Sturminster_Newton

Nearholmer Looks like LGB track which is pretty much bomb-proof and I have 300+ feet of it on my line. It has survived 20 years of Devon weather but not the vegetation... Not sure that any standard OO offering would have such a long life. The finer the track the higher the maintenance required to make it work.

Foam won't last unless it is closed cell, but closed or open cell, any water that is trapped underneath will rot the foundation if you use timber. Loose ballast is fine if you you don't mind constant leveling and renewing. To reduce the maintenance you could add exterior PVA to the ballast but then you could get the problems outlined with closed or open cell foam. Personally I wouldn't bother life it too short. Deal with station areas and put them into their own shed or shelter leaving the connecting track exposed. Few will be too harsh with their thoughts on the lack of neat ballast. You could use sectional track that is supplied on a moulded base Kato etc but it is likely to be ££££ of investment.

Rule 1 of outside work DO NOT SKIMP ON QUALITY unless your railway is in the Atacama or Antartica both have famously low ambient humidity levels but also some other environment tricks which make them less than ideal. You will need W.B.P. (Water Boil Proof) ply grades and that supplied will not be as long lasting as that you are replacing. Modern stuff seems to rot before you get through the fifth winter and it is touch and go whether in a horizontal orientation it will see out 10-15 years...The stuff used for house building is always at a fairly steep angle to the horizontal so has a better service life. All are only waterproof where they are not punctured by fixings. There are alternatives such as orientated strand board (OSB) which can be purchased in a waterproof grade for shower backing in the bathroom. try >> Abacus Elements Waterproof Wall Kit 3 12mm - 7.20sqm << in google. There is also waterproof MDF but either board will be almost as expensive as the WBP ply. I built with belt and braces using commercial 900 x 600 x 50mm paving slabs mounted on 3m concrete beans with a 150mm reinforced concrete base, this provides a base that will last pretty much until the house is no more but may be a bit over engineered. It also survives the best/worst that West Contry weather and a woodland environment can produce. The left field choice would be recycled plastic and stainless steel screws. It cuts using wood tools and will last - it will also be lighter than the ply and need less foundation than concrete blocks topped with concrete beams and paving slabs. Spend wisely, spend once.

Fabrication needs, in no particular order; tools, skill and space. It is quite easy to spend more on the tools of construction than the result of one's efforts might save when measured against a commercial product; even when purchased in multiples. If you are proud owner and can use correctly lots of woodworking tools then read no further. Pretty much all timber product has trebled in cost since the Covid Brake came off and is unlikely to reduce in cost any time soon. So a commercial product which gets a quart out the pint pot has much going for it, will be lighter and possibly last through many changes to the layout built on its surface. There are low profile professional baseboards that will fit into a 'really useful' plastic box and slide under a bed or on top of a cupboard. A tip to pass on to prolong the life of your basey fundamould is to build the layout on 5mm Foamboard rather than the raw timber, a practice much favoured by professional muddlers. It would be feasible to manufacture a baseboard from 'scrap' corrugated packaging as long as you desire a solid baseboard around 2" (50mm) thick amongst other compromises in construction. Triwall Corrugated Card is incredibly strong for its weight and three or four thicknesses laminated can be sawn with standard wood saws. once the glue has dried. If you need more strength around the perimeter and to fix legs onto standard 50 or 75 x 15 pse would be adequate for most purposes when glued to the sides and lower surface. Remember that most modern domestic doors are a thin skin of ply over a form of cardboard honeycomb interior with a band of timber around the outer edge into which you fit latch and hinges. As with all aspects of muddling the route chosen to reach your target has many choices, and in some instances a layout that clears away into a minimal space will find greater favour with the domestic goddess than one that sprawls across the lounge floor or fills the spare bedroom. It may be your 'magnum opus' but it's production can be messy and disruptive.

Why not consider the Scale Model Scenery BB010 400 x 295 large baseboard modules? They don't not fold down and are slightly larger than a box file. Also being laser cut fit together reliably and at a price that won't break the bank. For slightly more cash the Tim Horn photo boxes 900 x 300 are also worth consideration, not hugely expensive and larger again. Either base unit allows a little room for development which can be very useful if you are not a dab hand at measuring twice and still cutting over/undersize... I have been roughing out layouts on Anyrail, which saves a lot of time laying up possible designs that are too compromised. One tip I would pass on is setting a FoMo style of 113mm limit to the inside of the furthest rail. The larger area available also allows the muddler to slide up into 0-16.5. Set-track geometry works fine in confined areas. The radii are well produced and repeatable year on year. All of which help the modeller who is looking to squeeze in as much as possible into a very controlled space.

