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USMRCWA Layout Takes Shape Journals/Blogs
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Active Member 66 posts bn7026 Active Member 66 posts
bn7026

About 10 months ago I wrote about our club (US Model Railroad Club of Western Australia) having to demolish our old layout and moving to a new location (see https://forum.mrhmag.com/post/capturing-a-layout-before-we-have-to-move-12188850).

Well it's time for an update.  We moved to another unit at the same location so at least it wasn't that far to go.  Unfortunately the old layout wasn't built to be moved and while we able to move the sections it didn't survive the move very well.  Following some club discussions we agreed to start again with a new layout.  As something of this nature requires financial input as well as labour we were successful in obtaining a grant off the Lotteries Commission to assist in the build.

Criteria were set from the club for a new layout which included the following:

  • Double track mainline
  • Provision for staging of trains
  • Construction methods suitable for moving if required
  • 36" (900mm) minimum mainline radius
  • Ample switching and mainline running opportunities
  • Train lengths of 2 loco's + 20 cars to be accommodated

The final agreed design includes the incorporation of 5 portable exhibition modules as a secondary branchline, a mountain territory, separate urban switching area and a small stub end passenger terminal.

Following some room preparation including re-painting the room walls and sealing / painting the concrete floor, construction began in earnest in June this year.  In the last 4 months we've managed to build all the benchwork sections, erect the majority of the backdrops and valance support.  We're now well on our way with subroadbed construction and the tracklaying team has started in the staging yard.

Construction photo's will follow....
 Tim Shenton
Perth, Western Australia
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bn7026 Active Member 66 posts
bn7026

Some Construction Pictures

Some pictures courtesy of our club photographer (Ian Chadwick):

The First Section goes into place..

tsection.jpg 

 

Last of benchwork sections going into place.

kframes1.jpg 

 

Backdrop and valance support underway

ackdrop3.jpg 

Cork roadbed going down on the 1 1/2 turn helix.. 

roadbed1.jpg 

 

Tracklaying is underway

kstarts2.jpg 

 

Can't say yet when we'll have trains running up and again but rest assured it won't be long.
 Tim Shenton
Perth, Western Australia
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splitrock323 Prolific poster 1,364 posts
splitrock323

Group effort

It is amazing what can be done by a diverse group with a common goal. Hope you post pictures of the first train running. Glad you decided to rebuild and also make a list of things needed for future success such as portability. Those models built for show will help get the word out about your group to those not in our little loops. Thomas G.

Thomas W. Gasior MMR

Modeling northern Minnesota iron ore line in HO.

YouTube: Splitrock323      Facebook: The Splitrock Mining Company layout

Read my Blog

 
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bn7026 Active Member 66 posts
bn7026

18 months since construction started.

Hopefully this video embed thing works...  if it doesn't go to 

Some video from our latest running day attached.  We've got 100% of the trackwork done, 98% of the wiring but there is a bucketload of scenery to go...

//www.youtube.com/embed/wKRaa_pL1Ro?rel=0

Enjoy...

 
 Tim Shenton
Perth, Western Australia
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Ken Kaef Regular poster 171 posts
Ken Kaef

Well done guys

G'day from S.A.

                           It is good to see what a club can achieve working together. I know what the effort is like when a club has to move premises. It has happened to the Adelaide Model Railroaders three times in 29 years. Our last move was in 2002 and that was into a derelict railway station which had no power or water, graffiti all over, and some ceilings had fallen in. It took two years for us to just get the building habitable but now we are almost to the stage of having our first proper operating session on our half built layout. I look forward to seeing more of your progress. 

Best wishes.

Ken 

Kanunda and Emu Flat Railway   https://kaefken.wordpress.com/about/
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Bryang New member 29 posts
Bryang

Congratulations

Hi Tim and Crew

Great work and in such a short time. I am a "lone wolf" in Geraldton, modelling NSWGR in N scale and would really like to visit your club next time I am in Perth.

