Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Tell us about your layout, where you put it, how you built it, how you operate it.
Tony Wilkins
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Sat Feb 06, 2021 11:40 am

Now here's a thing.
On Wednesday whilst cutting out and assembling some more BR1 baseplates, which are assembled from two parts of the etch, the base and the spike parts, I cut a base part from the fret only for it to ping into my lap never to be seen again. After a futile search, I cut another from the fret and carried on. This morning when I got out of bed my wife noticed something on the bed sheet, which turned out to be the missing base part. I can only conclude that it must have fallen into my slipper and when I went down to let our dog out this morning then came back to bed with a cup of tea, it stuck to my foot as I got back into bed and had been in my slipper for the past three days.

Regards
Tony.
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Tony Wilkins
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Tue Feb 09, 2021 5:40 pm

In the picture of Brimsdown station I posted above it may not have escaped your notice that the main line North of the station is dead straight and is so for some miles. Apart from this curve between Brimsdown station and Ponders End station seen beyond the bridge, the line is essentially straight for many miles. Here is a telephoto shot from 2008 looking south from the Eastern ramp of the footbridge at Duck Lees lane.
DSCF0020.jpg

This is typical of the problems we modellers face when trying to represent a real main line and obviously compromise is inevitable.
There are actually 5 colour light signals visible in this shot and they are a bit misleading to the unfamiliar. At first sight they appear to go (starting with the nearest) double yellow, yellow, red, yellow, green. In fact the farest yellow signal, which will be double, is after the green aspect and there is a slew in the tracks where the EMU is, causing this illusion, at the next station, Angel Road, some two miles distant. Angel Road station no longer exists having been replaced by a new station at Meridian Water.
Somewhere in the undergrowth to the left is the concrete stop block and short of climbing the fence with a machete, this is the best picture I could get of it.
DSCF0014.jpg

The sloping face is the rear. Amazing what 40 years of undergrowth can do.

On the model front, I am spending an inordinate amount of time fabricating BR1 baseplates. 8 frets down so far. It takes 3 to 4 hours to prepare enough baseplates for one 60 foot panel and a further hour plus to solder everything together, but I shall get there. Whilst I would dearly like to post some pictures of the process, it is difficult for two reasons. Firstly think Bullhead chairs and how small they are. Baseplates are the Flatbottom equivalent, so a super macro lens is needed. The second problem is that for most steps of the procedure, both hands are required and I don't have a spare.
Regards
Tony.
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Terry Bendall
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Terry Bendall » Wed Feb 10, 2021 8:51 am

Tony Wilkins wrote:Whilst I would dearly like to post some pictures of the process, it is difficult for two reasons


These may assist. Firstly a picture of the prototype BR! type, courtesy from the Colin Craig web site, now taken down and one of a sample length of track that I built.

Picture 1.jpg


Picture 3.jpg


The second picture shows the bending jig for forming the spikes and a sample of the fret.

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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby ralphrobertson » Wed Feb 10, 2021 10:12 am

courtesy from the Colin Craig web site, now taken down


Colin Craig produced a fantastic collection of information which is shared on our club's website: http://www.mmrs.co.uk/technical-articles/modern-permanent-way/. Colin's pages are always in the top set of pages visited on the MMRS website and is the bible (and possibly the only information) for flat bottom track.

Ralph

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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Terry Bendall » Thu Feb 11, 2021 9:15 am

ralphrobertson wrote:Colin's pages are always in the top set of pages visited on the MMRS website and is the bible (and possibly the only information) for flat bottom track.


Certainly the most easily accessible although there are books to be found. The Railway - British Track since 1804 by Andrew Dow published by Pen and Sword books has a lot of information but is expensive. British Railway Track, published by the Permanent Way Institution - there are various editions, is also good and these can often be found second hand.

The MMRS web site has a lot of very useful information and it provides a very good service to the railway modeller. The CLAG web site is another with lots of useful information about track and other things.

