HOW TO build a lift-out bridge p. 12 DECEMBER 2015
KADEE TRUCKS: one of 7 reviews! p. 62
Adventures in outdoor model railroading
Visit an old favorite Jack Verducci adds a new division to his well-known line p. 34
21 HO
W TO
PAGES
A passenger train, hauled by a live-steam Forney, crosses the trestle after departing Fairmont on Jack Verducci’s Crystal Springs Railroad.
Detail an F3 diesel p. 44
Prune miniature trees p. 51 Build a rerailer track section p. 30
BONUS ONLINE CONTENT CODE p. 5
Vol. 32 • Issue 6
HOW TO Kitbash Piko structures p. 42
www.GardenRailways.com
BACHMANN G SCALE LARGE TRAINS
SUPER SALE BACHMANN
G SCALE BRASS TRACK
STRAIGHT TRACK
CURVED TRACK
#94651C 1’ STRAIGHT, Box of 12 . . . . . . 99.99 #94652C 3’ STRAIGHT, Box of 12 . . . . . 254.99 #94660C 5’ STRAIGHT, Box of 6 . . . . . . 209.99
#94653C 4’ DIAMETER CURVE, Box of 12 . 99.99 #94654C 5’ DIAMETER CURVE, Box of 12 134.99 #94655C 8’ DIAMETER CURVE, Box of 16 199.99
THOMAS AND FRIENDS #97003 EMILY’S COACH SALE $64.99 #97004 EMILY’S BREAK COACH SALE $64.99
RAIL TRUCK With ACCESSORIES #82394 Red/Black #82397 Yellow/BLACK #82398 Hunter Green/Black
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#91197 UNLETTERED, black #91198 UNLETTERED, red window #91199 UNLETTERED, green/black
STARTER SETS
#89399 PAINTED, UNLETTERED
COMBINE SALE $67.99
#91196 SOUTHERN 2-4-2 STEAM LOCOMOTIVE SALE $199.99
2-4-2 STEAM LOCOMOTIVE SUPER SALE $124.99 EA.
BAGGAGE SALE $67.99 Ea. #89693 EAST BROAD TOP
COACH SALE $79.99
#80997 SANDY RIVER (Inside) #80998 BLACK UNLETTERED (Outside) #80999 BLACK UNLETTERED (Inside)
#89692 EAST BROAD TOP
OBSERVATION SALE $85.99 Ea. #89694 EAST BROAD TOP
SUPER SALE
$49.99 Ea.
#82596 COLRADO MINING #82597 MIDWEST QUARRY #82599 UNLETTERED, black
#98682 #98684 #98685 #98689
J.H BREWHOUSE BRICKTOWN RIVER HORSE KENNEBEC RIVER
#98690 #98691 #98692 #98695
AMHERST RAMPO VALLEY DOGFISH HEAD DOGFISH IPA
#98120 4-6-0 STEAM LOCOMOTIVE WITH TENDER & LIGHT, SMOKE & SYNCHRO EAST TENNESSEE & WEST NORTH CAROLINA STOCK CAR SOUND SUPER SALE $219.99 #91601 #91602 #91603 #91604 #91605 #91606 #91607
EAST BROAD TOP DENVER RIO GRANDE RIO GRANDE SOUTHERN SOUTHERN PACIFIC COAST DENVER RIO GRANDE WESTERN EAST TENNESSEE WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA UNLETTERED, BLACK
SUPER SALE $39.99
ANIMATED STOCK CARS SALE $62.99 Ea.
2-6-0 LOCOMOTIVE WITH SMOKE & SOUND SUPER SALE $159.99 EA.
#98701 HORSE CAR
SOUND, DCC ON-BOARD SUPER SALE $599.99 #86093 CLEAR LAKE BOX CARS #86094 ELK RIVER SALE #86095 DEMO $62.99 Ea. #86096 BAYSIDE #86097 UNLETTERED #93301 DENVER RIO GRANDE #86098 UNLETTERED #93302 RED DATA ONLY #93311 GREAT NORTHERN #93318 RIO GRANDE #93328 SOUTHERN PACIFIC COAST #93364 GREAT CENTRAL
DCC READY, NO SOUND SUPER SALE $499.99 #85094 ELK RIVER #85096 BAYSIDE #85097 UNLETTERED #85098 UNLETTERED,Black/Red/White
3-TRUCK SHAY DCC ON-BOARD, NO SOUND SALE $499.99 EA.
90037 NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS FREIGHT SET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SALE 239.99 90076 WHITE CHRISTMAS PASSENGER EXPRESS SET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SALE 259.99
Li’L BIG HAULERS
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www.trainworld.com 90196 90197 90198 91498 91499
FAST FREIGHT SET . . . . . . . . . . . 139.99 SHORT LINE RR PASSENGER SPECIAL SET 129.99 NORTH POLE EXPRESS SET . . . . 139.99 LOCO & TENDER SHORT LINE RAILROAD 59.99 TANK ENGINE SHORT LINE RAILROAD 44.99
HOPPER SALE $19.99 EA.
SALE $62.99 Ea.
#88999 Die-Cast Shay Power Trucks 1/pair SALE $209.99 #81399 UNLETTERED 4-4-0 STEAM ENGINE & TENDER SUPER SALE $499.99
98086 BLUE/SILVER 98087 YELLOW/BLACK 98099 GREEN/BLACK
RINGLING BROS. CIRCUS ITEMS
#82896 OREGON
SALE $749.99 Ea. #82898 UNLETTERED BLACK #82899 UNLETTERED RED
C19 STEAM LOCOMOTIVE, DCC READY SUPER SALE $799.99 EA. Short Tender
SALE $49.99
ZERO LEAN CONOCO WHITE PASS & YUKON TEXACO TIDEWATER GRAMPS
#93465 #93470 #93471 #93473
HOPPERS Long Tender #83196 DENVER RIO GRANDE ROYAL GORGE #83199 PAINTED, UNLETTERED
SALE $95.99 PETER WHITT STREET CAR, DCC READY SUPER SALE $249.99 ea. RUNS ON TRACK OR OVERHEAD POWER
91701 91702 91703 91704
BALTIMORE TRANSIT COMPANY LOS ANGELES RAILWAY TORONTO CHICAGO SURFACE LINES
WATER TANK CAR. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74.99 FLAT w/Elephant Tableau Wagon . . . . .84.99 FLAT w/Lady Artists Tableau Wagon . .84.99 BOXCAR w/Tiger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64.99 BOBBER CABOOSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59.99 RINGLING GONDOLA. . . . . . . . . . . . . .59.99 PERFORMER’S OBSERVATION . SALE 64.99 CIRCUS POLE CAR . . . . . . . . . . SALE 49.99 CIRCUS WATER TANK CAR . . . . SALE 44.99
#98203 EAST BROAD TOP #98206 RED DATE ONLY #98278 CHRISTMAS
#92504 V DUMP CAR SALE $47.99 EA.
8’ WIDE RADIUS REQUIRED
BOXCAR, MURPHY ROOF SUPER SALE $99.99 Ea.
FRAMED TANK CAR SUPER SALE $99.99 Ea.
#88695 COLORADO & SOUTHERN #88697 FLORENCE & C.C. #88698 UNLETTERED, red
#88197 UNLETTERED, black #88198 UNLETTERED, silver #88199 UNLETTERED, red
FRAMELESS TANK CAR SUPER SALE $99.99 Ea.
LONG CABOOSE SUPER SALE $149.99 Ea.
LIGHTED & #88493 GRAMPS #88795 DENVER RIO GRANDE #88798 UNLETTERED, oxide brown DETAILED INTERIOR FRAMELESS #88799 UNLETTERED, oxide red
TANK CARS SALE $64.99 Ea. #93401 #93402 #93419 #93432 #93433 #93445
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#95368 PENNSYLVANIA 20’ BOX CAR
SUPER SALE $499.9
2-6-6-2 SADDLE TANK, DCC READY
RIO GRANDE FLYING GRANDE BUMBLE BEE RGS SUNRISE HERALD PAINTED, UNLETTERED
CABOOSE SALE $19.99 EA.
97088 RED/BLACK 97092 GREEN/BLACK 97096 YELLOW/SILVER
CIRCUS
#93201 #93202 #93203 #93204 #93224 #93265 #93266 #93267 #93276
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98090 JUMPIN JACK JELLY BEANS 98091 KING COAL 98097 GOLDEN NUGGET MINING
REEFERS
#82699 UNLETTERED 55Ton 3-TRUCK SHAY DCC & SOUND ON-BOARD SALE $599.99
TANK CAR SALE $19.99 EA.
97089 RED/BLACK 97093 GREEN/BLACK 97097 YELLOW/SILVER
90083 RINGLING BROS. CIRCUS SET . . 299.99 90194 LIL’ BIG TOP RINGLING BROS. SET .189.99 SUPER SALE $39.99 Ea. #93320 EAST TENNESSEE & WEST NORTH CAROLINA 92711 JACKSON SHARP COACH . . . . . . . . . .89.99 #93330 EAST BROAD TOP
#82494 OREGOON LUMBER #82496 MEADOW RIVER #82499 UNLETTERED, black
#93938 OPEN STREET CAR, YELLOW/BEIGE SALE $124.99
269.99 237.99 299.99 324.99
BAGGAGE SALE $19.99 EA. #98702 CATTLE CAR
2-TRUCK CLIMAX
#96201 HAND CAR W/TRAILER, gray
SILVERADO FREIGHT TRAIN SET . . THE PLAINSMAN SET . . . . . . . . . RINGLING BROS. CIRCUS SET . . NORTH WOODS LOGGER SET . . .
COACH SALE $19.99 EA.
#91552 MIDWEST #91554 COLORADO
#83194 #83195 #83197 #83198
PERCY & TROUBLESOME TRUCKS SET . 249.99 THOMAS CHRISTMAS DELIVERY SET . . 259.99 PERCY LOCOMOTIVE W/MOVING EYES . . . 179.99 JAMES THE RED ENGINE W/MOVING EYES . 229.99 EMILY W/MOVING EYES . . . . . 249.99 TOBY ENGINE . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189.99 ANNIE COACH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59.99 CLARABEL COACH. . . . . . . . . . . 59.99 TROUBLESOME TRUCK #1 . . . . 59.99 TROUBLESOME TRUCK #2 . . . . 59.99 COAL WAGON WITH LOAD . . . . 57.99
#90068 THOMAS with ANNIE & CLARABEL SET SALE $239.99 #98004 SODAR FUEL TANK . . . . . . . . . . 57.99 #98005 TIDMOUTH MILK TANK . . . . . . . 57.99 #98006 CARGO CAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57.99 #98007 OIL TANK CAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57.99 #98008 BRAKE VAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57.99 #98009 TAR CAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57.99 #98010 S.P. RUFFY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57.99 #98011 RASBERRY TANK CAR. . . . . . . . 57.99 #98012 OPEN WAGON, BLUE . . . . . . . . . 57.99 #98013 OPEN WAGON, RED. . . . . . . . . . 57.99 #98014 CREAM TANKER . . . . . . . . . . . . 57.99
with TRACK & TRANSFORMER 90050 90078 90083 90122
BILLBOARD REEFERS
SUPER SALE $99.99 EA.
#91401 THOMAS THE TANK LOCO W/MOVING EYES SALE $179.99
#90069 #90087 #91402 #91403 #91404 #91405 #97001 #97002 #98001 #98002 #98003
JACKSON SHARP PASSENGER CARS
SUPER SALE $89.99 EA. 2-4-4 FORNEY SUPER SALE #80996 SANDY RIVER (Outside) $499.99 EA.
TRAINWORLD® ORDERS ONLY 1-800-541-7010 THOMAS AND FRIENDS
TANK CAR SUPER SALE $99.99 Ea.
UNION FRAMED UNLETTERED FIRE PREVENTION TANK CAR UNLETTERED, silver SUPER SALE $99.99 #88195 WHITE PASS & YUKON
#88496 #88497 #88498 #88499
SHOP ON-LINE AT
trainworld.com SALE $62.99 Ea.
#93827 EAST BROAD TOP CABOOSE
UTLX UNLETTERED, black UNLETTERED, silver UNLETTERED, red
CABOOSE with CENTER CUPOLA & INTERIOR SALE $83.99 Ea.
SUPER SALE $59.99
#98490 SHORT #92503 WOODSIDE DUMP CAR LOG CAR SALE $47.99 EA. W/LOGS #98470 LOG CAR W/LOGS, PAINTED UNLETTTERED #92502 SIDE DUMP SALE $59.99 ORE CAR SALE $47.99 EA.
#88494 GRAMPS
#93830 ELY THOMAS CO.
