Wallace Creek

Discussion in 'Members Personal Layouts' started by class48nswfan, Jul 23, 2017.

  1. class48nswfan

    class48nswfan Full Member

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    4205 has reached the Wallace Creek end of the bridge and is beginning to take the curve approaching Wallace Creek.
    [​IMG]
     
  2. class48nswfan

    class48nswfan Full Member

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    The train passes Wallace Street station – a Victorian Railways T Class is in the yard.
    [​IMG]
     
  3. class48nswfan

    class48nswfan Full Member

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    The train is pictured here in the gorge that separates Wallace Creek and Mowarra Junction. The gorge is a national park and is an area of bush popular with walkers. Any advice on getting this picture turned round?

    [​IMG]
     
  4. class48nswfan

    class48nswfan Full Member

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    A Victorian Railways F Class pauses between shunting duties as 4205 stops at Mowarra Junction awaiting a southbound freight to clear the single line section.[​IMG]
     
  5. class48nswfan

    class48nswfan Full Member

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    15 minutes later EL61 arrives on a steel train.
    [​IMG]
     
  6. class48nswfan

    class48nswfan Full Member

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    Our final view before 4205 (a Train-o-rama model) disappears towards Nowra and ultimately Enfield Yard in Sydney.[​IMG]
     
  7. jakesdad13

    jakesdad13 Staff Member Moderator

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    Verrra nice :thumbs::thumbs:.

    Pete.
     
  8. class48nswfan

    class48nswfan Full Member

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    NEW SOUTH WALES LOCOMOTIVES AT WALLACE CREEK
    It's difficult to know where to start so to nearly quote Dylan Thomas “we'll begin at the beginning”.
    NSW Class 422 no 42213 Tuscan Livery
    The family and I lived in Australia for a year and I'd begun to fall in love with Australian diesels so for Xmas 2008 I thought I'd ask Mrs C48NSW for a model of an Australian loco to act as a display model and under instruction she bought this one. Within seconds I knew that the Rubicon had been crossed and that more locos (and stock) would follow and when we returned home to the land of the poms, a layout would be built.
    This is a Lima model and its usually employed on the passenger services (as it matches the carriages). Nine years on and like most of the old Lima models (built mid 80s-2000 I am guessing) 42213 is a reliable performer.
    NSW 48 Class nos 48S35 (Silverton Rail livery), 4825 (Indian red),4836 (NSW 150) and 48121 (NSW Candy)
    The 48 class is a firm favourite with Australian Gunzels with some still in service today. These models are all made by Powerline and was their second attempt at this class (their first being under the Trax name). I think these were released in the early 1990s and I have to say every time I see one for sale I am tempted as there are at least two more liveries I want and several more I will make do with if I'm forced to!
    When I started modelling I had little idea of what was out there and no real idea of what I was going to model. Sadly and inexplicably I am a sucker for a yellow engine and Silverton livered 48S35 (formerly NSWR 4843) was too lovely to resist. Since then I have purchased a Silverton Railways Jumbo 442, so the back story in any operating scenario is that Silverton Rail have won a contract to operate a specific traffic type. So one day that might be the grain trains and the next the oil traffic.
    4836 was an e-bay purchase in a unique NSW 150 years of railway livery. When it arrived it couldn't pull the skin off a rice pudding but after a year or two on shunting duties it seems to have settled down to be a regular performer. 4825 was another e-bay purchase whilst 48121 is in the less than popular Candy livery which I have rather grown fond. All except 48S35 work passenger trains (as they did on branches and throughout the state) and occasionally they are employed a yard shunters.
    NSW 44 Class nos 4455 (Tuscan) 4464 (Candy) 4469 (Brown) and 4483 (Freightrail) blue.

