Benchwork starts

 Benchwork - finally a start

Paralysis by Analysis is a trap.  And I have been caught for too long.  The design of the Wagga layout has been in development for the best part of 9 years, and whilst there is certainly an advantage with careful planning, there is a point where one needs to begin.

Part of the old CTC panel, on display at the Junee Roundhouse Museum.  This panel was in use from 1983 when the mechanical signalling was removed. 

After the construction of the Train room, quite a quantity of wooden stud timber was left over.  It was suggested at the time, that these could be used for the benchwork.  Using these underneath the Albury end staging yard seemed a good use. 

Chalk track plans

An earlier version of the staging yard was drawn on brown paper 1:1 size.  Note that the staging yard splits, which should allow access from a void in a hidden spot within the benchwork. 

Layout track heights

This is a major consideration, that will affect the asthetics.  I have chosen a 85cm as the height of the staging tracks above the floor.  The mainline will be at 105cm, and the branchline level at 150cm.  Will 45cm give enough visual separation of the 2 decks of sceniced layouts?  Will 150cm be too high for the branchline?  Will I be able to crawl under the staging tracks to access the train controller void?

The first upright

This upright is not cross braced, as it must straddle the "access void" mentioned earlier.  The bottom chord is flat to hold the legs apart, where the top chord is at 150cm.  The legs are long to balance Tumbarumba station on the branchline. 

Placing the upright on the chalk trackplan gives a better effect of what I am trying to do.  The top chord is secured to the yellow tongue wall with a simple metal bracket

Staging yard frame

Looking towards the doorway to the garage.  Careful viewers will note the blue cloth tied to the upright upper chord, as a safety measure. 

Next stage will be to screw all the frame parts together, and raise it to 85cm *less the thickness of the plywood, add more legs, and secure, and brace it to the current upright.  The plywood sheets will then be cut 40cm wide, and laid on top of the woodwork - extending, and cantilevering it up to 4 cm wider than much of the frame.  Once that is done, track laying of the staging tracks will commence.  

Operation day on Kangaroo Valley

Last Saturday, Steve and myself made the 2 hr trip to Stephe's Kangaroo Valley layout at Murrumbateman.  Stephe has an operating session every month on his relocated, and rebuilt layout in his new home.  (I previously wrote about the Kangaroo Valley layout in Stephe's former home in Yass, not knowing that the layout could be relocated)

https://buildingwagga.blogspot.com/2021/11/farewell-to-kangaroo-valley-historic.html

The new design included many scenes from the original, and some of the faults corrected, notably the aisles are now wider, and there is no longer an awkward ladder to access the layout.  Scenery is a work in progress.

Geoff with train at Osport

Steve shunting at Violet

Sydney now has platforms.

Eden (below), and Alabmob (above)

My assignment for the session was the Alabmob branch line driver, with a short break to drive the commuter train.

The milk train runs from Alabmob to Kangaroo Valley.

Scenery under the stairs to the mezanine level is awkward.

The electric commuter train runs from Violet to Sydney station platforms.  Here it has stopped at Osport

Adamstown is very busy with passengers

Being part of the operating sessions gives me ideas on how to operate my own layout, and also areas where care needs to be taken during the build.  It is also good to catch up with friends.  The big win from last weekend, was that the new phone interface performed faultlessly, and the lesson for me, is not to spend a lot of money on radio throttles, when a phone is a far more convenient (and cheaper) option.

Thanks too to Karina for an excellent afternoon tea after the 150 minute operating session.

Train room additions.

Besides the layout, I am always on the lookout for enhancements to the environment of the room.

Thanks to Jack, I now have a Steam Drift gauge to add to my display wall

A pair of reproduction NSWGR small luggage racks were acquired at the Cootamundra swap meet last month.  These will be mounted in the ensuite, for towels

Junee Roundhouse Museum.

Tokens

A few months ago, I was given a set of tokens from NSW railway depots. Eveleigh, Broadmeadow, and Junee.  Junee's number is #103

Donation from Wade.  These are slightly  larger than a 50c coin, and made of aluminium(?)

I had no idea what they were, but Pete Neve informed me that they were employee-sign on tokens.  They were used by the employee to identify he was on site, by placing them on a board.  Fascinating.

Imagine my surprise, when attending the Junee Roundhouse AGM, (Oct 15th) that the "token display" board was mentioned,  being made ready for display.  After the meeting, I showed them a picture of my Junee token, and in turn, I was shown the Junee token board.

