Eight Acres

This is a Club Layout Being built by a Team of Club members

An ‘N’ gauge layout, it features a folded-8 track plan with a four-road through station and a small loco depot. It is designed to create the “Railway in the Landscape” and allows for continuous running of long trains. The train control is via DCC and points etc operated by small R/C servos using MERG EzyBus modules.

All track is laid and wiring commences with the DCC bus cables, 24/0.2 stranded.

All track power and servo wiring is now complete, although DCC only needs two wires (the 24/.02 red & black in the pictures) connecting it to the track requires droppers on each individual section of track and the points frog polarity connections to the servo micro switches – a lot more wires! Then the I2C bus for the EzyBus modules and the 12vdc supply add more wires. That’s all done and tested, and the servo movements are programmed. Now we are starting track testing with DC rolling stock which has already highlighted a couple of issues, nothing untoward so far.

Work is underway on a few buildings, the station platform, station office building, the engine shed and signal box and we are adding lighting to these – more wiring!

We should have the track ballasted and be showing running trains under DCC by Hoveton.

The pictures below show the MERG output modules, the 12vdc and I2C bus wiring and the 12vdc delay start relays

The layout debuted at the Hoveton Show on May 26th and although we had a few teething problems performed well throughout the day. We didn’t get to ballasting the track, it was rusty rail painted and we ran two to three trains under DCC as planned. Watch this space for the next developments and its next outing in August.

Jul 2024

Layout is fully tested and working, ballasting is almost complete and work is well under way on the scenery. The station, engines shed and signal boxes have been built as have several other buildings for the village scene. We will be ready to show at Stalham in August in a much more advanced state than at Hoveton