Indholdsfortegnelse for APRIL / MAY / JUNE 2023 - 113 i Voie Libre international

FROM SHADOWS TO LIGHT Just like that famous mouse - Terence Cuneo’s mascot – is somewhere in a corner, but never far from the light, railway modellers work in the shadows on their carefully designed small worlds. And these creations often spring from a variety of inspiration sources, not always obvious: historical, geographical, artistic… In this isssue, we shine the spotlight on all these sources, so that each modeller can draw on whatever he or she prefers. We also review some collective creations, often highly successful as hard work gets shared and talents add up. No doubt about it, railway modelling, the fruit of many hours toiling in dimness, is a hobby that emerges to be displayed and shared. Grab your tools!…

We had already reviewed the senior sisters, here are the junior ones: the saddle tank engines from the Dinorwic Quarry and Dorothea Quarry. The least one can say is that they are indeed tiny! Just 47.5mm long, 23.3mm wide and weighing 33g. Two versions of superstructure are available, with or without cab, and in four equally pleasing liveries. The small coreless motor (with flywheel) drives the rear axle, and the engines can easily haul a string of skips, the only limit being adhesion, given their restricted weight. But it takes two dozen axles on a steep gradient to reach that limit, meaning they are well able to perform the type of service you would expect from them. And, although this may seem incredible, they are pre-fitted for a decoder. To…

H0-9 This set of 3 vehicles, two Bi/s 14 and 16 carriages and a Gwk/s 101 van/box van, reproduces a consist from the well-known Zillertalbahn railway in Austria. The dark brown livery – slightly different on each carriage – that is typical of that railway is from Epoch III, and will complement the carriages released a few years ago. The engraving, although dating a bit, is sharp, and a few accessories have been added, which are already fitted: electrical couplers and vacuum brake hoses, railway plates. The standard loop couplings are compatible with the «Bosna» type Roco units. The box van, a tad «simpler», does not have any add-on details, and its doors are closed, unlike the earlier models. This van is also available separately in grey livery, numbered Gw/s…

Tramfabriek has further enlarged its range of coreless motor conversion kits by tackling the MinitrainS models. The kit tested here is designed for references manufactured and sold after 2012. In pratice, this incluides all the models featuring a motor installed vertically in the cab. The pouch comprises a small coreless motor, a machined brass flywheel, an etched brass part and two screws. The first task will consist in dismantling the engine to remove and disconnect the motor. The worm gear must then be removed from its shaft without damaging it! A small gear extractor is essential for this vital step. The worm gear is then fitted onto the shaft of the new motor, after having inserted the brass plate, with the etched side towards the motor. Take care to adjust…

Bernard, a gifted modeller and an active contributor to Voie Libre over many years, has passed away. He used to regale us with the construction, in 1/22.5 scale, of his garden layout, as well as of rolling stock items that were true scale models of those found on the Côte-d’Or metre gauge network. He knew how to be both an accurate and exacting technician and a bucolic poet. We will sorely miss his kindness and talent. The Editorial Team and myself express our deepest sympathy to his family and relatives. François Fontana…

HISTORY Ignoring the Pyrenees, which were already served by mainline railway companies, these metre gauge lines served the Garonne plain for almost half a century, connecting Toulouse with its rural hinterland; the city was already highly industrialized, but still a long way from becoming the European capital of aviation – this sector, at the time, was still in its infancy. FROM THE TOULOUSE – BOULOGNE TO THE CFSO In 1894, the departemental council of Haute-Garonne began studying a metre gauge line from Toulouse to Boulogne-sur-Gesse, a small town located in the south-west of the departement, well-known for its large maket. In 1897, the company to whom the concession had been awarded became the «Compagnie de chemin de fer d’intérêt local de Toulouse à Boulogne» (T.B.), and in 1901 the «Compagnie…

MY WORD, IT’S ALL MADE OF WOOD! Major is the most recent addition to the motive power roster of Ulvaryd, my Swedish 60cm gauge layout, set in the late 1940s. Its construction is inspired by a steam-powered fourwheeler railcar built for the Dala-Ockelbo-Norssundets railway, a Swedish three foot (891mm) gauge railway. It is currently preserved on the Jädraås-Tallås tourist railway, in the province of Gästrikland. I discovered «Major» («Majòrn» in Swedish) in Lars Olov Karlsson’s book about Swedish narrow gauge steam locomotives (Sveriges Smalspåriga Ånglok). I was at once taken by its appearance. The window arrangement immediately brought to mind the kit of the Innisfail tramway carriage, produced in 00-9 by Chivers Finelines (ref. RC810). Once the central doors are removed, what is left of the carriage sides is perfect…

