July 2023 operating session

Above: The final and only named member of the South Australian Railways’ (SAR) 600 class Pacific class, 609 ‘Duke of Gloucester’, arrives at Tatiara Downs in charge of SAR Train Number (TN) 547, the South East Goods. After dropping off loaded and empty wagons here, and also picking up some additional wagons, 609 will continue on through Border Junction and then head down the branch to Jameston. In addition to the only named class member, 609 was also the only 600 loco to receive the silver ‘pale face’, like 500B steamers did. 609 is a Rocky River Models body on a BLI chassis, with QSI sound replaced by ESU, and lighting (headlights and markers) added – all with thanks to Tony. Image courtesy of Brendan.

Continuing with the ‘better late than never’ theme, and taking advantage of school holidays in these parts, here is the ‘only two-months late’ write up of the July 2023 operating session on the Border District. And even as this blogpost is penned/typed/composed in late September, I report with some degree of hesitation that the July session is also the most recent operating session held on the ‘District. Yes, dear reader, life has been more than a little busy these last few months.

The July 2023 session sought to build on and from the June 2023 session. In fact, save for some changes in engine assignments on both the SAR and Victorian Railways (VR), and substituting a failed VR Walkers 280HP with a replacement steam locomotive and wooden carriage set (so a case of art replicating life, or the model replicating the prototype – the reason for the failure appearing to be a temperamental ESU V5 sound decoder), the same ‘AM’ timetable and roster from June was utilised in July.

There were three main reasons for the decision to, for all intents and purposes, ‘repeat’ the June session again in July. The first, and as flagged/discussed previously, was to allow a degree of familiarity as operators get back into the groove of regular sessions on the Border District. The second was a simple management one – with the Border District featuring on the NMRA AR Division 1 Southside Layout Tour event in June, I hadn’t had the usual time to ‘re-set’ the layout for the next operating session.

Above: VR diesel-electric and class leader B60 ‘Harold W Clapp’ brings VR TN 71 – the Second Division of the Overland – into Tatiara Downs. Here, the B class will come off and head to loc, to be replaced by a SAR 900 class diesel-electric. With passenger and parcel works completed, and a modified brake test undertaken, the train will continue to Adelaide as SAR TN 290. In the background is a recent addition, the old stone mill building that forms part of the Tatiara Downs Milling Company complex here. Image thanks to Brendan.

Above: Due to the failure of the usual 800 class diesel-electric locomotive (imagined, not actual …) SAR ‘Big Mikado’ 730 took over duties as the Tatiara Downs yard shunter for the July 2023 operating session. Brendan has captured 730 at the east end of the yard, treading lightly over the points and heading past the newer brick building that is another important structure and part of the Tatiara District Milling Company facility. The two mill buildings in this and the previous image are both the work of maestro Don Bishop, made their debut on the Border District at the July session.

Above: The final member of the 26 strong VR B class diesel-electric fleet, B85, rests in the loco depot at Tatiara Downs, kept company by a pair of SAR 8″ water columns. These two water columns have been designed by Malcolm, with thanks to assistance and information from Des Egan, printed by Shapeways, and finished by Alan. The water columns are also available for sale – in HO, to be clear – via Malcolm’s ‘Malky’s N scale SAR models’ on Shapeways – click here for a direct link.

The third and final reason – and possibly the most important – was to allow long-time regular Tatiara Downs’ Station Master/Sheriff, Brendan, the opportunity to experience and give feedback on the modified operating approaches employed in the June 2023 session. Tony was slated to join Brendan at the ‘Downs in the ‘West End’/Hostler role – also providing opportunity to further model the use of the lights and sounds functions of an increasing number of engines, and build further crew familiarity, but alas Tony was a late withdrawal this session. Unfortunately, and even though knowing better, I decided I would be able to step into the ‘West End’ role while continuing to act in my usual role of Train Control. I paid for this decision more than a few times throughout the session.

There were a few changes to the road crews for the July session. Iain, fresh from a stint as Sheriff at the ‘Downs in June, headed back to the very familiar (and somewhat ‘made his own’) SAR Crew 1 role. Alan had the chance to experience the ‘other’ SAR working, taking on the SAR Crew 2 position after having acted as SAR Crew 1 at the previous session. Malcolm moved over the border to experience the other half of the layout, taking on the VR Crew 2 role. UPBNSF Joint Division Head Honcho (and NMRA Australasian Region President) Duncan returned to the ‘District for the first time in over five years (how time flies!), having been unable to attend the 50th operating session celebrations in May, and undertook the VR Crew 1 job for the afternoon.

Above: Active as ever in his photographic coverage, Alan has managed to snap SAR 600 Pacific class leader, 600, bringing SAR TN 581 Stone train around the bend past Southern Aggregates and into Border Junction. Once the Pacific arrives, 600 will shunt the consist back into Siding B at Southern Aggregates, allowing the trailing Webb caboose to be released. 600 will then position each HS bogie or Z 4-wheel hopper under the discharge point, one at a time, to be loaded with stone. This working is one of a number of ‘shunting puzzles’ that exist on the Border District – sometimes loved and sometimes loathed by operators.

Above: Fairly new in 1960, VR diesel-hydraulic shunter W242 pauses between moves at Nankiva. The W is an IDR Models product, and with its in-built keep alive capacitor runs beautifully and sounds just as good – even through the highly valued and appreciated single compounds in the yard at Nankiva! Image thanks to Alan.

Above: Alan has captured a busy moment at Jameston, with both SAR Bluebird Railmotor 255 ‘Curlew’ and SAR class leader 600 in residence. The Bluebird has worked SAR TN 537 passenger service from Tatiara Downs, an often lightly-loaded but necessary working to position the railmotor for the SAR TN 538 passenger service to Adelaide (stopping at both Border Junction and Tatiara Downs on the ‘District). 600 has just arrived at the head of the previously mentioned SAR Stone train – with loading having been completed, 600 has worked down to Jameston to turn the engine and reverse the train, including the position of the Webb caboose. Becoming SAR TN 582 Stone train after these moves, 600 will follow the Bluebird back to Tatiara Downs, remaing at least a section behind at a time, before giving way to another locomotive for the Stonie’s journey back to Port Adelaide.

I have long said that seven operators – yes, ‘The Magnificent Seven’ for fans of the Western genre – is in the pocket for the ‘right’ number of operators on the Border District. I have also told myself that it is folly for the host to try to do anything other than the ‘Train Control’ role, along with the required ‘question answerer/solution seeker/drinks provider’. Indeed, I have even endured repeated experience to learn from such! However, with a late withdrawal by one operator, I really should have put a line through one of ‘Crew 2’ roles (SAR makes most sense – less foot traffic behind Tatiara Downs) instead of deciding, somewhat flippantly, that I could do both ‘West End’ and ‘Train Control’. The July 2023 session would provide a simple answer to this – while you might think you can, you cannot.

I have no doubt the other five operators present gained great delight in watching me undertake all roles – too many – with very little aplomb achieved in any. Logic says that as humans cannot be in two places at the same time, and with the ‘West End’ role being based in the Tatiara Downs/Jameston operating well/pit and the ‘Train Control’ role being based in the Nankiva/Border Junction/staging operating well/pit, success was never likely. And yes, I’m sure I looked like a head with its chicken cut off as I frequently ducked from one operating well to the other. Don’t believe me – or want to see and join in the laughs – then check out the action via the time lapse, with thanks as always to Brendan, via this link: Border District 2023 July

Above: A busy and somewhat full Tatiara Downs locomotive depot area, with no less than five engines ‘on shed’ – SAR steamer 609, VR steamers R748 (partially obscured) and D3 624, and SAR diesels 800 and 904. There is clear evidence here of the fact the Hostler has juggled both the West End role and the Train Control role poorly – as it looks like he thinks the 900 might need coaling?! Hmmm?! Another great image with thanks to Alan.

Above: Another new diseasal in SAR diesel-electric 805 heads down grade from Tatiara Downs with a composite goods brake, working SAR TN W4 transfer working to West Tatiara. This operational addition or wrinkle, depending on your perspective, is a result of an ongoing collaboration with fellow ‘immersive operation’ co-conspirator Mark. Currently this sees four west/outbound movements, and an equal number of east/inbound movements, to set out or pick up freight from the ‘imagined’ location of West Tatiara, a kilometre away from Tatiara Downs (in reality, one road in the staging yard and some Peco Flexi Loco Lift cassettes). Image courtesy of Alan – the 800 is an SDS Models product, while the beautiful SAR compo goods brake is the work of Bruce McGuinness.

Above: VR D3 ten wheeler, D3 624, races the late morning railmotor replacement service from Tatiara Downs to Hamilton past Border Junction, with the makeshift wooden consist rattling behind. The classic ‘rods down’ image, with the D3 at speed, has been captured here by Alan. The use of the railmotor replacement set was necessary due to probably decoder failure (or fault at least) of the usual VR 280HP Walkers railmotor – mirroring an often experienced occurrence on the prototype.

Aside from the busyness I inflicted upon myself, the July 2023 session ran fairly well – thanks to the efforts of the five awesome operators in attendance. As always, the camaraderie, banter and levels of concentration were highlights of the session – thanks to the crew who attended, and joined in the fun. I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to be part of the action at Tatiara Downs, including seeing how the changed approach to operations impacted the roles here, and also experiencing SAR ‘Big Mikado’ 730 undertake the role of Tatiara Downs yard shunter. This was a rostering planned for some time, and helps move the Border District closer to the goal of an ‘all steam’ session – more early 1950s than 1959-60. I also relished the chance to share in the ‘other side’ of the West Tatiara trip workings – an element of operations continuing to be reconsidered, tweaked and improved.

