Toy Fairs And Train Shows For The Week Ending 14 December 2008

Toy Fairs And Train Shows For The Week Ending 14 December 2008

Date	Event	Address	Time	Adult
13-Dec	Big Southern Promotions - Hampshire Model Railway Exhibition and Fair	Court Moor School, Spring Woods, Fleet, Hampshire., GU52 7RY	10:30 - 15:30	Adult: £2.00 Child £0.50 OAP £1.50
13-Dec	First Bangor MRC - Christmas Exhibition	First Bangor Presbyterian Church Halls, Main Street, Bangor, Co Down., N IRELAND	10:00 - 17:00	Adult: £2.00 Child £0.50 OAP £0.50
13-Dec	Redruth Model Railway Club - Christmas Show	Redruth Community Centre, Foundry Row, Redruth, Cornwall., TR15 1AN	10:00 - 17:00	Adult: £1.00 Child £0.50 OAP £1.50
13-Dec	Rhyl & District Model Railway Club - 7th Annual 1-Day Charity Model Railway Exhibition	The Presbyterian Church Hall, Nant Hall Road (off High Street), (Near Iceland/Kwik Save), Prestatyn, Denbighshire., WALES	10:30 - 16:00	Adult: £2.00 Child £1.00 OAP £1.50
14-Dec	J & J Fairs Ltd.	The Knavesmire Stand, York Racecourse, (South side of city, off A64 bypass), York, Yorkshire., YO23 1EX	10:00 - 14:30	Adult: £2.00 Child £1.50 OAP £1.50

Adding Switches and More to Your Oval Model Train Layout

Adding Switches and More to Your Oval Model Train Layout

Let’s see what you can do with an oval on a 4′ x 6′ board. The first step toward variety of train operation is a pair of switches. They usually come in pairs, a right-hand and a left-hand switch.

You can tell which is which by looking at one from the end that shows only two rails. If the curved section turns out to your right, it is a right-hand switch, if to the left, it is a left-hand switch.

Some switches are made to work by hand, with small throwing levers on each switch. Others are actuated electrically by a control lever any distance awayon a control panel, for example.

Remote-control switches are more expensive than manual switches and are worth the extra cost when a single operator must handle everything on a pike, including switches at some distance from his train control on the transformer.

If switches are within reach of the transformer, however, they can just as well be manually controlled. If in addition to the “engineer” there is always a “switchman” available, he can handle manual switches at some distance from the transformer.

If you buy, in addition to your long oval, a pair of switches, two more curved sections of track, and four straight sections, you can make add two sidings to your oval.

With this layout you can have two freight stations on the sidings, with cars sitting on them waiting to be picked up by the locomotive.

If you attach uncouplers to the sidings, you can detach cars without touching them just by pushing a button on a control box placed near your transformer. Uncouplers can be attached to either straight or curved track with two-rail S-gauge trains.

If you like switching operations, you can buy another pair of switches, two curved sections of track, and two half-length straight sections, and sidings to your sidings.

The shortest sidings here are not very long, but they can hold a freight car or two, which will make for complications and complications are what make model railroading interesting. (That’s just another way of saying that there is a great deal to do!)

At the risk of appearing a bit ridiculous but for the purpose of showing just how much switching you can go in for on a 4′ x 6′ layout, you can even fit 5 levels of sidings on both sides of your oval.

Sidings are not, however, the be-all and end-all of railroading. You can use your first pair of switches, if you wish, to make an inner curve on your oval.

But you would like some sidings? Then add them to the oval with the inner curve.

Or you can add a second inner curvemaking an oval within an oval.

These are a few ideas for things you can do with a simple oval layout to make it more interesting, while keeping the space required to a minimum.

(Visit http://www.modeltrainreport.com/layout-examples.php to see diagrams of all the layouts in this article)

Bill Murphy offers advice about designing, building, maintaining and repairing model railroads at the Model Train Report website. Find out more about building your own model railway - sign up for my free “Model Railroad Design Secrets” e-course at http://www.modeltrainreport.com/course/

Toy Fairs And Train Shows For The Week Ending 7 December 2008

Date	Event	Address	Time	Adult
6-Dec	J & J Fairs Ltd.	The International Hall, Brentwood Centre, Doddinghurst Road, Brentwood, Essex., CM15 9NN	10:00 - 15:00	Adult: £2.00 Child £1.50 OAP £1.50
6-Dec	Mirfield Fire Station Sports and Social Club - 18th Mirfield Model Rail Exhibition	Mirfield Fire Station and adjacent halls, Huddersfield Road, Mirfield, West Yorkshire.	10:30 - 16:30	Adult: £3.00 Child £1.50 OAP £1.50
6-Dec	Swindon MRC - MODRAIL 2008	Greendown Community School, Grange Park Way, Grange Park, West Swindon, Wiltshire., SN5 6HN, UK	10:00 - 17:00	Adult: £3.50 Child £1.50 OAP £2.50
6-Dec	Yealmpton Community Association - Model Railway Show	Yealmpton Community Centre, Stray Park, Yealmpton, Plymouth, Devon., PL8 2HF	10:00 - 16:30
7-Dec	Barry Potter Fairs - Stafford	The Prestwood Centre, Stafford County Showground, Weston Road, Stafford, Staffs.., ST18 0BD, UK	10:30 - 13:30	Adult: £2.50 Child £1.00 OAP £2.00
7-Dec	J & J Fairs Ltd.	The Exhibition Centre, Norfolk Showground, Dereham Road, Norwich, Norfolk., NR5 0TT	10:00 - 15:00	Adult: £2.00 Child £1.50 OAP £1.50
7-Dec	J & J Fairs Ltd.	The Civic Centre, Chesterfield Road, (Inner Ring Road), Mansfield, Nottinghamshire., NG19 7BH	10:00 - 14:30	Adult: £1.50 Child £1.00 OAP £1.00
7-Dec	Swindon MRC - MODRAIL 2008	Greendown Community School, Grange Park Way, Grange Park, West Swindon, Wiltshire., SN5 6HN, UK	10:00 - 16:30	Adult: £3.50 Child £1.50 OAP £2.50
7-Dec	West Sussex O Gauge Group - Shoreham Christmas Exhibition	The Shoreham Centre, Pond Road, Shoreham, West Sussex.	11:00 - 17:00	Adult: £2.50 Child £1.50 OAP £2.00

Wizards in Winter - Model Trains Edition

This is what your train set could look like with the help of some snow! It should give you a good excuse to run that snow plough and also add some children playing in snow to your model train layout.

Click here: http://tinyurl.com/ontracks
and search for soft flake snow (£6.72 for 50cu. including shaker)

Don't forget to vacuum the snow up after you have finished with it so you can use it again next year!

How to Make Villages for Model Train Layouts : Using Wire Mesh to Make Train Layout Villages

Learn how to use wire mesh in the creation of a model train village in HO scale in this free train hobby video.