Darwinian

So here is an introduction to the building of Cwmhir, I'll try to bring everything up to date over the holiday period. Basebopards are on the ply sandwich beam principle. I'd not tried this before and they have ended up being heavier than I would have liked, probably due to using 9mm ply for the tops. The exit board is open plan because of the changes in level. The track layout depended on the double slip so after building a plain turnout I built this first to make sure I could do it. It is a mixture of plastic chairs/sleepers and soldered copper clad where i couldn't figure out how to get enough strength. Trackwork is C&L with their flexi track for the plain track. I couldn't work out what pattern of bulhead track the RR used so went for the easy option. The RR relaid most of it's lines quite late prior to the grouping so I'm working on the GWR having not relaid it with GWR style trackwork yet. The colliery exchange sidings are in code 55 flat bottomed rail soldered to copperclad sleepers to represent some of the original spiked RR tracks, not yet replaced.

Yep, that was my thinking, I went with the un-hyphenated version as looking less contrived. Of course quite why this fictitious location is "long valley" is open to interpretation!

I have decided rather than have several topics I would bring most things together under a layout thread. So this is Cwmhir. A fictional GWR terminus on the former Rhymeny railway set around 1929. I know Cwmhir is a bit corny as a name but I used to live near Ynys-hir in mid wales and have always liked the association between the Welsh Cwm and west country Coombe so the name has stuck. A quick search of the internet also revealed that there is a Cwmhir Priory in mid Wales but nothing of that name in South Wales. I should own up at this point to the fact that I have no connection with this part of Wales except for living in Cardiff for three years and visiting friends who lived in the Valley's left a lasting impression of the area. This is the X-Track design for the layout. It is basically Highworth with an extra loop and sidings connecting to a colliery line. This was inspired by Branches Fork and the Lanerch incline featured in British Railways Journal some years ago. The two lines out on the left lead to a fiddle yard (casettes) on two levels (or will do when I finish building it). The lower one is the main line and drops down from the station, The upper the incline leading to the collieries higher up the hillside. The three loops are intended to be, from the top: Loco run round, freight arrivals and departures if not placed into the sidings, passenger platform. The station goods yard consists of a line through the goods shed and a short siding (not a long one as seen on the plan) that terminates at the goods shed wall for unloading unwieldy items. I'll probably add a small cattle dock at the right hand end of the platform for "prize" livestock pit ponies and the like. I started work on the layout un 2007 but have relatively ltimited time so progress is quite slow. However it is all running.

Those signals are awesome! I'd be proud to have achieved them in 4mm scale never mind 2mm. I shall be watching this develop with admiration.

Thanks for the responses Coachmann, Stationmaster and Ian, I hoped these new coaches woud be suitable, I know I should have a lot more coaches in the 1922-28 full panelled livery but I'm not up to coachmans skill level doing lining yet. At least it isn't beyod the realms of possiblity to have a couple of newly outshopped ones on a Rugby excursion (or similar excuse). It was the variety of excursions that drew me towards a valleys themed layout and I had assumed any stock available would be used but was unsure if this was actually the case. Many thanks. As it would be unlikely to see a whole train of Colletts on excursion duty which would be the most likely to appear, All thirds?

Given that I'm trying to represent GWR south wales valleys circa 1929, would a 1929 liveried coach be likely to turn up on an excursion / special working or would they have been allocated to mainline formations first? If the latter, would an earlier livery be more appropriate. I really like the original full mock panel livery and they may have survived until '29 (?), although one of the earlier Brown and Cream liveries would just need adjustment to the waist lining ( is that correct?). They do look to be really nice models.

Hello John, I built one of the all thirds when they were relatively newly out. The body went together fine IIRC but the bogies were a bit of a fiddle. They do work but they are not very free running. I wouldn't build them according to the instruactions again but would try to fit pinpoint bearings and forget the suspension system. Mine was for 00. Darwinian

Really interesting pictures Castle. I notice there is a fire extinguisher on view, is that so the thirsty crew can get to the pub quicker at the end of the day than dropping the fire? Having travelled on the SRM on the tip up seats behind the cab on the RMWeb day a couple of years ago I can imagine just how true "it gets a bit noisy if they go off" must be. It was pretty noisy with just the exhaust beat.

I guess it's a case of how much are you prepared to gamble. I gambled on a Backsmith (looks like soon after Mallard) pair of clerestory carirages recently, sold as spearate items. One had the castings clearly shown, the other didn't and had the wrong instructions (the ones for the other one). I got the "good un" for a bit less than my maximum so put the balance on the gamble on the basis that I could source or make any missing bits. I won both (unusual for me) and when they turned up both had the castings, one set had been hidden under the roof in the photo . At the end of the day decide what you are prepared to chance and stick to it would be my advice. Just got to build them now .

Are they not etched though? I think I looked at those, The problems I am hoping to avoid are i) Etched are flat ii) Etched either go out of shape too easily or are too heavy (Comet ones look to be quite fine). iii) Cast brass are bloomin expensive if you have several carriages to do. iv) Home made wire are hard to get consistent. The Hornby ones look like they might be machine formed (?) wire so could be better, will have to wait and see.

Ooo, I do hope those become available as spares, I'll have 100 please!

That's a super model Mozzer. Out of interest (as I have some Mallard/Blacksmith GWR clerestories to do) how did you attach the roof and the clerestory?