Terry Bendall

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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Mon Feb 15, 2021 2:27 pm

Thanks for the above replies and links to useful sources of information. I do have a copy of Andrew Dow's book The Railway, British Track since 1804 and an absolute mine of information it is too.
I said it was difficult to document, but not impossible and recently I have been attempting to make a photographic record of the procedure. It is not quite as thorough as I would like, but with only two hands available it will have to do. The timer facility on the camera is very useful here, but does not always produce sharp focus as it tends to refocus just before the picture is taken and I don't always find this out until I go through the pictures later on.
Terry has posted a picture of the prototype BR1 baseplates with elastic spikes, so I won't repeat that, but here is a picture of a complete etch sheet with added distortion.
There are 56 bases plus 60 angle plates with spikes, so some spares included.
DSCF0696.jpg

For a standard 60' panel with 24 sleepers, 48 are required.
I remove the parts from the fret as needed with a scalpel against a wood block.
DSCF0697.jpg

DSCF0698.jpg

The small tags on the base piece are cleaned up with a fine flat file. Far end done, which is why its bent.
DSCF0699.jpg

With the angle plates I don't generally bother to do this as any tag remnant will be invisible under the rail later on anyway and there is quite enough work to do making these as it is thankyou.
After cleaning up the second end of the base the ends are bent up to about 80 degrees with the detail on the outside of the bend.
DSCF0700.jpg

The angle plate is then picked up with tweezers and this is one of the fuzzy shots as I hadn't realised the camera had focused on the wrong thing.
DSCF0701.jpg

Now comes the really fiddly bit.
The double prongs are inserted through the outer holes on one side of the base with the stepped side of the uppermost, note the hole in the wood, this becomes a great aid to assembling these shortly.
DSCF0702.jpg

The single prong now needs to be fiddled through the center hole at the other end and this can be very tricky as going too far removes the double prongs from their holes and getting them back in is the devil's own job. If this happens, I find it easier to remove the angle plate and start again. The half etched step in the prongs can catch on the top edge of the hole if lifted and prevents the plate from sliding. I use a small taper broach as an aid here. Inserted through the hole so when the holes in the base and angle plate align it can help hold the two pieces together. The holes are referred to in the instructions as solder capillary holes, which indeed they will be later on, but I find them extremely useful as alignment holes at this stage in the proceedings.
DSCF0703.jpg

It is then possible to lift the assembly with tweezers
DSCF0704.jpg

and locate the tip of the broach in the hole in the block whilst the subsequent bends are formed using a small screwdriver.
DSCF0705.jpg

As the ends are progressively bent inwards a point is reached where the spikes automatically begin to bend upwards. It is thus essential that the two parts of the baseplate are centered during this process.
DSCF0706.jpg

Press down on the inside edges to ensure the folds are fully formed although there will be some elasticity in the metal anyway.
Now lay the screwdriver blade on the edge of the baseplate and press down firmly whilst gently twisting to form the spikes full vertical.
DSCF0707.jpg

Repeat for the other side. I have slightly overdone the single spike, but it is not critical at this stage.
DSCF0708.jpg

The next job is to solder both sides of the baseplate to increase its rigidity.
Apply a small amount of flux to one folded side of the baseplate, I use Carr's Orange label as per usual.
Next apply a very small amount of solder to the soldering iron tip, then just touch the iron tip to the edge of the fold and the solder will flash into the joint.
DSCF0711.jpg

Repeat for the other side. Because the two spike side is a flatter fold than the single spike side, it will absorb a little less solder.
If the solder flows everywhere, you have applied too much, and yes I have done it a few times. You need very little.
The next job is the form the spikes and Colin provides a tool to help with this.
I found I needed to clean up the half etched cusps on this a little to achieve a snug fit between the spikes.
DSCF0713.jpg

With the flat blade of a screwdriver gently progressively bend the spikes inward.
DSCF0714.jpg

DSCF0715.jpg

DSCF0716.jpg

Then move the baseplate to the thinner half of the tool and fully form the spikes using a jewelers screwdriver.
DSCF0717.jpg

In theory it should be possible to form the reverse bend where the spike holds the rail foot, but I have not found this at all easy to do and having managed to mangle several in the attempt have decided to settle for a simple curve. The visual effect is little different from all but the closest viewing point, which means it will probably show up in pictures.

Step and repeat 55 times for the rest of the sheet.
Having done this several times a small stockpile is built up.
DSCF0720.jpg
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Will L
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Will L » Mon Feb 15, 2021 3:42 pm

Tony Wilkins wrote:... The visual effect is little different from all but the closest viewing point, which means it will probably show up in pictures...