Here is a splendid version in original blue and cream livery of the mixed adhesion-rack motor units of the Swiss Schöllennenbahn and Furka-Oberalp networks. Three such units, N° 41 to 43, were ordered jointly with the FO and delivered in 1941. They carried this livery until the two networks merged in 1961. During this period, they only ran on the stretch between Andermatt and Göschenen, just 3.77km long, but with a 17,9 % gradient. On this section, the units could haul a maximum of 17 tons, the weight of just one carriage. The other version is a model of the FO BDeh 2/4 nº 45, dark red with large Furka-Oberalp markings, yellow on one side and white on the other. These new versions are available in digital sound - ESU…

H0-9 /H0-12 This carriage, KB4ip 900-493, has a rather peculiar history… Built by Bautzen in 1930 as a standard carriage for 75cm gauge railways, it came from Oberwiesenthal on the Harz system, in August 1954 and was modified for metre gauge. The model reproduces the original body in red and cream livery with a black horizontal separation line, typical of the 1970s. It remained in this condition until 1985, when it was rebuilt with a welded body. Jacques Royan TILLIG REF. 13920 PRICE OBSERVED: 50 €…

Another welcome initiative by Tramfabriek. As is customary, Sven Van Der Hart has imagined and marketed a product he missed as a modeller. We refer to hook couplings designed to replace the large loop couplings that meet NEM standard 355, and which are found, inter alia, on the Peco and Bachmann Narrow Gauge models. Sold in packs of 12, they are inspired by the the «Norwegian coupling» and consist of pairs of buffers, one of which is fitted with a hook that fits into the slit on the opposite buffer. They are also evocative of the «Artillery» coupling, in which the hook is replaced by a link. Each coupling head consists of a shank made of a synthetic material and of an etched nickel silver hook. Once fitted to your…

TO TRAVEL EDGAR, TAKE A LOOK AT: HTTP://TACOTDESLACS.FREE.FR And if this engine is in 60cm gauge and has been built on Decauville drawings, the Voie Libre Editorial Team halted the printing presses to herald its arrival and wish EDGAR a warm welcome to France! By the time you read these lines, Edgar will have started running on the Tacot des Lacs railway. Edgar is the fruit of a project that could have been considered crazy, but was actually perfectly sensible, having in fact succeded: building a new steam locomotive… Launched in the U.K. in the early 2010s by John Nemeith, work was completed in 2018 by North Bay Engineering for John Sutton.And Edgar’s special feature is that it is a replica of a Type 1 Decauville 0-4-0! EVERYONE KNOWS THE…

Once upon a time, there was the white train, and its elder brother, the black train. Much could be said about the black train… The most ancient among the rolling stock of the metre gauge network operated by the Compagnie du Sud Ouest, which served the Toulouse area for several decades from Roguet station, it survived until the late 1940s (1), dedicated to serving local rural markets, puffing and wheezing along the hillsides and through the woodlands. I can still recall it through vivid childhood memories, stopped at Blajan-Nizors station, that hot, grubby, greasy beast. Its driver wore goggles, pushed back on his forehead, revealing two white eyes in the midst of a blackened face, a three dimensional image reminiscent of Jean Gabin in the film «La bête humaine», but…

DISCOVERY The line originated at Bellinzona, the main city in the canton of Tessin, at an altitude of 244m. It had its own station, located some 500m from the main CFF Gothard line station. Built in metre gauge, entirely on its own right of way, the line was electrified in 1500V DC from the start. After a 31.3km journey, with gradients of up to 60 ‰, it ended at Mesocco, at an altitude of 769m. The trains ran through three tunnels, crossed 28 bridges including three large ones, and served 16 stations and halts. After 6.9 km, above Lumino, it left the canton of Tessin and entered Grisons. The goods traffic exchanges took place at Castione sation, that was shared by the CFF and the B-M. The company had its…

NEATLY EMBEDDED On my latest projects, I wanted my buildings to be integrated into the ground, so that they could be recycled on other projects or, in some cases, sold on. The solution I suggest makes it easy to decorate around the building, the latter being installed later, and also avoids accidentally breaking details such as balconies, gutters or drainpipes; this can happen, for example, when applying grass with a Gras-Master device or any other bulky appliance. DEFINING THE LOCATION Place your building temporarily on the ground and trace its outline in pencil. Avoid using a felttip, as ink stains will appear on the surface of the ground, and they will be difficult to remove. Cut 3mm wood strips to the right length. After having drilled them, pin them down…