As mentioned in a couple of image captions earlier in this blog, the July 2023 session also saw the debut of two significant structures – two buildings that form part of the Tatiara Downs Milling Company facility. Once again, the ‘District is privileged to be able to be the home for some work of the very talented Don Bishop – an absolute maestro when it comes to building structures. The old stone building is envisaged to have been the original building on the site, and is inspired by the mill building at Melrose in the mid-north of South Australia. The brick building, a later addition and part of the mill’s expansion, takes many cues from a mill structure at Murray Bridge – a bit closer to the Border District’s proto-freelanced location around the South Australian and Victorian border! While there are more structures and additions to come to the mill at the ‘Downs, all operators agreed the difference the two buildings made to both the look and feel of Tatiara Downs was significant. It is great to see the layout continue to progress – a big thanks to Don for his time and effort.

Above: Two steamers and two buildings. SAR 730 and VR R748 have been captured by Alan at the eastern end of the Tatiara Downs yard. This view also shows off both the old stone (left of image) and new brick (right of image) mill buildings, recently arrived and courtesy of Don Bishop. The ‘missing window’ near the top of the brick building isn’t a mistake – this is where bulk grain will enter the mill from the storage silos set to sit between the two structures. 730, as yard engine for the session, has been shunting the Imperial Bottle Company siding behind the ‘Downs station, while the R class is preparing to head east with VR TN 90 goods.

June 2023 operating session

Above: Victorian Railways’ (VR) B class diesel-electric leader, B60 “Harold W Clapp’, thunders into the western Victorian township of Nankiva on the main line, in charge of VR Train Number (TN) 71, the Second Division ‘Overland Express’. In the loop, venerable VR 4-6-0 steamer D3 669 simmers at the head of VR TN 3, the ex-Lake Tallageira to Nankiva branchline goods. The B will need to make two platform stops at Nankiva, on account of the length of the train – the station here was built to accommodate five carriages maximum. Once completed and the B and VR TN 71 are underway, continuing westward to Tatiara Downs, the D3 will go about shunting her short consist.

The second Saturday in June saw another operating session take place on the Border District – the 51st session for those playing at home. Yes, hot on the heels of the celebrations of ’50 operating sessions’ on the Border District, things returned to some kind of normal with six friends attending the layout for an afternoon of camaraderie and running trains. It is possibly testament to the busyness of life of late – personally and professionally – that it has taken over three months for the June operating session write-up to actually hit the blog!

While sparing readers the well-worn ‘it has been so long since I updated my blog’ trope, I’ can’m happy to confirm that while the blog has been a tad neglected, there has been a fair bit going on these past few months. As well as operating sessions in June and July on the Border District, the layout was also one of four included in the NMRA AR Division 1 ‘Southside Layout Tours’ day in June. While August was a little quieter (I enjoyed sharing in an operating session on Duncan’s UPBNSF Joint Division layout, and attending the NMRA AR Div 1 meeting at Darren’s place), September saw me attend the Modelling the Railways of South Australia Convention (MRSAC) in Adelaide for the first time in four years. It was great to catch up with so many friends I haven’t seen for so long – as well as meet and make some new ones too.

Above: Mark has captured South Australian Railways’ (SAR) 800 class diesel-electric class leader, 800, undertaking a spot or three of shunting at Tatiara Downs. 800 is only a few years’ old, having been delivered in 1956 from Rocklea, Queensland – slightly ironic, as this location is less than thirty minutes’ drive from the home of the Border District! In the background and to the left, the recently completed ‘Imperial Bottle Company’ building can be seen – courtesy of Alan Shaw. The building started life as a Section 8 Models’ Saw Tooth Factory (low relief) kit, and has had some modifications and additions. A huge thanks to Alan for this contribution to the ‘District – much appreciated!

Above: A meeting of the new and the old in the loco depot at Tatiara Downs. On the left is 906, one of the ten strong member of the SAR’s 900 class diesel-electrics. 906 is a ‘straight out of the box’ from SDS Models, and while very new looks as good as she sounds! On the right is VR R class Hudson R748, one of only two oil burners in a class of seventy engines. The R is a Eureka Models product, and has been fitted with an ESU Loksound V5.0 decoder, custom R class sound file, headlights and marker lights, additional weight and weathering all with thanks to Tony Weber. This engine has quickly become a favourite – running and sounding superb! Image courtesy of Mark.

So, to ‘Session 51′. With long-time Tatiara Downs’ Sheriff stalwart, Brendan, an apology for the session, Iain volunteered to step up and into one of the layout’s most challenging roles. A big thanks to Iain for this – some might feel that the approach to the 50th operating session ‘double session’ was preparing him for this! As is often the case, Mark was able to provide assistance and experience, assuming his usual ‘West End’ support and hostler role at Tatiara Downs.

Out on the road, Alan and Malcolm looked after all things SAR, undertaking the SAR Crew 1 and SAR Crew 2 roles respectively. On the other side of the border, Jeff took on the VR Crew 1 position – something of a regular gig for him of late – and Tony made the VR Crew 2 role his own, with the opportunity to drive a number of engines that have been his most recent work. And as is often the case, I took on the triumvirate job of Train Control, general operations/layout troubleshooter, and drinks getterer … some would say in order of least to most importance.

Above: A general shot of the layout, also capturing the June 2023 crew hard at work. In the aisle on the right hand side of the image, Iain is in the foreground stamping his authority as the acting Sheriff at the ‘Downs, while Alan (SAR1) and Tony (VR2) appear in some serious conversation or contemplation (or both) with Mark (‘West End’/hostler). In the other aisle to the left hand side, Jeff (VR1) is heavily engaged in working at Nankiva, while Malcolm (SAR2) appears to be between shifts at Kybybolite (staging).

Above: B60 can be seen ‘at speed’, leading VR TN 24 morning passenger service from Tatiara Downs to Melbourne. The train is only into the early stages of a long journey, passing the Southern Aggregates facility at Border Junction, one station to the east of the ‘Downs. The VR were very frugal and efficient with engine allocation – B60 has only had time to top up fuel and sand at Tatiara Downs after working VR TN 71 west (see lead image) before heading back east again! Thanks to Tony for capturing this image, and also for the improved weathering job on B60 – an Auscision Models offering – which looks amazing.

Planning and organisation for the June 2023 operating session built on some ‘learnings’ (one of the favourite turns of phrase from my football team’s coach, though best we not mention the footy …) from the 50th operating session and approach. This included giving more time for shunting of some of the ‘signature’ trains, given also they are often described as ‘shunting puzzles’, and changing some of the approaches to the order and flow of trains into Tatiara Downs. This latter move was intended to give both the Sheriff and West End the chance to be well set and ready for the ‘onslaught’ of trains arriving from both east and west. Feedback suggests this had a positive impact – noting the regular Sheriff wasn’t part of this session though.

The June 2023 session did once again show the impact of local knowledge and layout familiarity – in both roles and locations. It probably also served as a reminder that operating sessions have only recently returned after a long hiatus – the June 2023 session being the sixth session since ops were recommenced in later 2022. As such, there is still a degree of ‘rust’ to be worked out, and local knowledge/context/experience to be gained. As ‘Exhibit A’ – Alan, in only his sixth session on the ‘District and undertaking the SAR1 role, later shared spending a little too much of his Saturday afternoon and evening post-session reflecting and reconsidering his approach to shunting Jameston, resolving what to do and not to do ‘next time’. Maybe Simon Goodwin is right, and it is actually all about ‘learnings’ …

Above: B60 and VR TN 24 from the previous image are further traveled and progressed, and can be seen departing Nankiva under Tony’s capable control having received a string of ‘top green’ (clear normal speed) signal indications. VR RM57 DERM, an IDR Models product, idles in the loop road. Once the B has cleared the main, the DERM will shunt across to the now vacated station road, collect any passengers (including those from VR TN 24/Tatiara Downs) and depart for the Lake Tallageira branch as VR TN 6 passenger working, ex-Nankiva. Image courtesy of Jeff.

Above: A moment of pause and contemplation at Tatiara Downs. Alan can be seen flanked by the June 2023 ‘Downs duo of Iain (far) and Mark (near, just in shot), having arrived at Tatiara Downs on SAR TN 152 goods in the capable hands of SAR ‘Big Mikado’ 720 class member 730. The somewhat pensive look on Alan’s face suggests he may be suffering a degree of PTSD from shunting SAR TN 547/SAR TN 152 at Jameston a little earlier in the session …

Another change for the June 2023 session was modifying the approach to the ‘Tatiara West’ shunt/trip workings – introduced to enhance operations at Tatiara Downs by using an additional location of ‘Tatiara West’ off layout (basically a siding in the staging yard of Kybybolite). Mark and I continue to wrestle with the ‘best’ way to do this – or even to do this at all – but less trip workings down the hill and back, and better sequencing of these between the arrivals and departures of SAR and VR goods trains, did seem to be a success.

With thanks to the ongoing and tireless efforts of Tony Weber (when does he do his own modelling?!) the number of sound equipped engines on the Border District continues to grow. Additionally, the standardisation of functions continues to be a goal. This is another area of learning for operators, with many Border District engines now sporting the ‘brake’ function and resulting in the need to drive trains/engines differently. As a collective, the jury is still somewhat out on this move – particularly for shunting. I am committed to continuing with this approach for future sessions, as I’m not sure the full immersive value of all the sounds – and lights – are yet to be fully realised.

