Narrow Gauge in the Rockies not quite

[popeye]

The weather is having a bad effect on all the wood and needs a lot of maintenance.

Would some kind of plastic/PVC used on houses be better than wood?

[Mayner]

7 hours ago, popeye said:

The weather is having a bad effect on all the wood and needs a lot of maintenance.

Would some kind of plastic/PVC used on houses be better than wood?

Treated timber was the best available option when I started work on the layout in 2007, plastic/PVC is not widely used as a building material in New Zealand though becoming fashionable for front garden fences/gates on more expensive houses!

The timber is graded for outdoor use mainly fencing, retaining walls and decks, I had a lot of the timber in stock from my days as a jobbing builder and has stood up fairly well to 17 years exposure to the Waikato weather, I had to replace half the plastic sleepers on the line after about 10 years use!  

Dealing with the effects of the weather makes Garden Railways more interesting to maintain and operate than an indoor layout, more in common with full size railway track and structure maintenance.

[popeye]

You might need a Permanent Way teem to keep on top of it.

[Mayner]

3 hours ago, popeye said:

You might need a Permanent Way teem to keep on top of it.

Bit like the real RGS keep maintenance to the absolute minimum to run the odd train.

Haven't had much time or interest in running/maintaining the garden railway during the last couple of years. Last spring-summer's La-Niña weather systems with the tail end of tropical cyclones has not helped, though we are due dry El-Niño systems this spring-summer hopefully without the bushfires/flashfloods Australia is already experiencing. Currently everything is too saturated to burn and the raised track base has worked well when the garden floods after heavy rain, at least we haven't got crocs, snakes and poisonous spiders, though we did see a copperhead while on holiday in the States

Track gang is getting a bit scarce we had a very active garden railway group with monthly running sessions on each others railways when we started out, but became defunct in recent years younger members haven't the time to play with trains, others moving on or passing away

[popeye]

I think you will have to move back to sunny Ireland 

[Mayner]

Finally made some time to repair the decayed section of track base on the High Line and run the first train on the Jackson County in six months!

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I used a piece of treated 6X2  that was stored outside for the past 17 years for the repair, original splice piece had rotted right through. I basically clamped the replacement piece to the track base with a large G clamp and nailed new piece in place with 4' Paslode nails with a 20oz hammer, the charger for the Paslode gun dies since it was last used about 4 years ago.

Interesting little sign of similar decay in the track bases or supports on the High-Line section of the railroad.

Full size trestles and bridges have been know to collapse suddenly as a result of the lack of maintenance, so the Jackson County is in similar company 

 

463 eases her way across with a train of laden stock cars and empty box cars for ore loading, typical of RGS operation in its final years.

The train has made it to Utah Junction without further incident, the moss that covered much of this area during the past six months is now starting to die off and due a genera tidy up, and take the coal/ore tipple and Depot building out of storage.

The tunnel was originally inspired by the Welsh Highland Railway in the Aberglasslyn pass, trains sometimes stall on the the grade and curved section of track between Utah Junction, but 463 just made it round. The trackbase on the curve is supported on slabs of concrete disturbed by the roots of the large tree in the backgound, the tunnel has also sunk relative to the trackbases over the past 16-17 years 12' to 1' civl engineering challenges on a 1:20.3 scale railway!

Train is running under caution on this section as a result of track defects from damage in last January's Cyclone and clean up, a tree (full size) fell on the track base in this area.  There is a kink in the left hand rail in front of the loco which as narrowed the gauge, but loco stayed on at very slow speed.

 

More storm damage, loco made it across without de-railing , but lost traction because of the dip. This problem was corrected by lifting and packing the track on the low spot with a timber packer and restoring 'level top" by carefully removing the dip with my trusty 20oz clawhammer.

Train eventually reached Jackson City without further incident apart from slipping on the grade through the yard, 1:20.3 scale equivalent of poor traction as a result of the lack of use (grass, rust,lack of sand.)

