A 100% NMRA Affiliated Club

October 2015 Volume 27 No 4 Issue 292

Please note; schedules for club activities are notified in Train Talk - RAILWAY TIMETABLE - Page 38, and via email, if you have an email address and are not on our members email list, please advise ASAP so you can receive up to date news.Send to email;

info-ddmrc@ddmrc.com.au

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in ‘Train Talk’ are not necessarily the opinions of the DDMRC Inc. or it’s members.

PLEASE NOTE: Any personal items left and/or used at the club premises or events attended and/or organised by the club are the responsibility of the owner of said items.

The DDMRC Inc. Takes no responsibility for any loss or damage thereof. MOTION:04/02/03.

MEMBERSHIP FEESOne membership level only.

Ordinary @ $90.00* For Twelve Months

Pro-rata rates per Quarter(*Includes basic NMRA membership = $30.00 for Public Liability Insurance)

6. President’s Report 32. The Dunlop Way (Ben Dunlop)7. Teditorial 34. Modellers Korner (Dick Stracey)8. On the Footplate 35. Jamestown News (Gary Sardoni)9. Modelling Tips & Tricks (Walthers) 37. For Sale10. NMRA Division 1 37. Errata September Train Talk (Mick 14. American Civil War Lovell)15. Ipswich Workshops 38. Timetable16. New HO Layout (Mike Prowse) 40. 1919 Darling Harbour (Bill 17. In The Garden (Ted Freeman) Waterhouse)18. Wednesday Daylighters (Mike Prowse)19. Creative Modelling (Doug Clarkson)20. Camellia N.S.W. (Bill Waterhouse)22. Wuiske’s Wundaworld25. Train 209 (Arthur Hayes)29. OOPS! (Steve Colclough)30. Splitters Swamp Creek (Geoff Burns)

ADVERTISER INDEX:3 Train Pictures4 AR Kits5 Wuiske Promotions38 My Tool Store39 Southern Rail Models

Darling Downs Model Railway Club Inc.All correspondence mailed to:

DDMRC Inc.PO Box 883

Toowoomba Qld 4350

DDMRC Inc. Internet HomepagesWebsite:

Email: ddmrc.com.au

info-ddmrc@ddmrc.com.au

‘Train Talk’ Volume 27 No 4 (issue #292) October 2015

ABN 32 998 681 418

A 100% NMRA Affiliated Club

President Brent Smith 4687 7607Vice President Mike Prowse 4634 0462Secretary Ted Freeman 4638 0397Treasurer Bill WaterhouseCommittee Doug Clarkson 4528 2584

Barry Freeman 4635 7333Lionel Kearney 4613 5785Gary Sardoni 4635 5920

4639 2434

Club Number (07) 4638 1408

ON THE COVER: Hamersley Iron General Electric CW44-9 7071 eases past another ore train on the Hamersley Iron system in Western Australia.Geoff Evans

2

3

October 2015

4

October 2015

5

October 2015

6

Progress is being made with the HO Layout in the Stage 2 area of the Showgrounds complex, with members busy laying track and performing the tedious task of wiring the layout.

Wiring the layout is moving along steadily, except for one small area where one member had a moment and wired up that section backwards.

None of us are getting any younger, so these things are bound to happen, thus creating an electric atmosphere with those club members working on the layout!

There will be some discussion in coming months about shelving for Stage 2 of the Building - I've seen the Master's version - not bad - but the Bunnings Rack-it product got my vote, as I've purchased some recently for my garage. Easy to assemble and quite reasonably priced.

Remember Bunnings are a sponsor of DDMRC so we should support them as often as we can.

Another matter to be discussed is that of a garden shed, to be potentially erected at the rear of our premises.

Why a garden shed?

At present we have a gardener. It is Michael Freeman, who has done a great job and to support him we have purchased or have given him some equipment to help him do the job. This entails a mower, wipper-snipper, fuel, etc.

If we go down the path of obtaining contents insurance for our Showgrounds premises, then one condition of that insurance might be that petrol, thinners, etc, must not be stored in our premises.

That's the reason a garden shed will be on a future agenda to be discussed.

Anyway, enough from me for the month.

Hope to see you out at the Showgrounds soon!

Smithy

October 2015

7

The last few months have not fared well for the DDMRC Inc. membership.

Just after the DDMRC’s Annual Exhibition we lost long term member Norm Dodds.Norm and his wife Ann were regulars at the Exhibition, travelling down from Kingaroy to assist with whatever jobs they were asked to perform, we never had the pleasure of their company this year, Norm had been battling cancer for many years and finally succumbed to the dreaded disease shortly after the exhibition.

Closer to home, member since 2009, Roy Constantine suffered a heart attack without warning and never recovered, Roy had only been at the club the week before helping with the HO layout construction, there was no evident health problem, just this sudden attack apparently.

I was unable to attend the funeral for Norm Dodds, but I was able to represent the club at Roy’s funeral and met his wife Jean for the first time.

Condolences are expressed to Ann and Jean and their families for their losses.

As we approach the festive season for Christmas and the new Year, it is important to remember to take it easy on the roads as well as in general.

The HO layout is making tremendous advances with a great deal of track in position and wiring begun, at this stage there has not been a name chosen for the layout, maybe it’s time to get our thinking caps on, the old HO Layout at Baillie Henderson (which is the source of the benchwork for this one, was named “Drayton Harbour”, the name came about due to our residence in the Drayton area many moons ago and the association with the myth known as Drayton Harbour surrounding the area.

With Doug Clarkson’s Creative Lectures on scenery building, Gary Sardoni’s work on Jamestown and Russell Hartwig’s work on the Byers Junction protective framing, there is n o end to the activities going on.

