Somerville & St. Francis River Railway

Good stuff there Gav. Nice to see new parts of your line.

I haven't posted many pics of my line this year as it is good to just sit back and see other guys great efforts!

There have been a few layout detailing changes recently.... I can't stop...but I am beginning to draw back from the layout titivating and updating (besides some well needed track maintenance) and will concentrate on the locos/rolling-stock instead.
I also have a few newly weathered bits and bobs and a whole heap ready for the winter visit to the Bizarro paint-shop.
For those that are a lot younger than me...Bizarros was a world where DC Comics' Superman had a clone of himself (created by Lex Luther) that was, well, the reverse of him (psychologically and visually) .........so my 'Bizarrro' workshop is where nice clean happy little cars go to become battered, dirty monsters!
 
Nice Mike, I like the sound of that!

I must admit I'm the same, I'm forever the tinkerer. I haven't been happy with the lighting setup in our locos for a while now so I went back and changed it round a bit. Re-mapped a few functions, got rid of the green in the marker lights, for more realism and authenticity. Also setup for the US rule 17 lights, where F4 has the option to dim the main headlight on the loco, a necessary obligation when two trains meet to avoid glare in the engineers eyes. Almost like full beam vs. dipped beam headlights on a car if you will.

I find it very therapeutic these days, particularly with the current problems of actually getting anything new, it seems far better to take what I have and really make models out of them.
 
Even the NW2 in these pics is an example of how you can really work on what you have already. I had this loco for a long time and just added little bits here and there as I went. The sound is pretty good too, has one small speaker under the grill in the hood and a larger speaker in the tank, with each wired to get the right phase. Also just a few wee details here and there can make a big difference: air hoses, new more realistically shaped front/rear handrails, canvas cab shades, front battery box...

Here is the prototype photo that the loco is based on. I was so nerdy I even tried to replicate the dent on the front right hand side of the hood!

c7fe9e8c70ed479f8e9b1c4e29b4d0d0.jpg
 
Great photos. What do you use for ballast BTW? It looks really effective

Rik
 
Cracking photos and some great features, with just the right amount of grime (one can have too much of the perfectly polished pannier and your line really hits the spot). Thanks for sharing.
 
Rik: Good question! I'll need to check as I forget the exact sizes...

We use two different sized chips. The sub track bed is made up of lightweight concrete blocks (the type you see used to make up the lower sections of outbuildings, etc) and this is back filled up to track height with the larger sized chip. The track is gently screwed to the blocks and then the smaller sized chip is used to make a neater ballast shoulder.
 
attention to detail is the key to creating a great railway..........yours has it in spadefuls............excellent.........:thumbup:
 
I find the photos of your line quite inspirational for those with a US outline persuasion.
The level of realism and believability is incredible.
If only had had more room.....
 
Many thanks again for the kind words folks, it means a lot!
 
Fantastic shots of your NW2 Gavin :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom