Jump to content
 

Coombe Barton

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    3,533

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    19

 Content Type 

Blog Entries posted by Coombe Barton

  1. Coombe Barton
    So here's the plan.
     
    It's 14 ft x 2 ft. There is a 2ft x 2 ft town extension at the right hand end, but this is purely scenic. Four 3ft 6 in by 2ft boards, but the end of the fiddle yard will have a short single track extension to enable a run round there without excessive handling. However for cattle fairs the extension may be as long as 3ft. I'll be detailing this later.
     
    The track is completely flat, but the illusion of the third dimension comes from the track crossing the river valley and a gentle landscape slope through the station area. More altitude can be introduced in the town.
     

    Note: I'm assuming that this should be a thumbnail linking to the full image. If I discover there's anything different I'll edit.
    Buildings and structures:
     
    Station Building and Goods Shed adjacent the platform as indicated. Cattle loading dock opposite station building. Engine shed off loop, with watering and coaling facilities. Signal bx, the lonely little rectangle by the loop. In the station yard a mill and various warehouses. The mill may turn out a bit like the one at Dartington, and the warehouses will probably have elements of those at Totnes Quay.
     
    River Valley:
     
    Think a smaller version of the Dart at Buckfastleigh. The outlet mill race flows into the river near the bridge. Calm pools and small waterfalls here, the main energy of the river being generated further up in the hills, but not that far away.
     
    Baseboard Construction:
     
    Ply, 5.5 or 6mm. 5.5 mm seems to be more available. Framing is ply as is cross bracing. The location of those will be decided when turnout, signal and uncoupling magnet positions are determined so that they don't get in the way. There's no backscene as where buildings are cut they will show interiors.
     
    Control:
     
    Analogue control - I'll be building my own control units. Turnout and signal control by manual interlocked lever frame.
     
    Layout Storage:
     
    Because of the necessity for protection and the preservation of a little family life it will be disguised as furniture. I have thoughts, but need to draw out a full sized plan first to see if will all work.
  2. Coombe Barton
    Full Signalling
     
    In a small Great Western branch line terminus full signalling is something of a rarity. Moretonhampstead is one example where there's a full signal box Princetown's another. Other branches operated with porters acting as signalmen using various ground frames, local to or remote from the turnouts.
     
    So I've decided to make things difficult for myself and specify full signalling with working ground signals. The diagram indicates what's proposed.
     

     
    There's the home and the starter. There is a fixed distant (allows me to get away without a lever for this one) offscene towards the junction. Ground signal protects the run round at each end, the catch point at the end of the run round. The goods roads are protected by the ground signal off the main line and the signal working with the exit catch point. The story is that there was an accident caused in part by the slightly curved nature of the site preventing good visibility and in more prosperous times the company installed full signalling.
     
    This probably is a lot oversignalled for a piddling little branch line terminus, but I'm already practicing my swearing for when I build and install them.
     
    Added 7 November 2009
    Following some very helpful advice from The Stationmaster on http://www.rmweb.co....424entry17424 the new schematic is posted below
     

  3. Coombe Barton
    The Timetable
     
    The branch loco has been a 517 and then a 48xx/14xx. The branch is operated using a staff and ticket system.
     
    5:15am:
    Early turn fireman books on, fires up and moves loco from shed to water and coal up. He then cleans the shed pit of ash.
     
    6:00am
    Early turn driver books on and oils up, before moving to platform where the first auto coach is stabled.
     
    8:07am
    First auto to the junction mainly with pupils to the Grammar School. (staff)
     
    8:47am
    Return of auto. After passengers have left uses the engine release crossover to move to couple up to the second auto trailer which is kept in the road past the cattle docks as the next trip is usually crowded people going to market at the junction. (In this universe it??™s always market day at the junction). To get back to the platform it has to go to the end of the run round loop and set back. (staff)
     
    9:07am
    Auto with two coaches departs for junction. (staff)
     
    10:55am
    Auto returns from junction and drops second auto coach. (staff)
     
    11:10am
    Auto departs for Junction (staff)
     
    1:07pm
    Auto returns from junction and moves complete over the engine release crossover to the shed siding so that goods can use station to sort. (ticket)
     
    1:15pm
    First crew book off and second crew book on. Auto loco coaled and watered
     
    1:45pm
    Daily goods arrives from junction, runs round and clears engine release crossover. Starts sorting yard (staff)
     
    1:55pm
    Auto moves back over engine release crossover to platform
     
    2:00pm
    Auto departs for junction (ticket)
     
    2:00pm
    When auto has cleared goods loco continues sorting yard
     
    2:35pm
    Goods departs (staff)
     
    3:04 pm
    Auto returns from junction. After passengers have left uses the engine release crossover to move to couple up to the second auto trailer (staff)
     
    4:00pm
    Auto departs for junction (staff)
     
    4:52pm
    Auto returns from junction with schoolchildren and market shoppers. Drops second auto coach. (staff)
    5:33pm
    Auto departs for junction (staff)
     
    6:59pm
    Auto returns from junction. (staff)
     
    7:25pm
    Auto departs for junction (staff)
     
    9:07pm
    Auto returns from junction. (staff)
     
    9:10pm
    When all passengers have left, the engine uncouples from the auto coach and runs over the engine release crosser to the shed road, fill the boiler, drop the fire and move the engine into the shed. They then book off.
     
