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 I was lucky enough to have a mate Kev who works as an aircraft engineer and was able to pass on a tin of out of date glue to me to try.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..........
 

Post #27

Hi and welcome to 2026. It was last year some time that I did my last posting so we are due for an update.

The first blog was dated March 2024 so it won't be long before it has been two years since I have gone back to traction world. In some of the earlier blogs I revealed how I am revisiting traction modelling again. It seems every layout I get involved with becomes 'my last layout ever' but I seem to prove that wrong. I guess the desire for creativity overpowers longevity. I have enjoyed every layout built in the past and can only hope that my modelling skills have improved along the way.

So after a year or so I have been collecting ideas, research material, obtaining models, importing the required overhead wiring hardware from the states. I have only five books (currently) on electric traction including the two inspirational books - The Time of the Trolley and The Interurban Era, both William D Middleton books. My original copies from fifty years ago have long gone, hopefully someone else has been enjoying them.

The tilting baseboard has been assembled and is armed with a leg in each corner to prevent accidental turning. I don't want that yet as there is too much crap on top and would all end up in a pile on the floor. Some track has been laid, the depot has track in it although the sides and roof are yet to come (another day). Buildings have been sourced, I have assembled one and the others are patiently waiting in their boxes for their day on the layout. When I spot something on the web that might work on the layout I obtain it if I am quick. My bargain so far was ten trams for $50 which included the brass Brill four wheel sprinkler car.

One corner of the layout has been cut away to form a part river and will be my interpretation of the Aurora terminus. I am still looking for plans of the platform shelter.

Fan trip to South Aurora

 The trolleys are still away having their DCC decoders fitted and the track is not ready yet so no rush with that. I am tossing up whether to obtain one of the new Rapido Toronto cars being released. When you start adding up exchange rates and postage and other dreamed up government taxes, it will be a later decision. But when you consider what you now get in a model, it is very tempting.

When setting priorities it should be obvious that you get the track laid first. I have obliged this in a few areas but the temptation to do some scenery work comes in strong. I feel that this is what brings a layout to life and I am happy with the small amount done so far. The photo above show the river scene done so far and I was looking for another area to try some work.

Location of work area

The above diagram shows where I chose to do some more scenery work. In previous plans the boxed section was to have been a roadway but the chance to have some double track right of way proved stronger. I also wanted to have a trolley stop, this not only adds operation interest by having to stop there for passengers but will serve a few houses that will reside on the right hand side of the stop. At this end of the baseboard the board has been raised around 20mm to get away from the flat earth policy. The climb is very gradual and in typing this I have come up with the location name 'Hill End' Indeed that is the name of a town in outback New South Wales.

The track through this section is Peco code 75 flexible track, chosen for its finer appearance that the code 100 track. The rail head is smaller as well as the height. It has easily been curved to an eleven inch radius curve to accomodate the Electroliner.

As can be seen in the top photo the track crosses a single industry line via two 90 degree crossings, these were Atlas code 83 as they don't make the 90 degree ones in code 75. A bit of filing will see them sit OK.

The platforms were made with some thin cork. I painted the rail head with some water colour and then laid the cork over the rail. This then gave an accurate 'where to cut' guide. I have used this method in the past ventures. The shelter shed was gifted by a friend James when we attended a model rail exhibition last October. It is perfect for this location, made of metal and already painted. 

The two platforms have been connected by a wooden walkway so passengers can exit the location towards the houses, a mistaken direction the other way would certainly lead to death over the edge of the baseboard. (Reminder: Install fences). The platforms were coated with some coloured plaster I have had for years and look ideal to represent a tarred platform. There is a lot more scenery, namely fences, lights and plants to be installed here yet. The cork readily absorbs the paint and has a mottled finish rather than a plain finish of say styrene.

 

I chose the reddish ballast from a choice of leftover I have had from over the years. It is probably meant for N scale but I think works better than a course HO type. It is set in place but the tried and tested method of watering down with the spray bottle plus a few drops of detergent and then some watered down PVA glue. Sets like a rock and then this allows the initial track pins to be removed. (Ain't going nowhere). The rail edges were also painted, an essential in my book. No where in the real world is the side of the track 'silver'

The weeds are coming

I looked in my scenery draw and found some Mininatur foliage for in between and around the track that looked suitable. I am sure weeds were the last thing on the minds of the traction bosses when trying to run a company at a profit. My company is no different. So I pulled a chair up to the edge of the layout, music in the background, some tweezers and a dab of PVC and the planting commenced. Slow work but the end result came out OK. The edge of the cork will also be blended in with more weeds. At the moment I have only used the one type of weed but to add variety more varieties will be included. You don't just get the one type of weed in real life, (If only)

 

 The connection walkway between the platforms are representitive of an era when you knew to take care and lookout for yourself. There will be no heaps of warning signs, flashing lights etc to warn you, like today. I am modelling a back in the good old days era where you had some personal responsibility. (Also quicker to model) The shelter has been glued into place and some flowers have already started growing around the back.

 So some more work to be done around this area before overhead can be erected. I am happy how it has turned out. I placed a photo yesterday on the Facebook Traction Model Railroading site and it seems to have been well received. So I will keep going.

Not sure what will be on the next post or when, so keep checking, thanks for your interest. 

Post #26

Although this blog is mainly about the construction of my traction layout, there are always distractions along the way.

I have been lucky to retain the friendship of school mates I went to school with over sixty years ago next year. We all have an interest in 'railways' and every few months or so we gather at each others places for an afternoon of rail activity, usually a model layout, maybe a rail video and always a lunch and afternoon tea and plus a drink or two.

Yesterday was Phils turn and he has a magnificent layout, I would call it finished but he always seem to find a spot to add more items to.

Also good news in that a few years ago Phil had submitted a proposal to have his layout included in the Australian Model Railway magazine. After not having heard anything from the editor, luck would have it that Phil bumped into the editor at the recent Rosehill Model rail exhibition and it now seems that the layout may feature sometime in the magazine during 2026. It is called the Northmeadow Lines, NSW based, so watch out for it next year.

I took a handfull of photos, the layout is so photogenic I could have taken hundreds but I will let the magazine show it all off.

Here is a handfull of photos I took yesterday: