Joseph_Pestell

10 hours ago, PhilJ W said:

Evening all from Estuary-Land. Nothing much to do this afternoon so I had an extra long soak in the bath. My kitchen clock is behaving oddly. Its one of those radio controlled ones and I noticed it was showing one hour and forty minutes slow. I hunted high and low for the destructions but couldn't find them (I know I've got them somewhere). I'll wait until the morning to see if it's corrected itself otherwise I'll have to renew the search for the destructions.

Follow standard procedure with all tech products.

Turn off. Count slowly to ten. Turn back on.

We all struggle when we want to build a layout in 4mm scale with long trains.

A helix (or two helices) is very rarely the right solution. They take up a lot of space and put a lot of strain on the traction, even diesel era models. In the OPs original drawings, there is very little space for the trains to run in the open.

The solution is to have the layout split on two separate levels with no connection between them. In the OPs case, this would be a simple double-track main line curving through the space with a set of hidden sidings for train storage. A junction or loop could be added for operational interest. And then an upper level portraying the engineering sidings and a separate set of hidden sidings to run to.

Sadly, I recently had my computer stolen and have lost all my stored plans. But I did one some years ago for an N Gauge Society competition for layouts that would fit a standard door as a baseboard. Scaled up to 4mm, that comes neatly to 13' x 5' (4000mm x 1500mm), which would seem to the ideal size for the OP. 

The upper level was an unusual fiddleyard to fiddleyard tear-shaped line, using 2-car dmus for passenger traffic) which left plenty of space within the rectangle for sidings in one corner.

PS: I have just remembered that the plans were on an older computer, not the stolen one. So I may be able to post that one here if I can get that computer from storage.

We are so spoilt these days.

I am old enough to remember the 1960s when we were lucky to get one new model locomotive issued each year, perhaps in two liveries (Rovex/Triang now Hornby). Hornby-Dublo collapsed altogether and as an associate of Triang, trading as G&R Wrenn, we probably got something new about once every two years).

I am not persuaded that Hornby have made the best possible choices with their current 1:120 range but it is still a very impressive start.

11 hours ago, melmerby said:

Sorry, I missed the reply.

The Google Earth aerial shot is from 18 June 2022, the platform shot is from 2016

 

I assume the line was built after the shed and sliced through it as it looks like there may have been tracks radiating on the far side of the station

The line was not built afterwards. It was built some time in the 19th century. But the platforms are much more recent from when passenger services were introduced (1990s?). 

So the platform was built round the turntable initially and then straightened after closure of the depot.

Lyon is an amazing rail location with so many lines.

1 minute ago, melmerby said:

Try putting Gare de Lyon-Perrache into Google Maps (or Earth) and you will drop on the station, where you can read the platform sign.

See above.

1 minute ago, Jeremy Cumberland said:

It's the line to Givors. The main station is top right in melmerby's image.

Yes, indeed. I've just got it up on Google Earth.

A constantly changing picture with the loco shed and turntable now gone.

1 hour ago, melmerby said:

Short of space, turntable wont fit between platform and backscene?

 

Never mind, just carve an arc out of your platform.

Gare de Lyon-Perrache:

 

 

 

I don't recognize that location. But it is certainly nowhere near Perrache.

Looks really good. Surely the way forward.

12 hours ago, polybear said:

 

Are they all in Lisbon? (the middle photo is I think).  Bear has never been there - perhaps I should rectify that?

Lisbon is a lovely city, well worth a visit.

And good transport links to nearby Sintra and Cascais which are also worth visiting. 

8 hours ago, Dave Hunt said:

 

There was an occasion at Coningsby when we were in the middle of an exercise and a light aircraft appeared unannounced and landed, fortunately at a time when there were no Phantoms arriving or departing. It taxied up to ATC and shut down whereupon the police wagon that had been following it disgorged its heavily armed occupants and the pilot was taken into custody. It turned out that he was lost and being of the hard of thinking persuasion had spotted the airfield and decided to stop and ask for directions to his destination (I'm not making this up, honestly), The chief plod went to see the Station Commander and asked what he should do with the idiot whereupon he was told, "Lock him up, I'll deal with him at Endex." Thus the civvy pilot spent the night in Coningsby's luxurious detention suite, much to his chagrin and severe displeasure. When released he was livid and threatened allsorts of legal action but apparently was told by a CAA official that the best thing he could do was leave quietly and not make any more fuss.

