HeatonLodge40

Another milestone today in that the first gantry is now fully automated thanks to my software buddies. This so passing trains will now initiate the full red/yellow/double yellow/green sequence depending on their positions in the different block sections around the layout. The aspects need dimming slightly and the ‘delay’ between them programming in.. Here’s a short clip of a 56 testing .. https://youtu.be/27yJcH9LIDA

This is more like it.. Work starting to ‘Yorkshirefy’ the two river bridges originally built by Allan Downes. I begin by rolling on a thin layer of DAS over PVA. Once dry I’ll carve the outline of the stonework then add more dabs of clay to each stone to get the ‘jutting out’ effect. Once dry I’ll carve and shape the ‘juts’ before painting the result with water colours. The stone viaduct is still used today the girder bridge disused since the late ‘60’s. Heres a pic of them both ..

Thanks Jim. Yes in all honesty most days are good, some are very frustrating, some demoralising & some I just kick the door hard and go home early.

First of 40 front info boards..

Thank you again Ian though it’s been a long time since I enjoyed receiving attention! So..emphasis is now back at the scenic end. Spent the last two days rectifying issues with gaps being slightly too large between frames. It’s a thankless task digging out ballast that has set to realign a rail head by less than a millimetre but it bugs me if not done. Cork laying has been the order of the day, this on the final frame with 6 tracks. The two Huddersfield lines peel off here on a falling gradient and meet the dive under (also Huddersfield) lines which after the tunnel rise steeply. These then re-form into 4 tracks at Heaton Lodge South Junction. This is slightly out of my modelling envelope unfortunately. On another note the first of the information boards are complete. These simply tell the story all the way down the scenic side which translates into a heck of a lot of words (and pictures). They will be affixed to triangular brackets all along the front.

Thanks Ian, I’m not sure either if a Duchess went through HLJ in the ‘80’s but the problem is there isn’t a RTR example in ‘O’. Shame. There will be a number of steam locos pulling charters in the future on HLJ but a 9F & an A4 will have to do for now. When the 9F eventually lands I will post a video. With synchronised smoke & sound it should look great with 13 on. Ref shopping centres you might find they are just as good a bet as Warley. You won’t have to pay £16 for parking for a start! I will publish a list of where and when HLJ will be later this year. Just started back on scenery today. I have 4 months to finish the remaining eight 5’x4’ frames which includes the 3ft x 5ft River Calder. Another more comprehensive update soon.. Oh and thanks to all who voted for me in the RM modelling awards, very flattered & much appreciated.

Yes all wheel drive with two Maxon motors and Delrin chain drive. Gearbox is a ABC gears unit. There isn’t much room for more weight once sound/decoder/smoke unit fitted. Loco has to weigh 2.7/3kgs to pull 36 MGR’s basically, at the moment it’s about 2kg

You want to hear it. Makes enough noise to wake the dead. Nice noise though

Looks fab! Only issue with kitbuilt stuff on HLJ is they are rarely heavy enough to pull anything longer than 6/7 coaches or 15 wagons, even with lead weights inside. So going forward both the kitbuilt 56’s (56074 & 09) will usually be seen running together pulling a heavy (40 +) MGR train. With their diecast chassis the Heljan’s on the other hand will romp away with 40 on their own. I’m almost done on the west end curves now, next week it’s back to proper modelling.

I know the 9F will go around a 6ft curve but pulling 14 heavy coaches it would increase resistance. Anyway 6ft is now 7.5ft so should be fine now

Not much to report this week as I’ve spent all of it undoing all the work from the week before! Where the 4 main lines disappear under the girder bridge (and scenic break) at the eastern end, they then enter a 90deg curve (which will be covered.) I wasn’t wholly happy with the innermost track radius which although 6ft, is tight for the forthcoming charter steam loco 2-10-0 9F ‘Evening Star’. However, flattening the inner track curve to almost 8ft radius meant altering all the other 3 tracks next to them. Which in turn meant back tracking all the 4 tracks another 10 metres to get the alignments on the run up acceptable. Then all the drop wires from the rails to main bus need new holes in the baseboard redrilling too at the new locations and reconnecting at each end.. That said I’m happier now. The frames to complete the west end curves are due anytime. Which will mean a full circuit should be in place within a month or so..

