Original Cast Members

Originals and casts of some key elements of swingdoor rollingstock. I have tried to master & cast those items that allow the widest range of the many varieties of swingdoor. Fair to say that this layout would'nt have been realistically possible without casting, it is a significant setp forward for scratchbuilders. Must say I'm no master at it yet but with some work, the models seem to come up well enough.

Yes...but is it art?

"Glenburn" is an elevated station, and as such the trackbed is elevated above the base supporting level. The plan view of the "Glenburn" baseboard above shows the elevated roadbed, with wing extensions for the Down (1) and Up (3) platforms. Openings have also been made for the platform ramps (2). The elevated roadbed gap at (4) is for an over-road bridge. Since this picture, cork tiling has been placed on the board to bring the trackbed up to prototypical elevation. Baseboards are my usual 9mm marine ply on top of a cedar-ladder frame.

Them's the brakes.......

For suburban rollingstock, Steam Era's W car bogies need to be enhanced with fore and aft brake extensions. The bogie above takes the modification slightly further as it is built for a driving trailer, and as such also has wheel guards. For reasonable running clearance I have also attached the two sets of steps directly to this bogie rather than brace them off the carriage. The pre-painting photo above shows these changes.

Tell him he's dreaming......

Up late morning Passenger crosses a Dn suburban goods scuttling through Glenburn having been released from Flinders St yard following the end of the morning peak......sort of......

Placement of rolling stock on the new "Glenburn" baseboard as a way to try and get a feeling for what this section might look like, and understand where structures & features should be. Not to worry that the E is actually narrow gauge and the goods wagons are likewise borrowed from Shelley Railways' Cudgewa branch.....