#93851 UNION PACIFIC
BOBBER CABOOSES SALE $47.99 Ea. #93119 WHITE PASS & YUKON #93142 RIO GRANDE SOUTHERN
SUPER SALE $34.99 #93106 #93120 #93130 #93148
DENVER & RIO GRANDE WESTERN EAST TENNESSEE & WEST NORTH CAROLINA EAST BROAD TOP DENVER & RIO GRANDE WESTERN
THE PRODUCTS WE SELL ARE NOT TOYS AND ARE NOT INTENDED FOR USE BY CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE OF 14. THESE PRODUCTS ARE MODEL RAILROAD EQUIPMENT & ACCESSORIES AND ARE INTENDED FOR USE BY ADULTS.
TRAINWORLD® TRAINLAND®
TOLL FREE 1-800-541-7010 INFO 1-718-436-7072 MON-SAT 10-6 751 McDonald Ave. Brooklyn, NY 11218 E-MAIL:
[email protected] www.trainworld.com
ONLINE SHOPPING: www.trainworld.com
- 15% Re-Stocking Fee on returns 12/15F - Minimum UPS standard shipping & handling charge $10.99 - Prices are subject to change without notice - Limited Quantities All Rights Reserved
ONLINE CONTENT CODE: GRW1512 Enter this code at: www.gardenrailways.com/code to gain access to web-exclusive content
DECEMBER 2015 | Volume 32, Number 6
CONTENTS HOW TO build a lift-out bridge p. 12
COVER PHOTO: JACK VERDUCCI
DECEMBER 2015
KADEE TRUCKS: one of 7 reviews! p. 62
Adventures in outdoor model railroading
Visit an old favorite Jack Verducci adds a new division to his well-known line p. 34
21
HOW TO PAGES
A passenger train, hauled by a live-steam Forney, crosses the trestle after departing Fairmont on Jack Verducci’s Crystal Springs Railroad.
HOW TO Kitbash Piko structures p. 42 Detail an F3 diesel p. 44
Prune miniature trees p. 51 Build a rerailer track section p. 30
• How to build a lift-out bridge 12 • Kadee trucks: One of 7 reviews 62 • Visit an old favorite 34 • Detail an F3 diesel 44 • Kitbash Piko structures 42 • Prune miniature trees 51 • Build a rerailer track section 30
28
FEATURES 28 Staff corner: Nancy Norris Putting out fire! by Nancy Norris
30 Rerailer design and construction This simple device makes life easier by David Outteridge COVER STORY
34 Adding a new division to an old favorite The Fairmont Division of the Crystal Springs Railroad by Jack Verducci
12
42 Kitbashing Piko’s Village Furniture Shop A simple conversion produces a more interesting structure by Don McClure
44 Modifying a USA Trains F3 Prototype research results in a more accurate model by Gavin Smart
48 An N-scale garden railway Building a downsized railway in a flower pot by Paul Smith
48 IN EVERY ISSUE 6 From the Editor Notes from Marc
8 Notes & news What’s new for the garden railroader
11 Letters Views from our readers
12 Garden railway basics Building a lift-out bridge
17 Greening your railway Even trains can get the blues
25 Plant portraits Sanders Blue dwarf Alberta spruce
51 Miniscaping A modified bonsai technique for miniaturizing trees
55 Raising steam In praise of small locomotives
Online extras 58 Events Upcoming shows and exhibits
59 Online station A large-scale guide to the Internet
62 Product reviews Just Plain Folk structure, Kadee trucks, and more
74 One-page project Build a railroad telephone booth
• Bonus article: Build a rerailer from the October 2010 issue • Related gardening reading • Bonus article: Kitbash AristoCraft Alcos into dummy units from the August 2011 issue
www.GardenRailways.com
GARDEN RAILWAYS (ISSN 0747-0622, USPS 713-710) is published bimonthly by Kalmbach Publishing Co., 21027 Crossroads Circle. P.O. Box 1612, Waukesha WI 53187-1612. Periodicals postage paid at Waukesha WI, and additional offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to GARDEN RAILWAYS, PO Box 1612, Waukesha WI 53187-1612. Canada Publication Mail Agreement # 40010760
FROM THE EDITOR
Who is qualified to write an article for GR?
Editor Marc Horovitz Production Editor Rene Schweitzer Art Director LuAnn Williams Belter Senior Graphic Designer Chuck Braasch Production Coordinator Jodi Jeranek Horticultural Editor Nancy Norris Technical Editor Vance Bass Contributing Editors Don Parker, Kevin Strong, Jeff Young Circulation Manager Cathy Daniels Single Copy Specialist Kim Redmond
6
Garden Railways | December 2015
PHOTO BY ETZEL WILLHOIT
I
have been a model railroader for most of my life. In an early family photograph, I can be seen on the floor with my Marx windup train, around age four. I started reading Model Railroader and Railroad Model Craftsman as a pre-teen. I found all the articles fascinating, whether or not I even understood them and whether or not they were anywhere near my skill level (few were back then). I was always amazed at the apparent high level of knowledge and skill that every author seemed to possess. Thus, I suppose I had it ingrained in me that, to write for a publication (any publication), you had to have decades of experience and an amazingly high level of skill. Certainly, if you are writing for a scientific or technical professional journal, you must not only know your stuff, you must have the credentials to back it up—otherwise, you’ll have no credibility with your readers and peers, despite how competent you may be on your subject. It was not until I was much older that I realized that was not necessarily the case when writing for a hobby publication such as Garden Railways. GR, obviously, is neither a scientific publication nor is it a professional journal. I suppose it might be categorized as a pleasurable periodical, one whose primary function is to help people advance in a pursuit they enjoy—their hobby. While we make every effort to provide a quality publication and to ensure the accuracy of the material we publish, we are not dealing with life-and-death issues or topics that will have a material impact on the future of the world, except perhaps in the most minute sense. Given that, we can relax to a certain extent about credentials, experience, and even the skill level of our authors. We like to present a broad range of material in our pages, touching, over time, on every topic of interest to garden railroaders, and every skill level. I especially like to present new ideas or novel ways of approaching old problems. These ideas often come from those who are new to the game and who don’t know the “right” way of doing things. In that context, the notion of “that’s the way we’ve always done it” doesn’t really hold much water. What I’m saying is that anyone who has done something that might be of interest to others is qualified to write a story about it. My father used an expression I’ve always liked: “You can’t argue with success.” If you’ve done something and it works, tell people about it. What you’ve done may seem obvious to you but it may not be so to the next person. Write it down and send it in. While we may not be able to accept everything we receive, every potential story is carefully read and considered. One excuse I hear with some regularity is, “I’m not a writer.” Well, join the club— none of us are. You need not worry about prose, spelling, syntax, or any of those other hobgoblins—that’s my job. Just write clearly about your project. If I don’t understand everything you’ve said, I’ll ask you to clarify it. I look forward to hearing from you.
Kalmbach Publishing Co. President Charles R. Croft Vice President, Editorial Kevin P. Keefe Vice President and General Manager Jim McCann Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing Daniel R. Lance Vice President, Consumer Marketing Nicole McGuire Executive Editor Neil Besougloff Corporate Advertising Director Scott Bong Corporate Art Director Maureen M. Schimmel Art and Production Manager Michael Soliday
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Suspended Railway Systems for
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www.GardenRailways.com
7
NOTES & NEWS PRODUCTS
Engines & rolling stock
Great American Locomotion—The GAL Line, 472 East Holly Avenue, Pitman NJ 08071, is offering a 53' wood express reefer (#Gal 70 431) in 1:32 scale. This craftsman project includes all lasercut and etched-styrene parts, express trucks, brass bearings, and 36" Sierra Valley steel wheels. A milk-tank-car variant is available on request. Price: $320. Website: www.thegalline.com
working knuckles and manual trip pins. They come pre-assembled and chemically blackened. The couplers will mate with Kadee #1-scale couplers and can be mounted in Kadee #1-scale coupler boxes. Prices: type-E coupler, $30/pair; type-E double-shelf coupler, $35/pair; $5.95 priority-mail shipping. Website: http://burlrice.com
Bridges & structures
VES Enterprises, PO Box 11672, Casa Grande AZ 85130, has a coal-fired powerplant complex in 1:24 scale, consisting of three individual buildings that can be arranged in a multitude of ways to fit your available space. These include an administration building, a furnace building with three stacks, and an open-ended hopper bay. All are provided assembled, painted, and ready for installation. Construction is all wood, with exterior grade-paints and glues. Doors and windows are molded UV-treated plastic from Precision Products. Price for all three: $209 + s&h. Website: www.gtrainbuildings.com
Accessories & details Burl Rice, 316 N Spring Street, Sparta TN 38583, is making AAR type-E couplers and type-E double-shelf couplers in 1:29 scale. The couplers are brass, with
8
Garden Railways | December 2015
Electronics & software Dallee Electronics, Inc., 246 W. Main Street, Leola PA 17540, is releasing the first of a series of new sound systems. These are smaller in size and will work with all types of input. HiLine Sound Systems’ first release is the Diesel (#1510). Main features include 10 horns, three bells, and seven prime movers, all in one unit. Other selectable features include motor sound with eight notches; brakerelease sound; compressor relief-valve sound; and more. Dimensions: 2.2" long x 0.95" wide x 0.5" high. The unit is electrically compatible with all scales and gauges. Price: $149.95. Also from Dallee is a variety of small speakers in sealed enclosures. Each comes with a two-pin header to directly plug into a Dallee sound system. Complete info at: www.dallee.com
Tools b2bReplicas, b2bReplicas.com, is offering a new release from Universal Hobbies, a 1:32-scale Claas Arion 550 Tractor with front weight (#4298, shown). Features include realistic tread and hub detail; detailed mirrors, headlights, warning lights, and wiper; detailed operators cab and controls; and free rolling wheels. Price: $58. The firm also has a variety of die-cast metal lift devices in 1:32 scale: Genie-SX 180 Telescopic Boom Lift (#922), featuring movable axles; steerable function at all four wheels; 360° rotation of carriage; telescopic boom; and poseable in transport position. Price: $194.95. Genie-GS 4069RT Scissor Lift (EU version, #929) and Genie-GS 4069RT Scissor Lift (US version, shown, #9291). Features include steerable front axle; tiltable front axle; scissor lift function; and extendable platform. Price: $137.99 ea. Website: http://b2breplicas.com
K.I.S.S. Method Inc., 9199 So. Mountain Laurel Ln., West Jordan UT 84081, has the Super-V G Cradle, a foam cradle, 24" long x 4" high x 8" wide. The unit is firm enough to hold engines and cars in any position, yet soft enough not to damage delicate parts. Price: $19.95 + $3 s&h. Website: www.kissmethodinc.com MISCELLANEOUS
Piko Spielwaren GmbH, Lutherstr. 30, 96515 Sonneberg, Germany, has released a catalog of their US offerings for 2015. For more information, visit www.piko.de
LAND, CELL OR INTERNATIONAL US LAND LINES ONLY
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EMAIL OR CALL FOR PERSONAL SERVICE HLW PAUL BUNYAN LOCO ARE YOU LOOKING FOR SOMETHING SPECIAL? $309.95 MACK CUSTOM BUILT STRUCTURES COAL ING TOWER FROM $199.95
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LETTERS Scratchbuilding in tinplate While reading the article “Scratchbuilding day coaches in tinplate” by Marc Horovitz in the October 2014 issue of Garden Railways, I got the urge to try tinplate modeling myself. The major incentive was to use the techniques and videos on the tinplategirl.com website mentioned in the GR article.
