Annie's Virtual Pre-Grouping, Grouping and BR Layouts & Workbench

[Compound2632]

3 minutes ago, eheaps said:

There shouldn't be any smoke going to the tanks as the valve that diverts the exhaust steam is before the steam is mixed with the smoke

 

Yes of course I should have remembered that.

 

But from Annie's explanation of how tunnels are dealt with, it sounds as if there is already a de facto "condensing switch". So the Metro tank should just be given the normal smoke and steam effects appropriate to an engine of its size and age.

[MikeOxon]

As others have said, the condensing mode is only for use in tunnels.  When 'condensing', there is no draw on the fire so any smoke is what might be seen when the engine is stationary.  The water in the tanks rapidly reached boiling point, so 'condensing' was used sparingly.

[eheaps]

1 hour ago, MikeOxon said:

The water in the tanks rapidly reached boiling point, so 'condensing' was used sparingly.

For this reason all the Met condensing locos had a big valve under the bunker that could be used to dump the entire contents of the tanks into a drain in 4 ft. The tanks could then be refilled with fresh cold water. This was done once per "lap" of the circle line. It's also why condensing locos always have feedwater pumps as well as injectors.

[Compound2632]

53 minutes ago, eheaps said:

For this reason all the Met condensing locos had a big valve under the bunker that could be used to dump the entire contents of the tanks into a drain in 4 ft. The tanks could then be refilled with fresh cold water. This was done once per "lap" of the circle line. It's also why condensing locos always have feedwater pumps as well as injectors.

 

And also, often a false wall to the side tanks - a sheet of metal stood off the tank side on studs, leaving a 1" or so gap; usually with slots at the front to provide a modicum of forced air cooling. Apart from anything else, it preserved the paintwork!

[Annie]

Thanks very much for your input gentlemen.  I've passed your comments onto Steve Flanders who has found them very useful.  I passed a copy of that marvellous drawing from the 'Engineer' onto him as well Ed which he was pleased to see. 

[eheaps]

14 hours ago, Compound2632 said:

 

And also, often a false wall to the side tanks - a sheet of metal stood off the tank side on studs, leaving a 1" or so gap; usually with slots at the front to provide a modicum of forced air cooling. Apart from anything else, it preserved the paintwork!

Based on my Met Tank research for the new model this seems to have been a later addition, they obviously learned the hard way!

[Annie]

Having problems with sleepiness and LongCOVID issues at the moment, but I've still managed to keep on with finding the goods wagons for the Sumwheir District Railway I'd archived away.  Being Irish 3ft gauge wagons matching coupling heights is always fun, but I seem to be making progress.

No.3 is very likely to get a friend fairly soon as there's a fair few factory and warehouse sidings at Bishops Tenpenny along with the wharf sidings that will need to be worked and sorted.

 

[Annie]

Morning Broad Gauge Cheer Up Picture:  Ex-B&ER No.2002.  One of the magnificent Bristol & Exeter 4-2-4 well tanks in its final rebuilt form.

 

[Compound2632]

On 15/03/2023 at 09:38, eheaps said:

Based on my Met Tank research for the new model this seems to have been a later addition, they obviously learned the hard way!

 

Or possibly by looking at S.W. Johnson's condensing 0-4-4Ts, which had this feature from new.

[Annie]

Today it was my Trainz Model Railway layout Lynborough's turn to be moved  from TS2012 to TANE as a part of my on-going program to get all my favourite old layouts into a properly workable state in TANE.  As a model railway layout Lynborough is huge as it sort of got away from me a bit when I was building it.  It also started out as an 'O' gauge standard gauge layout until I got the bright Idea to see what it would look like as a Broad Gauge layout.

It made the transfer reasonably well with only a handful of scenic items shifting out of place.  The worst part was having to replace all the trees since the TS2012 trees I originally used are 100% not compatible with TANE.  I managed to get that sorted after some persistence and by the end of play Lynborough was looking reasonably nice again.

 

 

[Schooner]

7 minutes ago, Annie said:

As a model railway layout Lynborough is huge as it sort of got away from me a bit when I was building it.  It also started out as an 'O' gauge standard gauge layout until I got the bright Idea to see what it would look like as a Broad Gauge layout.

