Greenfield

[AndyB]

I'd just like to second Jeff. Larry, you've put a lot of effort in to getting the model to look just how Greenfield was. Would seem to run against the grain for you to throw in an ingredient that wasn't authentic at this stage. If you did I bet you'd sit there thinking "Well it's not one thing or the other now!" and tear it up again.

All the best, Andy

[Physicsman]

The surveyors plan arrived and I thought about the double junction outside in the garden and wished there was room for it inside the shed but there ain't. So the next mindgame was to eliminate the junction altogether. I'll be sticking with plan A Jeff but at least sharing has got this off my chest.

 

Yes, I think that's very wise. At the end of the day, who am I (or Andy, post above) to tell you what to do? But the "getting it off your chest" thing is a good idea. About 3 weeks ago I made a major change to the Kirkby Luneside plan. Mike (Stationmaster) was on the case right away, pointing out the downside of my changes. And he was right. But it was worth thinking of the change.

 

Of course, most of us have no idea of what Greenfield really looks like - but I bet you'd be irritated if you deviated too far now!

 

Looking forward to more developments.

 

Jeff

[Physicsman]

Bit like that old game "Spot the Difference"!!

 

I think you have achieved a good deal of fidelity in your plan, Larry. Did I read earlier in the thread (or was I imagining it?) that you'd bought pre-curved track at 240cm radius? Maybe it was something I drank!

 

Jeff

[coachmann]

The 240 inch radius track I referred to was from a previous layout. Because it had been painted it was stuck rigid at that radius. Two of the rigid curved lengths were used through the station platforms but the rest were as useful as a camera at a funeral and were binned

[hayfield]

. Because it had been painted it was stuck rigid at that radius. Two of the rigid curved lengths were used through the station platforms but the rest were as useful as a camera at a funeral and were binned

 

Coachman

 

If its enamel paint next time try soaking in a caustic soda solution of 1 heaped tablespoon to 1 pint of water for 24 hours, and I guess there are other plastic friendly methods for other type of paint

[coachmann]

Useful tip Hayfield (John). I wasn't too bothered about retreaving old track but the ready curved stuff was useful for speeding up track laying at the station end. I've also thrown out a good number of Peco points that had been stored after past use.

[hayfield]

I used to use Paint stripper to strip old whitemetal locos, wagons and coaches. A friend put me on tho this method which is fine for most metals and plastics but not aluminium . In fact I have reused the same mix for several weeks (I keep it in a plastic container in the garage). Not very good on matt black for some reason.

 

There is a whole business stripping wood this way but industrial methods may differ some what and I guess not to be used at home

 

Give the items a good wash to cleas up the parts and they come up realy well

[Physicsman]

It's gone very quiet down Greenfield way, Larry. The punters are used to seeing you work at warp ten! Is it a bit of "thinking time" or are you about to spring a surprise on us? Or have you been washed away by the monsoon you mentioned in your blog?!

 

Btw, have you sorted out the trackwork to your satisfaction, or are changes afoot - in layout design and track type?

 

Jeff

[coachmann]

Hi Jeff, Speed is essential to forestall boredom and I have to keep my eye firmly on the end result, which is just running trains. My collection of locos and rolling stock is ever increasing but they need to be running. This is why I deliberately took time off from late July to build as much of Greenfield as possible before returning to work. But this summer has passed by so quickly and the garden sections haven't even been started. In addition, Peco track does its job but I feel it's appearance doesn't match up to the rest of the layout. I don't aim to bore members with a boatload of negatives until I can take the project forward, but as dear old wotsiname once said.... I'll be back.

[Physicsman]

Hi Jeff, Speed is essential to forestall boredom and I have to keep my eye firmly on the end result, which is just running trains. My collection of locos and rolling stock is ever increasing but they need to be running. This is why I deliberately took time off from late July to build as much of Greenfield as possible before returning to work. But this summer has passed by so quickly and the garden sections haven't even been started. In addition, Peco track does its job but I feel it's appearance doesn't match up to the rest of the layout. I don't aim to bore members with a boatload of negatives until I can take the project forward, but as dear old wotsiname once said.... I'll be back.

