The Fat Cave

Sorry I have been a little quiet of late. I might start by showing a couple of projects that are nearly at their completion. I did show this one a while back. It is basically finished now;

 

Pretty happy with the way it come up. This will mostly feature in my container yard where it will be nicely viewed waiting for containers to be dropped in.

This is another that I have been working on. I will talk about this one later. It was a major kit bash involving an IDR PHV Kit and an On Track Models GLV RTR model

Still a little work to do. Got to add Dampers to the bogies, Brake Wheels and decals.

I got my hands on this nice model Recently. It puts to shame the work I did to try and fix up and Austrain's Model.

I have just finished off a review of this SDS model for the AMRM but I am going to do a bit of a review and comparison of this new guy on my blog, compared to earlier models produced of the 81 class. Just out of interest.

This Auscision 44223 I weathered up for a good friend of mine Greg Riddel for him to give to his son George as a Present

Now for the title of this Blog, The Fat Cave. 

I just want to share some photos of my layout as it stands ATM. I had a chance to clean up the fat cave so I took some unobstructed shots. Anyway enjoy. I am going to go into detail about what the layout is all about soon. I want to share the ideas and scenery process as I am working on it. Anyway some shots.

Hidden storage, 7 staging tracks. Hinged scenery block. Branch line heading up the right side

This will be a Container Yard 

On the Sydney end of the staging. 7 staging tracks and 3 terminating tracks. A branch line terminal over the top. Not sure what I am doing here as yet. Tracks are only random ATM

The number 8, 3rd back is a short dead end for  DEB Set storage 

road 9 and 10 will be for loco hauled Passenger Sets to be stored. The branch will have a timber trestle above this with a lift out scenery block behind. 

Control panel for the staging

This area will have a lift out placed in above the staging. The siding that will head off onto the hinged scenery block will be BGF I think

The down end of the location modeled. A branch line heads up over the staging and the mainline heads off through a tunnel into the staging. My plan is to have this tunnel as north coast modelled trains only. The rest of the layout is anything NSW

The Junction for the branch on the down end of the yard. There will be a third control panel near this location for the junction signal box. This end of the yard controlled by the box and the up Sydney end will be CTC.

Another angle. The track at the top is a lead from the back platform road that will be used most to store terminated passenger trains waiting for there time to head back to Sydney. 

The lead off to the grain silo

A look at the main yard and the island platform.

The up end of the layout. This is the only real north coast looking part of the layout. There is going to be a disused old turn table pit at the end of the old loco. 

The container yard and goods shed

In the foreground will be a small loco servicing area

A bit of shunting area and yard storage

Much of the container area will have the track in concrete

The entrance to the Fat Cave. showing the hinged bridge

This area is where the branch heads up a steep grade and a hill for the tunnel to go into

This will be farm land in the fore ground. There will be some suburbia behind the line of trees where the PVA is

Looking from near the goods shed

I have tried to make the best of the space available. Much of the furniture is now part of the layout

The main control panel. Still very much a work in progress

Although all the staging is wired up and all points working but the main layout is still to be wired. 

More updates as they come

Cheers Justin Moy