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D&RGW narrow gauge: Back to scenics.


JZ
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Another little job sorted this week, was the bases for the pillars supporting the bents of the girder bridges. I was after something similar to that on the present Devil's Gate Bridge on the Georgetown Loop railway.

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Somewhere halfway between the ones in the picture. After chatting to the manager of a model shop I frequent about something suitable, tank traps were suggested, he said 'I could 3D print some for you'

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These scale out at about 10' high. Maybe I should have asked them to be a bit bigger at the base, but at a fiver for 12, they'll do.

 

The next thing I will be asking him to do is some stone built ones for a timber trestle I have managed to get hold of. This is a scale 70' high, the limit of what needs a base or can have the timber piled into the ground(evidently).

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Added the chain-link to the fence posts. I think it makes a huge difference visually.

 

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Really need to get that tarmac edge blended.

Edited by JZ
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When I embarked on this project, the plan was to get the trackbed finished, so I would have something to run trains on. Looking back though, I realise that this is something that hindered progress on previous layouts. So this time I am thinking of doing a short section at a time, this one so far has just 40" of track. The next one will be a bit more complex as it includes the depot and the part of town I am building. Much more fun I think as I don't keep looking at other parts of the layout and getting distracted. This next section will contain the most of the wiring, as away from it there will just be a couple of passing loops, a wye and the odd siding.

 

The above should have been posted yesterday, but disappeared and now re-appeared.

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Back to the present.

Been working on the area behind the roundhouse this morning.

 

Put a ditch alongside the road and used some plaster to give some texture to the piece of ground. Jury is still out on whether to fence it or leave it as it is, had comments for and against in the H0n3 modellers group. Not sure what to do yet, but the options are A: leave it. B: chain-link or C: Something like this:

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 I know this is look s rather British, but I have seen similar abroad and in the US.

 

 Now the hole is cut for the turntable, I thought it about time to finish it. Using a 3V DC power supply, a cheapish voltage regulator and a DPDT switch it now works.

 

 

Edited by JZ
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Between the Rugby, Grand Prix and British Touring Cars, I managed to put a building together.shortliner.jpg.e27d0eda21bdccfd4d42df687706dbec.jpg

 Still a few embellishments to add and then weather it. I have a die-cut ply building of Swedish manufacture that may become a sawmill and placed next to it.

This is one of two I bought from Jack Trollope's estate and named accordingly. The other is a transport depot and will become Jack's Transport Co.

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Last day of a week of rest days. It's been peeing down here most of the day, which has deterred me somewhat from going out to the shed. So I've been doing some work on rolling stock.  First up we have the East Tennessee & Western North Carolina RR (Tweetsie) caboose. A tiny bit of history. The ET&WNCRR was a 3' railway that ran from 1881 to 1950. Obviously it never linked with the D&RGW, so in my timeline, when it closed, some stock was bought up by the Rio Grande Southern, which itself only lasted until 1953. It kept it's ET&WNCRR number, which saved me finding a suitable place in the number series.

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Shall I try to replicate the bent handrail on the right?

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This is a 3D printed kit from Shapeways. Stiil to add some steps, handrails, ladder and some glazing. Mainly went for RGS as I had some transfers needing something to go on. End rails are some I bought from LaBelle woodworking. There is planking on the sides, this photo not bringing it out well.

 

Next up we have a Rail-Line kit that featured a while back.

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Looke like the ladder slipped while the guy was stencilling D&RGW:D. Transfers for this are from Microscale, though I also have some from San Juan and Thin Film for further cars. I've got another 8 of these to build. Every handrail require two 0.4mms hole to be drilled.

 

Couple of little jobs on the layout between showers.

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Put some telegraph poles in today. They work out at a scale 30', which is about right, but they look too tall. May take them out and take them down to 25'.

 

Also I put some wooden panelling over the door lintels.

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Once I get the floor finished, I can get the roof fixed and get it set into the layout. The little Roco shunter on top, I am looking at re-gauging it to act as yard pilot.

 

Another early morning on eBay again saw me winning four Micro-Trains reefers. These are nice little models and I was a little surprised that there was little opposition in the bidding. A single one had gone a few minutes earlier for £22 and I bagged all these for £16 each, though by the time import duties and postage are added, it comes to £27. Still not a bad price though.

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Colorado & Southern narrow Gauge ran until late August 1943, so these will be  heavily weathered to look as if they were transferred and not repainted.

 

Well, that's it for today. Back to work tomorrow, albeit not starting until 1300 and only a short briefing to do. I may get some modelling before I go and a bit more when I get back.

