Killybegs

Before I went off to Railex with Clinkerford, I did promise to put a few more pics on the blog when I got back. Unfortunately the ballast ordered eight weeks ago still hasn't arrived. I'm beginning to wonder if the supplier has ceased trading, as I am getting an answerphone and no replies to my emails, and they have banked my money! However, back to Bruckless. Dug around in my scrap box and found enough scenic material to make a start in one corner, amazing how much difference it makes, even if it is a little rudimentary. I also bought a static grass gizmo at Railex, so I have been playing with that. What is the best source for the static grass fibres, I have seen references to various lengths and colours but can't find much in my web searches. Also no one seems to sell it in 'bulk'. The yard lights arrived last week so they have now been installed. Today I have been putting a few more sidings in the fiddle yard, modifying some strange hybrid turnouts that seemed to be a cross between electrofrog (which is what it said on the box) and insulfrog. but almost certainly guaranteed to cause a dead short without modification! Tomorrow I should hopefully get the extra tortoises fitted and the whole lot wired up. Then Wednesday it's back to the 'day job' at the local railway museum where I have just started building a 5.5mm/foot model of Killybegs station. Perhaps I'll do a bit of a blog on that. Watch this space!

Ah, but you would miss them if they weren't there!

Is it really two months since I updated the blog? In that time the ballasting to all the yard areas has been completed and ballasting to the main line started but stopped again when we ran out of ballast, now waiting for four weeks for more supplies! All the structures - bridges, retaining walls, platforms, etc. have been painted weathered and largely fixed. Don't want to fix the plate girder overbridge until the track below has been ballasted. The fueling points and oil depot are finished, lights have been fitted and wired up and the vast expanses of white landscape have largely turned green. Oh, and I started installing lineside fence posts today. Bought some nice etches from PH Designs, security fencing, access platform and a container trailer. I think the latter is going to give me some sleepless nights and I think I may need to strengthen the horizontal rails on the fencing to give it a bit of rigidity. I had hoped to take some pics today but time got the better of me. So, as they say on the TV, here's a couple I took earlier. More when I get back from RAILEX where I am giving Clinkerford its penultimate outing. Do drop by for a chat if you're passing. Robin Whittle is among my merry band of helpers so, if you wish to talk to him about his fabulous Barrow Road project, I'm sure I can give him a bit of time off!

Definately not time wasted, Rome wasn't built in a day!

The plate girder bridge is built from plasticard. The particular design was chosen because the legs of the 'T' sections are on the inside of the beam (and therefore not seen) with a flat cover plate on the outside. These were made from 10 thou plasticard, rivetted using a rivet tool, as were the vertical legs of the angles top and bottom. The top and bottom flanges are in 20 thou (as their thickness also includes the other leg of the afore mentioned angles) again rivetted but only on the upper surfaces. There are, needless to say, no 'T' sections inside my beams, just spacers between two 40 thou skins. I hope that makes sense. Having a rivetting tool does make the job a lot easier! If you look at my previous blog entry there is a better pic of the girder.

Spent the weekend back in the UK to take a trip on the Help for Heroes Steam Special so didn't get the ballasting of the depot tidied up until today. It didn't turn out too badly but looks a bit clean at the moment but that will be addressed in the future. Carriage sidings will be next, then I can get on with ballasting the running lines.

Having spent all day ballasting track on Bruckless Junction (and I've hardly scratched the surface!) I got to wondering whether there was an historic reason for the sleepers on Peco(and Hornby) track being so close together. Any ideas? I did get about 70% of the diesel depot ballasted so that's a start anyway.

I am afraid I have been a bit remiss in keeping my blog up to date. Since making the first entry, I have now finished the bridge, retaining structures, walls and platforms at the station end of the layout together with the overbridge at the opposite end. All bar painting that is, not something I am looking forward to! Since these photos were taken, the ground level in the diesel depot has been raised to the top of the sleepers. The narrow strips of cork visible in the photo are guides that also enabled me to do the filling without the structures in place. These abutments can be tidied up later. Next week I start ballasting the yard with a mix of ash (wood/turf from the fire), coal dust and Woodland scenics fine ballast. While this has been going on I have also been busy with the ongoing task of fitting decoders and kadee couplings, not to mention designing Phase 2 which will be a set of sidings to store rolling stock and locos not being used in an operating schedule - we will probably be running up to four different periods! This will involve getting the builder back to knock a hole in another wall! We are also trying to rationalise the stock which will probably mean selling off those items of which we have too many to fund the purchase of those items we are short of. I have even splashed out on a few locos myself to fill the gaps in the late steam era. Long term these will be converted to P4 to run on my own Worseter layout and Barrow Road if Robin gives me running rights!

Thank you Robin. The steam locos are Peter's but he only has thirty odd! Mostly, of course, as you say, he has diesels, a lot of diesels, of various eras, so he can run lots of different scenarios! The bridge/station area is nearly complete except for painting. I will post some more pics in a couple of days. Another box of decoders arrived in the post this morning so that's something else to keep me out of mischief!

I would have to disagree with Brinkly. Your proposed locations for electromagnets should enable any combination of shunting movements using AJ's. For example, why add them to the entrance to the goods shed and its headshunt when #4 will meet the requirements in those areas.

'Barrow Road' tells me I should be staring a blog on Bruckless Junction which I have been building for a friend. Basically it's a large circuit with 4 running lines, a motive power depot, carriage sidings, through fiddle yard/freight yard, station throat and container depot. Yup, pretty large, approx 150 yds track and 67 turnouts/slips. Track and wiring are now complete although I am thinking of putting more uncouplers in the carriage sidings. Control is by ZTC 511 which was purchased a couple of years ago. Remote controllers are being added. Peter has a huge collection of stock which I have been cataloging, running in, converting to DCC and changing to KD couplings. Some track has been painted (currently waiting for more paint) and basic scenic work has commenced in the form of polystyrene cavity wall insulation. Work has commenced on the platforms and overbridge at the end of the station that masks the hole through the wall.

Up early this morning Robin! What's the reason for the cut back on one side of the roof, does it abut something else? You could have had snow on the roof if you were over here today! Great stuff.

Definately looking pretty good so far, glad to see you have been spending your spare time over Christmas productively!