Tenterden Town Goods - Re-opened as a Halt down the line

[The Bigbee Line]

I'm normally starting a layout and then getting diverted onto something else.... Short attention span or a too vivid imagination I'm not sure...

I had decided to build a layout for the Lyddrail Challenge; Various rules, main ones being the size; 4'8.1/2" long x 12" wide max, with a 2 square foot fiddle yard. I had considered and started a Southern based quayside set of sidings. But during a tidy up in the shed (I have many, usually not too successful) I looked at my O gauge track pinned to a shelf for shunting. Hmmmmm, somewhere I had some 4" strips of ply. Maybe a lightweight minimalist O gauge layout. Inspired by the W Hardin Osborne layout for Christmas. Construction began on 3rd July and it was on its first outing on the 21st July....

Here shown set up and running:



Proof of start date :



This is the main structural member, a plywood L girder..





Track plan



After consulting the adjudicator I combined the layout and fiddle yard i.e. no troublesome joint... here is the 'join..

 

4198 0811 5183 2805 5868 2606

Edited March 14, 2021 by The Bigbee Line

[The Bigbee Line]

The basic structure was completed on day 2.  The cross members were strips of the same ply, with thinner ply forming the sub base for the track.

 

Note the neat glued and screwed (countersunk, no less) construction.  I astound myself at times...

 

 

 

 

 

 

I did consider brown foam as a next layer, but decided to keep to the innovative theme and use laminate floor underlay

 

 

[The Bigbee Line]

By the 8th July track was down and test running using the switching units for the frogs

 

 

[The Bigbee Line]

As this layout it would get beyond the normal stages I thought I'd better push the boat out and get figures etc, another first for me.

 

I looked on the net and could get a 1000 for 50p from China, but looked for some that were better painted and stumbled across

www.detailedminiatures.co.uk

 

 

A telephone call was made and the proprietor was most helpful and resulted in 5 figures heading my way courtesy of the royal mail.  Splendid chaps they are..

 

No connection, just a very satisfied customer.

 

I became a sort of 'johnny morris' ad-libbing for the little men.   'Who left that coupling like that....." etc etc

 

Edited July 25, 2017 by The Bigbee Line

[The Bigbee Line]

I made a trip to Great Eastern Models in Norwich and purchased some bargain tins of Humbrol, 3 for a pound, bargain....

 

The Matt Grey dried quite dark with a sheen, what was I going to do.  During a rummage I found this very old tin...

 

 

July 1990, part used, but still good to go.  Added a little thinners then dabbed / dry brushed / scrubbed it over the sleepers.  It dried nice and light.  Once ballasted there will be further weathering / distressing.

 

Base ballast is coarse sand that will be blinded over with fine stuff.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[The Bigbee Line]

The 17th July saw some ballasting, rail painting and a lighting test.

 

The lighting is B&Q 2 x 1 metre strips of LEDs.

 

 

[The Bigbee Line]

So last Thursday Linda and I set off for Kent.  The layout was set up on a cobbled together stand (I'd been studying the Ian Rice book on Cameo layouts and tried to utilize some of the theatrical tricks.

 

The layout was operated with various locomotives.  I think the best was the Dapol 08 with a Paul Chetter ( http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/user/9747-pauliebanger/ ) decoder and sound file.

 

The best 350 shunter I've heard in a long time.  With momenton and F2 for the brake, really drivable.

 

This layout has inspired me to continue the build within the existing length, didn't realise how much you can get in that space.

 

Just need a nice green curtain to go underneath..

 

 

[birdseyecircus]

Love this. Nice use of 4ft 8"

 

Paul

[The Bigbee Line]

26-07

 

Not much time today, too busy with real trains. Just time to try out an idea. I cut off the back end of a set of peco stops. I need to find the missing section and mount on a short section of track as a sub assembly for mounting on the two short 3 wagon sidings. On OO versions I usually smear the fixing pip into the beam with the soldering iron.

 

Mounting will be a couple of millimetres in front of the back scene to allow a scenic sheet to be slipped in..

 

 

Edited July 26, 2017 by The Bigbee Line

[Simon Lee]

Some of those figures look like some of our former colleagues in the Ferry yard, need to put one on the steps of the 350.

[The Bigbee Line]

Some of those figures look like some of our former colleagues in the Ferry yard, need to put one on the steps of the 350.

Just need to create a 7mm TOPS office with a 'scale' breakfast being thrown out of the window as the miniature speaker says "'f**king sure, no breakfast for me, another trip to Dover Town, mutter mutter...."

[The Bigbee Line]

It is my intention to do something on most days to add to this layout.  I need to create a shelf to allow access for anytime operation.

 

A list of objectives is growing, these include:

 

• Soldering feed wires to the actual rail as the present feeds are temporary wires to strategic fishplates.  Somewhere I have some tag strip that will allow tidy termination of the various wires.

 

• Fitting point motors, with controls at either end of the layout.

 

• Sorting out the rolling stock.  I have various ebay purchases that should make reasonable runners. 

 

 

NORTH BRITISH 8 Ton VAN

One purchase was a Parkside North British 8 ton Van.  It had an unpainted roof and ran badly.  The body was finished in matt dark grey.

 

Remedial work included polishing rust spots from the axles and tyres.  Freeing off a seized wheel bearing and fitting some replacement couplings.

 

The prototype only had a single block operating on one wheel.  In reality the single block probably saw them out, as a small van I don't thing there lingered past the 1930's.  In my world the van has visited the local wagon shop and for whatever reason been fitted with a 2 block system with brake handles on each side.  Because it has had some money spent it has lingered into early BR days and will be finished in a pale grey livery with lettering on black patches.  One side with have a 'normal' wagon number, the other side may get some departmental number and stencilled instruction, for example 'Cleaning cloths only to Ashford Works Laundry', complete fiction, but justification for such an old van.