    The Lima 44 class models are now quite old and yet are generally reliable performers although low speed running is a bit beyond some of them. 4483 was the first purchased from a second-hand model shop in Sydney during our year living there. Second to be acquired was Candy liveried 4464 which is frequently employed on my candy coaching set. 4469 is probably the example that comes up most often for sale on e-bay and is in a non-prototypical brown livery. Apparently Lima made a mistake and released it to market. I gather though this was a big seller (as part of a train set package) at the time. This was an e-bay purchase from Glasgow in the UK and in fact came with another 4469. Purchase of a spare different livered body though, has seen that metamorphise into 4455 which is the only Kadee fitted example of the 4 engines.
    NSW 81 Class nos 8181 (Blue) and 8175 (candy)
    These are both Powerline models – 8181 was bought from Trainworld in Brighton , Melbourne for me by a visiting friend and has proved a trouble free runner over the years. I think it was the fourth loco added to the roster but record keeping isn't one of my strong points (and neither is model railwaying many of you may also be muttering). 8175 is a dual engine version and although reliable makes a horrible high pitched whining sound when any meaningful power is applied. Low speed only (which given the Wallace Creek is a secondary freight railway is OK) is the order of the day and apparently this is a known feature of some Powerline models at this time (one of my other locos suffers from the same problem). Not being mechanically minded I have no idea if this problem is solvable – any ideas written in “easy for an idiot to understand” English gratefully received.
    NSW 42 Class Number 4205 (Tuscan)
    A very elegant locomotive and fine runner. As I write it's in shops for Kadee replacement (although it may be out by the time you read this). This s a Train-o-rama model (from Sydney) and I gather the business and associated shop are in decline. I hope not as I have bought a couple of rolling stock items from them over the years and they have been pleasant, helpful and efficient people to deal with. I have been keeping a running total of session worked this year to try and spread usage towards newer engines and give the old lags a rest and this is one of my least used engines. Must change that – now where are those kadees?
    NSW 442 Class number 442s5 (Silverton)
    I saw a very grotty one of these at Golbourn NSW and fell in love with the class almost immediately. This is an Auscision model bought through a Facebook Aussie selling page (generally a bit cheaper than e-bay) and is the second most recent arrival. Although I love the yellow livery I keep thinking this may be a candidate for weathering during the winter months (when the layout is closed because the garage is too cold). I'll have to track down my photos of the prototype at Goulbourn and see what I can do. I have had limited success (and some complete disasters) with weathering over the years but we'll come to that in a later post and I'll be seeking some advice from my learned friends (AKA you lot) to see if I can improve my efforts. Kadee fitted 442s5 only works freight trains.
    -------------
    8181 stands in Mowarra Junction yard having just shunted a container train into the container sidings there.
    I will cover the Victorian and other locomotives in a future post.[​IMG]
     
    Chris Doroszenko likes this.
  9. Dr Tony

    Dr Tony Full Member

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    That's a very nice collection of locos you have there.
    I have a bit of a soft spot for the old Lima 44 and the Powerline 48. Might not be the most accurate or sophisticated out there but they do capture that "look".
    The 44 can be improved immensely and fairly cheaply by fitting flush glaze windows. They are good runners on smaller layouts with tighter curves.
    With regards to your dual motor 81 they can be improved by servicing the motor if they are the pancake style motor. This is the most likely motor to make horrible noises. On my blog I have made a step by step about a Lima pancake motor. Most pancake motors are similar, so the same principles apply in servicing the Powerline motors.
    Yours may have the later motor that is known as a slot car motor. These drive through a worm drive to the axles. As with all, a drop of oil in the right place might solve your problem. These motors are generally less troublesome.
    As for Train-o-rama they have their issues. The shop has just moved, which hopefully can only be a good thing. They have had real-estate problems. Lots have been said by others in other places, most of it not very nice, and possibly by fanboys of one of the other makers.
     
  10. class48nswfan

    class48nswfan Full Member

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    Thanks Tony - I will seek out your motor maintenance guide. Thanks also for the update on Train-o-rama - hope it works out for them.Dave
     
  11. Gary

    Gary Wants more time for modelling.... Staff Member Administrator

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    In regards to Tom's Hobbies/Bob's Hobbies (Train-o-rama), the shop has been on the downhill slide for quite some time. Most of their stock, they prefer to sell via ebay, although last time I was there, they had a reasonable amount (nothing on what they once had) of NSWGR stock on the shelves and behind the glass in cabinets. Most of this is now disappearing. I'm not sure the new location (shop) will do them any good as the new owner is an accountant and not into or intersted in retail... Another words, all stock must go. A good friend of mine once worked there and I have been filled full of stories about the mishandling of the business... :oops:

    Cheers, Gary.
     
