2996 Victor

I don't know whether this is of any use, @David Holman, but I've been doing inlaid track on a Lynton & Barnstaple OO9 micro I'm currently cobbling together.

The track is just PECO N Gauge Code 55 flexi, pre-wired of course! The setts are simply a mix of Tesco all-purpose DIY filler with some PVA flipped in, spread over the track area and roughly levelled. Once dry, its sanded smooth and the level between the tracks slightly reduced for clearance, and the flangeways gouged out with an Olfa P-Cutter. The setts are scribed in with a scribing tool and a small screwdriver. This is a work-in-progress:

Painted with acrylics, with a wash of Citadel Seraphim Sepia and Nuln Oil. The quay wall is good ol' Wills Coarse Stone, of course  

Hope that helps!

Cheers,

Mark

3 minutes ago, jhb171achill said:

Many thanks, Mark, and it does indeed look well!

I suspect there could well be a similar blue loco in my future: main line locos would have to be run in after being shopped, after all. It's an excuse, anyway, even if it is a bit flimsy

Cheers,

Mark

My copy of Rails Through Connemara arrived today thank you, Stenlake Publishing for a very quick delivery!

Excellent work, @jhb171achill, I'm looking forward to reading the fruits of your research. I think you said somewhere else that the blue livery on the 'D' in the cover painting was a bit unlikely, but it does look rather well!

Cheers,

Mark

Lovely work, @Angus, and well worth the making of the new ends! I'm definitely following this closely

As for the grab rails: maddening, but the carpet monster must be kept fed.....

Cheers,

Mark

4 hours ago, Angus said:

Hi Mark,

I've been looking into turntable myself as part of my plan detailed in my topic:

I've found some details of the MGWR's turntables in the November 2001 Irish lines which may assist:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/i5fc04qa6q56fx0/New Irish Lines - Vol. 2 No. 6 - 2001 November.pdf

Hi Angus,

many thanks for the link, that's hugely appreciated. The snippet on turntables is absolutely fascinating and confirms what diameter to plump for; the POC drawing is very useful as well the photos.

Kind regards,

Mark

12 hours ago, jhb171achill said:

Superb plan, Mark - very well thought out and very realistic. To your questions: (1) Yes, 6ft typically, not less. Sometimes more within stations. (2) No! At termini, most were quite wide - up to double track width is a reasonable rule of thumb, though Kingscourt, Achill, Clifden, Kingscourt & Edenderry less so. (3) It varied. From perusal of MGWR boardroom minute books, which I have consulted quite a few times over the last 30 years, 40-45ft was normal. On a branch, 50ft would be a bit of an overkill.

Might be relevant here to mention that "Rails To Achill", currently sold out, is going to go to a 3rd edition, according to the publisher.

Many thanks Jonathan, that's very kind of you - it can be difficult to come up with a plausible plan that echoes prototype practise while not being too sprawling or contrived, so your and David's affirmations are extremely welcome.

Thanks also for your answers to my latest round of questions: also hugely appreciated. I'm working up a scale plan so its good to know I can reduce the size of the TT slightly. I've allowed for a 20-foot-wide platform, which seems to look okay, although its difficult to be sure!

I've actually got a copy of Rails to Achill, but like most of my references, I'm busy re-learning where everything is!

Kind regards,

Mark

Beautiful work, absolutely superb!

Cheers,

Mark

1 hour ago, David Holman said:

Some great examples there, Mark, but I like yours better! The problems with all those termini is the amount of space they need, so yours is a nice compromise, while still incorporating all the key features.

 Think you are right about the TT and track spacing. Being built while still ruled from London, suspect the platform widths would be the same, so a minimum of six feet for a single platform and twelve for a double faced one. In practice they were wider on all but the most basic stations, so am sure you will have enough space.

That's brilliant, David, thank you!

And thank you for your very complementary words about my layout plan - greatly appreciated! I'm always conscious of trying to cram in too much, and Irish stations are pretty spacious, aren't they? Incidentally, I really wanted to include a carriage dock like yours on Belmullet.