there are a couple of NMRA Master Modelers, as well as a collection of other serious modelers in the district, I consider this an indication of the both the usefulness of the plans and the fabrication in my humble hands. —Bob Charles, deer
[email protected]
Jim Cary In the October 2015 issue, I was so im– pressed with Jim Cary’s article that I looked up his website. There is no word for how impressed I was. Every detail of construction was meticulously thought out and built. I e-mailed him a couple of questions and he answered immediately. I would label him “Master Builder” second to no one. Kudos to Jim. —Irwin (Sonny) Alansky, Rockledge, Florida
A kitbashed switcher
Here are a couple of pictures (taken by my wife Lisa) of my side-dump ore cars, fabricated following the excellent instructions obtained from tinplategirl.com I watched all of the videos on the site. As a novice at soldering, the soldering video was instrumental in overcoming my initial pangs in fabricating tinplate with solder. The exhaustive instructions and the carefully illustrated steps in fabrication made assembly (with a little practice) a snap. I did not use a bending brake, but instead used a vise, and built all of the necessary fabrication tools as illustrated. Although the drawings are in ⅞" scale, the frame is designed for 45mm-gauge track and, along with the tub, looks just fine when compared to the various plastic ore cars manufactured for my scale— 1:20.3. You could reduce the tub size by the appropriate amount if you were really picky. Redesign of the tub supports would also be necessary. I’ve made four cars so far and am planning to add a further six in due course. Our local NMRA club in Sheridan, Wyoming, has asked me to put on a clinic about this construction at our district NMRA meeting this fall. Considering
After a long construction period, the shops rolled out Nº 1. The power block, the deck, and the upper part of the hood started off in a Rivarossi 0-scale diesel switcher. I raised the hood, built the cab using styrene stock, and replaced the wheels with large-scale wheels, but kept the 0-gauge track gauge. I also added the headlight and the stack. The headlight has an LED in it; there is a battery box in the cab, the roof of which is a press fit. The propulsion battery (probably on the order of 9V NiMH) will go behind the engine in a Hartland minigon, three of which are on order. I am not going to install R/C. I’ll just turn it on and let it go at whatever speed the battery will deliver for as long as it can make the little train move. I installed 0-scale Kadee couplers on the engine. The three mini-gons will most likely be tied together with link-and-pin couplers. When I can find an appropriatesized single-chime air horn and a bell,
they will go on Nº 1’s roof. —John D’Aloia, St. Marys, Kansas
Call before you dig It was good to see you presenting the information on calling 811 before digging (Oct. 2015 GR). However, not all utilities are members of 811 so you may need to contact them directly. Also, everyone needs to know that all utilities have a right-of-way for their equipment and that if anything is in that right-of-way, they have the right to remove it as needed. — Doug Mangold, Newport, North Carolina
Keeping indoor track clean I have been operating my indoor layout for 14 years and I have never used a cleaner of any kind. Trains run the first time, every time, even after a few weeks of rest. Some conditions apply. 1. My layout remains wired from my DC days. Drop lines are about eight-toten feet apart. 2. I now use Airwire/CVP drop-in radio control and run exclusively USA Trains diesels. I do not use onboard batteries in those engines but, rather, supply my track with steady, heavy duty, wellregulated 14.5V DC current, fed to the track and up through steel wheels (no traction tires) and sliders to a full-wave bridge that stabilizes polarity to the circuit boards. 3. My rolling stock has steel wheels. 4. I live in the Okanagan Valley, which offers a dry, semi-desert climate of hot summers and cool winters. My furnace shuts itself down for a greater part of the year but continues to filter the air and control the humidity, such as it is. Still, even using organic DC, as I did for 10 years, I find that the USA Trains engines are quite heavy and, despite what non-believers suggest, gravity works. I don’t think dirty track will be as much a concern as you fear. —Dave Winter, Peachland BC Canada
If you have something to say, send your comments to “Letters,” c/o Garden Railways, PO Box 460222, Denver CO 80246 USA; or e-mail them to mhorovitz@gardenrailways. com
www.GardenRailways.com
11
KEVIN STRONG
GARDEN RAILWAY BASICS
Building a lift-out bridge
1. These two bridges lift to provide access to the garden on Mark Melichar’s Curmudgeon & St. Anita Railroad in Denver. The bridge on the right is hinged against the storage shed and will fold up, out of the way, when not in use.
Tuscarora Railroad Nº 5 leads the daily passenger train across Three Lick Creek on the author’s line. This bridge can be lifted out to allow access to the side yard whenever tools or other large items that cannot be easily carried over the track need to be moved. PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR
W
hen designing a garden railroad, it’s often necessary for the track to pass over a walkway or in front of a door. If the track is at ground level, it might be possible to build a grade crossing over which you could walk or roll the lawnmower. In many cases the track is not on the ground—it’s elevated a few inches or even a few feet. In those cases, it’s not practical to step over the track and I’m not about to lift the lawnmower. Instead, we can turn to lift-out bridges or similar means of temporarily moving the track out of the way. In the prototype world, when railroads encountered crossings where they’d have to move the track, they used various arrangements of drawbridges, swing bridges, or other engineering marvels. In the garden, there’s nothing wrong with duplicating the prototype. If you’ve got the mechanical-engineering chops to go that route, more power to you. However, such bridges—while certainly cool— aren’t always practical or even desirable. Our garden-railway bridges are often simple and utilitarian, with little effort to make them look prototypical (photo 1).
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Garden Railways | December 2015
I have one lift-out bridge on my Tuscarora Railroad—the bridge over Three Lick Creek. This bridge crosses a pathway from the backyard to the side yard, with the track about 12" above grade. I knew when building my railroad that I’d need a liftout bridge across this section. The East Broad Top Railroad (upon which my TRR is based) never had fancy drawbridges or anything like that, so whatever I put in that spot would be a simple affair. I had a 48" Garden Metal Models deck girder bridge (sadly, no longer made) which would be perfect to span the gap. For the first few years I had bridged this gap with a non-removable 2 x 4. After years of tripping over the thing, I decided I’d be better served by installing a lift-out bridge. The first step entailed building a proper foundation for the bridge. In this case, I wanted cut-stone abutments on either side of the gap. These would have to be built in place, as they had to blend into the existing rockwork edging of the garden. I cut Styrofoam sheet to build a form, then lined the inside of the form with Precision Products’ cut-stone styrene sheet to create the pattern I was after in the cement (photos 2a-2c).
With the abutments dry, I set the bridge in place and it was ready for track. When I was laying track on this stretch, I thought ahead and bridged this gap with a single five-foot section of flex track. I could simply remove this section of track, then remove the bridge, and voila! Goal achieved, and I’d get around to building a proper wood deck for the bridge later. As projects often go with me, “later” ended up being about seven years. I was surprisingly content with my two-part “lift out” bridge, given how seldom I actually lifted it out. The one downside was that the flex track, not being secured to the bridge, tended to get bent and misaligned whenever I removed it, or even just from kids and dogs going over it. But the annoyance wasn’t quite enough (yet) to convince me to actually finish the project. That would take something a bit more pressing, like potentially 400 people traipsing through my backyard during a national convention. It’s amazing how much work you can get done in six weeks when your local garden-railway society is hosting a national convention. Lots of “eventually” projects suddenly found themselves on the front burner, and this bridge was at the top of the list. There would be two parts to this project: the deck on the bridge and the ties on the wood cribbing leading up to the bridge on either side. The lift-out section
INTERMEDIATE PROJECT
2a. The forms for the bridge supports are made from Styrofoam lined with Precision Products’ sheet.
2b. The forms, filled with concrete. The bridge will rest atop these supports once they’ve set.
2c. The finished forms and cribbing. The flex-track strip just sits insecurely on top of the bridge.
3. These lower two battens will hold the deck of the bridge onto the girder section.
4. Bridge ties are 7" long. To keep things even, a guide piece is taped to the floor so that the ties will be centered over the two battens.
5. The ties are glued onto the battens using Titebond II waterproof glue.
6. After the glue dried, the author pinned the battens to the ties using a small pin nailer.
7. The top battens were then glued and pinned in place.
8. Small screws with large heads hold the decking to the girders from below.
would be made up of the Garden Metal Models bridge, the wood deck, and the rails, all as one assembly. The two “ends” of the original five-foot section of track would be spiked to the ties laid on the wood cribbing. I cut the ties out of cedar fence slats I got at Lowe’s, which I had stored in my garage for a few years. They’re usually quite damp when I buy them, so “seasoning” them in the garage for a while
removes some of their tendency to warp when ripped into thin (scale) strips. I made them the same width and height as the plastic AMS ties I had used elsewhere in the garden but lengthened them to 7", using the rationale that the ties should be long enough for a train to be on the bridge and still have just enough room for a crewmember to safely walk alongside it. I also cut long, thin battens to run the length of the bridge; two on top, on the
outer edges of the ties, and two underneath that would lie next to the bridge girders, to keep the deck from sliding side to side. To space these lower battens, I set the bridge upside down on the floor of my garage and taped the battens in place on the floor (photo 3). Knowing my bridge ties are 7" long, I taped a guide next to the battens so the ties would be centered on the bridge (photo 4). Then I laid a bead of www.GardenRailways.com
13
GARDEN RAILWAY BASICS
9. With the decking in place on both the bridge and the cribbing, the rails were set in place to be spiked.
10. One rail was spiked in place, then the second rail was set using a track gauge.
11. Gaps in the rails at the end of the bridges were cut after the rails were temporarily set in place. The cut-off wheel was also used to cut away the ties so the rail joiners could slide onto the rails.
12. Rails were firmly spiked in place using pliers to push them into pre-drilled holes.
13. Rail joiners slide along the rails into notches cut into the end ties.
14. Footers on the bridge fit into these pockets on the abutments to keep the bridge aligned with the cribbing.
15a & 15b. The finished bridge removed for access, then set back in place.
Titebond II glue along the battens, then set the ties in place (photo 5).Once the glue had set, I went back with a pin nailer to reinforce the joints (photo 6). I flipped the assembly over and glued and pinned the outer battens to the top of the deck (photo 7). The final step in this assembly was to screw the deck onto the girder bridge. To do this, I used small screws with large heads to secure the deck (photo 8). The head of the screw holds things in place; I opted not to drill through the metal of the girder. With everything assembled, it was time to lay the rails. I set the bridge on the abutments and connected one length of rail across the deck, eyeballing it to get
14
Garden Railways | December 2015
the track smooth from one end to the other (photo 9). I spiked this rail down, with spikes every 10 or so ties, just to get it attached to the ties. Then, using a track gauge, I spiked the second rail in place (photo 10). With the rails in place, I used a cut-off disk in my Dremel tool to cut gaps in the rail at the end of the bridge section (photo 11). With everything test fitted, the rest of the spikes could be put in (photo 12). While cedar is soft enough to simply push the spikes into the ties, I pre-drill the holes to make my life easier. To connect the rails, I use ordinary slide-on rail joiners (photo 13). I notched the ties on the ends of the bridge so the joiners can slide back on the rails. If
you’re running track power, you’d probably want an additional electrical connection to carry power across the bridge, rather than just relying on the rail joiners to make the connection. Rail clamps would work well, though you’d have to loosen them every time you wanted to remove the bridge. Split-Jaw makes rail clamps for removable bridges, though only for code-332 rail. The Tuscarora Railroad finally has a proper lift-out bridge that comes out easily and stays in one piece as it’s removed (photos 15a and 15b). I’ve still got some detailing to do (guard rails, fire barrels, etc.) but it’s taken me 10 years to get this far, so all in good time. . . .
NANCY NORRIS
GREENING YOUR RAILWAY
Even trains can get the blues
1. The Lady of Loch Leven, pride of Scott Gould’s Ballachulish & Pitlochry Railway, awaits the boarding of passengers in front of the depot roofed in Welsh blue slate. Okay, it just looks like slate. SCOTT GOULD (PHOTOS BY NANCY NORRIS EXCEPT WHERE NOTED)
O
ther than the sky, blue is rarely found in gardens. The leastcommon color for flowers is blue. Even rarer are blue leaves. Blues in the garden range from natural, hazy-blue mountain ranges to man-made Thomas the Tank Engine. We can also paint shades of blue that look natural, as in the slate roof on the depot in photo 1.
To blue or not to blue Some garden-railway enthusiasts perceive any color other than green as taking away
from the visual uniformity of a countryside that should highlight moving trains. They like the peace and calm of green. But blue is the quietest of all colors and acts like a mediator to tone down the dark greens and yellow greens, as in photo 2. Too much, and we might feel the blues. Photo 3 shows several blue-colored plants at noon, slightly washed out from the sun. However, during cloudy days or at night, they shine like the moon and draw attention to a beautiful water feature. There’s nothing sad about photo 4, taken under a
Further reading June 2010: Color me content October 2011: Yellow gold June 2014: Using the color red in your garden railway Subscribers can read these “Greening your railway” articles free on our website. Visit. www.GardenRailways.com and find links on the December issue’s table of contents.
www.GardenRailways.com
17
GREENING YOUR RAILWAY
tree—a light-blue native stonecrop outlines the structures placed in shade.
Dry climate? If you’ve been to the desert, “down under,” or to any area with exceptionally dry or sandy soil, you’ll find blue plants. In California, due to drought, the Cooperative Extension Service recommends natives from Australia, where most of the country is dry. The Aussie import, silver bush or cushion bush (photo 5), like many bluish plants, is covered with a waxy substance that holds in moisture. The wax reflects light, causing the silvery look. Colorado blue spruce hails from the high desert but railroaders in any state can trim it into the bonsai formal style continued on page 22
2. Rick and Susan Manfredi’s Peculiar Junction Railroad enjoys multiple mainlines passing through dwarf trees. Two golden conifers frame the train: the creeping juniper is Juniperus horizontalis ‘Mother Lode’ (Zones 3-10) and the shrub above is goldthread cypress (Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Filifera Aurea’, Zones 4-8). The slow-growing star of the show is blue star juniper (Juniperus squamata ‘Blue Star’, Zones 4-8).