  12. Dr Tony

    Dr Tony Full Member

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    Actually come to think of it with Bob' Hobbies is that there is a lot of stock there that appears to be "secret" lots of detailing parts, which are in a back room that I managed to get shown into once. I would never have known about them through either looking on the public shelves or on the website.
    Also I very much agree with Gary on the "all stock must go" mentality. They seem to clear out their own brands product for a fraction of the new price once it has been around for a while, feel a bit silly now having bought at 48 class for over $300 now that they are $195. Before my time, but worse happened to the 44 class. They also mark down their other lines like all the Columbia branded stock and the GM class. Interesting what people ask on eBay now for some of that, much higher than the discounted price, often higher than the original RRP.
    I suspect that the shop bleeds so much money in rent, wages and other costs that they need the cash flow. Not a very sustainable practice in the long term I would have thought.
     
  13. class48nswfan

    class48nswfan Full Member

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    $195 -?????You really shouldn't have told me that!:whatever:Notice that you live close to the Hawkesbury - we had a nice couple of days there last year.
    Dave
     
  14. class48nswfan

    class48nswfan Full Member

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    VICTORIAN STATE AND OTHER LOCOMOTIVES
    The Victorian classes are alphabetically numbered whilst a few more modern engines are placed at the end.
    Victorian Railways B Class B79 (V line grey/red livery)
    Has anyone had one of those moments where you see an engine and you instantly know that you have to have a model of one of those? Well I saw my first A class at Frankston working the Stony Point branch passenger and then other examples at Southern Cross (Melbourne). One example has been hanging on for a while now although its time must be limited. If anyone reading this is visiting Melbourne then go and watch the morning or evening peak which is still a steam age operation with Y class shunters, N class and the odd P class (also about to disappear from service) all in operation (and plenty of DMU and EMUs for those of you who like that sort of thing!. Heck there are even occasional freights on the through lines. If you can get a day pass from your better halves then a day trip to Ballarat (beautiful station with heritage semaphores) and back to Southern Cross and then out to Seymour (standard gauge out takes you past the various engine sheds) and back on the broad gauge (both behind N class if you can) is a worthwhile day out.
    Anyway back to the plot – this is a B class locomotive dating from 1952/53. Some were rebuilt into A class in the 1980s (hence the above paragraph) and this example was withdrawn in 1984 although lasted another 8 years before scrapping. The model is one of the old Lima locomotives and like all Victorian Railways locomotives works freight services almost exclusively. I must get some Victorian passenger stock soon. However I recently found a picture of a G Class working NSW passenger stock so expect to see occasional Victorian locos working the passenger trains to Wallace Creek.
    Victorian Railways F208 (Victorian Railways Blue/Yellow lining)
    This is a ROCO model based on one of the 350 hp UK shunters – the Class 11. Built by Dick Kerr of Preston they found use especially in the Melbourne area and although now withdrawn a number are preserved. It’s a nice little model and is occasionally employed as a shunting locomotive at Mowarra Junction although it has worked the old short local van train to Wallace Creek.
    Victorian Railways G513 ( V-line grey/red livery)
    A 1990s Powerline model with European couplers this is the newest Victorian locomotive in the fleet and was acquired second-hand from E-bay. As mentioned in an earlier post this has an unfortunate whine when travelling on one direction. Following Dr Tony’s advice I looked up his blog and decided to at least have a go at trying to sort this out. The trouble is being a mechanical idiot I get to a certain point and freeze but for me this is progress. I cleaned the gears up and the thread and sparingly added some oil. Tested without the body it definitely seemed to have improved but not removed the problem so next time I have to man up and try to go further, but one tiny step at a time.
    I have also just lightly weathered it to break up the rather dull slab like grey sides – this still needs more work but has made the loco a little more interesting.
    Victorian Railways N459 ‘City of Echuca’ (V-line red/white and blue)