 

 

The two block brakework has been fitted, Just need to sort out some levers.  Any suggestions for brass etched ones??

 

 

The van came with white metal buffers.  Here getting the faces flattened off a bit on some emery.

 

 

Lead flashing has been fixed underneath to give some substance to the wagon.  I'm a big fan of weight, it stops the wagons jumping off and gives the locos something to do.

Edited July 27, 2017 by The Bigbee Line

[BG John]

I've got one of those NB vans bought off eBay. It weighs 314g, and I need to find a way to get inside to lighten it!

[The Bigbee Line]

I've got one of those NB vans bought off eBay. It weighs 314g, and I need to find a way to get inside to lighten it!

Approx 12 ounces in old money, wow...

 

How about a circular saw blade in a mini drill.  Use it to cut a hole in the floor from below.  If you can get the axles out you'll have even more room to hack.  I always have mine to hand.  Useful for removing parts.

 

Seriously, the NMRA weight standard for O gauge is 5 oz plus 1 oz per inch of wagon length https://www.nmra.org/sites/default/files/standards/sandrp/pdf/rp-20.1.pdf

 

Mike Confalone's Allagash Railroad in HO uses twice the NMRA standard, he swears by it for the improvement in operational performance.  With long trains you must add extra loco's to pull the weight.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbuGSGmNWaw

[daifly]

Seriously, the NMRA weight standard for O gauge is 5 oz plus 1 oz per inch of wagon length[/url]

The G0G suggests the rather more modest 1g/mm or 1oz/in with a minimum weight of 125g/4.4oz.

Dave

[Bartb]

Great little layout, shows you what can be done when you haven't much room.

John

[BG John]

Approx 12 ounces in old money, wow...

 

How about a circular saw blade in a mini drill.  Use it to cut a hole in the floor from below.  If you can get the axles out you'll have even more room to hack.  I always have mine to hand.  Useful for removing parts.

I got a NB coal wagon from the same seller that's about the same weight. Maybe why the axles got bent in the post! At least I've got enough weight for a few more wagons. I'm aiming for 125g, and will cut in from underneath somehow. Doing up my collection of cheap eBay wagons isn't top priority at the moment though.

[The Bigbee Line]

A question about wagon buffers in O gauge.

 

I have some 'sows ears', wagons from ebay that are being tarted up with replacement buffers and brakework. 

 

Are there any suggestions for cheap buffers (I don't really want to splash out on sprung buffers) plain plastic or whitemetal items would do.  Likewise some brass brake handles would be good

[MarcD]

you could try JPL thet do solid cast buffers.Haywood railways do sprung buffers for about £8. as a kit manufacturer buffers are a major cost factor.

 

marc

[auld_boot]

Also I think M&M Models will sell separate castings from their kits, they do sell solid buffers although I don't think they're listed on the website.

 

http://www.modelrailwaywagons.co.uk/

[Poggy1165]

NMRS do quite a range of sprung wagon buffers. JPL probably the best bet for solid ones. Brake levers - one source that springs to mind is Hobby Holidays, who sell a good range of etched wagon parts which are of high quality. Off hand I can't think of the "brand name" which is probably a failure of my senior brain cells.

[MarcD]

I was told Hobby Holidays had stopped trading but I could be wrong. As we retool kits and move from white metal to printed plastic we will make parts available on our shapeways site. They aren't cheep but the delivery is very quick.

 

Marc 

[brossard]

This is a very interesting little project Ernie, only just discovered it.

 

The figures look very good, are they prepainted?  I'm struggling with some ModelU figures - can't get the faces the way I want.

 

As for buffers, I quite like Slaters, and Parkside do them as well.  For me Slaters are better because the housings are lost wax brass while Parkside are plastic (I'm unsure of the status since the range went to Peco).  They are sprung and may be beyond your your budget.

 

Don't know about brass brake handles.  Slaters will sell parts from their kits so you could ask, probably have to buy the whole fret just to get levers but there'll be useful stuff.  You could also get in touch with JLTRT who also sell details.

 

John

Edited July 31, 2017 by brossard

[Poggy1165]

Hobby Holidays website is still up. The range I had in mind is Ambis. I don't think anyone else sells the 7mm parts from this range, but they are very good.

[The Bigbee Line]

Today I have been looking at the various 'sows ears' I have stashed away and tackling a few more challenges.  One van had the Parkside axle boxes upside down, plus one sole bar is on the wonk (Norfolk term).  Trying to ease the axle boxes off resulted in a disintegrated axle guard, oh dear...  Never mind I have a few sets of white metal axle guards that will allow a repair after the errant sole bar has been cut off and replaced in the correct alignment.

 

Yesterday I collected a few samples of stranded copper wire with a view to winding some links for couplings.  So I cut off a length and had a go.  The first link looked OK, the excess was cut using a Stanley knife on some stout ply.  The link was then tweaked and soldered.  Hmm then to try another link, then tried an instanter style link.  Not quite the right shape, but OK as a tester.

 

Here is the test, with the two copper links added to a Three Aitch link...

 

 

Coupling in the 'long' position:

 

 

Here in the 'short'..

 

 

I have a drawing on the prototype instanter so need to make a bending jig.  Unlike the prototype the next one needs the outer link in a magnetic material. 

 

Looking at the pictures there is scope to get the alignment a lot better before soldering.  Quite please with the result.  Now need to look at a blackening agent for the copper.

Edited July 31, 2017 by The Bigbee Line