Regular get together’s at the club premises now see Wednesday afternoons and Saturday afternoons as permanent times from around 1pm on, Doug’s Creativeness has been on the first Saturday of each month during the year and it is proposed that further clinics by Doug will take place on Jamestown and the new HO layout, come along and be a part of the activities.

October 2015

Showgrounds Museum Coordinators:

There is a policy at the DDMRC Inc.

Special Sale Items:

The production of Train Talk and Club Shirts: Construction of the Showgrounds

Museum & Display Centre has been made Layout Coordinators: possible through the generosity of the

You, say g’day to everyone

Available now are that comes along to the clubhouse, visitor, quality pens inscribed with the club name @ new member or old and invite them to ‘get $3.00, 25th Anniversary Magnets @ $1.00, involved’, we are all in this hobby for the same 25th Anniversary Coffee Mugs @ $5.00 and reason - “To have fun” Model Railroading Key rings @ $1.50, complete pack for just ‘IS’ The World’s Greatest Hobby.$8.00.

A limited number of club shirts are available at just $30.00 each.

Ted Freeman - GeneralGary Sardoni - HO JamestownRussell Hartwig - N Byers JunctionMichael (Mikey) Freeman - Groundsman

HO - Bill WaterhouseZ - Ted FreemanN - Ted Freeman

“MUST HAVE FUN”

8

October 2015

We are going to try something a bit different this year for Christmas, a combined Christmas Buy & Sell and a

Barbeque.

This is to be held at the clubrooms at the Toowoomba Showgrounds on Saturday the 5th of December.

Set-up for the Buy & Sell will be from 10am-11am, the selling will commence at 11am and go through to 1pm

whereupon the Barbeque will take place.

As this is the first Saturday of the month, people involved in Doug Clarkson’s scenery workshops will also be present, they will be most welcome to participate in our activities.

Still a few minor details to be worked out, so a final rundown on the day will be in next months Train Talk.

9

A fresh coat of paintIf your latest structure needs a little extra realism, paint might be the easiest way.

Plastic parts are usually molded in appropriate colors and while they can be used as-is, you can change the look or color by spraying or brush painting. Most exterior colors are flat finishes, but even glossy surfaces don't stay that way long. H O Cornerstone Framed Ranch Tract House

HO Cornerstone Framed Ranch Tract House

Touching up molded-on details with an artist's brush makes doorknobs, individual bricks, or concrete lintels stand out. Some will be easier to paint if you mask the edges first.

While most property owners are in no hurry for nature to take its course, thinned paint applied in washes allows us to simulate years of exposure in a matter of minutes. For a fun layout scene, consider a partially repainted building with figures at work.

Check your Reference Book or visit walthers.com for the paint, supplies and structures you need to get your project started.

October 2015

10

(continued on page 11)

NMRA DIVISION 1 (QUEENSLAND)

COMING EVENTSth14 November – Visit to Ipswich MR Club, in the

Freemason’s Hall, Ipswich.th17 November, U.P. Club Buy and Sell, 7.30pm.

th5 December, NMRA Christmas Lunch, Maleny. Please RSVP Charles Clark now. All meetings start at 10.30am unless otherwise stated.

We will endeavour to get 2016’s list out to you as soon as it becomes available.

Promoting NMRAPaul Skehan, co-ordinator of the Division 1 modular Display Layout sent me the following summary of time spent promoting our Association (and operating trains of course) by the SIG at the various train shows we have attended since Paul’s dramatic weathering exercise with his house fire. To quote Paul, “Here is a list of the hours that we have all spent since the Gold Coast Show in July 2012.All records prior to that show were unfortunately lost in our house fire.Keith Auld 10 Hours, Bob Brown 159 Hours 15 Minutes, Bob Cuffe 171 Hours 30 Minutes, Les Ellen 71 Hours, Graeme Prideaux 18 Hours 30 MinutesIan Venables, 168 Hours 30 Minutes, Paul Skehan 163 Hours. Interesting figures aren’t they?”We can’t say how that translated into new members but at least it all amounts to a lot of time promoting the hobby and Association so that a better understanding is reached about why we are so involved with model railroads. That can’t be a bad thing and apart from giving enjoyment to operators and onlookers, the time spent must be prolonging a healthy life for we older members as well.

CommentThere are so many ways we imagine our model railroads to exist in a dream world. Some members are following a particular prototype. Others may be following a division or a part of a division of a prototype. Some layouts or planned layouts are freelanced. Others may be proto-freelance, that is a reasonable copy of a railroad using real railroads practices but named by the owner to suit his or her wishes. Then there are standard gauge, narrow gauge and shortlines, and parts of divisions. So many permutations that you need a dictionary to sort out what we are talking about.For example Ken Leach models the Southern Pacific but just the Shasta Division. Fair enough, modelling the whole railroad or just a division would take up a lot more room than Ken has or time that he could devote to running it, no matter how nice that would be.The Union Pacific Club runs a road called the Sierra Central and a lot of the rolling stock is western USA. They probably fit into the category of proto-freelance and this club layout would be one of the best in Queensland. Non-western railroads are not barred however.Bert Toogood of Innisfail runs what I would call a freelance layout. He uses mostly American prototype but as though their practices fit into the Australian context. There are several well-known layouts in the Sydney region that take this path.