This originally Saxon locomotive for 750mm narrow gauge is available with an ESU V5 sound decoder and working front, rear and cab lights. Based on an all-metal Bemo kit, assembly and painting are performed by a professional workshop and are above reproach. The prototype engine, nº 99 597 built 1914, was part of a class of 96 locomotives built between 1892 and 1922 by the Sächsische Machinen Fabrik (previously Richard Hartmann) at Chemnitz. They were 4-cylinder compound engines of the Meyer type, delivering 210hp and able to run at a maximum speed of 30 km/h. Weighing 29.6 tons, these engines could handle 40m radius curves! The sound sequences accurately reflect the fairly hushed exhaust of a compound locomotive, with a wide choice of whistle modulations, and various operational or running…

In charge of supplying ammunition to the Royal Navy, the Royal Navy Armaments Depots (R.N.A.D.) managed until 1990 many large storage facilities, some being operated with 2’6» (762 mm) gauge narrow gauge railways. The end of the Cold War led to the closure of many of these sites, and consequently to the sale of a large part of the rolling stock. This stock is now found on various British heritage railways. Before releasing a R.N.A.D. Baguley-Drewry tractor, Bachmann Europe has produced a range of R.N.A.D. wagons, both in military and tourist versions. The 13 references are all built on the same 4-wheeler chassis. The castings are very sharp. The many add-on parts – a special mention for the coupling chains – enhance these wagons significantly. The paint and markings, sharp…

H0-12 Layout Four mates, living all around the country, all railfans and all having worked in real railways or railway modelling. Let’s take a closer look at this «gang of four» and their impressive creatio François Fontana: Hello Julien, you are tasked with being the spokesperson for the Gang of Four and with describing this attractive layout. Julien Bouton: Indeed, I am going to speak for Christophe, Mickael, Laurent and myself. We make up the «Gang of Four». Basically, our aim was to promote narrow gauge in the railway modelling community. Bit by bit, the group became a band of friends, passion took over from promoting, and the layout began to live its own, autonomous, life. FF: In summary, what is this layout? JB: A large L, 11 metres long.…

LAYOUT PROJECT This layout project combines the typical features of the Compagnie des Chemins de Fer du Sud-Ouest. Built on three modules each measuring 120 × 50cm, the focal point is a station inspired by that at Blajan with its two-door station building and its semi-detached goods shed. The trackplan is simple: a passing loop serves the goods shed, and a dead-end siding fitted with a weighbridge allows for weighing and parking wagons. Another loop runs round the back of the building, allowing for goods to be transferred directly in the station yard. Blajan station never boasted a water tower, but there is nothing to prevent installing one, as well as a water column on the platform between the two tracks. A private siding serves a nearby quarry: is features…

CENTRAL FOLDER For those who know the BA, there is a difference between the part of the line located in Berry (from Le Blanc to Chabris) and that located in Sologne (from Gièvres to Argent-sur-Sauldre). The proportions of the station buildings are equivalent or almost so, but the quoins and apertures are made of stone in Berry, and of bricks in Sologne. The biggest differences are the lengths of the goods sheds and the addition of a wing to certain station buildings. Among these buildings, there were however some exceptions, most probably due to the levels of traffic expected locally. The exceptions are Loreux in Sologne, and in Berry: Lingé, Chaventon and SaintMichel-Saint-Cyran. These station buildings are smaller and do not feature the customary ceramic frieze on their cornice. The…

Rolling stock 100% CARDBOARD NOTE If properly scaled down, my wagon should measure 126 × 50mm. I shrank its dimensions to a length of 116mm and a width of 46mm, so that it blends in better with the remainder of my rolling stock. OK, the «diamonds» are actually sheetmetal, and to be totally honest, cardboard. But once painted, no one will know! What is more, when it comes to the diamonds, I shall only make the tips… But that’s better than nothing! My wagon is based on nº 130 from the Decvauville catalogue; on page 827 there is a 4-wheeler open wagon with pressed steel sides, built for the Chemin de Fer d'Intérêt Local du Département du Nord. This is the drawing I converted for 16.5mm gauge, using a Peco…

HOW TO WIRELESS CONTROL Voie Libre: Hello Éric. We contacted you to help us and our readers make a reasoned choice out of the wide range of DCC units available on the market. The requirements of the Voie Libre readership are probably a bit special. So we drew up a short list that seems to meet most of them. Our dream DCC unit must be able to operate layouts with the following features: - Small to medium layouts. - Non-linear trackplans plans including balloon loops or reversing triangles - - A limited number of turnouts or crossings. - Plenty of shunting. - No electric signalling. - Slow and short trains. First of all, can you remind us what is found in a digital control system? Éric Limousin: Of course! A…