Hi guys. July? Already? "Wow"! I have now, finally, after months of messing around, began my slow revival of the 00 gauge garden railway. On Sunday we carried out a mass shed clearance and there is now access to the operating side of the railway: the indoor part. Having tidied the inside section up it was time to have a look at where the railway went. Though the line is pretty much weather-proof and maintenance free, the last year or so of almost no use has resulted in alot of damage to points, wiring and the condition of the rails. The decision has been taken to rip out all of the wiring, rather than chasing endless loose connections and shorts. For me it is much easier to rewire the track from the source rather than spending hours diagnosing conduction problems. Also on Sunday, we ripped out one of the garden's main bushes which used to decorate most of the railways 2006 extension. The bush had become overgrown and tatty, so much so that when you pruned it back to allow a train to pass, it ended up just being branches and nothing more that remained! With the bush removed and the wiring looking a mess, the track is seen on Sunday afternoon...
The view above shows Chilvers Loop (left) and Ashford Junction (right). Through the magic of the internet I have also recently purchased some new track: straight sections and replacements for all four outside points. On Monday the track arrived and so, as part of a test fit, I decided to rip up the Ashford Jnc - Grantham section of the circuit. Below we see the section on Monday afternoon, showing what debry can get under the track over the course of 7 years!...
This afternoon we went out and bought some "multi-purpose compost", which to you & me is actually plain old dirt. We then made up the level of the flowerbed to the bottom edge of the Cotswold stone throughout the 'extension flowerbed', ready for planting some new bits...
After a bit of messing about we finished the initial replanting of the flowerbed. There are still a few more bits to come and of course the plants will begin to grow...
Slowly Starting A Garden Railway Revival!
My next job is to relay the track that I took up, as well as to replace all of the outdoor points. I then need to rewire the track power and then begin the fitment and wiring of point motors and a few colour-light signals. The building illuminations; which I started doing a few years ago; will finally be finished this time around, as a project. I hope to have the railway running again in a month or so. Cheers guys, Sam...
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