Above: VR diesel-electric T332 grinds up hill from Edenhope towards Nankiva, in charge of VR TN 81 roadside goods. Upon arrival, the T will undertake a goodly amount of shunting – with all wagons to be set out, and a near equal number to be picked up – prior to the T returning back east with VR TN 62 roadside goods. And to assist with said shunting, the driver will enjoy a quintessential VR yard layout, with a number of single compounds (slips)! Thanks to Tony who took the photo, and also added sound and some exquisite weathering to the Bendigo Models flat top T class.

Above: A very busy yard at Tatiara Downs! SAR 600 big wheeled Pacific steamer and class leader 600 – the only class member to have a 500 class tender and the wonderful modelling work of Stuart Gamble – draws SAR TN 330 passenger working from Jameston into the platform road. A VR 280HP Walkers railmotor, RM91, sits in the dock, having arrived earlier in the session from Hamilton. In the loop road, the consist from VR TN 89 goods can be seen, trialed by a ubiquitous Z guard’s van, ready to be broken up by the Sheriff. VR TN 89’s engine has already headed to the loco. Another angle of the ‘Imperial Bottle Company’, with thanks again to Alan, can be seen in the top right corner. Image courtesy of Tony.

As is now the usual tradition, and even though he was absent from the actual June 2023 session, time lapse footage of the goings on can be viewed with a very big thanks to Brendan by clicking the link here: June 2023 Border District operating session. A further thanks to Brendan again for adding the Border District title and graphics to all the time lapse videos, and for generously hosting them on his YouTube page: Kiewa Valley Railway.

A big thank you to all the June 2023 ‘District operators for giving up some of their Saturday afternoon to bring the Border District to life. The camaraderie and mateship of this hobby, in particular though operating sessions, continues to be one of the aspects that provides the greatest amount of satisfaction. More than that, a quick reflection across this blogpost – and others – proves once again that the Border District wouldn’t be what it is without the time, effort and input of friends. Thank you!

Above: Taken a little later than the previous image, SAR Pacific and class leader 600 has completed the passenger stop for SAR TN 330 at Tatiara Downs. Having received a ‘clear normal speed’ green over red signal indication, giving the road for departure to Kybybolite, 600 starts to pick up speed as she continues her journey towards Mount Gambier, with centenary cars creaking and rattling behind. Image thanks to Mark.

May 2023 operating session – Trick 2

(50th ops – Trick 2 – pm/post-lunch crew)

Above: South Australian Railways (SAR) 4-wheeled Z class hoppers have been shoved under the overhead loaders and towards the older side loading timber bins at Southern Aggregates. In the 1959-60 version of the Border District, it is intended to run up to 3 SAR trains to this facility – a Stonie-like train with H and HS class bogie hoppers, a 4-wheeled version using Z hoppers as above, and a sand train, loading O class bogie gondolas, reminiscent of the workings to the Noarlunga Sand Company loader (of which the timber loading here is inspired by). Structures (scratch-built) and hoppers (Rocky River Models) thanks to maestro Don Bishop, and image (and working) thanks to Mark.

Hot on the heels of the Trick 1 blogpost, here is the second half of the story from the May 2023 operating session on the Border District. Yes, this one is all about Trick 2, on the day we endeavoured to prove that ‘too much model railway operation is barely enough’. And while chances are you are already sitting down, I would highly recommend doing so – as two Border District blogposts within a week of each other hasn’t happened in quite some time …

Appetites sated with pizza, the Trick 2 crew took over from where Trick 1 had left off. The 3 recipients of their newly minted ’25 sessions on the Border District’ certificates had the chance to take on somewhat different from usual roles. Iain stepped away from the familiarity of Jameston – and to the other side of the aisle – taking on the Tatiara Downs Station Master / Sheriff role. Mark provided somewhat of a direct interchange, moving from being solely at the ‘Downs to taking on the SAR crew 2 role. Brendan headed east and over the border, to take on the Victorian Railways (VR) crew 1 role.

Having worked the VR crew 2 position in the previous session, Tony also facilitated a direct swap of sorts with Brendan, moving to the Hostler / West End role at Tatiara Downs. Long time Border District friends and fellow fans of operations, Darren and Craig, made their return to the layout after many years’ absence. Darren joined Brendan in the east, taking on the VR crew 2 role, while Craig joined Mark in the west, undertaking the SAR crew 1 position. Once again and as per Trick 1, I took on Train Control and got the drinks (and not necessarily in that order …).

Above: The SAR stone train has arrived at Border Junction under control of 609 ‘Duke of Gloucester’, the tenth and final members of the 600 class of Pacific locomotives on the SAR. 609 was only engine in her class to be named, and was also the only engine in her class to carry the ‘pale face’ silver on the smokebox front. Having seen better days and now relegated to secondary duties such as this, the ‘Duke’ will soon push her train back towards Southern Aggregates, for some nimble shunting to permit loading. Image courtesy of Brendan.

Above: Class leader, B60 ‘Harold W Clapp’, heads upgrade and westwards from Nankiva, charging towards the border at the head of VR Train Number (TN) 7 fast goods. Image and scenery efforts in this area are thanks to Mark.

It must be said that the Trick 2 Tatiara Downs crew of Iain (Sheriff) and Hostler (Tony) possibly had an easier time of it than their Trick 1 compatriots – with fewer trains to organise, fewer wagons to shunt and fewer engines to hostle. The planned workings for each trick didn’t quite go according to plan – but the day wasn’t about always following the plan, hence why the layout uses a ‘sequence’ approach to operations, rather than timetabled workings.

Trick 1 saw 23 of 28 planned movements completed – a very tidy effort. Trick 2 finished off the 5 workings remaining from Trick 1, and then also managed to completed 22 of the 27 workings planned for Trick 2. So, over the course of 2 lots of 2.5 hour sessions, 50 of the 55 planned workings were completed – an enormous effort, and one I trust the crew are deservedly proud off.

It was great to give Brendan and Mark the chance to to experience other parts and elements of the layout in Trick 2, other than Tatiara Downs alone – the location they both find themselves at most frequently. This raises some interesting wonderings regarding role development, role sharing, succession planning, and flexibility in operating sessions – and will be something I pursue with the crew as we continue operating sessions.

Above: VR oil-fired Hudson, R748, at rest at Tatiara Downs, awaiting a crew for the late morning working of VR TN 90 goods. This train will head east from the ‘Downs, with loading from a number of industries there, as well as from a variety of South Australian destinations, both on and off layout. Image courtesy of Tony, who also weathered the locomotive and added lighting and sound (ESU Loksound V5, after removal of the original Eureka fitted QSI product).

Above: Brendan has captured a close up of the final member of the SAR’s 600 class, 609 ‘Duke of Gloucester’, paused at Border Junction while shunting Southern Aggregates. There are some similarities to the previous image of the R class – weathering by Tony, and installation of lighting and sounds also by Tony – again ESU Loksound V5, for a locomotive that was previously QSI fitted (the 600 class is on a BLI Pacific mechanism). And no, two images of ‘previously QSI, now ESU’ isn’t a wind up to Tony regarding a certain other Webb steamer on the Border District … well, not too much anyways.

It was also great to have Darren and Craig back on the Border District, after an absence of more than 4-5 years. It was many, many years ago (more than 20 years, somewhat unbelievably) that I first met both these gentlemen at the then Beenleigh Model Railway Club, and the shared interest in model railway operations was uncovered. It has been a privilege to operate on both their layouts since, and I’m pleased both were able to join in celebrating 50 operating sessions on the Border District, as both played a large hand in the early operating sessions on my layout. And yes, this is even beyond the naming of the ‘Craig’ as forgetting to take your car card stack with you when you move from station to station, or aisle to aisle.

An item not completed for the 50th session, but one completed during the Border District’s 3 year ‘break’ thanks to COVID, work commitments and home renovations, was the installation, post-construction, of the sky blue back-scenes around the layout. As mentioned previously, the biggest learning from this was to not do so after building the layout! The following two images help to illustrate, in my humble option, the significant difference these back-scenes make. I’m currently still undecided on whether the next step is to consider photo backdrops for these – either in part, or in full. Time and some more pondering will tell …

Above: A bird’s eye view of Darren, rocking the OC merch, while shunting the VR quarry train at Southern Aggregates. Both VR and SAR workings here are a mini-shunting puzzle in themselves, though with Darren’s operations experience this seems to be inducing few headaches, even with the fact it has been years since Darren operated on the Border District. I have to say this image brings so many elements of the hobby together for me – a modelling colleague whose efforts and approach I’ve admired for many years, who also interested in operations, working on my layout while wearing a t-shirt from a far more famous model railroad that is also all about operations! Yep – humbling, and then some.

Above: Also suitably OC-attired, Craig is working through some shunting at Jameston. From Craig’s expression, it appears that Jameston may be about to continue its recent reputation for providing a goodly amount of challenge to operators – even more so when it has literally been years since working on the railway! Seems in that time Craig has also forgotten that beverages are best kept below the layout, rather than on it (thanks for showing off the new Border District coolers though!). In the background, Tony seems quite relaxed as he oversees his domain: the ‘West End’ of the ‘Downs.

