Branch Goods

We often think of Branch Line trains as short trains. In the steam era with light 42 lbs rails the load could be under 200 tons, thus not a very long train. Another factor to consider is the number of stations on the line or how long the branch line is.  Some branch lines were short with just a few stations or siding, other were much longer. Brisbane Valley Branch – Ipswich to Yarraman 163.250 Kilometres, seven (7) crossing stations and some 22 sidings. Many station yards had more than just one siding.  Dalby – Glenmorgan 165.43 kilometres. 4 crossing stations and 29 sidings. Ten (10) of these siding would come part of the Dalby shunt engine work. Gympie – Kingaroy Branch 130.810 kilometres, six crossing stations, plus the Proston Branch. Monto Branch, 267.849 kilometres from Mungar, some 12 crossing stations with one being just 44 units long.

Following the introduction of 60 Ton Diesel Electric Locomotives this all changed, the 1720 class locomotive being the top dog with 1000 hp. Beaudesert cattle trains went from 12 wagons to 32 wagons with a single engine. Understatedly less trains were required, trains became longer.    

 Of late I have been changing over couplings on my older wagons. 711 Kadee are being replaced with 158 whisker coupling. At the time the 711 (H0n3) coupling was a good idea.  Queensland Railways had four drawgear classifications. Auto (D1), Premium (D2) hooks on the steel rollingstock built in the 60’s, Select (D3) hooks on steel wagons built in the 50’s and newer wooden wagons and ordinary (D4) hooks on the older wagons and four wheeled wagons. Mounting the standard # 5 Kadee was an issue with 12mm gauged rollingstock, often the coupler box would foul the wheels, back to back was just over 10mm. My newer steel wagons had # 5 fitted without the box. QR auto coupling are much the same size as the standard gauge wagons on the NSWR. The method in my madness was the older wagons with D 4 drawgear were fitted with 711 couplings, all other wagons had standard # 5 couplings.  This was OK for trains running around in circles, but once I started operations with shunting moves in and out of various siding, the 711 would often come apart. Mixing coupler types in model railway is not the greatest move. I feel the Kadee # 158 scale head whisker coupling is the greatest thing since sliced bread, more on that at a later date, back to the branch goods on the layout.

After the coupling changeover on my older rollingstock I put them together to form a train to test out the new couplings which I called the Branch Goods. Trains heading west carry different loads to trains running east towards the coast. If you cross two trains at a station, the loading of both trains should be very different.  As they say, what goes “UP” comes back “DOWN”. Trains heading west away from the coast (Brisbane, Rockhampton, Townsville, Cairns) are “UP” trains, trains coming back towards to the coast are “DOWN” trains. The same applies to trains on branch lines, as they continue on off the main trunk line.

What is carried on the trains reflect what is on the line, what activities / industries on the line. Trains heading away from the coast to the west were the life blood for these towns. Going back to the 1960’s, the train was the best way into and out of most western towns, many roads were still dirt and rough with a trip often ending in break downs, stones through the windscreen or hitting a kangaroos causing damage etc. The train supplied the essentials for life, food, fuel, timber, new cars, trucks, tractor, machinery, the goods required to keep towns/industries going. Plus there could be special purpose wagons empty for return loading, i.e., cattle, grain wagons etc. Trains coming back carried goods  produced along the line, wool, grain, sheep, cattle, logs etc., some wagons came back empty.  Even in today environment it is possible to identify where trains are going or coming from.  The same wagons going out come back with different loading. Don’t look to hard at my previous video ???   

 

Hauling Loco. Wuskie Models 1720 DEL, weathered, friendly driver added to cab (fireman asleep on the floor), lead added to fuel tank, frame and body lifting the weight to 210 gram.

 

UW water wagon. Scratch build, Caintode Flats bogie,   

    FGW water wagon. Chivers fine scale underframe, scratch built body.                                                   

Working Time Table allocated set days for trains to supply water to gangs and isolated homes. A white flag/disc was placed on the trackside tank if water was required. The fireman and guard did the watering duties. A timber plank located in the wagon frame was used as a bridge for the canvas hose. From time to time the hose would slip off the plank often ending in one getting very wet. If you were smart you would hop up on the wagon and operate the value to control the water supply.

 MG sheep wagon.  Caintode Flats etch brass kit       (Sheep are white Metal)

 26’ U wagon. Drum load Tichy Train Group HO Drums

26’ S wagon. Scratch built Caintode Flats bogies. Timber load, balsa sheet cut into strips. 

 HJS wagon. Scratch built FHN Brass bogies. Tichy Train Group Drums.
The tarp is covering a few cartons of oil in tins. (I was a few drums short of a full load, styrene sheet load to same size as the drum should of been, added a few cartons, tarp hides the fake drums).  

  FJS wagon. Chiver's Fine Scale Kit

FJ wagon. Scratch built.

 

FGM wagon. Chiver's Fine Scale Kit. Viking Land Rover

FGM wagon. Chiver's Fine Scale Kit. Viking VW's 

ALY wagon. Southern Rail RTR Model. 

FJS wagon. Chiver's Fine Scale Kit. Cranky Freight Load.

FG wagon. Chiver's Fine Scale Kit. Tichy Train Group Drums

FJS wagon. Bass wood cut into sleeper size.

                          AG, double door ALG, single door ALG wagon. Chiver's Fine Scale Kits.                             Double door ALG roof modified to reflect the prototype

FJS wagon. Chiver's Fine Scale Kits.   Bass wood for timber. Cotton buds for pipe load.

    CMIS wagon.   3' 6" Kit, Steam Era Bogies/Wheels

ABG butter wagon. Caintode Flats Kit

DF & F wagons. Wuiske Models Kit. Timber load.  

