Indholdsfortegnelse for JULY / AUGUST / SEPTEMBER - 122 i Voie Libre international

This fimr has released an animated garage in its Le Décor Vivant range. A mechanic pushes a 2CV van, an attendant fills a car with petrol, and in the workshop, a welder mends a vehicle. Naturally, the buildings are lit and the printed facades are already decorated. The kit consists of 3mm thick card, onto which thin card facings are glued. The various animations are driven by motors concealed under the base, together with the electronic boards that control them. The moving figures, 3D printed, are supplied assembled, the arms of the attendant are mobile, and so are the legs of the mechanic pushing the Citroën (the vehicles are not supplied). RÉGIONS & COMPAGNIES REF. QUA A33 PRICE: €189…

ALBION ALLOYS/ALPHA ABRASIVES Price: €3.50 to 12.95 depending on the references https://www.oupsmodel.com Oupsmodel, the mail order store specialized in static kits, staretd a few months ago to distribute a range of abrasive files that seemed of interest to the Voie Libre editorial team. They are produced by a Canadian firm specialized in industrial abrasives. The files, rectangular in shape, are 3 to 20mm wide by par 16.5cm long for grain ranging from 100 (coarse) to 400 (very fine). For conveniency’s sake, the different grains are identified by colours. Even though these are disposable tools, their lifetime is acceptable. And above all, the very regular grain of the abrasive ensure quality work.…

The layout at a glance Scale: 1/100 Gauge: 9 mm Track: Peco Dimensions: L-shaped 120 × 165cm Control: analogue Robert Barnard often wondered whether it might be possible to create a layout reproducing one of those lines. This would be a change from his customary 009 modelling. H012 seemed an obvious choice, but finding a Corpet-Louvet 0-6-0 tank engine was trickier! Scratchbuilding a model could have been one option, but Robert wasn’t keen on too complex a project. It was during an online meeting, while two friends were discussing their modelling work in TT scale around the 3’ gauge lines in the Isle of Man and Ireland, that a solution popped up: using Fleischmann and Roco steam engine chassis, whose driving rod is connected to the rear axle, combined with…

ONLY CORELESS MOTORS To help you make your choice, we have attempted to inventory the products that are available. First, we will take a general look at the various brands, before presenting diagrams in 1/1 scale, listed by gauge, which should help you clarify matters and compare all these wonderful little mechanisms. What prompted this study was the appearance on the market of ranges of bogies fitted with modern coreless motors, which are both compact and powerful. Our list is probably incomplete, and we have also ignored a few models whose availabily seemed too unreliable. This is not an exhaustive study, but we hope you will find what you need to motorize all your projects. And don’t forget that these bogies require to be ballasted to achieve optimal performance. BD…

This solution is the result of Étienne Dubois’ cogitations. Our readers are familiar with his Clandestine Distillery (Issue 107 of Voie Libre). His starting point was the following problem: how to design a simple device to change tracks, without having to fabricate either the mobile parts such as the point blades, or complex ones such as the frogs or wing rails? Commercial turnouts often take up space, and this is often at a premium on our layouts; this solution restricts to the maximum extent possible the area taken up by track-changing devices HOW DOES IT WORK? The starting point was to use the operating principle of a turntable: a length of track swivelling on a central pivot, and serving several tracks. Where Étienne’s proposal differs is that he fits two…

A peek at the structure of the layout, we can observe: the softwood, the struts supporting the track, the armature of the relief. The fascia is cut out of 3mm MDF. The volumes consist of a 2mm steel mesh structure, covered with mosquito netting, itself covered with paper tissues steeped in plaster. The plaster rock castings are linked to the ground with papier mâché. The layout at a glance Scale: H0 (1/87) Gauge: 9mm Dimensions: diam. 60cm Inspiration: Colorado Rockies Justin Harscoët: Flavio, what prompted you to build a layout? Flavio Volante: I began modelling in H0 narrow gauge some 10 years ago. My first purchase was a MinitrainS set in H09 consisting of a small Baldwin 0-4-0 tank engine and a few mine skips. Gradually, I enlarged this rolling…

