The Hjemstad Line
#1
I’m in the process of building a small H0 shelf layout, actually this is my first permanent layout since I had a tabletop Märklin layout as a kid. While I feel quite intimidated by the fabulous work done by so many of the members here on this fine forum, I have humbly decided to share my progress with you in this thread.

My layout is based on a fictional branch of the Norwegian State Railways (NSB) in the 1930s. The exact location of this branch line is unknown, but it lies somewhere in the rural and forested areas of southeastern Norway, close to the Swedish border.

The Hjemstad Line gets its name from the small town of Hjemstad (Homestead in English, direct translation), in which the line terminates. Funny enough, Hjemstad is also my family name on my mother’s side (my family is the only one with this name here in Norway, currently 11 people are registered with Hjemstad as their last name), talk about coincidence!

Motive power on the Hjemstad Line in the 1930s was steam all the way, but since I have two diesel engines plus some cars that are too modern for my era, there will also be the occasional time warp into the late 50s. Rolling stock are mostly short boxcars, flatcars and stake cars, with wooden coaches for passenger service.

I want the layout to be portable and expandable, and have decided to build it in smaller lightweight sections. The construction method is inspired by Iain Rice, with the sections made from 6mm (1/4”) plywood pieces interlocked and glued together. I have never done this before, nor can I remember seeing anyone else’s layout (other than Iain Rice’s of course) built this way, so this is much like an experiment for me. I hope this will be of some interest to you people as well.

Here’s the current track plan as of October -10, room size is 290 x 210 cm:

[Image: HjB_09_w1200.jpg]

As you can see by the track plan, the layout is only a station (Hjemstad) with the main track leading to a staging area on a transfer table, basically an ISL in a rural setting, and operations will reflect that. A local switcher will serve the industries and sidings while the arriving engine takes a turn on the turntable before getting ready to depart back to staging. In addition there will be some through freight on and off cassette staging via the railway ferry track in the center front of the layout.

Translations from the track plan:
Tømmer - Log loading
Gods - Freight
Stasjon - Station/depot
Privet - Privy
Plattform - Platform
Lasterampe - Loading ramp
Industri - Industry (still undecided which type)
Frilastspor - Team tracks (direct translation: Free load track)
Ferge - Ferry

Comments, suggestions and critics are welcome!
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#2
Svein Wrote:. In addition there will be some through freight on and off cassette staging via the railway ferry track in the center front of the layout.!

That should be an interesting feature. Looking forward to seeing this whole project "in construction".
We always learn far more from our own mistakes, than we will ever learn from another's advice.
The greatest place to live life, is on the sharp leading edge of a learning curve.
Lead me not into temptation.....I can find it myself!
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#3
I am interested to see the "ferge" slip.I am curious to see how the ones in Norway compare to those here in the states.
 My other car is a locomotive, ARHS restoration crew  
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#4
Norway’s only domestic railway ferry went between the two stations Mæl and Tinnoset, a 30km connection across Tinnsjøen lake on the Rjukan Railway (opened in 1909, closed down in 1991) in Telemark County in southern Norway.

During WW2 and the German occupation, Vemork power station in Rjukan was the only manufacturer of heavy water in the world. Between 1940 and 1944 the Norwegian resistance movement organized a series of sabotage actions to destroy the power station, to prevent the Germans from producing heavy water to be used in their uranium projects.

On February 22 1944, the Germans shipped the remaining heavy water from Vemork, and Norwegian resistance sank the ferry “D/F Hydro” during the trip across Tinnsjøen. Killing 18 people in the process, they prevented the heavy water from reaching Germany, which could possibly end the nuclear race in favor of Germany. The ferry “D/F Hydro” still lies on the bottom of Tinnsjøen, at 430 meters depth.

There have been made several movies about this part of WW2 history, the movie “Heroes of Telemark” starring Kirk Douglas being one of them.

Well, that was a short history lesson. I took a daytrip to Mæl and Tinnoset this summer, here are some pics:

“D/F Ammonia” (one out of four remaining steam powered railway ferries in the world, in service from 1929) at Mæl station:
[Image: 13.jpg]

Mæl station. Inside the towers are counterweights for the apron:
[Image: 14.jpg]

“M/F Storegut” (in service from 1956) at Tinnoset station:
[Image: 19.jpg]

There are a lot more pics in my photo album here: http://foto.mjf.no/main.php?g2_itemId=9206. I haven’t found any kits that look anything like this, so the whole structure will probably have to be built from scratch.
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#5
Here are some layout construction pics. The first section (upper left on track plan) was built this spring:

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The next section (upper right on track plan) is being constructed as we speak, after a long break from layout building. Here I am test fitting the parts before gluing them together:

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Since the last pic I have glued all the parts including the top, transferred the track plan from printouts onto the section, and cut holes for the switch motors. I still have to cut the scenery profile in the back corner, cut out the holes for the carrying handles in the ends, and glue down the foam roadbed before painting the section.
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#6
OK, I'm guessing here but it looks like, across the top, two 105cm pieces, and one 79cm piece.
I like the plywood framing!, looks light and strong. I have to ask, is there much flexing, or twist, in the framework? The construction pics are great, but I really like the steam ferry, and the apron and towers. The ferry at least just might have to be a build for me to try.
You definitely have my interest! Looking forward to how all this turns out! Thumbsup Thumbsup
We always learn far more from our own mistakes, than we will ever learn from another's advice.
The greatest place to live life, is on the sharp leading edge of a learning curve.
Lead me not into temptation.....I can find it myself!
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#7
Thanks for the interesting and scenic photos from Norway! I have heard about that heavy water plant and the sinking of the ferry. Your layout sections are fine pieces of carpentry. Nicely done! Thumbsup
Ralph
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#8
Hi Svein --

Glad you are back at working on the layout again! Looking forward to seeing more pictures.

