Post #33

South Coast Traction has been underway for close on two years and at this stage nothing has been able to complete a circuit on the baseboard.

A lot of work had to be undertaken to get the room ready the major task being the laying of carpet tiles right through the shed. This wasn't a hard project except for the bits under the existing portions of the layout. The baseboard and legs had to raised to get the tiles underneath.

There was plenty of design work to get the track layout  worked out. I have tried to make it an interesting design with options of routes and two termini that the cars can operate between, that is also dependent on them being twin pole equipped.

I came to the realisation that distractions on the layout such as doing small pockets of scenery and assembling the multitude of building needed wasn't advancing the trackwork. If you put the projects required the first one would be to get the track laid. It doesn't have to be every piece of track so I will concentrate on getting a circle of track around the baseboard.

What has also given me incentive to get a move on was that I have nominated a gathering of friends here later this year to see what has been done. These have been regular meetings over many years where we gather, have a drink, barbeque, lunch, a layout run (if they have one) maybe a video if we have time and then decide who will have the next one.

So after laying some of the track that only requires ready made points and track, I now realise that I have to get on with doing the hand laid track slog again. I say again as it has been around fifty odd years since I last handlaid points (some of the earlier blogs detail that). The previous layout had the overhead live and return through the rails. This made trackwork so much easier than using the two rail method. Going down this path will mean I will be able to have operation well before the overhead is erected. And also other people who have 2 rail traction will be able to run their equipment on the layout. It will be designed for DCC operation but if I have to switch over to DC then the whole layout will be live as one large section. The depot will be isolated so that any DCC trolleys can be left there saving them from having to being removed from the layout.

Previously I had a go at the first handlaid point but got into trouble when I discovered that the Fast Track sleepers I obtained had different heights from the smaller ones compared with the longer point sleepers. Dumb. So I decided to give it a rest and decided that I would try something simpler in doing some plain points.

 I thought the best way to get some consistency in each point was to create a full size template drawing. As previously stated I have set on 11 inch radius to accommodate the Electroliner in the future. I am aware that I could have gone to a smaller radius but this size looks good, not too tight and not too large. I knocked out a right hand point in Coreldraw and then flipped it for a left hand point. The template allows to pre-bending of the rail to the correct radius or as close as possible. By doing this the extra tension that would be there by forcing the rail into the right radius is eliminated. It also allows for a uniform check rail and closure rails length. Win win.

11 inch point template

 

The first step was to lay out the sleepers and glue them down for the correct spacing and length. Initially I didn't use many wooden sleepers but more PC ones. But after building a few I found it will be possible to use more wooden than the PC ones. I was able to get some Mount Albert timber which required a light sanding to bring them down to the same height as the PC ones. 

The first point I laid used some code 83 rail that I had spare from the old HO layout. The sleepers were removed from the rail. Some of the ready to run track was unfortunately Code 100 which when laid beside the Code 75 looks way bigger. I also managed to get some Peco code 75 rail similarly stripped from the sleepers.

Throw bar and isolating the rails to be done

 The photo above shows the results of the first two points constructed. A little bit on the rough side but the true test will come when the throwbar and the PC boards are cut to enable two rail operation. I will be using some Tortoise point motors to power them but that will be a problem for another day. I have never used this type of point motor so that another thing I will have to study. These points will be ballasted in their own right of way and not street ones. They will be a single blade if I can work out how to make them. There is a continuous radius of 11 inches through the complete point and I was lucky to find an 11 inch radius template originally designed for N scale that fits right between the rails. As you can see in the photo I have also incorporated some of the Peco track sleepers onto the rails between the points. This also acts to keep the track in gauge. To test the track at this stage I use a single bogie and run it through to see if there are any tight spots. And also I use an NMRA track gauge to get the track right.

The grey track template and bogie for track testing

 So far I have managed to get around three points constructed and at this stage seem to be in gauge and OK. I have pushed a tram and bogie freight car the points and there doesn't seem to be any binding. A lot of surplus/extra solder on the sleepers will be removed later on with the copper wick that sucks up the solder.

And my first curved one.

I now feel some progress has been made with these first three points nearly complete, the building exercise gets easier the more you do. They might look a bit ugly at the moment but once they get painted up and the ballast is added and weeds I think they will come out alright. I have also built these points directly onto the baseboard, I don't see the need to put them onto a sub base of timber or cork.

Well I have bitten the bullet and made the hard start on the handlaid track. I still think I will prefer putting up the overhead than doing the trackwork but the track has to be laid first. Then once the trackwork is done ballasted and looking pretty then the overhead goes up.

Car 250 waits patiently in the depot for the overhead

This a progress diagram showing what track is currently laid and what there is to go. I will update when more gets done.

