Katzhagen - Archive - August 2011

Stoning - or: A new gravel bed

The main line's gravel bed looked awful after eight years, since moss had massively contaminated the tracks. Remedy was urgently needed and so the tracks had to be dismounted and cleaned thoroughly to get rid of the moss. New gravel, say 2mm split gravel was picked up at the local asphalt supplier for EUR 50,-/1000kg with a trailer borrowed from a DIY shop nearby at no costs.

Removal of the old gravel bed with a broad spatula.

Cleaned subgrade with reinstalled track.

A simple broad spatula and a bit of water for soaking were sufficient to remove the old gravel bed quite quickly. The tracks were cleaned with a brush or with a high pressure cleaner where necessary.

The local asphalt provider only had a Volvo L350 wheel loader and correspondingly the trailer's load was a bit hefty. This amount of gravel will sure last for a week - err, a decade...

750kg of course were far too much given that only 1.4kg/m are needed...

The new gravel bed after the glue's bonding.

Furthermore a new adhesive was applied - Sarnacol 2116. This adhesive is a special glue for gravel which in real life is used on flat roofs. It should be available in shops supplying roofers. First experiences with its application and the results seem to show that one should prefer it to the variant of diluted Ponal S.

Energy-saving lamps...

were a suitable designation for LEDs but replacing the HSB cars' old illumination with LEDs was based upon a different motivation. On the one hand a nice illumination can be achieved at low voltages and on the other buffering for a flicker-free lighting is feasible quite easily - proven circuit diagram.
The little circuitry was placed discreetly inside the cars hidden beneath the roof.


The LEDs provide for a full illumination of the cars already at four Volts. The colour temperature matches that of the loco's bulbs almost perfectly.


"Hope the cargo list is correct..." At least the guys can read their list thanks to the illumination - a single LED is sufficient for both platforms.


Every detail can clearly be recognized now in the Cafe car - even when the train is standing still.


End - of both this story and the train.

The illumination's redesign was an effective method with a nice result which will be applied to all other cars with a lighting for uniformity reasons.

July 2011 | Archive "Current Affairs" | September 2011