 

Nope, sorry, can't relate to this in the slightest...

 

:)

[Annie]

A quick snap of Birfield station on my 'Lynborough' layout I took this morning.

 

[Annie]

'Arete' at Lynborough with a local passenger train.  For those who have not seen 'Arete' and her three sisters they are all 'what-if' Broad Gauge E.B.Wilson 0-6-0 well tanks.  Some time ago I asked Paul of Paulz Trainz to specially modify his standard gauge E.B.Wilson well tank model to become a 'could have been possible' Broad Gauge engine.  I'm sure if someone back in 1870 had asked E.B.Wilson to make them a Broad Gauge 0-6-0 well tank they would have been only too happy to oblige; - so on that basis I commissioned my ones.

They are named after Titans from Greek mythology, - 'Arete', 'Arke', 'Metis' and 'Corus'.

 

[Compound2632]

2 minutes ago, Annie said:

They are named after Titans from Greek mythology, - 'Arete', 'Arke', 'Metis' and 'Corus'.

 

Arete is also a concept in Greek thought - 'excellence' or 'moral virtue'. I'm not sure how a locomotive can display moral virtue but excellence is a clear possibility.

[Annie]

3 hours ago, Compound2632 said:

 

Arete is also a concept in Greek thought - 'excellence' or 'moral virtue'. I'm not sure how a locomotive can display moral virtue but excellence is a clear possibility.

What Wikipedia calles a 'personified concept'.  It's been awhile since I searched out names for these engines and 'excellence' was definitely the quality that I was wanting to invoke.

'Arke' (Swift) was the messenger of the Titans. 

'Metis' is the Titan goddess of good counsel. planning and wisdom. (Good qualities to have in a shunting engine).

'Corus' is the personified spirit of, insolence, disdain and greed.  (I have no idea at all why I chose this name, - unless it was to do with collecting together as many goods wagons as possible.)

[Annie]

An 'as built' Metropolitan Beyer-Peacock from Ed Heaps.  Brace yourselves, - there will be more to come...

 

[sem34090]

I saw that earlier - it looks absolutely stunning!

[eheaps]

[Schooner]

I was about to post a BGCUP, but no need now! Glorious :)

[Annie]

5 hours ago, Schooner said:

I was about to post a BGCUP, but no need now! Glorious :)

I'm going to have to seriously up my game with my Minories rebuild if I'm going to be running Ed's beautiful MET Beyer-Peacocks.

 

My latest Broad Gauge Society newsletter came with a drawing of a 1862 GWR Metropolitan composite carriage attached.  All of them were eventually converted to the narrow gauge.  No photos of them are known to exist unfortunately.

[Schooner]

Can't wait to see that, it's going to look fantastic :) Once again a twinge of envy for your near infinite digital trainset...

 

...although frankly I'm relieved there isn't one available RTR, otherwise I'd be bang out of excuses not to clear the shed and make a start on

!

 

Looking forward to seeing Ed's creations leaping around your rendition of Minories very much. If you ever considered doing something like the Bradfield Chronicles

(hopefully that links to the full day playlist), or the wonderful Crook Street

https://www.youtube.com/@lnwrcrookstreet9954/videos

within Trainz I'm sure I'd not be alone in wanting to watch and follow the goings on... Just a thought :)

 

To atone for posting yet another SCARM trackplan:

Yet another example of shamless loco trying to steal the limelight from some interesting wagons!

 

No excuse required for this behaviour though:

Fastest train in the land, Plymouth-bound from its 3pm Paddington departure. Choo choo!

 

Edited March 20, 2023 by Schooner
Spelling first pass

[Annie]

3 hours ago, Schooner said:

Can't wait to see that, it's going to look fantastic :) Once again a twinge of envy for your near infinite digital trainset...

 

...although frankly I'm relieved there isn't one available RTR, otherwise I'd be bang out of excuses not to clear the shed and make a start on

!

Now that is one amazing trackplan.   It would be quite some project to build, but with so much operating potential I doubt that you would ever get bored.