 

I fully understand the situation, being in something of a hiatus myself at the moment. However, once I'm stocked-up with the required bits-and-pieces it'll be full steam ahead (pun intended!). At least we can both anticipate further progress, and I find the anticipation and mulling-over of ideas very enjoyable.

 

I will await your return, sir (was it Skeletor? Or was it Arnie? Can't remember!).

 

Jeff

[coachmann]

I will await your return, sir (was it Skeletor? Or was it Arnie? Can't remember!).

 

Three spring to mind.....US General Douglas MacArthur, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Andy Y....

[Physicsman]

Three spring to mind.....US General Douglas MacArthur, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Andy Y....

Three spring to mind.....US General Douglas MacArthur, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Andy Y....

 

On the subject of Andy Y ... I took a look at the old RMweb archive yesterday. Photos of AndyY, "administrator". Didn't he look young?

 

Cheers Larry.

[Taz]

He had hair before he started RMWeb

[The Stationmaster]

Will you leave the double junction open to the weather Larry or will it be covered in some way to help protect the flangeways & switches plus the point motors?

[coachmann]

PGH has exposed points on his layout but its 7mm. I plan to have a removable cover. Consideration had been given to continuing the branch around the loop so that the double junction lay in within the shed but its just more track to clean at each session.

[Physicsman]

The plan looks manageable, achievable and you'll still have lots of prototypical train movements you can make. Dare I ask if you have a timetable to run to?

 

If my garage was turned through 90 degrees, I'd be tempted to take the track out into the garden, but, alas, not possible!

 

Jeff

[coachmann]

I have timetables to study for traffic and light engine movements (to and from Lees Shed) but not a lot of thought has gone into that side of things yet. I am basically a train-watcher, drooler and dreamer Jeff, and when the layout is finished I hope the miniature Greenfield transports me back to an earlier time.........The Oldham bay allows me to just sit and look at terminating push-pulls from Oldham and there is the daily shunt of Greenfield yard involving the big hand in the sky. Most of the locos would have been seen in real life but I wouldn't be a typical modeller if i didn't have a few "By gum did they ever run through Greenfield?" locos! Beyond that anything could happen.

[DerekEm8]

I have timetables to study for traffic and light engine movements (to and from Lees Shed) but not a lot of thought has gone into that side of things yet. I am basically a train-watcher, drooler and dreamer Jeff, and when the layout is finished I hope the miniature Greenfield transports me back to an earlier time.........The Oldham bay allows me to just sit and look at terminating push-pulls from Oldham and there is the daily shunt of Greenfield yard involving the big hand in the sky. Most of the locos would have been seen in real life but I wouldn't be a typical modeller if i didn't have a few "By gum did they ever run through Greenfield?" locos! Beyond that anything could happen.

 

Larry,

'Pennine Steam' by Kenneth Field and Brian Stephenson (which is probably on your bookshelf) has a number of photos of Eastern Region (K3s and B1s) on Sheffield and Marylebone trains diverted over Standedge whilst engineering works had closed the Woodhead route. I've also seen photos of diverted freights on the same route as well. So presumably if they didn't go via Micklehurst loop to Stalybridge they must have gone through Greenfield. So Game set and match -LG

[coachmann]

'Pennine Steam' was my bible when I was busy taking 'then & now' photos in the later 1970's while ticking them off as I went through the book. But I have to admit I hadn't considered whether the Woodhead diversions took the Micklehurst Loop line or not. To date I have no photos of a Compound on the Standedge route.

[Physicsman]

I have timetables to study for traffic and light engine movements (to and from Lees Shed) but not a lot of thought has gone into that side of things yet. I am basically a train-watcher, drooler and dreamer Jeff, and when the layout is finished I hope the miniature Greenfield transports me back to an earlier time.........The Oldham bay allows me to just sit and look at terminating push-pulls from Oldham and there is the daily shunt of Greenfield yard involving the big hand in the sky. Most of the locos would have been seen in real life but I wouldn't be a typical modeller if i didn't have a few "By gum did they ever run through Greenfield?" locos! Beyond that anything could happen.

