heading!

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7 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

If you thought that the single line track base that I installed last weekend looked a bit steeper than 1 in 100, you were right. I'd messed up the calculated heights of the risers, so I adjusted those before laying a yard of track on each line and connecting them to the Branch track bus. There is now enough track to shunt the short china-clay trains (I have a cunning plan) but not the long ones and I still haven't got an offcut of track to lengthen the single line spur as far as the end of the track base. So, going further round the bend with more plywood was the order of the day for the rest of this afternoon.

 

I cut a further quadrant for each line and erected three more joists to support them. I started with the inner (Wheal Veronica) line, so I could work forwards from the back without getting in the way of myself. No dramas with that but not enough time afterwards to erect the single line track base, so that's just lying on the joists in its approximate horizontal alignment.

 

1043164189_20210611001WVtrackbase.JPG.25c3b975cccefcc1b3ae7364ec10a8db.JPG

This shows where I've got to so far. At the right-hand end of the Wheal Veronica line, the track base is about 30mm higher than at St Enodoc station. I might go a bit higher but probably not much.

 

On the left you can see the fishplate that will support the single line track base.

 

1918280735_20210611002singlelineandWVtrackbase.JPG.32ccce7cd84f530cb7fca995b7c67303.JPG

If you compare this with Sunday's photo, not only can you see the extended Wheal Veronica track base but also, I hope, the shallower gradient on the single line. There's only about 5mm or so difference along the whole quadrant but that made the gradient about 1 in 70 instead of 1 in 100 - almost certainly enough to make the 42xx locos struggle up the hill with the long china-clay train.

 

972221415_20210611003singlelineandWVtracklookingDown.JPG.92f51b5b4d2b8c4ff2e3383c790b4a1b.JPG

Here's the extent of the track so far. In the middle, in front of the joist with its name on it, you can see the red and black feeders from the bus to the new track.

 

1059745817_20210611004SEDownendlookingUp.JPG.e2354d669d0aae99aef196f6730acc6a.JPG

Finally for today, a view back Up towards St Enodoc, with the buffer stops left out of shot deliberately to make it look as though the tracks might be longer than they are. You can just see the new feeders in this photo too.

That is lovely carpentry. Great workmanship.
Regards,
Chris.

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On 12/06/2021 at 01:21, Chamby said:

 

Should be fine for a brace of panniers or 41xx's though?    

 

I recall that somewhere in the distant past of this thread, you posted an overall plan for the proposed layout... it would be useful for us mere observers if you can post that again, to see how this recent work fits in to your master plan re: where the new branch lines are heading!

Yes it will, Phil. In fact, many trains on the Branch will be double-headed, just as they were in real life (I don't think I'm going to run any with two up front and a banker on the back though - at least not in normal operations).

 

Here's the overall block plan and the latest version of the as-built project plan.

 

957906272_20150119001blockplandraft4namessmall.thumb.jpg.18b8adba51871ac0c1c776d125e67e05.jpg

 

571615084_20210508007layoutprojectplan.thumb.JPG.3f9cd18a12abcd04c669b51e20bc2e49.JPG

 

Once I've finished this stage, Polperran - the third fiddle yard that represents the Newquay - Chacewater line; St Dennis Junction (where the long china-clay trains go); and the Southern connection from Wadebridge via Ruthern Bridge - will be next. The triangle and terminus will be the last parts to be built.

Edited by St Enodoc
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10 hours ago, Sandhole said:

That is lovely carpentry. Great workmanship.
Regards,
Chris.

Thanks Chris. Flattery will get you everywhere.

 

In fact, it's all a bit of a bodge-up. One of the joys of L-girder construction is that as long as the basic foundations and the trackbase are right, you can get away with pretty well anything in between.

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Can I enquire what your system is for arranging a correct and steady gradient around a curve where you're having to build the trackbed in sections - limited I'm guessing by the dimensions of the ply sheets you're using. Do you have a long spirit level with a pre-measured support at one end? Or some other means of getting the grade correct, because I understand that around a curve all kinds of odd geometric things happen to a slope. I have exactly this task ahead of me in the second iteration of my own layout and have been wondering how best to do it.

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43 minutes ago, Martin S-C said:

Can I enquire what your system is for arranging a correct and steady gradient around a curve where you're having to build the trackbed in sections - limited I'm guessing by the dimensions of the ply sheets you're using. Do you have a long spirit level with a pre-measured support at one end? Or some other means of getting the grade correct, because I understand that around a curve all kinds of odd geometric things happen to a slope. I have exactly this task ahead of me in the second iteration of my own layout and have been wondering how best to do it.

Martin, I find that a spirit level is usually too coarse for accurate setting out (although I understand that digital levels are better). Also, they tend to be straight (of course) so can only follow a chord not an arc. Having said that, I've used them successfully on straight track in the past. The longer the level you have the better, as you would expect.

 

My method is based on the joists and risers. You can see that the "radial" joists are roughly equally spaced. I measure the distance between them, along the track centre line, and work out the rise or fall accordingly. So, if two joists are 300mm apart and the gradient is 1 in 100, the riser at the lower joist needs to be 3mm shorter than the other.