Thanks for the mention. I can confirm that in a sunny place moss will not grow...seems obvious but few manage to work out why. Shady areas attract moss but it can take years. Once you have it I've found it is difficult to live with. I seem to be forever removing every bit that grows between the rails. 20 years down the tracks from first putting in the line some areas look fresh laid and others have a bosky moss covered abandoned look. I don't think it really matters what you do to encourage moss, like all plants it will only grow in areas that are damp and pollution free. So don't fret and live with your various lineside attractions. Moss free areas can just represent the latest attentions by the track crew. Trying to get a line to look like the 1950s versions of Ffesto-rail or Talyllyn unless your line is in semi permanent shade; is a big ask of nature when the line is in full sun. Right plant in the right conditions will always be the way forward.

But, Maldon don’t make tinplate track! XxxxX But we don't want to muddle on tin plate track! If a heinous statement and crime worthy of burning at the stake that may be. Just a track system that is reliable and enduring. The Maldon system of moulded sleeper fitted with Peco smerty-two n/s rail would suit both my buddy and myself for dabbling in the lounge/garden/shed/greenhouse. Using a mix of 16mm and/or 7mm coarse depending on our whim of the moment. It is feasible to have modern TP models arrive ex-supplier suited to smerty-two rail profile then it looks as though that is a route worthy of experiment at an affordable price. I don't see either of us being chasers after the original Hornby No1. But the proportions and presence of the current models and their more than acceptable appearance go a long way to providing satisfaction of ownership and operation. Even if it is the ownership is just a rake of 6-wheel carriages and a Terrier on an oval of 0-31 or equivalent; or a Class03 with a selection of advert vans for a little shunting plank pleasure in the privacy of one's own shed/greenhouse/dining-room.

Indeed I did wonder my computer only has a modest monitor so not everything is revealed without a lot of scrolling left and right as well as up and down. At least I am certain in my own mind that in the case of modern, read New, tinplate smerty two looks the way forward for my buddy's garden line. Meanwhile I have surfed to Maldon's web site https://www.maldontrack.com/index.php and seen the delights of traditional tinplate track in all its glory. One of the great joys of this hobby is that with a little research and assistance pretty much every potential relief of the swollen wallet can be sought out and enjoyed. People smirk at my plastic tracked OO Wilton and Axminster yet on the Meldon website O-gauge carpet railway layouts are featured for purchase. There's a lot to be enjoyed when you strip back to the basics.

Looking at Newhomer supplied measurements and then at the 16mm Association wheelstandards from their website. The dimensions look the same so current new ets/raylo/darstead tinplate rolling stock should have no problem with smerty-two track. The whole set of standards it is a minefield of information and opinion and there is a lot of difference in the modus operandi of tinplate 3-rail pointwork compared to smerty-two. I guess the only way to be certain is to invest a few sets of smerty-two points and curves and see what passes through by taking a facing/trailing junction to an exhibition and actually trying the models you intend purchasing on the track you intend using... One lives and learns...

...but the 2-rail wheels are incompatible with coarse scale points... And with smert-two what is the story there? Will the ETS Adams Radial and Terrier make their way around smerty-two or is life simpler with ets track for these desired models? Or does one start with ets 2 rail and run Mamod/Roundhouse live steamers on that to save a load of compromises? There is not space to lay multiple track systems to cope with incompatible nature of the wheel standards.

Many thanks. Where does one find/obtain/purchase modern 3-rail track suitable for the old coarse standards?

Can modern "tinplate" offerings run successfully on Peco Smerty-Two? I have read that it is compatible so I assume that the 'coarse' scale 1.5mm flanged wheelsets will clatter through successfully. A buddy of mine is about to put in a smerty-two loop as a tri-way standard for 16mm, O-gauge and O-gauge coarse the easier availability of 'set-track' in 762mm and 982mm radius corners will make the most of the limited space he has available. I think he should be able to run Dapol class08 and Y1/Y3 sentinels on the larger radius corners with a few finescale O-gauge wagons. It's always nice to encourage a=someone to test the O-gauge waters even if it is with coarse scale models.

Initially planning using a selection of set track segments from my collection of MyWorld plastic track. with standard OO/HO R1 and R2 curves, meant I soon had the basic railway laid out. Then, like many, I looked at practical embellishments, in this case two 'fiddling/storage yards' beyond the scenic areas. I needed a practical means to connect these yards to each other and the rest of the layout. Thoughts turned to whether a double slip, two facing/trailing crossings or two Y points joined toe to toe would be employed. In the real world cost would rule as much as practical considerations, so two Y points would score highly. But two facing trailing crossings would connect either yard to its twin or either leg of the scenic part of the layout. A double slip is less space hungry but also maintenance heavy but also in with a chance if only for the 'operational flexibility' it would bring. Assume 'Rule One*' will not be the mark of compliance in this case. (*Rule One it's my line I'll do as I please.) Pictures are threatened to clarify