Oh yes, but very neatly done so far Tony. ;)

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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Mon Feb 15, 2021 4:11 pm

When I assembled the last sections of track, I used the remainder of my stock of prepared PCB sleepers, so I needed to cut some more before I could proceed further.
My previous attempts had mixed results and I put this down to the temporary stop I installed on the shear.
After various thoughts about drilling holes in the base of the shear and clamping metal plates to it, I decided to try a quicker solution and used high strength magnets to hold down a piece of card.
DSCF1171.jpg

This seemed to work at first, but the card being soft soon became frayed and sometimes it would bend upward allowing the thin PCB sheet to go under it. It also moved relative to the bed of the shear needing to be realigned periodically.
For my second attempt I decided to try a 2mm thick sheet of Aluminium again with the magnets.
DSCF1172.jpg

This also suffered with the PCB going underneath it. The rule to the side of the bed had a slot milled into it and I found that if I put a spare piece of PCB on top of the Ali sheet, it wedged it fairly firmly. However, this was not the end of my problems. The magnets did not clamp the Ali sheet firmly enough and it still gradually moved as I proceeded. Although this is getting slightly ahead of ourselves.

Before I could start cutting sleepers, I needed to gap them and I considered this easier to do as a long length rather than individually.
Having purchased a further supply of emery discs I put a new one on my hand held drill and started to grind away the Copper. I found it most difficult to get the cutting disc to stay near the center of the strip and indeed rarely achieved this ideal.
DSCF1173.jpg

I must admit these look pretty horrendous when seen at scale, but look fine when cut into individual sleepers.
Although the shear has a rule along one edge, I was trying to consistently cut strips 3.3mm wide and I didn't fancy trying to work out X - 3.3mm each time as this was bound to be prone to miscalculation.
So the reason for using a stop was due to me choosing to feed these strips into the cutter from the outside using the surface of the upright as an alignment guide.
DSCF1174.jpg

As already mentioned, the Ali sheet gradually moved position and even using a large G cramp didn't fully cure the problem. I came to the conclusion that the blade must exert some sideways force on the sheet as it cuts gradually causing movement, whether clamping screws would cure this I do not know but I didn't really want to go making lots of holes in the bed of the shear with no guarantee of success. I also still find problems with cutting sleepers consistently parallel.
However by frequently checking for drift as I go, I have reached what I regard reject rate I can live with and as I only have one or one and a bit more sheets to mark up and cut, to achieve what I want, I shall probably choose to live with it.
Here is the latest batch of sleepers.
DSCF1175.jpg

The edges are clean and crisp and although some exhibit a slight twist, this is easily corrected.

Which brings us back to building the actual track.

If the length of track to be built is curved then I pre-curve the rails to match. The required number of baseplates, in this case 24, are fed onto each piece of rail with the double spikes on the inside face and watch your stockpile rapidly deplete. I grouped them in sixes to make them easier to count.
DSCF0722.jpg

The sleepers are then fixed in place on double sided tape and a small amount of solder added where the baseplates will go.
DSCF0723.jpg

The track gauge shown is one of a pair specifically supplied by Colin Craig for the assembly of his Flatbottom track system in this case using code 82 rail. They are designed to hold the rail inclined at the correct angle to go with the stepped baseplate. What they don't allow for is gauge widening and I had to use these in combination with a set of Exactoscale gauges (intended for use with their glued plastic track) for my curved track.
Three of the first four baseplates have already been soldered and I am applying some flux to the joint in preparation for soldering the remaining joint.
DSCF0724.jpg

For this job I use a resistance soldering unit with two probes, one on the rail head and the other on the sleeper next to the baseplate. I filed a slight notch in the probe for the rail head in order to stop it slipping off.
Regards
Tony.
DSCF0725.jpg
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Dave Holt » Tue Feb 16, 2021 11:01 am

Tony.
The price one has to pay for accuracy! Looking good but seems an awful lot of work.
It might be a daft question, but why pre-solder the sleepers before track assembly rather than just solder the baseplates to the sleepers in the normal way?
Dave.