 

To minimise cumulative errors, I start with the outermost joists on a section and interpolate the others as I go. For example, the section I did today was 1350mm along the track centre line from the first to the last (fifth) joists so the fall was 13.5mm. The height of the first riser, from the top of the lowest joist to the bottom of the ply, was 81.5mm so the riser at the fifth joist was 68mm high. It's quite easy to measure to the nearest 0.5mm which is accurate enough for my purposes.

 

At the top or bottom, to get a nice vertical curve between the gradient and the level track, I work out the measurement in the same way but halve it.

 

You guessed right about the length of the sections. They are the longest I could get from standard 1220mm x 610mm ply without wasting too much (the pointy end gives it away).

 

Hope that makes sense.

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9 hours ago, Martin S-C said:

Your measurements are around the curve of the track centre line I take it? But yes, very helpful, thanks.

Yes, using a 2ft steel rule that is flexible enough to follow the curve.

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No MCL action yesterday as we went for a very pleasant walk, not in the bush this time but in the city. We walked from Wynyard station via the old Hyde Park Barracks, down to Mrs Macquarie's Point, and through the Royal Botanic Gardens to Circular Quay, where we stopped for lunch. After that we carried on through The Rocks and Walsh Bay to Barangaroo along the recently-opened waterside path before completing the circle back to Wynyard. A sparkling winter's day and not as cold as earlier in the week, so very enjoyable.

 

1356991823_20210613005OperaHouseandHarbourBridgefromMrsMacquariesPoint.thumb.JPG.36784e3d065b2bd77261f9b1a0f1296b.JPG

 

Today being a public holiday, I did spend some time on railway matters, wiring the feeders and droppers to the track I laid on Saturday and then fiddling around to see where Wheal Veronica china-clay kiln might finally end up. No decision yet but I've narrowed it down a bit. This needs to be confirmed as it will define the end of the gradient and the curve on the branch.

 

I also had another go at shunting the china clay-trains and found a much simpler way, subject to a) hand shunting the loco and brake van on the long train (not a problem, as that is what will happen eventually when it disappears off-stage at Polperran); and b) checking that the short train will in fact sit on the Wheal Veronica branch without running away down the gradient (for good or ill, it will!).

 

Local Working Instructions WTT draft 10a stage 3 main line, railbus, clay SE.docx

Here are the revised local instructions for these moves. I'll take a couple of photos another time.

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6 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

via the old Hyde Park Barracks, down to Mrs Macquarie's Point, and through the Royal Botanic Gardens to Circular Quay, where we stopped for lunch.

We did that walk just over 6 years ago, but starting/finishing in Hyde Park.  Your photo is better than mine as mine was taken into the sun.

Just like a Scottish walk . . . except that we didn’t recognise any of the trees, weren’t used to budgies in trees not cages (flocks of them too), and ibis not pigeons in the park.  A very pleasant walk it was.

I did get a better photo of the bridge/opera from the back of the Manly ferry later.
Paul.

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On 14/06/2021 at 08:50, St Enodoc said:

No MCL action yesterday as we went for a very pleasant walk, not in the bush this time but in the city.

 

1130676047_20210613005OperaHouseandHarbourBridgefromMrsMacQuariesPoint.JPG.013006df6a5a462239efd0e67e8190bc.JPG

 

 

Blimey - That rather knocks into a tin hat our modest plans to go out for a walk this morning!

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Glad to hear of the great birthday week.  Hope the meal went well!  Drinks photo from Veronica has gone to the Uni "mob".

 

And more progress on the layout. Well done!

 

Baz

 

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2 hours ago, Barry O said:

Glad to hear of the great birthday week.  Hope the meal went well!  Drinks photo from Veronica has gone to the Uni "mob".

 

And more progress on the layout. Well done!

 

Baz

 

Yes, all good thanks! I got some photos back from Smithy of your Chinley weekend and also a birthday card from Captain Seffers.

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12 minutes ago, Stubby47 said:

As there appears to be no loop at WV, will the clay wagons be pushed all the way around and up the incline ?

That's right, Stu. The operation will be similar to the old Carbis branch at Bugle. The loco will run round at St Enodoc and propel the train to Wheal Veronica. After shunting the incoming "empties" and outgoing "fulls" (in inverted commas, because at the moment they're always empty) the loco will pull the outgoing train back to St Enodoc and thence onward to St Blazey (Paddington fiddle yard).

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32 minutes ago, St Enodoc said:

a temporary control panel for the point.

Commonly known as a switch.  “Control Panel” seems a bit grand when there’s only one.  ;-)

If it wasn’t going to be a hand built point you would be able to use Digital Control!

Paul.

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35 minutes ago, St Enodoc said:

902853264_20210620006WVtrackbedpaintedwithkiln.JPG.cec4031a0e352f2df33a3d3d595328ae.JPG

...and placed the kiln back in position while the paint was drying.

All of a sudden this is looking like a system rather than a roundy roundy (not that it was ever operated as a roundy).

It’s looking good.
Paul.

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42 minutes ago, 5BarVT said:

Commonly known as a switch.  “Control Panel” seems a bit grand when there’s only one.  ;-)

If it wasn’t going to be a hand built point you would be able to use Digital Control!

Paul.

Well, yes - but the switch will be mounted on a panel (piece of MDF) rather than just hanging on the end of the wires...

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40 minutes ago, 5BarVT said:

All of a sudden this is looking like a system rather than a roundy roundy (not that it was ever operated as a roundy).

It’s looking good.
Paul.

Thanks Paul. As someone once said, we're getting there.

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