Hector Lawn

Thanks for the replies. I had to Google 'Automatic Crispin' as I hadn't come across this term before. Sounds like a great idea! I like the idea of the signaller's bells ringing automatically prior to the trains arriving! The thought has crossed my mind about doing something similar with Railroad & Co's Traincontroller software, and the storage lines have been isolated at both ends in case I decide to add this option later on. However, it will be much, much later and something I will only consider once the layout is almost complete. It would be good to sit back and watch the Last Years of the Last Main Line - it would be just like spotting at the real lineside, only more comfortable (not very interactive though)! Yes, there will be a fair bit of track to clean. Luckily the scenic section will have a lot less track but I think I'll employ a couple of those motorised track cleaning wagons to assist with this. Hector

Ok, having devised my plans in Xtrkcad I set about constructing the first layout I have built for 25 years or more. For the lower boards I planned to use two 3’ boards and two 4’ boards, thereby utilising the whole 14’ length of one wall, with all boards being two and a half feet wide enabling me to use a minimum 12” curve radius on a double track. With a frame based on 42mm x 19mm pine (no 2” x 1” available here) I decided to use a 4mm ply for the tops to save weight as I had designed the layout from the start to be dismantleable or even transportable. The ply is usually sold here in Australia as ‘Hobby Board’ by the local hardware shop. I’m not sure what its construction is but it appears to be very high quality and so far has shown not even the slightest hint of warping. However, I must have made a calculation error in my measuring and conversion from metric to imperial as once all four bottom boards were complete and I tried bolting them together I discovered they were some 3 inches too long for the room! All boards on the bottom level use pattern-makers dowels for alignment and are held together by M5 bolts/wingnuts. The left hand end board has two sets of legs and so is self supporting but all subsequent boards have only one set of legs, with the other end piggy backing on to its neighbouring board. The top boards followed next using the same length as the bottom boards but the width has been narrowed to 2’ for the 4-foot boards and about 18” for the ends which provides just a bit more room for the helix/gradients to be kept to a minimum. The top boards will be hinged at the rear to allow access to the bottom tracks for maintenance or the odd derailment. The woodwork has mainly been painted in two coats of Dulux ‘Wash & Wear’ flat acrylic grey and has taken me almost two years to build as I only get the odd hour here and there at the weekends on which to work on it. Here’s a few pics (‘cause I know we all like pictures)! Bottom boards complete with the beginnings of the helix/gradients and the legs: Left hand 'snake' formation to enable travel from lower to upper board: With completed top boards added: Excuse the triangular piece of wood holding up the board – it was only used to demonstrate how the board will be hinged for access below: Here’s a few with trains added to provide an idea of scale. The 9F (please excuse the BR blue coaching stock as haven’t got round to acquiring the necessary period rolling stock yet) travelling North through where Charwelton station will be, while the class 37 will have just emerged from Catesby Tunnel on its route southwards. The shunter is sitting where the goods yard will be opposite the station: Tracklaying has started and is progressing at a surprisingly rapid rate, much faster than I anticipated. It taken me approximately 6 months to get all the points and sidings down on the storage boards. It is all code 55 and is stuck down with artists latex. I have been reading with interest about the PVA vs Copydex debate and thought I would try the latter for its supposed vibration absorbing properties, having already built a test loop to run in my loco’s and been alarmed at the racket they produce on a bare board! Copydex wasn’t available here in Oz (well, only in small quantities at least) and so artists latex was the nearest and almost identical thing. So far, so good. The latex seems to be good at holding the track although I have to be careful about direct sunlight and the 35 degree heat that we have had of late as, in conjunction, they have had the effect of leaving rather a gooey mess where discarded pieces of latex have inadvertently been left on the boards. The latex under the track seems to be OK though and has stood up to the heat and light well so far. As a novice track-layer the latex has worked well, as, if I make a mistake (like failing to use insulated rail joiners on point/crossing frogs for instance!) it has been easy to rip up, peel off the latex and start again. Whether it would stand up to the rigours of an exhibition layout remains to be seen. Here’s some more pictures of progress to date. All storage sidings have been laid and the next job is to complete the helix/gradients at each end: All tracks that cross a board joint have been soldered to brass screws, should the need to dismantle the layout arise or if I decide to exhibit it if it proves to be good enough! ... and finally, having attached droppers to every piece of track laid, and with a planned 49+ sets of points to switch, I can’t say I’m looking forward to the wiring stage. It may take me another two years or more before I get to the scenery. Not that I’m in any rush! Droppers galore! This board was one of the first constructed and the frame was varnished. However, this took too long to dry and so later board frames were painted with the Dulux grey after the tops had been fitted. Hope I’ve drilled enough holes for the wires! And this is how far I’ve got to date. I’ve tried to follow what is deemed to be best practice by popular opinion and will continue to do so throughout the build. As I said earlier, I’m in no rush to complete this layout and would rather take my time on getting it right first time, so I please don’t expect too many frequent updates! I’ll post further updates when significant milestones have been reached. Comments and opinions welcomed. Hector