(martyn1107@bigpond.com)

October 2015

(continued from page 10) 11Many of us, too many, have a railroad in our minds that one day we hope to build. Have you thought what category your railroad would fit into? Also have you considered what you will call it?My imaginary road is the Jamestown Jellico & Ewing, and is a short line with many prototype connections in the Virginia, Kentucky region of eastern USA. Being in the Appalachians, it moves mostly coal but also a fair amount of farm produce and production goods from that. The main connections are with the L & N, the Southern, the Interstate and Norfolk & Western.Perusing a copy of Official Railway Equipment Register (1943 & 1953 both NMRA Publications) should give you ideas including connection points with the greater railroad community. Or one of the “1948 (or 1928) Handy Railroad Atlas of the United States” (both Kalmbach publications) would give you plenty of ideas and maybe even some authentic sounding names. Inside the covers of that publication are many railroads that we rarely or don’t normally come across, e.g. Edgmoor &

Manetta (E & M), or Texas South-Eastern (T S E).

You will notice that I have lettered this car in a standard, plain way so as not to draw too much attention and thereby minimise the illusion that this RR has never

existed. In the past, the NMRA used to publish a list of modellers with their railroad name and contact but privacy considerations have tempered that. I would like to hear from you what you railroad name is – but without you contact details. This would preclude the chance that two of you will use the same name. Well maybe, but I can foresee several Santa Fe's with Tehachapi Division turning up. But more interesting, would be knowing what you model based on the name of your railroad. Please just send them in and we will publish the owner's name and the name of the railroad if you so wish. No other information will be published, although gauge might be of use if you one day hope to attract visitors bringing their own to run on your layout. Talking about loops, why hasn't someone made or considered making a Hiwassee Loop that used to be on the L & N (that part was originally the Atlanta Knoxville & Northern and bought by the L & N in 1902 and abandoned in 2001 under CSX) and was a double loop, not unlike a model helix except that both loops were interesting and full of modelling potential. I would have thought it more dramatic than Tehachapi. Now all of this is related to US railroads but I would particularly lie to hear from modellers following other prototypes. So please flood me with information including your name, your railroad name and what prototype gave you the idea in the first place, if one in particular was the inspiration.

A Jamestown Jellico & Ewing steel boxcar being a lightly kit-bashed Athearn kit with decals made years ago by Rail Graphics.

October 2015 (continued on page 12)

12

(continued on page 13)(continued on page 13)October 2015

Visit to Rob Mclear's Those who went out to Rob Mclear's Kingaroy property were certainly in for a great day. Rob and Jan's place is some distance from our usual haunts but the drive out was interesting and pleasurable and their property was restful and those running trains were enthusiastic at the size and smoothness of Rob's track work. What it's going to be like in its next phase sound most desirable.

The very pleasant surroundings while filling plates with roast vegetables and hot pork, beef and chicken. The smells soon got the rest of them out of the train room for lunch.

To put the 'icing on the cake' Rob and Jan's

hospitality will fire up everyone the next time we are invited. I cannot convey how the bush setting and pleasant temperature inspired attendees to enjoy the day. The Santa Fe Cajon Pass layout and it's features are very well done .

A freight train and the crack Super Chief passing at Summit on Rob Mclear's Santa Fe inspired layout.

After lunch Martyn called the meeting to order and the more formal part of the day proceeded. Charles Clark asked members to

please give him numbers and names for the Christmas Lunch at Maleny as soon as possible. Martyn gave us some figures from the National convention in Portland that were interesting. There were about 2,000 attendees, 320 Clinics, 6 rooms for Clinics and these went from 8am to about 10pm. There were 3,200 items in the silent auction. The Australian attendance was 39 members. By comparison Martyn also went to the Ettalong Convention and there were 23 Clinics and 22 layouts to visit. Next year's Convention will be in Sydney. Martyn Jennings and Laurie MacLean will be demonstrating TCS WOW decoders at future train shows around the southeast Queensland area. In closing Martyn mentioned that Division 1 now has 243 members. SHOW & TELL first item was George Stainlay with his new Auscision NSW class 421 diesel-electric loco. Charles Clark then showed his Walther Florida Fun Train FS9PH loco and his Athearn Pacific Surf Liner F40PH loco. To view, make sure you have your sunnies on!

(continued from page 11)

(continued on page 13)

13After the usual MR talk, a great way to learn from others, we headed back to our respective homes and I feel sure those who attended are looking forward to our next visit to see how much progress has been made on the multi-level layout that Rob

intends to make. Once the meeting was over there was more layout exercise. Perhaps it only finished because there were threatening storm clouds in the distance and most of us missed that, getting rain from about Toogoolawah or Kilcoy.

This photo is included to give you some impression of the neatness and authenticity of Rob's layout.

Website to Watch Keep a watch on Laurie McLean's website:

As we all know, Laurie is quite an innovator and often has very interesting and educational video on his site. Also, see Laurie when you are considering an application for an AP Award as he is the official Division 1 co-ordinator. One thing you can be sure of is that Laurie has done it all himself so understands your difficulties in modelling. Laurie is also familiar with those awards that are not modelling like Author or Volunteer. Resurrection Sometimes it pays to return to incomplete models that we gave up on long ago. Here is one that I have begun to revisit. I bought this all plastic kit back in the late '50's from Hobbyline for 49 cents US. That was when an American Dollar was 5 shillings in our money. So it cost me roughly 2 shillings and 6 pence or 25cents in today's money! I detailed the plastic body and you can see the brass parts and the styrene parts in this photo. The one piece body includes the boiler, domes, cabin and tender. I discarded quite a bit of the chassis and running gear. Scratchbuilt by me is the brass chassis, the valve gear the connecting rods, front and rear pilot cross-members, air tanks, whistle, generator, cylinders, slides, steps, uncoupling bars, cabin floor, etc. It is powered by a Mashima motor (the third motor it has had in it). Originally I powered it with a Rivarossi motor then a Romford Terrier. I put it aside in the late fifties because of a persistent 'hop' it had. Four driver locos are notoriously hard to get to run properly. I came back to it last week and surprisingly got rid of the hop so that it now runs very smoothly. Expect to see it running on the modules at our next show.

http://www.youtube.com/user/scoopmmr?feature=mhee.

