East Lancashire LInes in N-Gauge

[lilchris]

I decided to dismantel my old layout it was hard to work on having to crawl underneath was becoming a chore to fix the wiring. I have used the fiddle yard off the old layout and even managed to cut it down a little, it is still about 8'x18". I have then made modules two scenic ones are 3'x1' then two corner modules 2'x2' and the main station module is 4'x18". All are connected together with brass patternmakers dowels and catches,I only have two catches on the station board because of the shape so use two g clamps underneath. I am using dcc so I have made the station board completely independent of the the other modules electrically,seperate bus wires goto two psx circuit breakers for the module.All the other boards work off another psx and the fiddle yard off its own psx. I laid  the track and made sure the electrics were working before ballasting then checking again. I have now started to work on some of the scenics, the viaduct from the old layout 1st which is on a 3' board which was made with a low centre for the viaduct. The other 3' board also has a low centre and is going to have a embankment. When all the boards are connected together I have a complete circuit, there are 9 tracks in the fiddle yard and a double track mainline completing the layout. A few pics will show the layout better than I can describe it.The last pic shows all the boards fitted together before I laid the track, fortunately I measurments were up to scratch and it all fitted togther has planned.

[lilchris]

here are a few of my more recent pics showing how the scenics and track are taking shape.

[lilchris]

The station module is based on Bury Bolton street but with a goods yard like the one at that used to be at Ramsbottom, so I am calling  my station Ramsbury.I am planning a bridge at the one end of the board and a tunnel to cover the joints with the baseboards.I have already put a removeable road bridge over the joint from the viaduct to the corner module and I am quite pleased with the effect. I originally  was going to make it so I could swap the two 3' modules round but it would have compromised the scenery too much and made it harder to plan. All the track is soldered too screws at the end of each board, I laid the track accross the join before cutting with a cutting disc.  Some of the first cuts I made where the track goes from a corner module to the station module are a bit iffy ( I used the wrong size collet in the drill so it was a bit loose) and probably a bit big but I have had no problem running over them. Has I have posted earlier the station  module is independant from the other boards, boards are connected together with jumper wires with sockets wired to the bus wires on each module.

[Les1952]

Interesting topic.  I found where I'd made a gap slightly oversized that just filing a tiny forty-five degree angle out of the top of the rail where the wheels landed after the gap improved the running across it, though these gaps were in straight(ish) track.

 

What make are your platform flagstones please?

 

Les

[lilchris]

Thanks les for your reply, I have made the platforms using Peco side walls with styrene tops with Metcalf card paving stones glued on top. I should have put some support in the centre of the wide section of the platform it has subsided slightly but it seems to look ok.

 

Here is the latest pics of the Metcalfe footbridge which I have modded similar to Bury but without the flat roof, and the corner section walling.

[lilchris]

another couple of pics here showing the church yard and the corner cutting and the footbridge during construction.

[lilchris]

I have not posted for a while, here is a update on my progress. I have made to scratch built girder bridges,one is at the entrance to the tunnel covering a baseboard join and the other also lifts off and covers the baseboard join at the other end of the station board. I have also added a pub next to the second road bridge and made a start on the road, I am waiting for the paint to dry on the second road bridge.

[lilchris]

I have not posted for ages, I have not been idle here are a few of the latest pics.These are of my Embankment module, which includes two tunnels a road overbridge and a scratch built underbridge a pond and field and road.

[lilchris]

A few more pics showing the progress to this scene.

[lilchris]

I have also been working on the goods yard and the small engine shed for the shunter loco.

[katwigan]

Well I think that your layout is coming along nicely Lilchris. Do you have a track plan you can post? or a couple of longer distance photo's.

I presume you are running steam era, much nicer than all these diesel and electric thingy's

 

Keep up the good work

Kevan

[lilchris]

Thanks for the reply Kevan, the layout measures 8'x6.6' aprox, it is made up of modular sections which are fixed together with suitcase catches + a g clamp. The sections are wired together with bananna plugs. the station module is 4'x18" wide and is split into two circuits up & down lines.The fiddle yard is 8' across ie 2x4' boards bolted together. Here are a few pics of the layout fixed together, nearly all the sections have some scenery, not the fiddle yard of course. The corner tunnel between the station and the embankment board will have a town built on it eventually, there will also be buildings at the back of the station board eventually too, at the moment the seem to be dumping grounds for glue and paint and stock boxes etc.

I might of dropped a clanger, the general idea was to sit in the operating well but that ceiling is low and the space in front of the beam is narrow. The fiddle yard is on castors but the rest of the layout is not, pity I could have wheeled it in and out.