4. Tom Manoff’s Bear Mountain Railroad cools down a hot day with the stonecrop groundcover Sedum spathulifolium ‘Cape Blanco’ (Zones 5-9). This evergreen wildflower from coastal Oregon needs excellent drainage to overwinter.
3. The center of the mountain stream on Jerry and Alison Ogden’s Possum Creek Railroad is surrounded by a bevy of blue plants. The tallest tree, at 2 o’clock, is Boulevard cypress (Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Boulevard’, Zones 4-8). Woolly thyme (Thymus pseudolanuginosis, Zones 4-9) drapes over river cliffs. At lower left, the silver-blue lavender cotton (Santolina chamaecyparissus, Zones 6-9) has been pruned to show an aging trunk.
18
Garden Railways | December 2015
5. Silver bush (Calocephalus brownii, Zones 10-12), a native to Australia, blends into the travertine-stone bridge but contrasts nicely with the author’s Shay, running on Richard and Melinda Murray’s Green Hills Railroad.
REGIONAL GARDENING REPORT Zones listed are USDA Hardiness Zones Has your railway garden got the blues?
Kathleen Clayton Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Zone 3 True blue
Scott Gould Cape Elizabeth, Maine, Zone 5 Too blue
Creeping bellflower (Campanula cocclearifolia or C. pusilla, Zones 3-8) is a tough little plant at only 3 to 4" high when blooming. After blooming, cut stems with scissors to leave a nice, tidy plant. It grows well in sun or part shade in ordinary well-drained soil. This alpine perennial, with curving, spoonshaped leaves, forms dense mats and is useful for dwarf groundcover. It grows over and around stones or other objects but it’s easy to propagate—just move a small mass and replant. Caution: Campanulas will take over if you fertilize a lot. To control this, we use pickling vinegar (7% acetic acid) in a spray
I like lobelia for its color (it comes in at least three colors: dark and light blue, and purple). [Also white and pink—NN] It’s sold as an annual but usually overwinters pretty well here, although it may get rangy after a while. I love the flowers on the blue-eyed grass. This perennial spreads slowly, a little each year. I wish it bloomed for a longer time—just a few months, it seems.
Saskatoon Sal rests on a rock in the Clayton’s garden railway. She is holding a blue bellflower, commonly known as fairies’ thimbles for the delicate little cup-shaped blooms.
Also known as creeping bellflower, this groundcover looks innocent enough but Kathleen Clayton has a good way to control it near tracks. KATHLEEN CLAYTON
In front of the inn and depot, passengers await their ride on the Lady of Loch Leven, pride of the Ballachulish & Pitlochry Railway. That’s the same outfit that built the Aberdaron, Pwllheli & Criccieth Railway down in Wales. I’m going to replace the station but I’ve already gone to a more subdued roof treatment—it still has blue, but also purple and green—more like Welsh slate.
Scott’s roof used to be a little too blue for his liking. See photo 1 in “Greening” for the modification that made the slate more realistic and aged.
Ray Turner likes to grow dark-blue lobelia (Lobelia erinus, annual) to complement nearby buildings. It starts as a bush then flattens out and spreads somewhat. Eventually it will need replacing.
bottle to keep plants away from track. The roots are very fine so they’re sometimes hard to control by digging, as each piece left behind could grow.
Ray Turner San Jose, California, Zone 9 Hues of blue
Spring-blooming 4" blue-eyed grass (Sisyrinchium sp.) grows slowly on Ray’s Mystic Mountain Railroad. The native blue-eyed grass in the northeast US grows taller. RAY TURNER
www.GardenRailways.com
19
GREENING YOUR RAILWAY Continued
6. Jack and Pauline Verducci’s Crystal Springs Railroad backdrops their forest in a painted blue sky. The tallest tree is a replica (unknown species) of a Colorado blue spruce (Picea pungens, Zones 3-8).
8. Blue flowers of speedwell (Veronica whitleyi, Zones 3-7) mirror the blue truck and workers on Lucia and Robin Edmond’s Rocktown Railroad in Alberta, Canada.
continued from page 18 (photo 6). Be sure to avoid spraying your blue-leaved conifers with horticultural oil, which will take away the powder-blue color and make leaves shiny and dark. Another native to Colorado, prairie sage, when paired with partridge feather, creates billowy mountains in the rear of a Colorado railway garden (photo 7). Also from the southwest, drought-tolerant dwarf Arizona cypress (Cupressus arizonica ‘Blue Ice’, Zones 6-9) makes a good forest tree.
Singing the blues Like the blues in music, which deviates
22
Garden Railways | December 2015
7. Two blue subshrubs reflect the borrowed view of the Rocky Mountains. It was in her Colorado prairie that Margaret Manfredi found fringed sagebrush (Artemisia frigida, Zones 3-10, on the left) and sidled it up to partridge feather (Tanacetum densum ssp. amani, Zones 4-9 up to 8,000' elevation), a Turkish import.
9. Turquoise-veneer ledger rocks from Utah easily fit together to make a scenic waterway. Both river and waterfall have been set in a bed of gravel to create access and contrast to the stacked natural flagstone cliffs in the Train Man of Oakland’s railway.
10. Blue glass and pebbles call attention to an old Norwegian folk tale in which “three billygoats gruff” outsmart the hungry troll so they can cross the bridge to greener meadows—here told by Ed and Joyce Wist in their Silver Gulch Railroad.
from the typical scales, blue plants change the garden, visually softening the scenery with their light blue-green shades. Originating in African-American communities, the musical blues were often sung in a calland-response pattern to reiterate the sense of community. In photo 8 a bright-blue panel truck calls out its color and a chorus of veronica flowers responds in kind. Repetition is an effective design technique, almost lyrical. Are you feeling a bit blue? It may be time to branch out a bit. Choose some blue for moist shade, like Japanese painted fern (Athyrium niponicum var. pictum, Zones 4-9) or moss rock encrusted with
blue-green lichen. For sunny areas, try a hillock of blue grasses (Festuca glauca ‘Sea Urchin, Zones 4-9).
Faux water Maybe you’re inspired to walk on water. A river of stones (photo 9) adds interest and a way into the scene. Some landscape-material yards offer chunks of recycled blue auto glass to add to dry or wet creeks. Apparently reflecting the blue sky above, flat glass marbles make a fun river (photo 10), accented by a scary story. Momentarily the shiny glass and blue pebbles beguile us into believing a dry creek is a water feature.
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LGB souvenir wagon included on each tour for every family
We will start in Cape town to explore Cape Point, and Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden. We will continue along the Garden Route to Oudtshoorn, the center of the ostrich industry. Next stops will be in Knysna and George, home of the historical Outeniqua Choo Tjoe steam train museum. During our stay in Durban, we will vist the nearby Sandstone Estates, a fantastic historic railway collection. Then the highlight of the tour begins: A 6-day safari on board the Rovos Rail, one of the world’s most luxurious trains through the heart of Africa. During this week we will explore the best nature reserves like Mkhaya Reserve, Hwange Nationalpark and of course Krueger Nationalpark. The train tour continues to Victoria Falls. We spend several days directly inside the Pilanesberg Nationalpark, where almost every animal of South Africa is found.
Train Safari South Africa – September/October 2016
The tour will start and end in Hamburg, where we will visit the Miniature Wonderland and enjoy an Elbe River cruise. We will continue to Bruchhausen-Vilsen to join the 50th anniversary festival of the Deutsche Eisenbahn Verein. The program includes fantastic steam train excursions. Next, we will visit Wernigerode, a colorful town with magnificent half-timbered houses. The steam powered Harzer Schmalspurbahn and the Brocken Bahn will take us through the beautiful scenery of the Harz Mountains. The trip continues to Berlin, where we will visit the German Museum of Technology. Then we will visit Ruegen, Germany’s largest island, where we will stay at the beautiful seaside resort of Binz. Highlights will be exciting train rides on board the famous steam powered “Rasender Roland” and the “Mollibahn” in Bad Doberan.
A journey through Northern Germany – August 2016
7KLVWRXUZLOOVWDUWLQ6WRFNKROP)LUVWZHZLOOWUDYHOZLWKWKHIDPRXV,QODQG5DLOZD\WKURXJK6ZHGHQ¶V untouched wilderness, along beautiful lakes and amazing glaciers. The journey starts through Lapland, further across the Arctic Circle and to the Atlantic coast. Afterwards, we will take a cruise with the famous Hurtigruten and travel through the spectacular scenery of the Norwegian coastline with more than 1,000 islands to Bergen. Next, a special fjord cruise will take us from Bergen to Flam, passing through the Sognefjord and proceeding up the dramatic Aurlandsfjord. Another highlight will be a fjord cruise of the amazingly beautiful Nærøyfjord. At the end of our tour we will ride the famous Flåm Railway and Bergen Railway to Oslo, where the tour ends.
Midnight Sun in Sweden and Norway (inclusive Hurtigruten cruise) – July 2016
This tour includes the enchanting cities of Munich, Prague, Vienna, Salzburg and Budapest. We will travel through the beautiful scenery of Austria on board famous steam railways like the Zillertalbahn, Achenseebahn, Mariazellerbahn, Murtalbahn, and the Schneebergbahn. We will travel to the Czech Republic WRULGHWKHKLVWRULFDOQDUURZJDXJHUDLOZD\RI-LQGĜLFKĤY+UDGHFGDWLQJEDFNWR,Q+XQJDU\ZHZLOOYLVLW the famous Hungarian Railway Museum, ride the Children’s Railway and enjoy a dinner cruise on the impressive Danube River. A special tour is planned at the Märklin production facility in Györ/Hungary where Märklin, LGB and Trix are in production side by side.
Train journey through Austria, Czech Republic and Hungary – June 2016
2016
Photos by courtesy of Hurtigruten and Rovos Rail.
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Garden Railways | December 2015
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Common name: Sanders Blue dwarf Alberta spruce
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Latin name: Picea glauca ‘Sanders Blue’ aka P.g. ‘Sanderi’
Cultural needs: Moist, well-drained, slightly acidic soil, sun or part shade
USDA Hardiness Zones: 4-9 (winter protection in Zones 3-5)
Plant size: 4-6' high by 2-3' wide in 10 years, if not pruned
Among railroad gardeners, dwarf Alberta spruce is number one in popularity, for its fuzzy, conical shape and needles that stay small. It’s easily pruned into a sparsely limbed rugged-mountain survivor or a street tree with branches resting on a scale lawn. Whereas the famous Colorado blue spruce hails from Colorado, a high dry climate far south of Alberta Canada, this spruce also originated in high, dry-desert plains, where it is much colder in winter and cooler in summer. Keep them watered because these dwarf varieties do not have as much hardiness as their native parents. To grow them in Zones 3-5, water them well in late fall before the ground freezes. Evergreen leaves will continue to dry out all winter, causing desiccation unless covered, as with burlap or plywood A-frames. In the south, most damage is caused by prolonged sun exposure without sufficient irrigation, sometimes browning a whole side of the little tree. Like many cultivars, this one can revert back to its parent, as you can see in the photo, where the top left side of the tree is growing “sports” (difficult to see) of the green variety (which is also shown growing behind, slightly bigger than the blue). Just remove the sports for a nice, conical, blue tree.
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26
Garden Railways | December 2015
STAFF CORNER: NANCY NORRIS
A member of GR’s staff discusses recent projects
Putting out fire! old SP depot in San Leandro, California. It’s also home to a two-scale outdoor railway behind the depot. The G&O (both a club and the railroad it operates) runs large-scale trains around the lower outside of the raised planter box, while 0-scale trains run higher and inside. We club members wanted to pack some magic into an area between a set of interesting bridges crossing a canyon on one side and the highly detailed children’s area on the other. This would help to distribute guests evenly around the walkway. SLHRS hosts many open houses throughout the year and this is the only public garden railway in northern California. The club’s mission is to promote model railroading as well as railroad safety for children through Operation Lifesaver (“Stop, Look, Listen, and Live.”) Look for upcoming open houses at slhrs.org and visit us during the 2016 National Garden Railway Convention.
PHOTOS AND ILLUSTRATION BY THE AUTHOR
The big dig
0-scale trains decked in holiday color rush by as a full crew of fire fighters do their best. Trees are still smoking, most of the house is a total loss but the firemen will continue their duties until the open house is over at the G&O outdoor railway in San Leandro, California.
W
hile picking up my supply of filtered water, I was “amazed and mystified” by the counter display—a faucet floating in mid air, spouting a stream of water that never quite filled a bucket. When the owner showed me the clear plastic tube that had been inserted into the spout-end of the faucet and held vertically while hooked to a fountain pump, a light bulb turned on over my head.
28
Garden Railways | December 2015
Because I happened to own an 0-scalesize tin helicopter, I had already spent some time trying to figure out how to use it in my garden railway. At last I saw its purpose—a hovering fire engine dowsing flames over an 0-scale burning house.