Btw - did you see this web page about a scratch built Norwegian railroad ferry? http://www.entusiasten.net/togferge.html

Smile,
Stein, finally surfacing again after yet another week of tight deadlines at work :-)
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#9
Thanks for the nice comments guys!

Sumpter250; That's pretty accurate guessing! I'm using the Elfa shelving system, with wall mounted tracks all around the room, and have left a 2 cm clearing from the walls to make room for the tracks and eventually a backdrop. That leaves 286cm for the layout, with two 104 cm sections and one 78 cm section.

There is some flexing in the framework, but since the sections will rest securely on metal brackets I don't think it will be much of a problem. My biggest concern about the flexing is that some of the scenery along the edges may come loose after repeated handling if I'm not careful when I move the sections.

Stein; Good to hear from you again! I was beginning to wonder where you were hiding Big Grin What's the status on your layout, have you gotten around to fixing the problem areas we talked about yet? Thanks for the link btw, I knew I'd seen that page somewhere before, but had lost the link!
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#10
Svein Wrote:Sumpter250; That's pretty accurate guessing! I'm using the Elfa shelving system, with wall mounted tracks all around the room, and have left a 2 cm clearing from the walls to make room for the tracks and eventually a backdrop. That leaves 286cm for the layout, with two 104 cm sections and one 78 cm section.
One cm off on each section.... I can live with that. I do this, guess dimensions, to keep in practice. As I often only have photos to determine actual size. Once I know one accurate dimension the rest is all a matter of "ratio and proportion", and/ or Algebra. A proportional divider is also a very handy tool.
We always learn far more from our own mistakes, than we will ever learn from another's advice.
The greatest place to live life, is on the sharp leading edge of a learning curve.
Lead me not into temptation.....I can find it myself!
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#11
A little snowfall (the first one this season) the day before yesterday was a harsh reminder of a winter coming soon, and because all the plywood cutting must be done outside, I figured it was about time I got finished before it gets too cold. Temperatures here the last days have been around 0°C (32°F), and down towards -8°C (18°F) in the night.

I didn’t finish all the cutting today, but with a little effort tomorrow I’ll probably have all the parts for the middle section ready. Did a quick mockup this evening, trying to get an impression of the layout with all the sections in place:

[Image: 1253_w1200.jpg]
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#12
Looks great!

Btw - when you are done with the sections, feel free to come on down here and give me a good swift kick in the rear end to stop me from working on stuff like pulling down the neighbors' back porches (more drainage work coming up, and several of the neighbors are too old and infirm to do that kind of work any more ....), and start working on the layout instead.

Well, I'll take a break in tearing down porches in the afternoon and celebrate my sister's birthday. Maybe I can squeeze in a little work on either the stone building or the 2-8-0 in the evening.

Anyways - as I said - that looks really good. The water level looks about right to me, and that building looks good too. How about a closeup of the station area?

Grin,
Stein
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#13
Sorry for my late reply. My grandfather passed away last Saturday, and with the loss of both my grandparents within six weeks, my mind has been elsewhere.

Stein; no close-ups of the station area at this point, nothing to show off yet. However, I did another test assembly yesterday, with nearly all the pieces for the middle section. Still have some more work to do before I can start gluing it together, but you get an idea of how the layout will look when everything is in place:

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Here you can clearly see the difference between the original water level on the first section, and the new and raised water level on the other two sections:

[Image: 1259_w1200.jpg]

Here's where the apron will be. There will be a concrete foundation at the nearest corner of the water level (at the bottom edge in the pic) to support one of the towers, the other tower will be placed at the end of the dock (to the right in the picture):

[Image: 1263_w1200.jpg]

My initial plan was to build the apron like the prototype, hinged in one end and movable in the other, but with the new and raised water level the structure should be partially submerged in water (like in the pics earlier in this thread), so I wonder if I should build only the visible parts of the structure and just place it on top of the water surface. Any comments or suggestions about this?
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#14
Svein Wrote:My initial plan was to build the apron like the prototype, hinged in one end and movable in the other, but with the new and raised water level the structure should be partially submerged in water (like in the pics earlier in this thread), so I wonder if I should build only the visible parts of the structure and just place it on top of the water surface. Any comments or suggestions about this?

My only suggestion would be; any pilings, that continue below the water line.....build up on a jig, and use the jig as a drilling pattern for the water surface. Some left over plywood from the "water", could be used for the jig. The completed structure, on its pilings, can then be transferred to the scene, and the pilings set in the holes with some glue. They will not "break free" when the module is moved. I tried this on my new modules, with the bridgetender's walkway, and the boat docks, and I am pleased with the results.
We always learn far more from our own mistakes, than we will ever learn from another's advice.
The greatest place to live life, is on the sharp leading edge of a learning curve.
Lead me not into temptation.....I can find it myself!
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#15
Sumpter250 Wrote:My only suggestion would be; any pilings, that continue below the water line.....build up on a jig, and use the jig as a drilling pattern for the water surface. Some left over plywood from the "water", could be used for the jig. The completed structure, on its pilings, can then be transferred to the scene, and the pilings set in the holes with some glue. They will not "break free" when the module is moved. I tried this on my new modules, with the bridgetender's walkway, and the boat docks, and I am pleased with the results.

Thanks for the tip, I can use that for the walkway alongside the apron.

I've been browsing your "New Modules" thread, and that is some excellent modelling. Great looking ships! I wanted to have a small cargo ship at the dock by the team tracks on my layout, maybe also a small crane for loading and unloading, but those ships are BIG..!
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