A garage, O scale and the Ploughley Hundred Light Railway (was Gawcott & Westbury Light Railway)

[kernowtim]

Money ran out before the The Redruth and Chacewater railway  got to Chacewater!

[Ray H]

1 hour ago, Nearholmer said:

They seem often to have started with grandiose names, which they then retained even when they petered out in a boggy field miles from anywhere. Now, Westbury spans the Bucks-Oxon border, with a bit of Northants dangling down very nearby (Evenley is in Northants, I think), so yours could have a really verbose title: The Buckinghamshire, West Northamptonshire and North Oxfordshire Light Railway. That would be particularly apt if it never actually went into Northants.

 

Is there room along the sides of the carriages for that?

 

The coaches are longer than the locos so it probably would fit along coach sides but I doubt it would fit on the Manning Wardle's tank. 😄

 

I doubt I'll actually use the LR's title anywhere except in the heading of this thread. That said, trying to make home made "logos" might be easier to apportion using W & M for no other reason than the "&" could more or less go in the centre with the W & M (having similar character widths) on each side. That argument wouldn't stack up if I decided to include the "L R" as in W & M L R. I might just stick with W & M.

[Donw]

or simply the Bucks and Oxon.     

 

Don

[Nearholmer]

How about The Ploughley Hundred Light Railway?

That was the name of the district, as a subdivision of Oxfordshire, and it sounds (a) nicely agricultural, and (b) less peculiar than the Hundred of Manhood which, of course, was part of the title of a light (lower case “l”) railway (lower case “r”).

 

 

 

 

Edited August 5, 2023 by Nearholmer

[Ray H]

1 hour ago, Nearholmer said:

How about The Ploughley Hundred Light Railway?

That was the name of the district, as a subdivision of Oxfordshire, and it sounds (a) nicely agricultural, and (b) less peculiar than the Hundred of Manhood which, of course, was part of the title of a light (lower case “l”) railway (lower case “r”).

 

I do like that idea - "P H L R".

 

Mind you, with my memory, I'll probably have to keep checking the spelling of Ploughley 🙂

[Ray H]

I've just taken delivery of some new stock!

 

 

I've thought of several things this 3D printer (and other components) can be used to produce and that's just in the short time I've taken to get it ordered and delivered.

 

All I need to do is read the instructions that came with the kit and then carry on watching YouTube videos on how the create the 3D designs.

 

I now have yet another excuse for delaying any (serious?) scenic work 🙄

[Ray H]

One of the disadvantages of an extra evening drink, even of just tea whilst at club, is that as you gain a few years, you tend to have to arise at silly o'clock for reasons that should be obvious to those similarly afflicted. 😒

 

And so it was at around 03.30 (local time) this morning that I found myself mulling over numerous things as I lie in bed, still awake after originally waking 30 minutes earlier.

 

I have been thinking for some time that the PHLR really needs a small rail mounted crane. So far I've only managed to locate one kit but one is better than none (although a 3D printed one could be a remote possibility in due course). It'll probably never get a run out but at least the railway will have one should it be needed.

 

My thinking was that it could normally be found not too far from the loco shed, possibly with a kick back siding somewhere in the vicinity of the area marked C in the image below.

 

I hadn't realised (as I lay in bed) that the track here is quite straight so I'd need to have a (more or less) left hand point, which may look a bit odd (and said point would also need to straddle a baseboard joint).

 

Another possible position is in the area marked A in the same image. A much smaller/tighter radius point but it might help to disguise the brick pillar in the foreground on the right.

 

 

And least anyone should think I'm losing the plot, the area marked B above is not a third option for the siding! Instead, it is the current location of two twin, surface mounted, mains sockets.

 

Fresh from my recent success at raising the sockets at the other end of the garage, I'm now considering moving the sockets in the image above. I've yet to decide whether to surface mount them on the aforementioned brick pillar and above the top of the backscene or to mount them on the end of the cupboard that is just visible at the extreme top of the image above. An advantage of the latter is that the pattresses are currently aligned in line, horizontally and there is space to repeat that on the cupboard end (and I wouldn't have to drill holes in the pillar 😃) whereas they'd need to be mounted one above the other on the brick pillar and would probably need two new pattresses.

Edited August 11, 2023 by Ray H

[Ray H]

And as the night dragged on . . . . .

 

The rail mounted crane wasn't the only thing I've been thinking about.

 

The railway would probably need lifting gantry somewhere near the shed. This could go just in front of the lean-to track - the left hand track of the two seen in the image in the previous post.

 

Why stop there - especially as I now have the potential to 3D print things if I can get to grips with the printer's CAD software?

 

There's no inspection pit to aid loco preparation and disposal.

 

I have to be a bit careful about adding this because the LR track on the baseboard level below is on a gradient here so the depth of any pit may have to be very shallow.

Edited August 11, 2023 by Ray H

[Donw]

Sounds ok Ray. At least you dont seem to have bigger worries on your mind. The trouble with thinking up ideas in the middle of the night is you cannot go and check whether it will fit. I can come up with ideas that seem great but when I get a pencil and paper out in the morning realise it just wont fit.