With the 50th operating session originally planned for February 2023, advantage had been taken over the Summer school holidays to advance a number of elements on the layout – most notably the finalising of the new and improved signalling system (thanks Brendan) and the progression of scenery (thanks Mark). While Mark focussed efforts on the aptly-named ‘Hourigan’s Hill’, I had worked to advance track painting, weathering and ballasting, along with base scenery, tree planting and platform completion, at a number of locations across the layout. Of course, with the last op session being 5 months earlier, and a number of operators having not attended for years, the difference in what was ‘new’ was often up for debate!

Another one of the items completed prior to the 50th operating session was the development and finalisation of a consistent set of light and sound functions for all Border District locomotives. A big thank you must go to Tony for conspiring with me on this, and making an idea a reality. The new standard was in place for approximately half of the Border District fleet (all ESU Loksound equipped engines), and has brought about some comment and wondering from crew members – in particular the use of the ‘brake’ function on F5. I really enjoy this function, as it provides a more authentic ‘driving’ experience than usual, but is so different to the usual approach and so, not surprisingly, sees most operators taking some time to adjust. The alternative – grab a non-sound locomotive and enjoy ignorance as bliss. It will be interesting in future sessions to monitor the use of and feedback from the range of functions (and associated approaches and uses) – 20 for diesels and 24 for steam engines.

Above: A meeting of mustard pots at Tatiara Downs. On the right, class leader 830 arrives with SAR TN 395 goods, a working from Mount Gambier to Jameston. On the left, a shinier 835 goes about making and breaking up trains in the yard. TN 395 will drop off 4 wagons, and pick up 2 more, before heading down the branch for some more shunting. Image thanks to Tony.

Above: Another image of the Trick 2 ‘poster girl’ engine, SAR 609 ‘Duke of Gloucester’, resting at Tatiara Downs towards the end of the Trick 2 session. The reverse 3/4 shot has been taken with 609 having previously worked and loaded the SAR Stonie, then handing her train over to ‘Big Mikado’ 730 at the ‘Downs for the run back to Port Adelaide. The final assignment for the Pacific will be to take over the running SAR TN 263, the mixed service to Southend, shunting Jameston enroute. Image courtesy of Tony.

As shared previously and as for Trick 1 – and with a huge thanks to Brendan – the entirety of the Trick 2 session has been captured via time-lapse – and can be viewed by clicking the following link: Border District May 2023 50th ops session Trick 2

Note also the awesome addition of titles and Border District branding to the time-lapse videos – and not just those for the 50th session – again big thanks to Brendan for his efforts with this.

With the 50th operating session festivities now over a month ago, and the 51st (June 2023) session also having been run since this blogpost a few weekends ago, it is great to see the Border District coming back to life at operating sessions – the layout’s reason for being. There are still few kinks to iron out, and improvements to be made, but it is thoroughly enjoyable to get together and run some trains, with some amazing people – just what the hobby is about.

Above: Mark has managed to capture 4 of the 7 crew involved in the Trick 2 session, all at various levels of ‘immersion’ in operations. Darren is furthest from camera, taking advantage of the ability to see the stretch from Border Junction to Tatiara Downs from his current vantage point. Iain and Brendan can be seen in the middle of the image, no doubt discussing the intricacies of the workings of the ‘Downs – being the ‘current’ and ‘usual’ Sheriffs respectively. In the foreground, the back of yours truly’s head is obscuring whatever Iain and Brendan are discussing. Image courtesy of Mark.

May 2023 operating session – Trick 1

(50th ops – Trick 1 – am/pre-lunch crew)

Above: Victorian Railways (VR) oil burner R748, one of only 2 of 70 engines so powered, isn’t too far from her final destination of Tatiara Downs, bringing VR Train Number (TN) 89 goods round the curve at the eastern end and past the grain loading facilities on the left. In the background, the substantial facilities of Southern Aggregates looms largely. Some basic scenery in this area has enhance the overall look – though there is still much to do. Image courtesy of Tony, who was also in charge of the train.

As blogged about previously, the May 2023 operating session on the Border District was a celebratory one – the 50th scheduled operating session held on the layout. To accommodate as many friends of the Border District being involved in such an auspicious occasion, a ‘2 Tricks’ approach was taken to maximise operator numbers. In summary, a ‘Trick 1’ crew attended before lunch, where everyone gathered for some pizza, reflections and acknowledgements, and then a second ‘Trick 2’ crew picked up the session after lunch from where the first left off. For further details and images of the crews and lunch, feel free to visit the previous blog post on the 50th op session.

This post is related directly to the ‘Trick 1’ or ‘am crew’ session – with a ‘Trick 2’ blog post to come. The crew for Trick 1 saw the usual Tatiara Downs twosome in place – Brendan as the Sheriff/Station Master and Mark as West End/Hostler. Alan and Malcolm took on the South Australian Railways (SAR) crew 1 and crew 2 roles respectively. Jeff shared the VR crew 1 role with his son, Cooper, allowing him to also act as Nankiva Station Master, with Tony undertaking the VR crew 2 role. As is often the case, I acted as Train Control – I have been told it makes life easier for all crew members being able to get their drinks, and in a timely fashion …

Above: VR D3 669, under the capable control of Cooper and supervised by dad Jeff, brings VR TN 3 off the branch from Lake Tallageira and upgrade in to Nankiva. Here, the D3 will shunt loading, with some going west on VR TN 89 (see lead image) and the remainder heading east on VR TN 90. The D3 will then take water, before heading back up the branch with any loading from VR TNs 89 and 90. While the Lake Tallageira branch isn’t modelled on the layout, rather using a couple of staging yard roads to represent the ‘branch’, its inclusion has provided an increase in operations on the VR side of the layout. Image thanks to Tony, who also weathered the D3 and added his own, awesome, sound file.

Above: An overall image of the ‘Victorian’ well on the layout, taken some time after VR TN 3 from the previous image had arrived at Nankiva, and commenced shunting. Cooper has a watchful eye on the D3, while Jeff provides oversight as both Nankiva Station Master and father. To the right, Tony has just completed his first working for the session, VR TN 71/SAR TN 310 2nd division Overland – comprised of the red and green carriages visible in the first ‘through’ staging road closest to the aisle. Tony is about to pick up the VR R class and VR TN 89 goods as his next working – and Nankiva is about to get a whole lot busier …

It had been over 7 months since Brendan had worked the ‘Downs – and the advantage of frequency and recency of experience is often reflected upon as being beneficial on the Border District. Combine this having had a late night prior, and impending illness, it is safe to say the Sheriff didn’t enjoy himself as much as usual. In fact, this and subsequent experiences from Iain in the same role, has led to a few changes being made for the future. A huge thanks to Brendan for soldiering on, despite being under the weather, and keeping the trains moving through the layout’s main station.

At the other end of Tatiara Downs, Mark as West End saw fit to regale himself in some sartorial splendour, befitting of both the occasion, and being very 1960s-esque too! Mark managed to keep locomotives moving through the depot, run the West Tatiara pilots, and also take some pictures. One of the pre-50th operating session projects was the standardising of light and sound functions on all sound equipped locomotives on the layout (an increasing number …) – with some of these sounds also adding immersion for the Hostler – water filling, blowdown, etc. Cards were even made to share these functions with the crew. However, it would appear that the demands of the West End role mean playing with this level of immersion is still in the ’round suit’ category …

Above: A very dapper looking Hostler/West End indeed! Mark has gone all out to mark (see what I did there?) the occasion, dressed in his 1959 finest. Malcolm isn’t doing too badly either in the background, with some possible period headwear on show. Image thanks to Alan, and a new dress standard set …

Above: SAR 4-6-2 Pacific 606 (left) and VR 4-6-4 Hudson R748 (right) face off at Tatiara Downs, both having been provisioned and readied for their next workings (SAR TN 152 ex-South East goods for 606, VR TN 90 goods for R748). A nicely composed image thanks to Mark, with the SAR cantilever signal gantry in the background further contributing to the symmetry.

On the SAR side of the layout, Malcolm’s role saw him operate the ‘ex-Southend’ mixed service – another recent addition to operations that expands the layout beyond its modelled location. The branch at the western end of Jameston is imagined to extend to Southend (an actual place, at the other end of Rivoli Bay to Beachport) and so a train ‘commences’ from Southend each sessions, and runs to Southend at the end of each session. The reorganisation of trains is undertaken between sessions – this same as is done in a staging yard.

Alan both enjoyed and endured the festival of shutting that is working SAR TN 547 and SAR TN 152 ex-South East goods, with facing and trailing sidings at Jameston serving multiple industries making for a challenging time. Alan managed to get in and out, though confessed afterwards to spending time later in the day still in reflection on ‘better’ ways to have done this. Don’t worry Alan, there is always the next session.

Above: SAR ‘Big Mikado’ 730 at rest in the loco depot at Tatiara Downs, having worked SAR TN 547 South East goods down to Jameston, breaking her train up before making up SAR TN 152 ex-South East goods and working back to the ‘Downs. Pacific 606 has taken over for the run west to Tailem Bend, with 730 rostered to work the loaded Stone back to Port Adelaide later in the day. Image with thanks to Tony.

Above: VR oil burning N class Mikado N493 runs downgrade from Nankiva with a loaded wheat train, bound for Portland. The crew will suffer the tender-first runs as far as Hamilton, with no turntable at Nankiva. For crews who feel so inclined, VR steam engines can run BONA (light engine and van) from Nankiva to Tatiara Downs to turn the locomotive and avoid such hardships. Looks like it was a case of keeping the wheat moving today. Image thanks to Jeff, with Cooper at the controls of the N.