What constitutes to a micro layout? As I recall that Carl's site featured a G-scale muddle by Bob Hughes which fits within the 4' x 1' constraints and featured just a loco and hopper wagon as the operating element shutting from a quarry to a crushing/screening plant. https://www.carendt.com/small-layout-scrapbook/page-41-september-2005/ The other was double deck compact layout featuring a time saver on the upper deck and a dock side interchange on the lower using LGB R1 pointwork, yes the track and points that garden railwayfarers laugh at, on baseboards fitting in the space of 8' x 3' Hedgehog Hill Estates Railway (7/8″ scale) https://www.carendt.com/micro-layout-design-gallery/micro-tymesaver-designs/

I'm on regularly flooded sand in woodland. 52tonnes of best reinforced ready-mix and 2000 concrete blocks have not moved in 19 years... The bunged in quick 'stations' have been subject to settlement and collapse so are now replaced by 5tonnes of reinforced garage footing foundation and 50 concrete blocks Build you footing deep enough once and you are set for life...

This link: http://www.micronradiocontrol.co.uk/rc_model_rail.html will answer most questions on how Radio Control is done and LiPo power will be compact enough to run all but the largest and most inefficient Pittman Gearhead motors. (My Accucraft GG eats the charge from 4Ahr NiMh in just over an hour and a half.) Knowing that the basic units will motivate O-16.5 the needs of many O-gauge models should be easier as there is a bit more room to spread the individual NiMh cells around the loco Or you might use a Covered Coach Van and install a power supply within it, then use a linking plug and socket to the loco after disconnecting the track power pick-ups. Use a micro-DPDT switch and you could leave the track pickups in situ and run the loco inside and out. There being several ways in which to unfleece a feline.

Kato's N gauge 'European Train' uses a power module in the first coach, the loco is a push around model. So it may be the coach that stalls on the 6" radius points not the loco. BUT the coach has quite a long wheelbase so there may be no issue... Whilst the track is mounted on a fairly thick base some 5mm mounting board may make that less of an issue once incorporated into the chosen scenic treatment. knock on this door for affordable Kato supplies https://www.traintrax.co.uk/

The systems in used up mountain vineyards is made by the same Swiss manufacturers as many cable cars. https://monorack.doppelmayr.com/en/ https://www.doppelmayr.com/products/monorack/ Enjoy the link (above) to their site. Alternatively: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jL3YFbsEuN8 http://www.funimag.com/photoblog/index.php/20061026/a-do-it-yourself-funicular/ http://www.funimag.com/photoblog/index.php/manufacturers/ Probably as much as one needs to know. Apart from price. A definite talking point for those with Hanging Gardens that needs a powered wheelbarrow for access to the few level bits. IIRC there is a weatherproof version of the stanner stair crawler which uses the same principles of transmission. There are some videos on Onechewb which show a passenger version in use. Not too bad going up but down? Few would have the bottle to drop backwards over a 1:1 slope and the power unit makes some fearsome sounds on the long overrun certainly not something those with a tender mechanical ear would enjoy.

There are still many that are ungated and just have a 'flag-man' or flashing red lights on narrow gauge. RH&DR is an example. So you could get away with inset track and warning signs and a flag holder with hut/cabin. (See Porthmadoc-Welsh Highland, Leighton Buzzard, Welshpool and Llanfair etc.) Model Rail used only one pair of Peco crossing gates for one their standard gauge layout projects so they should be sufficient for a narrow gauge crossing in a country lane although in reality there would probably just be the red edged X and advice signs. Some secondary line crossings also remain remain ungated although Wail Track and County Councils are trying to reduce the numbers of 'on the level' crossings of the network, currently 6000. Sometimes by closing the crossing and installing a foot bridge or installing an all traffic overbridge. The number of 'dodgers' that race the train seems to come through in waves year on year. Near miss with road vehicle, 2020 = 75 Near miss with non-vehicle users, 2020 = 323 ref: https://www.networkrail.co.uk/who-we-are/how-we-work/performance/safety-performance/level-crossing-events/

