Annie's Virtual Pre-Grouping, Grouping and BR Layouts & Workbench

[Annie]

I hope I'm not being boring going on (and on and on.....) about my NER project.  (sigh)   Anyway this should be the last of it for today.

I was lacking any bogie Brake 3rds or Van 3rds/1sts/Compo coaches so I placed an order with Paul for a selection of 'Ordinary' (no Lav) NER coaches, - six coaches in all.   And instead Paul very generously sent me nine coaches  including two Lav Composites (different diagrams), a Lav First, a different Ordinary Third to the one I've got and the rest were various species of Brake Thirds and Van Firsts/Composites.

One of the Brake Thirds was a recent commision (closest to camera) with a lot more detailing and magic interactive couplings (closest to camera); - and that one along with another more recently created coach have windows made to be compatible with TRS19 and TRS22 so I won't have to mess around making any opacity adjustments with those two.  The others are a bit of a mixture as to what version of Trainz they were made for and some like my original three from TS2009 will need some texture work doing, but all in all it's a good selection of coaches that I should be able to do something with.

 

Edited December 28, 2021 by Annie
can't spell for toffee

[Compound2632]

3 hours ago, Annie said:

I hope I'm not being boring going on (and on and on.....) about my NER project.  (sigh)   

 

How could you suppose such a thing? Proper railroading up in the north country!

 

8 hours ago, Annie said:

This is one of Ed's magnificent engines.  No.1521, - a Worsdell-Von Borries 'J' Class Compound.  Another engine that I shouldn't be running on 'Cairnrigg to Balessie' since they were rebuilt as simples in 1896.   But I'm not too bothered about all that, - after all what has reality done for you lately?

 

Sibling No. 1517 was the joint fastest locomotive of the 19th century - 90 mph during a series of tests carried out under the direction of Walter Mackersie Smith.

 

She tied with Midland Railway single No. 117, which attained 90 mph with a service train, on the long 1:200 bank down towards Bedford. The 115 Class singles were among the first Midland engines to be fitted with piston rather than slide valves, giving a freer steam path and undoubtedly contributing to their swiftness. S.W. Johnson had adopted piston valves at the prompting of his old friend Walter Mackersie Smith.

 

I'm sure you've spotted the common feature here...

 

... both engines' number finished in 17.

 

 

[Annie]

5 hours ago, Compound2632 said:

 

I'm sure you've spotted the common feature here...

 

... both engines' number finished in 17.

The magic number '17' who would have thought it. 

 Thanks for the additional background information on the compound 'J' Class and MR single No.117.  I hadn't really heard much about them until Ed  started his compound engine building project.  I don't think I'll be letting No.1521 do 90 mph down the long gradient to Cairnrigg though.

 

5 hours ago, Compound2632 said:

How could you suppose such a thing? Proper railroading up in the north country!

Thanks for that encouragement Stephen.  For some reason I'd got into the way of thinking that I couldn't build an NER layout and had talked myself out of even trying.  The silly thing is I've had 'Cairnrigg to Balessie' hanging around for ages and all it really needed was a tidy up.  Once I started looking I found that I had a surprising amount of suitable engines and rolling stock to hand that just needed a little sorting out to run in TRS22.  So now that I've got return loops and storage sidings at each end of the layout the potential for any amount of interesting operating sessions is right there.

Edited December 28, 2021 by Annie
Um.........

[Annie]

So today's project is sorting out the coaches I took delivery of yesterday.  Because two of the coaches are the latest version that means that I can pillage make use of any updated parts to bring the older versions up to something like the same spec.  I won't be trying to fit the new magic interactive couplings though as that involves too much in the way of strange and unusual esoteric knowledge for me to contemplate this morning.  I've already made one awful mistake with some magic incantations and had to do it all again, - so this woman is going to stick with wot she knows.

I've started off with the third class coaches because while they might be ordinary and everything, they are the most immediately useful to the Cairnrigg to Balessie section.  Much tea will be needed, - all those windows, - sooooo many windows.....

 

Edited December 29, 2021 by Annie
can't spell for toffee

[Annie]

Morning cheer up picture:  A certain little well known engine has recently been created for Trainz TRS19.

 

[Annie]

Having too much fun.

 

[Regularity]

10 hours ago, Annie said:

Morning cheer up picture:  A certain little well known engine has recently been created for Trainz TRS19.

 

I’ve got one of those somewhere, but in “real 3D”.

[Annie]

39 minutes ago, Regularity said:

I’ve got one of those somewhere, but in “real 3D”.

I had one years ago that I converted to an 0-6-0 using a TT scale Triang chassis and Romford wheels, but somebody stole it which was downright @!$%& annoying.  It was a really nice runner too.

[Annie]

This could end up becoming a major project in itself.  I know the tender is at the wrong end, but this is just an initial test to see how the single cylinder engine spec files and sound files I developed for my Foden and Aveling & Porter engines would work out with 'Catch-Me-Who-Can'.  The exhaust beat is slightly out of phase, but I had to do it that way because with it set up properly the engines would stick with the piston at TDC all the time.

