Consulting Services

This week on Wednesday we all went over to Geoff’s. His layout was set up and we were checking out his derrick crane. Very nice indeed. I suppose when you model the era Geoff does, you can build one of these beauties. We had a great night with plenty of conversation, banter and learning. Geoff found a new shop for the War Gammers and told us all about it. It stocks scenery material and all sorts of paints.  We hope to have a little article from Geoff for our next Club magazine about this shop very soon.  We were also doing some work on a couple of Mike's locos.

 

While at Geoff’s, Darren gave me a small model of a small 10’ x 10’ fenced off compound. It was modelled on one that was located at Casino right next to the signal box. Guess where mine is going? You don’t have to be Einstein to work out right next to my Cassino Signal Box.  This was indeed a great little surprise.  Thanks Mate!

 

On Saturday I was planning to lay some more plaster around Cassino Station as I continued to move further north.  I had advised the guys on Tuesday night and I thought there was potentially three guys coming over to watch.  However, only Shelton came over and watched and maybe learnt my methods of readying the area and pouring plaster on the layout. I started off, near the back platform road.

 

Cassino Station with the back platform road at the bottom of the picture.  I start off with some styrofoam, which gets cut and shaped and then covered with plaster.

Voila!  The area covered with plaster.  You can even see some drips have run down the facia.  the nearest track to where I'm working gets covered with masking tape and then paper towels.

 

I was also preparing the area west of (behind) the station where a number of houses will be located. I was intending to plaster between Canterbury Street and a lane way, that is between Canterbury Street and North Street - I think it is called Convent Lane. But I only prepared the area with masking tape to fill all the holes and get ready for when it will be poured.  I did not get around to actually pouring any plaster - maybe next weekend.  I also installed the roadway for North Street.  This is a piece of balsa that I pack something under it in the middle to create a camber and then I weight it down on the sides.  It is laid on top of white glue and hopefully after the glue sets it retains its camber.

North Street is literally buried under all that wood.  In the front of picture is where a walkway will disappear under the track and comes out just next to North Street.  At this location the houses are below the track formation.

Looking further north we see where Wiangaree Street will be located.  It will actually come about 4 or 5 inches to the left.  All the masking has been done at this location as well.

The other work that I did while Shelton was watching and taking lots of notes and the odd camera shot was the pouring of the concrete abutment under Simpsons Parade.  Last week I had cut out the styrene and earlier today I had positioned it in the correct angles.  I had used white glue to seal it around the base and to help lock the base in place with small pieces of corflute. 

The formwork for the front bridge abutment under Simpson's Parade.

 

So when Shelton was here I thought all the holes would be sealed up as teh glue would be dry. Boy was I wrong!  When I poured the plaster for the near side concrete abutment to carry Simpsons Pde over the railway, the plaster leaked out everywhere.  Anyway I did finish it and removed the styrene formwork.

 

Sitting on the Cassino platform is the finished plaster abutment.  Sitting on the Simpsons Parade overbridge is the rear abutment that I poured last weekend.

This morning I attended a working bee at my kids school.  When I got home I did not feel like going down to the shed.  But last night I had made arrangements to head over to my mate David's house this afternoon.

 

So I did go over to my mate David's place to check out his progress and provide some more consultancy services. He has laid a new yard area on his layout. It certainly is big. I counted 42 sets of points. While there we worked out where to power the various tracks from so everywhere can get power. He has an up and down yard, a steam loco area with turntable and shed, a diesel loco area, various roads for his HSTs and Eurostars etc., other storage tracks for some goods trains and some dead end sidings off the through lines.

We also installed his powercab and wired it up and tested it. You know it works better if you allign the 2 pin plug that takes track voltage to the track correctly instead of with only one lug connected.  That was my fault.  So he has a number of tasks to work on before we get together again and discuss the next few projects.

 

As promised here are some photos of last week's efforts.

The black blob, is Barker Street - a stained piece of balsa.  This shot views from the Richmond River bridge to the left around to Barker Street.  There is a house to the left of Barker Street and I am making a swamp with a runoff under the track to a pipe.  There will be a corner store on the right of Barker Street.

This photo shows the area to the right of Barker Street (out of shot to the left) around to Simpsons Parade on the right.

To the right of Simpsons Parade is this area.  Middle right is the covered up Canterbury Street.  I have moved the water tank back in along with the section hut.  I have started laying down pieces of paper where houses or structures will eventually be positioned.