By the way, I'm just re-reading the RM article on Fintonagh: fab stuff! Going to look for the Arigna articles now!

Cheers,

Mark

A bit of rummaging today turned up the sketched plans of the MGWR's branch line termini I made a couple of years ago from the OSI archive plans. Not to scale of course, and the platform lengths are only very approximate, but here they are if anyone's interested:

And here's my first go at a track plan for my project:

Very much a first draft and most definitely not to scale!!! I'm imagining a platform a scale 250 feet long, about 3'3" in model terms - a train of four 6-wheelers comes in at about 120 feet long, or about 18", as far as I can ascertain, so there may be scope for a tiny bit more compression. I reckon I've undersized the turntable by quite a bit, in which case the carriage/nag dock won't fit as I've sketched it, but as I say its just a first stab! I'd be very grateful for any thoughts or suggestions on how to improve it and make it more realistic.

In other news, my Alphagraphix order is confirmed, I've ordered a copy of Rails through Connemara, and the aforementioned rummaging also turned up three-point and roller track gauges and a back-to-back gauge that I'd completely forgotten about. Happy days!

Question time!

• What was the usual distance between running lines? 6 feet?
• Was there a "standard" platform width on the MGWR?
• What was a the usual turntable diameter? I'm guessing at around 50 feet as that would accommodate smaller tender locomotives.

Many thanks and all the best,

Mark

1 hour ago, jhb171achill said:

Very true indeed - I have some of those!

How often was there interchange of different companies' rolling stock? 

1 hour ago, Galteemore said:

@KMCEoffers some fine 3d wagons which would look great in a goods train of that era 

Oooooh - @KMCE just had a look at your threads in the manufacturers section - beautiful work! I'll be in touch.....

1 hour ago, Galteemore said:

His card kits tend to be more accurate, although you need to double check the precise dimensions of some.

That's good news I'm hoping to get a few of those in soon.

Cheers,

Mark

6 minutes ago, jhb171achill said:

Do beware of one aspect of the Alphagrafix range, though - the vast majority are wrong livery-wise, sometimes completely so in all aspects; however if right, they are very nice little kits and not expensive.

Thanks for the heads-up - I guess that they can be repainted with care..... although I believe some folks use them as drawings for scratch-building in styrene.

I'm looking into some of their wagons and carriages, too, although the supplied liveries are wrong for my era.

I'll be wary!

Cheers,

Mark

5 minutes ago, jhb171achill said:

Hi Mark, just noticed these questions now.

1.  I have no record of white being used, and early photos suggest a duller colour, so I suspect the beige is what was on the window frames.

2. Yes, those SSM wagons are fine, and the JM Design horse boxes likewise. JM Design also did a kit of a G3 2.4.0 - an iconic and ling-lived design, certainly appropriate to the era you have chosen (and many others!). Maybe John (JM) might comment as to whether this kit is still available?

Many thanks for your reply, Jonathan, it's hugely appreciated. Funnily enough, I was only thinking yesterday about starting a signal box and the colour scheme for the timber work, so your reply is timely indeed!

I'm hoping to get a GWR McKenzie & Holland kit from Alphagraphix for MGWR-ing, probably just the cabin on a brick base, although the Ratio kit is still calling as well!

Cheers,

Mark

Just caught up with this, Eoin, and can I say, "Wow!" Incredible workmanship all the way through, but the additional detail you've added with the replacement chassis and in the cab is exquisite.

I could be tempted to follow in your footsteps, but only as far as the original build - the replacements are beyond my skills!

Looking forward to seeing the completed locomotive.

Cheers,

Mark

15 minutes ago, David Holman said:

Then of course there's Mr Spok, from Star Trek, who has three ears: left ear, right ear and final frontier...

Sorry!

"Groan!"