I did a steam controls test and it worked out surprisingly well.  Maybe I'll do another video later if you're all good.

 

 

Edited December 29, 2021 by Annie
Um.........

[Caley Jim]

49 minutes ago, Annie said:

  Maybe I'll do another video later if you're all good.

Yes please, Miss. we'll be very good!!

 

Jim

[Annie]

Well just because you've been so good Jim.  

The tender and fireman are at the correct end now for a return flue boiler.  'Catch-Me-Who-Can' didn't run with a tender, but Steve Flanders made a choice of two tenders, - this one and one with a wooden barrel, - for those of us who like to bend history. 

The big eight wheeled monster 'Puffing Billy' I took a snap of earlier is a wee bit too much of an engine for my little wagonway and it sounds like it's going to fall apart at anything above walking pace.

 

 

[Jake The Rat]

14 hours ago, Annie said:

Morning cheer up picture:  A certain little well known engine has recently been created for Trainz TRS19.

 

 

I saw this loco some time ago on Paul Lloyd's website greater-albion.com, along with a bunch of the same type.

 

Here is one from Annie's favourite era...

 

... & this one is from mine.

[Annie]

New Year's cheer up Broad Gauge picture:   Here's No. 2021 around 130 years ago, piloting a Rover hauled express at Chippenham. She was a Bristol engine, having been built there for the Bristol & Exeter in 1871 as No 43.  (Yay B&ER!)

 

[Caley Jim]

Happy New year, Annie, and everyone else!

 

Jim 

[Annie]

31 minutes ago, Caley Jim said:

Happy New year, Annie, and everyone else!

 

Jim 

Thanks very much Jim and a Happy New Year to you as well.

[Charlie586]

11 hours ago, Annie said:

New Year's cheer up Broad Gauge picture:   Here's No. 2021 around 130 years ago, piloting a Rover hauled express at Chippenham. She was a Bristol engine, having been built there for the Bristol & Exeter in 1871 as No 43.  (Yay B&ER!)

 

Happy new year, Annie. 

 

You can just see the start of a turnout in the bottom of that photo. 

[MikeOxon]

On 29/12/2021 at 15:39, Annie said:

....

The big eight wheeled monster 'Puffing Billy' I took a snap of earlier is a wee bit too much of an engine for my little wagonway and it sounds like it's going to fall apart at anything above walking pace.

 

 

The wheel has turned full circle and your plateway looks rather similar to modern Bi-block track - available in model form from Peco.

[Annie]

2 hours ago, Charlie586 said:

Happy new year, Annie. 

 

You can just see the start of a turnout in the bottom of that photo. 

Happy New Year Charlie.  After seeing your struggles with building dual gauge pointwork I'm never going to complain about doing it in the virtual simulator ever again.

 

[Annie]

7 minutes ago, MikeOxon said:

The wheel has turned full circle and your plateway looks rather similar to modern Bi-block track - available in model form from Peco.

I've just Googled Bi-block track Mike and I couldn't quite believe what I was seeing.  The wheel really has turned full circle.  

[Charlie586]

23 minutes ago, Annie said:

Happy New Year Charlie.  After seeing your struggles with building dual gauge pointwork I'm never going to complain about doing it in the virtual simulator ever again.

 

That's a nice little station layout. Is it based on anywhere?

[Annie]

54 minutes ago, Charlie586 said:

That's a nice little station layout. Is it based on anywhere?

Thanks Charlie, - it's based on Stogumber on the Minehead branch circa the mid 1880s.  In reality it was converted to the standard gauge during the 1870s and never went through a dual gauge phase.  One of the creators of models for Trainz, Steve Flanders, devised a way of making dual gauge track that would function in the Trainz simulator so I'm helping out with testing by actually using the kit of parts to build a layout.  The Minehead branch was ideal since the stations are fairly simple in their track layouts.

[Annie]

Queen class 'Prince Christian' circa 1875.  The latest GWR model from Steve Flanders and a lovely thing it is too.  Word is that an Armstrong 'standard goods' might be joining it reasonably soon.

The snap was taken on my Minehead project layout at the WIP placeholder station that will eventually become Norton Fitzwarren.

 

Edited January 3, 2022 by Annie
Fixed the date, - it's 1875!

[Annie]

Afternoon Broad Gauge cheer up picture:  Bristol & Exeter 4-4-0 Saddle Tank No 48 at Portishead.  Yes I've posted this picture before, but it's a favourite of mine so you'll have to put up with it.

 

[Annie]

A fun way to lose a few hours  https://railmaponline.com/UKIEMap.php

[Annie]

Today's cheer up picture:  This wonderful survivor by Head Wrightson and Co of Middlesbrough.  Wot do you mean it's ugly, - I think it's wonderful.