Grogley Junction

Extracts from Trains Illustrated (3) July - Dec 1960

2012-01-10T22:43:00.001Z

August 1960 issue

"...on the Newquay branch: on June 18 the 7.50 a.m. Newquey-Manchester had a triple-unit combination of Type "4" No. D800 and Type "2s" Nos. D6311/24."

September 1960 issue

"....A correspondent returning from Cornwall in July writes that almost all passenger and parcels trains between Plymouth and Penzance are now diesel-powered, with the later N.B. Loco. Co. Type "2" diesel-hydraulic locomotives now in extensive use as pairs; he adds a further observation of a "Warship" on the Newquay branch, for he recorded No. D801, piloted by "Grange" No. 6816, heading away from the coast with a 15-coach load on the 10 a.m. Newquay-Paddington on July 2. Following last month's report of triple-heading on the Newquay branch, a reader writes that this practice is not uncommon in Cornwall nowadays, seemingly because of the use of Type "2" diesels in pairs. For example, a "Manor" is diagrammed to pilot the 8.55 a.m. (S0) Wolverhampton-Newquay and Penzance from Plymouth to Par; on July 2 this train was headed from Plymouth by a brace of Type "2s", and ahead of them was No. 7816. Some triple-heading is unpremeditated, of course. On July 16 one of two Type"2s" on the 1.20 p.m. Penzance-Paddington failed on Hayle bank: a pannier tank was summoned from Gwinear Road to give assistance as far as Redruth, where it gave place to a "Manor" No. 7813, which triple-headed the diesels, Nos. D6306/9, on to Plymouth....."

December 1960 issue

"...on September 1, Standard Class "4" 2-6-0 No, 76018 was an unusual visitor to North Cornwall; it was sent down from Yeovil to Exmouth Junction to work a Civil Engineer's special to Bude and back, after which it returned to Salisbury on September 3."

I have a soft spot for Standard Class 4 2-6-0s I think it stems from building an Airfix kit in my early 'teens'. Does the last entry allow me to develop the thought that I could justify one running further down the NCR line on an engineers train..? I'd like to think so...

Clay Wagons GWR Dia 013 (part 1)

2012-01-05T12:24:00.000Z

Clay wagons will play a prominent role on Tredethy Wharf and other projects that I'm hoping to build in the future. This fact is something that has been playing on my mind for some time. So, over Christmas, I decided to dig out all the kits from different manufacturers that I'd collected over the years: kits from the wagon works of Ian Kirk, Colin Ashby, Ratio, Cambrian, and some of the new Parkside Dundas kits. Also, while getting the Christmas decorations down from the loft, I discovered a number of part built clay wagons that I'd put together many years ago tucked way in a box.

Above are five of these wagons, part built to EM gauge from Ian Kirk kits. Looking at them afresh they are very basic not really coming up to the standard that I am now trying achieve. Rather than throwing them away, I'm going to attempt to rebuild them as a start in creating my clay wagon fleet. I've already been able to disassemble one other part built Ian Kirk wagon, just hope these five come apart as easily. Much work to be done but it's a start.... I've only 32 clay wagon kits waiting to be assembled..!

Winter project - Chassis awaiting hornblocks

2011-12-18T21:35:00.005Z

Below is the current state of play:

I've used Alan Gibson short handrail knobs for the CSB fulcrum points. All holes were drilled for the breakgear assembly and frame spacers adapted to fit their locations. These tasks were all completed before soldering the chassis together. High Level's hornblocks were very easy to fold up. My soldering could be a little tidier but so far for my first attempt I'm feeling happy

..............

If anyone wants to follow my stumbling progress in a little more detail I'll try and illustrate below.....

Before cutting the frames out of the etch I marked the position for the CSB fulcrum points using High Level's CSB jig. A 0.4 mm drill was used to mark the centres, as this size drill seemed the best fit for the holes in the jig and I was reluctant to do any alterations to it at this early stage. The jig was then removed and a 0.7mm drill used to drill through the frames. The holes were still very tight for the handrail knobs so a 0.8mm drill was used to open them out. At this stage I also drilled though all the pre-marked locations on the frames for the brakegear hangers using a 0.5mm drill.

The frames were then carefully cut out of the etch. Then, in accordance with Comet's instruction sheet, the etched springs were removed in preparation for the fitting of the hornblocks. The handrail knobs were then soldered into position using a length of 0.4mm straight brass wire to align them. I must admit to making a bit of a mess here, accidentally soldering the brass wire to one of the handrail knobs (it was rectified at the second attempt). Where required the frame spacers were shortened as per my previous diagram. Also a couple of holes were drilled in one of the end spacers to help with threading the CSB spring wire through the handrail knobs at a later stage. The frames were then soldered together using Comet's P4 chassis jigs giving the result shown in the photo above.

Progress has stalled a little over the last couple of weeks but, when a little time has been available, I've been working on getting the bearings to be a smooth fit in the hornblocks.

With Christmas fast approaching this may well be my last posting until the New Year. So may I take this opportunity to wish you all a very enjoyable Christmas and thank you for persevering in reading this blog.

Extracts from Trains Illustrated magazine (2) July 1953

2011-12-13T22:01:00.008Z

One random, rather tatty, copy of Trains Illustrated I picked is from July 1953. It has a few interesting entries regarding workings to and around Wadebridge. I quote...

'...Of the two Pacifics loaned from Stewarts Lane to Exmouth Junction in the spring, Nos 34066/8, the former was still to be seen at Wadebridge in Mid-May, still carrying a 73A shedplate, it was working the "A.C.E." in both directions. On 2/3/53. "O2" No. 30203 failed at Bodmin North, and the elderly 2-4-0 well tank No. 30587 was turned out to work the 2 p.m. Bodmin North-Wadebridge and the 3.10 p.m. return, but the "O2" had recovered sufficiently to work the 4.23 p.m. from Bodmin.
On 19/5/53 a standard 2-6-2 tank. No 82013, appeared at Wadebridge for the first time, working in on the evening goods; it was dead on shed all next day, but after taking up a midday petrol tank train working to Bodmin North, it returned to Exeter on the 4.30 p.m. goods....'

I was under the impression the the Standard Class tanks did not start to venture down to Wadebridge until the last few years of the NCR's existence......

Winter Project - Test track

2011-11-28T08:10:00.011Z

Thinking through what I need to do to build the 57xx chassis I suddenly realised I don't have anything to test the chassis on. My test track would have been ideal if it had not been relegated to the garage (and is currently in pieces). Earlier in the year I was treated to a Bachrus rolling road and I've found this very useful in testing some of my RTR locos, though, I don't think it gives a true picture of how a loco will travel along the track. Or is this just because I like to see the locos move....?

Anyway a random length of redundant wooden shelving was retrieved from the dark recesses of the said garage (I knew it would come in useful one day), and thoughts were put towards what I might require on this strip of wood for testing locos.

1) A length of straight OO track for setting up the Bachrus rolling road and testing RTR locos prior to conversion.
2) A length of straight P4 track for setting up the Bachrus rolling road and testing locos after conversion (also for testing any chassis I manage to build during their construction).

3) A length of P4 track with a reverse curve to test a loco's abilities to travel through a minimum radius curve.

Item three above is the tricky one as what is the minimum radius curve for P4? Or possibly more importantly, what is the minimum curve for any locos I may be building? Templot shows alarm warnings at 39.4" yet the P4 Society seems to recommend not going below 48" for large locos. I guess it must come down to the length of a loco's wheelbase as to the minimum radius curve the loco can travel through. The shorter the wheelbase the tighter the curve. For the time being I cannot see myself building anything much larger than the wheel base of a WR Pannier tank. Beyond that perhaps, if my skills will allow, a 4-6-0 'N' Class and a Manor, both of which have driving wheel wheelbases similar to a Pannier tank. So I've plumped for the 39.4" radius curve as a minimum.

It's a bit rough and I will put some ends on to stop flying locos but for the moment it's located on my bench with a wall at one end and crocodile clips at the other. It may not be the most suitable test track but for now I think it should suffice.

A winter project - Getting to grips with CSB

2011-11-21T23:52:00.000Z

Understanding the principles of Continuous Springy Beam and using the spreadsheets have been the first steps of this project. In principle it all makes good sense, but the maths and the theory do get very confusing for a lesser mortal like myself. However, the spreadsheets are the tools that turn all the theory into usable figures.

Unfortunately the first spreadsheet I downloaded caused me some confusion. It was one of Will Litchfield's and with hindsight my confusion was mainly due to me not knowing what I was trying to achieve. If only I'd realised what I would be doing now I would have tried to attend Will's lecture on CSB and John Brighton's on Chassis Building at Scaleforum ...... Anyway, at first sight Alan Turner's spreadsheet seemed to make more sense to me. The only drawback that I could see with Alan's offering is how can I calculate the centre of gravity of a model that I haven't yet built? But.... working on the principle that, if I put the centre of gravity roughly around the centre axle and weight all axles as near the same as the spreadsheet will allow, I can add weight to the finished model to move the centre of gravity over the centre axle.

After a little fiddling around I ended up with the calculations below. This was using Alan Turner's spreadsheet, for a 57xx chassis.

Once I'd started to use the above spreadsheet some of the theory started to sink in. I'd also been pointed in the direction of a different spreadsheet produced by Will which was not as daunting as the first. After some further discussions with group members, and a few more reads about CSB on CLAG's web pages, I was gaining a better understanding of the principles. Especially about the reasons for reducing the weight of the centre axle. Which, if my understanding is correct, is to help with: keeping the loco level; to enhance traction/grip; and reduce/avoid waddling ('porpoising') of the loco as it progresses along the track. I'm starting to feel I as if I'm getting to grips with CSB.....

The same figures entered into Will's spreadsheet seem to confirm that I might be on the right track.....

Considerations I have tried to take into account while using the spreadsheets to calculate fulcrum positions are: position of brake hangers; position of frame spacers to avoid the CSB mounts and wire; position of the frame spacers which will be used to mount the wire pick-ups; the position of motor and gear box. The diagram below hopefully shows my thoughts......

The only bit that I'm still trying to work out is how to support the motor/gearbox.... One idea (marked in green on the above diagram) is to solder some wire to the inside of both frames around the centre axle and bend them in and under to support the motor. Then either solder them to each side of the gear box, or drill a hole in the gear box for the wires to pass through supporting the gear box but not fixed permanently. The wire supports would be like a cradle for the motor to rest on and secure the gear box vertically. Would there be enough play in the articulated part of the gear box to allow suspension on the rear axle? The wire forming the cradle might not give a solid support but one that might have some flexibility allowing the gearbox some slight vertical movement. But....is there a better method?

