Innholdsfortegnelse for JANUARY 2017 - 88 i Voie Libre international

Getting steam engines up and running is also a lengthy and tedious task. In the case of 60cm gauge track, the French Artillery sought to alleviate such problems by using other types of motive power. THE LEROUX TRACTOR The Artillery even worried about this matter before the war, as it signed a contract on 3 February 1914 with the Leroux company in Valenciennes. Its purpose was the supply of a petrol-driven 8-wheeler engine, able to haul a 48 ton train on a 28 mm/m gradient. A four-cylinder 120hp motor drove the four axles via a jackshaft and side-rods. A winch was also foreseen. It was designed to enable a train consisting of the engine and of three Péchot flat wagons to move up a 100 mm/m gradient. It would seem…

1 In the Evergreen ref. 4544 sheet, cut two lengths of six intervals plus the outer ribs on a height of 2.5cm, and two lengths of 9 intervals plus the outer ribs, also on a height of 2.5cm. To make the cutting easier, mark the plastic sheet by running the cutter blade several times along the line, then fold the sheet until it snaps. The cut will be clean if the marking with the blade has been even. 2 On the larger parts, and before assembling the body, cut out two windows. Cutting will be easier if it is done from the back, as the vertical ribs won’t get in the way, but it will be harder to determine exactly where the windows are located. The window dimensions are ca.…

Lime is one of the oldest forms of industry, dating back to Antiquity. Once quarried, chalk is exposed to temperatures ranging from 900 to 1200° C, a process which generates a lot of CO2, both from the fuel and from the chalk during its calcination. The result is a powder which, depending on its chemical properties, can be used as an agricultural fertilizer, for making mortars, rendering and whitewashes, but also as a smelting agent in the steel industry. Bales of wood or coal can be used for combustion. The inside of the kiln is coated with a refractory material, the «sleeve », which must sometimes be partially or completely repaired if an incident occurs during the burning!…

1 On a board, glue two lengths of two-sided adhesive tape. Dismantle the skips: body, chassis, axles. Place the parts on one of the adhesive strips. Don’t use the other strip yet. 2 Spray on the Railcolor mud shade, using an airbrush. Let the paint dry thoroughly. You can also use paints from the Decapod or Modelmates range. The latter are available in convenient spray cans! 3 Once the first side is painted, turn the parts upside down on the other strip of two-sided adhesive. Paint with the same shade. There’s no need to insist on painting all the nooks and crannies, it will be more realistic if the original colour shows through here and there. 4 Once the chassis are dry, I picked out the axleboxes with AK Interactive…

The kit comprises a handful of plastic pouches containing the resin parts (still on their sprue), two 0.3mm thick etched nickel silver sheets, a set of transfers and the 5-page instruction sheet. ASSEMBLY The resin parts must be thoroughly washed with tepid water and soap. They must then be separated from the sprue with a scalpel blade, and any remaining flash trimmed off with either the scalpel blade or a file. The parts are assembled with instant adhesive, the semi-spherical poka-yokes ensure accurate assembly. I had to touch up the hollow semi-spheres, by hand, using a 0.8mm diameter drill bit. The brake rigging, complete below the chassis, is made out of etched nickel silver. Soldering the parts is a delicate job and requires some care. The instructions suggest fitting safety…

The Campagne company also supplied the Artillery with an indeterminate number of small locotractors. With their benches that could seat two or four persons depending on the type, they could be qualified as motor-trolleys. It would seem they were used only in storage depots behind the front line. Their lightweight coupling gear would have prevented them from hauling the heavy Péchot or Decauville wagons.…

1 The Faller ref. 540 strips used will be cut to the following dimensions: H 5 x 3mm: twice 40mm long (parts A). I 4 x 2mm: once 23mm long (part B), four times 12mm long (parts C). T 4 x 3mm: twice 28mm (parts D), twice 22mm (parts E). L 2 x 2mm: four times 12mm (parts F). 2 The chassis, comprising parts A and D, is assembled square. Part B, cut out as shown in the photo, is glued in the middle. 3 Glue parts C under parts E, then glue these assemblies, centered on cross-beams D. 4 Complete the assembly by gluing, on each side, two L-girders F back-to-back, spaced by 1mm. 5 Cut the end racks out of 1mm thick plastic card. Glue them onto parts…

The exhibition hall isn’t very big; some 15 layouts are on display, but all of them are of a high standard. The public is keen, faithful and the European scope of this gathering is undeniable. Walferdange has achieved the reputation of a must-see show for all narrow gauge fans. This year, we chose to review two of the 8 layouts displayed: Inselbahn Bieberoog in 0m by Alexander Lösch and Chat Moss in 0-9 by Philipp Gerber. INSELBAHN BIEBEROOG Don’t seek out this 8km long meter gauge line serving a North Friesian island! Maps will be of no help to you, as this is a fictitious location. But its creator, Alexander Lösch, has done such a good modelling job that the scene is highly believable. The layout consists of eight modules,…

We are now familiar with Thomas Schmid, to the extent that we look forward to a new creation of his almost every year – rather as if he was some famous film director! And every time, Thomas carries us away into his very own world, half-way between dreams and reality. He shows us round highly personal creations, which refer to real secondary railways, of the heritage or industrial varieties, combined with references of a more artistic nature, in the fields of literature, painting or photography. Professionally, Thomas is an architect, so his work consists in turning intellectual designs into something real, while taking account of significant technical constraints. When it comes to modelling, he can forget about those constraints; he can blend universes, scales, forget about gravity and the resistance…

In the first part of this article, I explained how to build the chassis and… the body (I almost wrote « the fuselage ») of this model. Sooner or later, this machine must run on rails, so we must now procure wheels, build bogies, as well as a few other elements which you can discover below. The railway wheels On the model, these wheels should have a diameter of 11.3mm (215mm diameter wheels on the prototype), but no such wheels are commercially available. Two solutions: you can make them on a lathe, or opt for slightly smaller wheels, which is what I did by choosing wheels from the Cambrian Models range (ref. NW7 Loco Wheels). Four sets are needed: each set comprises four 19mm wheels and two 13mm wheels, only…

At an altitude of 2042 meters (ca. 6,100 feet), the summit of Rochers de Naye was no exception. This was how the Glion - Naye (GN) line came into existence in 1892, providing a connection at Glion with the Territet - Glion (TG) funicular. Two companies, two lines Access from Montreux was awkward, requiring several changes of trains. This soon led to consider building a Montreux - Glion (MGl) line with the same technical features as the GN: 80cm gauge track, twin-bladed Abt type rack. The line was inaugurated in 1909. While gradients on the GN reach 225‰, those on the MGl do not exceed 130‰. Right from the start, both lines were operated by separate companies: the first using steam motive power until 1937 and the second electrical haulage…