Eighton Bahn AKA testing testing RhB

Bit of a, I should have known better day, today.

Firstly I noticed the one of the station building name signs had fallen off...

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...now given past experience, I should not pick up a building by it's roof...

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...you would think I would have known better by now...

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...repairs/reassembled...

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...as well as a roof respray, and yes those snow poles look different from the plastic ones as they are real wood, just out of devilment, I thought I would give them a try...

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...after a spray of a laquer over the whole roof, the station building is now home. For how long as after many years outside I am considering a total referb (read into that replacement), if Christmas is good to me.

I also turned my hand to the tunnel mouths, looking for a grey stone finish, so I bought a tin or two of darkish grey "concrete" paint...

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...not the result I was looking for, it's more white (new) concrete, nothing like the shade on the tin...

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...this is more of the finish I was looking for, it's another coat of grey primer, on top of the black. Maybe I'll just go with it, will need another rattle can or two, then a coat of laquer as per the station building roof. Then over winter them for installing next year.
 
Nodrog1826 said:
Bit of a, I should have known better day, today.

Firstly I noticed the one of the station building name signs had fallen off...

View attachment 348721

...now given past experience, I should not pick up a building by it's roof...

View attachment 348722

...you would think I would have known better by now...

View attachment 348723

...repairs/reassembled...

View attachment 348724

...as well as a roof respray, and yes those snow poles look different from the plastic ones as they are real wood, just out of devilment, I thought I would give them a try...

View attachment 348725

...after a spray of a laquer over the whole roof, the station building is now home. For how long as after many years outside I am considering a total referb (read into that replacement), if Christmas is good to me.

I also turned my hand to the tunnel mouths, looking for a grey stone finish, so I bought a tin or two of darkish grey "concrete" paint...

View attachment 348726

...not the result I was looking for, it's more white (new) concrete, nothing like the shade on the tin...

View attachment 348727

...this is more of the finish I was looking for, it's another coat of grey primer, on top of the black. Maybe I'll just go with it, will need another rattle can or two, then a coat of laquer as per the station building roof. Then over winter them for installing next year.
Click to expand...
We had one of those Station Buildings on the Ruschbahn, was in place for around 8 years. Bits fell off, roof supports main problem likely lost in the See knocked in by cats or ducks. Made some replacements from wood using veneer pins and external pva to glue em together, UHU power to glue back in place. After Andy dies building removed, cleaned up and sold via Glendale Jcn. so could still be in serving somewhere some 20 years after building. Yours looks very good and I would have thought fit for many more years.
 
dunnyrail said:
We had one of those Station Buildings on the Ruschbahn, was in place for around 8 years. Bits fell off, roof supports main problem likely lost in the See knocked in by cats or ducks. Made some replacements from wood using veneer pins and external pva to glue em together, UHU power to glue back in place. After Andy dies building removed, cleaned up and sold via Glendale Jcn. so could still be in serving somewhere some 20 years after building. Yours looks very good and I would have thought fit for many more years.
Click to expand...

It dissasembles itself with great ease these days. Bits of the guttering are missing having broken off, but as you say the roof supports as well as the supported roof sections are the main problem. Re gleuing isn't a problem, it gets me an hour or so to myself, wiping up any overspill is also removing the colour from the plastic walls, but we shall see how it survives the winter months. If I was to start again, it would be a different construction method, more additional internal supports as well as a laquer overspray when built.
 
Nodrog1826 said:
It dissasembles itself with great ease these days. Bits of the guttering are missing having broken off, but as you say the roof supports as well as the supported roof sections are the main problem. Re gleuing isn't a problem, it gets me an hour or so to myself, wiping up any overspill is also removing the colour from the plastic walls, but we shall see how it survives the winter months. If I was to start again, it would be a different construction method, more additional internal supports as well as a laquer overspray when built.
Click to expand...
I think with Andy’s one I did small holes at joints with short veneer pins in, my standard for plastic kits these days. I like mechanical and glue.
 
Now the railway sort of slumbers for the Autumn/Winter months, whilst things are planned for 2026, which at this point, there may not be a 2026 season, due to things pending. But with that in mind, some things are still in the pipeline.

The tunnel mouths/portals, whatever you want to call them are now painted and laquered, along with the containers and the skip...

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...on the track, well points front, my auto pass on the left resetting springs, were of two types for evaluation. One where the spring was run along the length of the point blade and anchored under a rail chair at the long end. The other was a short one fixed into a hole drilled into the point blade.
Well today the decision has been taken to go with the point blade hole version, as the long version would occasionaly detatch and cause a derailment, so the points that needed conversion (5 out of 8) were removed, modified, given a coat of copper grease, re installed, job done...

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...so the excess stainless steel (which it isn't BTW) spring wire, has been put into storage for future use.
 
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Changing fillament bulbs can be an expensive proposition I change about six or so a year, so there must be an alternative, of the led variety, which should hopefully last longer.