I don't see that not knowing how to support the motor/gear box should stop me from installing the handrail knobs (that will be used as the CSB fulcrum points). So, I'm hoping to get started on construction during the next few evenings while I'm thinking/asking questions about the support for the motor/gear box.

A winter project - What to build?

2011-11-16T22:57:00.005Z

Over the last couple of years I've been steadily collecting locos, RTR and kits, for my chosen period and project location. The most recent being two Dapol Beattie Well Tanks and a Perseverance Beattie Well Tank kit. For the moment though I do realise that the latter is way beyond my current capabilities as I've never constructed a loco kit.

While adding these kits to the shelf, I have been chewing the fat as to which one to build as my first attempt at a loco chassis. Ideally I thought it would be best to have started with an 0-6-0 tender loco. Starting with the tender chassis and then progress to the loco chassis. In my alternative universe I think I could twist history enough to justify running a Class 700 (Drummond's "Black Motor") - 30697 & 30700 were allocated to Exmouth Junction in 1961. I also have a BEC kit on the shelf waiting to be built. It was very tempting to make a start on this kit until it was very kindly pointed out it would take a lot of work to produce a decent looking loco from it. The tender frames are of different lengths and other castings are of dubious quality. It would also be my first white-metal loco kit and I've had little experience of constructing white-metal kits. So this kit will have to wait until I think I have enough experience.

I have also collected High Level's 03 and 57xx chassis kits. These look superb and the instructions seem second to none. However without any previous experience of building loco chassis I have found reading though the instructions daunting. Also, the thought of ruining one of these kits half way through the build is very off putting. I feel I need to cut my teeth on a kit that I could dismantle and start again, or at worst even throw away with the least worry over costs. I need to get my hands dirty with something simple.......

Thoughts turned to purchasing some Alan Gibson side frames for a DJH 1366 and/or a NuCast 16xx. I thought the 16xx kit could be a good first kit, apart from the construction of the white-metal body. Again I've had no experience of white metal kits and would like to ruin a few white-metal wagon kits before starting on the 16xx.......I could go on with many more excuses as to why most of the kits I've collected would not be good starting projects....... and you may ask why collect all these kits if I'm going to be such a chicken?

So, to cut to the chase, I've been encouraged by members of my area group to attempt to put together a Comet 57xx chassis with a Bachmann body. Compensation will be Continuous Springy Beam and the motor and gear box will be from High Level. Over the last few weeks I've been collecting all the items needed and recently purchased, off eBay, a suitably priced Bachmann body.

I do realise I am approaching this project with some naive enthusiasm but I've been receiving much encouragement and advice from members of my local P4 area group. It is invaluable having "hands on" on their locos; seeing their projects under construction; and the different techniques they have used. Having this access does much to demystify the written word in books or magazines. Hopefully I will get something running and not be too ashamed to show the result.........

Extracts from Trains Illustrated magazine (1) Jan - June 1960

2011-10-28T21:16:00.006+01:00

Modelling time since the Leatherhead show has been a little limited but progress is slowly being made on a few more wagons. I've also been thinking hard about attempting to build my first loco chassis. I hope to post blog entries of progress of these tasks soon.

One other thing I have been doing is off loading a few duplicate copies MRJs and GWRJs on ebay, the proceeds of which have been put towards purchasing copies of Trains Illustrated. So far I've focused my purchases on 1960/1 looking for any information that might be relevant for my twist on history for Grogley Junction. Train workings and engine movements in and around Bodmin, Wadebridge, Newquay, St. Blazey and along the NCR.

For anyone that might be interested the first few entries that I've found are copied out below.....

February 1960 magazine
"A possibly unprecedented incursion into W.R territory by an S.R, engine was reported on December 18 (1959), when Cless “N” 2-6-0 No 31846 (72A) headed a 12:45 p.m. special Freight from Tavistock Junction, Plymouth to St. Austell; after servicing at St. Blazey, the “foreigner” returned light to Friary shed."

"Three W.R. pannier tanks Nos. 4666/94 and 9756 are now allocated to Exmouth Junction and Nos. 3633/79 are at Wadebridge."

April 1960 magazine
"On each Sunday in February and the first Sunday in March the Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash was closed for maintenance work and through passenger traffic between Devon and Cornwall by this route was interrupted. Passengers were conveyed across the Tamar by bus. On the first Sunday at least the 1130 a.m. up freight and the 12.35 and 5.40 p.m. milk from Penzance were booked to travel via Bodmin and Wadebridge on to the S.R. route via Launceston and Okehampton. The morning freight was hauled throughout by N.B. Loco Type “2” diesel-hydraulic unit No. D6304, which had to run round its train both at Bodmin General and at Wadebridge. Two “45xx” 2-6-2 tanks brought the first milk train into Wadebridge, where it was taken over by S.R. Class “N” 2-6-0 Nos. 31834/8 sent down light that morning from Exmouth Junction. Two more 2-6-0s were despatched from Exmouth for the second milk train, but this was able to take its normal route owing to early completion of the work at Saltash and the pair of 2-6-0s when home jobless."

At Eastleigh "….....also Beattie 2-4-0 well tank No. 30586, which was receiving a general overhaul although it is believed listed for withdrawal this year."

June 1960 magazine
"The first Birmingham R.C. &W. Co. three-car diesel multiple-unit for the Western Region, Nos W59302/17 and 59469, arrived at the Harwell Street diesel depot, Plymouth early in April and was put on to crew-training between Plymouth and Truro. As reported on page 233 of our April issue, the Birmingham order is for 15 three-car sets similar to the suburban railcars already delivered to the W.R. by Derby works, the principal difference between the two varieties being that the Birmingham version has lavatory accommodation in the centre trailer."

"From April 11 a daily duty over Par-Newquay line was added to the Laira diagrams for pairs of N.B. Loco Co. Type “2” diesel-hydraulic locomotives. The only jobs performed singly by the N.B. Loco Co. units are banking duties and one afternoon and evening trip from Plymouth to Exeter via Okehampton and back."

Hope this is of interest to someone, I will post more relevant entries as I discover them.

The paint brush has been put down

2011-09-13T23:38:00.001+01:00

I think they're finished, that is finished to the best that my current modelling capabilities allow. I'm not totally happy with the wagons and realise that there is a lot of room for improvement. I could spend more time on trying to perfect my weathering techniques but could also very easily ruin one or all of them by over doing it. So I've put the paint brush down and will now concentrate on getting ready for the 'big day' on Friday.

My original intention was to build six or more wagons, from many manufacturers, and use different components, especially some etched brake gear. In the end I've only used kits from three manufacturers and components from a limited selection of suppliers. So looking at what I wanted to achieve against what I have produced I could think that I've failed. But on the contrary, in entering the competition I have pushed my skills, gained confidence and learned new techniques along the way.

The last wagon (above), the slope sided wagon, has been the most difficult to build. It has, however, developed into my favourite, the one I've gained the most satisfaction from building. More wagons will follow.......

Encouraging comments

2011-09-08T22:58:00.011+01:00

A very quick update....

At this evening's Scalefour Area Group Meeting I received some favourable comments on three mineral wagons I took along for scrutiny. None of the wagons are completely finished, and with only four modelling evenings left, time is getting tight. But with the encouraging comments received this evening I'm starting to feel I'm getting somewhere.

Above is a shot of the slope sided wagon before I started to add the white stripes. I still need to work out how to blacken the Exactoscale wheel rims. I've tried all the Carr's Metal Blacks with no effect. However, after all my struggles, I feel it is starting to come together with this one.

All six still needing numbering, some touching up of the rust patches, and final weathering to be applied. Doesn't sound much left to do....... does it?

Kingdom of Rust

2011-09-01T22:24:00.004+01:00

Apart from being a good album by Doves, a 'Kingdom of Rust' does seem to be where I might be heading at the moment.

The first wagons to hit the paint shop.......

They do look a bit of mess and as you may realise from viewing the above, I'm not quite sure what I'm doing at the moment. I did start a practice piece on some scrap plastic but with less than two weeks of modelling evenings left before Leatherhead I thought I'd better just get on with it.

On the two rusted wagons above I'm going to try Martyn Welch's technique using Maskol to mask the areas of rust I need to show through the grey top coat. I do hope they start to look better as I apply more layers of paint.

The era I'm working to depict with Tredthy Wharf and other projects is 1961-2. In looking for colour photos of wagons in the early sixties, I've found one that shows mineral wagons with minimal rusting. This photo appears on the back page of Great Western Railway Journal no.66 showing Dulverton goods yard on 11/6/62 with two 16t minerals in view. Other B/W photos taken in the early 60s also generally seem to show minimal rusting on wagons. My recollection during the mid to late 60s and early 70s was of rust buckets travelling through our local station. So I'm a little undecided as to what state the wagons should be. I have to consider that my memory has been corrupted with seeing many colour photos taken during the 70s and 80s of repaired, rebuilt and well worn mineral wagons.

So maybe I will not fully enter the 'Kingdom of Rust', there might not be so much rusting involved on these wagons. I will look at numbering the two rusted wagons above from lots that were built in the early 1950s. On the remaining wagons I'll probably have a go at depicting minimal rusting. Well I'm going to try.........

A long overdue update

2011-08-21T23:04:00.002+01:00

I don't seem to have had much time for any modelling since June. The original plan was to have six wagons completed by now leaving me time to build a couple more and pick out the best for the Leatherhead show. At this point in time, with only three weeks left in which to find modelling time before the show, I've still two wagons to finish building before any enter the paint shop. Best laid plans and all that........ Anyway it's not all doom and gloom. Today I have been able to find a few hours to work on the old Airfix kit and Parkside's slope sided wagon.

In building the Airfix kit I'd removed the over scale hinges. So picking up the model this morning it was time to recreate the hinges.

Not as neat as Geoff Kent's example in his book "The 4mm Wagon Part 1" but hopefully my attempt will pass reasonable examination.......especially after a little paint is applied.

Next was the slope sided wagon. I do like this wagon. Well that was until I started to build it..... it's becoming a pain especially as I've made a right c**kup of appling the first of the four side stanchions that are either side of the door. Previously to get the two elements of the sides to fit snugly I'd filed a little off the join. Then I applied a wash of grey paint along the join to see if I'd been able to disguise it. At this point I was very pleased with my progress. When I then presented the first stanchion to the side it seemed it would not fit. Out came the knife and a little was trimmed off the top. After carefully gluing in place I realised that it was too short......Ahhhhh...