October 2015

(continued from page 12)

14

October 2015

Railroads suffered dire consequences throughout the American Civil War, these photos have come from various sources via the internet.The American Civil War, widely known in the United States as simply the Civil War as well as other sectional names, was a civil war fought from 1861 to 1865 to determine the survival of the Union or independence for the Confederacy. Among the 34 states in January 1861, seven Southern slave states individually

declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America. The Confederacy, often simply called the South, grew to include eleven

states, and although they claimed thirteen states and additional western territories, the Confederacy was never diplomatically recognized by any foreign country. The states that remained loyal and did not

declare secession were known as the Union or the North. The war had its origin in the fractious issue of slavery, especially the extension of slavery into the western territories.

After four years of combat, which left over 600,000 Union and Confederate soldiers dead and destroyed much of the South's infrastructure, the Confederacy collapsed and slavery was abolished. Then began the Reconstruction and the processes of restoring national unity and guaranteeing civil rights to the freed slaves.

15

October 2015

Trick or treaters of all ages are s t e p p i n g a b o a r d t h e Halloween Express steam train for a night time trip through Brisbane on 31 October, presented by The Workshops Rail Museum.G h o s t s , w i t c h e s a n d supe rhe roes have two departure times of 5:10pm and 6:45pm for the hour long steam train ride through Brisbane, departing and returning to Roma Street station.

Queensland Museum Network CEO Professor Suzanne Miller said the train trip is a fun way to present a heritage and cultural experience for the whole family.“With Halloween celebrated by numerous cultures it’s wonderful to be able to team it with one of Queensland’s fine heritage steam trains for a unique experience.“Halloween’s growing popularity in Australia is evident as the response for the tr ip last year was overwhelming, and it was great to see so many costumes worn by children and adults alike,” said Prof. Miller.“The Workshops Rail Museum is renowned for providing heritage and cultural experiences, and the trip is a fun way to introduce a hint of rail history to younger generations.”Bookings are essential and passengers are encouraged to book early to avoid disappointment. Purchase tickets online at theworkshops.qm.qld.gov.au or call QTIX on 136 246.Halloween Express ticket prices are $91 for a family ticket (2 adults and 2 children), $28 for adults, $19 for children (3 –15), free for children under three, $25 for concessions.“The trip is a great way to start the night of Halloween celebrations with friends or a social club activity,” said Prof. Miller.“There’s a magical buzz aboard a steam train travelling at night, with the city lit up and everyone in fancy dress, it gives you a sense of community.”

16

October 2015

Since August the HO layout has progressed extremely well with the temporary dual track now virtually completed including an extension of the base board on the southern section to allow an area for dual stations, passing loops & goods siding with shed (designed by Doug). The siding will the facility to run a Loco & goods wagons to run around the complex. Half of the fiddle yard area was also complete before 3 of the HO group took leave to either go overseas or interstate.

One problem did arise during the period of warmer weather, which due to parts of the track being laid without expansion joints, consequently we arrived at the Club to find areas where the track had buckled. Barry was quickly on the job & by days end all was fixed.

×THE TO DO BOARDOther work being undertaken has been the hole drilled for the electrical droppers of which many have been lowered into place

ready for attachment to the track & buzz wire.

POWER FEEDS ARE BEING SOLDERED TO

EVERY LENGTH OF TRACK.

Mike brought back some more Trackrite from the Sydney Exhibition for future track laying. while the electrical team commence wiring which will be for both DC & DCC a further group consultation process will commence on the future

development of the rest of the layout including the use of the spiral, placement of track to allow the best use of base board area for scenery etc.

×CHECKING CLEARANCES IN CURVESIt is my hope that some more of our HO modellers will now come along & join our small but highly industrious group develop what will be in time, a great Layout.

Ø

Text Mike Prowse - photos Mikey

17

October 2015

Most may think that the gardens and lawns of the clubs premises at the showgrounds don’t warrant a lot of attention, that couldn’t be further from the t ru th , i f a l lowed to go unchecked, we would have massive undergrowth and weeds that would be for one thing - very untidy - and for another, very inconvenient when it comes to access all round the building.

Michael (Mikey) Freeman has

been aerating the lawns and seeding them as well as eliminating weeds, the grass is really starting to take hold, Mikey has made it a personal vendetta to get the surrounds of the club premises as picturesque as he possibly can.

To aerate the lawns for seeding, he made up his own footwear to accomplish the job by walking around the lawns, works great and allows

seeds to penetrate into the moist earth.

Jill Durkin (Aaron’s mother) has been contributing plants to the project and Doug Clarkson has put effort into assisting, as you saw in last months Train Talk, Bazza gave the lawnmower a workout while Mikey was using the line cutter.

Text Ted Freeman photos Mikey

18

October 2015

This enthusiastic older group of around 8 of our Modellers continue to come along each Wednesday to enjoy the company of their fellow members while working on the Clubs layouts. As well as being great for the Club it's a way of keeping the mind active & body while enjoying our wonderful hobby.

As time progresses & finances allow this very active group can assist one another develop the club room into very functional establishment where other Clubs can be invited to visit from time to time.

Trackrite foam underlay being used for the trackwork, a quantity of this has been sourced by Mike Prowse.

Text Mike Prowse - photos Mikey

19

October 2015

Text Doug Clarkson, photos Mikey.

