Decision made, I think....

Hi everyone,

As a follow up to the last post, let me inform you of some conclusions. Firstly thanks to those for their input, it is much appreciated.

I have decided to still do Merriwa, although renamed to Gundabri. George Hall was a town founder and lived on (or tenanted) what I think was a local  station called Gundabri, I believe near Gungal. Will have to research this more however this will do for now.

The advantage is I can now apply some modellers licence to the line and keep this yard reasonably as is. So, leaving Gundabri yard the line will turn right, instead of left, and meander up a gentle grade of open line for about 43 feet (13mtrs). We now enter Halls Creek (Sandy Hollow). This yard will be reworked and possibly look a bit like Canowindra, without the silo, but with the grain shed. Also added is the co-op siding and possibly a flour mill. Still a bit vague on this but you get the idea.

From Halls Creek we start on a long steep climb to the upper deck, we possibly could use bank engines here. Wow, bankers on a branch, well it will add interest. The grade is expected to be a 1:50 and another 45 foot run. This will be very slow, I really want to use the load function on the DCC here. This function allows you make your locos crawl at say 8 miles an hour but ramp up the sound to really let you know the engines are working hard.

The grade now eases and  we can see down over the valley from the upper plateau as we meander our way for a further 28 foot run and enter Wybong. This is  a passing loop and a signal box here, similar to Pangela. It will be fairly short in length as to make any long train passes interesting however most trains will be of the shorter version. Will also have water facilities for steam engines.

We are now left with a 69 foot run (21mtrs) to Muswellbrook which will be hidden staging. I plan too run more trains then the line ever would have seen in its usual form so this should make interesting operation nights with lots of movements. I do plan on having way-bill cards but timetables will be lax. Also all yards will be staffed with miniature staffs but more homework will need to be done on this. I also wanted the long runs to give the feel of distance between yards and have those nice bridges, cuttings, level crossings and all the things that you would expect to see on a NSWGR line.

I do have an option, Halls Creek could be built as a junction, which would see the line as more of a secondary line and Gundabri becomes a branch. This would see a second hidden staging yard but I am not so keen on this idea as it may be to crammed.  I will draw it up properly one day and post it but not soon.

Writing this out has gotten me fired up a bit so, I made a start on my RU project which I will share soon. One thing the last post did, was make me realise that I had lost my way a little and forgot that I really want to capture railway scenes and model that detail that sets some models apart.  So I will leave with a pic that Thumpa posted on railpage, it gives the feel of what I want out of modelling a NSW branchline. Thanks again.

 

Cheers 

Andrew 

What to do now....

Well I know my posting has somewhat slowed in the past few months and there are other things on the layout that I would like to share. My attention really has been on future projects, namely my home layout.

I have built the layout shed and had it lined, so now I am trying to really work out what it is that I want in there. The layout room is basically 23 feet by 18 feet and it was always intended to build the Merriwa branch. My issue is although I really like Merriwa yard, the rest of the line I am not so sure about. There are some structures I want and they are not on the line. EG . I want the Half Howe Truss Bridge. How much modellers license can someone have before you loose the atmosphere of the line that you are modelling?

My latest thought is to build hidden staging and come into Merriwa, then build what I perceive to be the Merriwa Extension,  but does that change the way that Merriwa would be, most of the facilities would have been removed I would think and then it no longer could be considered Merriwa.

Does anyone have any opinion that would maybe get me out of this developing rut.

Andrew

Pretty in steam...

Light has not hit Bowen Creek since Newcastle and to be honest I am rather glad. Now that the warmer weather is here, the house and gardens have been getting a spruce up and besides I am lacking some motivation at the moment. The New England convention is only 5 or 6 weeks away and I am really looking forward to that. We had a few breakages in Newy but we have a days work set aside and all should be good.

In the mean time lets look at steam in P87. It is still a long way off but there are some motivated people tossing around ideas on how things can be done. Oscar Deluca turned up at Epping last year with his Brass 30T and it was the first time steam had been tested. Mike McCormac had turned the wheels as he did on his dogbox and the result was inspiring. Now these took Mike hours to do so I don't believe he will ever do these for anyone but himself ( which is fair enough) it proves the possibilities, which inspired Bowen Creek in the first place.

I nicked this off Railpage, Thanks to Craig Mackey

I need to do this for myself and a few others who want steam, it will happen just takes time. Meanwhile other things need to be done..such as that RU project. Anyway this was just a quick update so everyone knows I am still alive and we may see you in Armidale. Hooroo

Newcastle Exhibition...

Well its' been a week since the Newcastle show and to be honest, I need a week to recuperate. We left Port Macquarie about 1300hrs on Friday and after a wet rainy trip, arrived at the race coarse about 1700hrs to find Tom Rogers waiting at the gate. Tom is a regular staff member at Bowen showings and is now a dedicated P87 modeller. Set up takes about an hour and after some line repairs and testing, we were ready for Saturday. So it was down with a bodgy dinner and check in the motel. A beer or two were downed at the RSL and giggle at the local teenagers in their wacko gear before calling it a night.

Saturday morning brought a traumatic start. The electronics went nuts, it wasn't until the boys on Mile638 came asking for help on their layout, that it twigged that the we were getting some electronic feedback from another stand. A new power supply was sought and Mile 638 and Bowen Creek both operated faultlessly for the rest of the weekend, PHEW!

Sunday (fathers day) brought the annual gift giving and for me this meant a Canon 500D DSLR, Yippee!!. So my eldest son Matthew, took it for the day and took some pics of the show. Don't quite know how that happened but what do you do....

