Holidays are Over

Well it is time to head back to work tomorrow.  However, I feel that I have accomplished quite a bit in the shed over the Christmas New Year break.

 

So since the last running session, I spent lots of time improving the look of the layout.  The first thing I did was screw the section from Loco Pilly to Dutton Park into the wall.  This section has been sitting on lots of triangular pieces of wood to support it at the correct location for a couple of years.  It is now permanently attached to the wall with the supports removed.  The next task that I undertook, was using lots of wire clamps to afix the numerous wires under the layout to the baseboard instead of letting them droop down.  I still have lots more to do, but lots of areas have been tidied up.  But I did some work under Clapham Yard, under the Loco Pilly to Dutton Park incline and under South Brisbane Interstate. 

 

I then got around to installing fascias to lots of areas on the layout.  This included the South Brisbane Interstate area.  The top of the blob from South Brisbane to Park Road Siding, Park Road Sidings themselves and the Loco Pilly to Dutton Park incline.  I also added a fascia to Clapham Yard and then to some more of Acacia Ridge Yard.  I then added some to various places on the helix as well as to Fairy Hill Loop (both sides) and to Nammoona Ballast Siding.

South Brisbane Interstate on the top deck, Fairy Hill Loop below that with Nammoona Ballast Siding in the bottom foreground.

 

The blob at the top with Park Road Siding on the top left. Below that was Fairy Hill Loop, with some new fascia also visible around the helix to the left of my "I Love Trains" sticker.

  

The Loco Pilly to Dutton Park incline - with fascia as well as free standing attached to the wall.

Clapham Yard also got the new fascia.

 

More added to Acacia Ridge Yard as well.

 

I then thought I would eventually get around to cutting the wood for the various station platforms not already cut – South Brisbane Interstate, Old Cassino and Murwillumbah.  I then attached a dead section of track in Clapham Yard and soldered two jumpers on there.  I also connected the push buttons on a small control to control the point for Dutton Park. 

 

South Brisbane Interstate Platform in two pieces of wood.

 

Old Cassino Platform now cut to shape and in place.

 

I also got around to adding some additional text to the top of some of control panels to make it more obvious what they apply to.  Hopefully removing some confusion in the next and future operating sessions. 

 

I had a look at the branch line passenger from last session and checked the bogies on one wagon.  I also adjusted the coupler heights on one wagon with KD washers under the bogie.  I ran the passenger train from Murwillumbah to Cassino and back and it ran fine.  So hopefully now it is problem solved.

 

Speaking of Murwillumbah, I started planning and building the Murwillumbah Cement Silo.  I started yesterday, after picking up some styrene on Wednesday afternoon at a local hobby store.  Today I bought some 50mm pipe for the top of the structure and a can of greenish paint for the basic colour of the structure.  I painted the roller door this morning and experimented with a weathered finish as per the photos I have collected for this structure.

The Murwillumbah Cement Silo structure so far.

 

I also did some work on the dual gauge track into Acacia Ridge Yard very early in the week.

The dual gauge track in the foreground.

 

I still need to investigate a point that would not throw that I forgot to check into.  I will leave that for next week.  I still need to install the locations marker at Kyogle for the railmotor as well.

 

Late this arvo I did have a very quick run as a demonstration for a friend of my son, whom we were looking after this afternoon.  I turned off the lights in the shed and turned on the layout lights and ran a train out of Grafton Yard and you would not believe it - As the train was exiting the Yard it caused a short.  My reversing unit kept cycling.  I could not believe what was occurring.  After about a minute and two attempts to cycle the power to the whole layout, the young kid looked at the track next to a set of points and said “What is this screw doing here?”  He went to touch it and it was red hot.  I think we found the issue.  The train as it was leaving the yard moved the screw into the V between the diverging tracks on the point and it just touched the electrofrog point. Amazing!