At the October meeting an interesting start was made on the water/ocean effects as well as developing a market garden and general surrounding landscaping. Perhaps more importantly, with the end of the year almost here, some discussion took place as to just where the lectures should go next year. November’s meeting is on Saturday the 7th, - wrap up the water scenes, discuss trees and make some of the many

needed to shade the village, giving the whole area an English rural feel. Last meeting of the year will be held on the afternoon of December 5th, after the Club’s Buy & Sell and mid-day BBQ.

We shall meet again on Feb. 6th. Most subjects have been covered during the last twelve months so we shall concentrate on using new found skills landscaping club layouts. Gary and I have already talked about Jamestown, which is in need of fresh trees and general ground cover after

many years of display. Perhaps willing workers could be employed elsewhere too.On ZeNkeville II we shall complete the village of Barnaby and the Cresswell Dairy Farm next door. We have not touched the end section so far.

Much can be left as it already is. Perhaps a Scottish theme might be appropriate next to an English village. Mountains, crags and general wilderness. A large lake with a stone hunting lodge? Scope for a waterfall or two. Call it Loch Ness to open more interesting possibilities! The remaining sections already have an American town with a mine set in rugged countryside. We can develop this without changing the basics at all.

It has been suggested all five sections of ZeNkeville II be displayed at our exhibition in 2016 as part of a push for new members. Everyone supports this idea and are willing to help over that weekend.

20

(continued on page 21)October 2015

Camellia RoseHill Industrial Area in NSW Photos submitted by Bill Waterhouse

(continued from page 20) 21

October 2015

22

(continued on page 23)

This chapter of Adam’s Corner comes to you from a usually quiet place within the Wuiske Asylum.... My office. However, today, as I sit down to put fists and forehead to keyboard, the kids have discovered a shiny, new and LARGE cardboard box. As such we have space missions, housing construction and demolition and two wannabe dogs jumping around like a jogger with a thumbtack in his shoes.

None the less, we shall see how long I can keep this going. The Wuiske Layout has had a fair bit of work completed or at least commenced on it recently. We now have both main lines laid which is FANTASTIC! Why didn’t I do this the first time around? Running two to four trains at once whilst shunting with another is so much more fun! Honestly, if you’re building a freelanced QR layout, go with a double track main!

Some of you may have seen on our faceplant page that Wuiske Models will soon be selling CR Signals from the UK. These are spectacular handmade signals that match QR signals rather closely. Thus far, I have installed a two aspect signal on the branch. This is wired up to a repeater signal, like the prototype (funny that hey). Also I have put in the first of the shunt signals leading to the branch from an industry. I seriously love these things and look forward to getting some more.

Similarly, we have recently received some new supplies of Peco HOm track which were added to the website not long ago.Meanwhile, the children have started stacking things on top of their box house/fort/spaceship /kennel.

October 2015

23(continued from page 22)

(continued on page 24)

The as yet unnamed second yard has now been laid and needs to be wired... 42 pairs of wires for me to solder... yippee!The second and third branches have started to be laid as well. We have the track down for the first five industries... Already that’s two more than we had on the entire previous layout and there is way more to come so far as operations.

After a series of shows, I’ve been buying up a lot of the Rix Products Kits. These things are fantastic as industrial sheds. Being a large industrial layout, I need a bucket load of them and the Rix products fit the bill nicely. They are essentially a modular building system that has been really well thought out. I strongly recommend them for any Aussie layout.

So whilst there is still a long way to go on this layout, I am getting to the point where operations are already possible

on a larger scale than was possible on the previous layout. We are even planning on restarting our Wuiske Models barbecues soon so we can get as many people here as possible to “play trains”.For those of you whom have not seen our faceplant page, Rob had a motorcycle accident in July. Well what actually happened was that he was pleasantly riding along near Maidenwell one evening when he discovered a kamikaze kangaroo that decided it would be smart to head butt his leg. Thankfully Rob is alive and relatively okay.... now.

October 2015 (continued on page 24)

24 (continued from page 23)His bike was written off as was his leg. With the aid of some gaffer tape and a bit of chewing gum, his leg is now on the mend. His bike may require the afore mentioned items as well as some plaster.Both Rob and Coral would like to thank you all for your kind words and thoughts for Rob’s health.It means a lot to them and is greatly appreciated.

August saw the RMCQ show at Strathpine. As usual, this was a great success and we had an absolute ball. My brother Craig and I would like to thank John and the boys at the RMCQ for yet again putting on a spectacular show. We had a great time and look forward to next year’s show as usual.

Our most recently attended show was the Redlands Show at Cleveland. This one is a smaller show but always great fun. Jade and the kids unfortunately missed out on this one, however Craig and I had a great time, as always.

In a couple of weeks it will be time for the last show of this year, the Ipswich Model Train Show at the Workshops Rail Museum. With any luck, Hop-Along-Rob will be back on deck soon for shows, although he will unfortunately miss this one.

