Track Laying Progresses

After the arrival of the track needed today, tracklaying has progressed at a fairly large rate of knots. With the exception of the final lengths of track into the platform/Engine sheds, all the main running line is now laid including the pointwork leading into the sheds. Hopefully tomorrow will see the remaining track laid including the installation of the platform/Sheds.

To celibrate the first signs of a life long dream coming to life (a premanent outdoor railway), I decided to celibrate by buying a new steam engine. Naturely being skint after a car MoT, it couldn't cost much. So I went for a rehashed Mamod SL1 now produced by MSS.

After doing some research into these engines, some alarming facts started to come out (such as poor steaming with the solid fuel burner and being slightly uncontrollable) but with those facts/research, came a lot of solutions. From a meths burner (which I brought with the engine) to improve the steaming dramatically to uprated safety valves and cylinders.

For my engine, I want to keep it as standard as possible (mainly to keep the whistle!) but I do plan a few practical changes such as a Regulator, displacement lubricator, uprated safety valve and a Meths burner along with a couple of cosmetic changes like a Tender, tank caps and a brass chimney cap. So far pushing the engine up and down a length of track hasn't shown any issues with the cylinders and wheels which this class of engine is known to have but I'll have to see how it performs when I test run the engine hopefully tomorrow.

Cheers,

Jon