    Cattle Market
     
    A cattle market is held four times a year, at Lady Day, Whit, Michaelmas and Martinmas, or the nearest Thursday following. The dates are 25th March, 15th May (usually), 29th September and 11th November. For these occasions large number of cattle trucks are in motion and extra trains have to be fitted in around the normal timetable. Extra locos are employed to move the extra traffic. For these days the second auto coach is kept coupled to the branch auto except for the lunchtime coal an water handover. The engine release area is not large enough t accommodate two auto coaches and an 0-4-2 tank, so extra ingenuity is employed. Cattle specials often run to 9pm or 10pm
  4. Coombe Barton
    Stock Building
     
    Well, I've been buying, now all I have to do is build it.
     
    Partially completed, left over from the last time I was modelling, are a Churchward 45xx, and a 14xx on a Perseverance chassis, and complete (00) Mainline 57xx and 2251 Collett goods. eBay has provided me with another 14xx body and bits, eBay also provided me with another Airfix autocoach. I can now build both an A30 and an A28 version. At Warley from Dart Castings I collected a Frogmore AA3 brake van.
     
    The 57xx has a acquired a chassis, 54:1 gearbox and motor from High Level and wheels and bits from Alan Gibson, who has also provided stuff that I can use to complete the partially completeds. I'm also using the re-engineered Dart Castings Autocoach Detailing kits,
     
    From both Chris at High Level and Colin and Chris of Alan Gibson I ordered by phone in the afternoon and got the bits, complete and well packaged, the morning of the next day but one - and this was in the busy Christmas period.
     
    First Impressions - instructions
     
    Now this is out of the box stuff, and based on reading the instructions only.
    The High Level instructions are comprehensive and very well detailed, and uses real language. Seven A4 pages of how to, a parts list and etch identifying diagram and three pages of exploded diagrams of the build. By following the instructions I'm confident I can build this up.
    The Alan Gibson bits don't need much in the way of instructions, but what is provided is very sensible and straightforward. However a magnifying glass proved useful to read them.
    The Dart Castings material for the autocoach is three pages of instructions, a kit list and four pages of exploded diagrams. Reference is made to publications. The Frogmore kit of the AA3 brake van proves just how good the other instruction sets are by providing a contrast. Whilst all the basic assembly sequence is there the part identification and exploded diagram are not, There are photographs, but on my copy the ink was running out on the inkjet printer. An example of the basic nature of the instructions: "7) Fix end upright angle irons". I'm going to have some fun with this one!
    First Impressions - Engineering
    High Level - I'm going to enjoy building this one. The thing about good engineering is that it's immediately recognisable. The etch is clean and I have no doubt it'll do what is says on the tin. Alan Gibson stuff is also well engineered. It will also do what is says on the tin. Dart Castings detailing kit is a vast improvement over the previous version that was not very well receive in MRJ9. It's going to be more of a challenge as I;m not sre like the Airfix underframe that much I may play with some alternatives. The Frogmore A3 van is etched from a single sheet of 0.3mm brass and is clean. It will be something more of a challenge because as I've mentioned the parts are not identified. So to start
     
    The instructions and other materials have been photocopied to A3 so that my ageing eyesight is not too stressed. And there's a week before I have get back to work.
     
    And to continue
     
    I'm using this blog as a record. I've decided that (because I can) I'll document and photograph the builds so that I'll be able to ask for help with stuff I find difficult and have a history to relate. This will be mistakes and all. Chris at High Level will be getting an order for his 14xx chassis and (when the tender's available) another for the Collett goods. He tells me that he's engineering the chassis to suit a Dean Gods as well. Bogies and underframes on the autocoaches are going to be interesting. I'm tempted with Hubert Carr's MRD offerings. I talked with him at ExpoEM (this was before I'd made concrete plans) and am interested in his coach construction philosophy. I'll be talking to him again when he's at Watford Finescale (why is their website for 2007?). Otherwise I'll use the Dart Castings bogies. I'll use their sideframe castings anyway.
     
     

  5. Coombe Barton

    Signalling

    By Coombe Barton,

    Following a great deal of help from RMWeb members here http://www.rmweb.co....al-box-diagram/ and here http://www.rmweb.co....ease-crossover/, the signal box diagram is now finalised.
     

     
    Levers
    1 - Home
    2 - FPL
    3 - Main to loop and trap
    4 - Main to goods
    5 - Dummy main to goods
    6 - Dummy main to loop
    7 - Dummy loop to main
    8 - Starter
    9 - Adv starter
    10 - Shunt
    11 - Dummy from goods to main
    12 - Spare
    13 - Engine release
    14 - Dummy for engine release
     
    Lever 12 will control the Loco shed point - it should be lineside but with this lever arrangement it's just too darned convenient.
×
×
  • Create New...