July 30, 2011

Something to Ware...



Whereas Hope St was residential, the next street closer to Melbourne, Faith St will be predominantly commercial. The first building for the street is the Qualmann Warehouse, which has been commenced . The building fascia is formed from the frontages of the Faller "North German Warehouse" (kit picture above) suitably modified, with body built out in cardboard and Noch stonewalling. Where appropriate, the building will be clad in corrugated card. The step design, visible in the pictures owes itself to placement bridging a rise in the layout height across the plan. Much more work to go before she's ready to place on the layout, will post updates as she progresses.

July 20, 2011

Faith, abridged.

Have laid the roadwork for the next street on the layout, Faith St, and as the line is still elevated another VR girder bridge is required, again a modified Atlas girder as per Hope St though slightly longer to bridge the broader commercial street here.It also again has the typical VR brick and bluestone abutments. The omission of one of the Up side pillars is temporary pending decision on the scenery option taken over there. Presumably laid down at the same time, Faith St has the same bluestone edge pavers broken by a couple of driveways for the Qualmann Pty Ltd Warehouse which is still being built....This section is the final elevated road before the landform rises up to track level and beyond. Much building of buildings now to be done to fill this void....

July 3, 2011

Blue & Gold on 37a.

Before I get going two notes:

1. The weekend afternoon goods is generally allocated to the Steeple Cab, however she's in for replacement of her marker lights to something more prototypical, so I fitted hooks to the Boxcab and brought her out as substitute. She's still blue & gold as I have'nt yet screwed up the courage (nor had the time) to repaint her in the era appropriate black, so please overlook this!

2. The Saturday afternoon Dn Goods on the Healesville line around this time was number 37. I have chosen 37a then as a resemblance, rather than modelling that actual goods, given "Glenburn" is built and run on the same basis.

So to the goods....given it was the boxcab's first "production" run I took some pictures along the way......

While suburban pass runs are slightly less frequent on the weekend, the Goods still needs to keep her heels moving, but not as fast as this shot of her having just left the boundaries of Jolimont Yard would indicate - for most of the trip East she'll be limited to 20-30mph.


Having arrived at her first shunt location, Qualmann Coolstores just outside Burnley, 37a has drawn up clear of the siding and is here shown pushing the consist back into 1 Road, from which she will drop/pick up wagons in accordance with the Rules for the siding, with numbers of wagons exchanged defined by drawing random cards.

Having completed her work at the Coolstore, 37a is on the way again, here seen passing one of the suburban yards between Burnley and Glenburn with the changed load.

The cards at the coolstores, having fallen heavily on this run, 37a only was permitted to drop a single short T van, however gained four vans, bringing her load up to 11 (=12) wagons + brake, she is here slowed by the bank running Dn into Glenburn station, holding the speed slow to prepare for her next work just beyond the station.

Once again the cards have fallen heavily with a complete replacement of the wagons dropped in the yard last weekend, with 6 (=7) of her own. Here 37a's E is shown pushing the new wagons into Glenburn Yard, having marshalled the removed wagons into the consist as her first working for the siding. Fortunately she's well protected in this move by Glenburn's signals (imagined........must get to them!).

Having left the sidings behind, 37a builds up speed for the remainder of the run out to her terminating point at Lilydale.

Owing to the changes at the sidings, 37a now has a completely different consist from that she left Melbourne with under an hour ago, with the only original member of her consist apart from the boxcab being...
...... Z21 wobbling along on the rear.
After some smooth but not fast running, here's 37a having arrived at Lilydale, stabled between suburban electric units awaiting their runs back to Melbourne. And so ends a fairly typical run for the weekend Dn afternoon goods. After crib, the crew will run around, place the van on the opposite end of the train and await a path to scurry back to Melbourne.