Hartley Hills, LNWR c1900 - buffer stops, how do you build yours?

[Rob Pulham]

For info Rob, that pile represents about 5 hours work and three cups of tea.

You have my deepest sympathies - that's where the airbrush came in when I did mine - I will vary the shades as I paint them again in situ along with the rail sides.



It does look to be coming together nicely though Graham. It will look superb when it's all finished.

 

[Scale7JB]

Very nice graham, and yes deffinitely worth laying lengths of rail over board joints to maintain the flow of the curves..

JB.

 

[iploffy]

Tiffin, tiffin my favourite thing, add that to narrower chairs and they can't get away a good situation in my book

 

[Dog Star]

Forward planning is a necessity with a layout which is as long / wide / complex as Hartley Hill... in this case, "forward questions" seems more appropriate. At this time the wiring for the track feeds is being installed to support either DC or DCC control dependent upon what stock is to be run (which assumes that an appropriate control unit is available). John wishes to be able to operate the layout from either side and from either end (which includes somewhere in the middle) - this requirement gives me some worries....

1/ if the layout is to be run as DC, what DC control gear supports remote operation?

2/ if the layout is to be run as DCC, can any hand-held controllers interwork with any central control station?

I have Lenz DCC products for our layout and hence I am familiar with how "remote" hand-held" controllers connect to the Lenz central control box... what technology is used by other DCC manufacturers? (NCE and Digitrax for example).

regards, Graham

 

[Steph Dale]

2/ No, you need one that uses the same command protocol. For use with Lenz that includes Multimaus as direct 'plug and play'' with other systems (including ZTC) usable with a suitable conversion cable. There may be others, but I know about those two.

I terms of ergonomics you can still use DCC to control the pointwork when running analogue, and many people retain analogue operation of the points when using DCC for the locos; you're not necessarily wedded to having to provide both digital and analogue controls.

There are some reasonable hand-held DCC controllers for operation of both locos and pointwork, the Multimaus being one of the more obvious examples. Alternative methods of operation might include bolting on Wi Fi to the DCC system through a smart phone or tablet

Steph

 

[Dog Star]

... you need one that uses the same command protocol. For use with Lenz that includes Multimaus as direct 'plug and play'' with other systems (including ZTC) usable with a suitable conversion cable.

So, I think you are saying, as the handset needs to be compatible with the control box then the "layout area network" (for remote operation/connection of handsets) needs to compatible with the plug/socket configuration used by the manufacturer of the control box.

In terms of ergonomics you can still use DCC to control the pointwork when running analogue, and many people retain analogue operation of the points when using DCC for the locos; you're not necessarily wedded to having to provide both digital and analogue controls.

I believe that John wishes to use a mechanical lever frame for operation of signals and turnouts (with micro-switches sitting on the lever tails). This ought to work with either DC or DCC control being a separate electrical "world".

regards, Graham

 

[Steph Dale]

Graham,
It's less the plug/socket issue as the 'language' that the command station uses to communicate with the hand-held controllers. Lenz uses three physical connections (5-DIN, Bell Telecom rj12, 4-wire) but all use the same language. So too does ZTC, but you'd need to make up a conversion cable to hook up their 8-pin micro-DIN devices to a Lenz system.
Steph

 

[Dog Star]

Steph,
Thanks for the info... I guess that the conclusion is that John needs to choose his DCC system before I can install the sockets for the remote handsets.
regards, Graham

 

[Steph Dale]

Steph,
Thanks for the info... I guess that the conclusion is that John needs to choose his DCC system before I can install the sockets for the remote handsets.
regards, Graham

Yep, that seems a sensible step.

 

[Dog Star]

The subject of goods traffic levels has been an agenda item for the Operating Department monthly meetings for at least the last twenty five meetings... and has been discussed at a more local level in The George (up the High Street from Hartley Hill station). The Station Master has been getting hot under the collar what with the extra work caused by splitting up mineral trains to hold them in the yard at certain times of day - his regular requests for consideration of extra wagon capacity have gone unheeded until now and may have gone unheeded for much longer if if was not for a serious case of sleeper rot in the Up Goods.

Harvie, appointed recently to replace Albert (who eloped with the barmaid sometime back), had made his report on the condition of certain parts of the Up Goods and recommended a heavy dose of re-sleepering. Now Harvie's boss, the PW Divisional Inspector, was on good drinking terms with the Hartley Hill Stationmaster and bright enough to realise that he could get rid of one problem by extending the impact of another issue. And so Harvie's report on rotten timber became the substantive justification for resolving the lack of wagon capacity in the local yard... in short a new refuge siding would be added to the Birmingham side of the station.

Almost three years after the first "back of an envelope" sketch work has started on the new refuge, specifically the connection from the refuge into the Up Goods near to the road bridge south of the station. The new formation has been built on a second baseboard and the following picture shows the extent of recent work... something like 350 sleepers and 50 timbers.



