Visiting Locomotives
The Box Hill Miniature Steam Railway Society regularly holds events for members of AALS affiliated clubs and the model engineering community. Details of these events are published in Australian Model Engineering magazine and elsewhere. We would love to see you and your locomotive at our next event, and hope that the information below may be useful in planning your visit to Box Hill.
Signing In and Out
If you are visiting us, we ask that you sign in and out of the attendance book, located near the front door in the clubrooms.
This helps us comply with our insurance requirements and allows us to know which events are popular to aid in future event planning.
Loading and Unloading
The train loading and unloading area is located directly behind the clubrooms. Access is via the car park entrance on Belmore Road and then through the gate next to the clubrooms.
A pneumatically height-adjustable dual-gauge turntable is provided for the loading and unloading of trains to and from vehicles and trailers.
The turntable provides direct access to the steaming up bays and the adjacent ground level sidings. Please use the provided saftey latches whilst your locomotive is on the turntable.
If you are unsure of the operation of the turntable, please don’t hesitate to ask a BHMSRS member who will be more than happy to assist you.
Boiler Tickets
All steam locomotives operating on the Box Hill Miniature Steam Railway Society’s track must have a valid current boiler certificate. BHMSRS boiler inspectors will ask to sight the boiler certificate for a locomotive and inspect the stamp on the boiler itself.
All persons operating a locomotive must hold the required competency or operate the locomotive under the direct supervision of a suitably qualified person.
If you’re asked to show the required paperwork, please don’t take this as anything personal; we just want to ensure everyone has a safe day at our railway.
Steaming Up Bays
The steaming up bays, located behind the clubrooms, include:
- 4 raised dual-gauge 5 inch and 7.25 inch tracks
- 1 raised 7.25 inch only track
- 2 ground level dual-gauge 5 inch and 7.25 inch tracks
All the above tracks are serviced by the pneumatically height-adjustable dual-gauge turntable.
Air and water are available in the steaming up bays, but there is no power available. Air and water is also available at the station.
Track
The track at Box Hill Miniature Steam Railway Society is designed to comply with the AALS standards for track and wheel design. Locomotives and rolling stock that comply with these standards should experience no problems operating on the BHMSRS track.
All main line track is dual-gauge 5 inch and 7.25 inch, with sidings being a mixture of dual gauge and 7.25 inch only.
Points
Points at the Box Hill Miniature Steam Railway track include both electrically and manually operated mechanisms. The points leading into and out of the station area are electrically controlled, whilst all other points are manually operated.
If you need assistance operating points, please don’t hesitate to ask a member of BHMSRS who will be happy to help. Always be vigilant when approaching points and ensure that all components are in the correct position for the intended train movement.
If you alter a set of points, please ensure you return them to their original state, typically to allow through mainline running, once you have cleared the points.
Signals
Signals at Box Hill are based on Victorian signalling practice. When in use, we ask that you obey the displayed signals to ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for everyone.
If you need a quick refresher on the signal aspects and their meaning, please don’t hesitate to ask one of our friendly members who will be more than happy to assist you.
If you believe a signal is defective, please report it to a BHMSRS member as soon as possible.
Have Fun!
The most important thing to remember during one of our events at Box Hill Miniature Steam Railway Society is to have fun!
The day is a great opportunity to catch up with old friends and make some new ones, learn new things, share your experience with like minded people and generally enjoy the company of people who share your passion.
If there is anything we can do to ensure your visit to our club is a great one, please contact us, or speak to one of our members.