 

 

 

A-Tractiv Effort 

 

A-Tractiv Effort 

 

Mile 638

Not a bad effort from the young bloke. Very enjoyable week end and look forward to the next one.

Andrew 

Backdrop...

Hi All,
Things have been progressing slowly towards the Newcastle show which has kept us busy. We are trialling the cobalt motors for the points and I must say with mixed results. They claim to be quieter than the tortoise, which they are, but some are still as noisy. One is a struggle to hear any sound at all while another is as noisy as anything else on the market. They are smaller which is welcomed.

Anyway, this is a little bit about the backdrop we installed which I think is unique to the exhibition circuit. I had this idea of a seamless backdrop, I hate obvious joins in layouts and it spoils the effect for me, as it really catches my eye. We had built the layout as a diorama style, so I didn't want to ruin the effect with big joins in the backdrop.
How do we achieve this? I had no idea so it was time to appoint someone. John Barrett was the man for the job.
JB is an exceptional modeler, his achievement in the hobby is renowned with his work on Beyond Bulliac. JB is a sign writer by trade and a pretty good one too. I took the idea to him and he thought it was a good one and so I left it with him. Two months later he had it, canvas! John had done some RTA banners for whatever reason, you know the ones you see on the highway roadside, I thought this would work. A small sample piece was tested using plastic paints so it could be rolled up without it cracking. Everything seamed in order so we went for it. JB had arranged for a local guy to cut the canvas and sew in a small 6mm rope along the top and bottom and two eyelets at each end which attach to pins either end. An aluminium u-tube is installed which the rope slides into to hold the sheet up.  Now I have no idea what all these things are called but once again a picture tells a thousand stories.

 

Above you can see JB happily painting away, if you look at the canvas you can see the eyelet, where the rope is stitched in and where the it slips into the aluminium bracket.

 Here is where the canvas attaches to the layout, this keeps it nice and taught along the length of the scene.

I am very pleased with the end result.

Cost wise it was a total cost of about $250, which I think is quite reasonable for a 6 meter long 500mm high piece. I think if we were to do it again I would look at having a scene printed on the canvas but I am still pleased with what we have. 

Cheers 

Height....

This is a subject that is wide and varied. Bowen Creek is a tall layout, I am the first admit that, it stands at 1530mm from floor to track level. This was brought about because Ian and I are just over 6' tall and we want the track brought up to eye level. Now for some, this will be too high but it was done for us to test a theory for our home layouts, and I think that people at exhibitions may find it a different view point and think about the height of their own layouts. For too long, in my opinion, layouts have been built far too low. Why?

1. Because that's the way it has always been done, perhaps.
2. so the kids can see.

Point one may be the only reason because people have in their head that there is some unwritten rule that says, this is how you do it. Now at exhibition there will be those that whine that it is too high, but hopefully we can make them think outside the square. A lot of us, including manufacturers, are doing underfloor detail, but what's the point if the layout is 3 feet off the floor. Besides, we do it because you see that before you see a roof.

Here is another way to look at it, if I go to a railway yard and stand next to the rail, my eye level is six foot above the rail. Even an S truck is still taller then me. So with Bowens' rail height at 1530mm and my eye level at 1730mm, I am still 57 scale feet above the rail. Which means I can still clearly see across the roof of the goods shed.

As for the kids, I find the ones that are interested are only interested in the train. Their attention span isn't all that long and the detail in buildings and scenery aren't of much interest to them. Even my boys don't stay for more then a lap or two. I don't want to sound like I'm anti kid here, but honestly I find the first question that gets asked is "How fast does it go?" or "Can we crash em!". They will have much more fun on a U-Drive then spending time at Bowen Creek. We did have one little five year old at Epping 2009 that blew our socks off with his knowledge and I will gladly lift him up and spend time with him, but to date he is the only one. I guess this is why I build my layout for me and not the kids. Matt (my eldest) is 12, and he now will stand and be interested for maybe 15 minutes but he has a little step ladder and he is fine.

 This bodgey photo of some likely looking lads should give an idea.

 In conclusion, my opinion is to build your layout to the height you choose and be happy with it, and don't conform to anyone else's opinion. It's your layout and you will spend more time at it then anyone, so do it for you.

Happy Modeling.

Andrew

News Update

Hi Everyone

Just a quick post for some upcoming events.

Bowen will make an appearance on the exhibition scene again, This time it will be at the Our Town Hobby Show in Newcastle. This will be held 4th and 5th September at the Newcastle Jockey club. Before the year is out we will also be displaying Bowen at the New England Model Railway Club Convention in Armidale on the 6th and 7th of November. I am particularly looking forward to this one as there will be some fantastic presentations from well renowned modelers. Please read the website for details.

For all of you who are interested in P87 and want to learn more, Ian and I have started a new Yahoo group. This is dedicated to Proto 87 modelers in Australia. Regardless of where you model (NSW, VIC, SA, USA etc) or what era, this is for Aussies to get into the same room to discuss the development of P87 and to problem solve. It doesn't matter if you are new or experienced, none of us know everything so this could be very exciting for this avenue. To join there is no hiding behind fictitious names or credentials. You will be asked to understand the rules of the group and to fill out a CV (curriculum vitae) so everyone on the group knows each other, what they have done and what they are involved with.
I know it seems a bit formal but we believe this will help create an atmosphere of  friends discussing our hobby around a dinner table.
Go to the group by clicking on this LINK.

So now I will disappear for a while as there is much to do.
Happy Modelling,

Andrew