FGM & & FJS wagons. Chiver's Fine Scale Kits. Tractor Loads, Viking & Kerroby models.

  

EIC elephant wagon. Scratch built. Peco TT "W" irons.

 

PE wagon. 3'6" kit. Steam Era Bogies/wheels. GHQ Hay Baley Kit

VJMG wagon. Peco TT Underframes, Scratch build bodies. Body vacuum form styrene. Master built by the late Jim Fainges . Built around 1975, part of update progrqm.

 

FG & AG wagons. Chiver's Fine Scale Kit. Plant Operator Camp.

AG has working Grover's bogies.
 

A wagon. Caintode Flats Kit

CJFP wagon. Caintode Flats Kit
 

BLV Guard's Van Far North Hobbies/PGC Kit  FNH Brass Bogies  

The train can be observed on the layout https://youtu.be/yb_xMQHrgic

Full details of the train below along with some 1720 load information. The weight of each wagon is shown on the RH side.

QR Train Lists are made up from the van.

	Wagon	Weight	Length	Load		Mass
1	BLV	12	1.8		FNH/PGC Kit     FNH Brass Bogies	32
2	CJFP	15	2.1	Roadside	Caintode Flats Kit	60
3	ALG	12	1.4	Roadside	Chivers Kit	24
4	A	8	1.1	Roadside	Caintode Flats Kit	44
5	FG	10	1.4	Camp	Chivers Kit / PGC	26
6	AG	12	1.4	Camp	Chivers Kit   (working Grovers bogies)	25
7	VJMG	6	1.1	Ety	Peco TT underfame, scratch built body	21
8	VJMG	6	1.1	Ety	Peco TT underfame, scratch built body	24
9	VJMG	6	1.1	Ety	Peco TT underfame, scratch built body	23
10	VJMG	6	1.1	Ety	Peco TT underfame, scratch built body	21
11	VJMG	6	1.1	Ety	Peco TT underfame, scratch built body	29
12	VJMG	6	1.1	Ety	Peco TT underfame, scratch built body	22
13	VJMG	6	1.1	Ety	Peco TT underfame, scratch built body	18
14	VJMG	6	1.1	Ety	Peco TT underfame, scratch built body	22
15	VJMG	6	1.1	Ety	Peco TT underfame, scratch built body	23
16	VJMG	6	1.1	Ety	Peco TT underfame, scratch built body	25
17	PE	15	2.1	Bayler	3' 6" Models   Steam Era bogies	60
18	EIC	6	1.1	Ety	Peco TT W irons  scratch built body	20
19	FGM	9	1.4	Tractor	Chivers Kit / PGC   Kerroby Ferguson Kit	35
20	FJS	8	1.3	Tractor	Chivers Kit / PGC   Kerroby David Brown Kit	20
21	FJS	8	1.3	Tractor	Chivers Kit / PGC    Viking Tractor	18
22	DF	9	1.1	Sleepers	Wuiske Models Kit	24
23	F	9	1.1	Sleepers	Wuiske Models Kit	24
24	ALG	16	1.4	General	Chivers Kit	44
25	ABG	18	1.2	Perishables	Caintode Flats Kit	32
26	CMIS	20	2.1	Milk	3' 6" Models      Steam Era bogies	55
27	AG	11	1.4	Firniture	Chivers Kit	36
28	FJS	14	1.3	Timber	Chivers Kit / PGC	32
29	FJS	14	1.3	Pipes	Chivers Kit / PGC	36
30	AG	16	1.4	General	Chivers Kit	39
31	ALG	12	1.4	General	Chivers Kit	42
32	ALG	11	1.4	Co-Op	Chivers Kit	35
33	FJS	15	1.3	Sleepers	Chivers Kit / PGC	41
34	FG	10	1.4	Drums	Chivers Kit / PGC	54
35	FJS	14	1.3	General	Chivers Kit / PGC	37
36	ALY	9	1.3	Ety	Southern Rail Models   (Door open ??)	36
37	FJS	6	1.3	VW	Chivers Kit / PGC	24
38	FJS	7	1.3	VW Comb	Chivers Kit / PGC	23
39	FGM	8	1.4	Land Rover	Chivers Kit / PGC	22
40	FJ	14	1.3	Hay	Scratch Built. Peco TT W irons.	20
41	FJS	8	1.3	Tanks	Chivers Kit	49
42	HJSF	26	2.1	Fuel	Scratch Built  FNH Brass bogies	66
43	S	18	1.8	Timber	Scratch Built    (Caintode Flats Bogies)	43
44	U	10	1.8	Drums	Scratch Built    (Caintode Flats Bogies)	51
45	MG	16	1.4	Sheep	Caintode Flats Kit    (White metal Sheep ??)	72
46	FGW	20	1.4	Water	Chivers Kit underframe	36
47	UW	20	1.8	Water.	Scratch Built   (Caintode Flats Bogies)	38
	1720				Wuiske Models
		526	64.7		Total Load	1603
						Grams
	Branch Line loads for 1720 DEL.
	UP Direction with Ordinary (D4) Drawgear.
	(Brisbane heading West.)
	Brisabne Valley Branch				Wandoan Branch
	Ipswich to Fernvale			440	Miles to Kowguran	680
	Fernvale to Lowood			540	Kowguran to Wandoan	580
	Lowood to Comminya			630
	Coominya to Esk			460
	Western Line				Warwick to Dirranbandi
	Toowoomba to Chinchilla			1180	Warwick to Allan	540
	Stopping Mixed Trains			1010
	Chinchilla to Rywung			580
	Glenmorgan Branch
	Dalby to Kumbarilla			960	Roma to Charleville	600
	Kumbarilla to Tara			630
	Toowoomba to Warwick				Maximum Length 95 units
	Toowoomba to Harriston			540