My inspiration was the Mae Klong market in Thailand, where trains run right through the middle of vendors’ stalls, restaurant terraces and fascinated Western tourists. I also drew on memories from my student travels in South-East Asia, from my diaries and the large amount of more or less tangible information I brought home. To the left of the scene, the Vietnamese station of Ga Long Biên, adjacent to a floating market, and to the right, the Thai shopping street through which the train runs. I added many details gathered here and there. François Fontana: Before we look at the artistic side of the layout, tell us about the technicalities. Thomas Schmid: The layout is built in 1/35 scale on 32mm gauge track, meaning something like metre gauge on steroids. 1/35…

This dynamic retailer has released two new PKP liveries for the Bemo L45H Faur BB. Unit Lxd 2 286 is in classic red livery with yellow stripe, and Lxd 2 308 is in dark green Stonka livery with orange stripe, normally applied to standard gauge diesels. This livery was then applied to it following its remotorization in 1983 with a Wola motor (Henschel licence) instead of the original Maybach, by the PKP works at Siedlce. The features of the Bemo rmodels remain unchanged, they are supplied in 9mm gauge, but the axles can be swopped for 12mm gauge. SCHMALSPURBEDARF WWW.SCHMALSPURBEDARF.DE REF. 1020 986 RED WITH YELLOW STRIPE REF. 1020 982 STONKA PRICE: €320…

Arnoud Bongaards is a Dutch enthusiast, well known in the world of 60cm gauge preservation and for his collection of documents relating to this gauge. He has decided to share them with the public in a a slightly unusual way. His approach consists in selling models in 1/10th scale built out of 2 and 3mm thick laser-cut plywood. I assembled the reproduction of an Orenstein & Koppel tipper skip. Supplied in a pleasingly illustrated cardboard box, the kit consists of seven very neatly cut sheets. It comes with generously illustrated instructions. The tooling required for assembly is restricted: a scalpel, a sheet of medium grain abrasive paper and wood glue. All the parts are identified by a number and a letter, which reduces the risk of mistakes during assembly. All…

Nobuo is a gifted Japanese modeller, who regularly creates a new mini-layout on which he constantly challenges his own limits, adding a new technological or artistic feature. This time, he shows us his summer leaves. And because it sounds to our ears like a poem, we decided to review this layout in a summer issue, encouraging you, we hope, to create and dream. After this preamble, let us give the floor to Nobuo. MY « PANEL LAYOUTS » I built several layouts on two small pannels that are stored face to face, forming a box that can travel in public transport, is easy to display to the public and fits onto the shelves at home. I show you here my latest creation in 0 scale on 9mm gauge track. 0…

The Café du Port is inspired by the Café de la Gare at Bois-le-Roi in Seine-et-Marne. This is a place where you can sit today on the terrace and watch the trains passing by or calling at the station. The doors and windows have been enlarged and modernized, but the place remains recognizable and its name is unchanged. On the layout, it is set at an angle in relation to the backdrop. Note To make them sturdier, the tile sheets are steeped in liquid superglue. They are then cut to their final dimension and glued in place at the top of the facade.…

For my Confinémo layout in 0n18 scale, related to my passion for Jules Verne, designed during the lockdown period, I wanted some original rolling stock that could be built with the materials I had to hand. As I did not know how to build motive power, I followed the advice of my friend Christophe: simply fit a homemade body to an existing locomotive. I had four DCC fitted American locomotives and this is where my professional work in a water treatment plant must have had an influence on my choice… The bodies call on what you can imagine. This is a plastic material which is easy to work with, I coated it with marine portholes, rivets, plastic sheet doors, part from Kinder gadgets, and all sorts of bits and bobs…

We met online, on a specialized website. When I saw her (frankly poor) pics, it was love at first sight. How could she be so totally American? I was overcome with desire,she had to be mine and to do so, I would reproduce her. Because this Beauty was a long way from me, both space- and time-wise. A wooden-bodied steam railcar, based on a Climax, she was built by the San Francisco and Northwestern Railway, a short-lived (1903 to 1907) standard gauge company, for a branch between Alton and Carlotta, two remote communities in North California. The chief carpenter of the company was obviously keen to show off how gifted he was; there are basket-handle arches above all the windows, including on the front panels which are themselves basket-handle shaped.…

What with a few artisans, Peco and Bachmann Europe, the Ffestiniog railway is very popular with British manufacturers! It must be said that over 190 years of commercial, then touristic operation, the system saw a very wide range of rolling stock in service. The most recent item to appear on the market is this splendid brake-van which appears in the famous «Spooner Album». Built in 1873, rebuilt and modified several times since that date, the prototype was restored to its original condition in 2024. Fitted to a metal chassis, the panelled body is neatly cast. The very specific curves of the roof are perfectly reproduced. The decoration, featuring plenty of lining, is faultless. And the markings are to the same standard. The only negative point is the price. With such…