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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Terry Bendall » Tue Feb 16, 2021 3:47 pm

Dave Holt wrote:Looking good but seems an awful lot of work.


It is but then are many other things that we choose to do. In the end down to the individual to decide if they want to go that way. Personally I found it satisfying. On Elcot Road there are four different sorts of track - flat bottom rail and Pandrol clips on the main line and the loop using Colin's system of etched baseplates with the rail soldered to copper clad sleepers and cosmetic clips added later. BR2 clips on the bay platform road with the sleepers representing wooden ones in both places. Some short lengths of "concrete" sleeper track with flat bottom rail under the overbridge and bullhead rail track in the sidings. An attempt to replicate what might have occurred on the prototype c1988.

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Julian Roberts
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Julian Roberts » Tue Feb 16, 2021 3:52 pm

Hi Tony
About 20 years ago Bill Bedford designed an etch to represent these BR1 baseplates for me. I made a test track panel and sent it to the MRJ editor of the time Tim Shackleton. He never returned it to me and I'm not sure if he featured it in the magazine. Unfortunately my plans changed and I didn't proceed any further, and I don't think Bill has ever promoted it. Photos are lost. It was a lot easier to construct - each baseplate was one part, folded over, the spikes were then bent up and later folded to the reversing round shape. It was not altogether quite so 3D as Colin Craig's design but was pretty good I thought. I've hardly ever heard directly of anyone making this curly spiked FB track since then (edit, apologies to Terry, I've just seen his post, of course I've seen Elcot Road) though I think it's very elegant as you show here, but pretty well impossible to represent in plastic, maybe a reason so seldom seen. Anyway it looks fab and I admire your patience - the process looks a lot more tortuous than the Masokits etched bullhead chairs system.

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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Wed Feb 17, 2021 6:03 pm

Dave Holt wrote:Tony.
The price one has to pay for accuracy! Looking good but seems an awful lot of work.
It might be a daft question, but why pre-solder the sleepers before track assembly rather than just solder the baseplates to the sleepers in the normal way?
Dave.

Hi Dave.
The short answer is because I only have two hands and I need them to hold the RSU probes, so I find it much easier to preload the sleepers with a controlled amount of solder, then position the rail with baseplates, add flux to each in turn, place probes as shown and gently apply downward pressure on the railhead probe so that as the solder melts, the baseplate settles into place and the solder wicks up into the baseplate through the capillary hole and solders the rail and baseplate to the sleeper. The problem I have occasionally is that when current is first applied, the probe on the sleeper moves, I suspect under the influence of magnetic fields. The other thing that took some getting used to, having used a conventional soldering iron for years, was not removing the probe with the current flowing. It makes big sparks.
Regards
Tony.
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Wed Feb 17, 2021 6:27 pm

Julian Roberts wrote:Hi Tony
About 20 years ago Bill Bedford designed an etch to represent these BR1 baseplates for me. I made a test track panel and sent it to the MRJ editor of the time Tim Shackleton. He never returned it to me and I'm not sure if he featured it in the magazine. Unfortunately my plans changed and I didn't proceed any further, and I don't think Bill has ever promoted it. Photos are lost. It was a lot easier to construct - each baseplate was one part, folded over, the spikes were then bent up and later folded to the reversing round shape. It was not altogether quite so 3D as Colin Craig's design but was pretty good I thought. I've hardly ever heard directly of anyone making this curly spiked FB track since then (edit, apologies to Terry, I've just seen his post, of course I've seen Elcot Road) though I think it's very elegant as you show here, but pretty well impossible to represent in plastic, maybe a reason so seldom seen. Anyway it looks fab and I admire your patience - the process looks a lot more tortuous than the Masokits etched bullhead chairs system.


Hi Julian.
Funny you should mention Bill's etch which predates Colin's by a few years, as I do have one sheet of those. Its dated 1999. Mine though consist of two parts, a spike plate with a large rivet sized hole in the center and a top plate with two rows of three spike holes and a half etch slot in the center for the rail foot. As far as I can see the three spikes would have to be bent up first and threaded through the holes in the top piece. I did consider using these before Colin's product appeared, but could not find any more. Having used Colin's offering, I now prefer the end result. Whether they are more work than the Masokits bullhead chairs, I couldn't say as I have not tried them, but probably. Like any process, with time one develops a rhythm and it doesn't seem so bad. I have processed 15 sheets so far, which is 840 baseplates. When I have an hour or two I sit and bash out a few more to add to the stockpile.