At this point after much cursing this wagon had been put to one side, while I got on with the others. Over the last few weeks I'd looked at it a few times and was even contemplating scrapping. But today I decided to have a go at trying to salvage the mess.... A few bits of plasticard later and I think I might be able to get away with it.

The corrected stanchion looks a little long in the photo so with with a little more work it should be OK. After all, as long as the mistake does not jump out at you, once the wagon is part of a train of wagons it will just be another wagon.

There is still work do be completed on the other side, applying the stanchions, second V hanger, brake lever, door stop, then it's adding the buffers and couplings. Then all six wagons should be ready for the paint shop......There's a glimmer of hope that I might have these finished for Leatherhead.

No progress due to a pressing engagement

2011-06-10T21:12:00.008+01:00

There has been no progress since my last entry due to what is happening in the follow two weeks... more on which can be found here. Preparation, training and planning have taken up much of my spare time.

I'm off on my 'holidays'........ two weeks of which are concerned with the Coast to Coast walk, plus a third week, to spend time with my partner. Well if I'm truthful, and if I'm able to complete the walk, more as a week to recover. So I apologise in advance for lack of postings on this blog for at least a month. Thereafter I'll have to get stuck in and focus a little on this project and the six wagons for Leatherhead.

Ahh.... but I will have to fit in a little ceremony the week before Leatherhead..... No pressure then....

Another first for a new boy

2011-05-30T22:50:00.004+01:00

Soldering white metal kits may not be difficult for some but for a new boy like myself it is a daunting prospect. Having read many tales of white metal kits being destroyed by soldering irons I was reluctant to have a go myself. Then on the other hand I read that soldering white metal kits is the best option.... So 'have a go' I thought, 'I must', but the question was on what?

I'd previously used super-glue to fix the brass brake safety loops in place onto the white metal brake castings. This was a little fiddly due to the super-glue taking a little while to go off. So I thought I'd try my hand at soldering the safety loops. Thinking if I make a hash of it I've only lost a small, easily replaced, component in a brake gear casting.

So equipping myself with what I think is the right gear: Antex White Metal Master soldering Iron; Carr's yellow flux; and Carr's 70 solder, I got stuck in.

And the results are......

Not over tidy but I'm pleased with them....

This was an easy task with an instant result and no disasters that has given me some confidence to go a little further. It is going to take me a little while to sum up the courage to tackle a white metal loco kit but a white metal wagon kit could be a good stepping stone...... Another small hurdle crossed.

Parkside PC21 - BR 16T Mineral wagon (B594749?)

2011-05-19T23:29:00.002+01:00

Construction is almost complete on my first 16t mineral wagon with the addition of axle boxes and brake gear.

The above shows the addition of standard BR split axle boxes from 51L, with springs from MJT. I have adapted Fore Most Models 2 shoe brake gear with Bill Bedford's Brake Safety loops and added 0.6mm brass wire between the V hangers. Adding the Brake levers will finish the fitting of the main components. Then it's some final bits of titivation, adding corner strengthening gussets, door stops, fitting solebar brackets and couplings. It might then be the first of the six ready for the paint shop.........

Off the radar

2011-05-08T21:56:00.006+01:00

I've been off the radar for a while, not checked any blogs or RMWeb forums nor progressed anything relating to Tredethy Wharf. All because, a few weeks ago, I asked a question of the little lady and she said 'Yes'....... then........ we decided to put my house up for sale with the aim of moving into a house that we can call ours once the deed is done. I also realised that I'm running out of time to prepare myself for a little saunter from St. Bees to Robin Hoods Bay that is coming up in June. These events and realisations have set a few things in motion that have taken up a lot of spare time recently, but today I had a day off, playing trains, at the Cleethorpe's Model Railway Show.

Gordon's P4 layout 'Fish Dock Road' was booked for this year's Cleethorpes show. It is a two day event and I had volunteered to help out on the Sunday. Fish Dock Road is essentially a very compact shunting puzzle with the setting inspired by Grimsby's Fish Docks.

The layout drew a lot of local interest with many people passing on memories of the docks, the workings of the fish trade and the fish trains. I learnt a lot.

For me, one other layout that stood out at at the show was a finescale OO interpretation of the Wisbech and Upwell Tramway:

Ashamedly I'm not over-familiar with the tramway nor with the area apart from travelling through/past Wisbech on business. The layout had a nice feel, a good consistent standard of modelling throughout. After a little research on the Web this evening the layout seems to represent the area well. Apparently it is going to be featured in a forthcoming edition of one of the Railway Magazines. Well deserved I feel.

With my hovel on the market I'm under orders to keep things a little tidier. This has meant Tredethy has been dismantled and stacked in a corner of the garage along with numerous boxes. Should be able to concentrate on wagons and loco conversions during the next few months so hope it wont be too long before my next post.

Wenford Bridge

2011-04-05T22:19:00.003+01:00

Just purchased, from British Railways Books, two British Railway Journal magazines (issues 62, 63) that contain an article spread between them by Gerry Beale on Wenford Bridge. Not a great deal of text mainly informative captions to the photographs. There are 22 B/W photos, (including three of the Wenford driers in issue 62). Issue 63 focuses on Wenford Bridge and the De Lank Quarries with reproduction OS maps of the terminus and the De Lank Tramway.

Wiring Stage 1

2011-04-03T00:51:00.002+01:00

For a simple layout it's taken me a couple of evenings just to get the track dropper wires plumbed in.....

There are still the point motors to be connected, auto coupling solenoids to be installed, along with the baseboard to baseboard connectors. It's also about time I firmed up my thoughts as to how to build and where to site the control panel! The wiring will need a little bit of a tidy, I'd better leave this until my wiring is proven....... but I'm happy with the progress so far.

Parkside PC27 Slope sided mineral wagon

2011-03-31T07:36:00.000+01:00

Yesterday evening I spent a few moments wondering how to construct this kit. It looked a little more complex than the previous Dia. 1/108, 1/109 wagons. The sides are in two sections and have to be put together with an angle that matches a couple of supports that will be applied to the sides later in the construction. Also the floor does not fit flush to the outside edges of the ends with the sides recessed in from the ends. I was a little confused as to how to fix the floor to the ends, keeping it all square, then fix the sides on at the correct angle all in one go. After much thought, then running out of fingers and hands in many dry runs, the photo below shows my solution.....

After cutting off the buffers, in readiness for the sprung buffers, I realised that I could support the ends with two angle plates. Then after a little work with a file and some gentle encouragement I managed to position the floor in the centre of the ends.

Gluing the bottom side sections was easy, but the top sections needed a lot of work with a file to encourage them to fix snugly but...... hopefully...... I've captured the correct alignment and angle for the sides.

There is some filling to be done to mask the joint on the sides between the top and bottom sections. I think this should be attempted before installing the stanchions each side of the door.

My initial thought for this wagon is to try and replicate the one shown on page 6 of David Larkin's Pre-Nationalisation Freight Wagons on British Railways. As much as I like the condition of this wagon, I especially like the fact that it has spoked wheels.

Armchair Challenge (Part 4)

2011-03-28T22:40:00.006+01:00

A brief update to report a little progress on the initial six wagons for the Scalefour Society's Challenge. The current state of affairs at the close of play this evening is shown below.........six 16 ton mineral wagons all in different stages of construction.

Two Parkside standard Dia. 1/108 with W irons attached can be seen at the back. Top left is an old Airfix kit Dia. 1/108 with a replacement floor fitted. On the left is a Cambrian Models LNER 16 ton mineral wagon. In the centre is a Parkside Dia. 1/109 riveted wagon. Scattered across the cutting mat is the next victim under the knife, a Parkside's slope sided wagon.

When the six bodies are completed I'll get back to the under-frames, hopefully plucking up courage to have a go at Exactoscale's chassis kit.

At last - Track laying finished

2011-03-06T20:58:00.002Z

I received a parcel last week from a very kind member of the China Clay Branchlines Yahoo Group that contained a number of P4 track items. One package in the parcel contained slide chairs which are something I've been lacking. This spurred me on to try and complete the track to a point where I can start installing the wiring. Bringing the layout down into the living room over the weekend enabled me to work on a couple of bits that were a little difficult to get to where I normally have the layout erected.

And here it is ........

......at last, track laying finished...... and I hear you say "It's about b****y time as well". I can't believe it has taken me nine months just to build three points and about three yards of track......

During the last few months I've noticed that a few people paint the baseboards before laying track, wiring etc. Is this to help seal the wood from absorbing any dampness: from glues used in track-laying; scenic treatments; and/or from any damp storage conditions that the layout might experience? I'm starting to think it might be a good idea to paint the baseboards, even if it's only to tidy the layout up a little. So, a little late in the construction, I'll aim to dig out some white undercoat from the garage next weekend and give the boards a quick brushing........ Then it's time to get to grips with putting power to the track.

Compensation units

2011-03-02T07:17:00.000Z

One month has passed since my decision to enter the Armchairs Modellers Challenge was taken. With the holiday and a few other things going during February not a lot has happened. So over the last couple of evenings I've squeezed in some modelling time and started to look at a couple of wagon compensation units.

My aim is to try two or three different compensation units on the wagons. I've a couple of frets from Bill Bedford, some MJT frets plus some Exatroscale units. I've used an old D&S unit on the 7 plank wagon which did go together easily enough and seems to work OK. Unfortunately this fret was the only one I had so cannot consider this as an option for future projects.

First to try was the Bill Bedford units.........

Hmmmm....... Above is my first attempt at putting together one of Mr Bedford's compensation units. To be fair it was built a few months ago, the units were easy to fold and I ran a little solder along the internal folds to stiffen them a little, but as can be seen it is not a very successful attempt. The W irons are not square to the base and when the axles are depressed the W iron splay out a little further..... I couldn't see where I'd gone wrong and the unit was put onto one side for some thinking time. I was sure that, as these units have been around for some time, it was the way I'd put them together that was the problem.

In a subsequent discussion with one of the P4 area group members it was suggested that I use Exactoscale square axles with these units. This I did and the next unit I built.........

has gone together nice and square.....................

The MJT units are similar to the D&S units but again I'm not totally happy with my first attempt as the axle is a sloppy fit not as rigid as the D&S units. The rocking unit is shown below......

I'll persevere with the MJT units on one of my wagons but the jury is still out as to which unit I prefer. I have yet to pluck up the courage to build one of Exactoscale wagon chassis kits which do look a little more complex to put together than either of the above. No doubt once one is built they it won't seem that daunting.

