Of Sunny Days and Station platforms

Well, today has been hot and sunny and I've used to explore things in the garden and consider a new arrival.

Over the past couple of years I've been buying some of the POLA and PIKO G scale building kits as I've come across them cheap and ultimately they will be assembled and make it into the Garden.  But, on the Mark 1.1 layout (which is get something down reasonably quick) then such niceties will have to wait - especially as today has shown that I need to consider space and clearances.

The recent purchase was most of a Playmobil Station.  Incomplete which meant an attractive price via Ebay - £20 and it included some other bits.  I'd not seen one "in the plastic" though and was a bit concerned about how it would fit in.

The track is an R1 point with a 300 mm straight, and then the R1 curve followed by more straights.   Experience will determine if I should use a shorter straight before the curve which will then reduce the distance between the two tracks.                      

    

This is a distance view and also the first appearance of the Orange RHB shunting Tractor (recently back after being equipped with sound) and the Santa Fe Tank wagon.  

This is a close up of the station with some Prieser and Bachmann figures on.  The Canopy needs to be high to ensure clearance for any passing trains. OK, so its not fine scale and some people will dislike the mix and match approach, but whilst I'm learning and moving forward then it is a station model.





This an end view showing how high the canopy is - needed because of the clearance.  

This is a top down shot showing one of the "clearance" issues I'd been talking about.  Basically when the curve becomes the straight then the straight can abut the platform - which is something I need to work on.  Steps down on the end of balconies are one thing to watch out for, as will be the ladder on the side of the pig snout bus.

 This set me looking at what other Playmobil etc platforms I had acquired.   This is a picture of what I now know to be a "western - as in cowboy - stable or barn, sitting on some LGB code 50340 platforms.

This I think is somewhat older - it looks more basic - Playmobil code 4370 "Neustadt" shed and some platforms - incomplete set as there should be more straight and ramp sections.   At the back is a wooden ramp from G scale designs that I acquired at Llanfair show in very early days.   









Finally I got out the platforms from the PIKO 62004 covered platform set (4 baseplates, each 172mm x 267 mm) and there's some steps etc in the set, along with the canopy.