Regards
Tony.
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Terry Bendall » Thu Feb 18, 2021 9:23 am

In did my soldering using a conventional iron, probably a 25 watt and that worked fine for me. I also tinned the underside of the rail.

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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Thu Feb 18, 2021 10:06 pm

Hi Terry.

Absolutely nothing wrong with using a traditional soldering iron to assemble the track. The instructions explain how Colin recommends doing this, but then goes on to state that those with access to resistance soldering equipment have the easier option. Since I have a London Road Models RSU that has barely seen the light of day since I purchased it, I thought it high time it started to earn its keep.
I elected not to pre-tin the foot of the rail as the Hi-Ni rail was already clean and it readily solders when the solder flows up through the capillary hole from the sleeper with flux.
The idea of using two probes is not a new one. It was pioneered by Mike Grey of the North London Group who designed the London Road RSU, only Mike used the method for the construction of traditional ply and rivet track.

Regards
Tony.
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Fri Mar 05, 2021 1:58 pm

Since the previous posts, I have come to the conclusion that it is preferable to place both RSU probes on the rail head a short distance apart to heat the rail as occasionally the current applied to the PCB sleepers overheats it and causes some de-lamination and / or distortion. It has only taken me some 15 or so lengths of track to come to this conclusion.
However the main purpose of this posting is to update progress in particular with the remaining Flatbottom pointwork. This consisted of 3 turnouts and a single slip. The first of these was this one (a C-8) plus accompanying plain track. On the left is the Down slow or Loop, which shortly runs into the Down main at which point the concrete sleepers end.
DSCF1177.jpg

DSCF1176.jpg

Next to be tackled was a C-8 crossover incorporating a 1 : 8 single slip.
DSCF1200.jpg

The progress of these has been recorded as it is my intention to document this in some detail as a separate topic.

The final turnout for Brimsdown completed on the last day of February.
DSCF1202.jpg

In a way this seems rather fitting as it is a Flatbottom D-9 and I began building the track for this layout with a Bullhead D-9 crossover back in November 2009, so in a way it feels like I have come full circle.
Here it is together with some accompanying trackwork as it is the exit from the Down slow.
DSCF1203.jpg


So what have I learnt from this.
Well Flatbottom P&C requires a great deal more filing than Bullhead P&C does as practically every rail requires the foot to be removed somewhere in addition to the usual shaping and it is hard on the fingers and fingernails. The foot tends to dig into ones fingers when holding it and can occasionally have burrs on it. I managed to cut my thumb on one whilst attempting to curve a length of rail. I have had to leave things for a day or so at times to let my fingers recover.

This isn't the end of the track construction though, as there are still about 20 more lengths of plain straight Flatbottom track to make, but I am running out of sheets of MDF to build them on, so need to start laying some of that already made to free up a few. However there are still some things that need doing before I reach that stage.
Regards
Tony.
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Dave Holt » Fri Mar 05, 2021 2:22 pm

Tony,
All the trackwork looks magnificent, as we've come to expect, I suppose. Your commitment to replicating the different types of track is more than admirable.
Looking forward to following the unfolding saga of Brimsdown.
Dave.

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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Fri Mar 05, 2021 3:30 pm

Dave Holt wrote:Tony,
Your commitment to replicating the different types of track is more than admirable.
Dave.

Hi Dave.
More like fanatical at times!
My latest example has been studying the track panels through the platforms in an attempt to get the Fishplate joints in the right place in order to help position the two boarded staff crossings between the two platforms. This has not been that easy. The ends of the plain track are obviously dictated by the positions of the pointwork at either end, so it has been a matter of counting the number of sleepers between each set of fishplates and replicating this in my Templot plan. Fortunately I have enough photos covering this area to be able to do this reasonably accurately although I have had to run a couple of them through Photoshop and alter the contrast to be able to see them. There were, I also discovered, differences between the placement of the Bullhead track and the replacement Flatbottom track lengths.
Regards
Tony.
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Martin Wynne » Sat Mar 06, 2021 9:19 am

