I’m grateful for all the feedback prompted by my previous post on overhead wire for my Niagara St. Catharines & Toronto Railway car barn project. It has all been very thought-provoking. Thank you.
My friend Steve Lee has done his fair share of modelling and thinking under wire. In an offline conversation he observed, “From a certain viewpoint, overhead and poles are a cage around the train models”. That nicely sums up my concerns from both a visual and practical perspective.
Inspired by Steve’s observation, I thought I’d illustrate the problem graphically – hence the above picture. I’ve propped a baking rack on some styrofoam blocks set 4.5″ above railhead. (That represents 24 feet in S scale. Trolley wire is 18-22 feet above railhead so that’s actually a bit generous.) I’ve then added a set of pliers to represent re-spiking an errant rail, and a soldering iron to represent re-connecting a broken drop feeder wire. The problem is easy to see.
Does the baking rack represent too many overhead wires? I don’t think so. Overhead wire isn’t just the trolley wire – the part the trolley pole runs along. There are span wires, backbones, and pull-offs – lots of pull-offs around curves and track switches. And while the rods of the baking rack are far larger than the wires I’d use, I’d argue that the fineness of the wire (0.010″ diameter – smaller than a #80 drill bit) makes it even more likely that I’ll get tangled in it.
Or as Steve put it, “Lots of opportunities for what Plastic Model Mojo podcaster David Knight calls ‘negative modelling’.” (A phrase that’s new to me, and one that’s perfect. Thanks for this!)
Obviously, people manage to do build and maintain layouts under wire. I’m not saying it can’t be done. But I’ve thought about it, and it’s not something I, personally, want to do.
I think it’s important to test ideas before dismissing them. But having done my tests, I’ve decided I’ll abandon full-on overhead in favour of better access to the track beneath. For me, it’s the better option for maintenance. As a bonus, it also opens up more opportunities to take photos that would be impossible with wire in the way – like these:
I think that’s an excellent choice.
(By the way: Steve writes two terrific websites: Up Dunes Junction covers his model railway activities – mostly under wire – while Sprue Pie with Frets is his home for building all manner of plastic models. If you don’t follow them, you really should.)
The Model Railway Show 