The token board, prior to display.  A perspex cover is being made to stop pilfering

I looked at peg #103, and there was just replacement discs visible.  Some of the original discs were visible, but most on the board were replacements.  

So, shortly, I will in turn donate my Junee disc back to Junee, where it needs be.  And I have learnt something about the way the railways operated "in the day"

Accident train

Recently, I had a request from a fellow modeller for detail pictures of the breakdown crane, and the Junee Accident Train.  Photographing within the tight confines of the roundhouse lead to some compromises with lighting, and angles.  The best overall pictures of each wagon are below.

Steam Crane 1080. 

Converted TAM sleeping carriage

Inside the TAM, was a kitchen, and dining room

Bogie Water Gin

Flatcar - parked outside the roundhouse.

Way back in 1997, during the roundhouse 50th anniversary, I photographed the steam crane in operation.  The pictures are on slides, which I have yet to scan.

The Junee Roundhouse Museum is open Wed-Sunday 10am-4pm.  Yes, they also have a website.  Well worth a detour if you have a few hours.  And on weekdays, you might actually see some operating trains on the turntable.  The workshop is active refurbishing, and servicing engines

4497, doing some shunting, or load trials.

Conclusion

I am happy with my progress, particularly being able to reuse timber.  Although I was hoping to  be further advanced on the benchwork.  Far too many distractions.

Until next time, build a model or two.

Wagga Wagga Perway sheds

 A brief photo record of the Perway sheds at Wagga.

Early in September 2024, a fire broke out, and severely damaged the remaining perway shed at Wagga.

Photo by Pete Neve, taken from the LVR 620/720 railcar Sunday 22nd September 2024.  Used with permission 

Cause of the fire is unknown, although it may have been an accident, as the perway shed was being illegally accessed by homeless persons.  I understand the Wagga Rail Heritage museum had some items stored in the burnt end, and Peter M reported to me  there was a loss  of a luggage trolley, 2 country link hand luggage barrows, a Villiers trike frame, a TIC trike frame, and around $5,000 worth of steel shelving.

The group of perway sheds are a group of models that I have to make, and I was holding back on the description, until I had a chance to make it.  However, the fire has changed things.

Where were the sheds located?

The sheds were located on the northern side of the main line, between the Best St/Edmonstone St road bridge and the western end of the Wagga station platform.  A small reverse siding attached to the siding that serviced the Wagga station platform south dock. 

The shed that burnt was identified as the "Motor Mech" in the above railway site diagram.  I have orientated the plan this way, to correspond to the aerial pictures later.

The group of shed comprised The Signal Engineers, a fuel storage shed (that included a bowser), the Motor Mechanics, and lastly a storage compound shed for LP gas storage.

An Wagga council intramaps view from 1971 shows the sheds, and a freight train on the platform track.  A CPH is stabled at the end of the reverse siding - presumably for the Tumbarumba branch.  As my time period for my model layout is nominally 1970, there is a lot of interest for me, despite the lousy resolution

An image from the ARHS archives, shows the 3 main sheds - the motor mechanic shed being the one that recently burnt.  The distant LP storage shed was removed sometime between 1990 and 1995.

Wagga council aerial image from 1990.  One of the railway street cottages has been demolished. and some changes have been made to the fuel storage/bowser shed.  But most of the infrastructure remains.

In 1995, I took a few pictures of the sheds.  This being the Motor Mechanic shed.  Note the siding has been removed, along with the entire LP storage shed.  These images scanned from my prints. 

Signal Engineer shed

Western side shows a lot of detail

I am hoping that I had earlier recorded additional images on slide, although I have yet to find them.

By 2012, Wagga Council aerial view had become a lot more detailed.  One can make out the skylights on the Motor Mechanic sheds.  A new shed had been built on the former siding (where the CPH was in the 1971 image)  All the railway cottages had been demolished - only the original Best Street gatekeeper cottage remains.  Another shed ('99') had been constructed on the site of one of the cottages.  Note the large white roof building in the top RHS of the picture.  This is the former District Engineer Office - now repurposed

Detail of the roofs of the motor mechanic shed, and the Signalling engineering shed in Wagga council's  2020 image.  The "garage" at the rear of the Motor Mechanic shed is hidden in the shadow of the tree (see the 1990 image).

A year or two ago, armed with a digital camera, I took a lot more pictures.  Changes from 1995 are generally that the sheds have been boarded up.  Whilst now over 50 years after my nominal layout period, the pictures are still potentially useful for the finer details. 

Conclusion

We can never take things for granted.  Record what you can today, because it may be gone tomorrow.  

Until next time, happy modeling.