We are a distance from the subject here. Budget muddling is about getting the best with the least financial input. Whilst it would be nice to have a fully equipped workshop that could produce a chassis with the running perfection of a Swiss watch one also needs the talent to produce such an item. Smokey Joe is a model for train sets, it is the collector/big boys that have forced the gradual up grade of a very simple locomotive to something more suited to its entry point task of entertaining a 7 y.o. train driver AND the 60something grandfather collector. Removing the Scalextic motor and 25:1 gearing was a good start. But it needs the running qualities of the 0-4-0 pug, Peckett or the DS48 but they come at a very different price point Yes the motion is dismal but you have to remember the entry point for the model. There are articles on this site on how to fit proper motion to a Smokey Joe chassis but for many this is beyond the pleasure of actually building up a model from simple economically prices units. Smallbrooke Studios have seen a route to give those that wish to up-scale within a limited space a means to do so. To keep this economic then a reliable chassis is required and so various base level models have been used to give modellers a variety of start points. Be that a taller cab and smoke stack grafted onto a barely changed donor. To the full body swap to enable a modeller to produce a believable model. There is also the option to use the Electrotren running gear under a Smallbrooke Body kit. But here you are looking at spending £50-60 on a loco just to buy the frames and you have for your £100 a nice slow moving model. Smokey Joe frames with slow running gearing can be purchased too but the price point is £10-14 add the body kit and you can almost have two 0-4-0 models for your £100 Electrotren unit. Electrotren is part of the Hornby Empire as is Rivarossi and Lima and you do not have to dig particularly deep to see how often those Electrotren 0-6-0 frames appear across that span of historic names... Most of us are talented at some part of the spectrum of modelling and can 'make do' where our abilities get challenged. But we do it at the pocket money point of the modelling scale. Where you have to choose to buy something for the layout or a magazine to read but not both. Entry level models will inspire some to improve because they can, but we must not forget that we are doing this for pleasure and that comes from actually seeing something you have built, turn a wheel on track you have laid all on a baseboard you have built and set in a landscape of our imaginings.

Would the station pilot or a parcels van be the most likely candidate for standing on the head shunt until required, as would be possible with a 3-way point? Another alternative three short Y points. Although it forms an interesting shape to the platform at the buffer stop end. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hythe_railway_station_(Romney,_Hythe_and_Dymchurch_Railway)#/media/File:Hythe_station.jpg There is a reverse curve which may cause many here to suck on their teeth. But this layout appears to have handled all the RH&DR locomotion without too much trouble over nearly 100 years. Most would feel provision of RH and LH points would work equally well in place of the trailing Y's and keep the lines parallel to the platform edge. One does wonder what Greenley/Howey were thinking, one of those little eccentricities for which the English are famous; Or was there a surfeit of 15" gauge Y points when the line was constructed?

Or build at 1:35 and then OO track becomes the equivalent of 18" gauge. To muddy the waters further Z gauge = 6.5mm gauge and about as close as the average muddler will get to 18" gauge when modelling at 4mm/ft, that is without building you own 6mm track. It all depends on how much eyestrain/watchmaking you wish to do/have. What some may not have mentioned is that a wider than design bogie, may not be able to swivel sufficiently when installed under a scale sized body. To really mess with your mind most layout plans are drawn to a 12" (305mm) grid. The operating scale will be shown in the layout plan's text normally 4mm:ft or OO. The entertainment starts as you will need to work to 21" for 1:43 Or 30" for Gauge 1 at 1:32. From this a 4' x 2' OO layout will need 10' x 5' in gauge 1 for a like for like construction. Scale, gauge and their variety of ratios can be very confusing for those new into the hobby. But if you work with the grid being Length Units. Then layout space requirements can be arrived at for the baseboard dimensions. To which you need to add 24-40" (610-1000mm) all round for access once you move outside the dining table dimension of 4'x4' or 1200 x 1200.

I'd agree they are a bit niche so possibly not the first item on the modeller's hit list, once you can find a supplier with stock. Putting the muddlers lateral think head on. It would be possible to kit bash the Airfix/Dapol unit to suit a similar duty, chop off the bridge to include the pivot and only use an arc of the supplied moulded track should allow it to swing smaller tank locos a la Bembridge, North Woolwich and other's. If you can work out that bit of plastic engineering dropping it into a custom baseboard 'well' should not be too challenging. The track electrics should also be somewhat easier as the unit is only turning an arc so would not need wipers and split rings. I think Paul Lunn postulated the modified Dapol Turntable for use as a road/rail swing bridge on one of his layout designs.

This may be of use https://proses.com/prestashop/tools-testers-cradles-rolling-roads-/252-o-scale-powered-railer-for-locos-and-rolling-stock.html It's available to suit most commercial track systems including TT and 3-rail so should be useful. The version shown is for OO and at 16" long (400mm) means you could rail a small loco and a few wagons. There is a lot else on the website which may be handy. I only posted this here because there were observations that getting an 0-4-2 tram loco railed on O-16.5 can be a struggle this looks like a partial answer the perennial problem. Although it is a bit unwieldy for use outside the fiddle yard...there are railing rail sections in many HO/OO set-track ranges so all is not lost at baseboard joints etc which could be used as bridges between modules.

Is this an affordable way forward? https://www.osbornsmodels.com/faller-120275-segment-turntable-3-way-kit-with-servo-ii-39402-p.asp Not ultra cheap but a possible answer to the prayers of many? Any thoughts, and does anyone use one?