Gabrielle's Roar

Once upon a time, in the quaint little town of Willow Creek, nestled between majestic native greenery and a serene coastline, there existed a picturesque railway that connected the town to the outside world. This railway was the lifeline of the community, carrying passengers and goods to and from their beloved town. The railway tracks wound through lush forests, crossed over babbling streams, and offered breathtaking views of the landscape.

A somber sight

Rocks from the surrounding mountains

One fateful day, Cyclone Gabrielle, a ferocious storm, descended upon

 Willow Creek with unrestrained fury. The cyclone unleashed its wrath, tearing through the town, uprooting trees, and flooding the streams. The force of the wind and water was so intense that it left the railway tracks in a state of disarray, rendering the lifeline of the town useless.

The townspeople were devastated as they saw the extent of the damage. The once vibrant and thriving railway now lay in ruins. The trains that used to bring hope and prosperity had been halted in their tracks. It was a somber sight for everyone in Willow Creek.

However, amid the despair, there was a glimmer of hope. An old man named Peter, who had spent his entire life working on the railway, believed that the tracks could be rebuilt stronger than ever. He had seen the worst storms before and knew the resilience of the land.

Peter called upon the people of Willow Creek to join him in rebuilding the railway. The townspeople, though shaken, rallied behind their wise elder. They knew that it would take a joint effort to overcome the devastation brought by Cyclone Gabrielle.

With determination in their hearts, the people set to work. They cleared the debris left by the storm, assessed the damage, and began the painstaking process of rebuilding the railway. Peter had a plan to make it even sturdier, using rocks from the surrounding mountains and a larger track gauge of 7.25" to accommodate a larger Climax type locomotive. This locomotive had two steam cylinders attached to a transmission located under the center of the boiler, which sent power to driveshafts running to the front and rear trucks, while slow could haul much larger loads than the 5" 0-4-0 used prior.

The townspeople chiseled and shaped the rocks, forming a solid foundation for the new tracks. They worked tirelessly day and night, united in their goal to restore the railway. Slowly, the path of the railway started taking shape again, more robust than ever before.

As they rebuilt, the community also bonded. Neighbors who had drifted apart in the business of life came together to support one another. Families worked side by side, strengthening their bonds as they laid the tracks. The young and the old, the strong and the weak, all contributed to the reconstruction effort, proving the power of unity.

Months passed, and the railway began to resemble its former glory. The people of Willow Creek had done the impossible, turning a tragedy into an opportunity for growth and togetherness. When the day finally came for the first train to pass over the rebuilt tracks, the entire town gathered to witness the momentous occasion.

As the wheels of the train clacked against the rocks, a resounding cheer erupted from the crowd. Tears of joy welled up in Peter's eyes as he saw the fruits of their labour. The railway was not just a transportation system; it was a symbol of resilience, hope, and the indomitable spirit of the community.

From that day on, the people of Willow Creek never forgot the lessons they learned from Cyclone Gabrielle. They treasured their newly rebuilt railway and the bond it had forged among them. They knew that no matter what storms life threw their way, they would face them with courage and the strength of their unity, for they had witnessed the transformational power of rebuilding with rocks and rebuilding together.

1:24 Yc Wagon Build

 1:24 Yc Ballast wagon test build.

I considered making working hopper doors, not this time.

Download it here https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5867944

3 Foot 6 Models

A new entrant to the market this month is 3 Foot 6 Models. The company is a collaboration between Lewis Holden and Peter Bryant, Simon Lister, Michael Gee, Neil Ward and Dave Weedon, all of whom have submitted their 3D print designs (most of which are available currently via 3D printing website Shapeways.com).

Lewis Holden will produce the prints on his 3D printer farm, which features two 4K SLA (resin) printers to produce much higher quality prints than are currently available from Shapeways, and at a much better price, with postage that doesn't take months!

Like many others, Lewis was frustrated at the lack of improvement in the quality of Shapeways prints, and the inability for NZR modellers to access designs at reasonable prices.

www.3foot6models.com

Taieri Gorge rail/road bridge Download

Showing off a model of the combined road and rail bridge just before the Hindon railway station, (Taieri Gorge, NZ)

Was not drawn from plans but photo's, semi scale to HO / S. 

I've spent an hour or so optimizing file sizes and naming the parts for the bridge trying to upload it to thingiverse from a rather weak cellphone Internet connection! Here it is free to download, alter & 3d Print as you wish https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5448649

Actual Bridge (Credit - https://offthemainroadnz.com/2017/04/21/hindon/)

NZR R class near Hindon (Credit - https://offthemainroadnz.com/2017/04/21/hindon/)

1:87 NZR LPA Wagon Download

 Simple design of a 1:87 NZR LPA Wagon I drew up for my brothers NZR HO layout.

Should be able to make a decent rake quite cheaply, this file can be found here if you want to try it out for yourself. https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5441795

Designed for Hornby wheels & Kadee couplers. Body and chassis should friction fit together.

1-87 R class

 This weekends project is mainly revolving around the R class single Fairlie articulated locomotive, i'm using a rather basic plan that at least shows the pivot points. last night before finding some good pictures I drew up & 3d printed a basic shell to work out what's possible in terms of fitting a small motor & worm using an HO diesel truck drive & trickery. The rear wheels were taken from a hornby 4-4-0 I purchased on special specifically to try out the TTS sound chip which now resides in my 1:24 pecket. The rear wheels both pickup track power, just need to produce the side frames & bogie mount point.

Donor chassis mid surgery

1:87 50ft Car

 1:87 50ft Car, is a design of Neil Ward's https://www.nwmodelworks.com/ so if you're interested in owning your own model check him out, my printer is not as high quality as Neil's so what you see shouldn't represent his fine models. Anyway, I've stripped down the details, thickened the walls & further split the roof as to be printed separately. The seats i've printed on a "floor" that is glued to the chassis and acts as a grip for the main body shell that can easily be removed since it's held only by friction. The intent is to create a train for dad and brother david's ho layouts. 1st test car shown has a more basic chassis and an early take on the bogies. The ventilators are halfway finished but glazing done. Just need wheels, couplers and maybe a pacific or light mountain chassis for the steamer to haul it.

In the early hours of the morning a second shell emerges. 

Pre abrasion therapy the second shell is pretty clean considering the cheaper abs and worn printhead.

On the third day a third shell emerged into at least slightly more light.

On the 6th day he finally got the paint colour about right. I'm upgrading my brothers 30ft van body & soon chassis as his one is rather out of scale only ever so slightly but still enough to annoy me.