Cheers

Bryan
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bn7026 Active Member 66 posts
bn7026

Vistors are ALWAYS welcome.

Bryan,

Visitors are always welcome at our club.  We've always had an open door policy and love to show our layout off to others.

You can always catch us down there every Saturday between 12:30 and 4:00pm. (Unless it's Christmas Day )

Address is Unit 6, Macedonia St, Naval Base.

 
 Tim Shenton
Perth, Western Australia
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Bryang New member 29 posts
Bryang

VISIT

Tim

Thank you, I will take you up on that. On my last weekend in Perth I spent the Saturday afternoon in Lionel St. at DCCConcepts. There must be something in the water there.

Bryan
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Santa Fe Marty New member 1 post
Santa Fe Marty

USMRCWA

WOW!  Very Impressive.   One question, Why did you mount your background paneling up several inches.leaving a gap from the base.   I noticed when the scenery is filled in, the gap doesn't show.  But just curious.

Santa Fe Marty
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bn7026 Active Member 66 posts
bn7026

Backdrops

Hi Santa Fe Marty,

The gap was due to the height of the material.  We set the height of the valance support and worked down cutting 1200mm (4') sheets of MDF in half.  We figured the scenery would hide the gaps at the base but we didn't want a gap at the top - quite logical from our point of view.
 Tim Shenton
Perth, Western Australia
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Dave O Prolific poster 1,145 posts
Dave O

Very nice!

Thanks for sharing.

I am curious as to why your club chose to model a US prototype?  Perhaps it is simply due to availability of equipment, or is there some other compelling reason not to model an Australian prototype?
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ctxmf74 Super User 15,945 posts
ctxmf74

"Visitors are always welcome at our club"

Do you know Neville Rossiter over in Greenwood? , He models USA Brooklyn New York in O scale....DaveB

1990.jpg 
Read my blog
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bn7026 Active Member 66 posts
bn7026

Getting there... 3.5years on..

Well it's been almost 3.5 years since we moved to our new clubrooms (time flies when your having fun).

I armed myself with the video camera and shot some of the action at our last monthly running day,  we're having a table at the local train show at the end of this month so we thought it might be good to show some video.

Scenery is at about the 80% stage - mostly roughed in but a fair whack of detailing to go.  The members are all still having fun!

A wide variety of trains were run that day from all parts of the USA representing the diverse interests of our members.

Enjoy,

Tim.
 Tim Shenton
Perth, Western Australia
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jeffshultz MRH Staff 7,978 posts
jeffshultz

Wonderful!

When I saw that C&O steamer go past and started counting wheels, my wife, who is only marginally involved in model railroading, commented, "that's a large one - you don't often hear 10 in that middle number."

It's also neat to see how 36" radius curves let passenger equipment look like it belongs on the layout.

Sigh. Another reason to visit Australia.

orange70.jpg
Jeff Shultz - MRH Technical Assistant
DCC Features Matrix/My blog index
Modeling a fictional GWI shortline combining three separate areas into one freelance-ish railroad.
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Graeme Nitz OKGraeme Prolific poster 1,695 posts
Graeme Nitz OKGraeme

Great Stuff....

.....Tim. A lot of great work has been accomplished in just 3.5 years.

Can you show the trackplan?

Graeme Nitz

An Aussie living in Owasso OK

K NO W Trains

K NO W Fun

 

There are 10 types of people in this world,

Those that understand Binary and those that Don't!
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trainmanwa New member 1 post
trainmanwa

Very Impressed

Watched your videos and I am impressed. The scenery looked great and really sets the atmosphere for running.

I did get to see your old layout and that was very good too.

Your new layout is a credit to all your members, well done!

I hope to get around to your new clubhouse one day and enjoy your hospitality again.
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bn7026 Active Member 66 posts
bn7026

Track Plan

Hi all,

An early version of the track plan is below - there's been a lot of changes since then but the overall layout is there.  Apologies if it doesn't read that well..

cwa_plan.jpg 
 Tim Shenton
Perth, Western Australia
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