Coming Down off a High

After a solid two weeks of railway related activity, this week I have been winding down off of a high and I am currently finding it hard to get motivated. On Tuesday (New Year's Day) I got to the shed but only ran one train. I fixed the couplers on a 80 class that I had recently purchased. They were too high. But having checked out PK’s N-Tranced Dream Blog about his journey towards N scale shed heaven, following an update that he made on New Year’s Day night, I received one last spark of enthusiasm. PK had gone to Bunnings and picked up some shelves to store equipment from his old shed before it is demolished so he can then get his new Titan shed approved for his train layout – a complicated building approval process. These shelves also had a drawer attached.

 

So on Wednesday night after talking to PK at work during the day, I set myself the task of building a model of his shelving. Well I had already built some shelving similar a few weeks back so I knew what was involved. I took the finished item to work on Thursday to show off. The drawer even slides in and out with the help of tweezers.


PK's shelves that I have modelled.  Photo by PK.


My version complete with drawers.

Today I got down to the shed towards the end of the cricket. I ran a few more trains and progressed a few trains around the layout so everything was where it is supposed to be at 12 midday on the timetable. I replaced an old Bergs 49 class loco on a stock train with a new powerline 48 class. The 48 runs batter.  I also replaced the coupler on one end of the powerline 48 with a KD after the el-cheapo coupler had previously snapped off. No doubt that should be covered by warranty but why bother. I also did some maintenance on a WSC wagon that I scratchbuilt from styrene some time ago which had developed a bow. I re-straightened the wagon, heating it with steam and bending the wagon and running cold water over it to hopefully to re-learn the styrene what shape it should be in. I also adjusted the coupler heights on this wagon as they were too high. 

 

I then moved the train magnets from the North Coast Control Schematic diagram to where the trains are currently located on the layout. There are currently three trains currently in transit on the layout. The timetable cards are sitting on top the the trains. There are over 10 trains that have reached an interim stage in their diagram and are stowed in various sidings and loops on the layout, awaiting their return journey after being emptied or loaded. These are the wooden sleeper train at the Rocla Siding, a Stock train in the yard at Cassino along with the fruit express in the loop heading to Brisbane. In the Up Yard at Cassino is a short shunt train that has just returned from the Meatworks. At Kyogle in the yard is the rail train. At Old Cassino there is the ballast train stowed in the yard. At Murwillumbah, the cement train, the banana train and the pickup goods are all stowed in various sidings along with NL3 sitting in the platform. At South Brisbane we have NL1 sitting in the platform there and the CPH railmotor on an ARHS tour also in the yard. There were also a few wagons that were not correctly located in the correct sidings, so I manually adjusted them ready for the next session. However, after writing this I think I will wind the CPH railmotor back to where it is supposed to be in the timetable instead of its current dlocation in the South Brisbane Yard, the next time I visit the shed.