+1
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Fri Mar 12, 2021 4:17 pm

I had already determined that before I could lay any of the PCB sleepered Flat-bottom plain track, I needed to paint the sleepers to match the stained ply and rivet Bullhead track as best I could. After exploring several options, I decided to obtain some grey primer from Railmatch together with some of their Timber grime for the second coat.
However, when the paints arrived the Grey primer turned out to be white and I wasn't so sure about using the timber grime as the base colour.
So this was the starting point. Any hardened flux residue has been gently removed with the end of a small watch makers screw driver blade.
DSCF1206.jpg


After a coat of primer it looks very strange.
DSCF1207.jpg


After some deliberation (and this was my wife's suggestion, as she dabbles in painting pictures and I have no artistic bent whatsoever), I decided to try using some artist oil paint for the top coat and used a tube of Burnt Umber I already had. Now Artists oil paint is rather different to the types of paint we modellers are used to. It is much thicker for a start and uses Linseed oil rather than turpentine, but has body which can be used to create texture in the finish as it tends to stay where you put it rather than flowing out to produce a smooth finish. The down side is that it takes considerably longer to dry. The net result is a finish resembling the grain of wood.
DSCF1209.jpg

This picture looks rather odd with the white baseplates and is a bit cruel being larger than life and with flash, but when viewed normally the track has a quite pleasing effect which I am sure will only improve when the baseplates and rail are correctly painted and the whole weathered, but this will have to wait until the track has been laid, ballasted and wired.

Regards
Tony.
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Fri Mar 12, 2021 5:40 pm

The concrete sleepered Flat-bottom track used the Exactoscale track base and the only preparation needed was to cut away every alternate web on the inside of the curve as the rails were pre-curved before inserting into the trackbase.
DSCF1213.jpg

At first I cut the end two sleepers individually in order to try to match them to the Templot plan. BIG mistake. As the rail moves, the sleepers get dragged along and then sit at an angle to the rails thus jamming everything solid. I resolved to leave the sleepers grouped in pairs before laying to prevent this. The other aspect to consider was the track feeds and although for the soldered track, both Bullhead and Flat-bottom, I would use conventional wire droppers, for the flexi-track I would employ the Palatine Models etched Rail Droppers as we had previously done to great effect on the EMAG layout. (At least when we were able to. It is currently quarantined in the club room).
For this, generally the center pair of sleepers were flanked by two dropper etches soldered to the bottom of each rail and the remainder cranked down level with track bed.
DSCF1212.jpg

DSCF1211.jpg


The final spacing of the sleepers will be determined just prior to laying.
Regards
Tony.
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Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Sat Mar 27, 2021 11:36 pm

Well at last I have managed to get back to actually laying some more track. I have been forced into this by the need to release some of the MDF sheets I have already used so I can build the next stretches of plain track through the station area. The final baseboard for the storage yard has needed finishing for some time, so this is where I resumed work.
The first job was to lay cork on the first scenic baseboard and the differing track heights meant that I needed different thicknesses of cork for each of the three tracks at the baseboard joint.
The outer track is on 1.5mm cork, so the 3mm cork on the storage yard board needed sanding to form a ramp down to match.
The middle track changes from bullhead on ply and rivet to flat bottom flexi track and has to change from 3mm cork to 2.5mm cork at the joint.
The inner track is bullhead ply and rivet changing to flat bottom Colin Craig baseplates and my own PCB sleepers, all on 3mm cork.
To help with this I used Templot's facility to print the track plan with trackbed edges, which I used to cut the cork strips of each different thickness to shape.
While I was about it, I cut further strips for the next two baseboards. When I joined the next curved baseboard and fixed down the cork, I discovered there was a nasty sag in the baseboard just this side of the baseboard joint, which affected the two main tracks. As it was not possible to rectify this with additional bracing under the baseboard top, I elected to glue a further layer of 1.5mm cork on top of the existing cork layer and after leaving a couple of days for the glue to set thoroughly, sanded the excess cork down to produce a level surface. The extra thickness of the cork bed can be seen at the far end of the baseboard in the picture below. The sloping ballast shoulders were then created by sanding the edges of the cork strips.
The sections of track that bridge the near joint were then laid and where necessary ballasted.
The trench on the right will represent Brimsdown ditch.
DSCF1214.jpg