In Victoria, the trio of Tony, Jeff and Cooper kept trains moving, despite the challenges one the single compounds in the yard at Nankiva, and the added complexity of the ‘Lake Tallageira branch’ traffic and trains. I’m unsure which was harder for the VR crews – the answer probably is neither, rather the fact a certain younger crew members was very hungry for the latter part of the session, with the prospect of pizza highly anticipated. I am also unsure if there the operating sessions are yet to achieve complete ‘balance’ between the SAR and VR sides of things – it felt at times like the VR crews were experiencing the usual ‘hurry up and wait’, with the SAR crews a tad more under the pump.

The use of an additional person as the Nankiva Station Master, above the usual 7 operators for a session, worked well in Trick 1 – though I’m not sure yet whether this is to become a more regular role on the layout. It has been a great way to include Cooper in sessions, and it is a position that doesn’t add any crowding to the often packed Tatiara Downs/Jameston aisle. It also takes advantage of the fact it is a ‘non-driving’ position – like Train Control – somewhat necessary as in using the NCE PowerCab / SB5 system I am limited to a maximum of 6 throttles. To address this, I have threatened to dabble with Raspberry Pi and TCS throttles – and blame Tony for being a influencer in that space …

Above: The early morning quiet at Nankiva isn’t so much at present, with VR diesel-hydraulic W242 burbling away in the yard and VR ten-wheeler steamer D3 674 arriving with the early service from Portland. The Edenhope Valley Vegetable Growers’ co-operative building, modelled in ‘ultra-relief’ and inspired by a similar building at Waikerie in South Australia’s Riverland, acts as a background to proceedings. After a short station stop, the D3 will continue on to Tatiara Downs, connecting with SAR passenger services to both Jameston and Mount Gambier. Image courtesy of Jeff.

Above: A rubble stone building (the work of maestro Don Bishop) rests beyond the VR mainline, not far from the South Australian border. This area, known as ‘Hourigan’s Hill’, has seen a significant scenic effort and progress in the last 12 months, with thanks to long time friend and Border District co-conspirator Mark. Image thanks to Jeff – possibly afforded a little more photography time while taking on the Nankiva Station Master role.

They say time flies when you are having fun, and in what seemed like no time at all, the bell was rung to end Trick 1 and the crew headed out for a debrief and lunch. As well as pizza (for which Cooper proved to have very hollow legs), lunch was also used to present the crew with some souvenirs to commemorate the occasion – Border District drink coolers and the now ‘must have’ model railway stickers, including a special, limited-edition ’50 ops’ sticker for those who attended. The occasion was also used to introduce the traditional of acknowledging service and support to operations on the Border District, with certificates to be presented at quarter century (25 session) intervals. Three long time friends and operators of the Border District were the first to receive their 25 session acknowledgement – Brendan (the 50th session actually being number 38), Mark (39 sessions with the 50th) and Iain (clubhouse leader with 45 sessions).

It was great to reflect on the history and progress of the Border District – and is still somewhat hard to believe that the half century of operations milestone has been reached. As blogged previously, the whole shebang can be viewed, thanks to Brendan, via time-lapse by clicking the following link: Border District May 2023 50th ops session Trick 1

A huge thanks and shout out to Brendan too, for taking the time to add some titles and Border District artwork to all the time-lapse captures of previous operating sessions. In the next blogpost, I’ll share some images from ‘Trick 2’, the pm/post-lunch crew’s session. In fact, I’ve gotten just a tad behind – there is also the June 2023 operating session blog post to come too!

Above: An overall shot of the layout, taken less than an hour into the Trick 1 session. Alan can be seen on the far right hand side, working through the shunting demands at Jameston. On the other side of the aisle, Brendan, Malcolm and Mark are all engrossed in goings on at Tatiara Downs as they work together to shunt SAR TN 905 South East passenger. In the other aisle, Jeff, Cooper (top of head just visible!) and Tony are involved in sorting their respective trains at Nankiva.

The Border District celebrates 50 operating sessions

Above: The most excellent Border District 50th operating session crew – on their well deserved lunch break!

May 2023 saw the Border District achieve a milestone, with the 50th operating session in the layout’s history undertaken. Given the fact the layout was conceived and designed to be focussed on operations, this is equal parts rewarding and humbling. The 50th operating session was intended to allow as many crew as possible to participate, so a full day affair – with two ‘tricks’ conceived, broken by a shared lunch. However, life and other commitments meant that the session was rescheduled twice, originally planned for February, then March, before finally taking place in May.

The 50th operating session took the usual morning (am) timetable and expanded on it, taking the usual near 3 hours of operations (representing 11 hours of ‘real time’) and ending up with 4.5 hours total running time (or 17 hours fast clock time at 4:1). The 4 and 1/2 hours were divided equally amongst the 2 tricks – the first for 2 hours 15 minutes, then a hard stop for lunch, with the second trick for another 2 and a 1/4 hours picking up and taking over from where the first left off. In all, 10 friends were able to attend and be involved in the day.

The first trick saw Brendan and Mark in their ‘often usual’ roles at Tatiara Downs, Brendan as the Sheriff/Station Master and Mark as West End/Hostler – roles they truly have made their own. Alan and Malcolm took on the South Australian Railways (SAR) crew 1 and crew 2 roles respectively. Jeff shared the Victorian Railways (VR) crew 1 role with his son, Cooper, allowing him to also act as Nankiva Station Master, with Tony undertaking the VR crew 2 role. For both tricks, I acted as Train Control.

Above: The first trick crew immersed in operations. Tony and Jeff are on the left hand side of the layout at Nankiva, while Brendan, Malcolm and Mark work the ‘Downs. At the end of the right hand side aisle, Alan is engrossed in some shunting at Jameston.

The second trick – after a lunch break of pizza, drinks and chats – saw changes in both personnel and roles. Iain stepped from the familiarity of Jamestown and into the Sheriff role, with Tony having a crack at West End. Brendan headed over the border to take on the VR crew 1 role, with Mark also moving to the SAR crew 2 position. Long time Border District friends Darren and Craig made their return to the layout, after many years’ absence, taking on the VR crew 2 and SAR crew 1 roles respectively.

It was truly enjoyable to get back to running trains on the layout – with the previous most recent operating session having been in December of 2022, a break of nearly 5 months. In that time, a number of projects – scenic, signalling, trackwork, control and operations-focussed, had been undertaken. The layout certainly looked and felt a little more complete, but there is still a ways to go in that front. More than that though, it was simply great to get back together with friends for the camaraderie and usual banter that comes with operating sessions. As always, a very big thank you to those who came along and brought the layout to life – on a day where the theme may have just been ‘too much operation is barely enough’ …!

There were many images taken by the crew throughout the two tricks – enough so that they will be able to be featured in separate blogposts on each of the two ‘tricks’ in the near future. In the interim though, I am grateful to be able to provide links to the time captures for the 2 separate tricks, with thanks Brendan. Feel free to click the links below and see what it was all about:

Trick 1 – Border District – 50th operating session

Trick 2 – Border District – 50th operating session

Above: The second trick crew continues the immersive operation theme. Darren and Brendan oversee work at Nankiva in the foreground, while behind them Craig is checking cards for his next SAR train at Kybybolite. In the other aisle, Iain, and Tony look on as a dapper looking Mark appears somewhat surrounded at Tatiara Downs.

December 2022 operating session

Above: An overall shot of the December 2022 operating session – layout and crew – early on in the afternoon’s proceedings. Iain, Malcolm, Alan and Jeff are all in the vicinity of Tatiara Downs (right side of image), with Cooper and Ian at Nankiva (left side of image)

The December 2022 operating session on the Border District has been run and done, completed on a fine and warm Brisbane Saturday afternoon. The session marked the fourth for the year, with operating sessions having returned in September. The session was also the 49th official operating session in the history of the ‘District – and it is somewhat hard to believe the first session of the new year will mark the half century of ops for this layout. Regular operating sessions commenced way back in 2015, and had it not been for Covid and renovations, we might already be headed more towards triple figures for operations – with no session held for over two and a half years. It was great to get together again and run some trains like it was 1960 (or thereabouts), South Australian Railways (SAR) and Victorian Railways (VR) style.

There were a few apologies received ahead of planning for the December session on the Border District. However, Brendan was a late out also (get well soon Alex – and stay healthy Brendan!), resulting in a last minute shuffle of some roles. Iain, the most experienced operator on the ‘District, stepped into the role of Sheriff/Tatiara Downs’ Station Master, given Brendan’s absence. Jeff had already offered to take on the ‘Downs Hostler/West End role, with Mark another apology. Alan was a last minute change to the SAR crew 1 role, joining Malcolm (SAR crew 2) as the ‘west of the border’ team. Two other generations of Grenfells – Jeff’s dad Ian (VR crew 1) and son Cooper (VR crew 2) tackled all things to the east – and also achieved the first ever ‘three generations of one family operating the layout at the one time’ milestone! Yours truly took on the Train Control role, as per usual.

Above: Another view of most of the December 2022 Border District crew, from the opposite angle of the lead image. Ian surveys the scene at Nankiva while undertaking some shunting, as Cooper prepares to bring his first VR train out of staging. Alan and Iain are working to get SAR Train Number 547 South East Goods underway from Tatiara Downs, while Jeff watches on. Malcolm is out of shot, at Jameston and in charge of the early morning SAR mixed working (Train Number 262).