How's this for signal box?

2011-02-26T13:57:00.002Z

This is a late posting but we're back from our trip to Sevilla (Seville). We flew into Malaga so we had a 2.5 hour train journey between Malaga and Seville. The option to travel via bus was somehow not a considered option. Overall we were both very impressed with the Spanish Railway system and the service provided by Renfe. The outbound journey was on a three coach stopping train calling at almost all stations on route. Leg room on the train was outstanding. I'm 6ft 3 inch and I probably had 6 inch knee room left between seats. The train was full.... with no standing passengers, no rubbish around station nor on board and the train running to time....... this was on a 5:00pm departure from Malaga .....and all for 36 euros each return....!!!

We did however cause major confusion within our carriage on the outward journey. When booking the tickets a couple of weeks before our trip I seemed to see an addition, optional, charge to reserve seats which I did not include in the ticket price. On boarding the train at Malaga, after stowing our luggage, we took the first available seats in the carriage and settled in for 2.5 hour journey. We were then approached by a Spanish lady stating that we were in her seat...... After a struggle with translation she politely offered to move to our allotted seats, luckily in the same carriage. Unfortunately this had a knock on affect as all seats are allotted on the tickets. You could see the Spanish muttering under there breath but once the musical chairs was put in motion it was very difficult to put right....... We sat in our correct seats on the return journey.

Back to the title of this entry........I noticed an interesting feature at the stations ..... there seemed to be no signal box at the stations only the following.......

The above was worked by a member of the station staff scurrying across the platform pulling one lever, winding another and the train was on its way again.

Watching the trams go by

2011-02-07T17:51:00.001Z

Just spent a very pleasant day wandering the streets of central Sevilla where there is a very small tram system. One line no more than 2 kilometres long with four stops. It must be one of the shortest public systems in the
world? Still nice to watch though.

-- Posted from my iPhone

Trial and (plenty of) error

2011-01-30T23:03:00.000Z

Back to the track this evening and a little more trial and error with the V on the B8 point. I now hope I've produced something that will work OK. The rail seems firmly fixed, there's electrical continuity between V and wing rails and, to my amazement, a wagon will roll effortlessly through it. For the amount of time and effort I've put into building this V this is all very satisfying.

The technique I've used is to glue to the sleepers some of Bill Bedford's brass Point Slide & Special Chair etches to which I've soldered the V and wing rails. This has been the trial and plenty of error bit. Very little of the brass etches are visible either side of the rail which has tested my soldering skills to the full. I'm getting good at burning sleepers! ....... Hope the joints hold up when in use as I've only soldered one wire dropper from the V and will be relying on the brass etches to transfer the current to the wing rails. Next time I scratch build a point I might consider soldering some wire droppers on to the wing rails. The chairs around the V still need to be installed but this will be done later when I'm fully satisfied with the whole point.

The photo below is of my trail run for constructing the switch blades and might help to explain the above technique.

The above photo shows where the brass etches will be glued to the sleepers. I'm hoping that two soldered joints will be sufficient to hold the switch blade in place. Use will be made of brass fish plates at the joint with the closure rail. This should help secure the switch blade in place and also help with electrical continuity between them and the closure rail.

Any alternative suggestions to the above will be gratefully received........

What to build

2011-01-28T23:27:00.001Z

Well I've done it.........entered my first Model Railway competition! I've no illusion that I've any chance of being placed but hope it will spur me on to build a few wagons and develop my skills.

So what to build?

Ideally for Tredethy Wharf I would build six Clay wagons….. Hmmmm…..I've set the bars fairly high in the respect that I would like to try to install sprung buffers on all goods stock. As yet I've not found a supplier of sprung self-contained buffers for clay wagons and not sure that I'm ready to tackle converting those supplied with the kits. For Tredethy Wharf I'll need 20 or more wagons and more for future projects.……. I don't want to fail to meet one of my objectives at the first hurdle.

So six general merchandise wagons it is…… the next question is, six of the same type or six different ones?

The decision I've made is that I'm going to tackle six of the same type. My thinking is that it will be quicker to batch build, then, if I have the time, I'll gradually build two or three of another type and so on and so forth. Finally, if I've managed to build more than the initial six, I'll be able to select the better ones for my competition entry.

I've always had a liking for 16T mineral wagons. Not sure if this was from seeing endless trains of mineral wagons rattling though Reepham station when I was knee high to a grasshopper. I've collected a few kits for these wagons over the years. Wenfordbridge branch saw its fair share of these wagons for local coal and coal for the Wenford driers. They will offer me excellent challenges in weathering. and not be too difficult to compensate. Sprung buffers, etching/castings for brake gear and different castings for axle boxes are all readily available. I have relevant books by John Hayes, Geoff Kent and Martyn Welch and a few reference photos in other books. It makes sense, to me, that these will be the first six.

So, out came the kits, from the Parkside range, 4 x Dia 1/108 PC21s; 1 x slope sided PC27; 1 x riveted PC54; 1 x French PC22; 1 x Cambrian LNER; 2 x Airfix kits; plus a few part-built Airfix kits from my EM gauge days; and a part built Parkside French type. Out came all the compensation units and different castings I've collected during this last year. Might need a few more bits as I go along, especially sprung buffers. There are plenty unbuilt kits for me to go at, so the part-built kits while be put to one side for the moment. I've collated a few components together and hope to make a start over the weekend...... Well.....hope so.

Do I or don't I?

2011-01-19T08:00:00.002Z

This is what I've been thinking during the last couple of weeks about whether I enter the Scalefour Society's Armchair Modellers Challenge. The challenge is to build, depending on type, 4 to 6 wagons. Closing date is the weekend of the annual Scaleforum Exhibition in September. As I will need to build a few wagons during this year, one wagon a months does not sound much. In reality though, while trying to keep the build going on the layout, finish the 57xx, and wanting to start the High Level 03 chassis kit, time might be tight........This along with the fact that I will have to stay later on the Sunday than I would normally have planned, was making me think I'd give it a miss and build wagons at my own pace.....

But..... news in the last few days has made me rethink.... I may be required to help one of the exhibitors! If this turns out to be the case I will have to be at the show for the whole weekend. Bearing in mind that, apart from the RCH 7 Plank wagon, these will be the first wagons I've attempted to build for a number of years. I don't think for one minute that any entry of mine will have a chance of winning. The challenge will be another incentive to get on and build something, which I think is its main aim. Deadline for entries is the end of February. This should be enough time for me to think about which kits I could complete during, what no doubt will be, my normal erratic modelling stints over the next few months.

First Crossing V

2011-01-02T10:20:00.007Z

Just to while away a few moments, before going to a family event for the day, I've built my first crossing V from scratch for the final point on the layout. The previous two crossing Vs have been from the excellent P4 Track Company's kits. As this layout is just a test track I thought I'd have a go at scratch building the final point. For a first attempt, at creating a crossing V for some considerable time, I'm quite pleased with it.

Shame it's the wrong angle...... Somewhere in my head I had it that the last point was a B7 but when presenting this to the track plan, I said a non too polite word, and realised it's a B8 ......... It's a good job that practice makes perfect...... Hope to try again this evening ..............

Brake Van

2011-01-01T13:17:00.000Z

While I was re-watching the Wenfordbridge DVD, looking for more information on the Dunmere buffer stop, I saw a running number of a LNER 'Toad E' brake van. The footage looks to be from the late 1950s of a regular goods train, being hauled by 30585 a Beattie Well Tank, running to Wenfordbridge. Apparently an LNER brake van was regularly used on the Wenfordbridge goods turns. For anyone who is interested the running number is E153583, the body has narrow vertical planking with a pressed steel ducket and it is sporting the grey livery. The Bachmann model (33-803 - 20 ton brake van BR grey unfitted) looks to be a good starting point for a model of this brake van......

Buffer Stops part 2

2011-01-01T12:10:00.007Z

Some further thoughts about a buffer stop for Tredethy Wharf......... I have a Mikes Models kit for a LSWR buffer stop and was intending to put it to use on the layout. Photographs I have of Wenfordbridge, and the photograph below of Dunmere Wharf, seemed to indicate they were all of the standard LSWR design on this branch.

That was until, one day in September, while browsing through my collection of photographs, I saw in the corner of one particular photograph of Dunmere Crossing a three quarter side view of the buffer stop on the Wharf siding. Below is the relevant corner of this photograph.

Back in September, Clive kindly offered to to make a new rail bending jig to help create this buffer stop. His current jigs don't quite bend the rail correctly for style of buffer stop. Before he does this, he has asked for a scale drawing of the buffer stop. I thought it was about time I created this drawing so yesterday I started, but it's not going well.

My problem is with the uprights.... Looking at the first photograph, it looks like there is one upright and, I would guess, it would be a single section of rail. When I enlarge the second photograph it looks like the upright is made up of two vertical sections of steel, possibly rail, bolted together. The angled sections of rail coming from the running rail to the vertical uprights look as if they have been bent through 180 degrees around the verticals as one continuous piece of rail. If the vertical section is made up of two sections of rail I should see a joggle in the rail as it bends around the verticals. It's not obvious in the first nor the second photograph.....

The other problem I have with using this buffer stop on Tredethy Wharf is that the Dunmere Wharf siding was very short, which is probably why this style of buffer stop was used. Without the rear supports running from the verticals back down to the running rail, this style of buffer stop does save space. However, on my Tredethy Wharf layout the siding cannot be classed as short for a Wharf siding, so a standard LSWR buffer stop could have been used......

So where do I go from here? Sorry Clive but I'm thinking of reverting back to my original idea of using a standard LSWR buffer stop on Tredethy Wharf. I'll keep the Dunmere buffer stop on ice until I can confirm its correct structure. At some point in the future I'll probably need a buffer stop that does not take up much space. I'm thinking of two such plans where a Dunmere style of buffer stop could be used, my fictitious Polbrook Engine Shed and, more probably, on the fictitious Wharf siding at Boscarne Junction. Hopefully by the time I start to consider building another layout, I will have confirmed its structure. With all the photographs taken of the Wenfordbridge line there should be at least one other photograph out there somewhere that will help to confirm its structure. Does anyone know of one????

