Innholdsfortegnelse for June 2020 i Australian Model Railway Magazine

The editorial planned for this issue was to cover the benefits of an annual outing for a group of us from Sydney to country Victoria. The group had first met a couple of decades back and after a while regular meetings began. The benefits for all were the exchange of ideas, modelling tips and techniques. Operation was a big winner, especially the change to DCC to the point where the beginners became the teachers. This year was to be no different and while the trip down was normal the early evening of the first day was a warning. On purchasing supplies for the first evening dinner we experienced the first COVID-19 panic; the masses leaving the supermarket with all the toilet paper they could carry. We laughed at the silliness.…

The kitbash of the NOFF from ore wagon to shunter’s truck is reasonably straightforward. However, it does have a couple of assemblies that need to be built from brass wire, not to mention the removal of a couple of side panels. Firstly you will need to choose which particular wagon you are going to model, as they all had the openings cut out of the sides in different positions (refer diagram and online photos). Furthermore, if modelling 70029, one side of the opening was not cut out against the vertical bracing, 2mm of the section to be removed needs to be retained towards the centre of the wagon in this case. Again, refer to photos and the drawings and take note of where the removed section is on each side…

When I wanted to connect my DCC system to my computer to use DecoderPro, I needed to find a simple way to bring the DCC system to the computer. The system needs a USB interface module as well as the DCC system controller. The NCE system I am using made it quite easy to set up a portable test module/programming track because the NCE Power Cab, which is the basis of the basic system, is so portable. I built up a timber unit, about 600mm long and about 120mm wide, but you could build it to any size that suits your requirements. The photographs show that my USB module is mounted on the baseboard section and an NCE PCP panel mounted at one end. The PCP panel has connections at…

Road signs are a small, but important, detail that can add an element of realism to a scene, particularly where road meets rail. Signs can be used to indicate speed limits, provide warnings about hazards such as the presence of animals or rail crossings, or give drivers general information about the area, street name, or road rules. This article aims to show you how you can create your own signs. The basic technique of using an aluminium can to create the sign is adapted from Luke Towan’s videos, as shown on his YouTube channel Boulder Creek Railroad, and the remainder of this tutorial (including photos) is based on techniques I have used to create my own signs at home. Information About Signs The best place to start for inspiration or…

The idea of attempting an interpretation of at least a portion of Darling Harbour (circa 1950) within an envelope of only 4.4m x 450mm might easily be described as ‘impossible’, even absurd… especially as I model in O scale! Being fascinated by the complexity of Darling Harbour and the opportunity that it would provide to model an urban environment was one thing, but would this be a step too far? How could such an enormous location be modelled with any reasonable chance of success? The Darling Harbour branch was spread across a very large area. A studied assessment of the multiple track diagrams will quickly convince most modellers, including me, that it might have made a great deal more sense to select another location. However, one of the strengths of…

Kevin McSween 1948-2020 Kevin was a long standing, life member of the Warrnambool Model Railway Club. Some readers may know Kevin from the exhibition circuit as Tony Auden’s right-hand man, always stepping up to learn the idiosyncrasies and running of Tony’s ever-changing layouts. They frequently displayed at the Warrnambool, Corio, Sandown, Stawell and Caulfield exhibitions. Kevin’s love of trains was widespread, both modelling and full-size. He loved to share his hobby and encourage others along the way to be part of what he loved. His passion was American N scale modelling and live American train travel. Kevin was the second custodian of the three who have overseen the N scale Clinchfield exhibition layout, now owned by fellow club member ‘Max’. Kevin was also a dedicated member of the J515 restoration…

• Columbia Models NOFF ore wagon (doors welded shut version preferably) • 0.5mm brass wire • 0.5mm styrene sheet • Scale chain • InFront Models Brass Passenger Steps (unless modelling 70029L) • Silver reflective decals (Main West Models MWD107 or similar) • ‘Danger Overhead Wires’ decals (Main West Models MWD010 or similar) • White number and letter decals from the scrap box if you need to renumber your wagon (road numbers 70002 and 70025 were available from Columbia Models).…