Above: VR R class Hudson R748 charges upgrade into Nankiva. The oil burner – only one of two such engines of the 70 strong class, will pause here to drop off some wagons headed for the Tallageira branch, and also collect a few wagons for Tatiara Downs and points west, over the border. In the distance and slightly obscured by the back scene, Iain continues his reign as the session’s Sheriff …

Planning for the session saw the application of learnings from the three previous sessions this year. As such, a reduced number of workings were planned for – 33 in total – with changes also made to improve the flow of trains and operators. This was intended to give approximately two and a half hours of operating session time, bookended by a dinner at a local burger eatery, and a post session debrief on the back deck. Plans didn’t quite go as expected though …

The first hiccup came long before the session commenced – early on Saturday morning. A decoder reset had previously been undertaken on SAR Pacific class leader 600 – a Model Design Studio body on a BLI mechanism. While the reset was good, the volume of the engine’s sound was near on deafening (BLI’s factory setting). In turning on my NCE PowerCab (used for programming – the layout runs on an NCE SB5), I got nothing but a dreaded ‘chunk’ noise – with no lit screen on the throttle or illuminated red LED on the PCP. I tried a second PCP, used for some N scale I occasional dabble in – but still nothing. Not a big problem for ops I thought – but a frustration that nothing other than Programming on the Main (POM) could be undertaken – something BLI sound decoders won’t accept.

Above: Alan can be seen pondering his next move at Jameston as he breaks up SAR Train Number 547 South East Goods and makes up the return working, SAR Train Number 152 South East Goods. There are plenty of facing and trailing moves to be made here – with some track work that can equally assist or derail efforts. Looks like the layout owner might need to invest in some better shelving for those ABLO car cards … (though the sorting board already provided sits empty, right in front of Alan!)

Above: Back at Tatiara Downs, R748 has arrived at her final destination, at the head of VR Train Number 89 Goods. In the platform road, SAR Train Number 905 passenger working, with a motley collection of equipment in green and cream, has recently arrived from Adelaide – and will soon commence shunting.

Jeff kindly brought along his PowerCab and associated power supply, as I wasn’t sure which one (or, perish the thought, both) of mine had failed/was the culprit. Unfortunately, this seemed to only compound matters – when using Jeff’s equipment, some CVs were able to be read (most of the time), lights were able to be turned on and off, but no engines were able to be driven or moved. Hmmm … might be both my PCPs that have also failed, or even the PowerCab throttle itself? This was shaping up to be a costly little hiccup …

I have long said the strength of this hobby is the people you meet, and relationships and friendships you form and grow. I’m grateful to the crew who offered their thoughts, assistance and support – in a matter that really didn’t affect the operating session (we ran 600 without sound, well for most of the time anyways). A big shout out to Malcolm, who came over the day later, his own PowerCab, PCP and power supply in hand, to trouble shoot down to the point we could identify the power supply as the only failed item/example of electrickery behaving badly. Much appreciated Malcolm – and to much relief on my part.

Above: ‘Tis the season … the three wise men gather. Iain, Malcolm and Alan work together at the ‘Downs, sorting the passage of SAR Train Number 152 South East Goods and SAR Train Number 329 Jameston passenger working. Iain and Alan are immersed in all things ABLO card, while Malcolm is looking to get his morning service underway and head down the branch. Image thanks to Jeff.

Above: SAR “Big Mikado” 730 balances on the turntable at Tatiara Downs, having working SAR Train Number 152 South East Goods in from Jameston. SAR 606 has taken over for the remainder of the run to Tailem Bend, where power will likely switch to a 500B Mountain.

Unfortunately, the behaving badly bit did extend into the operating session too, with a list of issues a little larger than usually experienced or accepted. Again, I thank the crew for their patience and understanding – much too kind of you team. The issues experienced were: VR B60 with a broken pick up wire/poor soldering, resulting in intermittent running until declared failed and replaced with VR S301 (now sitting on my workbench); a dead point/section in Jameston caused a few issues (first thing I fixed post session – one wire had simply come adrift); VR J class steamer derailed, parting loco and tender (Ian and I both struggled to fully re-seat the plug between the two, so we declared it another failure – then managed to fix this prior to the end of the session); and one VR D3 steamer started emitting a very loud and unprototypical turbo sounding whine, so was also declared a failure (righted itself post session, Murphy style of course) and replaced with another D3.

The other less than positive issue experienced was with regards to the efforts to capture the session by the now traditional time lapse – something I failed at in epic fashion for the November session, in Brendan’s absence. With Brendan being a late out, a hastily convened video hook up/remedial class was planned and undertaken – only for this to also fail at the start of the session! Talk about operator error! Another quick video call and a fifteen minute delay to starting ops resulted. The good news though – the time lapse capture was achieved after all the fuss (thanks to Brendan). Brendan has already uploaded the time lapse of the session to his YouTube site: December 2022 operating session

Above: Another view of the loco facilities at Tatiara Downs. The R class has been turned, fuelled and watered – and is ready to work VR Train Number 90 Goods back from the ‘Downs. Jeff has also captured SAR English Electric class leader 800, resplendent in original ‘Tangerine’ garb and looking quite new and clean, going for a spin on the turntable. The SAR water columns are the work of Malcolm Jenkins – renders then printed by Shapeways – and yes, they need a coat or two of paint to look even more amazing!

Above: Seeds and rocks, 1960s style. Ian is in charge of VR Mikado N493, loading grain at Nankiva for export at Portland (left of image). Behind Ian, Alan prepares to shunt and load the SAR stone train at Southern Aggregates (the empty working is out of image to the right, having arrived at Border Junction and waiting to push back to load).

While this blog post has so far has dealt with some frustrations from the session, there was also a goodly amount of immersive operations, and workings of a range of SAR and VR trains, circa 1960. A big well done and thank you to the crew. Almost all crew members were in a role or had some workings not experienced before, or for a long time in Iain’s case. There is certainly much to be said for shaking up operator roles every now and then. And while we didn’t manage to operate all 33 planned workings, we only landed six short – and two of these were deliberately replaced with two ‘condition/extra’ passenger workings, to best suit the demands and desire of the crew (you’re welcome Cooper!).

There were more than a few laughs to go along with the operations focus. One highlight of these was the unintended use of the hill from Tatiara Downs down to West Tatiara/Kybybolite as a hump yard – a feature not originally considered in the initial design. However, in attempting to shunt some VR passenger cars from the platform road to the dock with a D3 lacking a front autocoupler, the four carriage consist was propelled to the end of the yard at the ‘Downs, before running ‘loose shunting’ style down the hill on its own, through the tunnel at speed, and deep into staging – with a round of applause given to Jeff. There may or may not have been an additional working required to retrieve the cars and position them for the late morning passenger service back to Portland …

Above: A busy few moments at Tatiara Downs, captured by Jeff. SAR Bluebird railcar 255 ‘Curlew’ has recently docked, ahead of working SAR Train Number 537 passenger down the branch to Jameston. Ahead of the Bluebird in the platform road is a VR D3 steamer and four wooden carriage consist (perhaps even the one from the famed ‘hump incident’ detailed above …), ready to work to Portland on VR Train Number 26 service. SAR ALCo and class leader 830 goes about shunting at the ‘Downs.

Above: Jeff is in charge of SAR class leader 800, working upgrade into Tatiara Downs at the head of SAR W7 Transfer Goods from West Tatiara. The train is bringing empty VR sheep vans and VR Iced T vans added with export lamb from the abattoirs, and an empty oil pot from the fuel distributors. The surrounding scenery has progressed in this area in the last twelve months, thanks to Mark’s efforts. While Jeff was driving this train, he also managed to take the picture … go figure?!

The sights and sounds of the VR R and N class steamers, with lights and noise courtesy of Tony (another apology for the session) received much attention and enjoyment – from those operating, and also those in the general vicinity – with a real atmosphere created as a result. As always, a very big thank you goes to the crew who gave up their Saturday afternoon to get their immersive operations fix, and once again put the layout and operating system through its paces. Thanks also to Brendan for his support in all things time lapse – before, during and after the session. I’m really looking forward to the next session in the new year – yes, the big ‘5 – 0’!

A few more images from the November 2022 operating session

With thanks to keen eye and camera of Jeff, here are a few more images of the Border District – layout and crew – captured hard at it during the recent November 2022 operating session. The session was the third to be held this year after a three year hiatus from ops – and the 48th operating session in the life of the ‘District. Thanks agin to the crew who bring the layout and operations to life – and also take the time to record some fantastic images, angles and moments along the way.

Above: South Australia Railways’ (SAR) English Electric 807, looking very clean and fresh in ‘as delivered’ tangerine livery, waits at the home signal at Tatiara Downs with a transfer working from West Tatiara. In the background is the sprawling expanse of the Tatiara Downs loco depot, with four different examples of motive power on shed: an SAR Rx steamer, SAR Bluebird rail motor, Victorian Railways’ (VR) B class diesel, and VR 153hp Walkers rail motor. The four road roundhouse is with thanks to the maestro Don Bishop – and is available as a kit.

