7mm Birmingham Moor Street

[Focalplane]

Chris

Thank you! Yes, but my first thought is to reduce the elevation by half and see if that would solve the problem. It is probably too extreme and serves no real purpose in the scale as the other two quarter circles have no elevation but trains run perfectly at speed. In the real thing, by the way, there are no curves at all, the main lines straight through the city!

My first task, though, is a massive clear out and tidy up of the entire railway room!

 

[simond]

Morning morning.

Glad everything is ok on your arrival.

It would be a pity to remove the super-elevation IMO as it looks great. I assume that the electrical problems are down to the loco body and chassis sliding downhill along the axle and the uphill pickups no longer touching the wheels? Can this be addressed by adding spacers to reduce the slop on the axles or adjusting the pickups?

or just go faster....?

 

[Focalplane]

This surprised me. I plugged in the controller, selected Large Prairie 4175 left with 7 brass coaches attached, and moved the controller forward gradually, up to 50 out of 128. The train did a complete circuit on the UP line without faltering either in motion or sound. Thinking this was a fluke, the Jubilee was then set in motion on the DOWN main line and did exactly the same. After 10 months of gathering potential insulation (oxidation, dust, etc.). was this due to the relatively dry climate? The suggestion is that if you don’t run trains then the rails stay clean.

 

[Pencarrow]

or just go faster....?

Wall of death style?

 

[Pencarrow]

This surprised me. I plugged in the controller, selected Large Prairie 4175 left with 7 brass coaches attached, and moved the controller forward gradually, up to 50 out of 128. The train did a complete circuit on the UP line without faltering either in motion or sound. Thinking this was a fluke, the Jubilee was then set in motion on the DOWN main line and did exactly the same. After 10 months of gathering potential insulation (oxidation, dust, etc.). was this due to the relatively dry climate? The suggestion is that if you don’t run trains then the rails stay clean.

I think the message there is keep playing trains.

 

[Focalplane]

A major clean up is in progress, punctuated by "playing trains" to see if I can repeat the poor running problems of a year ago. Yes, but only around the one turnout in the area and that seems to be a function of slightly poor track laying coupled with changes in super elevation. So I may yet relay the track in the area without any super elevation.

I now also remember thinking a year ago about replacing many of the Peco turnouts and crossings with either custom built track or going for broke and using Marcway. The scissor crossing from Marcway may have been a bu99er to wire but it allows trains to negotiate without any problems. So I have added that to my decision making. Why replace Peco? Because the curved points of which I have a few are not geometrically correct and this shows when running trains over them; it would have been useful if the curved points had constant radii but they don't. Other areas of the pointwork are inevitable compromises that would benefit from redesign, particularly the station throat.

The good news is that I had thought I might be tempted to rip up the entire layout and do something new. But that hasn't happened. Moor Street has a future!

 

[Focalplane]

Still no decision on what might be done with the various suspect track sections, but those Peco curved points will have to go! At least those which are on the main line, the goods yard with only tank engines can probably stay as it is.

 

[Focalplane]

Nearly 2 weeks have passed and I have made a start on removing the super elevation. But my heart isn't in it, to be honest. I have been running trains most days and find that operations suffer from the track layout. Trains can leave Moor Street, but how do they get back! The hidden storage loops won't be that helpful in moving a Large Prairie from one end of its train to the other (as would be done in Leamington or Stratford) and I currently have no space for a siding to allow such trains to be man-handled in the open.

So what I am thinking about doing is to abandon the turntable/service area and store it away for some future activity. Then have a third line which will run parallel to the two track main line at least as far as the doorway and which could branch into two storage sidings in which to fiddle trains! Trains can still access the main line and cross over to the UP line. This would allow continuous running of through trains between Paddington and Snow Hill (passenger and freight) with the occasional "special" moving in and out of Moor Street.

This might not work because of my minimum 72" track radii, so some measuring will be need to be done to see what can be fitted in. If track radius becomes a serious problem, then another rethink will be necessary.

 

[Focalplane]

A decision has been made! The turntable area is being removed today, making way for a third "relief" line inside the two main line tracks, Some changes are also being made to the station approach so that all curves are no less than 1.8m radius. Then the "fiddle sidings for the local traffic will be added. I do need one standard point in addition but this will be used in the fiddle yard so can be added later (in 2022!)

I'll edit this post in a moment to add a demolition photo!

 

[Focalplane]

Last evening, while busy at the demolition site the Railway Room was invaded by a tiger mosquito, well, at least the bloody one which I swatted. These nasty creatures are on the increase in southern France as a result of less spraying during the pandemic and also the unseasonal rains and flooding we have had in the past few weeks. Le Moustique can be very annoying to put it mildly but the work must go on! I have to admit I thought that retirement from working in the tropics would mean no more bites (and risk of malaria or dengue) but it looks like Sawyers deet as well as antihistamine cream will be back on the shopping list.