Point operation

2010-12-31T00:40:00.001Z

In the build up to this layout, point operation was always going to be one of my first major hurdles. How to set the distance between the switch blades accurately was something I was struggling with especially when working to P4 standards. My previous attempts go back a number of years to copperclad points with a sleeper sized tiebars. I now wanted a more realistic solution. I understood that the switch blades would twist slightly when moving, this movement would, in time, break any solder joint on the blade unless there was some built in flexibility between the blades and the device used to move them. Even though I'd read many descriptions of different solutions, I still struggled with how best to go about it and which materials to use. It was not until I'd discussed my problem with two guys from the P4 group that I started see how to put a solution together. Also having access to layouts in the local area group has helped, I've been able to look, listen, and hopefully, learn.

My method is nothing ground breaking, all ideas have been borrowed from other modellers. I decided at an early stage to adopt Tortoise point motors and install all motors under the baseboard using Exactoscale's Tortoise Mounting Plates which gave me the horizontal motion. I just needed to decide on how to transfer this horizontal motion vertically through the baseboard to the switch blades.

Also a couple of guys stated that on their P4 layout they used 16.5mm as the distance between switch blades. This sounded too narrow to me but in checking dimensions it seemed OK for the centre to centre measurement between blades. My rough calculations are - P4 standards state a distance of 17.47mm between outer faces of the check rails - in reality on my points this has become 17.38mm - minus 0.9mm for width of rail gives a nominal 16.5mm. No doubt purists will put me right but at the moment it seems to work for me.

Hopefully the diagram below will help to explain the following verbal description.

I've used 0.5mm brass wire for the wire droppers soldered to the blades. Both wire droppers are bent slightly so that they are vertical to the centre of the blade when they pass though the baseboard. I then drilled the motion arm from the Tortoise mounting plate with two 1.5mm holes at 16.5mm centres. The hole was drilled to pass though the arm. Into each hole I then glued a 13mm length of 1.5mm brass tube. An 18mm length of 1.0mm brass tube, with an internal dimension of 0.5mm, was then soldered into the 1.5mm tube (18mm being the distance from the base of the motion arm to the top of the balsa wood track base). When installed, this will leave just the 0.5mm brass wire passing though the ballast layer. To help with installation when threading the motion arm onto the wire droppers under the baseboard, I cut the wire droppers to different lengths, 24mm and 22mm. When fitted, the wire droppers will protrude through the motion arm which means that the motor cannot be directly under the point but will be offset to one side of the point under the baseboard.

Elements described above ready for installation.

It is all very simple really..........that is, once you know what to do, what to use and how to use it.

Additions to my Reference Library

2010-12-29T20:06:00.005Z

While viewing St Merryn at Scaleforum with my partner and having discussions with a couple the SLAG guys the book below was purchased. Unfortunately for me I had to wait until Christmas Day to get my hands on it.

We have spent the last few days away visiting family but in quiet moments I've managed to skim read through most of the book, picking out a number of helpful tips in the process. I will need to read the book in more depth but it comes across as one that any budding P4 modeller (or possibly any modeller) should have in their collection. It is especially useful for myself due to the area in which St. Merryn is based covering many aspects that I need to consider: differences in track in the area; LSWR tiebars; Bachmann 45xx conversion to P4; Airfix 'B' Set conversion/detailing; Cornish hedges; layout lighting; and stock boxes being just a few. St. Merryn is a fine example of P4 modelling by an accomplished group of modellers and the book is written in a easy friendly style that should encourage rather than discourage. If it had gone into more detail it may have become a tome of information but unfriendly, certainly to the P4 newcomer. It is one book in my library that will not spend much time on the shelf.

The second book that Santa brought me was Colin Marsden's, 'The Diesel Shunter'.

This was a book that I discovered a couple of months ago while kicking my heels in Lincoln waiting for a new timing belt being fitted to my car. Apparently fitting the timing belt was a specialised job requiring special tools which non of my local garages had, so a trip to the main Peugeot dealer was arranged. I had to wait about 4 hours and while browsing W.H. Smiths I came across the above book. Having very little knowledge of anything relating to BR shunters, knowing I will need an 03 and an 08 for Tredethy Wharf, I immediately thought 'I need that one'. Unfortunately the dust jacket was damaged so, noting down the ISBN number, it was one destined for my Amazon Wish List. Then, when searching on Amazon, I realised that it was out of print...... second hand fetching a price far higher than its RRP. After mentioning this to my partner she came up trumps again by making a visit to W.H.Smiths to purchase the book, apparently getting a good discount in the bargain.

The little lady is a true treasure.

A barren few weeks

2010-12-24T09:58:00.004Z

I recently had a gentle reminder that I haven't posted an entry for a while but the title of this post says it all really. To progress the layout I needed a few items from Squires and Exactoscale. There was some confusion with the Squires order, all down to me I hasten to add, which delayed me finding the items by a couple of weeks. Then I posted the Exactoscale order which took a respectable fortnight to arrive.

While waiting for the above orders to arrive a WWII war game was arranged. This awoke some interest in looking though my mass of unpainted lead and I was side tracked a little by a couple of gaming projects. First a building that had been languishing in a box for many a year. I slapped a little paint on it and after gaining a feeling of achievement, I then picked up a second building to complete. One thing led to another and before I knew it I'd also started and finished a German artillery unit. Wargaming has definitely taken a back seat during this last year and I was gradually loosing interest in picking anything up to paint or finish off. So it was good to get stuck into some old projects that had been hanging around for far too long. I think it has also helped to clear and refocus my mind on the railway project. As they say 'a change is as good as a rest'.

With a little bit of luck I'm back on track (pun intended). I'm definitely not on schedule as I had hoped to have finished laying the track during Christmas with wiring completed and something running. I have made a start on finishing the switch blades for the second point, and now the extra bits from Exactoscale have arrived, I can start on the final point. A little progress has also been made on the 7 plank wagon but not enough to shout about. I've also been looking at some Bill Bedford W irons to see where I've gone wrong in folding them, more of which later........

May I thank all who have read this blog during the last year and for the encouragement and comments left. I truly hope you all have a happy and memorable Christmas.

Track at Baseboard Joints (part 2)

2010-10-29T22:52:00.001+01:00

A further report on method 3 from my previous posting......

Not sure if this has been done before but it is only a twist on the plywood and rivet method. At the baseboard edge, holes have been drilled through the plywood sleepers, and through the balsa underlay into the plywood track base. Then 20mm long panel pins have then been pushed and lightly tapped into place.

Panel pins in place

Pin heads were cleaned with a light rubbing of a file and then tinned with a little solder. The underneath of the rail was also cleaned with a file and tinned before soldering the two together. I still need to apply cosmetic chairs to cover the joints. My soldering technique has been a little dodgy of late but after a little demonstration the other evening from a P4 area group member (Gordon), I'm hopeful that these joints will hold.

The start of the next point with chairs and rail in place.

As can be seen from the above photo, I'm going to trial plastic chairs glued directly to plywood sleepers on the opposite side of the baseboard joint to this point. If these fail I can always revert to another method..............

Film Show

2010-10-23T17:12:00.000+01:00

I was at Grimsby library today to peruse a photographic exhibition put on by North East Lincolnshire Photographic Society. There were some fine photographs on display all by local amateur photographers. While browsing some posters in the entrance to the library I noticed the following event that might be of interest to some locals in the North Lincolnshire area.

At Cleethorpe's Memorial Hall on Thursday 11th November there is a 'Grand Film Show' titled 'Railways Remembered - Along LNER Lines'. Starting time 7:30pm but cannot remember who is presenting the show nor the ticket price. I remember the poster stating that the film show has a special tribute to the GCR and something about Immingham Docks, possibly the opening ceremony in 1912.

I've searched the web to check my memory and found nothing about this event.......typical.... should have taken a photo of the poster.

Sorry about only having half the information.....hope the info is of use to someone.

Track at baseboard joints

2010-10-16T10:05:00.004+01:00

On arriving home yesterday evening I had the surprise of finding a nice bulky envelope containing two Ultrascale wheel conversion packs. One for another Bachmann 8750 Pannier (to be 4694) and other for a Bachmann Class 08 Shunter. Better get my next order placed......... AND place my order for some 08 cranks that are being etched by my local P4 area group (Hi guys... could I have three sets please?).

As for progress on the layout............. my evening modelling time has again been difficult to find recently but track laying is progressing on the plank, all be it very slowly. One thing I've been struggling with is how to secure track at baseboard joints. I've been mulling over options and it looks like I'm going to trial at least three different methods.....

Method 1) At the joint at one end of the layout I'm trying C&L's Baseboard End Track Protectors. They look like they will work well but I'm a little concerned about the width of these protectors and the difficulty in disguising them. At the end I've chosen they are the perfect width for soldering the running rail and check rail to. This end they will also vanish under a covering of hard standing. I may be able to disguise them at the opposite end of the layout but at the middle joint I'm not sure how I can without extending the hard standing area across the baseboard joint.

C & L Baseboard end track Protectors (C1012)

Method 2) One suggestion that has been made by a member of my local P4 group is copperclad sleepers and brass chairs. At the moment I'm not that keen as, so far, no matter how hard I've tried I have not yet been able to paint a copperclad sleeper to match the wooden ones. I'm still going to give this method a trial on the layout though.

Brass chairs and copperclad sleeper

Method 3) I'm also thinking about hammering some panel pins into the plywood track sub-base through pre-drill wooden sleepers. Rail can then be soldered to the head of the pin and cosmetic chairs applied.

Pin and rail test solder

I'm now going to set myself up to be shot down in flames by all those who have much more experience than me. So here goes............

Method 4) With all the above said I still have a thought about using plastic chairs glued to wooden sleepers at baseboard joints. My theory is.....as the glue joint between chair and sleeper will be a weak point any damage should at least leave the sleeper and ballast intact. The above three methods would possibly stand rougher handling but any damage might be drastic. Not only would there be damage to rail and chairs but there might also be damage to sleepers, ballast and possibly the balsa underlay. With plastic chairs any damage should only require the rail and any damaged chairs removed then new rail and chairs installed. Hmmmm..... not sure if I'm brave enough to give this a try though................ I'll wait for the sound of those guns being fired..........

Hopefully with the longer evenings setting in I'll manage a few more hours each week and a few photos of my meagre progress.

NCR timetable time/distance graph

2010-10-15T21:13:00.006+01:00

I've recently wangled a couple of lunch breaks and managed to create a time/distance graph for my North Cornwall line timetable. It's not complete as I still need to confirm workings to/from Mawgan Porth but it has thrown up a couple of anomalies.