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Cut down the poles to 20' this morning. I think they look much better. Sometimes what look right isn't necessarily correct.

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Apart from painting the copper sleepers, I think I'm pretty much finished on this section. Time to move on to the depot and first section of town.

 

Also picked up another Blackstone reefer on eBay.

 

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What American porch would be complete without a rocking chair. Quick email to the ebay seller from which I bought the poles and he knocked this within 24hrs. Picked them up from the sorting office after work today.

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Now to see if ModelU will scan me with a banjo.

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A big thank you to Mick Whittle (Mike 84C). Mrs Whittle dropped off a box of goodies with my next-door neighbour this morning. Within the box were these fine loco's.

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First we have a Fujiyama K-36. This is to be fitted with sound and, hopefully, lighting. Info on the class here. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rio_Grande_class_K-36. Nine of the ten still exist and eight operational and are the regular haulers on both the Cumbres & Toltec and the Durango & Silverton. It will be painted as one that I travelled behind back in May.

 

Next we have a Westside K-37.

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This class of ten loco's were rebuilt from standard gauge 2-8-0s(D&RGW Class C-41) One is operational, another is close to restoration being complete as an oil burner, the other six are on display or in storage. This will be will most likely be finished as 499, which is on display at the Royal Gorge Bridge. This has an optional dogbox to go on the tender.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rio_Grande_class_K-37

 

Edited by JZ
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With the other stuff I purchased from Mick and the stuff I already had, plus 7 items on their way across the Atlantic, I now have around 50 freight cars and 7 cabeese, plus about ten passenger cars. Together with my two galloping Geese and six steam locos, I think I now have pretty much all I need to run a railway. Only thing I definitely want is a K-28, but for probably the rest of this year, my modelling fund is depleted, or at least until I get my finger out and sell some more of my S&D stuff.

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

First post in nearly three weeks. What has happened on the layout?  Not a lot really. For the last couple of weeks I have taken a break from the World up in the far Northwest of Scotland. No phone, no internet, no TV and, most importantly, no distractions. Took a load of rolling stock kits with me and made significant inroads into the pile. Five items complete bar couplings, transfers and trucks and another dozen fitted with all the body furniture and handrails, very little left to do apart from final assembly, painting and decals. No pictures yet, I've only got home in the last hour or so, but two more days off until back into work on Sunday.

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Today's job was painting the K-36. Not exactly a complex scheme. The lower frames were painted with Tamiya rubber black, as this area will have the heaviest weathering. The rest was Citadel Chaos black, then varnished ready for transfers. Still unsure of the number, either 480, my Durango & Silverton loco, or 489, my loco on the Cumbres & Toltec.

 

Before and after photos.

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Still a few other jobs to do, a sand coloured shade over the cab window and a padded armrest, bell and backhead.

 

My son will get it fitted with a sound decoder, I've already put holes in the tender floor, then it will be getting on with the K-37. And in the meantime, it will be back to the layout.

 

PS. If JZjr is reading this and wonders what I would like for Christmas, just look at the above.

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I've been pottering away at the odd building, rolling stock kit and of course, getting the K-36 decals on. Any work on the layout will wait until my next week of rest days in December. I've picked up a few bits and pieces on Ebay, a couple of RTR  freight cars and kits, including this:

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Although this is standard gauge, they make an H0n3 version, which damn near impossible to get, but now I have this, loads will turn up. Should be easy enough to reduce the gauge by 6mm. Reminiscent of Galloping Goose #1, this will; be painted light grey, the livery for D&RGW MOW (Maintenance of Way = to our PW) It is a static model and will be parked somewhere near the roundhouse, maybe with it's bonnet raised and a mechanic with his head in there.

 

The K-36 now has it's decals on. Just waiting for a slightly warmer day to give it a coat of varnish. Maybe Sunday?

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Bar glazing the cab and dogbox, 489 is complete. Here she is leaving Lucyville on a short passenger working to who knows where. I shall give her a light weathering, but otherwise leave her pretty much ex-works.

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I want to improve the lighting over this section and perhaps the whole layout in general. This side of the shed has always been for for fiddle yards and stock storage and been illuminated with fluorescent tubes, one 4' and one 6', which was fine for the use. But now it will be scenic, I feel the need for better lighting. One option is to add another 4' tube fitting and spread them out a little. Another thought which passed my mind today was to fit batten bulb holders with 9.5W (= 60W) LED bulbs, maybe every 2' or so. I find the light from these LED bulbs is much more even and whiter than incandescent bulbs, with the added advantage of a, supposed, 15 or 25 year life. The disadvantage is the relatively high initial cost, around £6.50 per unit, but once in, virtually maintenance free. Does anyone have any thoughts or input?.

