Ballasting track

Although my Valkenveld micro-layout is only 75cm long, it holds more than 330cm of track that needs ballasting.

I used dark brown Woodland Scenics medium cinders ballast. I know there is a finer ballast of the same brand available with probably a more realistic size of stones. But I prefer the coarser one as the fine ballast looks like "coloured salt" to me.

I used the following, traditional method of ballasting:

- The ballast is first distributed with a spoon on all flat surfaces, ie. between the rails and in the sections between double tracks.
- I carefully move the ballast to come up to the top of the ties, but not onto them, using my fingers and a brush.
- The sides of the cork base I first coat gently in wood glue before applying the ballast. Without that treatment the ballast would shift down creating ugly waves and open surfaces when the glue-water mixture is applied.
- I then spray the loose ballast with 70% alcohol. It's important that the tracks are soaking wet. This holds the ballast together when glue is applied.
- The traditional mixture of 50% wood glue and 50% water with a few drops of liquid detergant is gently dropped on the tracks using a syringe. This is the most tricky part of the operation. Ballast will move which can drive you crazy.
- Once dry, all stones in places where they shouldn't be are removed with a sharp knive.
- The track is then given a final weathering (still needs to be done).

New rolling stock: DBS 6427 from Piko

DB Schenker No. 6427 joined the fleet as local shunter in Valkenveld. The model is Piko No. 40415.

Information on the MAK DE 6400 can be found here.

Prototype DB Schenker 6417 in Amersfoort on 11 January 2014. Source: own image

Bridge development

I have finished the frame for the bridge on the Western end and tested the proportions with some rolling stock. The bridge is inspired by a bridge in the Dutch town of Hilversum (see here).

Weathered track

I completed weathering the tracks using Tamiya No. TS-62 "Nato Brown".

Inspiration: ACTS Class 66

MRCE 513-9 in Amsterdam CS on 23 september 2007. Source: James Cannell

And leaving Amersfoort:

Inspiration: Bridge in Hilversum

A simple bridge I might want to use as inspiration for Valkenveld. The image is taken from the Oud Naarderweg in Hilversum and the bridge street is the Johannes Geradtsweg.

Track works on the micro-layout

Model railroading seems indeed to be an autumn and winter activity as activities on the Valkenveld micro-layout came to a still-stand. Until today when I picked the thread up again doing track work and wiring (I still don't know why I do wire the layout with its size of 75 x 30 cm; in reality smaller than a football field..).

Track works in Valkenveld

Some images from yesterday when the track gang laid the first track, the westbound track on the double-track mainline.

Soldering the feeding wires underneath the Peco flex track.

Flex track with sunken feder wires.

ACTS Class 66 is the first to test the mainline track.

The track is glued to the cork bed.

Cork and two bridges

I laid the cork strips for the roadbed of the four main tracks (from Jeweha N-scale). The only track missing is the junction to the single track line. This will be added as soon as I have received the Peco turnouts. The cork on the images is already glued to the board, the tracks are loose.
I quickly built two bridges from cardboard to get an impression of how it will look like. The idea is that the bridge on the left hand side is an older one made of bricks, the other one was just recently built for a new road to Valkenveld.

The two tracks on  the left are of the double track main line. The ones to the right of the freight and depot sidings.

The modern bridge spans currently wider than necessary as the junction track of the single track line still has to be added on the right hand side.

Frame Finished

I finished construction of the frame for the Valkenveld micro layout today. It consists of chipboard (750 x 300 x 8 mm) on a rectangular, wooden frame made (69 x 27 mm).

Wish List: new Rocky Rail Sdggmrs

New from Rocky Rail and definitely on the wish list: five versions of Sdggmrs cars loaded with trailers from Ewals Cargo Care, Arcese, Ambrogio, Nothegger and TTS. Length over buffer 210mm.

Taschenwagen Bauart Sdggmrs der AAE Cargo HUPAC Intermodal, Epoche VI, beladen mit 2 Anhängern von Ambrogio.

Taschenwagen Bauart Sdggmrs der AAE Cargo Crossrail, Epoche VI beladen mit 2 Anhängern von EWALS Cargo Care.

Inspiration: own images of the Gooilijn

Valkenveld Track Plan

Heureka!

Finally the idea materialized. I found an interesting micro-layout on the web based on a UK prototype (see here and on flickr). This plan can act as diorama as well as extension to my fiddle yard layout. I plan to use measurements to fit exactly into a Billy bookshelf from Ikea (75 x 30 cm). I adapted the plan a little bit to accomodate for my situation and allow more locomotives to be stored when attached to the fiddle yard section.

Here is my adaptation of the plan to fit my space (75 x 30 cm). I added another turnout and mirrored the original plan to allow an extension to my fiddle yard:

With a size of 75 x 30 cm the layout fits neatly into a bookshelf from Ikeal. This allows setting the layout on different heights as wells as easy access to couple it to the fiddle yard.