    Predominantly a passenger engine the story is that this has come ex works in the then new V-line passenger livery for testing on freights. Bought from the Facebook group mentioned earlier and acquired as a memento of Southern Cross visits mentioned above. One general issue I have with Auscision locomotives is that some have a lot of very fiddly bits on (as do SDS models) which a naturally clumsy person likes me knocks off at some time or other.
    On the up side it is a good reliable runner.
    Victorian Railways T360 (Victorian Railways Blue/Yellow lining)
    The Victorian equivalent of the NSW 48 class so as you can imagine I am keen to acquire more of these at some point. There are three main types – one looking a tad like a 48 class, one with a raised cab and high bonnet (but the driver can see out over it) and one with a raised cab and low front bonnet. T360 is the middle type and was purchased from Hobbies Plus model shop in Stratford, Victoria state.
    Probably one of my favourite models – very reliable and runs like a dream.
    Will acquire the other variants at some point when funds permit (and Mrs C48NSw is looking the other way). That said she stated today that “I had enough trains now”.
    Victorian Railways X38 (V-Line red and grey Livery)
    An Austrains model this is a powerful looking freight locomotive. A good runner often found on cement and grain traffic at Wallace Creek. This was a purchase from the Facebook group. The real X38 was rebuilt as a more powerful XR class in 2002.
    Victorian Railways Y131 (Victorian Railways Blue and Yellow Livery)
    A few of these small shunting/trip locomotives are still working today with a number in preservation although this example was withdrawn in 1992. This was an e-bay UK purchase and has been a faultless performer. Having shunting locomotives as opposed to shunting being done by the train locomotive gives an extra dimension of operation at Mowarra Junction. That said, sometimes I operate with a loco there, sometimes without. Y131 is an Austrains model
    National Rail NR29 (Pacific National Blue and Yellow)
    A firm favourite, the NR class is a 4000 HP locomotive and is seen everywhere on the standard gauge network including intermodal trains across the deserts and the high-end tourist trains such as the Ghan and Indian Pacific. Their liveries are many and varied and included a number of artistic aboriginal variants. Probably the most common is the blue and yellow of operator Pacific National and that what adorns this Austrains model. In fact according to Wikipedia this is the bestselling modern model Australian locomotive. A significant number of the class have appeared in model form but , although tempted, it’s really outside the period of Wallace Creek being introduced from 1996 onwards.
    It’s here because like the N class it’s one of the locomotives I have seen a fair number of, travelled behind and just think is a cracking looking engine. The actual operating period of Wallace Creek is late 1970sish to late 1980ish but hey - it’s a model railway so purists may groan but it stays!
    If you can track it down, the class features heavily in the book ‘Freight across the nation’ by Rod Avery which is a fascinating account of the operation of trains generally worked by NR class. Unfortunately I lost my copy in the move back to the UK and second-hand copies are too expensive (£84GBP on Amazon) for my taste.
    Australian National EL Class EL61
    This was part of a double set which was a 50[sup]th[/sup] birthday present – what a disaster. I had built the layout with 18 inch curves believing this to be suitable yet this and its mate (an A class) would not go around these at all. Complete relaying of the gorge and bridge end eventually solved this for Auscision locomotive EL61. Its not the prettiest engine with a sloped front and nasty green and yellow (football fans think Norwich City) livery but its settled down and is a reasonably reliable performer although a little fussy over some points, but there and then trackwork is rough in places. Freight only.
    Its partner in crime came to an ignominious end in what was the darkest day of Wallace Creek operation. Even after track rebuilding this locomotive had a predilection for derailment and I normally kept a very close eye on it when doing a circuit. On that fateful day I’d been distracted and as it approached the bridge-end off the rails it went followed by a nose-dive onto the concrete. “Zut alors!” (actually it may have been something else I said) as it hot the concrete with a resounding thud.
    Damage was extensive and although my local model shop Monkbar Models were able to get it running (just about) again and managed to glue the body back together its can just about run on straight level track. Occasionally comes out for a photograph and yard shunt but cannot do a circuit of the layout however.
    Tamper
    This is an unnumbered Dapol model of a Plasser & Theurer tamper. A UK model, I bought this because it looks right and I’ve always had a thing about track machines.