Sometimes with the Trainz Model Railway format I will create a virtual shed as the first step and I have to work within that and not sneak the walls out a bit to create a little more space.  With my original 'Minories' layout I stuck closely to C.J.F's original track plan which was a right old pain to get everything to fit, but with the new expanded version I won't be doing that.

 

3 hours ago, Schooner said:

Looking forward to seeing Ed's creations leaping around your rendition of Minories very much. If you ever considered doing something like the Bradfield Chronicles

 

3 hours ago, Schooner said:

(hopefully that links to the full day playlist), or the wonderful Crook Street

https://www.youtube.com/@lnwrcrookstreet9954/videos

within Trainz I'm sure I'd not be alone in wanting to watch and follow the goings on... Just a thought :)

Now that kind of thing would be very possible with an expanded 'Minories'.  Thanks very much for the YouTube link.

 

3 hours ago, Schooner said:

To atone for posting yet another SCARM trackplan:

Yet another example of shameless loco trying to steal the limelight from some interesting wagons!

Oh yes a definite BGCUP.  A sight to soothe sore eyes.

 

3 hours ago, Schooner said:

No excuse required for this behaviour though:

Fastest train in the land, Plymouth-bound from its 3pm Paddington departure. Choo choo!

 

And low and callow men without imagination cast such wonders away.  We shall not see their like again (sigh).

[Annie]

With Minories being discussed again I thought I'd show you the basic Minories layout created by the late and much missed Graham Rowlands who was a member of the creator group I belong to.  C.J.F's original plan has been stretched out a bit and it's intended to be a starting off point for whatever type of small terminus station that anybody might have in mind to make.

The exit and entry tracks disappear into a curved tunnel and there's a large fiddle yard attached to the wall at a right angle to the main layout board.  I thought about using this layout when I wanted built up my own version of Minories, but in the end I decided against it as I wanted to try to stay close to the original track plan.

 

 

 

 

 

This is an example of a layout that's been constructed using the basic Minories layout as a starting point.  It's 70s-80s BR and while I'm no fan of that particular time period it's a nicely put together layout.

 

 

 

Edited March 20, 2023 by Annie
added more pictures

[Edwardian]

12 hours ago, Schooner said:

Can't wait to see that, it's going to look fantastic :) Once again a twinge of envy for your near infinite digital trainset...

 

...although frankly I'm relieved there isn't one available RTR, otherwise I'd be bang out of excuses not to clear the shed and make a start on

!

 

Looking forward to seeing Ed's creations leaping around your rendition of Minories very much. If you ever considered doing something like the Bradfield Chronicles

(hopefully that links to the full day playlist), or the wonderful Crook Street

https://www.youtube.com/@lnwrcrookstreet9954/videos

within Trainz I'm sure I'd not be alone in wanting to watch and follow the goings on... Just a thought :)

 

To atone for posting yet another SCARM trackplan:

Yet another example of shamless loco trying to steal the limelight from some interesting wagons!

 

No excuse required for this behaviour though:

Fastest train in the land, Plymouth-bound from its 3pm Paddington departure. Choo choo!

 

 

 

3 hours ago, Annie said:

With Minories being discussed again I thought I'd show you the basic Minories layout created by the late and much missed Graham Rowlands who was a member of the creator group I belong to.  C.J.F's original plan has been stretched out a bit and it's intended to be a starting off point for whatever type of small terminus station that anybody might have in mind to make.

The exit and entry tracks disappear into a curved tunnel and there's a large fiddle yard attached to the wall at a right angle to the main layout board.  I thought about using this layout when I wanted built up my own version of Minories, but in the end I decided against it as I wanted to try to stay close to the original track plan.

 

 

 

 

 

This is an example of a layout that's been constructed using the basic Minories layout as a starting point.  It's 70s-80s BR and while I'm no fan of that particular time period it's a nicely put together layout.

 

 

 

 

 

I want this to exist. In my house!

 

(but without the post-War buildings .... obviously) ....

 

 

[Annie]

2 hours ago, Edwardian said:

I want this to exist. In my house!

 

(but without the post-War buildings .... obviously) ....

I haven't had a look at it yet to see if the post-war bits can be readily removed.  It should be possible without causing too much unnecessary destruction.