4mm Morfa - The race is run.

Neil

Western Thunderer
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

It's funny how things turn out. I've had a very pleasant weekend full of unexpected bonuses. Simon, Cookie, Tim and John all made the journey up to mid Wales for the weekend. Against all expectations I've enjoyed winding up through Beddgelert Forest behind a Garratt, proved the fable of the tortoise and the hare is true, seen into the future, and found that rhubarb crumble is best served outdoors after a three mile yomp in the twilight.

Perhaps the most unexpected event is completing the main circuit on Morfa. Earlier on in the weekend I was asked when I'd join the ends of the track already laid so we could allow trains to trundle round and round. I reckoned that it'd be a close run thing between Simon's garden line and Morfa as to which was finished first. This morning after a hearty fry up I dragged a couple of tatty and unpromising lengths of SMP flexi track out of a box of dubious track that I'd acquired and in my usual craftsman like way staple gunned them to the trackbed at one end of the ply and plastic chaired track already in place; just to extend the shunt limit. My cohorts started to take an interest in the remaining mangled lengths. An hours work with everyone pitching in and the circuit was complete.

Now you'll have to understand that this is a terrible temporary bodge, but it's huge fun to see a a train trundle round. The plan is that I'll steadily construct more 'proper' track and chop out the corresponding bodged bits as I progress so that I'll always be able to play. Here are some pics of the expedient length. thanks chaps, I haven't stopped smiling all day.

morfa round 1.jpg
morfa round 2.jpg morfa round 3.jpg
 

Alan

Western Thunderer
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

I see you are starting a new trend in track bases, Must admit I'd never thought of using magazines.  ;D
 

Neil

Western Thunderer
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

Alan said:
I see you are starting a new trend in track bases, Must admit I'd never thought of using magazines.  ;D

The bridge building team tell me that perfect bound examples are easier to use and therefore should be considered as the prime choice for track support.
 

Simon

Flying Squad
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

Absolutely top Welsh Weekend, thank you and Jan very much.

Tim and I were hoping you'd be running the odd train as we made our way southwards, fiddling with knackered SMP and creating your temporary link was a great finale to the weekend's activities :))

I did a bit of weeding and planting on my potential circuit when we got back, loads of adminy stuff today but I will sort out that video of the first train and get it up on to Youtube in the next few days.

Thank you again for a great break :thumbs: :thumbs:
 
S

Simon Dunkley

Guest
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

Neil said:
Perhaps the most unexpected event is completing the main circuit on Morfa... ...This morning after a hearty fry up I dragged a couple of tatty and unpromising lengths of SMP flexi track out of a box of dubious track that I'd acquired and in my usual craftsman like way staple gunned them to the trackbed at one end of the ply and plastic chaired track already in place; just to extend the shunt limit. My cohorts started to take an interest in the remaining mangled lengths. An hours work with everyone pitching in and the circuit was complete.
That third image is the most intriguing. IIRC, the curve at that end is quite tight, yet as we are looking at it from the inside, it looks fine. Out of curiosity, how tight is it?
(I have probably asked this before, but have forgotten and couldn't find it. But it was very pleasant to search back through the thread.)
And for those who thought the comments on pylon spotting were tongue in cheek, click here.
 

iploffy

OC Blue Brigade
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

MR DUNKLEY YOU ARE SICK :eek: :eek:

and I thought watching paint dry was interesting

Ian
 

Neil

Western Thunderer
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

Simon Dunkley said:
That third image is the most intriguing. IIRC, the curve at that end is quite tight, yet as we are looking at it from the inside, it looks fine. Out of curiosity, how tight is it? .....

Two feet/two feet six-ish, perhaps a bit tighter on the kinky bits. Some of the stock with longer buffers and shorter coupling links gets rather close to buffer locking even when being dragged round.
 

Captain Kernow

Western Thunderer
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

Thanks for a brilliant weekend, Neil. I am now on the verge of putting the idea of 'magazine embankments' forward at work as a way of rectifying earthworks problems - various In House publications might just save the day!  ;) ;D
 
S

Simon Dunkley

Guest
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

Neil said:
Two feet/two feet six-ish, perhaps a bit tighter on the kinky bits. Some of the stock with longer buffers and shorter coupling links gets rather close to buffer locking even when being dragged round.
Ta.
iploffy said:
MR DUNKLEY YOU ARE SICK
and I thought watching paint dry was interesting
Me? What have I done? Not my blog, I was just sent a link many moons ago by a friend who was pointing out that railway modellers are not as mad as some others out there...

Mind you, I have watched paint drying: the interesting bit is when it looks dry, and you touch it, and it isn't dry... ;)


PS - I am not denying I am sick, just nothing to do with pylons...
 

Phill Dyson

Western Thunderer
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

Simon Dunkley said:
Mind you, I have watched paint drying: the interesting bit is when it looks dry, and you touch it, and it isn't dry... ;)

I'm watching PVA dry at the moment.........not quite as interesting as paint though  ;D
 

Neil

Western Thunderer
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

Jordan said:
... only blue paint, one assumes..?? :scratch: :))

2ft6" sounds a seriously tight radius for EM gauge, especially with 3-links and buffers...  :eek: ???

Nah, I had a finescale OO pizza with 10" radius curves.
 
S

Simon Dunkley

Guest
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

Jordan said:
... only blue paint, one assumes..??
I doubt I was alone in wondering how long we would have to wait for that...
 

iploffy

OC Blue Brigade
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

BITE BITE BITE BITE BITE I AM NOT BITING :))

Don't blame me I didn't start this

Ian
 

iploffy

OC Blue Brigade
Morfa - An unexpected turn of events

Anyway back to the excellent bridge stanchions i used to do something like that with my old Hornby train set  so I could get 1 to go over another 1
 

Neil

Western Thunderer
Morfa - Help with plans.

Last night's bath time read was MRJ 57, the one with the Cambrian timber trestle bridges. The pile of magazines days  are numbered, or so I thought.  Though there's almost enough info in the article to make a start, I'd feel a whole lot happier with the plans Roger Lycett-Smith refers to. Apparently L.V. Wood's 'Bridges for Modellers' contains drawings of a Cambrian trestle; anyone able to help me out before I widen the search?

Here's another photo of a hopefully transient scene. I've been getting a bit more adventurous with the train lengths ....

[attachimg=1]

.... and one of the front of the train approaching Morfa itself. I really must crack on a bit.

[attachimg=2]
 

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28ten

Guv'nor
Morfa - Help with plans.

I may be wrong, but are there some in CC Greens book?
I see an MRJ no8 in the first pic - my first introduction the the world of F/S  :)
 

Neil

Western Thunderer
Morfa - Help with plans - now sorted.

Thanks to Dunks I now have enough information at my fingertips to make a start. Tomorrow I'm heading to the bustling metropolis of Aberystwyth, high on the list of things to do will be a visit to the model shop to compare the price of pukka stripwood with e-bay coffee stirrers for the diagonal bracing beams. I may have to bunk of DIY for a while.
 

Phill Dyson

Western Thunderer
Morfa - Help with plans - now sorted.

Jordan said:
E-bay..??!!?? As in "Buy"...?? ???  :eek:

They put 'em out for free in McD's, and CostaFortune-type coffee places...  ;D ;) ;) ;) :thumbs:
Must admit I usually leave with one or two    ;)..........do my marking out with Ikea pencils too  ;D
 
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