 

This happened when the RAF still had some backbone. I'm not sure what would happen today.

 

Dave 

A friend of mine who holds a private pilot's licence tells me that he and many others find it difficult to know where they are, even in clear weather. I do not find it difficult at all but then I have an interest in geography and maps.

2 minutes ago, Stoke West said:

Through goods dropped off and picked up traffic at Maiden Newton the branch had its own branded brake van and branch locos shedded at Bridport a sub shed of Weymouth

On the Down Main, there was a short lie-by siding for transferring any wagons from Bridport towards Dorchester and Weymouth. Nice and easy.

In the Up direction, the layout of the sidings does not look adequate for a Branch Goods to terminate there. 

Anyone have access to a WTT?

2 hours ago, adb968008 said:

On crowds at St Pancras.

 

Surely closing Ebbsfleet and concentrating on St Pancras is simply compounding the problem, by forcing everyone to St Pancras ?

if Ebbsfleet was open, some pressure on St Pancras would be reduced ?

 

Why was Ebbsfleet closed ?

lack of passengers or too expensive ?

 

 

I don't know the reason but I found Ebbsfleet very convenient when I was living in Dorset. Far better than having to cross Central London with bulky luggage (trade samples).

50 minutes ago, rockershovel said:

Supply what, exactly? What do we still manufacture? 

Diggers and loaders (JCB).

Interesting article about the firm in yesterday's Sunday Times and particularly their new hydrogen engines.

A recent thread about stations where passenger trains were gravity shunted has reawakened my interest in Maiden Newton, junction station for the Bridport Branch.

The branch goods train ran to Yeovil (or perhaps Westbury). In either direction, the train would stop on the down main line. The loco (57xx?) would use the up main to run round the train before setting off again by way of the crossover. What I am looking for is information about the brake van/s. Did the train have one at each end? Or did it have just the one which would need a bit of shunting to and fro?

I have looked on the internet generally and on RMW but not found anything yet. 

13 hours ago, jamie92208 said:

Just had my income tax demand for my 2022 income.  They always run in arrears here in La Belle France.  Nothing to pay.  I can cope with that. Time for some amber nectar. 

 

Jamie

And being "non-imposable" can also open up some other benefits. So a double celebration.

10 hours ago, AndyID said:

I could well be wrong but I suspect that the IOM could capture all the energy it needs for pretty much everything if it also had the means to store excess captured energy. It could serve as a beautiful model for how to do it right. Please let me know if you need any help persuading them'uns.

 

So easy to store electricity with batteries - so long as you can find a suitable location to connect to the grid.

Much campaigning at the moment to build nuclear to fill in the gaps when the sun is not shining or the wind not blowing i.e. a back-up to renewables. I don't understand this too well. If we build nuclear, that is surely better used all the time.

Another well-known location for this sort of "run round" was the Bridport Branch platform at Maiden Newton. As already mentioned, Wellington was in a confined setting. Not so easy to follow the reasoning in rural Dorset with no obvious space constraints.

With some quite severe compression, it could be modelled as a micro-layout with an overall roof over the main line platforms as a scenic break at one end. Perhaps best in Broad Gauge era with short passenger trains on the main line as well.

3 hours ago, Northroader said:

Meanwhile, back in the South Western corner of Spain, I was interested in getting an idea of the kind of railway those old Beyer Peacocks operated on, soo… (can you spare 90 minutes of your life watching a video??)…

 

It’s a nicely shot video of a cab ride south from Bobadilla, a junction with the Malaga - Grenada line, out into sparsely populated country. The main roads have been regraded to pass over the line on bridges, doing away with the busier level crossings, otherwise it’s much as the original. The Northern section is still signalled with disc distants, and u.q. semaphores at the ends of the loops, and neat little country stations with a nice “house” style. There’s rugged hills in the distance, which the railway sensibly stays away from, although you can feel there’s heavy climbing round the shoulders of the rolling countryside. Ronda is the biggest station, but then after about an hours run, the mountains close in, and there’s a winding pass through, followed by a descent which culminates in a run through a canyon with quite heavy engineering. I’m afraid he runs out of tape about then which must be when he reaches the coastal plain. Quite a relaxing ride through a different environment.