 

I've browsed "Help & Advice", but can only find portable solutions.

 

 

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Company medical today, I'm fit to work trains for at least another couple of years. So after mulling over the lighting, Wickes are doing LED bulbs at £9 for 4, that brings the unit cost down to £4.40, I got some buildings kits out. These are Kibri, they come in sets of 3, I have another two sets, + plus some laser cut ply ones of similar size. Together they will form the mining town of Ava. This will be much further round the layout from where I am working at the moment, but they were a useful diversion from building rolling stock.

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The Watch maker would be a suitable place for one of the rocking chairs seen earlier.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Lack of posts doesn't mean lack of work. I have continued to build structures for the mining town of Ava, but no work on the layout now for 8 weeks. A rest day week coming up though will see a return to the shed and hopefully I can spend a full 7 days working on the depot area. This slightly milder weather should see me get the K-37 painted and an early finish today will see me get holes drilled in the tender for the speaker. Three more item of RtR rolling stock have arrived. I think I now have just about the right amount.

Going back to the buildings for Ava, I have decided to theme them, the theme being characters from M*A*S*H and generally along the lines of their roles in the show. So we will have a Rosie's Bar, the doctor is B.F.Pearce, the dentist, Dr Fudderman( a little obscure that one) Zale's general store, Rizzo's auto shop, etc

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  • 2 weeks later...

The incessant rain of the last week has, so far, stopped me from working out in the shed. Not because it's cold, I have a radiator to keep away the coldest temperatures and a halogen heater which warms the place up quickly, but the overall gloom and I want to get the lighting sorted and remove shelving, which will require going outside. Never mind, time has been used wisely. More structures have been built to be ready when I do get back to the layout. Last couple of days has seen work on the first of the Micro-Engineering trestles

 When finished it will look like this.

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Each of the towers has 116 parts in it's 3 storey height. This one will be built on a curve of about 30" radius. So far I've only built the outside pieces of each tower. The rest of the construction will have to wait until I get some larger steel squares. Next up tomorrow will be the lightweight version. 

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This is similar to the Lobato Trestle on the Cumbres & Toltec and because of the lightness of construction, will be built straight.

After that, will be this Campbell Models wooden trestle.

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These will form the main engineered structures on the line.

 

On another note. If anyone is building Canadian Pacific and fancies having a go at Lethbridge Viaduct, 16 Tall steel viaduct kits, plus various extension kits would give you this.

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Mind you, you would need around 62' in H0, or 33 in N, to put it up.

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After consulting a map of the D&RGW and Google maps, I now have a location for the railway. And a more official sounding name.Map.jpg.cd0004f4fa39fdcbe1f343e3592a695d.jpg

I've decided to call the midpoint station Frome, but I imagine the locals will pronounce it Frome instead. Frome being a nod to my birth town and in the county of Somerset, see branch running east from Delta.

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Edited by JZ
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Nice little package arrived today from America. 15 pairs of trucks, a mixture of Kadee and Grandt Line. These were from a member of one of the Facebook groups I'm in. Total, including shipping, of £86. So about £5.75 a pair. They usually go for £12.65. Chuffed as nuts. I now have enough 3'7" wb trucks for all my Rail-Line and laBelle cars.

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Unearthed this map in the last few minutes.

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This one shows the 'Chili Line' from Antonito to Santa Fe. Although Antonito is shown as a major town, in reality it is little more than fly blow on a map. The population was only ever over 1000 between 1940 and 1970, now down to around 750. But I am drifting away from my story. The Rio Grande Southern, between Ridgway and Durango was quite lightly built, K-27 loco's were the largest to work the line. The story is my branch was more heavily built and able  to cope with the traffic from mines in Monticello. So I've taken the loop out to Monticello in Utah and although I won't be modelling it, it does provide a source of traffic. Farming and ranching took place around there and between 1940 and 1960, uranium and vanadium was mined. The link with the RGS also provides the excuse for the Galloping Geese I have. The geography of the places modelled, fits nicely with the backscenes I have, though the period, around 1960, does play fast and loose with history.

Edited by JZ
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  • 1 month later...

 “Perchance it is not dead but sleepeth.”

 

Actually a case of winter blues. Still pottering away with little jobs that can be done indoors, but hoping for a bit of milder weather after Dennis has gone. This will, hopefully, see me removing the rest of the shelving that was above the fiddle yards of Gurney Slade and then I can get the next few sections of backscene in. All the town buildings are pretty much complete and ready to plonk down once the yard layout is finalised.

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