 

Just about sums me up, to! Seems like a good philosophy to have - do what you enjoy best.

 

I must admit, sitting in the garden on a sunny (ha, ha) day watching the trains go by. Bliss!

 

What kind of locos are we talking about on the Standedge route, Larry? Was it LMS? The 1950s setting gives you plenty of leeway. Go on, let's see some Princess Coronations steaming their way round your garden!!

 

Jeff

[peanuts]

larry maybe nip into simpsons the jewlers in oldham ask for trevor the owner he used to regale us with stories of his spotting days at the end of saddleworth viaduct in the 50/60s during the inevitable rain halts during cricket at uppermill !

 

many stories of jublillees and black fives and going on the freight to shunt at delph

you could even fit the royal train in as it was stabled on the delph branch overe night during one of lizzies visits to manchester

[coachmann]

Peanuts said :

many stories of jublillees and black fives and going on the freight to shunt at delph

 

The Delph pilot was a Lees 26F duty and was usually a Fairburn Tank job right up to complete closure of the branch in 1963. Your friend would have seen Jubilees etc on the Oldham Clegg Street parcels trains from around 1963. I have never investigated why these large engines were used but maybe there was some reorganisation that gave Newton Heath the jobs in preparation for the closure of Lees MPD in 1964. The period of my layout is 1953-ish and so no Royal Trains.

 

Just about sums me up, to! ..............What kind of locos are we talking about on the Standedge route, Larry? Was it LMS? The 1950s setting gives you plenty of leeway. Go on, let's see some Princess Coronations steaming their way round your garden!!

 

Jeff

Ex-LMS engines in 1953 with occasion ER interlopers but no Pacifics. Standedge Tunnel eastwards became became part of the Eastern Region. Interestingly there were only a few miles of LMR line before encountering ER trains again in Stalybridge and Oldham. Plenty to keep the carriage enthusiast interested especially on the 'Delph Donkey'.

[Physicsman]

Peanuts said :

 

The Delph pilot was a Lees 26F duty and was usually a Fairburn Tank job right up to complete closure of the branch in 1963. Your friend would have seen Jubilees etc on the Oldham Clegg Street parcels trains from around 1963. I have never investigated why these large engines were used but maybe there was some reorganisation that gave Newton Heath the jobs in preparation for the closure of Lees MPD in 1964. The period of my layout is 1953-ish and so no Royal Trains.

 

Ex-LMS engines in 1953 with occasion ER interlopers but no Pacifics. Standedge Tunnel eastwards became became part of the Eastern Region. Interestingly there were only a few miles of LMR line before encountering ER trains again in Stalybridge and Oldham. Plenty to keep the carriage enthusiast interested especially on the 'Delph Donkey'.

 

You doubtless have the relevant coaches ready for action once the trackwork is complete? No Pacifics, shame, but Jubilees and Black 5s more than compensate for that!

 

Jeff

[Grasscroft Halt]

I remember the Leeds-Stockport parcels very well, living right by the line in Grasscroft. It was the only train of the day that I knew when it was coming. It was a Farnley Junction turn and the names "Bihar and Orissa", "Resolution", "Minotaur", "Sturdee" and "Napier" are etched on my memory. As a youngster I couldn't completely grasp why it was always the same few engines!

 

The train ran during most of my first year at secondary school. My return home was on a Stalybridge to Greenfield DMU and I remember walking up the now-closed path from the Oldham bay and watching one of these Jubilees slipping as it started the train from Greenfield up the hill towards Oldham, having waited for our DMU to clear the junction.

 

Although they cover the sixties more than the fifties, the Bellcode books series is very enjoyable and includes in the one on Huddersfield a lot of unusual workings as the photographer was tipped off by control and had time to get out with his camera. This includes the Grange that got to Huddersfield, but sadly that went down the Micklehurst loop (and in the middle of the night) in a bid to regain its correct operating territory.

[coachmann]

As the layout progressed from July to September 16 (post #208), I began to think the track was not looking...er...up to it. Plain track has therefore been removed, to be replaced by SMP bullhead flexible track.