No that’s where I’ll be building the next one.. Dent station to the north portal of Blea Moor tunnel in O circa 1967

Couple more pics of the fiddle yard. Where the rolling stock is are yards 1 & 2. Yards 3 & 4 are further down - as seen in the other pic

Least it’s not Corona virus! I had a message from my ex who lives in Dubai asking if it was in the UK.. I replied that it only affects people who drink Corona beer. She replied and said they don’t drink that over there so thought she’d be ok

I’m about 7 off completing the full rake of 30 JLTRT (and a few Skytrex) TTA’s. These have had their axleboxes sprung and run on roller bearing. With a couple of kit built TEA’s in the same Shell livery it should all look impressive behind a couple of ‘rats’ I’ve dabbled with putting a couple of battery powered sound decoders in the tanks themselves to mimic wheel thump and squeaks etc. However actually running a full rake of MGR’s showed there’s no need as the train doesn’t sound much different from the real thing! (Excuse the unpainted axlebox on the first TTA)

Had to cut down work on HLJ to just 4 hours a day recently, the rest been spent on the sofa recovering from a heavy cold (probably lack of sunlight doesn’t help ) However I’m back up to 8 hrs now and on the last leg of joining the last two (from 4) tracks from the fiddle yard to the scenic side. These curves when ballasted should look quite spectacular being a minimum radius of 25ft, but stretching to 40ft on the outer parts. The signal gantries also burst into life today and are about to be programmed to work automatically detecting trains and changing aspects accordingly. Linked to the Digikeijs software it’s possible to program the lights to fade in and out gradually like they did on the real things before LED’s came along. I haven’t a clue how it all works but the chaps installing it certainly do. Added to which we had an ‘08 traverse the length of the fiddle yard automatically today starting and stopping in the right place. Another week on these curves (thank god) before I’ll move back to the scenic end and work on the two giant 4ft River Calder bridges Allan Downes built will begin.

Each frame takes two people to lift -they are heavy. Two on a handcart with rubber pneumatic wheels needs two people to push and pull. The T bar handle attaches to the front axle which is steerable.

Today is a another piece of the jigsaw completed, with the fiddle yard now joined to the scenic section and trains running between them for the first time. This gives a running length of about 400ft end to end in a U shape. Just the curves at the west end and in the middle to complete. Thanks to my IT guru modelling friends the trains are now operated via a Digikeijs & Digitrax set up using Railcom. At the minute this means signals, trains, points can be controlled via a touch screen. With the necessary block sections built in, soon the system will then become automatic (still retaining a manual option) with route setting controlling aforementioned signals & points, sounding horns and working smoke units at preprogrammed time’s. The other benefit is complicated manoeuvres with long heavy freight trains over the crossovers (which would normally need coordination between 3/4 operators) will be done automatically. Colour lights will fade in and out realistically just like the old filament bulbs. HLJ was always going to be a ‘watching the trains go by’ layout so it’s the last step before a complete loop due around the end of March The fiddle yard is beginning to fill up..!

On another note I’m going to need the help of a fabricator/fabrication company soon to construct a minimum of 25 handcarts to carry the majority of HLJ onto the 3 artics used to transport it. These will have to be bespoke ie two decks, the top deck removable to carry 2 frames at a time. T bar handle, steerable front rubber wheels you get the drift. If anyone is a fabricator or owns a fabrication company who’d consider this job I’d be very pleased to hear from you. Thanks. Simon

All I can tell you is I’ve used 112 Kilos since I started. Should have gone straight to a quarry

Thanks. Bit late now for me though! That said the large amount of ballast required on superelevated track is the same whether you elevate just the track or the track bed itself..

Not yet sadly. The frames that carry the curves at the opposite end are due from Tim Horn in a month or so. Once they are finished then it’ll take me 2 weeks to lay the track on these. I’m looking forward to that day believe me.

Have to say I never thought of that!

Just a metre of 1mm card then onto the 2mm. Only issue with superelevated track is it uses mountains of ballast to get to sleeper level. Still, it looks good

Can’t pretend the last couple of weeks have been easy! When I’ve not been up at the real Dent station I’ve been continually working on the curves to connect the scenic side and the fiddle yard. These 30ft/40ft radius curves are about 100ft long & incorporate a loop (for steam charters as I’ve said before). It had been a couple of weeks work to lay the track, make & solder the droppers and install the marcway curved points. However, on finally completing the first inner 2 tracks inc the aforementioned loop, I realised I’d forgotten to superelevate them. In my opinion curves without super elevation often don’t look quite right, - - a bit like modelling a road with no camber. So after an hour swearing I lifted the whole lot. Unfortunately because I’d used PVA to glue the track down it ripped up the cork underneath too. Which meant using multi tools and sanders for another 3 days to finish the job. All in order to insert 2mm thick card under the outer sleepers.! However..I’ve now re-laid all this again and without doubt (even with a 40ft radius curve) once rolling stock is on the track the cant is very noticeable and definitely worth the effort. Should say the loop is not superelevated - apparently they weren’t, I guess because of the slow speeds on them. This section will eventually become scenic, although the initial 90deg 10ft radius curves coming off the scenic section will be covered..see pic. The stagnant water feature was really a pilot for more and has turned out well. With damp trees added and a rope and tyre yet to be affixed to the branches (I used to play on this - in fact still would if it were there) I’ll move on to more of the same. Pics show newly complete connecting tracks (now with superelevation) in both directions & the stagnant water feature. Yes another Tesco bag too..