So I have purchased two types by Massoth for evaluation. Part numbers, 8311120 and 8311130...

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...8311130 on the left, normal 5V bulb and 8311120 on the right. Intended use of the "30's" for cab (down) lights and the "20's" for headlights. Price wise, I paid just over £20 per pack for six of each, which given the current pricing of the ordinary bulbs, works out as a bit more expensive, but as I say the led's should last longer.
So to the install, they are polarity sensitive, so need to be installed the correct way round, I only managed to get two out of the eight the wrong way round first time, but it's easily sorted...

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...before...

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...during...

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and after.

This will be a gradual process of change on locos only, as it works out at between 10 to 30 quid per loco, depending on the lighting configuration, and whilst I tried one in the cab of the Stainz, will either stick with a bulb or indeed leave it out altogether. For a coach in my opinion it's not worth it as propper led ligting boards appear more of a wiser soloution, as some come with a DCC chip built in.
 
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As a sort of birthday present to myself, using money I got for Christmas I ordered some more of those LEDs to do the rest of the loco fleed.
Ordered on the 29th Dec, arrived on the 3rd Jan after one missed delivery attempt. Also included a pair of metal rimmed spoked wheels for the Matra crane, that arrived at Christmas.
So set about doing the swap over yesterday, crane wheels done an dusted, then work turned to the locos. Which was not done in the ideal work situation, on the floor in the bedroom, don't ask.
So started with MOW, 3 LEDs, pop off the roof for the cab and the front light ones, pull out the rear light, done and dusted in a few mins.
Second and older Crock, 8 LEDs involving removal of the roof for the cab lights and removal of the head/tail lamps, which should be easier as I have already done the newer Crok. But no, problem was trying to get the LEDs to stay in the bulb sockets, but eventually managed it.
Then the V52 diesel, had to resort to stripping the body off, only to discover that they carn't be fitted without butchering the lamp shade (white tube part) which I was not prepared to do, so total failure on that one.
The the Ge4/4, to get to the cab lights had to take the roof off, only to discover that the square shape of the LED would not fit throught the curcular hole, so left the bulbs in place. Did after a great deal of faffing around get the headlights done.
That just left the Stainz, after faffing around with the headlight LED which kept rotation out of position when put back, and I could not access the rearlight lens, without distroying it. It's back to as you were.
So 4 out of the 6 are now LED lighted and I have a collection of 17 bulbs I can add to the stock for the coach lights, so not a bad outcome...

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So the 2026 season begins.

I have started to revive the railway from it's Winter slumbers, finding bits of scenic items that have come adrift and re glueing back down, with the exception of a 3D printed pallet, that has totally vanashed.
No track works as of yet, but a recent addition for the the reversing crossovers has arrived and is now fitted to point motors, ready to swap out at some point.:rolleyes:

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...at this stage the jury is still out on wiring up the lights, but they did come with resistors for that purpose.
 
Layout tidying up over the past few weeks, and I have taken the decision after much re arranging to plant the 20 dwarf conifers, so they are now in and as is the norm for me I expect half of them to die, green fingers I do not have.o_O

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...there is also just short of 200 bulbs to plant in and around the railway/garden, so that should see another 100 plants at some point.
 
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Some of the track slabs on the spiral have come loose, probably over the freezing/thawing over the winter, so the track was lifted in the releven sections and them attended to...

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...and having mixed up a whole load of cement, it was also decided to make a start on fitting the tunnel mouths...

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...it's now more obvious with them in, as to the differing heights, of the trackbeds. Still more work to do, which will require more cement mixing.
 
More work on the tunnel mouths today, opposite ends...

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...compared to yesterdays photo, need to sort out more stone for the rough walling, and it's indeed very rough.
The little triangle ish bit in the foreground, will become a sort of planter, soil/compost and plants pending.
 
Nodrog1826 said:
More work on the tunnel mouths today, opposite ends...

View attachment 355243

...compared to yesterdays photo, need to sort out more stone for the rough walling, and it's indeed very rough.
The little triangle ish bit in the foreground, will become a sort of planter, soil/compost and plants pending.
Click to expand...
Very good on the way to a great look, I can see similarities in Duncan and Grismo’s work, I imagine they will have been some inspiration for you.
 
Nodrog1826 said:
More work on the tunnel mouths today, opposite ends...

View attachment 355243

...compared to yesterdays photo, need to sort out more stone for the rough walling, and it's indeed very rough.
The little triangle ish bit in the foreground, will become a sort of planter, soil/compost and plants pending.
Click to expand...
Stone, it's the one thing that's improved the look of my railway, love the stuff.
 
Nodrog1826 said:
More work on the tunnel mouths today, opposite ends...

View attachment 355243

...compared to yesterdays photo, need to sort out more stone for the rough walling, and it's indeed very rough.
The little triangle ish bit in the foreground, will become a sort of planter, soil/compost and plants pending.
Click to expand...
Looking good, I think the more rocks the better :D, will be a very good spot for photo's when the planter is finished.
 
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