Public garden railway San Leandro Historical Railway Society (SLHRS) has a model of the Southern Pacific in HO-scale, within its century-
Once the finish grade was identified (marked stake), I dug out enough space for a 20-gallon HDPE (high-density polyethelene) pond liner (a tub about 2' deep x 2' in diameter), plus 2" deeper for a layer of sand to level it. Inside the tub, the pump (second-smallest Beckett) was placed on a brick so that the dirtiest water would not enter the filter. By gluing up a framework of ¾" schedule-40 PVC pipe, I made a manifold that pressed against the sides of the tub to hold everything in place. I adapted the pump outlet with a T-fitting to have two outlets. The main pipe rises vertically from the center of the tub (and a hole in the roof of the house) and the other is fitted with an adaptor to a compression fitting for 2' of black ½" poly tubing (for drip irrigation). I sealed the end with a figure-eight closure. In two places on that ½" tubing I inserted barbed couplers for 2' lengths of ¼" poly tubing (for drip irrigation). Each of these ends was fastened to the top end of a ⅜" rebar post, just outside the edge of the tub, to support two little firemen holding
ADVANCED PROJECT
their fire hoses. Their nozzles are ¼" barbed couplers. The center pipe was fastened with glue to a clear plastic tube. The top of the tube was notched to allow water to escape, and a black plastic spice-bottle top was glued to that for the “Bambi basket,” which would seemingly spill the water. I attached the helicopter to the top of the spice-jar cap with wire and epoxy. To be sure that we didn’t run the pump dry, I made room while building the manifold for a short float valve (Watts Flippen ⅜"), so city water could refill the tub as needed. This also has its own shut-off ball valve nearby to turn off the filler valve when not in use.
Bambi basket Trees burned with torch Backdrop rocks/view block
To 110V with groundfault circuit interrupter (GFCI)
Smoke out Behind the G&O display, members built a staging area of Hardibacker board that stretches along the backside, with a yard for members to set up trains or steam up engines. Underneath that, our electrician installed a waterproof electrical quad box for plugging in the pump and the smoke unit. The smoke unit (a Visual Effects V915 400-watt Fog Machine) rests on a shelf under the track table. I fastened PVC pipe to the smoke outlet but the “smoke” will condense and drip back into the unit, so I drilled a hole for the oil to escape prior to reentering the unit. The drawing shows where smoke is diverted: two pipes on either side of the ceramic house and one pipe inside, so smoke comes out of the windows. The rest is left to the viewer’s imagination, but black, red, and orange plants help to tell the story.
Nancy Norris dedicates this report to fellow G&O member, Edward Van Pelt, who “gophered” for her from his wheelchair while she built this water feature. JOE BARKER
¼" tubing ½" tubing Part of PVC manifold Pump
Float valve Smoke/fog unit Cut/drill hole Bricks built up to support house
Firefighters to the rescue! Animation from smoke, water, wind, and whatever else you want to add.
In front of the left fire hose, sweet allysum (Lobularia maritima ‘Easter basket’, annual or Zones 9-11) smolders in rose flowers. Enveloped in smoke, the fireman on the right hose keeps the homeowner on the ladder from burning. To his right, red-leaved thrift (Armeria maritima ‘Rubrifolia’, Zones 4-8) hangs on to a few dark-rose flowers. Adding height is red barberry (Berberis thunbergii ‘Orange Rocket’, Zones 5-7). Looking wet and burnt, bugleweed (Ajuga reptans ‘Black Scallop’, Zones 3-9) covers the foreground. www.GardenRailways.com
29
INTERMEDIATE PROJECT
Rerailer design and constructıon This simple device makes life easier
by David Outteridge | Highlands Ranch, Colorado |
PHOTO BY THE AUTHOR, DRAWINGS BY MARC HOROVITZ
A rerailer like the one shown in this picture allows an entire train, including the locomotive, to be quickly and efficiently loaded onto the track, regardless of an individual car’s length or weight.
M
aking a rerailer for your garden railway is well worth the effort. If you run large dieseloutline engines, steam engines with floppy tenders, or long trains of cars with trucks at each end, a rerailer is a great convenience. They are easy, quick, and cheap to make, and the payoff of essentially being able to effortlessly put your stock on the rails is large and will continue for as long as your railway exists.
30
Garden Railways | December 2015
To facilitate getting trains onto the track on my now-defunct garden railway, I made a rerailer. The photograph shows that the rerailer was on the end of the steamup bay.
Siting the rerailer When siting your rerailer, there are a number of things to consider. First, do not do what is shown in the picture! My rerailer was a later addition to the
steamup bay. The problem that emerged was that the rerailer quickly became the preferred method for loading trains but there always seemed to be a locomotive sitting on the track, blocking the line. The best site for a rerailer is at the end of a siding that is both dedicated to loading trains and is long enough to accommodate whole trains (figure 1). If you want both a steaming bay and a loading siding, reverse the order of the rerailer and the steaming bay. This will require creative thinking and additional space, since the rerailer is now in the middle of the line; but it can be done and will work. There are other solutions, too, such as using two sidings or a switch just before the rerailer, so a single siding has a forked end, one for the steamup bay, one for the rerailer. Another siting consideration is the distance from the storage area, driveway, back door, etc., which will determine how far you’ll have to carry rolling stock to the rerailer table. The other major lesson I learned is that the rerailer shown in the picture is not long enough. Its base is made of an end panel from a desktop computer. After some time, I decided that the base should have been two computer panels mounted end to end. I thought about retrofitting this, but it was about this time that it became apparent that the railway was going to be dismantled, so modification went no further. The reason that more rerailer real estate is desirable is that, if there is plenty of room on the surface, a large, heavy, or cumbersome piece of rolling stock can be placed on the surface without the need to simultaneously feed
Design principles The heading of this section could be “How it works,” and you may think that how it works is obvious. Surely a rerailer is just a funnel for train components, used to load them onto the end of a track? The rerailer is symmetrical about the center of the track; you just line up the item to be loaded and push. These statements contain a lot of truth. However, if you think about carrying a heavy locomotive or large passenger car, you are probably holding it by the ends with your hands and carrying the item across your body. When you get to the rerailer and put it down, you are facing the side of the track, not the end. Thus, lining up something heavy or awkward is not always easy. It is the details that matter, and the design principles presented here assume that things will be awkward. They address each task in turn. The resultant design asymmetry of the rerailer can be seen in the photo. My experiences with that rerailer strongly tended to support the features of this approach. The requirements for the design emerged from the consideration of what happens and what is desirable, when a person is walking from the storage shed, car, or back door to the rerailer, carrying something long and heavy, then trying to load it onto the siding. • A large, flat surface at rerailer level is highly desirable. This surface should be longer than the longest item of rolling stock to be loaded and wide enough to obviate concern that something may fall off the side. From a functional point of view, this “table” can be neither too long nor too deep, as long as the track is close enough to the front edge of the surface that it can be easily reached. • Next comes lining up the rolling stock up with the track. A good way to do this is to provide a fence on the rerailer baseboard that is high enough to catch on the wheel rims when the stock is resting
To mainline
One train length
Rerailer
1. Rerailer placed at the end of a dedicated siding Steaming bay
To mainline
Rerailer
2. When combined with a steaming bay, the rerailer comes second To mainline
Steaming bay Rerailer 3. Steaming bay and rerailers each have their own siding
Figure 1—Siting possibilities for rerailer on its flanges. The stock can be pushed sideways against the fence along its length so that all of the wheels, including swiveling-truck wheels, are lined up. In practice, this lining up is not necessarily completed prior to the next step but the fence is there to do the lining up as the stock is moved toward the siding track. The fence in the photo can be seen on the far side of the baseboard, extending from the feed end of the baseboard (lower right) to a point a little short of the far rail of the steam-upbay track. This gap avoids pinching wheels across their width during the transition from rerailer to track. • When the rolling stock is close to the siding track, axle alignment is handled by the familiar A-shaped guide that registers on the inside surfaces of the wheels. This A-guide can extend into the track but at no point can it be wider than the minimum back-to-back dimension for the wheel-gauge standard (40mm or 1.574"). (Note: The dimensions are from The Gauge One Model Railway Association [G1MRA—http://www.g1mra.com/ resources-links/standard-guidance], as are others used in this text.) In the photo, since the track is dual gauge,
the wide-gauge A-guide has a clearance slot for the narrower gauge. • The wheels should be lowered onto the track so that the weight of the stock is transferred from the flanges to the treads of the wheels. In the picture, the rerailer baseboard rests on, but is not part of, the steamup-bay track. The steamup-bay track is made of steel bar, which also forms the load-bearing structure of the bay. The separation of the rerailer baseboard and the steamup-bay rail necessitated small ramps in the baseboard material to effect the lowering. (These ramps are in the picture but are difficult to see.)
A conceptual design Figures 2 and 3 are conceptual sketches of a rerailer conforming to the above design principles. Figure 1 is a general arrangement of what is described; figure 2 shows more detail of the key parts. The most obvious feature of figure 1 is the large apron on the baseboard, onto which the rolling stock is placed prior to loading it into the rerailer. As already indicated: the larger, heavier, or more cumbersome the stock, the more important is this apron space in the baseboard. Fence
Siding
D
the rolling stock into the rerailer and support it by hand. Nice-to-have features include lots of elbow room and an elevated rerailer to minimize bending over. These, of course, can sometimes be difficult to arrange and depend on the terrain of the garden and the elevation of the railway.
Rail joiner
Baseboard
L
Figure 2—Rerailer general arrangement www.GardenRailways.com
31
A C
rerailer could be made of wood, for example; although a wood rerailer may not last as long outdoors.
B
G
W
Potential problems
A-guide
R
V
Figure 3—Rerailer detail
The apron length (L) should be greater than the overall length of the longest stock item to be loaded. The apron depth (D) should be large enough that precise placement is not required. Thus, for gauge 1, this apron easily can exceed three feet in length and one foot in depth. The length of the A-guide (dimension A) controls its taper. For gauge 1, and for a complete A-guide as shown, “A” is around 8". Since the taper is shallow, it works in a similar manner to the fence by straightening the alignment of each wheelset. The point of the taper can be chopped off and/or the taper can be made less shallow, both of which will shorten the overall length of the A-guide. At the track end, the A-guide should be filed, machined, or otherwise fitted, so that its width is just less than the minimum back-to-back dimension for the gauge for gauge 1. This width is shown as dimension “B” in figure 2. “G” is the track gauge between the rails: 44.5-45mm (1.752"-1.772") for gauge 1. The rails and the rerailer must have the same centerline (dimensions “G” and “B”). These sizes and their alignment are the only areas that require precision in the rerailer assembly. “W” is wheel-width clearance between the A-guide and the fence—6mm (0.236") for gauge 1. However, this dimension is not critical, since dimension “C” also provides clearance. “C” should be 1"-2" for gauge 1. “V” is overlap between the A-guide and the start of the track. This ensures a proper transition from one to the other. However, this overlap is also not crucial,
32
Garden Railways | December 2015
as long as everything else is correct; so the overlap should be 0-6mm (0-0.25") for gauge 1. “R” is the length of a ramp in the baseboard, extending from the start of the rails to the end of the rerailer baseboard. This ramp provides a smooth let-down from the stock resting on its wheel flanges to resting with the wheel treads on the rails. “R” is 2-3" for gauge 1.
Making it This rerailer design is flexible—almost everything can be done in a way that is convenient rather than accurate. As already indicated, the only crucial part is ensuring that the transition onto the rails works well. Even there, the vertical transition does not really need the ramp over dimension “R,” as shown in the conceptual design. The wheel-flange depth for gauge 1 is a maximum of 2mm (0.079") for unsprung wheels, and 1.5mm (0.060") for sprung wheels. This means that, if the rail over the length of dimension “R” is 1-1.25mm (0.040-0.050") above the baseboard, then the drop at the end of the baseboard onto the rails is trivial, at most 1mm (0.040"). Fitting and filing can reduce even that. On the rerailer in the photo, the baseboard is steel, while the fence and the A-guide are made from ½" x ⅛" aluminium strip (okay for gauge 1). These are held together by countersunk stainless-steel screws with washers and nuts on the back. The unit is supported by sturdy 1" x ⅛" steel strip and ½"-square tube. The whole thing was painted with a spray can. Any of these things can be varied; the whole
I used the rerailer in the picture for rolling stock, live-steam locomotives, and medium size, battery powered, diesel-outline locomotives. I see two things to address for wider use. The first is fairly obvious: if there is track power, then care must be taken not to create an electrical short between, for example, a metal baseboard and the track. However, the second potential difficulty is a little more problematic: the wheels on an electrically powered locomotive generally do not roll when the engine is pushed. Furthermore, pushing an engine puts a lot of load on the locomotive’s transmission. In this regard, a wood baseboard, because of higher friction, may be considerably worse than metal. I do not have a good solution to this problem. My battery-powered locomotives are light enough that I could relieve the weight on the wheels when feeding the locomotive down the rerailer. It seems that the conclusion must be that the table should be fairly slippery. The table should also be hard so that wheel flanges do not dig in. That probably means that metal is best. Unpainted stainless steel comes to mind, as does a hard, “greasy” plastic.