I'm using a Morely "Vector" dual output controller. I've had mine for several years and it gives nice fine control of all the motors I have including ECM type 2, various Mashimas and coreless motors too, as well as RTR from the usual culprits. You get two nice small hand helds with decent lenth leads and a built in CDU (not that I've use that) as well. Adrian

The Broad gauge society do Dean 6foot 4inch bogies. They are standard gauge items. Code is F4161 illustrated on page 41 of their 4mm items list. Not tried them myself but intend to shortly. Someone else put me onto this source on another thread.

I recall running along the platform looking for a compartment with space in it on SR slam door stock when I was younger. Always relieved when a corridor was on my side and I could just hop on at the first available door and walk down the corridor to find a seat, quite often as the train was pulling out. Maybe it was felt that it made enough of a difference close to departure time to avoid delays as would be travellers legged it along the train looking for a space. The corridor side usually had centre doors as well.

There are a few pictures of coaches with an intermediate livery of choc/cream + single black/gold waist line + garter arms and flankers. Proabably first version after dropping full panelling, maybe paint shop using up old transfers? Sorry I can't remember the reference pictures for this, think they were in one of Russel's volumes. Because I like the fully lined out look and my time period is 1929-30 I've been looking for these in photos from that period and they were certainly still around. Hope Hornby do the full monty version. Darwinian

BG John, the middle set are K's I think. I had a set on their passenger brake van but changed them for 9' American after seeing a picture of one running on those. Like yours I think one of mine had broken. Thanks Paul I was unaware of the BG society ones as I'd asssumed nearly everything they produced was for Broad Gauge vehicles . Might have to invest in a pair. Darwinian

I managed to catch a word with David in a quieter moment and he told me that the GWR Dean bogies are unlikely to be ready before next year, so I assume that would be true for the coaches too. Still we can but hope.

Does anyone know where I can obtain Dean bogies for improving a Triang Clerestory by the way ? Bit of a sore point for me this. 247 used to make 8'6" and 10' Dean bogies in cast whitemetal but recently stopped production and so far as I can ascertain no one else has taken them up. I've got the ex-bettabits Tri-Comp etches and bits but didn't buy the bogies at the same time. Mallard / Blacksmith used to do Dean bogies and I have seen a set turn up on a well known auction site, but I think the bogies on their own are probably quite rare, The current Hornby celrestories have 10' bogies which are fairly crude with a full length footboard moulded on but look OK from normal viewing distances. I spoke to David Geen at Expo EM and he said he has plans for some but says not until next year at the earliest. I think a few clerestories got Churchward "American" bogies fitted (pictures in one fo the Russel books?) but I guess these would have been quite rare. These are more readily available. Darwinian

If you have not attached the saddle tank yet there might be an alternative option to filler. Draw around the back of the saddle onto plasticard to make a spacer piece that you could trim accurately to the curve, super glue to the back edge of the tanks and then sand back to the perfect thickness. As long as it is well pressed on the join should be nearly invisible after painting I would think. Of course if you plan to use etch primer this won't work because the plastic will dissolve . Darwinian

That was a great story, still makes me smile. Disconnect regulator linkage rod, vacuum hose, whistle chain. Except that he forgot the whistle chain twice (thrice?)and the vacuum hose once IIRC . Quite a faff for a bit of shunting I would think, especially the vacuum.

OK all this is the final installment I suspect. Front sandpipes added from wire bent to shape and epoxied (is that a verb?) to the cylinder block. The various bits were brought together using G.W. Abbadon Black. The whole loco and tender were weathered with Precision paint's frame dirt using an air brush. The cab windows and makers plates were masked off for this spraying. Once dry the areas on the tender where the original ROD numbering would have been were masked out with Gaugemaster tape and then brush painted with diluted Humbrol satin black. The number plates were made using Martin Finney numberplate etches (hope these are available again soon as they are a godsend when building odd protoptypes). The whole lot was then re-weathered (minus masking) with frame dirt. A mix of frame dirt plus matt black was applied down onto the top of the loco to represent the effects of soot and aerial fallout. I then managed to drop the mechanism onto the body, making a small chip in the boiler and breaking off one of the step assemblies. Fortunately i managed to disguise / repair the damage (it was the side shown!). Frame dirt + dark rust was dry brushed onto the areas around the brakes. Some black was dry brushed downwards around the boiler to add a little texture. I'll leave you all to judge whether you think the result looks like a 1928 ROD as running on the GWR until it failed! 3082 lasted until 1930. Just need to get a crew. Oh, almost forgot, There is a niffty screw fitted mounting for the tender - loco attachment point that can be released to close up the distance. I closed mine up by about a half. Darwinian.

A few more recent photos. Buffer beam now painted and the extra rib added to the roof. I had a bit of black microstrip that was about the right size and followed the existing .line of rivets having checked which side of them to put the strip. Does anyone know if there is an etched version available of the makers plate for the splasher side? Next I think will be a blow over with dirty black to pull the various parts together.

Livery? Bunker indent and fender, outside steam pipes, handrails on over boiler strap - should be postwar GWR or BR shouldn't it? Looks great steaming through the sunshine anyway . Well done to the team.

Might I suggest: Make a 1cm x 1cm x 1cm open topped box out of plasticard off-cuts. Place on set if fine scales (kitchen ones might just do) and record the mass (in grams). Fill with liquid gravity. Level off by sweeping across the top with a straight edge. Place on set if fine scales (kitchen ones might just do) and record the mass (in grams). Deduct the mass of the cube recorded before (2). Mass divided by volume = density. Of course you can use any container that you can accurately measure the dimensions of. The bigger the better as your error will be less, so long as you have enough liquid gravity to fill it completely. But then I guess you didn't want to do that so that's why you asked