1/16 scale light industrial railway with prototype gauge 10.25"

[mad gerald]

G'day all,

dabbling with Feldbahn modelling in 1/16 scale for some time I finally decided to do it.

It's going to be a little Feldbahn/supply railway for agricultural/estate and/or workshop purposes with a prototype gauge of 10.25", within 16,25 (16,5) mm track in 1/16 scale.

A lot of Feldbahnen, light industrie or minimum railways can be found worldwide:

10 and a Quarter Inch Gauge Railway Society *klick*

The Weimibahn (240 mm) *klick*

The Wigwell Light Railway *klick*

A Ns1 loco in scale 1/2 *klick*

Even in Spain *klick*

and at Wolds Way Lavender *klick* the harvest is collected and being transported by train, even on 7,25" track ...

My Feldbahn/supply railway is not going to be a downscaled model of any existing prototype. It's going to be a realistic, kinda "home-made" railway, how it would have been built by an owner of a 10.25 light railway ... but in my case only a 1/16 scale model of it.

1/16 is huuuuuuuge, compared i. e. to scale 1/22,5 modelling!

But IMHO the choice of 1/16 is not so bad ... au contraire ... it has a lot to commend it, because
- At first it feels very comfortable regarding aging eyes and fingers
- one could use common 16,5mm track, if one does not like to lay track by hand
- the smallest reported radius for 260mm railways is 2500mm, makes approx 150mm in 1/16 scale - would be even tight enough for a 1/16 scale pizza
- common motor units/bogies and wagons could be used for basis
- the lack of figures is not so bad as it seems at first sight, as for a 1/16 scale micro layout you only need a couple of figures, which i. e. could be recruited from military modelling -> adopt, adapt and improve (motto of the round table)
- there are a few older cars available in 1/16, i. e. a Volkswagen Beetle, which could be placed kinda abandoned and rusty on the layout or in a barn

I already started with my "finger exercises" *klick*, to get a feeling for size, proportions and looks for this bigger andfar more voluminous scale.

Just to prevent lost of "look and feel" of this large scale I decided to built a mini diorama first, with a bit of track and 2 reliefs of buildings. Latter ones are cardboard mock ups yet, built "quick and dirty ... umm, well not THAT quick and dirty, but my kids won't share their LEGO bricks and so I needed something different. These cardboard mock ups will be swapped for some more modell-like building reliefs, so I have the opportunity to try different stuff and techniques and have a nice backdrop for photos on top.

The chassis for a battery storage locomotive is the former unspoilt inner frame of the 1/22,5 scale Struppe Akkulok with a damaged outer frame and cab from liquid plastic glue.

For the wagons I cand imagine a kinda blend consisting of elements from the modern Feldbahn wagon I created and the wagons of the (former) supply railway running at Lainz/Vienna.

The 1/16 guy, Rev. Erence, of BRUDER Toys is not part of modelling for sure, but he is very helpful for reference purposes regarding plannning of rolling stock and buildings, especially as he's got movable/bendable limbs.

In case of interest a few more pics are available at my website ...







Cheers

[finescalerr]

A rather short railroad, isn't it? -- ssuR

[lab-dad]

WOW!
Seems this thing is catching.
Nice to be in on the ground floor.
That 10" gauge seems awful narrow, why not just do a monorail? <grin>
I like the idea of the figure, I had looked at the wooden ones artists use but dont think the limbs would stay put. I'll have to look for one, just can't be a reverend as my language is too colorful.

Looking forward to more.
-Marty

[mad gerald]

A rather short railroad, isn't it? -- ssuR

...muahaha ... you must be Joe King ...  

WOW! Seems this thing is catching.

... yup ...

That 10" gauge seems awful narrow, why not just do a monorail? <grin>

... the avarage width of 10.25" prototype rolling stock has been reported to range between 2'2" and 2'6", so this loco would only have approx. the dimensions of a ride on lawn mower ...  

I like the idea of the figure, I had looked at the wooden ones artists use but dont think the limbs would stay put. I'll have to look for one, just can't be a reverend as my language is too colorful.
Looking forward to more.
-Marty

... Marty, see: ... the Rev. Erence comes along almost as colourful as a pied piper, so I guess he would be interested in expanding his active vocabulary and mastering new idioms ...  

Cheers

[shropshire lad]

I'll have to look for one, just can't be a reverend as my language is too colorful.

Looking forward to more.
-Marty

  I wouldn't worry to much about offending the reverend , to two that I have had dealings with swear worse than any builder I know . One's gay and the other is built like a female Russian shot putter .

  Nick

[lab-dad]

Gerald,
What are you planning on using for journal boxes?
Eventally I will need some.
A boxcar might be a nice change for me.
Marty

[mad gerald]

Marty,

Gerald,
What are you planning on using for journal boxes?

... as in 1/16 scale almost nothing is manufactured/available, it has to be built DIY ... I've got no idea yet, but I guess I'm gonna use ball bearings (3x1mm) and eventually hide them in a special frame similar to the wagons of the supply railway in Lainz/Vienna ... or gonna use 0n30 trucks, which seem pretty close to the ones used at minimum railways of 10.25" ...

A boxcar might be a nice change for me.

... IIRC, there's mainly coaches and wagons on minimum railways, boxcars can hardly be found ... or are you thinking of a different gauge (i. e. 2' or 3') in 1/16 scale ... ?

Cheers

[lab-dad]

Yes; 3' gauge in 1/16
Mj