Following on from the Real Colors Markers, the AK Interactive brand has released a new range of ready-to-use acrylic paint: the Playmarkers. Unlike the Real Colors, whose tip was very much like that of a felt-tip, the Playmarkers take the form of a paintbrush. They are very simple to use: after having shaken the marker somewhat, remove the cap, press the button to load the tip with paint, and get to work. The markers come in an elegant box, and the color chart features 34 coulours (of which are metallic). Don’t get taken in by the names of the shades, this product mainly targets figure painters, but the colours are perfectly suitable for railway modelling. This set is ideal for painting small surfaces and touchin up paint without having to…

There is hardly a French village that does not feature a church, yet this type of building is almost non-existent in the catalogues of H0 scale building manufacturers. This small rural church, somewhat ancient, with its steeple and elaborate porch, will be at home on a great many of the secondary railway layouts we are so fond of at Voie Libre. THE KIT The parcel is quite bulky and is part of the Easydeco range – meaning that the model does not require any special decoration – it consists of a fair number of laser-cut boards that we discover on opening the package. The infrastructure, cut out of 3mm thick card, is of an exceptional quality. The outside cladding, reproducing the facings and stonework, consists of 0.8mm thick card. Christophe,…

The Pertuiset rock was an obstacle on the road from Saint-Étienne to Brioude. In 1841, it was decided to cross the Ondaine river on an elegant two-arch bridge, while a tunnel was dug under Le Pertuiset and the Loire was crossed by a bold and ultra-modern suspension bridge, with a wooden deck. The site is delightful and soon became an excursion destination. In 1885, the PLM line from Saint Just-sur-Loire to Firminy was built over the top of the neighbourhood on a fine 9-arch viaduct. In 1907, the local tramway company extended its tracks to a point located almost under the viaduct; the line was electrified in 1912. The terminus and its shelter were located just short of the PLM bridge. On the other side, cafes and taverns flourished, and…

Nowadays a tourist line, the Kiso Forest Railway was built to carry logs of different species of trees. This forest, renowned for its «five holy species» used to be the realm of the small Baldwin 0-4-2 tank locomotives, familiar to railway modellers as they have been widely reproduced since the 1970s. THE FIRST LOCOMOTIVES Since the first commercial and military partnerships between Japan and the United States at the end of the XIXth century, American industry had found numerous opportunities on the Japanese market. In 1907, Baldwin delivered a first series of three engines to the Imperial Forestry Bureau, the public administration in charge of forests, their management and the related supplies. In the Baldwin nomenclature, these engines belong to the C class. A second batch of four locomotives followed…

SEE IT AT TRAINS D’ICI ET D’AILLEURS This is a freestyle model, based on various photos and drawings of prototype wagons in 2’ and 3’ gauge. It’s a 16’ long prototype, quite compact, that I suggest you build. This scratchbuilt project does not feature any specific difficulties, and is accessible to all modellers. So grab your tools! 16ft Boxcar - HOn30 / HO9 Drawings by Flavio Volante. Scale 1/87 SUPPLIES Evergreen plastic strips: • Sides: passenger carriage grooved planks ref. 3035 • Floor: 1mm thick sheet ref. 9040 • Cladding: 0.25mm thick sheet ref. 9010 • Reinforcing strips: 2.5 × 2.5mm strips ref. 175 Wood strips: • Cosmetic chassis frames: 1.5 × 1.5mm strips • Bogie pivot girders: 1 × 4mm strips • Walkway: 0.5 × 5mm strips Details: •…

In the modelling field, beyond the immediate advantage of being able to reproduce original machines, stock or buildings, having a 3D printer in your workshop can be very useful for a whole range of applications. For example, if need be during a scratchbuilding project, I never hesitate to fabricate small tooling. For instance, the “large” Evergreen strips, more than 2.5mm in section, are rather difficult to cut cleanly. To avoid this problem, I modelled a series of mitre boxes for cutting such strips neatly. The device is a rectangular parallelpiped with slits up to the two-thirds of its height. These slits are adapted to the thickness of the Tamiya saw blades I generally use to cut polystyrene. The longitudinal kerf corresponds to the width of the strip. The big advantage…