 

 

 

 

Post #32

Some times you can be lucky. I was looking through my favourite time waster the other day. I have joined two specific Facebook sites dedicated purely to model railways. I was lucky the day I was looking and came across a tram that was being offered up. Long story short I ended up getting a fleet  of cars from the buyer that were already painted and ready to go. What a way to go, the whole fleet in one go. They are currently being fitted with dcc decoders while the layout building continues.

But I recently spotted a pile of rolling stock surrounding a green tram. I wasn't familiar with what it was, the photo wasn't very clear. I messaged the seller that I was only interested in the tram and a yellow wagon that was beside the tram. In his posting he declared that he wasn't familiar with what he was selling. I ended up in the end getting all of the items as he didn't want them.

What I ended up with

The package ended up here today, nicely packed in bubble wrap. I suppose one bonus was that there were also two freight cars labelled for 'Pacific Electric' at least they were an traction line that I was aware of.

Once I got to the bottom of the bubble wrap the tram was a pleasant surprise. I discovered it was a painted brass model and I found out where it operated by showing my ignorance and posting some photos on a US Facebook site 'Traction Model Railroading' to see if anyone could shed any info on it. Despite it being around midnight in the states a reply came back advising that it was a model of a 'Sacramento Northern Niles car'.

At the South Aurora terminus

Another interesting issue was that the car was labelled 'South Pacific Electric Railway' I was familiar with the 'Pacific Electric Railway'. A possible reason for that particular naming is that our Sydney Tramway Museum was also know as the South Pacific Electric Railway so I am guessing it was named after that. As I am collecting cars from anywhere and not just a specific company it will stay that way.

I took it down the shed to try it out and after giving it a good dust off with the paint brush it went onto the track for a run. It was only DC at this stage and when the throttle was opened nothing happened, not what I hoped for. So out came the screwdriver to take off the four screws from the body. (Why can't current models be assembled this way? So simple.) There no broken wires and when the wires were placed onto the carbon brush terminals it sprung into action. Great. It gave off that familiar electric motor smell these old motors seemed to have. After having the motor working I then placed the body back on and then gave it a run up and down a short section of track.

The wheels were clean indicating that it probably hadn't done much running but it will benefit with a bit of running to loosen up the mechanism. I found also that operating under DC there wasn't much of a range on the throttle but when decoder is fitted I hope there will be a much smoother operation over the speed range. I much prefer the slow side of the dial.

One bonus with this car is that it is fitted with two trolley poles meaning it will be able to travel between the two termini on the layout. It will mean dropping down the front pole and then putting up the rear one, but that is at least part of the fun and operation.

The car has an inbuilt sound when moving along which makes you wonder why fit a sound decoder? The only bonus there would be a horn and compressor sounds. It would be certainly different if it was a steam or diesel locomotive.

Next to the new platform under construction

Well I am certainly happy with this purchase, just means I will have to keep looking out for more? 😇🚋
 

Post #31

 Sometimes you need a distraction with building the layout. That opportunity came along recently when trolling through one of the Facebook model rail sites I spotted the above kit offered up for sale. The only trouble was that it was offered for sale with a pile of other unwanted items. It had been up for a few days and not sold. So I sent a message to the seller offering to just buy the Bobs Hot Dog Stand. After a while he contacted me and said he was OK to sell it so after payment and a week the items turned up here.

I had plans to place small items like this around the city, its small footprint will make it fit into a lot of places. How US can it be? A hot dog stand. I recently spotted another diner for sale, I think it was either Miss Bettys Diner or Miss Mollies Diner? and was already constructed but it's price of $160 was a definite no. 

The above photo shows the simplicity of the kit. It was made by Pola in West Germany under the Model Power brand. I would say it was an old kit but suits what I want it for. The next job was to remove the items from the sprues and file the joining points smooth.

The four sides were glued to the base and the side building also attached. All the parts were moulded in the one tan colour and no seperate windows were provided. To line up with the red and white colour of the advertising signs on the roof I was going to also paint the trims and window frames in red as well. But I didn't have any red paint, the next choice was to use some Tamiya Flat green. I left the roof off until I had done the painting work.

I had to find my smallest brush to paint the trims. Does shifting from O scale to HO scale make painting twice as hard, everything is smaller. The inevitable whoops happened as I tried to bring the brush down the side of the timber work. It is hard enough to do this in 1: 1 scale never mind the size in HO. No panic ensued, I realised it would be easy enough to scrape away the blemishes with a sharp blade knife. I think this trim painting is required as the kit would look rather bland without it done. Would have looked more striking in red but the green works okay.

The signage for around the top of the building and other advertising were provided on a seperate coloured sheet and had to be trimmed away. The above photo show that I didn't spot the two offcuts of paper sittiing on one of the signs. (It reads 'Ice Cream' in case you can't work it out) Once the sign is glued to the backing there is an overhang of red paper which I reckon most people would trim off but later I realised it should have been left to cover up the end of the other ad board.

