Cassette Fiddle Yard Access

[edcayton]

I have no idea if this has been suggested before, but I have not seen it, I am using cassettes as the fiddle yard on my new 6x4, and for various reasons wanted to use track rather than aluminium angle. I have made the channel sections out of strip wood from B & Q.

 

My concerns were how to align the cassette with the entry track, and how to connect it electrically without a lot of faffing about.

 

I use a Peco Loco-lift as an off-stage cross-over and turntable, and realised that I could use this to link the cassette to the track. I leave a couple of inches between the two, and the loco-lift bridges the gap nicely, allowing for a little mis-alignment and giving a good electrical connection.

 

I am using Peco code 100 track (mixture of settrack and streamline), don't know if this would work for code 75.

 

As I say, I've not seen this suggested elsewhere, and I hope someone may find it of some use.

 

Ed

[Crewlisle]

 

Some of you may have seen my 00 gauge layout "Crewlisle" at the NEC, Alexandra Palace, Taunton, Plymouth or Exeter in the last few years. It is all contained in 8.5ft x 7.5ft with a central operating well and scenery is kept to a minimum by basing the layout in an industrial town in the North West on the WCML. The layout is on three levels. The high level has a four-platform terminus for six-coach expresses, steam shed with turntable, diesel shed, coach sidings and goods yard. The lines from the high level descend to the main baseboard level to join the double track main line continuous run with overhead catenary and a reversing loop which leaves the down main line, descends inside the edge of the operating well to go under two of the main baseboards and then joins the up main line.

 

My total stock consists of 42 locos (24 steam, 14 diesels and 4 electrics), APT and HST, 72 passenger/parcel coaches and 126 goods wagons. Everyone asks where I keep them all when they cannot see a fiddle yard or traverser! My answer is a "fiddle rack" as I have always considered fiddle yards wasted space in small and medium sized layouts. As well as my reversing loop holding two six-coach expresses, it also has a 4'6" removable section in the operating well where the line descends to go under the main baseboard. The removable section is one of fourteen identical U-shaped "cartridges", each one holding a train complete with loco. Each cartridge can hold a 4-6-0 loco or large Co-Co diesel + 4 coaches or 10 short wheelbase wagons. This is about the maximum length that can be safely handled by holding both ends to prevent the stock rolling off during changeovers. For exhibitions they are transported in the main wooden stock box together with the remainder of the locos in their boxes.

 

With reference to Figures 1 & 2, the cartridges are made from 50mm wide x 10mm thick plywood with pinned and glued 50mm high x 3mm thick hardboard sides to prevent the stock falling from the cartridge during exchanges. A short section of aluminium angle is screwed to the edge of the baseboard inside the operating well under each end of the cartridge and the adjoining track. This is to provide a solid base to ensure that the track, pinned directly to the cartridge plywood bases, is level and a fixed distance between the centres of the two M6 securing bolts. At each end, a 6mm deep rectangular section on the underside of the cartridge base is cut out just wide enough to take the M6 square nut but with the longer side across the width of the base. The M6 nut is inserted and held captive by pinning a piece of 3mm hardboard to the underside of the cartridge base with the bolt's clearance hole through the hardboard elongated part way across the width of the cartridge. This is to allow movement to align the tracks before tightening the nut & bolt. All this should be done before pinning the track to the cartridge base. I use a 50mm x 16.5mm length of 3mm plastikard to hold between the tracks before tightening the bolt.

 

Power is supplied to each cartridge by a phono-plug with the socket being on the cartridge and the single supply plug secured to the baseboard. If the cartridge is required to be reversed (eg for a branch line fiddle rack), two sets of these fittings may be required on diagonally opposite sides of the cartridge depending on the length and position of your supply wires. I have recently converted my layout to DCC and I have no operating or control problems with this arrangement. If your layout is a single level branch line, only one line is required for this system and can be easily hidden by either a back scene or any other scenery, but it is recommended that a solid piece of wood or aluminium plate is let into the baseboard at each end to provide a solid datum for aligning the cartridges.

 

Figure 3 shows the end view of the storage brackets under the layout. On my layout, the two brackets are screwed to convenient baseboard framework immediately below the removable section. The brackets are cut from 12mm plywood with small end stops pinned to the ends of each cartridge ledge to prevent the cartridges being knocked over.

 

With this storage system you can keep adding your favourite locos and stock without overcrowding your layout. There are at least three other locos I want and a rake of BR vacuum braked Presflos for starters! Anyone who has seen my layout can see for them selves the space saving advantages of this storage system.