Ox Mountain Railway

[trammayo]

There's nothing wrong with the Thomas range really, they just need to be operated seperately from other locos (unless your Digital?).

For me, I'm providing entertainment in a way and try and have something different or extra each year. I never pay top retail because I'll never get my money back or, indeed, run them on the garden line other than for testing or demonstration.

I ask for expenses from show organisers (the car only does 20 mpg towing the trailer) and this request is often honoured in the breach. Everybody wants the railway at shows and I turn down as many (or more than) I visit. When I do wrap things up, the Thomas stuff will either be sold or bashed

 

[trammayo]

Back to testing again - the new brake van to finish off the set of vans, hopefully to be hauled round the trailer layout.

Whilst the vans were being dragged around by James, I remembered why I had made them in the first place - the home-made steeple cab! Originally fitted with with a bow collector (until the latter was wrecked under the tunnel portal) it now has trolley poles.

Back out now to finish servicing Thomas % Parcy before testing again.

 

[Don Gilham]

Love it Mick - what a shame you're across the watery stuff !

 

[nico]

Lovely job Mick

 

[trammayo]

Thankyou both.

I serviced the rest of the Thomas stuff - easy peasy (like new really) - then tested it.

Might have the coaches the wrong way round?...

I use chains as an extra (breakaway) coupling which seems to work 95% of the time keeping them on the track. Made a couple of tools to facilitate this - 6mm dowel, shaped or curved 2" nail and a ferrule made from a piece of plastic tube to stop the pole slitting. Great for hooking under Knuckle couplers and depressing the hook and loop types. Pics....

The collapsed bridge - mind you, I'd collapse if someone took my sides away (had to do it to get the thing around in its orginal form...

First train up the high level line this year (I think). Struggled a bit - mind you, the power was turned down...

And one for good luck .....

 

[trammayo]

Today was the official opening (1902) of the Ox Mountain Railway's new bridges and extension across the valley to the River Moy.

The line had been tested for a few weeks leading up to the opening. It was planned to have a large circus at the event but only one cage had arrived (the bear) due to the circus having difficulty extracting themselves from the mire at their previous pitch.

Equally, to compound the difficulties, most of the invited guests were attending a wedding and, whilst willing to attend (the banquet) in the evening, could not make it for the ceremony!

Anyway here's a few pics of the day's events - specially converted to colour! .....

 

[trammayo]

Also, significant in these "1902" photographs, is the location of the proposed high level line, for which the points and crossing have already been laid in when constructing the Moy extension.

The cottages (and temporary station) are due for immediate demolition - having been used by the workers building the bridges after the railway had acquired them.....

and the lone circus car - the horse is being lead away after having his harness removed....

 

[playmofire]

If you do decide to sell the Thoma stuff some time, Mick, I might be interested in Thomas and Henry and their rolling stock.

The 1902 photos look great and your technique for turning black and white to colours is very effective indeed.

The shunter's poles are a very neat job. I've been thinking of using chains on my PM stock as one or two keep coming uncoupled due, I think, to the couplings being old ones.

 

[trammayo]

Thanks Gordon (I'll bear that in mind). The chains do stop the train separating but I still have the odd derailment

 

[trammayo]

Great set up Mick and love the trams. Looks wild and woolly where you are....Draughty??

Draughty? Force Nine I think

 

[trammayo]

Been busy with domestic chores and other things but I finally managed to fit a new (ex-45t carve-up) smoke unit to one of my Annies ... seems better that the original somehow .....

 

[trammayo]

Whilst I have been busy on the railway, the details have been posted elswhere so I thought I'd do a synopsis of my activities (mainly centered on the new station site)

Site for the station at Moy Junction ....

Site cleared of ballast and dumped at other side of tracks for possible reuse ...

Foundations with extension to same ....

Drawing of proposed station (side elevation facing main line) ....

And finally, testing a Big Hauler R/C loco after recharging the battery pack .....

 

[trammayo]

Concurrent with the work on the station is my lighthouse project. Its been perched on four concrete blocks since September 2010 so I thought it was hight time I did something.

Spurred on with thoughts of not wasting my bag of cement, I set to yesterday and cleared the site. I'm using old rubble plus stone lying around to create a suitable permanent base. The lighthouse has further been modified since I got it. I didn't think much of the flashing filament bulb and took the opportunity to purchase and install one of those chips with an LED. The light comes on dimly, then intensifies in brightness before going dim again and switching off. It gives the impression that you are seeing the light coming into view before disappearing again. I suppose a revolving lense would be even better!

I bought a small 12v DC plug in unit (into a 13amp timer) so I can set it to go off later in the night. It looks OK but for a camera numpty like me, its hard to photograph

Heres some pics of the lighthouse before and after work was begun....

Night time November 2011...

Yesterday morning - still on blocks .....

Weeds.....

Start made....

I need to make a manhole because most of the feeder cables diverge here (and the hose from the pump goes through). I used up the small barrow-load I mixed to share with the station but I need to do things in stages anyway!

 

[trammayo]

Got a lttle further (scavenging suitable stone etc) and used up all the remaing cement.

I needed to create an access chamber for the wiring and water pipes, and using a couple of cut-down roof tiles I did just that. Needing to cover the opening, I needed to shutter a concrete lid with access hole. I was going to use wood and then I remembered some off cuts of uPVC fascia board. These were fashioned into shuttering and nailed together (using an air nailer) and dropped onto a levelled bed of mortar then more concrete (and a little bit of metal) added to the top. Another laver needs adding to create a well for the lid and, of course, the hill for the lighthouse needs finishing off ...

 

[trammayo]

Well, during the dry spell, I got a littlr further. The rough shape of the cliff has been comleted and the lighthouse secured and wired up again. I'm on my second bag of cement (not sure how long this will last due to the ambient moisture) and just keep mixing the odd bucketfull when the opportunity arises.

Saturday (9th June) was nice and sunny so I set to and cast the steps. The railing stanchions are made from 2.5" oval nails, drilled to take the hand rails. Eventualling (when I've sculpted the cliff face and top) the railings will go around the lighthouse.

Pics:-
Lighthouse secured .....

Oval nails with two 2mm holes drilled through

Cast and "stanchions" pushed into wet mix

Shuttering removed - the wall forming the steps will be skimmed and 'stonework' added....

Now to wait for a nice dry day

 

[CoggesRailway]

Mick I have to say I always really enjoy catching up with your thread. Great railway and modelling. Like those steps to the lighthouse!

 

[trammayo]

Thanks Ian - all I've got to do is find time to paint the house exterior, decorate the spare bedroom, weed the garden. If I didn't have the railway I wouldn't know what to do with my time (although I know someone else in the household has a list

 

[jublybug]

Likeing the drilled nails for posts , i think i may use that idea myself

Jim

 

[trammayo]

Cheers Jim. My first thoughts were to turn some 4" nails into something like Victorian ones but then I thought life's too short - so took the simplest option

 

[beavercreek]

Love the lighthouse Mick and what you have done with it...gives me a great idea how to replace one that I had.
I had a lovely one that I picked up in Italy in a chandlers store a few years back. I asked them if it was ok for use outside and the shop keeper he say of course! it is made from rot resistant wood! I placed it on the jetty that goes out into the pond and there it sat, wired up for lights. After a year or so I noticed that the walls were buckling and cracking and the top was, sort of, expanding.....turns out it was made from MDF! so eventually it just fell apart......shame it was really different......

Me old MDF lighthouse