The new refuge and connection to the Up Goods are on the left, then comes the Up and Down Main lines with the Down Carriage Siding on the right. The join between the two baseboards is about four sleepers beyond the rails on the LHS.

The following photo shows the new turnouts (1:8 crossings with 12' points) and the headshunt of the refuge... long enough for a couple of break vans or maybe a H. Pooley workshop van.


In spite of the size of the baseboard (4' end to end) the two turnouts are too long for the single board and so Harvie has had to split one turnout, not for the faint hearted, and the next photo shows the consequence of this decision (the join is adjacent to timber 16).


No sooner had the PW Gang had dropped the new sleepers into place than the Station Master was asking about additional capacity... and in spite of the discussions at the S7 AGM today the next photo does not show RTR S7 flexible track.


Whilst there appears to be sufficient space in the previous photo the "space" gets less as the refuge moves northwards. This photo shows what happens about three feet from the bottom of the previous photo.


What started out as roughly 3" clearance by the turnouts is now down to just 1" (the Peco track is aligned on a track centre for 6' separation from adjacent line). The big question is:- is a second refuge siding a good thing?

regards, Graham

 

[john lewsey]

Lovely work Graham and for those that don't know there will be a brick retaining wall all of the way down that side of the layout
6inches. High so hopefully it will give the impression of looking down onto the railway
John

 

[john lewsey]

I am going up to Graham's in Few weeks and we are hoping to get the two mainlines on the new board laid
Ps love the story line

 

[john lewsey]

Yes Heather is going too

 

[Heather Kay]

When will this visit occur?

Perhaps better discussed off list, to be honest!

 

[Dog Star]

I think less is more, adding the extra siding will make it looked cramped...

Also, being that close to the baseboard edge will make the retaining wall just a wall which tends to not look as a wall with a few inches of grass at the top or something.

My thoughts as well.

... fine if that's what your looking for, but I suspect it isn't or else you would have already of planed it that way and not be carrying out this exercise.

The original proposal was written on the back of an envelope... and that envelope was in Albert's waistcoat pocket when he headed north with Agnes (late of Burton Hall). So when the Ways and Means committee approved the Stationmaster's request for a new refuge Harvie had to do some scheming to see what would work. I suspect that there is a dose of NIMBY going on for there are some company cottages on the board at the Stafford end of the station and any further sidings would threaten the existance of a venerable Oak near to those properties.

In passing, the LNWR Society has published a book on the Railway Cottages of the LNWR and that is a useful reference source for the properties in the Hartley Hill area. Worth reading just to understand the extent to which the LNWR would go in providing housing for staff.

regards, Graham

 

[john lewsey]

Agreed Mick about the grass my thoughts exactly I've even got one of those grass thingys

 

[john lewsey]

We had a site meeting at Hartley Hill today and actually did some ballasting .What a difference a day makes

 

[Heather Kay]

Indeed it does! Shame about the incessant rain, though.



John gets some ballast spreading action going.



Some very special P&C work, after the ballast was laid.



A blue interloper sits on the diamond crossing.



The extent of the ballasting work today.



The view looking towards the station.



Looking along the line from where the station will be.



The under construction box looks neat.



John reviewing work, while Graham feeds chairs on a length of rail.



Cruel close up of the diamond crossing. This really shows the quality of Graham's work well.



Period traction waits beyond the box.



Platelayer's eye view along the line.



37 and parcels vans, looking a little incongruous on 1910 permanent way. The large building beyond is a mockup of some terraced houses. They won't be in this position when the layout is finished.



The kind of loco this layout will see running.



Neat tidy, as befits the Premier Line.



This is two boards of Hartley Hill. The weather really didn't allow us to erect the two remaining scenic boards.

An enjoyable day out. I hope to revisit some day, and try to get better shots. Now I know what to expect, I can try harder!

 

[john lewsey]

Fabulous stuffffff a really nice day and thank you for your hospitality Graham (and your dear wife of course for lunch )
John

 

[Dog Star]

As can be seen by a previous post the Hartley Hill Examiner sent along a reporter to record the site meeting and in the best tradition of Broadsheets the "Western Thunderer" covered all that occurred today. Unfortunately there was no hydraulic content apart from the rain (aka stair rods) and the proverbial cup of tea.

No H&S Hi-Viz to be seen for this is the early days of the twentieth century and profit is preferred over safety.

The area of ballast done today is roughly 30 inches long and 9 inches wide - the work consumed about two thirds of a container of C&L Best Ballast with the ballast laid dry / sprayed with a mist of water plus Fairy and then Woodland Scenics "Scenic Cement" applied by pipette.

We leave the motley PW crew with a conundrum... how to get the pipette out of the bottle of sticky stuff. Neither Heather nor I have any idea as to how this situtation occured and John is sure that he was not looking.

regards, Graham