Decided to return home around the other side of the circle and splitting the train due to the poor state of the track in the tunnel area.

 

Forts moved the stock cars and a gondola to Arboles, firewood recovered from the tunnel area. The track in this area becomes engulfed in moss during the winter months which has now died off.

 

463 collects the boxcars from Jackson City having first having gone through the ritual of taking the stock cars to Arboles and returning with the caboose before running round and coupling to her train/

463 now adds the stock cars and gondolas to her train, stock cars usually appear coupled next to the loco in mixed freights during the final years of RGS operation.

463 and the stock cars have uncoupled from the gondola and box cars and reverses her train on the tail track of the wye at Utah Junction, the wye is probably one to the most useful features of the railway.

463 and the stock cars have now turned on the wye and are running forward to collect the caboose before departing up the High Line

1:20.3 scale de-railments are more realistic!  463 managed to split the points while departing up the high line with her train and had gone a bit far to 'steam her" back on to the rails needing a helping had to get her back on the rails! This sort of thing usually happens just before tea time or when I am in a hurry to put my trains away after an operating session.

Cannot identify an immediate cause of the de-railment as the switch rail is fitting snuggly against the stock rail after  I pushed 463 back on, though may not have been fully home beforehand.

463 successfully mad it round the curve onto the High Line without slipping, her normal maximum load is 8 cars and a caboose, but it tends to stuff things up requiring additional switching at the staging. 

 

 

[Mayner]

Home from the land of the ice and snow (US Mid West), first job before running trains was to mow the lawn which in some places had grown nearly a foot during the past four weeks and clear the railway of debris/encroaching vegetation

Although a dry El Nino weather system was forecast this Summer most of January turned out wet and humid with rampant plant growth and everything saturated.

Main yard area covered in debris.

Fallen branches tunnel area

Vegetation taking over main line area was cleared for train running a coupe of days before Christmas.

Ran a couple of trains late afternoon after tidying up garden and clearing railway. Usual drill ran train from staging in shed to main yard, turned locos on Wye and re-marshalled trains for return run before tea time.

346 leading short freight after trimming back jungle. I need to remove creeping plants/weeds that have began to tae over this area.

463 with 8 cars (6 stock, 2 Box) + Caboose on main line. Although within 463s normal capability turned out a challenge to haul this train up the 4% grade with wheels slipping on greasy rails from yesterdays heavy rain.  Although the loco made it round the tricky curved section at the bottom of the grade slipped on the more easily graded straight section half way up that was in the shade through out the day, despite several re-starts and opening and closing the regulator ended up assisting with the 0-5-0.  You can usually control wheelslip by "twiddling" the throttle speed control knob in a similar manner to closing and opening the regulator on a steam loco to prevent wheel slip.

Usually I would have sent a second loco to assist or "doubled the hill" after 463 stalled, but the mosquitos were out and I had the bins to put out for tomorrows collection, running the trains was a nice break from the days chores.

 

Interestingly 348 and its train made it up the grade without slipping but considerable wheel slip!

I had reduced 348s train to 4 cars and a caboose to avoid the train stalling. 

 

 

[Mayner]

One of the attractions of large scale modelling is coping with the elements.  I lifted out a removable bridging section for some work in the garden on Monday and the rails had expanded with heat and would not fit (after 16 years) when I replaced the bridge.

 

Ended up cutting the rails with a fine toothed piercing saw, which cut through the brass rail like a knife through butter.

 

The blue plastic is pond-line I got cheaply as a waterproof membrane to protect the treated ply baseboard top in this area. Bridge is treated 6X2 pine.

Ran 463 yesterday evening on a load test to check if there was any improvement in the hot dry weather since Sunday afternoon.

463 Stalled at the crest of the grade at Jackson City split and re-combined train to reach its destination

Easy downhill part of the run!

 

Took the train up the High Line in two sections. 463 is running at full speed in all videos!