newbie and novice

diamondlady · newbie and novice

hello

this is all new to me- I've recently joined and today my 1st Mamod steam train set arrived...got it of Ebay...
I'm a complete novice and I havent even decided how to do my garden- I'm still in the ???? stage...
I have asked hubby if we can go to the Telford steam fair- it will be my 1st one!!! PLUS as we live within walking distance of the Stafford County showground I want to go to their show in the Autumn...
I live in a corner property so have garden all around...the Mamod that arrived today is going in my SIDE garden....the garden is on 3 levels and I'm planning track round the 2nd and 3rd level...I havent decided on if I'm going to have two seperate tracks -1 on each level or if its possible to build the track with 2 gradients from the lower lawn to a raised pond and then to the top garden...I realise the track has to be level but have seen photo's where people have built mountains with track going in a sprial up and a spiral down
this is where I need info on the practical side...for now I have bought 1 train set and 1 box of 8 straight and 1 box of 8 curved rails....so in total I have approx 28ft ? of track and I plan to buy a lot more...I've found some track 3ft in length and at £1 a piece and I'm planning on buying about £20's worth for now to see how I go...I'm still undecided on the bed for the track....breeze block or digging a trench and filling with hardcore and ? gravel....what sort of ballast do you use ?

DLR

First welcome to the forum

I stareted with these questions four years ago and hopfully have come up with some answers. Starting with the track, while mamod track is good for a small loop it's not what you want for a railway on the scale you are thinking. Peco track with plastic sleepers and metal rail is far stronger than mamod and can be moved around many times without fear of breaking the tabs that hold mamod track together. As you may have read else where the track really does need to be level for Mamod locos as they are not the strongest in the world but are good runners. If gradients are unavoidable then they are best kept very shallow like 1 in 100. That means for every 1 inch it goes up you go 100 inches along. On my railway i have a mixture of track beds, the ground level section is on concrete bricks sunk into the ground then leveled up and the earth packed around them and the track screwed on the top. The raised section is on gravel boards laid ontop of old fence posts dug into the groundabout 10 inches deep, leveled up and soil packed around it. As for balast i have always had bad experiences with it getting in the track and derailing locos but Pauly has built his railway using that method and has little trouble. I hope that is some use. Pauly's railway topic and my website are linked at the bottom.

Dan

www.freewebs.com/dlrail

http://modelsteam.myfreeforum.org/about10347.html

diamondlady · peco track

where's the best place to get Peco track ?

DLR

you can get it from many places but thes two are quite reliable, I would advise hiding the chequebook/credit cards though

http://www.track-shack.com/index....=08cc225712a919191be2a2ee3eecb9e4

http://www.pps-steam-models.co.uk/

diamondlady · thanks for the reply

sorry had a blip then! thanks for the reply...where can I get the best track ? at a reasonable price?
I have a big project ahead and I'm just in the ???? phase!!!
I had thought of concrete blocks but then hubby said balast looks good and some-where we read to use a mix of pva & water but i dont know if this is for indoor's our outside?
I want to add buildings but again Im in the ??? stage ita all ????
I've a lot of questions and a lot of planning to do but its a case of I WANT it NOW.....I can't wait to try out the train....
DL

diamondlady · track!

thanks for the info found the track £70 for 12 lengths....914 mm long........
PPS is on holiday till mid july...but the other company has it in stock...I'll have to wait till payday next week!! My hubby is on the living room floor geting the train set up....
Question....How do i know if the train is running as it should be?
If I was to time how long it took to go round the track would it give me an Idea if the train (2nd hand) is running as it should....IE is there a rough guide to how long the train take to travels on the flat for a certain distance? DL:

Roly Williams

If you're going to build the railway on ground at two levels, I would advise building it at the higher level and raising the track bed when it goes over the lower. If you're keen you could build a fancy viaduct but a wooden structure would be easier, or an earth embankment. Of course, the other alternative is to have two separate tracks at the two levels, but that's less interesting.

As for the expected speed, Mamod locos vary a lot but mine does about 1 or 2 feet per second, unloaded. Obviously, it will be slower if it's pulling a load. I only have the one, which I don't run very often. I'm sure our garden railway enthusiasts will give a more reliable figure.

pauly

Avoid gradients at all costs! I didnt know about this when I built mine and they ahve caused me nothing but trouble

http://modelsteam.myfreeforum.org/ftopic10347-0.php

alan2525

On the ground level sections, if you put some wooden edging in, or set in some log roll, to edge the trackbed, you can set the concrete blocks into the ground at 1 or 2 foot intervals and then drill and plug holes and screw the track down with small brass or stainless steel screws. Balast can be laid loose, ideally a layer of larger stone chippings, then shingle and finally a little layer of ballast on top. The larger to finer aggregate will help everything lock into place.

For the elevated sections, you can put a layer of roofing felt down on the exterior ply sub-base and lay the track onto that, screwing it down every 18 inches or so. The roofingfelt with small stone chippings on it, looks reasonable and can be improved with a scattering of ballast on top. I'd avoid using concrete or PVA mixed in with the ballast, atleast until you are happy with the trackwork being level.

Regarding your loco's speed, there's no real optimum speed, some loco's will run fast, whilst other Mamod loco's will run at a sedate speed, the more they are run, the more they will loosen up and run in before you really start to get any real performance. If you can get a reasonable length run, 10-15 minutes from the loco, and a reasonable speed then I'd be more than happy with the loco.

diamondlady · from DL

thanks for the info....my ebay purchase has been a bit disapointing...the mamod engine isnt as it should be and is taking some effort to get it going....we've finally got a bit of movement but it needs more work...so on saturday while in a 2nd hand toyshop we bought a used Princess of wales mamod and its brilliant....it actually goes a bit too fast for my temporary track...
I've noticed my ebay mamod train can take just 1 tablet cut in half where the newer train can take 3 half's plus another small half tablet cut in half...so allmost 2 full tablets....but i wonder if the centre of the fuel holder has been flattened by the previous owner to make the holder hold more tabs? or was it designed this way...
my husband wonder's if we could buy a new fuel holder for the mamod that holds more tabs? but would this cause problems with TOO much heat ? are there different shapped tabs that fit the holder better than the half round that we have bought...plus why do they use round fuel tabs in a none round holder?

johnreid

I suspect the first Mamod Loco needs the port faces polished
http://modelsteam.myfreeforum.org/about20032.html
It makes a world of difference

Roly Williams

The original holders are designed to take the old rectangular tablets or square ones broken in half. The new Mamod tablets are round and they may have changed the holders to suit. You are only supposed to use two tablets. If you use more, you run the risk of running the boiler dry, which is a definite no-no.

newbie and novice

peco track

thanks for the reply

track!

from DL