Railway/In progress

From ChapmanCentral

I started work on the railway layout last year but progress has been slow due to pressure of work and the sheer physical hard work of building the benchwork on two levels round a room 27' x 17' - especially the vexed issue of crossing the doorway, the "trundleduct".

One of the goals was to have a station in which a decent length train could stop without blocking the throat. These pictures show the station benchwork with a temporary track on which is an A3 pacific loco and fourteen coaches; the target is a rake of 13 Gresley teak coaches. I think it is big enough :-)

The double loop was closed and powered on 31 December 2008, you can now run round on both inner and outer double loops; next will be some more sidings and the start of ballasting and scenic work.

A good find: Daler-Rowney Gesso, a black acrylic primer/undercoat, applies direct to plywood and leaves a slightly porous surface which will take paint or PVA for gluing down scenery.

View from trundleduct end of station (trundleduct open)	Ditto	Station	Bridge - this is where the loop crosses over itself
Yards	Yards again	Back straights - one rising, one descending.	The rear straight will be conealed behind an embankment and backscene
This corner has an perating well fomr which a branch will be run	This is the trundleduct	Looking along the trundleduct (points were a necessary evil, a space-saver)	Trundleduct closed
Ditto	Ditto	Yards, this is the hard standing on which the diesel depot will be placed	Sidings, there will be a factory here. Note mesh for embankment
Ditto	Station, better lighting	Station again	And again
Bridge	Bridge again	Sidings	Yards
Tards form the end of the sidings	Tunnel mouth for back straight	Back straights	Tunnel mouth again
Some wiring	Some more wiring	Tunnel mouth again