Above: A busy scene at Border Junction – but made all the busier by the rather full open staging yard in the foreground! Border Junction station can be seen in the top right of the image, with the Southern Aggregates facility just peeking out from the top left. SAR 600C class leader 600 has been relegated from ‘big wheel’ jobs and is undertaking some final shunting while working the morning stone train. Once completed, the Pacific will head down the branch to turn the engine and reverse the Webb goods brake at Jameston, before heading west. 600 is the work of Stuart Gamble, and features the 500 class style tender with fuller coping, unique in class to this engine. On the mainline and to the left of the 600 and her train, VR D3 674 can be seen working at quite a healthy trot, leading a morning passenger working from Tatiara Downs to Portland. The D3 is a Phoenix Reproductions model.

Above: A almost reverse view from the one shared in the November 2022 operating session blogpost. Jeff has the helicopter up high above Nankiva (foreground) and has again managed to capture all six other operators in the one aisle at the one time! From right to left …Tony looks on at the proceedings at Tatiara Downs, possibly bemused from suffering from the dreaded ‘hurry up and wait’ syndrome, while I am working with Alan to finalise his next VR working. Iain appears to be enjoying a rather large spot of shunting, synonymous with working most trains on the Jameson branch. Malcolm and Mark are at the Tatiara Downs’ loco, and are deep in conversation about all things SAR – or possibly the creation of the ‘M&M’ club?

November 2022 operating session

Above: Echoing the grit of the late 1950s and early 1960s is a study in greys and blacks. South Australian Railways’ (SAR) ‘Big Mikado’ 730 takes a spin on the turntable at Tatiara Downs, while Rx 224 shunts an O wagon for loading with loco ash. In the distance on the main line, an empty stone train is making its way up the hill from Kybybolite, and into the ‘Downs. Image courtesy of Mark.

The Border District crew were at it again recently, coming together for the third operating session on the layout for 2022. Excitingly, this also represented the third session in three consecutive months – a feat not achieved for far too long! As always, it was great to get back to both camaraderie and immersive operation, and run some South Australian and Victorian trains … as if it really were 1960 (or thereabouts!).

Above: Victorian Railways’ (VR) oil burner J549 arrives tender first from the Lake Tallageira branch with a small goods train, while the Art Deco styled vegetable growers’ building presides over the background at Nankiva. The J will undertake shunting here, dropping off wagons for both westbound and eastbound trains, before assembling a return working for the branch. The addition of the ‘off layout’ VR branch has certainly added to and enhanced the VR operations on the layout. Image thanks to Jeff.

The session saw seven Border District regulars gather together – two for the first time since operations resumed this year. Malcolm reacquainted himself with the layout through somewhat familiar territory as SAR Crew 2, and Alan picked up the VR Crew 2 role on his first run back at the ‘District. Tony took on the VR Crew 1 gig, a slight shift from the VR Crew 2 job the previous two sessions. Mark maintained his stranglehold on the ‘West End’/TD Hostler role, as did Iain with the SAR Crew 1 role. Jeff took on the position of Train Control, as in Brendan’s absence I undertook the ‘Sheriff’/TD Station Master position.

Above: Jeff has managed to capture the November crew (excluding his good self) hard at it, with convergence on Tatiara Downs very much evident! Both SAR crews and both VR crews are present, along with the two resident ‘Downs operators. The SAR crews must have priority though, as Iain and Malcolm are working the centre of the yard, and the VR crews of Tony and Alan appear stuck up at the east end …

An ambitious timetable of sequenced operations was planned, with 40 movements in total. As the rust continues to be worked out by both the host and the crew, we managed to get through 30 of the 40 intended workings in three hours – an impressive effort! It was wonderful to see the continuing impact the 1960s period backdating efforts on the crews, and their increasing engagement with this. Additionally, the growing steam locomotive fleet and earlier period rollingstock are garnering attention and enjoyment from all.

Above: A classic Victorian Railways’ image, with two passenger trains meeting at Nankiva. The B class diesel is in charge of VR Train Number (TN) 24, the up morning passenger service to Melbourne. In the loop sits RM57, having worked a connecting service from the Lake Tallageira branch. Once the B and train have departed east, the railmotor will shunt to the platform, load any connecting passengers, parcels and goods, and head back up the branch. The DERM is a recently received IDR Models product, with sound, and is an absolute cracker! Image courtesy of Jeff.

A few learning were evident from the session. The first and possibly the largest – and I quote a fellow operator – is that the ‘railway overlord’ really needs to have a role that permits them to aide, support and intervene with and for others as necessary. Unfortunately, me undertaking the ‘Sheriff’ role (dubbed ‘Commandant’ for this session by another operator – make of that what you will!) precluded and limited this to a degree. I guess this simply emphasises the busy, important and pivotal nature of the ‘Sheriff’ role.

Above: A quiet moment at Tatiara Downs. Mark has taken time out of his hosting role to scale the coal stage, capturing SAR English Electric diesel shunter 807 paused between movements. 807 was a guest engine for the session, joining usual TD shunter 800 for the afternoon. The sight and sound of two tangerine shunters working the ‘Downs was one of the many highlights from the session. In the background is a classic South Australian Railways’ residence, another work from master modeller Don Bishop.

Another learning was that the use of a 12 hour section of the day for operations might just be too much for a single session – even if a 4:1 fast clock says this converts to three actual hours. There have been some great reflections around this in the post session briefing, and beyond, with a likely trial of three 8 hour sessions to complete a full day’s operation, rather than the currently utilised two 12 hour sessions. While this means it will take three sessions to complete a full calendar day, this should improve the ability for sessions to be completed. An unintended but welcome consequence of this is the freeing up of a little space/additional roads in the staging yard, with not as many trains required to be staged for each session.

Above: Another cross at Nankiva, caught again by the keen camera and eye of Jeff. VR oil burner R748 is in the yard, undertaking shunting of VR TN 90 eastbound goods. Arriving on the main is VR D3 669, the ten-wheeler in charge of an empty limestone working (VR TN 73) headed for Southern Aggregates at Border Junction.

While Brendan was absent for this session, he did ensure his camera made it to the Border District, so as to allow a time lapse was recorded. The good news is the camera was installed, connected to power and ready to go for the session (it can even be spotted in the third image of this blogpost!). The not as good news was that the host epitomised ‘operator error’ in failing to start the recording – despite two attempts, it must be said. As such, and with apologies to all (especially Brendan), there is no time lapse available for the November 2022 session. As always, my sincere thanks for the crew that bring the Border District to life each session – I really am privileged to have such a great group of mates!

Above: VR oil burner N493 has commenced shunting a string of ubiquitous GYs for loading with wheat from the silos at Nankiva. Once completed, the N will take water before hauling the load east to Portland for export. The farmers are fortunate early rains have provided a good growing season, and the VR is happy that there is plenty of grain to be moved. Image thanks to Mark.

October 2022 operating session

South Australian Railways’ (SAR) ‘Big Mikado’ 730 stands at the head of a stone train working, pushing a motley collection of four wheel Z hoppers and bogie HS hoppers under the loader at Southern Aggregates. Image thanks to Tony.

Hot on the heels of the September 2022 operating session – the first operating session on the Border District in nearly three years – a second session was held just a fortnight later, on the first day of October. Yep folks, talk about feast or famine! The reasons for the unplanned and additional session were simple – to finish off all planned movements from the first session, to take advantage of the short time between sessions to address issues, and to get together again and run some trains. I am pleased to say I think the session ticked the box well for this trifecta of intended outcomes.

Seeing double? SAR mustard pot ALCo class leader 830 has arrived at Tatiara Downs, ahead of SAR Train Number (TN) 396 roadside goods. Just behind 830 is stablemate 835, currently working the yard and breaking up SAR TN 161 goods. The Tatiara Downs station building can be seen in the background, and is a replica of the station that still stands at Bordertown in South Australia. Image courtesy of Tony.

Almost all operators from the September 2022 session were able to return for the 47th session run on the ‘District, dubbed the ‘finish off’ session. Only Ian, Jeff’s dad, was unable to make it – though Jeff did ensure that more than one generation of the Grenfell family were represented (more on that later). All operators returned to the same roles from the September session – Brendan as the Station Master and ‘Sheriff’ of Tatiana Downs, Mark as hostler and ‘West End’, Jeff and Tony as VR crews 1 and 2 respectively, and Iain taking on both SAR 1 and SAR 2 crew roles (and doing so with aplomb, it must be said). As is usually the case, I played equal parts Train Control and general gopher/’operations manager’.

A wider shot taken in the location of the lead image, showing Iain in charge of the ‘Big Mikado’ 730 and stone loading at Southern Aggregates. Iain had commenced loading this train at the previous session. The October 2022 session was the 47th regular op session on the ‘District – and the 42nd one in which Iain has been involved – making Iain the current clubhouse leader for most Border District operating sessions attended.

The October operating session literally picked up where the September session left off, with operators completing all remaining movements for the 1959-60 ‘AM’ session. This equated to just over one third of the workings, and took us a little over two hours to complete. Given the session notionally uses a 4:1 fast clock and spans 12 hours, our total time for completion across the two sessions was closer to 20 fast clock hours. While some of this is to be put down to working out the rust, the poor running qualities/issues experienced in the first session, and everyone reacquainting themselves with the nuances of the layout and operations, it is possibly also something for the host to look at – in terms of the volume and complexity of workings for a single operating session.

