Park Road and Sunnybank Develop

On Monday I did some scanning of photos that Darren Lee provided of some locations around Brisbane.  These relate to locations that I am building items for on my layout.

Tuesday I got to the shed and was able to hang my latest NMRA AP certificate for Volunteer, and a framed poem from my retirement drinks written by one of my nephews.  I also got thinking about Sunnybank on the layout.  I was originally thinking of only having a single island platform for Sunnybank.  However, I rearranged the track to make two platforms just like the real one.  This will also help in making the baseboard stiff with the platforms forming braises.  Of Course I will also install the refuge at Sunnybank, and this will be where all my freight trains will turn around at.   I will install a siding at the end of the Down track, after a crossover to the Up track, so I can potentially store a railmotor there.

I also moved the baseboard up onto the top deck of the layout.  I used plastic tubs to support the deck while I pondered.  I then reduced the height of the baseboard by about 2 inches.  I think I still need to reduce the Down end of the baseboard (South Brisbane end) by about another half an inch.  To do this, I will need to cut about a half inch off one of the layout posts that holds all the decks up.  I actually got around to doing this at about 3:45pm today between games on the TV.

The baseboard for Sunnybank, sitting above Acacia Ridge Yard.

Some steel rod is used to keep the baseboard steady and at the correct height above the lower baseboard.  There are also some wooden braces as well.

Another two braces supporting Sunnybank.

I have been building 4 more portals for my Park Road shed.  I needed to make a trip to my local hobby shop and picked up a couple of packets of styrene.  I walked into the store and saw that the styrene stand was almost empty.  My heart sank.  But I studied the stand and found that the packets of styrene that I needed were there and I got the last ones of their size.  I then had to build 4 more of these for the intermediate frames in each of the 4 sections that I am currently building.  I may go to a 5^th section in size for my model, but I will see how 4 sections look on the layout first.

The five portal frames and 4 intermediate frames.

For something a little different I went for a walk in the new bus tunnel under Adelaide Street in the city on Wednesday.  It was a nice stroll.  That evening Arthur Robinson sent me an email and it had a plan of the original Sunnybank Station.  Luckily I had guessed some of the trackwork.  However, I had the fettler’s siding facing the wrong way.  That was easy to fix. 

A view down the Adelaide Street bus tunnel.

Saturday some of the 2025 NMRA Convention organising committee got together for a lunch.  It was a nice relaxing time.  I got home in time to watch the Brisbane Lions win the AFL premiership.  What a great day!  Today I watched the Broncos Women win and go through the final next week and then the Broncos men do the same against Penrith.  Another big weekend next week on Sunday watching three finals, Burleigh Bears, and two Bronco Teams.  I also have an Operations Session on the Saturday.

I have arranged the delivery of my next lot of 12mm track, 4 x points and 12 lengths of flex to enable me to finish Sunnybank on the layout.  This will occur on my next operations day in October, next Saturday.