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.:Updates:. |
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Track Laying |
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I need some advice on track
laying?
Always make sure your trackbed is
level, without any lumps or bumps. 00 Gauge is not like
the larger scales, The smallest thing could have your
trackbed all over the place. It might not look like it
at first, But I can guarantee you the first train round
will show you. When using flexi track (Peco code 100 for
example) you will need to cut the lengths to size, for
them to fit in around points & crossovers, For this
I recommend a hobby drill with cutting disk, It will
save having to saw through the rails with a hacksaw, and
it makes a much cleaner cut.
Another thing to keep in mind is the
distance between running lines side by side.
Particularly on curves, as some of the modern coaching
stock may need more room. The scale distance that tracks
should be apart is actually 50mm (5cm)
from sleeper center to sleeper center,
To keep this consistent throughout your layout - build a
Jig. (see picture below) The jig can be made
from anything really, as long as the measurements are
correct. A square piece of aluminium would be best, with
grooves cut out for rail heads to fit in. I used a piece
of 2mm plasticard, this work's fine but
obviously wouldn't last as long a metal. |
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What can I use to clean my
Tracks with? |
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What can I use to clean my
Tracks with?
A few things can be used in order to keep tracks clean.
A Track Rubber
I would recommend cleaning the rails
thoroughly before you start, with a "Track Rubber"
this gets the dirt off properly. Nickel silver rails
once left outside overnight will turn a light yellow
color, The track rubber gets rid of this!
So just the once with the rubber
and thats it?
No.... The rubber gives you a nice shiny rail, But once
you start running your trains, traction tire wear, and
general dirt and dust will accumulate onto the rails
again. But never fear! Meths is here! every so often get
a cotton cloth and some methylated spirits, dab the
cloth with the spirits and wipe around the track! You
will find this improves running!
Of course there is another way to reduce the amount of
track cleaning you have to do! and thats to buy a RELCO
track cleaner... This device sends an AC high frequency
current through the rails, and creates an arc between
the wheels and the rail, in the process it burns the
dirt off the rails! Although I've never tried this
outside, a Model Rail article on 00 gauge garden
railways suggested it! So I guess it can be done without
any problems (Remember this cannot be used with DCC) |
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I want to build a Tunnel |
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I want to build a Tunnel?
Railway Tunnels are a very nice feature
on a Garden Railway, but do have down sides, of course
these are not meant to put you off. Firstly, Tunnels
should not be built anymore than two arms length,
otherwise retrieving your derailed stock will prove
quite difficult, also you will need to clean your track
inside the tunnel. Plus being in the Garden, your tunnel
becomes a home to slugs, frogs, and pretty much
anything else. So will need a good clean out before each
running session.
Below:
Once you have your Trackbase down, and your track is all
up and running, you can start creating your tunnel. One
method that I know of, is to get a hold of a few pieces
of polystyrene, layer them up to the height of your
desired tunnel mouth height, and cut away at it so that
you create a tunnel shaped block of polystyrene. This
can then be positioned onto your tunnel area.
Below:
Tunnel mouths can be bought from all good model shops,
remember most of these are made of plastic, and may fade
in colour over time. It might be worth creating a mold
to form a stone type tunnel mouth out of cement? I have
never tried this, but have seen it done before.
Below:
At this point you would pour a layer of concrete over
the polystyrene, then a metal mesh of some sort for
strength. On top of this apply another layer of concrete
to enclose the mesh. I'm sure if the Concrete mix was
strong enough it would probably hold quite well on its
own, as long as no weight was to be added above (like a
footpath etc.) Leave the concrete for a few days (longer
the better) to set hard.
Below: Its
a good idea to cover the tunnel with soil, depending on
the depth of the soil, you could also add turf, or grass
seed.
Below:
All thats needed now
is a knife of some sort. Start chipping away at that
polystyrene!
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I want my railway built over
my Pond! |
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I want my Railway built over
my Pond!
Great! we have our railway over our
pond.. Theres one thing that you need to know. Never
attempt to run trains without bridge sides! or your
pride and joy rolling stock will take a dive.
That will never happen to me!
Ha... Thats exactly what I said!
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Is track giving you jip
outside? |
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My Train stops and starts? and
the Track Is Clean?
Rail joiners (fish-plates) can fail!
again this is due to the "all year round"
weather they have to put up with! After about a year or
two all they end up doing is keeping the rails connected
- and their job of keeping electrical current flowing
round your layout is pretty much over!
Ok! So what can I do about it?
The only way I know, is to solder wire
from rail to rail - bypassing the rail joiner
(fish-plate), this way when the rail joiner fails, the
current will pass through the wire and regain the
connection. Its a very tedious job, but once complete
you will have fairly trouble free running for a fair
amount of time.
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Are points giving
you jip outside? |
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My Points are giving me Jip?
Track outside in all weathers can over
time cause problems. The nickel silver rails on point
blades (where electrical contact has to be perfect) can
become dirty, its a natural reaction with nickel silver
while its in the elements. A good friend of mine covers
his points up with roof tiles or something of the sort,
it seems to help quite a bit. In the winter he takes his
points up and stores them until the summer! On Taw Vale
we have adapted our points so that the point blade is in
constant supply of electricity, so that all the blade
does is direct trains. (see below)
We have used wire from an old point
motor winding, and soldered them to the point *see
dotted lines*
So if the points all Live, I
wouldn't be able to Isolate Trains in the loop, or
siding?
For this I have added Isolated sections
on each loop or siding. So each train can be Isolated
via a switch in the shed control panel. If you intend to
have your layout DCC operated, the above modification
will come in handy, as all the track has to be live! |
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Transporting
Rolling Stock to the garden? |
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Is there an easier way to
transfer stock into the Garden?.. I'm starting to get
fed up with taking stock out of boxes and then putting
them back in! Plus my boxes are getting worn.... This
will decrease their Value! Any Ideas?
Yes... What we tend to use
is shoe boxes and kitchen roll, and in some cases bubble
rap. Also worth mentioning, If it suddenly rains and
your pride and joy rolling stock is on the rails, you
need to get it in Sharpish. So there you have it, A Shoe
Box! or two. |
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Night time running? |
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Night time running can be great
fun, most modern image locomotives are now fitted with
directional lighting, and garden railway night time
running definitely shows them off! but one or two things
need to be taken into account.
When the sun starts to go in, and it
gets a bit chilly, all the slugs and worms seem to like
coming out to play! So take that little extra time to
check your road before you start night running! A small
torch would be handy for this, or even better low
voltage lighting!
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RCD |
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I'm no electrician! But I do know
if you have any kind of electrical equipment in the
garden, you need one of these - (pictured left!) An RCD
adaptor. We use one of these, as our shed lighting and
power socket is powered via a plug within the house.
These are usually used with garden power tools, just
incase you cut through the 240v cable!
They are available from B&Q at a good price. But
have a shop around you might find a cheaper one |
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Cleaning up them
Winter blues! |
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If you plan on building your 00
Gauge Garden Railway at ground level like we have, you
will most likely have a bed of leaves, and general
garden clutter laying over your trackwork. You could use
the hard method of maintenance, and that would be a soft
broom, dust pan & brush. But I found these much more
easier - a garden blow vac! they can be bought from most
garden centers and DIY stores, at quite a good price!
Remember to look out for little bits that you might
have left on your trackbed from the previous running
session! You'll usually find, you'll see a coupling at
the last minuet, by then its to late, and its churned up
inside the Vac! Very handy tool though. |
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