Edited November 14, 2016 by lilchris

[lilchris]

Here are a couple of overhead pics of the station and goods yard and small engine shed. The layout is dcc and the up-line and goods yard are on one circuit breaker and the down line is on another. I have added extra feeds to the three way point switch rails which has really improved running.

[katwigan]

It was only after I had posted that I realized this was N gauge, that was even more of a Wow, that looks good. Particularly like the 2nd photo of your 7:30 post yesterday.

Good work.

Kevan

[Les1952]

Something you have done that I wished I'd done with Hawthorn Dene was to use more than one circuit breaker.  It means a short on one side doesn't stop the whole layout.  But as my layout was originally all wired together to test the track with a single analogue controller it never occurred to me to separate out the different sides.  That is a mistake I'll not make again...

 

I'm just a little confused as to where the fiddle yard is.  Is that the part under the rafter?

 

All the very best

Les

[lilchris]

Hi Les, yes the fiddle yard is at the back under the rafters, you can see it on the first pic of the over view pics with its control panel. The fiddle yard has 9 tracks using code 80 track and insul-frog points and peco solenoid motors, some of the points which I had left from my previous layout. I am using 4 PSX Circuit breakers,there are two psx circuit boards next to the control panel, 1 for the fiddle yard and the second does the other parts of the layout apart from the station. making the layout in modular sections gave me a problem how do I keep the station and goods yard separate. So I have a short bus rail from the SB5 smart booster running along the front edge of the fiddle yard. I then took feeds of that for the two circuit breakers, then also ran a cable along the edge of the embankment module ( on the left) , this then supplies a feed to two psx circuit breakers under the station board for the up line/goods yard and the down line, The bus wires for the layout connect to the out connections on the circuit breakers. I connect all  of the bus wire feeds with bananna plugs and sockets with short jumper cables, joining each module to the next one. With the two station breakers being under the layout I fitted led warning lamps in case of a short next to the reset switches. I found before wiring the psx's that way the whole layout still tripped. Now because of the way I have set them up, on a short you fix the cause of the short, ie a loco possibly going through a point wrong, then press the re set button and of course all the rest of the layout still operates during the short. I have also changed the jumpers for the voltage for n-gauge, here are some pics showing the psx set up.

         The first pics shows the station Circuit breakers which are under the baseboard.

this pics shows the re-set switches and short warning led's

          This pics shows how the psx breakers are wired

Edited November 17, 2016 by lilchris

[lilchris]

I just thought I would post some close up pics of the different modules on my layout including the fiddle yard.

 

There is one corner board ( Left ) which is a tunnel ( at the top of the 3rd pic ) from the station clockwise, it is just being used for storage at the moment, the intention is to build a town on the top.

Edited November 16, 2016 by lilchris

[lilchris]

I have done some more work on a couple of the modules adding details. A couple of pics.

[lilchris]

More work on the Viaduct section adding telegraph poles to that section, the road bridge has simulated cable on the wall. I have had problems trying to run my Tomix and my Sharge cleaning wagons round the layout. Modifications have been made to the town tunnel section, it was easy to do because it is removable. The only other problem is the Footbridge in the station both cleaning wagons will not go under that, so it will be a case of run from there round one way and back.

 

By the way you can see a small gap round the road bridge to the baseboard, that is unavoidable has it is removable, it disguises a board join

Edited November 29, 2016 by lilchris

[lilchris]

I have not done much on the layout, I have managed to convert a new Union Mills 3F to dcc and it works.I have also printed two signs for the station entrance and the goods yard. My Union Mills 3F just needs detailing a bit now and I will be happy.

Edited December 8, 2016 by lilchris

[lilchris]

Just thought I would update this topic. I  decided to scrap this layout and start again. The new layout which I started building in November 2019 will again be modular N-Gauge with 4 boards all joined with Dowels and joined with catches and using the 4x psx circuit breakers. 2x fiddle yard boards and 2x scenic boards. The new layout will be called Irwell Valley Railway, it is 9' wide the scenic section is just under 3' deep but the track is at the front. I have saved my Viaduct module from thoe old layout and this is at the front on the left on the new layout. The layout has two levels basically a figure 8 folded over, so a train will leave the fiddle yard and actually go round twice before returning to where it started. This layout is to  watch trains go by with a bridge and a viaduct on the left over the River Irwell Hence "Irwell Valley Railway". I will start a new thread and post some pictures when I get the chance. Thanks to anybody who commentated on East Lancashire lines.