October 2015

25

309/209 Continued.“P” Wagons were listed in the original wagon classification code introduced in

1890 as 8 wheeled platform wagons. Other railway owner/operators may call this type of wagon a flat car or flat trucks. The term “Flats” was used in Queensland shunting yards, but it referred to open wagons (H/F class wagons). Yard Orders for Monday could say hold 10 F of Flats for wool and place on ramp for 7 AM loading Tuesday. It was up to the Shunter in Charge to select the wagons from empties on hand. “F” was the unit length of the smallest wagon in traffic, a 4 wheeled “F” wagon which was 15 foot long. An “H” wagon was 2 F, thus the Shunter in Charge could place 5 H wagons or 8 FJS to fill orders. The unit was also used for making up trains, the maximum length of train hauled by a PB15 engine was 60 F. With the introduction of metric measure in the early 70’s the term was changed to a “unit” which was 5 metres. The maximum length of a train without an authority was 90 units. In the 90’s train lengths measure changed again, this time it was actual metres, i.e., a 2400 class DEL of 3.6 units became 18 metres (The unit length by 5 was close to the mark). The maximum length of train for a single DEL became 650 metres. This length of train did cause a few wagon braking issues with older wagons being marshalled on the rear, resulting in instructions being issued to which class of wagon that could be marshalled at the back of a train. Longer train can run subject to approval and could vary from line to line. Today trains have 2 lengths, static length of the vehicle and the stretched length taking into account drawgear movement within the train. A train of 40 wagons has approx. 1 wagon of slack within the drawgear/draft packs etc. I’m getting off the subject, so back to “P” wagons. The QR plan book has the following plans P 176 (Originally 61) dated 5/1/14. 32’ long x 8’ wide, bar frame bogies with 4’ wheel centres, 2’ 2” wheels with 7x3 journals. Ave Tare 7 ton 11 cwt, carry 12 Ton 9 cwt. Gross 20 tons. P 177 (Originally 62) dated 22/2/16. 32’ long x 8’ wide, bar frame bogies with 4’ 9” wheel centres, 2’ 9½” wheels with 8x4 journals, Ave Tare 9 ton 16 cwt, carry 22 ton 4 cwt. Gross 32 tons. P 178 (Originally 63) PJ 12125. 32’ long x 8’ 9” wide, bar frame bogies with 5’ wheel centres, 2’ 2” wheels with 8x4 journals. P 181 PTH wagons, converted from PT class in 1938. Underframe 22’ by 7’ 9” fitted with sides 3’ 6” high, centre door 8’ long by 2’ 6” high. In 1969 most wooden Jumbo (J) wagons on the QR network were reclassed and had their carrying capacity down rated to 20 ton gross, PJ wagons became P wagons. This resulted in the heaver wagons carrying less than the original wagons of the class. The “P” wagons were not big in numbers but were quite a mix with some having special use, below is some info I could find. Class June 59 June 60 P 8 8PJ 2 2

October 2015 (continued on page 26)

26

October 2015

(continued from page 25)

(continued on page 27)

PJM 1 1PT 19 8PTH 3 3PWT 2 0PX / PE 0 10The 1982 Rollingstock Book showed 3 PH wagons in traffic. Wooden 8 wheeled “P” Wagons Class Length Width Tare Carry RemarksP 26’ 7’ 6” 6 T 9 C 13 T 11C 32 in service. 4’ Bar frame bogie P 30’ 7’ 6” 6 T 19 C13 T 1C 5 in service. 4’ Bar frame bogie P 32’ 7’ 6” 6 T 7C 13T 13C 21 in Service. 4’ Bar frame bogie P 26’ 7’ 6” 6 T 13 C13 T 7C 10 in Service. 4’ Bar frame bogie P 32’ 8’ 7T 11 C 12T 9C 8 in Service. 4’ Bar frame bogiePH 26’ 6’ 4” 7 T 25T 1 in Service No. 2172 5’ bar frame bogie PJ 32’ 8’ 9T 7C 22T 13C 3 in Service. BF bogie with 4’ 9” wheel

centres 33½” wheels.PJ 30’ 7’ 6” 7 T 27 T 1 in Service. BF bogie 5’ wheel centres

33½” wheels. Reclassed to PHPJ 32’ 8’ 10T12C 21T 8C # 12125 Timber chocks for boilers. BF

bogie 5’ wheel centres 26” wheels.PJ / PH 26’ 7’ 6” 7T 25T 1 of each. BF bogie 5’ wheel centres

26” wheels.PJ / PH 32’ 8’ 9T10C 22T10C 1 of each. BF bogie 5’ wheel centres

26” wheels.PJC 50’ 8’ 6” 12T 4 C 19T16C # 32669-32673. Bogies 5’ wheel

centres 33½” wheels. Converted from carriages for cars??

1963.PJM 32’ 8’ 9T 6C 22T 14C # 18536 Drop centre floor.PT 22’ 7’ 9” 10T 7C 21T 13C 12 in service. Bogies 5’ wheel

centres 33½” wheels. T for Tank/Traction. ??

PTH 22’ 8’ 10T11C 21T 9C 7 in Service, 3’ 6” sides with a 2’ 6” centre door. BF bogie 5’ wheel centres 33½” wheels. # 19091 converted to Ipswich W/S shunt runner. H/B wheel on headstock.

PWT 22” 9’ 2” 9T 13C 22T 7C 12 in Service. Bogies 5’ wheel centres 33½” wheels.

PWX 40’ 8’ 9” 11 T 5C 28T 15C #29397 – 29399. Bogies 5’ wheel centres 26” wheels. (Numbers suggest about ear ly 50 ’ , measurements look like MTW frame)??

QR Plan # 351 for PWE not in my book, but this could be incorrect for PWX wagons as 2 PWE's were built for the electrification train to carry cement mixers )

27 P and PJ wagons had an approval in the General Appendix for an overload of 1½tons. With the introduction of bigger steel wagons in the mid 60’s (QFX), not many wooden “P” wagons made it past the end of steam. In the early 70’s the “P” classification took on a new meaning. At the start most were cut down steel wagons to carry one ISO container, then 2 containers. As always there were a few exceptions along the way.

