Alice Springs ultra modern rolling stock progress.

Hi All

Here is some pictures of the rolling stock for ultra modern Alice Springs.

FQWYs are BGM kit bashes, seven sets, note: you must paint them black before undercoat, to stop them looking opaque.

FQAYs are cut down walthers kits, three down four to go, in progress!

CHAYs are walthers, fair bit of work to get them to operate correctly.

CQXYs are undec Auscision 45ft flats.

PTMYs are Athearn genesis tankers.

I have included Sadliers vans RLSYs no reason just thought I would like to have a couple, and some SCT vans, purely to keep the Alice Springs shunters busy.

Everything is bening coverted to Kadee number #5 couplers, because I have a stack of them and they work.

Enjoy scott

SDS Austrains AOQF AOQX SOC AN ANR SAR ore wagons

Hi All

Looks like the  SDS Austrains AOQF AOQX SOC AN ANR SAR ore wagons are close to production this year, they have released the following pack images via SDSs facebook site.

Perfect timing for a posible future Port Pirie layout!

Alice Spring ultra modern rolling stock

Hi  All

Here is a quick picture of the wagon for ultra modern Alice Springs painting in progress.

South Australian Railway station aerial photographs

Hi All

i have been doing some research on Port Pirie, I first visited the city in 1989, there were two shunters employed 528 had been recently transferred from Alice Springs.  However I didnt take too many shots of the station surrounds as I thought I would never need to model it.

The plus side is that I witnessed many train movements to and from Port Pirie, so operationally I am in a good place.

The other plus is that the South Australian Government has a web site that you can check out and buy some of their old aerial photographs, I purchased one such photograph for Crystal Brook, yonks ago.

So here is the link:

https://apps.environment.sa.gov.au/MapFinder/#bookmark

All you need to do is select a date range, and a location.

Wait and a whole stack of blue pins will pop up.  Select one of the blue pins, and this will bring up all the photos in that range, they will be shown as red flags.

Click on the flag, and a yellow box will appear, showing you the size of the image.  Click the link this will tell you the date of the image.  Click on the thumbnail link and a low res image will show you what the image is like.

Below are some of the low res images.

Port Pirie

Crystal Brook, note th two workers sidings, station, and Goods shed still standing.

so a great reference for SA modelling, check it out.

https://apps.environment.sa.gov.au/MapFinder/#bookmark

Proposed new layout concept Port Pirie updated

Hi All

This is another proposed layout, I have not done a full size mock up, yet!

However its one of those things that you will always default to what you know the best.

This is about Port Pirie, in the AN era it is a busy area.  However I was also looking for some out and back action.  Thus I have added Crystal Brook, for and out and back for grain.  And a slice of Broken Hill for ore out and back.  In between then is staging tracks, for other in and out trains, such as the 260, 305 etc.

Port Pirie is an extensive shunting location, lots to do, I will outline that was I work the plan.  Shunt movements to an from the wharf area, taking bites out of larger rakes.  The key points here are large industry.  Dominating the scene.

On the peninsula, Crystal Brook, this is the out and back for the grain workings. ie somewhere to go.

Now Broken Hill, this is only a slice of the yard, its just too big to do completely in model form.

However key elements are two load out locations for Silverton to do their thing.

And industrial sidings, ie where fuel from Port Pirie would be distributed.  However the industrial sidings around Broken Hill would have to be accomplished by the SRA.  Thus another stand alone job.

Finally there is AN.  So the aim here is lots of little jobs that lots of operators can do without being all over everyone else.  And its a walk in layout, which is what I am after.

I have a modified plan, removed the hidden sidings.