 

Don

[Ray H]

And on the night went . . . . 

 

I've not been totally happy with  the lifting access flap arrangement for a while and have a nagging feeling that this arrangement might even be contributing to the limited use I'm making of the layout.

 

 

It is a bit cumbersome (although not too heavy) and its near 90º shape causes it to overhang the front edge of layout quite a bit when folded back.

 

The hinge mounting posts are quite prominent with their tops obviously higher than the LR track and yet too low to form the abutments of a bridge over the BR track.

 

Various bridge options have been considered with the latest and most favoured being a footbridge over the (lower) BR track with steps down to cross the LR at track level. This will depend on whether the bridge's required height to clear the BR track would leave enough room for the steps down to the LR rail level foot crossing.

 

The flap is around forty inches at its longest point and a shade over sixteen inches deep (front to back). There's just room for it to be stowed, as a drop in, rather than hinged flap, to sit above the baseboard  to the right in the image above. It wouldn't protrude any further (when stowed) than the fixed baseboard and could have a wall mounted support for the back and a couple of "legs" to support the front. I wonder how cumbersome lifting it up and down would be?

 

It would avoid the need for the hinge supports but would need the use of electrical connections for track power.

 

 

Another thought that won't go away is to have a separate drop in trackbed - no scenery - for each level (albeit that that would be harder to disguise scenically). I could use aluminium angle to brace a single layer of 3 - 4mm plywood (or even MDF as it is indoors) and one board could sit upon the other when stowed off the layout.

 

I could try mocking up the latter idea as an experiment and retain the existing flap away from the layout in case the experiment fails.

 

[The Bandit]

Hello Ray. I know all too well about ‘nocturnal visits’. I’m sure you already know this, so if you do apologies in advance, but there are tablets to help with this and of course no drinking late in the evening. Again, you probably have done this but I’d recommend a visit to the doctor just to be on the safe side. I did and it’s a good job too.

[Nearholmer]

I suppose if you’re going to have a bad night, then using it to ponder model railway plans is the best that can be done. Mind you, when I plan anything in the middle of a bad night, the ideas all turn out to be deeply flawed in the cold light of day!

[Ray H]

Thanks chaps.

 

It isn't normally too bad but someone else in the room - no names, etc. although I will add that we've been married (to each other) for almost 50 years - was the culprit for waking me this morning and I just couldn't clear my head afterwards. I would have got up but we're currently hosting daughter's dog and I knew that if I started moving around - to go into the computer room - I'd disturb said animal.

 

Unfortunately I'm already on tablets . . . . . . .

Edited August 11, 2023 by Ray H
To clarify my relationship the room's other occupant!

[Ray H]

 

A (not so) quick "play" with Templot has produced the above "either/or" options - the letters A & C correspond with the same letters in the image in the earlier post.

 

Option C doesn't look quite as bad as I thought even if it does span a baseboard joint.

 

 

[DCB]

Not sure about the geography but it seems to me the hinges are the wrong end.

I use a shouldered bolt in a tight ish fitting hole in a bracket to avoid the wobble and flop using door hinges on their sides on pillars which makes reliable alignment so difficult.    My lift section is bigger, has two levels one landing on the other and can let me in or out of the shed in under 15 seconds.  The upper part also clips up automatically and has to be released to come down.   Lower part will also get a similar ook when I can figure out how to do it.

[Schooner]

Away from track planning software for the forseeable so forgive the spitballing, but if you take a facing Y straight off the running line what does that set you up for? Could you get a facing LH turnout from the track-side route for the shed and a trailing RH turnout from the wall-side route to access a head-shunt towards the shed for a storage siding curving around the pillar? Probably OTT, but it it fits then it's easy to remove the unneccessary bits :)

 

On sleeping the night through, if possible try to allow for it and not worry. It's only since factory shifts and electric light that we've decided we 'should' sleep for a solid 8hr block. Up till then it was routine to sleep for a spell when it got dark, wake up to check the world (physical and physchological) was alright, and sleep for another bit until it got light. Allow for that and lean into it (that quiet time is a luxury!) if you're likely to be woken for Reasons anyway.

 

For some practical info and tips I've yet to come across anything as good as Nick Littlehales' 'Sleep'.

 

Love the new name btw :)

[Ray H]

17 minutes ago, DCB said:

Not sure about the geography but it seems to me the hinges are the wrong end.

I use a shouldered bolt in a tight-ish fitting hole in a bracket to avoid the wobble and flop using door hinges on their sides on pillars which makes reliable alignment so difficult.    My lift section is bigger, has two levels one landing on the other and can let me in or out of the shed in under 15 seconds.  The upper part also clips up automatically and has to be released to come down.   Lower part will also get a similar hook when I can figure out how to do it.

 

Thanks for the suggestion.

 

 

The long wall of the garage is on the left. Hinging the flap on the other layout edge will cause the overhang to impact more on the entrance into the garage. I can't leave the flap vertical because the overhang at the top would be about head height.