Conclusion I hope that this article has been of interest. I have tried to raise issues that should be given thought when building a rerailer. There are many ways to do it and just as many little traps. Above all, it is important to try to avoid the kind of position in which I found myself—that is, building something that was almost really good, but which was flawed simply because I did not think through all the details—I put the rerailer in the wrong place on my railway.
Online extras Subscribers can download a bonus article on building a different rerailer, originally published in the October 2010 issue. Visit www. GardenRailways.com and type “rerailer” in the search box.
Adding a new divisi The Fairmont Division of the Crystal Springs RR by Jack Verducci | San Mateo, California | 34
Garden Railways | December 2015
PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR
1. The mainline in this area is basically a balloon loop. Trains arrive going east or west and depart going west or east, respectively. Center, a clump of dwarf Japanese garden juniper sprawls out in a field of Elfin thyme.
on to an old favorite www.GardenRailways.com
35
To the backyard
T
he Crystal Springs Railroad (CSRR) began life in 1988. It was far enough along to be open for the 5th National Garden Railway Convention (NGRC) in 1989, the first NGRC to be held outside of Colorado. I have had the pleasure of being open for each of the three NGRCs held in Northern California since then and I also plan to be open for the 37th NGRC in 2016. Over the years I have made several changes to my line. One major change was made in 2013, when I raised my lower backyard area 12 inches to reduce the grade encountered when climbing from the lower yard to the middle yard. In doing so I had to remove all of the structures and rebuild the town of Fog Harbor, located in that area. As sometimes happens when you are dealing with grades, what you do in one place often affects another. This was the case for me. By raising the lower yard I also had to raise part of my town of San Mateo, which meant removing all of those buildings as well. However, this worked out for the good. Although I named the town San Mateo after the town where we live, none of the buildings had been based on San Mateo prototypes. I took this opportunity to build all new structures for this area, this time based on structures that would have been around San Mateo in the 1930s.
The Fairmont Division of the Crystal Springs Railroad Crystal Springs RR (common carrier) Trestle Live-steam servicing area 8 Camera angle and photo number
1. Pacific Coast Wood Products 2. Water tower 3. Fairmont station 4. Freight house 5. Barber shop 6. Post office 7. Kelley’s 8. Railroad Café 9. Hotel Sherri 10. Ducci Girls Soda Fountain 11. Effie’s Greek Bakery 12. New Era Grocery 13. Fairmont Mining Company 14. Cabins 15. Section house
1
2
4 5
3
6 7
Fairmont
8 9
12 11 10 13
14 15
The concept
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Garden Railways | December 2015
N MARC HOROVITZ
My goal and theme are to create a miniature railroad and transportation system using real dirt, real plants, and real steam locomotives, and to also operate it like a real railroad. This means transporting and delivering goods, which involves switching and making up trains. In the backyard area, I have a lumber operation and a stamp mill, among other industries. To give the railroad purpose, products are shipped to and from these industries. Logs are sawn into lumber, which, among other destinations, can be shipped to the Pacific Coast Wood Products Company, located in Fairmont. Finished products made here include furniture, crates, barrels, wood trim, and more. These goods can then be shipped out to a number of destinations on the line. Also located in Fairmont is the Fairmont Mining Company, which ships ore to be concentrated at Pacific Mills, located on the hillside
between the lower backyard and the middle yard.
Fairmont operations The Fairmont area has been in place since 1992 but, until recently, there was no town. It had always been in the back of my mind to someday develop this area, and that day came this year. Looking at
the trackplan, you’ll see that Fairmont is located in the front yard so, when a train heads out there, it’s out of sight of backyard operators and gone for a while. I especially enjoy this feature, as it adds to the illusion of the train traveling to a distant destination. The trackplan offers a lot of switching and operation potential. Cars can be spotted at the mine tipple, the
2. An overall view of the railway station and yard, with the town of Fairmont in the background. There are five industrial sidings at Fairmont, as well as a passing siding. Pruned into skinny trees, dwarf Alberta spruces line both sides of the street.
The Fairmont Division at a glance Name: Fairmont Division of the Crystal Springs Railroad Size: 23' x 35' Scale: Trains, 1:20.3; bldgs., 1:24 Gauge: 45mm Era: 1939 Theme: A transportation system that serves logging/lumber, mining, and other industries Age: Fairmont Div. added in 1992 Motive power: Live steam Length of mainline through Fairmont: 103' (does not include the run along side the house) Maximum gradient: Less than 2% Type of track: LGB flex track and Sunset Valley turnouts Minimum radius: 7' Structures: Scratchbuilt Control system: Radio-controlled locomotives, hand-thrown turnouts
Plants on the Fairmont Division San Mateo, California | USDA Hardiness Zone 10a USED FOR MINIATURE TALL TREES Andy’s Atlantic white cedar
Chamaecyparis thyoides ‘Andelyensis’
Little Jamie Atlantic white cedar
Chamaecyparis thyoides ‘Little Jamie’
Meth Dwarf Atlantic white cedar
Chamaecyparis thyoides ‘Meth Dwarf’
Okinawa holly
Ilex dimorphylla USED FOR THICK GROUNDCOVER Dwarf Japanese garden juniper
Juniperus procumbens ‘Nana’ USED FOR LOW-GROWING GROUNDCOVER Baby tears (seasonal)
Top Point Atlantic white cedar
Soleirolia soleirolii
Chamaecyparis thyoides ‘Top Point’
Woolly thyme
Dwarf Alberta spruce
Thymus pseudolanuginosus
Picea glauca ‘Conica’
Elfin thyme
Thymus serpyllum ‘Elfin’ USED AS SMALL TREES Dwarf golden Hinoki cypress
Various small sedums and succulents
Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Nana Lutea’ Thyme-leaf rockspray
Cotoneaster microphylla ‘Thymifolia’
www.GardenRailways.com
37
warehouse, or Pacific Coast Wood Products Company. When we operate the railroad, we can actually do loads in and empties out. I have made up several flatcar loads that can be delivered to a site and unloaded. For example, a load of lumber can be dropped off at the Pacific Coast Wood Products Company siding Nº 1, while a load of finished products can be picked up from siding Nº 2. The breakdown in realism occurs once the lumber is dropped off, as it just sits there—a factory would not be shipping lumber (its raw material) out. I have someone discreetly pick up the lumber by hand and bring it back to the sawmill. With goods such as machinery, the loads-and-empties issue is not such a problem, since a machine can be shipped in or out and not be out of the ordinary. For example, Pacific Coast Wood Products Company could receive a new head rig or planing machine or it could ship one out for rebuilding, or a stationary power plant could be shipped out to Brown’s Machine shop for repair.
Steam power The railroad now has a couple of firstgeneration diesel switchers, which are battery powered. However, most of my railroad is operated with radio controlled, live-steam locomotives. I enjoy the challenge of running a live-steam railroad in a realistic environment. In earlier articles I have written about building an operator’s pit, where one can be at the same level as the locomotive. Since I could not raise the railroad there, I lowered the operator. At
Resources Realistic train operations, April, June, August, October 2006 GR The Crystal Springs Railroad, June 2005 GR Concrete arch bridges and operator pits, October 2000 GR Building Structures For Your Garden Railway book (#12457) To order, call 800-533-6644 or visit KalmbachHobbyStore.com/gardenrailroading
38
Garden Railways | December 2015
3. Pacific Coast Wood Products is a busy manufacturing concern. Lumber is delivered on track 1, while finished products are shipped out from track 2. A crew is busy crating up a load of furniture to be shipped out to Fog Harbor. Dwarf mondo grass grows in front of the fence.
4. The local barber shop is no ordinary clip joint—the barber also practices painless dentistry. Mainly, though, this is just a place where men hang out.
Detail modules Anyone who has hosted more than one open house will know that a lot of work is entailed, setting up and taking down little vignettes. Something that I have done over the years is to create detail modules. These are prearranged set pieces that can be placed on the railroad in a certain spot or, in some cases, anywhere on the line. These can be removed in one piece or as a group. For example, the icedelivery truck is a detail module. The delivery man and customer are stored with the truck in their own box. The gas pump and produce stand at the general store comprise another detail module. The gas pump has a small brass rod in the base that fits into a hole in the boardwalk. All of my buildings stay outside year round but I bring in the details parts.
5. Hotel Sherri accommodates travelers as well as local miners. A room is $1.00 per night. Not every place in Fairmont has a refrigerator, so the ice man makes deliveries every day to the Railroad Café, conveniently located next to the hotel so that guests can walk next door for good eats. The cafe also serves passengers on the CSRR when the train stops for a mealtime break. www.GardenRailways.com
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6. A passenger train rounds the loop on the Crystal Springs Railroad as it approaches the town of Fairmont. Elfin thyme blooms on either side of the area in front of the engine.
7. The New Era Grocery specializes in groceries but also sells Red Crown Gasoline, the fuel that powered the Spirit of St. Louis on Charles Lindberg’s flight across the Atlantic.
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Garden Railways | December 2015
8. Ducci Girls Soda Fountain receives a supply of milk and cream from the San Mateo Dairy, ingredients for their special shakes and sundaes. The main office and bottling plant for the San Mateo Dairy are located in San Mateo, in the backyard.
An update on a building technique Long-time GR readers may recall seeing some of the buildings shown here in my 1994-1995 series on building outdoor structures. These structures were made of resin. I made a master part, then a mold. The walls, roofs, and miscellaneous parts were then cast in resin. These buildings have held up well— some are over 20 years old. The large components, such as walls and roofs, hold up especially well. However, in some cases, resin will warp because the part is too thin or was made of a poor mixture.
The stuff I use is mixed 50/50, part A to part B. If you are off too much one way or the other with the resin mix, you could end up with a soft or brittle part. I also learned to use reinforcing pieces to prevent warping from the weather. Thin items, such as window mullions, do not do as well. It is much better to make window mullions and trim parts out of other plastic, such as styrene, acrylic, or ABS. I have upgraded my windows using laser-cut plastic. This will be the subject of a future article on making things using a laser cutter.
Fairmont, I don’t have a pit but I do have a place that functions as a locomotive-service area. The railroad is raised about 18" on a filled area, which is just high enough to allow one to service an engine in relative comfort by sitting on my neighbor’s retaining wall and reaching over to the locomotive being serviced.
About the town The time period I am depicting in Fairmont is 1939-1940ish. Fairmont is an isolated community that is a little behind the times, so I am using older vehicles but ones that would have still been in use during this time period. Like most little towns of the day, Fairmont grew up around the railway station. The town is geared to serve residents and travelers alike. Fairmont is a rest stop for passengers, who can eat at the Railroad Café or have a drink at Kelley’s or an icecream soda at the Ducci Girls’ soda fountain. Other services include a barber shop, where you can get a haircut and shave or a tooth pulled. Travelers can also spend the night at Hotel Sherri, the best $1-a-night accommodations in Fairmont. Verducci Brothers Hardware specializes in mining equipment, new or used, to rent or buy. The New Era Grocery is the general store. Effie’s Greek Bakery specializes in breads and pastries. Effie bakes for counter service and also does a wholesale business shipping bread and baked goods to market on the CSRR.
9. Verducci Bros. Hardware deals in equipment, new and used. Their storage lot is well stocked with equipment for mining, logging, and other industrial needs. They also sell other hardware items and fixtures, such as wash basins, toilets, and tubs.
Conclusion Fairmont is now fully operational. I have been recruiting engineers for the upcoming NGRC in 2016. Over the years I have compiled enough written material to make a booklet about operations on the Crystal Springs Railroad. This makes training new engineers a little easier.
10. There is a raised area near the Fairmont station that functions well as a locomotive servicing area. Here, the author’s granddaughter Carmella Rose, age 10, fuels her locomotive. www.GardenRailways.com
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BEGINNER PROJECT
The author’s modified village furniture store adjacent to two closely related buildings.
Kitbashing Piko’s village furniture shop A simple conversion produces a more interesting structure by Don McClure | Lindstrom, Minnesota |
P
iko’s Qwik Kits assemble quickly and easily, may be disassembled just as quickly and easily for storage, and are durable for use outdoors. I ended up with three different kits that shared an almost-identical false front, which I found boring. Moreover, I wanted to add a one story, shed-roof building to the one-and-a-half and twostory buildings on my early 1900s main street. Here’s how I did it.
