Divide and Conquer

Today I went down to the Shed after lunch.  No sooner did I go down there and it rained cats and dogs.  I had to shut the door to keep the rain out.  That made the shed very steamy even with the fan running.  My main job for the day was to simulate the running of No.11 Down Pickup Goods.  Well this trains does not do any pickups but five separate set outs.  The reason for running this train and two others, the No.14 Up Container and NL3 Down Gold Coast Motorail was to allow myself to take lots of photos that will be used for an upcoming presentation on Operations on Cassino.  Train No.11 was going to be the star of the presentation.

So I had to set up these three trains, then run No.11 to completion, which included crossing No. 14 and NL3 at Old Cassino.  Once No.11 had arrived at its destination, I then had to move No.11 back to where it is in the currently suspended timetable at about 9:40am during the day.  I also had to backtrack No.14 and NL3 to the same point in time for when I can find some time to schedule the next Operating Session.

The other activity I did following this very rare run on the layout, was to do some work on a cardboard goods shed.  This very nicely constructed goods shed, that I purchased for $14 at a local Buy and Sell, sits on a wooden platform and has lots of wooden stumps underneath.  It is pretty Good, and my plan was to use it to save me from making two low relief sheds for the layout.  Well I took the dremel to it and split it right down the middle to make two half goods sheds.  I used a razor saw to cut through the platform.  The results were pretty good.  The shed will now be restored (next weekend maybe) with some detail added and then the roof’s central capping replaced.  The two halves will then be installed at two separate locations on the layout.  One half will be in low relief as the goods shed on the Goods Shed Road at Old Cassino.  The other half will end up forming the low relief shed in the Banana Siding at Murwillumbah.  I’m also thinking of adding a second open shed at Murwillumbah that the siding will run through.

I had planned on doing some more spray painting of my Park Road Goods Shed but it was just too wet to consider doing any painting.  I will also have to install a base concrete floor through the whole Park Road Sidings area.  I think I have a large sheet of 2mm styrene that I will be used for this purpose.  Once cut to size, it will be painted a concrete colour and glued in place.  Given that this area is so high off the ground on my top level of the layout (being about 5’ 6” off the ground), not many visitors will be able to see this area and take in its proposed detail.  But I also plan on doing a small amount of scenicing and include some grass and the old gateman’s hut at this location.