A study in steam … SAR 730 is traversing the Border Junction to Tatiara Downs line in charge of the stone train, while Victorian Railways (VR) oil burning mikado N493 is travelling upgrade from Edenhope (east end staging) to Nankiva. While physically close in proximity, this image shows a compromise of modelling – with the trains actually meant to be miles apart. In fact, the 720 is in South Australia, and the N in Victoria! Image courtesy of Tony, who also added sound, lights and weathering to the Alco brass N.

This second session had a more relaxed feel than the first, with muscle memory starting to come into play and enjoyment levels a little more evident. The most noticeable improvement in the session was improved running – clean track and clean wheels will do that for you – and the Border District operated much more like operators have come to know (and expect). This should have been the case for the first session, and was achieved through fairly intensive campaign of track and wheel cleaning between the two sessions. A big thanks to the Border District crew for their feedback post the September session, and thoughts on track cleaning … the Border District has a few new track cleaning tools, devices and techniques as a result!

And another image with two steamers which proves just how evocative the 1959-60 modelling period can be. While shunting Nankiva, N493 has pushed backed into the Vegetable Growers’ siding to allow VR Hudson R748 to pass by on a goods working. The oil burning R is from the Eureka stable, and has recently been vastly improved throughout the addition of weight, weathering, lighting and sounds, all added thanks to Tony. Picture courtesy of Jeff – a great capture!

The October ‘finish off’ operating session saw a pretty impressive milestone and achievement too, with a third generation of the Grenfell family joining the operating crew. While Jeff is a regular, and his father Ian a ‘sometimes guest’ when he is up north, Jeff’s son Cooper took the double prize for most generations of one family involved in the Border District, and youngest ever operator at a ‘District regular operating session. Cooper ably supported Jeff in the VR crew 1 role, but was also of great assistance in supporting yard operations at both Tatiara Downs and Nankiva, changing points and signals. There may even have been a few special passenger workings under Cooper’s control towards the end of the session. Well done Cooper – it was great to have you on board!

Cooper keenly watching the clock, ensuring enough time to load grain into GY open wagons one by one, at the Grain Elevators’ Board (GEB) siding at Nankiva. Image thanks to Jeff.

A big, big thank you to the October 2022 operating crew – it has been a heap of fun to get back together and bring the layout to life, after far too long in limbo. And if a blogpost chronicling the operating session isn’t enough to keep everyone updated on operations on the ‘District, as is now the custom a full time lapse of the operating session was also recorded. Thanks as always to Brendan for this – both the taking of the time lapse, and the hosting on his YouTube channel. If you would like to view the time lapse, just click this link: October 2022 operating session time lapse

SAR TN 214 goods, one of the last movements of the session, heads down the hill from Tatiara Downs towards the tunnel and Kybybolite (west end staging), bound for Tailem Bend and then Adelaide. Possibly, the train’s guard might be lamenting the accomodations of the Webb caboose, with a shiny, new, modern 8300 goods brake sitting in the headhunt at the ‘Downs. Image courtesy of Mark.

September 2022 operating session

Operations return to the Border District! Image courtesy of Mark.

After nearly three years – with thanks to renovations, a global pandemic, work changes and a multitude of other factors – operations returned to the Border District in September 2022. In fact, ops had been planned for the month previous, but ill health got in the way.

Almost unbelievably, 35 months had passed since the previous session – a continuation and second trial session for the ‘throw back’ to the late 1950s and early 1960s. This has proven to have a continuing impact, with 1960 (or thereabouts …) now being modelled in addition to the previous 1976 timeframe for the layout. This has presented a few challenges, but also plenty of learnings. And so it was planned – South Australian Railways (SAR) and Victorian Railways (VR) workings in the south east of South Australia and the west of Victoria, circa 1960.

A picture of focus, concentration and determination. Mark and Brendan work the ‘Downs together, while Jeff has stepped away during a passenger stop at Nankiva to give some assistance to Iain.

During the operations hiatus, a number of improvements had been undertaken to the layout. These included: the installation of backscenes throughout the layout (not easy to retrofit at all – an expected learning!), the upgrade and improvement of the signalling system (with thanks to Brendan, the Border District’s CSE), scenic work and structures across parts of the layout (including a large amount of work courtesy of Mark), and the progression of painting, weathering and ballasting of track (efforts ably assisted by Jeff and Ian). Additionally, and with thanks to Tony, there were some very, very nice sounding and weathered VR steamers. The latter of these has been a significant support in moving the operating period from 1976 to 1960.

A crew of six braved the afternoon, looking to run some trains and work out the ‘rust’. It was more than fitting that the first op session crew included the majority of the ‘District regulars – continuing contributors to and friends of the Border District. Brendan took on the Tatiara Downs Station Master (aka ‘Sheriff’) position, Mark had the hostler/’West End’ role, Jeff and Tony were the two VR crews and Ian and Ian held down the two SAR crew spots.

The crew hard at it! Note less balance between the operating wells here than the lead image in this blogpost.

Speaking of rust … well, there was plenty! This wasn’t just for operators, but on tracks and wheels, with ops having not happened for thirty-five months. Despite cleaning the track a month earlier for intended ops, attention hadn’t been paid in the ensuing period and the session suffered as a result. The level of locomotives behaving badly was much, much higher than usual. This is something to look into more closely prior to the next session.

Other issues included some poorly proof read ops guides (resulting in the wrong train departing staging – no fault of the crew) and some poorly re-laid track. The latter saw both a locomotive and some wagons unable to access the back industry road at Jameston – a result of not looking closely at markings when relaying this track after fitting the backscene here, so not allowing sufficient clearances. I am happy to report this is the first item already corrected post operating session!

Tony is in control of a D3 at Southern Aggregates (far corner) loading limestone for a VR working, while Iain waits with an RX and train at Border Junction with an SAR passenger service from Jameston. To complete the trifecta of ten wheelers, Jeff is in charge of another D3 on a VR passenger working on the mainline, heading for Tatiara Downs. Jeff will pull up short of the ‘red over red’ signal, allowing Iain to then get the road.

There were a few new additions and concepts introduced in the session – a result of thinking (too much?) in the three year interval. These included the ‘imagined’ VR branch and associated operations to Kowree Flat and Lake Tallageira, making the modelled location of Nankiva a junction station with additional traffic and workings. The branch concept worked well for the most, including the need to consider how to best utilise space in the yard, and looms as a likely actual layout inclusion in any future iteration.

The other change included another ‘non modelled’ addition – West Tatiara. This had been trialled years ago, seeking to provide additional industry locations for the layout’s main station at Tatiara Downs. The revised approach used saw the west end staging (Kybybolite) used to also represent West Tatiara, with the hostler/’West End’ in charge of occasional trip workings to the and from the industries there – an abattoir, fuel unloading and general goods (including some produce traffic). Additionally, there are imagined to be a couple of carriage sidings at West Tatiara, freeing up space in the main yard at Tatiara Downs for making and breaking up trains and adding another element for operating crews. As per the VR branch, this addition seemed to prove successful..

The first West Tatiara shunt has been prepared by Mark, and is ready to propel down the main to drop off three wagons and pick up four more. As well as the train itself, the ABLO card deck and NCE throttle are in shot. Image courtesy of Mark.

Brendan’s efforts and support to revise, rework and upgrade elements of the signal system saw these used successfully throughout the session. The ability to control the SAR branch from the alternate operating well, where Train Control is located, made for much less ducking under. The electrically thrown points at Southern Aggregates made shunting there a little easier. Most of all, the ability to call on trains and control movements as per the prototype was one of the stand out successes of the session for me.

Much effort had gone into revising the organisation and determining the placement of elements of the locomotive depot at Tatiara Downs to add operational interest, and alignment to the prototype. A big thanks in this space need to go to Don Bishop (to whom the thanks for the roundhouse in the image below also belong) and Des Egan (incredibly generous in sharing information and images too). Thanks also to Mark for continuing to look for ways to support and ensure the hostler role. loco depot and engine servicing is full of ‘immersive operation’.

Around the roundhouse at Tatiara Downs, SAR 600C Pacific and class leader 600 is flanked by two Victorians – 153 HP Walkers rail motor 27 RM, and R class Hudson R748, one of only two engines in the class that were oil burners. The sound, lighting, extra weight and weathering on the R is courtesy of Tony. Image thanks to Mark.

In an unplanned near coincidence, 36 movements/workings were scheduled for a session 35 months in the making. Given the issues with track and engines, and the need for all to reacquaint themselves with the many aspects of operations, the three hour session saw just over two thirds of these workings completed. A hard stop was taken at the three hour mark of operations, allowing time for a debrief – and so leaving little work to finish the session off … next time perhaps? With thanks to Brendan, you can view a time capture of the full September 2022 session on his YouTube channel here – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfWsSaYEHlE – apologies for the sometimes stuttering locos, and track cleaning efforts of the host.

The biggest success of the afternoon, in my humble opinion, was the return of the camaraderie that regular operating sessions build and provide. While almost everyone in attendance had been back to the ‘District sometime in the three years when operations didn’t happen, it was great for everyone to be together at the same time, and with the same purpose. Model railways is a great hobby, but it is made infinitely greater by the mates you have as a result. A big thank you to the crew who gave up their Saturday afternoon to work out the rust and run some trains … looking forward to the next one. Now, back to track cleaning …

Iain is in charge of ‘Big Mikado’ 730, and loading limestone at Southern Aggregates. Today’s train includes the usual ‘Stonie’ HS hoppers, as well as some four wheeled Z hoppers, more accustomed to hauling ballast. These are from the Rocky River Models line, and make up to an awesome representation of these little wagons.