A few photos of the more modern wagons

October 2015

(continued from page 26)

(continued on page 28)

28

October 2015

On Westgate, train 309/209 has 2 “P” wagons. Wagon 1. “P” wagon with rain water tank. The wagon was scratch build using Evergreen styrene, Caintode Flats bogies wi th Kadee whisker 158 coupling. The coupler box were built into the floor during construction. I was given the CGI tank, it is 10’ 6” wide and looked too big to go beside a house. Wide “Out of Gauge” tanks were regular ly consigned from Beaudesert. Saw mill off-cuts were place over the bottom rim of the tank and nailed to the wagon floor clear of the tank. Rope (cotton) was placed over the top to add extra securing.

The FJS wagon following has also been loaded with smaller tanks on their sides.

Wagon 2. “PJ” Wagon with 2 Tractor was built in the same manner at the P wagon above. The tractors were picked up at a buy & sell, and repainted. One was fitted with a blade on the front, a canopy for the operator and a slasher on the back, all

i t e m s w e r e knocked up from s t y r e n e . T h e t r a c t o r s w e r e s e c u r e d w i t h sleepers and chain. Looking at the photos, maybe the canopy should be repainted white ????

Next issue wi l l c o v e r Q F X / C wagons.

(continued from page 27)

29

October 2015

Some bad wheels from the Hunter Valley, N.S.W.When brakes lock and/or bearings seize, the consequences can be devastating.

30

October 2015

Station Masters Residence

Evans Gap with its limited passenger service, but extensive goods traffic, had a modest NSWGR residence for its Station Master. It was located near the station building itself, but due to the lack of a suitably sized building sites the building had no road access. The families that were housed there had to transport all their goods by hand or luggage trolley across the line from the goods shed.

The design is a standard NSWGR one, I just need to double check the stocks of clapboard to see that I have enough, of course the one I want I don't have any of. Damn it I'll just have to head to t he Mode l shop...heh heh heh!

Here are a few progress shots to let you know what I've done so far. You can see in these two photos the area out back of the building with the kitchen with the door partially opened and the open wash house. The first shot is without the roof.

The second with the roof on and the verandah detail on as well.

These were a bit fiddly but I'm happy with how it works now it's together.

The spot to the right of the doorway of the main house with the flat spot cut in is to locate the chimney against. I'll add that later once it's been painted.

Geoff Burns

(continued on page 31)

31

October 2015

The tape holding the roof is to hold it in place while I glue the other detail bits to it. You can't see it but there is an internal w a l l t h a t i s attached to the roof that is located in the right spot by some channels I've glued to the inside of the walls. All that is done so I c a n p a i n t i t separately then put it together easily afterwards.

This side of the building is the main side that you will see once it's on the layout, so you'll see the wash house and kitchen areas easily. Here you can see the ridge cap the corro iron fits up to this once the house is painted. I paint the iron separately then weather it once it's in place.

To the left of the wash house there is the outhouse to go, I've built that one separately.

Anyway there you go, not far from painting now,

Oorroo!

Geoff.

(continued from page 30)

32

October 2015

Caught up with an old friend at the Toowoomba exhibition whom I hadn't seen in a while. Lucky I did as he offered me a Auscision B class in VR blue and gold for $150! It didn't take long to realise that was a great deal. I would have preferred a Tangerine and grey but for that price I ain't complaining. So straight to the weathering bench...... One problem, I moved house and my bench is in 20 pieces on the floor of the new shed. So a makeshift bench was found to achieve this.

Firstly a spray of grimy b lack around the bogie's, lower section of the loco and the roof area.

A light dusting on the roof to knock back the new shine.

A touch of gloss back with a brush to simulate spilt diesel and oil on the tank and oil from the engine or exhaust out of the

engine bay. I also touched up the bearing areas on the bogie's, not shown in this picture.

A view of the other side.

Ben Dunlop

(continued on page 33)

(continued from page 32)

October 2015

Then a spray of rust/mud to simulate road grime on lower areas.

The other side view of the Loco.

A view from the nose.

Lastly a coat of dull coat to knock back any remaining shine and seal on the weathering to prevent fingers wiping it off when removing and replacing it in the box.

As I am not that old and don't live in Victoria, I find it great to use the Train Hobby publication books to find pictures of Locos and select the condition/state I want to reproduce.

33(continued from page 32)

34

October 2015

Chinese Model Railroad, Carved of Ivory, at a Crossroads

than 150 kilograms, according to a U.N. description. The design required eight elephant tusks. The Wildlife Conservation Society estimates ivory trafficking and poaching kills 35,000 African elephants a year. As for the ivory Chengdu-Kunming Railroad model, its final stop is unclear.

An intricately carved model of China's Chengdu-Kunming Railroad bridge graced the United Nations' New York headquarters for nearly four decades, until renovation of its General Assembly began in 2013 and the sculpture was removed for

safekeeping. The model train has been sidetracked to the U.N. Chinese mission because it carries the baggage of having been carved from ivory, a substance that has f a l l e n i n t o d i s f a v o u r . A n international trade ban on the ivory trade was imposed in 1989 in an effort to discourage poachers from killing endangered elephants, rhinos and walruses for their tusks.

The People's Republic of China had presented the sculpture to the U.N. in 1974, in gratitude for the country's acceptance three years earlier as a permanent member of the Security Council. A model of the Chengdu-Kunming Railroad, carved in ivory, spent years at the United Nations headquarters in New York. A gift from the People's Republic of China, it has been sent to the Chinese U.N. mission. The sculpture depicts part of the railroad stretching 1,135 kilometres across southwestern China from the provinces of Sichuan to Yunnan, according to a website associated with the University of Southern California. The actual railway, constructed from 1958 to 1970, spans difficult terrain and reportedly claimed the lives of at least 1,000 workers. But the sculpture depicts people dancing and singing along the route. It took craftsman Wang Suwen and roughly 400 other artists at least a year to create the work, which measures 150 centimetres long and 110 centimetres tall, weighing more

Dick Stracey

35

October 2015 (continued on page 36)

Last month I mentioned some of the possible changes/improvements for "Jamestown" in future. By the time the article appeared in print (September 2015 "Train Talk") something had already happened. The road traffic chaos shown in one of the pictures came about as the result of the removal of the front-centre section of the layout and the associated problems that you typically encounter when finding a huge chasm where you thought there was a road.