The view from the opposite direction. The discoloured rail is the result of attack by PVA fumes.
DSCF1215.jpg

However, despite heavily weighting the concrete flexitrack, I still managed to produce a step in one rail between the two panels, so the longer panel was lifted expecting to find ballast under a sleeper. This was not the case, but one of the sleepers had become badly bend under the rail fixing causing the outer end to be bent down and pushing the rail up producing a slight hump at the rail surface and affecting the height at the rail joint. I replaced the faulty pair of sleepers and prepared the rest of the track for that baseboard.
It will be seen that the errant length of track is now placed in position but no longer ballasted. This will be redone when I do the next sections.
DSCF1216.jpg


Regards
Tony.
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Inspiration from the past. Dreams for the future.

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Andrew Bluett-Duncan
Posts: 84
Joined: Tue Mar 01, 2016 7:47 pm

Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Andrew Bluett-Duncan » Sun Mar 28, 2021 10:20 am

Hello Tony
More lovely work with minute attention to detail, you must be one of the most patient and exacting people the world has ever seen!!

Seeing the track you've been laying is, I think, at the point where you go from visible track to fiddleyard, I was wondering how you intend to make the break visually?
Kind regards
Andrew

Tony Wilkins
Posts: 814
Joined: Tue Mar 20, 2012 3:57 pm

Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Sun Mar 28, 2021 10:58 am

Andrew Bluett-Duncan wrote:Hello Tony

Seeing the track you've been laying is, I think, at the point where you go from visible track to fiddleyard, I was wondering how you intend to make the break visually?
Kind regards
Andrew


Hi Andrew. I tend to think of it the other way round i.e. from fiddleyard to visible track. Emerging from fiction into reality even though it isn't quite a true picture of reality. All will be explained.
I was thinking about this after I wrote the post.
I will answer your question with a picture, but first I am going to have to set it up and take the photo.

Incidentally, I wonder if you missed my rather lengthy post toward the bottom of page 20 explaining the genesis of this project as you haven't commented on it.

Regards
Tony.
Inspiration from the past. Dreams for the future.

Tony Wilkins
Posts: 814
Joined: Tue Mar 20, 2012 3:57 pm

Re: Brimsdown-The last grand project.

Postby Tony Wilkins » Sun Mar 28, 2021 1:46 pm

Having laid the remainder of the track on the last storage yard board, all that needed doing was to complete the wiring, but before separating the boards I cut any glue bond between the cork edges with a scalpel.
DSCF1217.jpg

Then added the edge protectors.
DSCF1218.jpg

To answer Andrews question, the scenic break at this end will use a bridge that featured some years ago when under construction (and still not finished) in an EMAG report, my local area group.
Here are a couple of pictures and this is the first time I have photographed it in place on the layout.
DSCF1219.jpg

DSCF1221.jpg

Ultimately there will be some sort of screen behind the bridge to create a more distinct break.
The bridge was based on this one taken post electrification, admittedly shot from the other side. Brimsdown ditch running underneath.
Bridge003.jpg

Bridge004.jpg

I think it was originally a five arch road bridge into the local water treatment works but altered when the line was widened from two tracks to four. The bridge visible in the distance is Pickets Lock Lane and the far distant tower blocks are next to Ponders end station.
My span is shorter as I only have three tracks to accommodate and this was the longest suitable girder bridge span I could find. It came from a company in the states.
In reality this bridge was some two miles south of Brimsdown, but it has always appealed to me with its white faced arches so moved it. It was demolished in the 1990s when a new road was built, just to the right of this picture, running parallel to the railway. So the bridge was then redundant.
It appeals much more than the more modern (1960s) bridge pictured toward top of this page that was geographically nearer. I will need to build a similar one for the industrial sidings that actually was there and a natural scenic break.

For me the greater challenge will be at the other end of the layout where, due to the compression, I have six tracks to lose when there should only be two and nothing more than a footbridge in reality.

Regards
Tony.
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Last edited by Tony Wilkins on Wed Mar 31, 2021 11:12 am, edited 5 times in total.
Inspiration from the past. Dreams for the future.


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