# Extending my passing siding



## wigginsn (Jan 9, 2008)

Well, summer is well under way here in NZ, got a few projects lined up. First major one is to finish off my main passing siding.


This is what it looked like at the beginning


























I painted out roughly where the new track was going to go. Definitely a bit tight for two turnouts for the crossover, but time will tell..




































The roadbed is PVC pipe and crusher fines, I like how it sets up the curves and I’ve found it to be pretty robust.












During the last couple of winters I’ve noticed a bit of water that sits around here after heavy rains. I put some drainage in to help, hopefully keep some of the ponding down.















I’ve ended up mixing the crusher fines into a slop then working them into the trench as I’ve found that gives me good results. It sets up hard after a few days drying/draining, and with a bit of smoothing & topping off it gives a surface I can walk on without any subsidence. I guess its only a couple of scoops of cement away from concrete roadbed..?


Roadbed poured and floated flat to grade












And the finished product. The pipe gives a good reference to level the surface to.

























That’s all for tonite, will post again soon.


Cheers
Neil


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## NTCGRR (Jan 2, 2008)

Cool..... Love the scenic view in that area.


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## aceinspp (Jan 2, 2008)

Looking good Neil. Later RJD


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## R.W. Marty (Jan 2, 2008)

Beautiful garden there, you have moved a lot of dirt and rocks. 
The slurry of crusher fines will definitely give a good solid compacted surface.
Later
Rick Marty


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## Rods UP 9000 (Jan 7, 2008)

Neil, 
That is looking good. Like the way you used crusher fines as a base. 

Rodney


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## Manco (Jan 5, 2009)

That looks gorgeous! Really like how your trackwork flows. From what I see going on in the background your layout looks really interesting. Do you have a website/photos of the entire layout or track plan?


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## blackburn49 (Jan 2, 2008)

That is a STUNNING layout. Great job !


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## wigginsn (Jan 9, 2008)

Thanks guys. Really you are seeing the selected best bits. The layout is only a couple of yrs old and there is much to do yet! 


Slurry - thats the word, thanks Rick. All I could think of was the sound it made as I threw handfuls into the trench.


I've been a bit busy to put a proper post together, I'm hosting the local club tomorrow and have been busy ballasting, weeding (and running the odd train








) today.. I'll try and get one together tomorrow night.


The extension is finished tho, I took this pic this morning











Manco, I don't have anything particular together, mostly just posts here in MLS of various bits as they've happenned. I'll sketch a plan of what is in so far and post it for you. There's been a link posted to the start of the build recently, I'll hunt it down.


Cheers
Neil


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## Steve Stockham (Jan 2, 2008)

Neil,
The layout is looking great! Man, I wish I had that kind of scenery here on my layout! I like what you're doing with the re-design of the siding. More pics of the entire layout!!


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## John J (Dec 29, 2007)

WOW that looks great. I think I need more rocks. I am off to fire up the backhoe.


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## wigginsn (Jan 9, 2008)

We cannot have too many rocks..!!


There is a bit of a sad story behind the ones I got. There was an ad in the local paper a few years back selling some of the red bricks that are paving the courtyard. I called in and it was an old chap (way more than 64..), Arthur, who said he was leaving. Turned out he and his wife had been renting the place for 16+ yrs, and he had slowly landscaped it over time. But it had just been sold and - you guessed it, the place was being bowled over for high density housing. He was happy for me to take everything I could once I sat down and explained about the railway. We traded storys and home brew over the weeks it took to move the rocks a trailer load at a time.


I sometimes wonder what happenned to him. I hope he's ok.


So, back to the original thread for a moment.







In with some track…










I made up #5 turnouts for the crossover. Thanks to GR for the templates, timing was impeccable.



















Switch throws are brass barrel & bolts, with piano wire to get a spring throw. (Idea ‘borrowed’ from OVGRS – thanks guys). 

At the other end of the extension, there was a bit of tidying to do. I added a choke cable to this turnout, its about 1.5m from the edge and the thyme was getting a hammering each time I hopped up to change it. (Thanks OVGRS, again..) 



















While I had things in bits I fixed up the track at the far end. The RH turnout was put in too close to the curve since I was trying to make the loop as long as possible way back when it first went in. That made for a bit of a kink as there wasn’t quite enough room to straighten up before the crossover.

I added 12” or so more track and moved the turnout










And re-laid the outside track. That gave a better lay up for the siding as well



















So, all joined back up, time to run some trains. Oooh yeah!



