The signs were attached to the roof and the exhaust stack also glued on. I guessed the stack would be over the back inside room inside. The roof was also weathered using the universal Tamiya Khaki Drab colour diluted with isopryl alcohol, my standard go to for weathering.

The advertising signs were all cut out and pasted to the building as per suggested on the box. The large 'Coca Cola' sign certainly stands out on the front where an awning is provided over the serving area. Without these advertising signs the building would look rather plain.

The above photos show how the finished stand finished up. Naturally it was weathered with the very diluted Khaki drab and the usual weeds are starting to grow around the edges. There are a few other detailing items to be included in future but that will be when a final location is found.

Another thing I have realised is after the photos taken are viewed on the monitor all the blemishes and hiccups are discovered. Trust me the building looks better from the normal viewing distance. 

How could I have refused to let an appropiately named business go by?

 

 

Post #30

 Well doesn't time fly, I am up to Post #30 and still a trolley/tram hasn't yet circled the baseboard. That reason is because the track hasn't been completed. I have laid some commercial Peco track where the line will be in reserved track, that's the easy part. But the bit that needs the handlaid track is running slow. I had attempted a turnout recently using the Fast Tracks printed circuit sleepers but it appears that their normal track as opposed to the turnout sleepers are a slightly different height. Why this would happen I can't understand. This means I can't use a mixture of both types and will have to just use the turnout ones solely for the turnouts. I can see a future need for sending off again to the states and ordering more turnout sleepers.

Way back when I was doing my blogs for the HO rail layout I mentioned a few times that I would wonder off to the shed and wonder what project I would start on. There were so many to do that I would just end up grabbing a throttle and just running trains. Great time waster. I have finally come to the conclusion that for something to run it will need the tracks laid right around the board.

So I have finally made a start on turnout No. 2 and glued the pc sleepers to the baseboard. I was lucky enough to have a mate Kev who works as an aircraft engineer and was able to pass on a tin of out of date glue to me to try. This stuff is that good and still usable. I reckon they could glue broken planes together and still fly. Trust me it glues fingers together. Working with the open glue tin in front of me, I haven't yet decided if I like the smell of the glue or not. Sitting on a bar stool I had to be carefull not to inhale to strongly.

No. 1 on its way

The mimimum radius I will be using is 11 inches mainly because it is designed to be able to take the Electroliner set completely around all tracks on the layout. At a recent model exhibition I noticed an N scale template designed for 11 inch radius curves, which is ideal for what I needed. I was going to use the full width to sit inside the rails like normal templates do. But because it wasn't designed for that purpose, it was close and was maybe 17mm wide instead of 16.5mm so I needed to sand it down to 16.5mm to fit in between the track. I had tried to hand make and cut out other templates but this one worked the best.

The turnout will be made to operated as two rail polarity and the overhead will be for dummy operation. It is hoped that the frogs can work off an accessory switch when the turnout is changed. Thats a bit further on down the track.

Turnout No. 2

For the track in between the turnouts I plan on threading the plastic sleepers from the lengths of plain track rather than use the pc sleepers, This will be a quicker way of joining up all the track sections. Anyway thats for the future.

And today rather than do any more work with the track I decided to do some scenery work around the trolley stop at South Aurora. There is a platform in the centre of the crossing loop with a trolley stop. I have installed some lights for the passengers but when the get off they can't go anywhere except to the close by terminus which requires crossing the track, going down the walkway and then over to the platform where the terminating trolleys are hopefully waiting. I had some spare timber that was sold as a walkway for a reefer walkway. I was generous to make it twice as wide as a brakeman would find on the roof. 

 It then time to go planting the grass weeds and flowers and anything that would make the area look nicer. Although the area finished was small  I liken this work as to having a colouring in book and eventually it is all done.

A little bit of scenery helps make the scene

 Well even though I didn't progress any further with the track today, some scenery work helps fill in the colouring book. More next time.

 

Post #29

 Many, many years ago I was a member of the Sydney Tramway Museum. When my modelling interest changed in the early eighties I left the organisation as basically a cost saving issue and having too many fingers in the pie so to speak. I admire modellers who have time to devote to more than one modelling interest. Sometimes it is hard to find the time just to follow one aspect of the hobby.

Having left narrow gauge modelling (though still interested and a Life member of Puffing Billy) when I decided to revisit tramway modelling I thought it would be good to chance to get reinterested in the Tramway Museum. My working days on the end of a shovel should have been utilised when both my interest and strength were at their peak back in the eighties.

Once a year the Sydney Tramway Museum at Loftus located in the southern side of Sydney have a major event towards the end of February that co-incides with end of tramways in Sydney. An effort is made to have trams that are not seen that often to get out of the shed and have a run.

