I have started on Stage 3 of the line, so it was also a good time to update the plan.
The track in red is only in my head at the moment and actual layout yet to be finalised. The line is designed primarily for operation with a concession to some continuous running should that be required on the track in front of the main workshop, although that may change. This currently houses the 16mm layout
First Sunday in June and the 7mm layouts
The Yard and
Whiteoak Light Railway (since sold and being exhibited by the new owner). These layouts will ultimately release the space for a 28 feet by 3 feet intensively industrial section of the railway, in style along the lines of
Whiteoak and
Theobald's Yard but in 16mm scale, featuring working RC cranes and RC 16mm scale lorries. The garage workshop will give some space for another station and some industry now the car restoration has finished. In the colder months we will be able to do running indoors and just sending the trains out in the cold!
A very recent development has been the demise of the greenhouse. This had become in recent years a shed with many windows. My wife has decided she would like a garden studio instead for her to expand her craft making hobby, she wanted it with a covered seating area, I did not need asking twice. The covered seating will make a nice operating position!
The building has been ordered and I have about a month to get the groundwork done. My daughter suggested finishing it to look like a station, I have not passed that suggestion on yet!
While on one of my regular skip emptying days (every two and a half weeks), Ken cut up some more roofing sheet for stage 3 of the railway.
From my cutting list, I had a good supply of sheeting.
When downsizing my company, I had a load of metal desk legs which I kept for that 'might come in useful one day' moment.
Here they are being adapted with Dexion angle.
These are then bolted together with long lengths of Dexion.
Here you can see the hedging plants which were all raised from cuttings when Ken trimmed his hedging. They will eventually reach the height of the layout and screen the supports from view.
The greenhouse in the background in this last few days has gone.
The view showing where it joins Stage 2.
From this viewpoint I am about 12 feet in front of the main workshop, this shows the relationship between Stage 1 (on the right) alongside the conservatory and house, to Stage 2 around the greenhouse, then along to Stage 3 behind the garage.
Now with the roof sheeting in place and the edging painted black ( I could not get on with white).
I needed to cut some more hardwood track support strips, luckily I still have a lot of the old hardwood window frames from when my mum had hers changed to UPV, it seems a waste to creosote and bury in gravel this lovely wood.
Here using the bandsaw to rip it into 12mm square strips. I had now updated my bandsaw to one with roller bearings rather than graphite sticks to guide the blade, much better with bearings.
A batch that has been painted in creosote.
Throughout this build I have managed to get for free or very cheaply the materials for the railway. Even the track, 99% of it is secondhand bought cheaply or been given to me over many years for the one day project.
The same is happening with the hard landscaping. Our village Facebook page has resulted in a good selection of materials, my latest gain is all these brindle paving bricks for free, the only proviso is they needed to be collected by 2pm or they are going in the skip, the local builder had finished a job and was clearing the site. Four trips later they were all home. This is very nearly a full pallet load of Marshall blocks that are over £200 to buy.
Martin