The open house went well, but - of course, I didn’t get a chance to take many photos. Hoping to get a CD from one of the guys, will post a bit more on that later.

Cheers
Neil


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## Marauderer (Jan 5, 2008)

Neil, you continue to amaze me and your quality is First rate. 

I finally found the original thread in the archives but some of the pics are not good. Can you post a pic of the original property before you started so the guys get a real idea of what vision you started out with?


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## wigginsn (Jan 9, 2008)

Thanks for the kind words Barry. 

I know the ones you mean. In my ignorance at first I thought that taking pics at 640 x 400 resolution would make posting things easy. So the first ones were... bad. 

Will check in the photo album for any better shots of the back yard, bound to be some.. 

Cheers 
Neil


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## UK_Pete (May 13, 2009)

Neil, that is lovely work on a beautiful layout, more pictures please!![/b]
Pete.[/b]


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## Jerry Barnes (Jan 2, 2008)

I'm really knocked out by your fabulous work. Great photo ops all over!


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## wigginsn (Jan 9, 2008)

I found some early shots.

This is the backyard before I got started, Oct 06. 











Then I dug a hole.. (Dec 06)











Same view a bit later (Jan 08)











and same shot again in Mar 09











This is a shot from the garage roof, again in March this year. This one shows most of the trackplan on the hill.











Cheers
Nei


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## Doug C (Jan 14, 2008)

Now THAT is what i would call PROGRESS . . . . in a very positive way !!









doug c


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## NTCGRR (Jan 2, 2008)

OK, lets plan a roadtrip to Neils house.


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## Steve Stockham (Jan 2, 2008)

"Road Trip!!"[/i]


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## wigginsn (Jan 9, 2008)

You're all welcome, just let me know numbers so I can lay in enough snarlers for the charbeque.


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## NTCGRR (Jan 2, 2008)

That would be kinda cool, not sure if a "snarlers" is a good thing or not? I'd also like to go to England . 
Man wouldn't it be great to be rich??


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## jake3404 (Dec 3, 2010)

Neal, 

I hope everything went ok for you with these earthquakes happening. Beautiful layout.


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## Doug C (Jan 14, 2008)

"snarlers" ? Was curious too . . . . .according to google one says fish but this from a NZ blog "The day of the typical Kiwi barbecue – blackened sausages (we called them snarlers), slabs of cheap steak, edged with yellow fat, a pile of buttered bread, a bottle of tomato sauce and a crate of beer – just doesn't cut it in this day and age. Not for most of us anyway . . . ." 
http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/life-style/wine/3379788/Days-of-wine-and-snarlers

Yes ! Hope you were far enough away from the epicentre to not suffer any damage to family, home, & business ! 


According to google maps you're not that far north of ChristChurch !?

doug c


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## wigginsn (Jan 9, 2008)

Guess I coud have called them sausages - but if you were planning a road trip I thought I'd intoduce you to some local lingo..







Snarlers are definitely a good thing! I promise not to burn them..


Doug, Jake, we have been blessed out where we are (20 miles north of Christchurch central). No damage to our house, we have power, water, and waste water services functioning. I'm not sure what you are seeing on your news bulletins, but the damage in Christchurch and immediate surrounds is huge. We have many friends who have lost their homes, it's estimated that over 1/3 of the CBD will need to be pulled down.


An air bridge has been set up from a local park to chopper hot food and essential supplies to some of the worst hit suburbs. Things are not good for a lot of our people.


Neil


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## SteveC (Jan 2, 2008)

Neil

It's good to hear that all is well with you and your immediate family. However, I'm sure there is a great deal of shared concern and stress from the plight that you, your friends, and fellow countrymen currently face, and that can't be easy. From the reports I've read some edtimates run as high as 60% of Christchurch CBD will need to be brought down before rebuilding can begin, and more than a few major busunesses may just go under as a result. It feels like so very little to offer, but you'll be in our thoughts and prayers.


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## John J (Dec 29, 2007)

What is CBD?


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## Ken101Ward (Jan 1, 2010)

CBD = Christchurch Business District. That's the acronym I heard used on the news reports .


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## SteveC (Jan 2, 2008)

Hey Ken,

While the Christchurch Business District = CBD does work out, I believe that it's used in a more general form Central Business District, much in the way that we in the U.S. the term downtown.


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## John J (Dec 29, 2007)

I think we need a Food Forum









A place to share our favorite food, wine, beer and such, that we have while we run trains or work on our layout.









We could post recipes and ideas on how to cook them. 

JJ


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