Flour delivery silos are an integral part of the Manildra operation in Gunnedah. The Manildra Group operates a multi-faceted business receiving grain, milling grain into products such as flour and delivering products by rail and road throughout the country. Grain for the milling operation is delivered in railway wagons and road trucks. At harvest, from October onwards, local farmers supply the mill with a range of wheat varieties, including soft wheats, prime hard wheats and durum. Australia grows high quality white wheat varieties. The soft varieties (Triticum aestivum) are the grains used for breads and cakes. Other wheat varieties with higher protein content are used for speciality doughs. Prime hard wheats are used in biscuit making. Durum wheat (Triticum durum) is the pasta wheat. Australia is a major world supplier…

These shunter’s floats were converted in the mid-1990s out of NOFF open wagons that were surplus to ore traffic due to the advent of containerised movement of iron ore concentrate. FreightCorp converted four to be used for a shunter or assistant driver to ride on during a long propelling movement, whether on the mainline or on a siding. The conversion involved removal of a section of the side of the wagon between the vertical bracing, fitting handrails either side of the resulting gap with shunter’s steps underneath, handrails on the inside of both ends of the wagon, plus an emergency brake cock, also at each end, located underneath the aforementioned handrails (NOHF 201H was also converted in a similar fashion). Some locations that employed these vehicles included Narrabri (for working…

As a secondary school teacher and principal who spent over 32 years in the job, one of the real pleasures that kept me in it was watching the kids under my care grow and develop. Kids come in all shapes and sizes and in the course of those years they never ceased to surprise and sometimes amaze me with the heights they’d achieve, the skills they displayed and the things they’d come out with. However, as we’d all be aware, more often than not the focus of the broader community and the media tends to be on the negative aspects of young people and being young: mental health issues, loutish behaviour, bullying (both online and face-to-face), drugs, video game violence: the list goes on. As someone in the business of…

I have often thought that the backs of buildings make more interesting modelling items than the fronts. The photos included here show both the front and rear of a row of shops in Belgrave, Victoria. Anyone who has travelled by train to ride on Puffing Billy will have passed this row of shops while walking between the broad gauge and narrow gauge stations. Photos 1 and 2 show the street side of the shops. They would look great on almost any layout, as they are neither large nor difficult to model and even the signage is not complex. Photos 3 and 4 show overall views of the backs of these same shops and present a totally different scenario. No longer being just simple buildings, the landscape has demanded three stories…

Signals Branch has released a variation of the signal operating base for their range of locally produced, lost wax brass castings of NSWGR signals, designed to allow the integral mounting of a small linear servo in the base. The signal base will mount into a 22mm diameter hole in the layout baseboard, as per the existing larger signal control bases. A double mount has also been designed and tested successfully for two arm signals such as brackets and should be available by the time you read this. Still in development is a base for three arm signals, which will require more below baseboard vertical clearance. As there is no built-in adjuster to fine-tune the movement of the signal arm (as on the standard version) the movement of the signal arm…

EXHIBITIONS & EXPOS CANCELLED – ALBURY – NSW. May 23–24, 2020. Murray Railway Modellers, Model Train Show. Grant 0417 538 700.galamy@bigpond.com CANCELLED – CLAREMONT – WA. May 30-June 1, 2020. AMRA WA 2020 Exhibition. Claremont Showgrounds Exhibition Centre. CANCELLED – BALLARAT EAST – VIC. June 6-8, 2020. Ballarat & District Model Railway Club Inc. annual exhibition.trains.bdmrc@outlook.com CANCELLED – GLEN WAVERLEY – VIC. June 6-8, 2020. Waverley Model Railway Club Annual Exhibition, Brandon Park Community Centre, 649 Ferntree Gully Road, Glen Waverley. exhibitions@waverleymrc.org.au CANCELLED – ROSEHILL – NSW. June 6-8, 2020. Great Train Show, Rosehill Gardens Grand Pavilion. Mike 0408 817 554. www.eppingmodelrailway.org.au POSTPONED – SEAFORD – SA. July 9-12, 2020. South Australian ‘N’ Gauge Society display. secretary2@sangs.asn.au www.sangs.asn.au/ Find us on Facebook. AWAITING ADVICE – decision to be made in…