Space Cleared... Electrical Progress!

With the current pandemic the world is in, governments advising to stay indoors, what better is there to do than to get some wiring done?

It's been over a year since my last post, but after having cleaned out the garage for a day and recovering the stored electricals of the layout. This included the control panels for the turnouts, wiring for the track, and lighting.

As for the control panels, only one of these (the biggest of the four) controls the section of Gunnedah that is being restored. After some examination of this particular panel, plus the other three, plugs were reconnected into the appropriate sockets to control the correct sets of points on the layout. Unfortunately, as not the entirety of the section that the panel in question controls was kept, a fair few points are left surplus. A few will be added back in soon to ensure that all tracks are connected in some way.

The rolls of wire that had been previously stored in boxes were laid out and examined. The blue wiring used for the lighting has been set aside for later once trains are able to traverse the layout. The black and red wiring, on the other hand, was examined further, hung up against the layout and cut where needed.

After digging out the power supply and transformer (supposedly) used on the layout, the track was tested for its voltage output, with some positive results. The track was then cleaned, allowing trains to run on the track (almost) smoothly and with few problems. I may have to relay the track as some joins are not in great shape and some sections have lifted, likely due to damage from transport from the previous owner's home a year ago and subsequent storage.

For a couple of days I was left puzzled on what to do about the control panel. Though I had wired up the panel itself, it didn't switch any points. The answer was simple. The power supply for the point motors was missing a plug which allowed it to be directly connected to the control panel itself. Once this was able to be done, the LED lights on the panel lit up, and points adjusted to their default positions. 

After some testing of the points and repairs were made where needed, I can happily say that the layout is operational. I will upload photos shortly of the progress on the layout, as well as of some, unusual visitors to the track which I tested over the past few days.

Gunnedah Reborn - A New Start for (Part) of An Old Favourite

It was a little bit over 10 years ago when the original blog was launched, and at the time I hadn't have even gotten into model railways yet. Several years later I met the owner of the layout for the first time, which by now would've been 2 years ago.

Ever since I saw the layout I was amazed by it... I had my first go at running trains with DCC on that very layout, and the sounds are awe-inspiring. Though I only ever visited a few times before the owner's passing, it was always something I could look forward to, seeing the owner, talking trains with them, and running their layout.

The news of their passing was saddening, but, we all knew it was coming, just not as soon as it came. Later, I was offered to have the layout, and at first, I wasn't sure what to do. The layout was in a shed dedicated to it, and I simply didn't have the space for it, but nonetheless, I accepted, and I don't regret making that decision one bit. So, my dad and I went up and dismantled the layout, and transported it to it's new home.

From there we were faced with how to store it, and where we were going to put the layout when we're ready to set it up again. We came to the decision that a section of the layout was going to be used, whilst other parts will remain in storage, and the excess materials could be thrown out. We decided to clear a space out in our garage for a part of the layout, leaving the next challenge; selecting which part of the layout to use.

We looked over which parts would be the best to use, and we chose a section depicting Gunnedah itself, on a corner, ideal for the space we had available. The new layout will take up an area of 2800 x 2800 mm. Since then we have bought racks and cabinets for the layout to sit atop, and have cleared a space to put them. We have also began reassembling the layout's framework, and once this is done, the section of track can be put in its rightful place. Though as of currently the stuff that previously occupied the space the layout now accommodates will need to be sorted out, as the layout is barely accessible. Once we are able to sort out the issue and plan further... Well, that is for the future to tell...

Above: Highlighted in green is one of the sections to be reused in the new layout. (From: Gunnedah and Beyond)

Above: The racks and cabinetry which the layout will sit atop. Note the gym set of the right which is yet to be moved and dismantled. The benchtops are roughly at waist-height.

Above: A lazer level was used to ensure the cabinets and benchtops were at at the right height. A spirit level was used to make sure they were at a flat 90 degrees. Note the height difference between the bench and the rack, which has since been fixed.

Above: The assembled section of the layout as of currently. Another will need to be built on the other side before placing the track sections on the layout.