Saturday 1 January 2011

Buffer Stops part 2

Some further thoughts about a buffer stop for Tredethy Wharf......... I have a Mikes Models kit for a LSWR buffer stop and was intending to put it to use on the layout. Photographs I have of Wenfordbridge, and the photograph below of Dunmere Wharf, seemed to indicate they were all of the standard LSWR design on this branch.


That was until, one day in September, while browsing through my collection of photographs, I saw in the corner of one particular photograph of Dunmere Crossing a three quarter side view of the buffer stop on the Wharf siding. Below is the relevant corner of this photograph.


Back in September, Clive kindly offered to to make a new rail bending jig to help create this buffer stop. His current jigs don't quite bend the rail correctly for style of buffer stop. Before he does this, he has asked for a scale drawing of the buffer stop. I thought it was about time I created this drawing so yesterday I started, but it's not going well.

My problem is with the uprights.... Looking at the first photograph, it looks like there is one upright and, I would guess, it would be a single section of rail. When I enlarge the second photograph it looks like the upright is made up of two vertical sections of steel, possibly rail, bolted together. The angled sections of rail coming from the running rail to the vertical uprights look as if they have been bent through 180 degrees around the verticals as one continuous piece of rail. If the vertical section is made up of two sections of rail I should see a joggle in the rail as it bends around the verticals. It's not obvious in the first nor the second photograph.....

The other problem I have with using this buffer stop on Tredethy Wharf is that the Dunmere Wharf siding was very short, which is probably why this style of buffer stop was used. Without the rear supports running from the verticals back down to the running rail, this style of buffer stop does save space. However, on my Tredethy Wharf layout the siding cannot be classed as short for a Wharf siding, so a standard LSWR buffer stop could have been used......

So where do I go from here? Sorry Clive but I'm thinking of reverting back to my original idea of using a standard LSWR buffer stop on Tredethy Wharf. I'll keep the Dunmere buffer stop on ice until I can confirm its correct structure. At some point in the future I'll probably need a buffer stop that does not take up much space. I'm thinking of two such plans where a Dunmere style of buffer stop could be used, my fictitious Polbrook Engine Shed and, more probably, on the fictitious Wharf siding at Boscarne Junction. Hopefully by the time I start to consider building another layout, I will have confirmed its structure. With all the photographs taken of the Wenfordbridge line there should be at least one other photograph out there somewhere that will help to confirm its structure. Does anyone know of one????

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