The first anomaly was the Up 11:30 goods train passing the ACE between Launceston and Tower Hill. This must have been a problem created by using timetables from different periods. I've altered the timing of the goods slightly by shortening its stay at Launceston so that it reaches Tower Hill just before the ACE. Not sure if this is correct so if anyone has a 1961 goods timetable for the line please let me know.

The second anomaly was with the Down 7:15 Halwill departure which, when compared to other down trains, seemed to take too long to travel between Tower Hill and Launceston. I've double checked the 1961 timetable and the times are correct. My only assumption is that the timetable does not show the arrival time at Launceston it only shows the departure time. So I've altered this to have a 13 minute stop at Launceston, to drop off newspapers and parcels.

Neither of the anomalies have affected what I'm trying to do at Grogley Junction and the surrounding area but I like to try to get things as correct as possible with what information I can find (please note I did say 'try').

The thought of creating a time/distance graph had not occurred to me until Micky suggested it in a recent comment. Creating one has shown how valuable these graphs are to confirm timings for timetables. From now on I'll be trying to use one or more time/distance graphs while creating a timetable for the local workings around Grogley Junction.

On a different scale

2010-10-02T22:55:00.012+01:00

I've just spent a interesting day helping a friend with his layout at a small show in Aylsham, Norwich. His usual partner in crime was otherwise engaged so I was drafted in to help.

His layout is called Winterschlef-Rhb and is based on the Engadine line in Switzerland. The scale is 1:45 (Continental O) with track gauge set at 22.5mm to represent Swiss metre-gauge track. All buildings are scratch built and are based on structures either on the line or in the vicinity.

Interestingly for me is that he has recently converted the layout from DC to DCC. I can see the potential for adding operational interest on layouts larger than my Tredethy Wharf. Also, the ease of use and extra features that DCC can bring ...... hmmmm .... it's not something I can justify the investment on at the moment but will definitely have to consider it in the future.

PS - I do apologise for the spelling and grammatical errors previously in this posting. My only excuse is that it had been a long day with a 5:15 alarm call!

Leatherhead 2010

2010-09-30T14:50:00.004+01:00

Home at last after having a few days away which included a visit to Scaleforum at Leatherhead. Only my second visit to Scaleforum and I managed to spend all day Saturday some of Sunday around the show thoroughly enjoying the experience. Excellent layouts, very informative demonstrations and a focused P4 trade support. I probably made one or two too many purchases but they are all needed in the grand scheme of things..........honest! What was also enjoyable was meeting a few gents that I've only conversed with via blogs or email, really good putting faces to names. The more I do with my meagre layout the more I appreciate what is involved to create a layout. Then add to that the P4 discipline and I was in awe of all the layouts on show at Leatherhead.

Best in show for me, and I know I'm very biased in my selection because of the subject matter, has to be St. Merryn. I think the overall feel and consistent standard of modelling across the layout from the South London Group is excellent. They also seem a down to earth friendly bunch and with the publication of their book they are sharing the trials and tribulations during the layout's construction.

St. Merryn

St. Merryn is closely followed by Wheel Elizabeth, Horsley Bank and Portchullin as my favourite exhibits. What can I say that has not been said about Wheel Elizabeth....... not a lot apart from "superb".

Wheel Elizabeth

Horsley Bank is a compact essay set depicting a Yorkshire woollen mill town. Nice detail, plenty to look at and very informative well presented display boards.

Horsley Bank

Initially I wasn't sure about Portchullin but the more I looked the more I liked. It has a openness / remoteness about it which, though I have not been to the area, placed me up there in Scotland.

Portchullin

After purchasing up a copy of MRJ 201 on the Saturday and reading an article during the evening I was disappointed to only get a brief look at the Barrow Road Engine shed exhibit on the Sunday morning. Sunday morning was just a quick blast around the show with my partner, who took all the photos, before we travelled up to the Lakes for a few days.

Finally I have to mention Bank Hall Sidings which was at the show as a 'Guest Gauge of the year' layout. This was the first S gauge layout that I've seen for a while and certainly the first that was this complete. A very high standard of modelling with everything scratch built.......!

Bank Hall Sidings

This is only a selection from the ten layouts at the show and takes nothing away from the other fine layouts but the above were the ones that rocked my boat that little bit more.

My thanks must go to the organisers of the show who organised and ran a fine show. My pass-out is already signed for next year when I might try and spend two full days there.

Buffer stops

2010-09-23T05:53:00.004+01:00

Last night I spent a most enjoyable evening with one of the local areas Scalefour guys (Clive) discussing a buffer stop for Tredethy Wharf. Up until a few days a go I was going to use an old Mikes Models LSWR kit for a buffer stop. That was until I discovered, in my collection of photographs, a three quarter side view of the buffer stop at Dunmere Wharf. I remembered Clive offering me some jigs he'd made for building buffer stops on his layout so I'd asked to borrow them. But it's never that easy, on close inspection of the photo, we discovered the Dunmere stop has some seemingly unique features. More research is needed and Clive has asked for a scale drawing as a new jig might be needed..... Hmmmm.....but hopefully, with his help, I'll be able to build a reasonable representation for Tredethy Wharf.

I am quite excited by this little project..... more updates to follow...............

New 1961 NCR timetable!!

2010-09-20T12:30:00.003+01:00

I've recently started to make use of some of my lunch breaks to put some thought into the hub of my Grogley Junction project. The whole project evolves around the creation of a junction station at Grogley and how its creation would effect rail operations. My thoughts have wandered towards its track plan and also my interpretation of Boscarne Junction. I'm currently not sure that my first attempts at track plans for these two junctions will fit the bill. I want to check whether my they would be adequate for traffic running though both the junctions and the only way I could see to do this was to create the timetables.

The aim is to dovetail my fictitious timetable into a 1961/2 timetable with as little alteration as possible from the actual workings of the North Cornwall Railway. It will also need to fit into the historical timetables of the Western Region for Bodmin General and the Newquay branch. As the project has altered slightly to my previous attempt, I've spent time creating these new timetables for the North Cornwall Line as shown below:

References used have been a SR British Railways' timetable for 1961; timetables published in "An Illustrated History of the North Cornwall Railway" (Irwell Press); engine diagrams and timetables in "The Bodmin & Wadebridge Railway" (CFD Whetmath, Forge Books).

I am also hoping that the timetables will help to curtail random purchases, and enable me to work towards a stock list that is relevant for the whole project. Since creating the images for posting I've discovered photographs showing a couple of different train make-ups that will alter the entries slightly within the above timetable headings. These are still a work in progress...........

Timetables for all the local workings between Padstow, Bodmin, Wenford plus the fictitious workings to Mawgan Porth and Par are also being worked on. This is being a more difficult task than the above and will take a number of lunch breaks over the next couple of months before it's in a readable state. Once done I'll be able to work on and justify track plans for any proposed station/junction in my alternative universe.

RCH 7 Plank wagon (Part 5)

2010-09-10T21:00:00.001+01:00

It's been a while ...... and track laying on Tredethy Wharf is progressing slowly. I'm beginning to realise what I've started by using individual LSWR chairs........... and this is just a small/test plank layout!

As a slight distraction and with the encouragement of a recent article in the MRJ 200, I've picked up the RCH PO wagon again. A few months ago I'd put this wagon to one side after becoming dissatisfied with my attempt at painting the internal planking. It has been a long time since I've used enamels as all my wargaming painting has been with acrylics. The other barrier has been a mental one about painting a weathered wood effect. In my OO/EM days I'd made a few attempts at this and tried to represent replaced planks, and I never really captured the effect I was after.

Mulling things over I'd started to consider using acrylics when MRJ 200 arrived with the excellent article by Craig Welsh. This lead to a quick purchase of paints followed a couple of hours work, and I'm starting to feel I'm getting somewhere.

It's early days yet........ the planking needs toning down a little with grey washes; the metal work needs rust applying; the whole wagon needs weathering; need to apply running numbers...... but over all I am now feeling more confident about painting wooden wagons. Thanks Craig.

Photographs by Ian Dinmore

2010-08-14T23:47:00.000+01:00

I have come across a small selection of interesting colour photographs taken by Ian Dinmore. All are on the Railscot site. Three show weathered clay wagons and one is of the water trough at Pencarrow Woods with no train obscuring the view.

Boscarne Junction with a view of a short clay train from the guards van taken in 1982 here which also shows excellent detail/condition of the inside of a empty clay wagon.

Bodmin General with empty clayhoods here

Pencarrow Woods water trough here This is the first photo I've seen without a train in shot. Must have been taken from a Guards van.

Dunmere level crossing here

I like the last two photographs as they do show the intimacy that this line had with its surroundings. I do hope I will be able to portray this intimacy on Tredethy Wharf.

A funny old few weeks

2010-08-07T08:46:00.028+01:00

The last three weeks have been a funny mix.

Holidaying in a leaking tent.
Doing some more work on the garden project.
Painting and basing new elements for my 15mm Napoleonic Austrian army which were used for an inaugural game in my regular opponents new gaming room.
Track laying being started on Tredethy Wharf with the first point in position and the Tortoise point control mechanism in place under the baseboard (motor still to be installed).
Legs being constructed for the two scenic boards for Tredethy Wharf and nearly completed.

But.....during all the above I sprained my right wrist. At first it was not too bad and me being me, not wanting to make a fuss, I thought it would get better on its own. I tried to work though the discomfort until eventually, after a day's decorating, I could not do anything with my right hand........It has been strapped up in a splint for the last week. With hopefully only another week to go with the splint on, I'm doing what I can but it's being a little restrictive.

So very steady progress is being made on the layout but, at the moment, not enough to really shout about.

An excellent Saturday

2010-07-15T23:40:00.001+01:00

This is a bit of a late posting of an event that happened recently.

Last Saturday a group of us spent a most enjoyable day at a devout Great Central Railway modeller's house in Oughtibridge. After seeing Bridgehouses at Wakefield North show this year I was intrigued to go along and see his model of Brackley. On the other hand I was hesitant as Bridgehouses is far beyond anything I could expect to build myself and felt I would be way out of my depth in such company. Also being the new boy to P4, with little knowledge of things GC and being a BRWR devotee with SR leanings, I did wonder what my reception would be ....... but I needn't have worried as I was made to feel extremely welcome.

