Terra Forming Again

This weekend I have begun terra forming the area south of Fairy Hill Loop.  I plan to finish the initial layer of tissue soaked plaster over the next few days and may even have some basic scenery down in the form of dirt, sand and green scatter material by the time the guys come over for a running night on Tuesday.

While deciding the lay of the land of this area, so to speak, I have decided that I have room for three farm houses in the area I'm currently working on.  There will also be a country lane way that will go through the area that is just wide enough to fit one car on.  It will have dirt and gravel verges and will end with a level crossing protected by give way signs.

Basic foam shapes

Where the Lane will be

On Saturday I also spray painted two sets of Auscision Container flats, and a few other wagons I had laying around, some AR Kits Wheat Wagons and two scratchbuilt ballast wagons.  I even hit a shed I made back in May this year.  It is now ready to go on the layout somewhere. 

Holidays

I must apologise for no post last Sunday.  I even got reprimanded over it yesterday while at the loco train shop - Hey Dave!  I just spent 6 days down the coast across the road from the beach at Burleigh Heads on the Gold Coast.  Great view, nice weather, not too hot and easy walk to the patrolled beach which was straight across the road.  Apart from the mobile phone ringing non stop and the hundreds of work emails I answered on my phone, I did not get around to check out the newsgroups, blogs and my private email all last week.  So that is the reason why there was no Blog update last Sunday.

Well while down the coast I spend a bit of time finishing off 6 NOCY wagons until I ran out of 0.030" x 0.040" styrene.  I picked up another packet on Saturday morning, so these wagons will have to wait until the Christmas break to be completed now.  I also roofed two little skillion roof signal boxes and I also put together a water tank from Casula and most of a nicely detailed wooden frame kit for the water tank to sit on.  I'm not sure where this kit will go, possibly Cassino Loco, as the water tank I need for The Risk is supposed to be on an iron underframe I think.  I should check the photos more closely!

Just before we went away, I spotted some Chiffon Wrap 18cm x 2m for $3.99 from a cheap shop.  I think this will make great HO fly screen for my houses and signal boxes.  I'msure its uses on the layout will be endless.  It is so much finer than the usual Tule we use for chain wire.

Saturday morning upon return from the Coast I also had to visit the Post Office to pick up our Club's order for Auscision CBQY, PRRY, and RQHY that Australia Post tried to deliver lastThursday while I was away.  My component of teh order was a set of PRRY and RQHY.  Boy is the detail fine!  I putthem on the track Saturday evening.  My concern is that the PRRY's emit a large amount of noise when going around curves.  The bogies, squeak and rub on the wagon end frames - Not happy Jan!  The RQHY's run much better.  All wagons roll fairly well on the straight, it's just the PRRY's don't like my 750mm curves where I just happened to put them on the track.  I might have to file the ends down slightly.  Not something I'd expect to occur on a modern wagon while on large radius curves.  Now if I had 18" curves fair enough!

I'd like to wish all my followers and readers of this Blog a Safe, Happy and Holy Christmas.  Have a great time with your family next Friday. See you again after the big fat fella leaves some Trains in your stocking next Sunday Night as usual.  In PK's case - he is the big fat fella wearing the stockings - couldn't resist mate!

73 Class Loco

This weekend I barely got into the shed. Saturday I purchased my standard DCC decoder a NCE D13SRJ and saturday night I pulled my newly purchased second hand Bergs 73 Class Tuscan loco 7313 apart. After checking the internet on SPUDS, in fact Marcus Amman's website on putting a decoder into an X200 class and Josh Beveridge's site on the 73 Class, I removed the 2 spuds and pulled them apart. I then isolated the wheels pickups from the motor. I tested the isolation on DC with my trusty Kenbrite 12V controller.

On Sunday I installed the decoder, wired it up and gave it a further run on DC before setting the 4 digit code # to 7313 and giving it a run on my PowerCab controlled test track - and ran it back and forth. I currently have no white LED's at home, so could not fit headlights and cablights. I always install a cablight (or two if it is a double ended loco). The crew need to turn the cablights on when they enter a crossing loop so they can find their way out of the cab to change the staff at each unattended crossing loop.

The issue I have here is the front nose of the 73 Class is solid white metal. I'm going to have to drill a hole about 1/2" deep through the nose and put the LED in the cab somewhere.

Anyone fitted headlights to a 73 Class Loco before? If so, how did you do it?

Photo of the 73 Class at Border Loop with the half finished Signal Box

I also added a few touches to Fairy Hill farm - a tyre swing for the youngster who live there.

Photo of the youngster having a swing on his tyre

It appears that the track crew has moved into Fairy Hill Loop. The rail train is in the siding. They have all stopped work waiting for a cross to occur.

Photo of Fairy Hill Loop showing the idle workers with Fairy Hill Farm in the distance