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Garden Railways | December 2015
PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR
After some planning and taking a few measurements, I removed the window from the second story of the front of the building (it’s glued in but mine pushed out easily) and made the saw cuts indicated in photo 1. I used a bandsaw for all my cuts, then gently smoothed the cut surfaces with a belt sander. To hide the joint, I cut the bottom section just above the line where there was a joint in the simulated lap siding; I cut the upper section just
1. The front of the original building with saw cuts indicated.
below the first piece of lap siding. Then I sanded the two cut edges to produce a good fit. I glued the bottom front section to the third section up from the bottom to form my new front. The new front is shown in photo 2. The tiny gap in the photo is invisible from 10 feet away.
4. The opposite side, after cutting. A notch (red arrow) has been cut in the upper front corner. The back of the structure was also cut to the 3¾" height. 2. The rebuilt building front.
3. One side of the building before cutting. Painter’s tape marks the cut line.
The sides came next. If you use my dimensions, the front edges are 5⅜" high and the back edges are 3¾" high (photo 3). Note the notch cut in the upper front corner (photo 4) to accommodate the interlocking corners in the now-shortened front section of the structure. I made a new roof from an airline snack tray I picked up for next to nothing at a surplus store. It’s gray, with a textured surface, and I left it unfinished. A sheet of styrene or ABS could also work, with your choice of finish. My roof measures 8¼" x 5¾" x 3⁄32" thick. With the building upside down, resting on the roof, I glued three pieces of scrap plastic to the underside of the roof to keep it from sliding off the walls when right-side up (photo 5). One piece contacts the rear wall, while the other two pieces touch the side walls near the front. The chimney that came in the kit was adapted by cutting off its base at an angle to match the pitch of the new roof. I glued it to the roof at what I thought was an appropriate location (photo 6). To add a little interest to the now-bare rear wall, I added a door frame using
5. Three pieces of scrap plastic were glued to the underside of the roof to prevent it from sliding off. 6. The original chimney was modified and placed appropriately on the roof. A door was simulated on the rear wall using trim strips cut from unused parts of the structure.
7. A view of the finished one-story building.
strips of colored trim cut from the corners of the nowunused front section (photo 6). I made the door opening a scale 30" wide, but cheated on the height at 60". I located the door-frame pieces so that the inside edges just hid the molded-in, simulated vertical board joints in the rear wall section. The door opening is four boards wide. I sized the lintel to slightly overhang the vertical door trim. A round pin head was added
for a door knob. If you do this conversion the way I did, you will end up with two extra windows. Another choice for the rear wall would have been to add one or both windows rather than the door. I plan to add an outhouse in the rear, so the door made more sense. Photo 7 shows a front-quarter view of the finished store. This was an easy conversion and I was delighted with the effect on my main street, which is modeled after Oak Street in Frederic, Wisconsin. www.GardenRailways.com
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ADVANCED PROJECT
The Southern Railway heavily modified its fleet of F3 locomotives. The author describes how he made the same modifications to his model.
Modifying a USA Trains F3 Prototype research results in a more accurate model by Gavin Smart | Kilmore, Scotland |
F
ollowing my previous article on detailing a GP18 diesel (GR, December 2014 and February 2015), I wanted to share my latest locomotive project. I recently completed an F3A dual-service unit in the Southern Railway’s famous tuxedo paint scheme and I felt that many of the techniques I used could provide some inspiration as well as build upon those I described in the previous two articles. This kitbash follows many of the same principles and
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Garden Railways | December 2015
PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR EXCEPT WHERE NOTED
techniques mentioned before, so I will skip over many details, such as the truck frames, and, instead, focus on the body work and other pieces that were different on this particular locomotive. Instead of trading in their F3 fleet, the Southern Railway upgraded these engines using EMD parts, bringing them up to the same standard as the later F7 model. These dual-service passenger-and-freight units also featured a lot of extra modifications (photo 1).
The first job was to remove the side skirts from this locomotive. The fuel tank was fattened out using thick styrene sheet, gently warmed with a hair dryer to make it pliable, before it was bent around the existing tank and cut to shape. The fuel filler cap and other details were saved, and were attached to the finished tank, following prototype photos for their correct locations (photo 2). Another large job was removing the original sand hatches, then filling and
2. The enlarged fuel tank with prototypically placed fuel filler cap and other details.
1. Southern Railway’s Nº 6706 arrives in Washington DC with a mail train, probably in the late 1960s. The upgraded F3 has some unusual features described in the article. —Photo: Jim Shaw, Southern Railway Historical Association collection
sanding these areas smooth. New, recessed, round fillers were drilled in the body. These were completed using the filler caps saved from the originals (photo 3). Having removed all the lettering using automotive body wax (as previously described), I began the details on the roof. The first major modification was the installation of a 48" cap top, dynamicbrake fan, again sourced from USA Trains. On the prototype, this piece was added as a complete drop-in section in the roof, so this area was carefully marked and cut out to reflect this. I used a piece of 3mm styrene to mount the fan, cutting a hole in the middle (photo 4) using an Olfa circle cutter. The fan was secured to the styrene using two-part epoxy. This whole piece was then secured in place on the locomotive in the same way (photo 5). The area was finally sanded smooth and any joints were filled with putty. I replaced any detail lost during sanding with Tichy Train 0.03" rivets. The air tanks on the prototype were relocated from the beneath the locomotive to the roof to provide room for the larger fuel and water tanks, in this case to supply the steam boiler for passengerservice duties. I made this detail using air-tank pieces sourced from a USA Trains GP7 model. I cut and separated these into four individual tanks; extra
3. New recessed round sand fillers were drilled in the body, then completed using filler caps saved from the originals.
4. A piece of styrene was prepared for the fan, the hole being cut using an Olfa circle cutter.
5. The new base pieces were faired into the body and the fan glued in place.
6. Air tanks were made out of tanks from a USA Trains GP7.
7. New piping was made from brass tubing and styrene pieces.
details were removed and sanded smooth. I drilled 1.5mm holes in each end for the new piping. Underneath, the tanks were drilled and pinned using brass rod, then mounted to the locomotive with CA cement, carefully following prototype photos for their correct position.
The rest of the piping detail around the roof was completed using 1.5mm brass rod and small pieces of round and hexagonal styrene rod to represent the fittings. The small straps across each tank were made from 0.56 x 3.43mm strip styrene, cut to size and gently bent over each www.GardenRailways.com
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8. The shapes of the side grill openings were modified and rivet detail added.
tank. They were secured with a small drop of CA and finished off with a 0.03" Tichy Train rivet (photos 6 and 7). Another area that required work was the side grills. Thin pieces of styrene were used to represent areas that were blanked out. The extra detail around the edges was completed with 0.28 x 2.84mm strip styrene and 0.03" Tichy Train rivets, all secured with CA (photo 8). The remaining bodywork was focused around the nose of the locomotive. The original headlight was removed and the hole was gently enlarged using a stepped drill bit. I used a twin-beam headlight reflector casting from Ozark Miniatures, with two warm white, 5mm LEDs. This assembly was first painted, then mounted in the locomotive using hot-melt glue applied from the rear. The front was finished off with a Mini Maglite reflector lens (AAA size), attached with Airfix clear adhesive, which is perfect for glazing, as it dries completely clear and will not damage or taint the plastic. The dried hot-melt glue inside was painted flat black to prevent any light traveling back into the body of the locomotive. Extra grab irons were added to the engineer’s side of the cab, along with a small step plate made from 2mm L-angle styrene. The original USA Trains front glazing was removed and two new windshield pieces were made from 0.4mm
Online extras Subscribers can download a PDF on converting Aristo-Craft Alcos to dummy units, previously published in the August 2011 issue. Visit www.GardenRailways.com and type the author name “Yukio Nakagawa” in the search box.
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Garden Railways | December 2015
10. A Nathan M5 air horn and a firecracker radio antenna were added to the roof.
9. New windshield “glass” with wiper paths replaced that which was originally supplied.
clear Evergreen styrene, using the old pieces as templates. These were made fractionally larger and were carefully sanded to an exact fit. They were fixed in place as before, with Airfix clear adhesive. The last piece added to the nose was a thin piece of styrene to represent the cover on the MU connector (photo 9). Extra details were added around the pilot beam, with a line of 0.05" Tichy rivets around the top and new brake and MU hoses below. The hoses were made in the same manner as described in my previous article, using single-core cable and brake-hose pieces sourced from USA Trains. New air hoses were also added at the rear. The final details included the addition of a Nathan M5 air horn from Ozark Miniatures, a firecracker radio antenna from USA Trains (photo 10), and a small piece of styrene toward the rear to simulate the fillers for the water tank. With all of the detail work finished, the locomotive was masked and sprayed with Revell silk matte black. Once dry, the striping was masked and hand painted with Revell metallic gold. The engine was given a few coats of Revell gloss varnish, then was carefully lettered using decals from Stan Cedarleaf. Number-board decals were made using clear letters and black background, applied over the clear plastic USA Trains number boards, to simulate the old-time look of the prototype, with the light shin-
11. Rear-view mirrors were made from styrene, brass rod, and aluminum foil to simulate the mirror surface.
ing through the spaces between the letters. This was augmented with a 5mm warm-white LED mounted behind each board, allowing for separate control using DCC. A couple of light coats of Revell matte varnish helped to seal in all the decals before the locomotive was weathered as previously described, using weathering powders from Bragdon Enterprises. One thing I decided to do differently on this locomotive was to apply small semi-circular masks over the windshields during the weathering process so that, once they were removed, they would represent the areas that would have been kept clean by the sweep of the windshield-wiper blades (photo 9). Looking back over the photos one final time, I realized that I had, in fact, missed the back-up mirrors on each side of the cab! These were easily fabricated from styrene, brass rod, and a little piece of kitchen foil to simulate the mirror surface (photo 11) I hope this has provided some inspiration and ideas for your own detailing projects. As before, please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or ideas at
[email protected], or find me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ somervillerailway
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BEGINNER PROJECT
An N-scale F garden railway Building a downsized railway in a flower pot by Paul Smith | Lincoln, Maine |
PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR
When confronted with lack of space for a traditional garden railway, the author took matters into his own hands. This N-scale line in a large flower pot was the result.
1. A “pot filler” was used to decrease the volume of the pot. Broken concrete was added for ballast.
48
Garden Railways | December 2015
ollowing my retirement in January of 2014, my wife Brenda and I bought a small home in an RV/ manufactured-home park in Fort Myers, Florida, which was set up condominium style. Our lawn is only about 10' wide by 35' long, of which, according to park regulations, we can develop only a 4' wide strip into a garden. Since Brenda is an avid gardener, she got first dibs on the space. I really missed working on my garden railway back in Maine, as well as my small, N scale, coffee-table layout and my HO layout in my basement. After some thought about how I could manage some model railroading at our winter residence (there was also no room inside our 700 square-foot home), I decided to try my hand at a miniature garden railway incorporating an N-scale layout in a large plant pot. I planned to use Kato Unitrack, since I had used that for my N-scale layout at home with great success. A quick e-mail to Nancy Norris confirmed that the nickelsilver track would be suitable outdoors. I made a trip to the local Lowe’s and found a nice, deep plastic pot with a diameter of 21" for $24. I drilled some drainage holes in the bottom, as well as a hole for a power supply wire from an MRC Railpower 1300 power pack. To ensure good drainage, I inserted an UpsA-Daisy (ups-a-daisy.com) pot filler (photo 1), which elevated the interior of the pot about 6". I also placed several pieces of broken concrete paver in the bottom of the pot for ballast. I used the Kato-supplied terminal Unijoiner and fed the extension cord up through the bottom of the pot, to be connected near the track at the surface. I then filled the pot with good-quality potting soil. Since we would be spending the summer months back in Maine, I wanted lowmaintenance miniature plants that would have a good chance of surviving in our absence. Lowe’s had a broad selection of succulents including (from left to right in photo 2) Rubrotunctum ‘Mini’, Cremnosedum ‘Little gem’, Crassula lycopodioides (watch chain), and Portulacaria afra ‘Variegate’. Photo 2 also shows the 8.5"-radius
3. Asparagus ferns are an experiment. Because of their low cost, if they don’t survive, little is lost.
2. A variety of low-maintenance plants from Lowe’s was used to populate the garden.
Kato Unitrack, which I later mounted on a ring of ½"-thick Dow Styrofoam (closed cell), with a dab of silicone caulk under the center of each track segment. The foam keeps the track rigid and, if I decide to disconnect the track from the power supply during the six months we are not here, I can easily store it away without risk of damage. At the garden center where I purchased the Ups-A-Daisy and potting soil, I also found some tiny asparagus ferns about 3" high (photo 3) as well as a Selaginella (spikemoss) and two nice pieces of Tennessee fieldstone for the center of the pot, which provide a view block for the train. I planted the spike moss on the summit of these two rocks. At Nancy Norris’ recommendation, to keep the asparagus ferns as small as possible for as long as possible, I trimmed the small container pots that they came in flush with the top of the potting soil to restrict growth. If they die by next season, at $1.49 each, they would be inexpensive replacements. The coupling from the track connector to the Kato wiring extension was made just under the surface of the rock ballast, next to the track, to make it easy to disconnect the track at a later date for storage (photo 4). I used a dab of dielectric grease on the connection to help keep out moisture. I also used the grease on the track connections. I wrapped the powercord connection with electrical tape for additional protection. After setting the track in place, I inserted the plants (no shovel needed here, just a finger). Using spade connec-
tors for a quick disconnect, I connected the Kato power cord to a low voltage, outdoor-rated wire from the power pack. I later built a laser-kit speeder shed from Monroe Models and placed it between the center rock and the track to provide a point of interest and to maintain a proper scale and perspective. After collecting the materials, the project took just one day to build. The next day I went to a local hobby shop to buy a Bachmann NW-2 locomotive and some rolling stock. Small switch engines and cars no longer than 40' look best on the small-radius track. The total cost for plants was about $40, while the track was the least expensive item, at about $18. The power pack was $47, the locomotive cost $129, and the
4. The track can be easily disconnected from its power source. Wires can be hidden by ballast.
rolling stock was another $40 or so. The large rocks were just $3.23 and the Ups-ADaisy was $14.99. Most of the smaller rocks were lying on the ground and were donated by the nursery but I mixed in some Woodland Scenics Talus for some even smaller variety. The finished railway can be seen in photo 5. The train runs beautifully but, on a windy day, the rolling stock blows off the track much more easily than my largescale stuff!
