LNERW1

This is either going to be met with begrudging agreement or crucifixion, but could a class 67/68 be repainted to a rough approximation of a 201?

Is that why I got a “1 month later” notification for one month since setting up my account, the same day my account was verified? Like, within 3 hours of each other.

So this is why the ‘to lighten the mood’ section hasn’t seen a single post since I made that dictionary joke. I thought it was funny, but I suppose it’s all gone up in flames now… (God, that’s got to be my worst one yet. It’s barely even relevant)

Metrovik, speaking of projects close to home, there’s a lad I used to live near who is a very talented modeller. If any of ye are on instagram (I know I’m not, I’ve had enough of Mark Zuckerberg just with WhatsApp), his account is called “Fairways models” or some variant of that with missing or excess punctuation.

Midterm break beckons- I think it’s time to clean the track again. Working on an indoor 00 project though, so I might not completely finish it over the break. Here’s the 00 project so far, by the way. A quick question, actually- inspired by Wexford O’Hanrahan, I wanted to make a quayside layout. I want to create a concrete or stone surface over the goods shed road and the adjacent siding using DAS clay, but I’m not sure whether to use cork underlay for the two sidings, as I’m worried it may mess up the clay, or mean the track is high enough that more clay is needed to match the height of the sleepers than I actually have. So, should I cork the sidings or not?

Always take good care of your models. It is not a good idea to place them in perilous situations. 72935462677__02A9CDC1-61D1-419C-A7A9-F1146133DF1E.MOV

Wow, erm… I was thinking more of model accidents when I started the topic, but now you mention it, the incident, referred to as Rickerscote, was the focus of the excellent podcast Signals To Danger, one of my favourite podcasts. I’d definitely recommend checking it out. also, here’s a video I found in the depths of my photo library recently, of a Tri-Ang Jinty that seems to not particularly care about my phone (I couldn’t stop it from slamming into my phone for whatever reason) FullSizeRender.MOV

Ok, so i can't find anything else to hold my interest- I'm just going to make a new topic on here. Anyone want to upload photos or videos of accidents (or "accidents" in inverted commas) on their own, or others', model or garden railway, feel free to. I'll start (not mine) PASSENGER TRAIN CRASHES INTO RIVER- CrazyTrain525 on YouTube

My third post in a row on this topic- are ye losing interest? Below is a little clip put together on my phone- an 'edit' as my generation calls them. SLR_edit.mov

Just had an idea- I could leave the test track in situ, even when the main railway is completed, and say it’s the harbour. Any opinions? Could allow for a shallow pool of water, etc. to make everything more interesting. The patio, being made from concrete, does resemble a quay of some sort. I think that’d be interesting to see, anyone else?

Yes, I do have an iPhone, rest assured us “young ones” use them too. The concept of iCloud, as I understand it, is photos and videos being saved online as well as on your phone, so that if your phone gets lost or damaged, you can still access your photo library on a new device. Ended up using crocodile clips, attached to the lower part of the rail, similar to the chairs, to power the set-up. I’ve found a straight power track now, though, and that should work. Also, does anyone have any tips on how to clean absolutely filthy railheads quickly? There’s about 15m of track in the circuit, and that means 30m, or about 100ft, of rail to clean. I can’t do all that manually, so feel free to provide suggestions. Please. below is a clip of a catastrophic rail accident. 72874926648__AD49CAEB-F9A6-4933-B567-E8E733D9629F.MOV

Progressing slowly- track was cleaned to the point where trains could be run, but unfortunately my phone was not syncing to iCloud or something- no photos or videos i took in that week or so were saved, including all the footage of the running session, and while trying to rectify the issue with my phone, the recent bad weather dirtied the track to the point where very little could run on it. I now have to go through the painful track cleaning process again, but the railway should be in good enough running condition in about a week's time, if i get enough work in next weekend (i cant do anything on weeknights, as i get home either at about 5 normally, and 7 when i have rugby training).

You’re most welcome. I had expected most forum users to be the kind of people who would use it for track plans rather than simply enjoy tracing old railways, but I must admit I enjoy just following railway lines on OpenStreetMap. I’m glad you got enjoyment out of it.