Bobadilla is a fascinating place for us railfans. A junction in the middle of nowhere really and now with a high speed station as well. We visited Andalucia in Jan 2017 for my 60th birthday. We stayed in Ronda for a couple of nights but I somehow missed out on the railway station there.

2 hours ago, Johann Marsbar said:

The only planned rail interest during the next 4 days worth of coach travel was a one-way trip on the George to Knysna line which had been designated a "Museum Line", with 5 steam locos sub-shedded at George to work the line.  The original itinerary said we were supposed to travel from Knysna to George, but in fact we did the line the other way round.

The weather was somewhat wet, but there were a couple of locos in steam at George, one being used for shunting......

 

 

...whilst the other one worked our service, which was actually timetabled to run as a mixed train, here seen from the carriage window as it crossed the famous "Bridge over the Indian Ocean"....

 

 

Shunting took place en-route, which was handy for photos. The bogie van had just been picked up at the time of this photo.....

 

 

This SAR Road Services vehicle was parked up outside the station at Knysna as an exhibit......

 

 

Our coach driver was obviously aware that a selection of older SAR classes were shedded at Voorbaai depot in Mossel Bay for special train workings so decided to add a visit there into our tour just by turning up at the depot on spec and getting us access, the variety of locos there making it well worthwhile.......

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As part of the tour, we had some time in Mossel Bay itself and this train was seen on the docks branch......

 

Had a couple of nights in Knysna in Sept 2007. Hoped to do the run down to George but it did not work out.

Proms a bit weird this year. A Northern Soul evening as well.

15 hours ago, grandadbob said:

Not bought Heinz beans for a long time, it's always Branston here.

 

Talking to my mate Russ next door earlier and it appears his youngest daughter who is a keen sports fan was struck in the face by a cricket ball clouted by Harry Brook at The Oval today.  Waiting for her to come home to see how much damage there is.

She can't be that much of a fan. She was not watching the ball.

Some fine batting from Brook yesterday on a day when conditions were so difficult. I think that we are in for a few years of stylish batting performances from the England team.

21 hours ago, The Stationmaster said:

 

 

Surely we aren't taking the idea seriously?   Nobody in their right mind would do that!

But they might not be in their right mind, otherwise known as DaFT.

8 hours ago, SZ said:

 

Fifty miles with four trains per day each way doing 45mph maximum, there will be paths between this intensive service.

 

I don't have the inclination to draw up a timetable graph but I suspect that the constraints of this line (single track, few passing places, simplified signalling) means that there will not be many spare paths available.

I had not been aware of Chris Green's involvement. Typical Green initiative to find ways of doing something rather than finding reasons not to do something. A great man.

I have done some risk assessment work. We had to do one each year to get our government grant even though we were in a far less risky environment than a railway. I am quite surprised that operations like this (and the heritage lines) have got away with so many risky activities for so long. One obvious example with the Jacobite is limited visibility running tender first at speed over such a distance.

7 minutes ago, Barclay said:

I can't stop myself, I have a drawer full. They give me great comfort - sometimes I look at them and gloat. Please tell me this is normal??

3 or 4 added since this photo 2-3 years ago, but one and a half built, so I'm only losing ground slowly!

 

 

 

The word "normal" has differing meanings.

In the context of RMWeb membership, it is probably normal statistically.

On 24/07/2023 at 15:17, Kickstart said:

 

True, but that is one thing a novice needs to learn, and which they probably stand the best chance of successfully learning in something with relatively benign handling when they reach the limit.

 

All the best

 

Katy

Agreed.

I was lucky enough to learn to drive at a driving school which had its own skidpan. I reckon that hour's lesson has saved me thousands of pounds in the subsequent fifty years.