No longer having to duck under that section to get to something in the central part of the l a y o u t i s a r e a l improvement. Murphy's Law as it applies to the layout indicates that the majority of attention is needed in the most inaccessible places, so i t 's been good to transfer this attention problem to somewhere else on the layout where access is a bit better.

Like most modelling projects (and other projects in life in general), making this change was more complicated than originally thought. While there was a tunnel containing railtracks in this section, removing them was not an issue as they were no longer in use, and for visual effect, bricking up the tunnel entrance was fairly straightforward. However, some of the wiring for the various plug-in access points for the NCE DCC controllers around the layout also went through this section and unfortunately a cable had to be cut through. There are quite a few DCC access points which need their individual connections re-established. This will be an awkward job, getting under the layout to relocate and resolder the different coloured wires.

Even so, the layout is still fully operational, using DC or DCC, the only problem is the temporary reduction in the number of DCC access points. Removing the front-centre section also resulted in three points becoming redundant. These have now been removed and have been added to the "bank" of points available for the new HO layout under construction, as have the three "tortoise" motors attached to these points.

Ted's assistance in helping with this job has been much appreciated. He volunteered the information that he was heavily involved in originally wiring it up for DCC, so he had some idea of how it was all connected up.

Gary Sardoni

36

October 2015

(continued from page 35)

It's good to have someone to blame when a problem arises. He also replaced, resoldered and reballasted the track at the places where the points had been removed. In the meantime, I have been working on some rebuilding on each side of the new opening to the centre of the layout, filling in the scenery gaps created when the front-centre section was taken out. Hopefully we can get these changes completed soon.

In the photo’s the lower left shows where the track had been relaid and reballasted after the removal of a redundant point. The new ballast appears a bit lighter in colour t h a n e l s e w h e r e because it's actually a bit lighter in colour. This is probably just like the prototype where new ballast looks different from old.

The photo’s also shows part of the old trackbed leading into the now-disused t u n n e l . S o m e strategically placed "weeds" will improve the appearance of area around the disused tunnel mouth.

The photo’s also show progress on the rebuilding of either s ide of the new e n t r a n c e t o t h e central part of the layout.

A s I m e n t i o n e d previously, please come along and enjoy running your (or the clubs) trains on this layout. Cheers,

Ted Freeman

Ted Freeman

37

October 2015

Details of our layout and engine for sale:- Measurements: 300cm x 62cm approx.Includes great little steam engine and 2 carriages.Has a complete loop that goes through a tunnel under the mountain. Has a second loop that is 98% complete - just needs 2 more "points" to join it up.

Incl

udes all that you see on the layout.Need it gone because we are moving overseas. (yes, this is a legit reason!)If anyone would like any more information or photos, feel free to email us;

Location, Coalfalls, Ipswich.Gary and Carmel Moss

moss.family1@hotmail.co.uk

Hi Ted,

A recall of Page 40 in your Train Talk issue for September 2015 over the weekend brought to mind the days when I worked for the railways at Darling Harbour as a supervisor for the Electrical Branch until its demise. I was studying various parts of the background bringing back some delightful memories when it occurred to me that the loco couldn't be shunting in Darling Island. The long shed in background is a two tiered known as G&H on the upper deck and E&F on the lower deck. An elevated ramp in front carried road and rail traffic over the Murray Street vehicle entrance. The four "stacks" (one hidden) over the top of the two tiered shed are those of the Electricity Commission's Pyrmont Power Station located behind the Darling Island Repair Siding. The example in the centre of the photograph of the "Pull In" overhead yard lighting was the last in the line in Darling Harbour Yard commencing from up near Ultimo Street Signal Box. The single tier shed to the right of the photo is C&D shed. Out of view to the right is another single tier shed known as A&B.

I respectfully ask could this info be passed on to the photographer Bill Waterhouse with my congratulations for a fine image of times now long since gone.

All the best, Mick Lovell, NSW N Scale Group

38

THIS COMING EVENTS LISTING IS PRESENTED AS ACCURATELY AS KNOWN AT THE TIME OF PRINTING, IF YOU WISH TO CONFIRM ANY DETAILS AND/OR HAVE ANY OTHER EVENTS FOR LISTING, PLEASE SEND THE INFORMATION TO THE CLUB EMAIL ADDRESS -

PLEASE ADVISE ANY ERRORS.

NOTE:

ALL EVENTS SUBJECT TO CONFIRMATION

*Indicates limited access at the Showgrounds*

info-ddmrc@ddmrc.com.au

Saturday afternoons at the showgrounds from 2pm, unless notified otherwise. Wednesday afternoons from 1pm till 4pm.

1st, RMCQ Open Day Buy & Sell.2nd, Committee Meeting, McDonald’s Margaret Street, commencing at 7.30pm, members welcome.

5th, DDMRC Christmas Buy & Sell, Barby, see page 8 for details.7th, Committee Meeting, McDonald’s Margaret Street, commencing at 7.30pm, members welcome.

November

December

October 2015

My Tool StoreP.O Box 210AspleyQLD 4034Phone: 0411 605 726

mytoolstore.com.au

39

October 2015

October 2015

1919 a

t th

e lo

we

r yard

in D

arl

ing

Harb

ou

rB

ill W

ate

rho

use

40