A few of the guys had taken locos to run around Brackley to run them in a little. One loco on test was a J63 which received a lot of praise. This is a loco that I was unfamiliar with but I do like the smaller 0-6-0 tanks, especially with outside cylinders. At the other end of the scale someone else also brought along a Robinson 04 which, when pulling a rake of coal wagons, looked the part and well at home running through Brackley. What I got out of the day more than anything is seeing and hearing how others tackle and solve problems. This was all helped by seeing someone else's layout in the flesh, part complete, in the nude if you like. I do find it difficult to engage exhibitors across a layout at an exhibition while they are busy operating, trying to entertain the punters, even at Scalefour Society exhibitions. I came away from the day wanting to crack into track laying on Tredethy. I was also encouraged by all the talk to start on one of my loco kits. Which one to get to grips with first is the question? The High Level 03 chassis is favourite, but I do fancy giving the Nu-Cast 16xx a go. The DJH 1366 will have to wait until I've built up some confidence and it is all to do with confidence........and after that Saturday I have a little bit more confidence to have a go.

Just about to leave for a few days up in the Lakes then back to a little more work on the Garden Project but I'm sure I will find a few hours to get to grips with some modelling, I can't wait.

I know this will not be read by the host or his wife but I'd like to publicly thank them both for the day and their hospitality. Many thanks.

A Garden Project

2010-07-08T23:14:00.010+01:00

At this week's Scalefour Area Group meeting there was a little banter that I've not entered any postings since 16th June. Hmmmm.......well here come the excuses..........not much has happened on the layout as a major Garden Project has been given priority by the "power that needs to be obeyed". Got to blame someone :-)). We also have a visitor staying with us for a couple of weeks. I then have a holiday coming up which means not much else will happen for at least the next fortnight.

On the plus side.......I was able to complete all sleeper laying for the plain track before the layout boards were put into storage while the visitor is with us. I have also been able to test a couple of old AMR handheld controllers at this week's meeting. They worked but not as well as a Gaugemaster W handheld unit. So the two AMR controllers will do for now but I'll have to save a few pennies for a Gaugemaster controller in the future. I've also received a recent order from Squires for brass tubing and rod for point control, wire, switches, solder etc. for the layout. So when the layout does come out of storage I hope I can press on fairly quickly with track laying and wiring.

Germany game

2010-06-16T12:50:00.001+01:00

While watching the Germany v Australia game on Sunday I was privileged to be able to put one board on the coffee table and start laying sleepers. Little did I know that I was being photographed........

At this point I was looking at an old Mikes Models LSWR buffer stop while waiting for the glue to go off under weighted down sleepers. I could vaguely remember purchasing a buffer stop many years ago but was starting to think I'd lost it. The previous evening, after one last ditched attempt at searching for it, I eventually found it in one of the many boxes of old railway stuff in the roof. In checking out what buffer stops were used at Wenfordbridge and Wadebridge it should be OK for the siding at Tredethy Wharf.

As for the game, Germany seem to be back to their normal tournament best and look to be a hard side to beat. If England get though the group stage lets hope they don't meet Germany in the quarter finals.

Sleeper staining

2010-06-10T08:00:00.001+01:00

500 sleepers are now stained and ready for laying.

The last batch laid out to dry

Had a problem with my staining mixture. Ran out of my first mixture and when mixing some more to the same recipe it came out too strong. After a little thinning down, with some more isopropyl alcohol, I think I got close enough. I'm trying to achieve a faded grey/brown colour to the sleepers with that almost silvery look they get when weathered. Hope to post better photos once I start laying the sleepers on the layout.

I'm using Exactoscale 1.6mm thick sleepers hoping I'll get some good variation of depth to the ballast. May well be extravagant and use wooden sleepers even where they will be completely covered by roadways and hard-standing in the Wharf area. Initially I'd purchased some copper clad sleepers for these areas. Now my thoughts are as the hard-standing looks like it was compacted earth, not completely up to rail height, tops of chairs and sleeper edges may well be seen in places.

(Note to self - Staining recipe used for this batch : 100ml water + 100ml isopropyl alcohol + 4ml black ink + 5ml sepia ink - each sleeper individually dipped quickly and shaken)

All this for just three inches

2010-05-29T18:20:00.008+01:00

Over the last couple of evenings I have noticed that the layout, being placed on a work bench/table, is definitely at the wrong height for me to work on comfortably. This is probably a sign that I'm getting a bit old. Standing up the layout is far too low and being seated it feels too restrictive and awkward. This has got me thinking about what is the best height for the layout and that I ought to get the layout supports built sooner rather than later.

So with the thoughts that: I am 6' 3" and my partner is 5' 2"; that the layout is being built for my own interest and as a test bed; the layout needs to be at a height that is comfortable for me to build and operate; the layout needs to be at a height that my partner can hopefully appreciate it. My thoughts wandered to the recently suggested height of 4' 3". Initially I thought that this would be a about right but during my lunch break yesterday, to try and help make a decision, I started to draw the diagrams below.

If I put a front fascia on, 18" above track level, to frame the layout, I could still operate the layout without stooping. If I put a back-screen on the layout it would have to be at least 2' tall, however, my thoughts are that I will be operating the layout from the front anyway so a 6'+ back-screen would not be a problem. Looking at the above though I thought that 4' 3" might be a tad too high for my partner, also, is it too high for me to work on comfortably? The track bed might be better at my elbow height which would put it at 4'.

So.........

This might be a better height? Back-screen if fitted would still be 2' high. The bottom of the front front fascia would be just below my eye height but if I stand a little away from the layout it should not be too intrusive. If I sit on a tall stool while operating the layout, the front fascia should not be an issue. My partner would have a more open view with the track bed 3" lower than the above 4' 3". With the track bed being at elbow height it should be more comfortable working on the layout especially when adding scenic detail.

Time will tell, but a track bed height of 4' looks to be favourite. (We'd both better get dressed after the life drawing class........ :-)..)

Tredethy Wharf (May update)

2010-05-26T22:30:00.003+01:00

This is not much of an update on progress, more a report that the layout has found a home which should help with construction.......

Apart from a fettle with some Bill Bedford W Irons, progress on the layout has been at a standstill from mid April through most of May. Work and social commitments have taken their toll, along with yet more furniture moving and rearrangements. This is all down to my daughter moving out into a flat and the rest of my partner's furniture coming out of storage. With all this going on I had to, yet again, reluctantly loose my 'man space' in the garage. But the upshot of all this is that I've negotiated some space for the layout in the house!

The baseboards for Tredethy Wharf now reside on a bench in what has become my 'man space' in the house. There's not enough space for the eventual complete layout, only the two scenic boards (beggars can't be too choosy) but this has enabled me to dabble a little on the layout for the last couple of evenings.

A while back I mentioned to the local P4 group that I was planning to use cork for the track bed. I was immediately informed that Balsa wood is starting to be recognised as a better material for the track base. Holes have been cut through the ply baseboard under the tie-bar locations for point control and 5mm Balsa has been glued in position. One part completed turnout has also been dropped into place. I was hoping to get the track plan glued in place but I've been side tracked a little this evening staining some sleepers.

The next update should show some good progress........

Saltfleet

2010-05-10T21:25:00.009+01:00

This last weekend I spent a very enjoyable Sunday helping (well I like to think I was helping) operate a P4 layout at Cleethorpes Model Railway Exhibition. The layout depicts a 'what might have been' at Saltfleet on the East Coast of Lincolnshire and is the work of two members of the local Scalefour Area Group, Martin and David. It is very much a work in progress and they have worked tirelessly over the last few months to get it to its current stage.

Soon after arriving I was, promptly handed the controls! Well I suppose I had offered and had hoped I'd get some hands on the controls but it had been many a year since I'd been in the drivers seat.......... I then spent the next two hours absorbed in the 65 movement sequence. To my surprise the time flew by and I honestly thought that only half an hour and passed when it was announced 'grub up for first sitting'.

A few things came out of the experience the main one being the use of automated couplings. I've been having thoughts about the merits of 3-link verses automated couplings for many a month and after Sunday it has to be automated couplings. The ease of use under exhibition conditions far out weighs the aesthetics of 3 link couplings. Goods traffic was formed into set rakes with 3-links within the rake and 'Sprat and Winkle' coupling at each end. It all worked well once I'd spotted all the magnets. So next discussion is which automated couplings......?

If my little project comes close to this standard I will be well happy.

Thanks guys........

Tickets

2010-04-26T22:32:00.011+01:00

I've gradually been building up a collection of photographs for the Wadebridge - Bodmin - Wenford Bridge lines and thought I'd share a couple of my recent ebay purchases. Neither are photographs but tickets issued for the lines. The first to catch my eye was a ticket for travel between Grogley Halt and Bodmin. When spotted I thought I just had to have it as Grogley is the inspiration and central to this project. The ticket ties in a little bit of reality to my fiction.

The second is a passenger ticket for the goods only Wenford Bridge line. As my 'Plank' Tredethy Wharf is based on this line, again I thought this also had to be added to the collection.

Apparently passengers were allowed to travel in the Guards Van. I've also been informed that a Queen Mary brake van was sometimes added to the daily goods train when passengers were being conveyed. No printed tickets were available so tickets had to be hand written. What a nice piece of railway history.

I don't know the age of, or personal history behind either ticket, if anyone has any ideas please let me know.

The plank!!

2010-04-19T22:27:00.010+01:00

Well, there it is, The Plank!

and

The Plank with track plan.

At this end of the layout I cannot decide on how the cottage / road / land contours will look, so the front profile board will be cut later. I also need to decide on the height of the layout so that I can start to construct the supporting frame/legs, but at least I am at the point where serious thought can be applied to track laying. Just need a little tweak here and there on the track plan and things will start to get interesting.

Wenford DVD

2010-04-09T21:03:00.003+01:00

I recently purchased a DVD produced by Branch Line Video titled 'Memories of the Bodmin & Wadebridge Railway'. I had mulled over the purchase for a while but as the front cover had a picture of a Beattie Well Tank at Dumere Crossing I thought it might contain something of interest on the Wenford Bridge line. Being not sure what to expect I was, after viewing, extremely please with the purchase. I would highly recommend this DVD to anyone interested in this area and the workings of the Wenford Bridge line.

It comes with two DVDs, the first covers the history of the line starting with brief footage of the North Cornwall Line then moving onto the main subject highlighted with many stills and brief cine film. Of more interest to me is the second DVD. It has cine film footage of two trips down the Wenford Bridge branch. One starting with footage of workings at Wadebridge and progressing to an empty clay train working hauled by a Beattie 30585. The second of a Brake Van special hauled by 1369. Both have anecdotal commentary from men who worked the line. Footage is not surprisingly showing its age but still fantastic to see.