 

[LarryG]

Ripped up track is an all too familiar and depressing sight to me. I hope you arrive at what you are looking for.

 

[Focalplane]

Yes, I agree, Larry. But the further you get the more future operations become important and this is a decision point. I wish I hadn’t done the scenic areas just where I am ripping up the track though!

 

[Focalplane]

I should add that the turntable needed to come out anyway. The drive mechanism is a rubber band that had slightly perished. If and when I reinstate it I will change to a stepping motor drive.

 

[Yorkshire Dave]

A decision has been made! The turntable area is being removed today, making way for a third "relief" line inside the two main line tracks, Some changes are also being made to the station approach so that all curves are no less than 1.8m radius. Then the "fiddle sidings for the local traffic will be added. I do need one standard point in addition but this will be used in the fiddle yard so can be added later (in 2022!)

Just a thought regarding operational requirements and your track alterations......

Does space now allow for Moor Street's station thoat to be opened out to double track (red), incorporating the carriage sidings as part of the fiddle yard and making a flat junction from the main lines (blue) for specials. A double slip at 7 would increase operations but would work as a single slip if all goods traffic started in the new fiddle yard. Don't know how this would affect your 1.8m minimum radius though.

 

[LarryG]

I found vinyl grass sheet over crumpled newspaper was very useful for scenic areas and it is easily removed leaving a nice bare baseboard should a change of mind occur. It is easily reshaped with a heat gun for further use.

 

[Focalplane]

Dave

I wish!! Yes, this was my ideal solution, mimicking the prototype, but it just won't fit. It's the double slip at point number 7 that won't fit in, though there are other details that also require tighter curves.

I am going to keep one of the existing carriage sidings as well as the Goods Station headshunt.

Larry

A good point. Not sure where I could buy vinyl grass sheet locally, but Christmas is coming! I don't plan to do any scenic work anyway until everything is tested.

In general I have heard of some horror stories with customs charges (i.e. 2 x VAT) on imports from the UK. A friend who has vintage cars got stung badly with some expensive parts for his Lagonda V12. Now M&S has announced closure of stores in France due to customs problems. I wonder if Decathlon will have to close its UK stores as well? When we came to France 4 weeks ago there were searches at Portsmouth but I am not sure whether this was for security or customs. Either way, Brexit (or more accurately the lousy non-negotiation of it) has proved to be a bit of a disaster.

 

[Focalplane]

With due deference to LarryG, I’ll not show too many more destruction images. What I plan to do is to start relaying track as soon as possible, starting with the UP main which is furthest from the baseboard edge. While laying this it makes sense to also place the DOWN main with spacing to allow two coaches not to rub against each other. Then the new relief line can be added after adjusting the station approach to give the needed space.

The bonus of this approach is to get the two continuous oval lines up and running and tested, before tackling the rest of the modification.

Incidentally, there is a real prototype for this exercise. The main line through Snow Hill Tunnel was lifted when Snow Hill was closed, then, several years later the double track was relaid. The only bit we don’t want to emulate is the ‘several years’ part! A further delay was also necessary before the terminal platforms were finally connected to the network. Again, we don’t need to do that!

 

[Focalplane]

Quite a lot of progress as the weather is cooler this week. But no photos! More track removal has allowed a rough placement of the single line from station throat to parallel relief line.
Meanwhile the main lines are being relaid where the relief line will run parallel. No super elevation this time. I am also checking the separation of the mains, insuring two Mark 1 coaches don’t touch. In fact there is a constant gap as two offset coaches are pushed around the curve.

The relief line won’t be exactly parallel as it needs to maintain the same minimum radius as the inner curve on the main. This should not be a problem as I can place some trackside objects in appropriate places. I see Dapol have some nice junction signals!

Joining the approach track to the station throat has gained about 8cm by using a standard instead of curved point. However, it looks as though the goods loop will have to become a simple headshunt. More operational interest may be the result, we’ll see. Most goods traffic into Moor Street can be considered pick up traffic between the Goods Station and Bordesley Yard, so short trains with brake vans (given the incline) will be the norm. Long distance freight trains with heavy motive power will be restricted to the main lines. However, panniers were often seen on long transfer freights through Snow Hill Tunnel between Bordesley and Hockley yards.

 

[Stephen Freeman]

"I see Dapol have some nice junction signals!"
But not in 7mm scale according to their website! Of course I could also detail all the short-comings with the 4mm scale ones, the main one being the gross lever thing to operate the bracket arm ,unknown on any GWR signal but of course there are many more.

 

[Focalplane]

Hi, Borgrail, there is a page on Tower Models site under Dapol. RTP will do for me, assuming I am still around, that is!