This disaster was in the form of the chosen US prototype
locomotive suddenly refusing to remain on the rails for even one lap. Despite
careful testing and adjustment, it now derailed repeatedly at several locations.
It was decided that the layout could not possibly be used at the launch of the
Polar Express movie. A quick substitution with other locomotives did not help.
In fact most of them were worse as the curves on the layout were slightly
sharper than the usual minimum radius in N scale in one or two locations.
Finally, the Spectrum 2-8-0 locomotive was disassembled and drastic alterations
made to it's chassis with a motorised grinding / cutting disc to allow the drive
wheels and pony truck more side-play in the hope of getting it to negotiate the
curves better. Unfortunately, after pulling the loco apart and re-assembling it
several times, the derailments persisted (you'll be pleased to know the model
still runs well on another layout).
Why did it happen? Well, it appears that before the track was covered with Skim
Coat, the rails were able to move sufficiently to keep the train from derailing.
Meaning that the loco wheels forced the rails to move slightly on the sharp
curves. Once the rails were prevented from moving, the wheels were forced to
ride on the rails, derailing the train. Eventually I found a Fleischmann
locomotive (German prototype) that was able to run reliably on the layout due to
its shorter wheelbase and deeper wheel flanges. The 2 passenger cars are
Bachmann Old-Timers, repainted.
This problem resulted in the layout not being ready for the cinema until the
19th. As it turns out, the 18th was an unusually quiet night at the cinema, so
hardly anyone turned up that night anyway. The layout was set up at the cinema
the following day and created much interest that evening. As I expected, there
were a number of children wondering why the train didn't go all the way up the
mountain.
The train heads down the street.
The snow material was provided by EFD Simply Glues and is called "Simply Snow". The layout, including buildings and trees were sprayed with scenic cement and the snow material sprinkled over the layout using a Woodland Scenics applicator. More glue was then sprayed over this and the process repeated a few times. Lighting was installed in the 3 houses (all Bachmann ready-to-use models) and also on the power poles as streetlights. Later coloured lights were put on one of the trees to resemble a Christmas tree.
Overall view of the town section of the layout.
The mountain section. The 2 lower levels of track are used by the train. The
upper levels are dummy track, being far too steep and sharp for any model to
negotiate.
Finally, there is an electrically operated steam whistle in the Bachmann freight shed. This was wired to a push-button that was taped to the counter of the cinema so that anyone who found it and was curious enough could blow the train whistle.
For a layout built in under a week, it didn't
turn out too bad. But it did remind me of the problems of not planning
adequately. The layout needed to be wider by at least 5cm, to allow easier
curves. This would have meant the US loco originally intended for the layout
could have been used. Also, the next time I use expanding foam on a layout, I'll
be sure not to use so much and allow time for it to expand.
Fun to build - and like all layouts, a learning experience.
Other photos are scattered through the site.
Page updated 16/10/2012