The Fairweather Branch - maybe in N scale

[zxoldboy]

Having just read the postings about Chris Ellis in the Media section has made me hunt out my copies of MTI . Having found issue 114 I have reread the article about Gordon Avis's " The Fairweather Branch" as it is a wonderful micro layout. Now, I dont have any HO/OO stock these day as i dabble in 009 but I do still have a couple of N scale switchers and 40' boxfars and a load of settrack . So I wonder if its possible to build the layout in N scale.

 

I am useless converting track plans to different scales so would anyone be able to assist me. I dont want to upload the track plan here due to copyright etc but maybe someone has a copy of MTI 114 that could help me please

 

Thanks

[Keith Addenbrooke]

Hi there - I don't know if this helps, but a copy of the trackplan for the HO version of the Fairweather Branch was published on the internet in Carl Arendt's Micro-Layout Design Gallery, link as here: End of the Line 

 

(I remembered it as two of my plans appeared further down on the same page).

 

If you already have some rolling stock and track pieces, I'd be inclined to lay them out full-size and see how it fits together: it'd be the best way to check clearances (an essential feature of any micro-layout design).

 

If you then need some more track you could either print off the Peco Track Planning Point Templates from the Peco website and insert them into your plan, or else you can download for free a trial version of Anyrail, which is an easy to use track planning software tool. The free trial limits you to 50 pieces of track, but that shouldn't be a problem for a micro-layout.  Have fun!  Keith.

[F-UnitMad]

IF I recall correctly, the layout was only 4ft x 1ft plus staging in HO? So theoretically for N it could be reduced to 2ft x 6inch, but many years ago I did an N layout in that size, and it was a lot simpler -

It also appeared in Scale Model Trains, and later in MTI.

I'm not sure Gordon's trackplan would really fit comfortably.

I'd be inclined to keep the board size the same (if you have room of course), and then stretch the trackplan out a bit - in N you would then get the more spacious feel of American railroads and towns.

[stivesnick]

Here is the plan drawn up in N gauge but keeping the original sized boards. I have used small radius code 55 Peco points. The loop is over 2 feet long so you should get a decent 6 car freight train or say a 4 freight cars and a combine if you want to run a mixed train that was typical on many branch lines. There appears to be space for 4 industries (shown in blue) , a depot building (red) and another siding to act as a  team rack. 

 

Hope this helps 

 

Nick 

 

 

Fairweather branch.pdf