 

Likewise, I don't want to move the spring loaded fire door because that would then open against the layout and as it is an inward opening door I keep it open whenever I'm in the garage. I should add that there is no longer a practical & quick exit from the other end of garage

 

I don't know the regulations for having the door open into the house but the wall you can see beyond the door is narrower than the width of the door so that option's not really practical either.

[Donw]

As you are not using it as a garage and storing a vehicle containing highly inflammable fuel there is no special danger from fire. depending on how the rest of the house is arranged there could be safe exit paths which need fire doors. When we did a loft conversion at a former house we had a fire escape route from the loft room onto an extension roof. This avoided the need for a fire protection on the stairs. But did have put special tumescent paint on the kitchen extension to protect the escape route.  The main thing is to make sure you have escape routes in case of fire. 

 

Don

[Ray H]

We - Jim & me - had a site meeting this morning 🙂

 

The lifting access flap is destined to disappear to be replaced by two separate drop in pieces - one for each level - although the lower one may yet morph into two pieces, one for the BR track the other for the exchange siding.

 

The securing blocks for the present flap will disappear and the lower level scenery (such as it is) will be pruned back to nearer baseboard level.

 

Each drop in piece will be made to look like a steel bridge - even if a bridge just over 1m is one heck of a span at full size!

 

The exchange siding may gain a couple of inches into the bargain.

 

The builders are due to start work tomorrow (with a trip to get a suitable piece of plywood) with the intention of going to the PW depot (on Tuesday) to buy a few lengths of track. Obtaining extra track will allow us to construct the new arrangement whilst retaining the present flap, just in case we have to back track for any reason.

 

Watch this space!

[Nearholmer]

You could always fit piers below the spans, so that even though in reality they are simply dangling into empty space your mind won’t keep worrying that the spans look unrealistically long.

 

If you want a completely mad idea: you could even fix bits of Velcro on the bottoms of the piers, and add a sheet of green-painted teddy-bear fur to represent ground, supported by the piers, supported by the spans, in a complete inversion of reality.

[Ray H]

I was already considering the inclusion of piers at the edges of the fixed baseboards.

 

Great minds . . . . .

[GWR57xx]

On 10/08/2023 at 11:29, Ray H said:

I've just taken delivery of some new stock!

 

 

I've thought of several things this 3D printer (and other components) can be used to produce and that's just in the short time I've taken to get it ordered and delivered.

 

All I need to do is read the instructions that came with the kit and then carry on watching YouTube videos on how the create the 3D designs.

 

I now have yet another excuse for delaying any (serious?) scenic work 🙄

Nice bits of kit.

You may find it becomes a bit addictive!

 

[Ray H]

The lifting access flap has now been - you've guessed it - lifted, but only off the layout. In theory it could go back in place but only as an overweight drop-in section as some of the scenery around the hinge mounting blocks is no longer recognisable as such.

 

The two drop in replacements have been cut and await their side pieces - pieces to help prevent them from becoming mis-shaped over time. Jim's lent me his scroll saw for cutting said side pieces which I hope to have a go at on Wednesday.

 

I also need to come up with a plan for securing the new sections in situ on the layout as well as sorting out where they're going to be "stored" when not on the layout.

[Ray H]

5 minutes ago, GWR57xx said:

Nice bits of kit.

You may find it becomes a bit addictive!

 

I have no doubt about that, which is why it is probably fortunate that I made a start on the above layout changes before I started tinkering with the printer. I am, however, taking advantage of the time between layout work to gen up on the 3D software.

 

I also keep finding additional items that I hope will make life easier once I start using the printer and am using their delivery times as another reason for not starting on the printer.

[GWR57xx]

10 minutes ago, Ray H said:

 

I also keep finding additional items that I hope will make life easier once I start using the printer and am using their delivery times as another reason for not starting on the printer.

The best add-ons I got were UVTools (free download software) and a Wham Bam magnetic base plate.

 

UVTools lets you optimise various settings in the slicer output file - I guess you’ll be using the basic Chitubox?

 

The main ones I use are the base layer exposure delays to eliminate “elephants foot”, and also the “Raise platform on print finish”. I ran my first print before I knew about UVTools, and at the end of the print the platform raises to the top of the Z column. There is a lot of resin still dripping off the base plate and this falls from a great height into the vat, splashing resin up the sides of the cover and all over the inside of the printer. This nifty option allows you to set an extra step at the end of the print to hold the platform at a lower height for long enough for the worst of the drips to finish, saving a lot of cleaning up.

UVTools will also identify errors in your design, such as suction cups, overhangs, islands, resin traps etc, which can save you a lot of failed prints.

 

I find the magnetic base plate makes removing prints from the plate an absolute doddle. I see lots of videos on line where folk are trying to chisel their prints off, scratching the base plate and often breaking their print that they’ve just waited several hours for! It consists of the magnetic plate which you stick to your Elegoo one plus a thin flexible steel plate that is held on by the magnet. At the end of your print just unclip the steel plate, flex it and your print will pop off effortlessly.

Hope you enjoy your 3d journey.