Thanks for the like, @Galteemore, that just increased my rank!

Been a while- long story short, the loop on the patio still isn’t clean, I have to re-ballast it and I haven’t worked out how to provide power (power track that’s connected to the controller is wonky), and I’ve decided to buy an LGB 50040 track rubber, which I haven’t even ordered yet and will probably be shipped from Germany. I’m not too fussed about any of this though, to be honest. I look forward to 2024, and wish you all good health in the new year.

Merry Christmas! I dont have anything else to say

A little something to get you into the festive spirit. An interesting connection- Andrew Ranken, to whom I’m related, is a railway enthusiast, as was his friend Darryl. I have a lot of models that I’ve received from Andrew, as well as two books that belonged to Darryl. Merry Christmas everyone.

That is cheap- but the shipping is $211!

I’m beginning to suspect you weren’t talking about the bog railway story…

Yeah, battery power is definitely on the cards. Track power is difficult when using brand new track, but the stuff I’m using is nearly 30 years old, and aside from being filthy, some pieces are damaged and individual rails are pushed out of place, shorter than they need to be, etc. In fact, I think my great-uncle, who I inherited the stock, track, etc. from, may have used radio control- I’ve found Radio Shack equipment attached to the locos and buried in all the spare parts. I’ve also been quite convinced by the YouTuber Ge Rik, who runs RC Trains (the business, not just RC trains in general) and has a garden railway that is entirely RC- and sound-equipped. Are you saying I made it up?

Thanks, I’m quite proud of the backstory. Interesting to see yet another modeller from Laois- are you a volunteer at Stradbally? Also, I’m planning on making a “what if” model of Abbeyleix station(My “local” station) in the 70s at some point in the next few years- maybe in N. Were you aware of the bog railway?

Good point, hadn’t thought of that… just adds to the story, I guess. PROGRESS UPDATE: The railway is still in the planning stages. Just to clarify, progress updates won’t be a daily thing, this is just because a lot happened today. Firstly, some “prototype research” was undertaken today. Me and my dad walked along the Bord na Móna line south of Portlaoise, from where it crosses under the N77 to the point, slightly west of the packing/processing/whatever-it-is plant, where it crosses a small lane. All of the track, apart from the temporary stretches running straight out on to the bog, is still there, and upon reaching the plant, we discovered that three Hunslet 0-4-0s were still there too. Given that there was no sign of any of the distinctive boxy wagons, I presume they were sold off for scrap. This does leave the question of why the locos remained. My guess is that Bord na Móna may be trying to sell them as locomotives, rather than as hunks of metal, ie trying to sell them for preservation. Unfortunately, I was too caught up in the fact that I had walked along an abandoned railway, and found three locomotives, to take any photos, but my dad did. I’ll post them tomorrow. On the model side of things, myself and my brother assembled a “test track” on our patio. This runs under the picnic bench, through the brick-built “tunnel” I used to take the photo of the “last train”, and onto a short embankment and makeshift bridge to carry it over the entrance to the “quarry” my brother built. It consists of one main loop, as well as two run round/passing loops and two sidings. It’s made up of track that is totally covered in grime and unusable with track power. However, I plan to work my way around the loop, cleaning the track by Christmas (and yes, I’m aware that’s in 6 days- I’ll have a lot of free time on my hands from Friday on). That’s all for now, so I’ll leave you with these photos of the “test track”. The line from the tunnel to under the table The tunnel The embankment round the end- you can see the “bridge”, where the track crosses over a gap in the brickwork, in the top right hand corner. One of the loops, and one of the sidings. The approach point work to the loop and siding shown above. The second siding can be seen diverging to the left. The other loop, situated below the bench. PS I forgot to mention- my little brother built one siding, and ballasted the other- he’s not even in 1st class yet!

Fair enough, plus it gives you an opportunity to make a feeder line in 32mm, like that British guy on YouTube who has a G scale railway( just checked, it’s Peckforton Light Railway, click here).

This little guy might be on the cards

Is that RTR? If so, probably beyond my wallet…