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My model railroad, or, the joys of modeling in On30.
10 years ago
General
I have a model railroad.
Kind of...
Right now, it is mostly in boxes, save for those things I am tinkering with. The wife and I have moved three times in 8 years, but we're finally settling down in one place, so having tackled most of the major repairs on the house (leaving only minor ones that I can do gradually), I will be setting up the trains soon. I have already bought the benchwork supplies, and am working on the space the layout will go in, on two walls of the game room - not a BIG space, about 8.5 feet long and 5 feet wide in an "L" shape, but better than nothing, right?
I am modeling in On30. For those who don't know, that means "O" scale (1:48 or 1/4"=1'), (n)arrow gauge, 30" track centers. Standard gauge is something like 56.5" between railheads. 30" gauge isn't common in the states, but was used fairly regularly in Europe (sort of - 760mm is close to 30"), and especially in British Colonies around the world. Sierra Leone's entire railway system was 30" gauge at one point. REALLY wish I could find some pictures or a book about THAT. :P
I am freelancing, which means I made up the background for my railroad, or railroadS in this case. The Faux Islands (pronounced Faw-kiss in the local dialect) are somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. They were colonized by the British, who built several small railroads on the Islands. Colonial narrow gauge (30") was chosen as the required standard, and most railroads built were industrial in nature. The Faux Islands were a hereditary Barony in the British Empire, but after the Second World War, the population dropped off and most of the railroads were mothballed, excepting the one connecting the capital settlement of the Islands with the big fishing port on Greyhaven Island.
In modern times, the new Baron has decided to take a more open hand in trying to revitalize the islands. The Greyhaven Tramway (GHT) is still running a mix of steam and diesel (but mostly steam as oil has to be imported), and the Cassaberry Area Traction System (CATS) was electrified long ago to serve the Fortress-town of Cassaberry, the Island chain's capital. There was a small line running to the town of Aberfelinya (currently mothballed and heavily storm-damaged), several lines running into the interior (mostly mothballed but some damaged from storms, rockfalls, and so forth), and two private industrial lines that still run sporadically: one to the sugar cane (or beet, I haven't decided which) plantation on the big island's North coast, and one from Cassaberry's port to the island's main electrical power station.
As the Faux Islands have no domestic oil production, diesel power is not a cost-effective solution, and steam locomotives are still in use on the Greyhaven Tramway. However, they are old and parts are hard to come by. As the island chain DOES have a good supply of native copper ore, the new Baron has decided to electrify the rail system and tying them all together, starting with the CATS (which as a trolley line was already electrified) and adding various other lines as resources permit. The Greyhaven Tramway will be electrified LAST, if ever, and may be kept under steam as a tourist attraction.
Now, you might ask yourself, "how is this Furry in any way, shape, or form?" Well, honestly, I have a lot of non-human miniatures I want to use on my model railroad, and the Faux Islands had another name, long, long ago. The Islands of Doctor Moreau. There will be cat-people, kobolds, jackal-folk, crocodile people, and so forth on the islands, though they tend to restrict themselves to the big island, in the town of Aberfelinya.
Kind of...
Right now, it is mostly in boxes, save for those things I am tinkering with. The wife and I have moved three times in 8 years, but we're finally settling down in one place, so having tackled most of the major repairs on the house (leaving only minor ones that I can do gradually), I will be setting up the trains soon. I have already bought the benchwork supplies, and am working on the space the layout will go in, on two walls of the game room - not a BIG space, about 8.5 feet long and 5 feet wide in an "L" shape, but better than nothing, right?
I am modeling in On30. For those who don't know, that means "O" scale (1:48 or 1/4"=1'), (n)arrow gauge, 30" track centers. Standard gauge is something like 56.5" between railheads. 30" gauge isn't common in the states, but was used fairly regularly in Europe (sort of - 760mm is close to 30"), and especially in British Colonies around the world. Sierra Leone's entire railway system was 30" gauge at one point. REALLY wish I could find some pictures or a book about THAT. :P
I am freelancing, which means I made up the background for my railroad, or railroadS in this case. The Faux Islands (pronounced Faw-kiss in the local dialect) are somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. They were colonized by the British, who built several small railroads on the Islands. Colonial narrow gauge (30") was chosen as the required standard, and most railroads built were industrial in nature. The Faux Islands were a hereditary Barony in the British Empire, but after the Second World War, the population dropped off and most of the railroads were mothballed, excepting the one connecting the capital settlement of the Islands with the big fishing port on Greyhaven Island.
In modern times, the new Baron has decided to take a more open hand in trying to revitalize the islands. The Greyhaven Tramway (GHT) is still running a mix of steam and diesel (but mostly steam as oil has to be imported), and the Cassaberry Area Traction System (CATS) was electrified long ago to serve the Fortress-town of Cassaberry, the Island chain's capital. There was a small line running to the town of Aberfelinya (currently mothballed and heavily storm-damaged), several lines running into the interior (mostly mothballed but some damaged from storms, rockfalls, and so forth), and two private industrial lines that still run sporadically: one to the sugar cane (or beet, I haven't decided which) plantation on the big island's North coast, and one from Cassaberry's port to the island's main electrical power station.
As the Faux Islands have no domestic oil production, diesel power is not a cost-effective solution, and steam locomotives are still in use on the Greyhaven Tramway. However, they are old and parts are hard to come by. As the island chain DOES have a good supply of native copper ore, the new Baron has decided to electrify the rail system and tying them all together, starting with the CATS (which as a trolley line was already electrified) and adding various other lines as resources permit. The Greyhaven Tramway will be electrified LAST, if ever, and may be kept under steam as a tourist attraction.
Now, you might ask yourself, "how is this Furry in any way, shape, or form?" Well, honestly, I have a lot of non-human miniatures I want to use on my model railroad, and the Faux Islands had another name, long, long ago. The Islands of Doctor Moreau. There will be cat-people, kobolds, jackal-folk, crocodile people, and so forth on the islands, though they tend to restrict themselves to the big island, in the town of Aberfelinya.