     
  15. class48nswfan

    class48nswfan Full Member

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    NETWORK CHANGE 2 SEPTEMBER 2017
    A change to the layout has taken place at Mowarra Junction following a series of derailments. There were a number of reasons for these, the primary one of which was a curved turnout over a baseboard joint and on a slope. The bridge end is also access into and out of the garage and several times this had been knocked causing issues with alignment. What it has mean is that the third line in the yard is now a dead end siding adjacent to the stabling point and by moving the fuel storage tank from the depot to the end of this I now can run occasional fuel oil trains to use that siding. The second line in the depot is now shorter (curve easement was another item required) but a short curved siding has been laid towards the bridge end where a yard shunter can be stabled between trains or alternatively there is room for three wagons or vans.
    First day of operation was 2 September and after a few minor adjustments using number 2 hammer, a derailment free session was enjoyed. 48S35 worked the first fuel tank train to the new siding. A revised layout sketch will be posted soon.
     
  16. Gary

    Gary Wants more time for modelling.... Staff Member Administrator

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    Looking forward to seeing the changes.
    So, you have joined the elite (Toto) in using a hammer for fine adjustments... :avatar::avatar:

    Cheers, Gary.
     
  17. class48nswfan

    class48nswfan Full Member

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    :gday: Never without them Gary. I have heard rumour that other tools exist but I've never been one for new fangled technology.
    ;)
    Dave
     
  18. Gary

    Gary Wants more time for modelling.... Staff Member Administrator

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    :avatar::avatar:

    Cheers, Gary.
     
  19. Echidna

    Echidna Full Member

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    Dear class48nswfan,

    re your VR T347 , the bars on the windows were to protect the windows from the large electric train staff from breaking the windows , though i do not recall them still being fitted by the mid 1970s even though Electric Train staff was still in widespread use.

    The problem with the T class was the poorly sprung bogies over time caused significant track damage , unlike the similar NSWGR 49 class whose A1A flexicoil bogies were kinder to the track.

    The NSWGR 422s are internally identical to the VR 2nd series X class, X37-X44.

    The Lima 44s , and the Lima 422 , are both good body mouldings which can come up well with a bit of work, similar priciple to British articles on improving Lima bodies. Although i have not done so myself, i am reliably informed that the Lima motors equipped with a DCC chip set up for DC operation show a significant performance improvement. The Lima motors are, in my view, unjustly ctiticized , as a bit of tweaking, additional pickups, and a sophisticated controller, DCC chip or otherwise, they seem to do what is asked of them for most model railways. Those who have an American basement can probably afford an expensive new running chassis , for the rest of us, an upgrade is worth persuing.

    You have a very nice layout , good work. I especially like your evening B&W photos,

    regards, Echidna
     
  20. Echidna

    Echidna Full Member

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    Dear class48nswfan,

    both the Lima B and S classes can be upgraded with a 2nd hand Walthers or Athearn SD9 chassis if desired. This has the advantage of then giving you 2 spare Lima 6w power bogies which can either be used to 2nd motor another Lima or a a spare.

    The Powerline G actually has a more accurate body than the more expensive Austrains version, as at the recent Diamond Creek MR Ex a modeller who loves the G class exlained. Apparently the Austrains version has a mixture of series details on the body, presumabley whoever did the drawings did not realize that there are differences between each of the 3 series of design. As i am not an expert on the G i cannot now explain waht those differences are ! Sorry about that !

    The one thing that is different is the different locations of the air conditioning sets between series 1 ( G511 - G515 ) and series 2 ( G516 - G525 ).

    Your articles are well written,

    regards, Echidna.
     

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