32 minutes ago, jhb171achill said:

Hi Mark

So that’s about 11ft in “old money”. From the first set of points to buffers on Dugort Harbour is about that, and the loop comfortably allows four bogie coaches to be run round.

The issue is where it goes to once it’s leaving its terminus - can it go beyond the 3.6m length to a fiddle yard?

I am assuming here that the width of the boards is maybe something under a metre?

Hi Jonathan,

Yes, it works out at about 11'8" clear length, that still allows me to open the door! Width approx 2". I've gone a bit metric as Grainge and Hodder size their boards in metric with their longest module being 1.2m, just under 4'.

I'm thinking of it being portable, in which case the fiddle yard can be extra. Running rights in the lounge would give me just over 16'.

I do tend toward the cameo style, so breaking a long station with a scenic block is a possibility, maybe with an extra board to slot in if it goes to shows.

Cheers,

Mark

8 hours ago, jhb171achill said:

What sort of space do you have available, Victor?

Hi Jonathan,

My work room has a clear length of 3.6m, although I could probably squeeze a bit more if I could barter running rights in the lounge! That doesn't necessarily need to include staging/fiddle yard, though. I'd probably want to use Grainge & Hodder baseboard modules with a 0.6m width, but that's not set in stone.

Cheers,

Mark

5 minutes ago, David Holman said:

A fair few sheets of the stuff in my models!

Never actually built any of the card kits, as I just use them as a drawing/template for building them out of plastic sheet and microstrip. They certainly turn out well though. 

Your models are excellent, David, so it looks like a good method, one that I might try emulating!

Cheers,
Mark

Hi All,

I thought that perhaps after almost two years, a little thread resurrection might be in order.

I've been spending most of the intervening time building model aeroplanes. My entire railway modelling has been on hold until just prior to Christmas, when I started a Lynton & Barnstaple Railway OO9 micro layout. I've also been collecting information and bits and pieces for a Denver & Rio Grande layout in HOn3. So I though it was about time that I picked up with my MGWR project as well.

As you may have guessed, I'm no further along, except that I've this afternoon ordered some Alphagraphix Kits to get me moving again. Next job is to come up with a layout plan, after which I can order some baseboards.

Hope to be back soon with something worth reporting!

Cheers for now,
Mark

3 hours ago, Northroader said:

If you visit his site you’ll find there are sections for what he does in 4mm as well.

Thanks! I've sent Roger an email, and he can do all of the CC range of card kits in 4mm scale  

Cheers,
Mark

20 minutes ago, Galteemore said:

They are mostly 7mm but Roger will often scale the card kits down if asked nicely 

That's brilliant, thanks - I'll send him an email and see what he says.

Many thanks and best regards,

Mark

Am I right in thinking that Alphagraphix kits are only in 7mm scale?

Cheers,

Mark

51 minutes ago, jhb171achill said:

Very many thanks, Mark! I’ll check that out.

I can’t claim credit for the scenery, though I intend to do the next lot largely myself. It was done by Kevin McIntosh and captures perfectly the sort of remote and neglected type of outpost of the railway I’m trying to portray.

The scenery is excellently done and certainly has captured the look of a bleak and slightly run-down railway outpost.

43 minutes ago, jhb171achill said:

Update - just looked at that technique - very good indeed.

Hope you find it useful! Its a technique I'm planning to employ at some point as I've still got several projects germinating!

Cheers,

Mark

Just caught up with Dugort Harbour, stellar modelling and wonderful stories along the way.

Have you come to a decision about your backscene? If not, can I point you toward Chaz H's "Athena" on NGRM Online (his other layout, the Furness Valley RR is also worth a look)? US-outline narrow gauge but well worth a look. His backscene technique might be just what you need: it starts here but the whole thread is great.

All the best,

Mark

Hi @Galteemore,

New Irish Lines: can I believe my eyes? You're not really selling this fantastic little layout?

Totally understand your reasons, but it still seems a shame. I wish I was in a position to make you an offer.

Good luck with the sale and best regards,

Mark