The museum in its second location is located at Loftus right adjacent to the local railway station so it easily accessible by public transport. The museum is well established and quite a few hours can be had there. Exhibition halls are full of trams, many photos and other memorabilia to see.

So on the day I started my journey 40km north of Sydney. I met a friend on the way and so headed off down the north shore line, over the Sydney Harbour bridge. First stop was to be Central where a change of train was to take us down to Loftus. The prior information obtained by a 'Trip Planner' and the railways info line were the same so we had some assurance the trip would run as planned. Sydney on the Sunday was awash with many lines having bus replacements, no metro running and to top it off the day was very humid and hot. The assumed five minute transfer actually turned out to be over a half an hour (after bailing up a rail worker on the platform) Eventually a train turned up heading for the beachside suburb of Cronulla, we boarded and were advised to change at Sutherland (one station short of our destination). Getting off the train at Sutherland we then had another fifteen minute wait for a four minute trip.

We finally got there around three hours after I left my home station, it may have been hot and humid but thankfully no rain on the day. The promotion of the day seemed to have worked and there were plenty of people there and many families. Having sent my application to be a 'Friends of the Sydney Tramway Museum' member I was prior advised that my mebers card would be ready at the gate so I picked it up. Luckily this co-incided with the release of the new A4 format of their house journal 'Trolley Wire' and after seeing a copy earlier it looks an excellent production.

Having looked up what events would be available on the day I noticed mention made of a model tramway setup would be on display at the substation building. This location was towards Sutherland and a long ride on the tram would get you there. We found an LP ex Newcastle tram heading that way and after a short trip arrived at the substation building. It was great to get out of the heat and inside. There were a few remnants of electrical equipment left behind and there were various groups of other kindred interests, such as buses and ferries. And along one wall was the model tramway set up. It was made in HO scale and I seem to rember seeing it at past exhibitions in the past. It is good that it has been saved and the layout is being looked after by a group that enjoys modelling as well as the full sizes trams.

Having viewed the layout, we then ventured out into the heat again to wait for another tram to take up back the the depot area. This time we were able to get the latest tram that Sydney had purchased, it was a fully enclosed corridor car and the seats were upholstered compared with the forward journey tram that had hard wooden seats. No air-conditioning available (other than the doors or windows open), we are spoiled for choice these days.

Our two tram rides for the day

 Back at the museum and it was time to start looking for a train home. 

After a short walk to the station and a ten minute wait a train turned up and as the Illawarra train were not running to Bondi Junction, they ran around the City Circle. The planets aligned, we arrived on Platform 17 and after a three minute wait a connecting train on Platform 16 took me home. So after a frustrating start the days visit at the museum and the good connection at the end of the day all made for a great day out. 

Post #28

I have been able to make this post with thanks to a friend Kevin, a United aircraft engineer who was recently posted for a few weeks on a work roster. During his time there he was able to have a look around in free time and one of the visits was to the St. Kilda Tram Museum. My last trip to Adelaide the capital of the state of South Australia was possibly 50 years ago when all I had was a trusty Bolex 8mm movie camera. The results of this trip are in the big pile of movie film yet to be sorted out one day.

Adelaide - photo Kevin Waid

 

1950's electric tram network - Wikipedia

 Back in the 70's all that existed of the tramway network was a line that ran from the city to the bayside city of Glenelg. A lot of the line was in reserved track and the main infrastructure was a flyover of the main railway line. Any only the H type cars painted silver with red lining were running. But the foresite of retaining this section of tramway later led to extensions through the city to other locations. The H cars have all gone from the main system replaced by more modern units.

I am not familiar with where the following Kevins photos were taken so just enjoy them.

Virtually every capital city and various regional towns in Australia have either light railways or museums for viewing electric traction. And not forgetting the city of Melbourne that never abandoned their immense system, you could spend a lot of time travelling over it.
 Another location Kevin went to was the St. Kilda Tramway Museum, ironically at St. Kilda. It has certainly come a long way since my last visit, again I will put up a selection of his photos. Amongst the Adelaide trams there are also examples from Melbourne, Sydney and Ballarat a regional Victorian town.

 And to top it all off Kevin brought back a gift of some items they had for sale. They were two different types of employees metal passes and possibly buttons maybe off a jacket. On the metal passes the initials MTT appear that stood for the Municipal Tramways Trust the company that were responsible for operating the tramways. Established in 1906 that company lasted until December 1975 and then operated as the State Transport Authority. As they say out here: "They are going straight into the pool room" (A quote from the movie The Castle)

 I have been doing some model work on the layout, not a lot at this time but just some scenic work around the trolley stop, a fence has been erected to stop passengers falling down onto the floor. I feel as if I am working on a colouring in book, slowly chipping away to get it all finished. So here are a few photos of the progress:

Until next time..........