5. Track is supported by a styrofoam ring. The large stone in the center provides a view block. This railway proves that lack of space is not an excuse for nonparticipation in the hobby. www.GardenRailways.com
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DON PARKER
MINISCAPING
A modified bonsai technique for miniaturizing trees
PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR
M
y railroad needed more deciduous trees—plants that not only looked like trees but behaved like trees. Their bark should thicken and get rougher as they age. Their leaves should show color other than green in the fall. Their branches should be bare in the winter, revealing a tree-like skeletal structure. Their new growth in the spring should bud out vivid green or another fresh color. And, of course, they should be scale-appropriate for my garden railroad. There are naturally occurring miniature deciduous trees (small Japanese maples, Chinese elms, small birch trees, and dwarf mulberry, among others) that I described in the October 2011 GR. Some of these can be pricey, some are very slow growing, and others are hard to find. I wanted something cheap and easy that would still look good. So about 17 years ago I started experimenting with a modified bonsai technique to miniaturize Washington hawthorn trees (Crataegus phaenopyrum, Zones 4-8). This has worked remarkably well, producing decent looking trees in three to five years (photos 1 and 2). They mature nicely while being kept small, their roots confined in pots sunk in the ground. I have several trees up to 15 years old and have lost only one. Why did I choose Washington hawthorns (which, by the way, can grow to 25-30 feet tall at maturity)? To begin with, their leaves are small, they are moderately slow growing, they have nice bark, a pleasing overall structure, and they are tough as nails. Unfortunately, they also have thorns that do not miniaturize. I figured by using gloves and being careful, that was an acceptable price to pay. The technique involves root pruning and top shaping every two years, with a light pruning of branches once or twice in the intervening year. Currently, I am trying to produce other trees in this manner, such
1. A five-to-six-year-old Washington hawthorn tree on the author’s former railroad.
as dawn redwood (photo 3), locust (photo 4), and common juniper (photo 5).
Potting a new tree Trees should be very small when you select them to grow in pots. They survive better when small, and by shaping them early in life, you can better determine their eventual structure. Trees that come bare root, such as from National Arbor
Day or little starts that you move from the wild, should be grown in a garden spot for a year or two before being potted. I use one-gallon plastic containers for most trees, graduating to two-gallon containers for some of the bigger trees. I use a soil mix of one-half good garden soil, onequarter finely ground hardwood mulch, and one-quarter course sand, fine gravel, or Perlite. www.GardenRailways.com
51
MINISCAPING
2. A potted three-to-four-year-old hawthorn growing in the Hoot ’n’ Holler railroad garden. (Note the use of double potting to aid in getting the tree out of the ground for root pruning. Also note the thorns.)
Trees that have been growing in the ground for one to two years should have their roots spade-pruned at least six months before being dug up and potted. The purpose of this is twofold: to reduce the size of the eventual root ball that I would dig and to stimulate the tree to grow new roots within this restricted area. I use a small garden spade and plunge it about 6" deep, straight down, in a circle around the tree no bigger than the diameter of a one-gallon container. I do this root pruning only after leaves have fallen from deciduous plants in the fall or before bud break in the spring. I keep the tree watered well during the summer, and six to 12 months later it will be ready to pot up, with better chances of thriving in its new confined space. Before potting, the tree may be shaped with some judicious pruning of branches. The aim is to reduce the number of main branches to two or three if they are upward reaching (photo 6), and three to five if they are outward reaching from a main trunk. Some of the smaller branches should be removed to open up the tree so that its characteristic structure can be more easily seen. Plastic plant containers have holes in the bottom for drainage (which keeps the
52
Garden Railways | December 2015
3. A dawn redwood tree recently potted. (Note the landscape fabric lining the pot.)
4. A locust tree (unknown variety) that sprouted voluntarily in the author’s vegetable garden.
5. A potted juniper (unknown variety), removed from a gravel path and grown one year in the garden before being potted.
tree from drowning). These must be covered so that roots won’t grow into the surrounding soil and defeat the effort to keep the tree small. I’ve found that two layers of landscape fabric (weed block) will allow adequate drainage and prevent roots from escaping. I place the newly dug root ball in the pot, with enough potting mix to bring the top of the root ball level with the edge of the pot. I pack the soil
firmly and put the whole container in a tub of water, letting it soak for 20-30 minutes to drive out any air pockets remaining in the soil (photo 7).
Potted-tree maintenance The potted tree can now be placed in its assigned spot on the railroad. The pot is buried up to its rim and is disguised with mulch (photo 8) or gravel (photo 5).
8. Drip irrigating a two-to-three-year-old tree during its first summer in a container.
6. A two-to-three-year-old hawthorn with three upward-reaching main branches.
Often, groundcover will grow into the pot and help to blend the tree into its surroundings (photos 1 and 8). It is important to remember that potted trees have limited means of obtaining water and nutrients. Pots should be watered regularly, especially during periods of drought. Drip irrigation is an ideal way to make sure all potted trees are provided adequate water (photo 8). Also, a cup or two of diluted water-based fertilizer (such as Miracle-Gro) should be poured into the pots every month during the early growing season, stopping application after August 1 so that the trees have time to acclimate in the fall for the coming winter.
7. Soaking a newly potted tree to remove air pockets from the soil.
Further reading Trimming and pruning, by Don Parker, October 2013 GR Reuse your garden prunings, by Nancy Norris, February 2011 GR How to prune your dwarf Alberta spruce, by Nancy Norris, December 2009 GR
9. A hawthorn tree removed from its container. Note the early leaf development.
A pruning primer, by Pat Hayward, June 2002 GR Subscribers can access these articles free at www.GardenRailways.com
Root pruning Every other year, in March or early April, I watch the trees for signs of emerging leaves. That’s the best time to pull the pots out of the ground for root pruning. It can be done later but it’s easier on the trees before the leaves are out full and it’s easier to see the branch structure when the leaves are small. I turn the pot upside down and pull the tree out (photo 9). I usually lay the tree and root ball on its side and cut (whack) through the lower third of the soil and roots (photo 10). If the landscape fabric is torn or rootlets have penetrated it, I replace it. The pot is
then filled one third with the potting mix, the tree is put back in the pot, and mix is added around the root ball and packed in. The whole pot is placed in a tub of water and soaked to drive out any air pockets. While the tree is soaking is a good time to trim the top, thinning out enough small branches to emphasize its natural shape. Trees take time to develop and this project tends to be a long-term one. However, unless you are willing to pay top dollar for ready-made scale trees, this method has a lot going for it.
10. A hawthorn tree with the lower third of its root ball removed. www.GardenRailways.com
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In praise of small locomotives
Gertrude, a 7 ⁄8" scale 0-4-0 Hunslet from Accucraft, hauls a prototypical Penryhn slate-quarry train of waste wagons. PHOTO BY THE AUTHOR
O
ften, when someone shows up at a steamup with a small livesteam locomotive (such as an 0-4-0 tank engine), it is looked down upon. Some folks seem to consider small live steamers to be “starter engines” and assume the owner hasn’t progressed yet to bigger and more complex locomotives. I do not think that the size of a locomotive should be related to the amount of enjoyment that can be obtained from the live-steam hobby. Don’t get me wrong, though—I have nothing against large locomotives. The sight of mainline 4-8-4 pulling a 14-car express passenger train is as pleasing to my eyes as the next person’s. However, I can say from personal experience that there is as much pleasure in running a small, 0-4-0 tank locomotive pulling a few industrial freight cars as there is in running a large locomotive with a train of dozens of cars. It’s worthwhile to remember that diminutive work horses like 0-4-0s and 0-6-0s were the yard switchers for most standard-gauge railroads and were as much a part of full-size railroading as large, mainline passenger and freight engines. Also, there were plenty of
narrow-gauge 0-4-0s and 0-6-0s hauling both passengers and freight on railways both here and abroad, on gauges ranging from 15" to 42". Besides the obvious lower cost, a small locomotive is often easier to run and is quicker to raise steam. It is just the thing when you want to run an engine at a moment’s notice. Along with a short train, it takes up less room when being transported to a steamup. I am continually amazed at the haulage capability of most small, commercially-available live steamers today. It often exceeds that of the prototype! Larger locomotives will need more space to run; in particular, wider-radius curves. The radius of curves is usually dictated by the space available for a garden railway. Smaller locomotives are better suited to smaller garden railways and actually look better in those settings. For example, my tiny garden railway has 42"-radius curves and am I quite content running small engines with appropriately short trains. Some live-steam manufacturers have commented that building models of small prototypes is more difficult than building
larger locomotives. Cramming all the bits and pieces that a live steamer requires into a small place can be challenging. Nevertheless, there are a number of small freelance and scale model engines on the market in a variety of scales. Freelance examples include Accucraft’s Dora and Ruby, Regner’s Kondrad and Willi, as well as Sammie and Bertie locomotives from Roundhouse Engineering. With the rise in popularity of ⅞" scale (1:13.7), smaller narrow-gauge locomotives can be had in a larger size, perhaps lessening some of the manufacturers’ concerns over available space for fittings. In some ways, this is a good compromise. The engines are large enough to accommodate all the fittings required (including space for finger access!) and small enough to go around most tight-radius garden railways. Even in ⅞" scale, a small industrial locomotive and prototypical train of a few wagons can negotiate the smallest garden railway and still be easily packed up for transport to steamups. And as for the amount of the fun being had when running a small steamer, you can judge that from the smile on the face of the engineer. www.GardenRailways.com
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gh. December again already ? If you’re up to your knees in snow, you’re probably wondering what to do in your workshop to stay sane and get ready for spring. It will come again, I promise! As usual, Instructables has some helpful winter projects. If you have a bandsaw, you know that there are a lot of adjustments that can be made to it. If you’re like me, you have only a general idea of what they all do and how to optimize them for your work. I found this article quite helpful in getting the most out of my saw. The comments also include many good tips and techniques. Tune it up: instructables. com/id/Steps-for-Using-a-Bandsaw Making a metal railway bridge has always seemed out of my reach—I haven’t had the equipment or the time to drill all those tiny holes and insert all those tiny, expensive bolts and nuts. If only there was a way to weld the parts together! If that describes you, or you’re one of those people who can’t stand to see machines and appliances go into the landfill, you’ll love this one. You can make a spot-welder with a transformer out of an old microwave oven. Brilliant! youtu.be/vrlvqib94xQ When I saw this article about Prohibition (1920s and early ’30s), the thing that struck me in the photos was that every man wore a hat. This is not something we see modeled enough, probably because fedoras are hard to make and most commercial figures don’t have them. But there are lots of other styles that are easier to add to a hatless figure. Note the boaters (flat-brimmed with a cylindrical body) and flat caps (make one with a lump of polymer clay and a minute of fingershaping). Give ‘em hats! tinyurl.com/ ProhibHats If your railway already has all the buildings, figures, and accessories it will ever need, then you’re ready to tackle this: a steam-powered orrery (mechanical solar-system model). Even if you don’t consider building one, it’s lots of fun to just sit indoors on a wintry day and watch it work: youtu.be/nlgyXY3vPd4 Send pictures when yours is finished, OK? Stay warm, stay cheerful and keep visualizing your railroad amid the spring flowers. www.GardenRailways.com
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