Easter & Lincolnshire Wolds Railway

2010-04-07T22:14:00.003+01:00

I was disappointed about not being able to get up to York this year as I would have dearly liked to have seen Wheel Elizabeth in the flesh. York does sometimes throw up some interesting layouts and James' report mentions Mini MSW which would also have been worth seeing.

Anyway I did manage to steal a couple of hours away from chores and paid a visit to the Lincolnshire Wolds Railway. It's only 15 mins away at Ludborough. I'd not paid them much attention to this project but 'her indoors' kindly suggested a visit for a break. This Easter weekend was the official opening of their second station at North Thoresby. In celebration they had organised a Steam Gala.

A big attraction, especially for me, was a visiting Pannier tank 6430. I dutifully took the opportunity to take photos of this engine for a possible future project. Some excellent photos of the weekend can be found on Dave's Railpics of Lincolnshire web site .

By all accounts the Steam Gala was a great success. It attracted a tremendous number of visitors over the weekend with many full trains. I'll have to pay them another visit soon.

At last , some progress

2010-03-22T07:00:00.004Z

I was supposed to be going to the Nottingham Model Railway Show this weekend but a couple of events changed my plans. The guy I was going with couldn't make it and my partner deciding at the last minute to visit her son, staying over until Monday morning. I've not been to the Nottingham show before the Scalefour Area Group guys had recommended it as one worth going to. With four P4 layouts there this year, which I have not seen in the flesh, and an impressive trader list I was fully intending to go. So why didn't I?

The previous weekend I'd made an attempted to reorganise the garage. The intention was to create some space so that I could make a start on baseboard construction. Though I was not able to create enough space I did clear a path to the sheets of plywood I'd put on one side for this project. Knowing the timber was at hand put a thought in mind. After the boss had departed and while watching the final game of the Six Nations, I rolled out the full size printout of Tredethy Wharf. A few scribbles were made, a couple of sketches drawn, and I thought, 'if I don't go to Nottingham I could get them built tomorrow.......Hmmmmm..... With no room in the garage to swing a cat I've been waiting for good weather at a weekend or an opportunity like this to make a start. It was a tough decision but this was an excellent opportunity to get stuck into the baseboards for Tredethy Wharf.

Sunday brought mayhem to the kitchen and gradually it spread though the house. Was I glad the boss was not around? ....... At the end of the day I had nearly finished one baseboard.

Baseboard One.
The above picture makes it look like the baseboard has a bottom but it's only resting on a piece of scrap plywood to stop me scratching the table.

This has been a bigger task than I thought. Last time I built any baseboards they were simple rectangular solid topped style boards. The two I'm making for Tredthy Wharf have curved fronts and need height front to back. I have also attempted to integrate the contours into the board end profiles. While weighing up angles and gradients for surrounding land I started to wish I'd made a quarter scale mock up. But out came all photos I have accumulated on this line ........ hopefully I will have the lie of the land about right?

In the above picture the nearest baseboard end profile board has the next boards profile end piece bolted to it. These two end pieces have pattern makers dowels fitted for alignment. I have not used pattern makers dowels before and though easy to fit they did take a little while. To complete the above first baseboard a couple more middle supports need fitting and the front facial profile board needs cutting and fitting. Then it's on with the second baseboard.

There was a bit of stumbling around, a couple of mistakes and plenty of 'thought time' involved but overall I think I've cracked it with the baseboards. Just need the boss to go away next weekend and I'll have both boards completed!!........

RCH 7 Plank Wagon (Pt.4)

2010-02-23T23:50:00.002Z

I have been undecided whether to have Morton Brake Gear on both sides or just one side on this wagon. The old packet of 9ft Brake Gear produced by Kenline contains two identical castings. I was sure that, while this might be OK for independent brake gear fitted to wagons with bottom doors, for this wagon it would not be correct. In my earlier modelling days I would have just added the brake gear as supplied. I wouldn't have batted an eye lid to any possible inaccuracy, hiding behind the thought that you only see one side of the wagon at a time, but today I feel different.

So what would the other side of the wagon look like? Are the brake handles identical? Should there be double V hangers on the side with no brake gear? I remember comments about rackets, reversing clutches, dog clutchs, cams and other technical terms concerning Morton Brake gear. What do they all mean? How and where were they all used? To those that are in the know about these things please remember that I am on a big learning curve with the whole of this project. The problem I've had is finding a wagon with Morton Brake Gear that has been photographed from both sides and/or ideally from underneath. While it might be possible to deduce from a single photograph whether a wagon has brake gear on both sides or not, it's difficult for a novice like myself to understand what the other side should look like.

Eventually, after rummaging through all my wagon books, I found a couple of pictures showing both sides of the same wagon. They're of a badly loaded NE 6 plank open wagon in J.H. Russell's book 'Freight Wagons and Loads in service with the GWR and BRWR' (figure 14 and 15). These photographs clearly show that the arrangment on the V hangers on each side was different. On the none brake gear side, there was a reversing clutch on the V hanger at the end of the brake handle. I've also seen photographs with a reversing clutch on the brake gear side of a wagon fitted with brake gear on only one side. But until I saw these two photographs of the NE wagon, I was a little unsure of the complete arrangement. But I now take it that the reversing clutch could be on either side of a wagon fitted with brake gear to one side.

So......my current understanding is that, Morton Brake Gear, on wagons with no bottom doors, has to have a reversing clutch on one side of the wagon to change the direction of rotation of the connecting bar between the V hangers on each side of the wagon, so that the brakes can be applied from either side of the wagon. Makes sense..........if I'm right that is.......?

Now to the model..............To try and show the reversing clutch, I carefully cut a piece plasticard to shape and then slightly modified the Kenline brake handle. While not 100% accurate, hopefully I have been able to capture the essence of a reversing clutch on the wagon.

OK.......by blowing up photographs this size does show up some issues, but overall I'm pleased with my effort so far. Door stops have been fitted since photographs were taken. Just drawbar hooks to be added. I was going to use Smith's 3 Link couplings until I realised that they are larger than the ones I'd used on my old EM gauge wagons. It had already been mentioned to me that Smith's couplings are a little over scale but until I saw the difference, I didn't realise by how much. I'm now waiting until I receive some couplings from Exactoscale before progressing this wagon any further. Once the drawbar hooks are fitted I can start painting.............

1968 Model Railway News

2010-02-20T23:33:00.024Z

I have been putting together an order for bits and bobs from ABS Models. To work out what I might need in the foreseeable future I've been trying to track down information on wagons that are in my 'to build' box. In a previous clear out of old magazines I'd saved cuttings with articles of anything I thought might be of interest in the future. Remembering I'd saved a few articles on wagons I dug out the files, then by browsing through them I came across this article...........

I remembered these pages in the July 1968 copy of Model Railway News being another article that started to change my concept of what a model railway could be like. I thought 'I might be able do that!' At about the same time as this article appeared I was allowed to take over a small room at the back of my dad's garage (but only being aged twelve it seemed large). It was a spacious 9'6" by 7'6" and had been his office but had declined into a junk/store room. What I would do for that amount of free space today.........

I had to modify the article's track plan slightly to fit it in the room by curving the track through 180 degrees from opposite the signal box, round to the road overbridge and beyond. Curving the layout created space for a better designed engine shed in the resultant corner. Locos ran off the main line on to a spur then back towards the station to access the loco shed and facilities. The loco facilities were also improved by the addition of a turnable in the same corner. Another addition was a parallel siding to the platform at the back which was to be used as a coach siding. The rest of the track plan was basically the same as the article.

This layout kept me occupied for a few years until I eventually found girls interesting. Sadly when I left home the layout was broken up. I've just sold the final three Peco code 100 points from this layout on ebay. This track plan still holds a fascination for me which must show by the fact that I've kept this article for all these years. I wonder if I could use this as a basis for the Mawgan Porth track plan?

The article goes on for a couple of columns to briefly describe the use of Superquick buildings which is probably as still relevant today as it was then. Below is the key to the above track plan, and interestingly, I'd ticked all the Superquick models that were built for the layout but now long gone.

Of interest is a book that is mentioned in the 'Bookshelf' column....... little did I think that nearly 40 years later I would have bought the book by Mr. Roche on the Withered Arm.......

RCH 7 Plank Open Wagon (Pt.3)

2010-02-16T23:55:00.001Z

Modelling time during the last couple of weeks has been minimal as I've been busy putting a lot of redundant railway and wargaming stuff on ebay. This is to declutter and help to raise a little cash for this project.

This evening, however, I earmarked a little time to progress the RCH wagon and had a go at adding the axle boxes, springs and brakes. I started by looking over a lovely model of a MINK D built for me as a birthday present many years ago by my good friend Nick.

The compensation units that he used are very similar the the current MJT units and the wagon has been easily converted from EM to P4. The springs on this MINK are J-hangers and Nick had cut the spring away from the hangers on the rocking unit allowing a good 1.5mm of movement.

I thought I'd try and follow his example but after adding the springs on the rocking unit the movement has been restricted to 0.5mm which is most disappointing. The buffer beam height looks OK when compared to the 57xx so I'm not sure how I can achieve more movement?

I cut the springs away from the shoes thinking this would be the least obvious place rather than having a gap between the spring and axlebox. Perhaps I should rethink the way I'm doing this as I would have thought a 1.0mm movement would have been preferable? Also I'm not sure of the look of the gap in the springs?

While at the Leatherhead show I purchased one of the 'more modern' sprung subframe compensation units from Masokits. Looks like I'll have to learn how to use a soldering iron again! Perhaps give this unit a try on one of the many minerals wagons I have to build?

What is a Cornish Hedge

2010-01-24T23:33:00.003Z

This is all a little advanced to where I am with this project but as you may have noticed my mind does race ahead of me at times. Anyway I do feel I need to plan ahead a little before I embark on any baseboard construction. I've been considering some of my planned scenic items and how they might affect the baseboards, thoughts have wandered to the lane at the right on the Tredethy Wharf layout.

Last time I was at Hellandbridge I remember the approach down Tredethy Road from Helland being a narrow Cornish lane. Each side of the lane being bordered by typical Cornish hedges and, in places, trees hanging over the road giving a secluded valley feel. But three questions come to mind;
What is a Cornish Hedge?
How is it constructed?
Are the lanes slightly below the surrounding landscape or are they just high hedges?
Hopefully know the answers to the above will help me model one.

While driving along these lanes I've never been that observant, I've probably just been concentrating on not hitting them while avoiding any oncoming traffic. A little research found a couple of interesting web sites that I hope will help me. Nothing will replace good photos (dear partner this is a gentle hint, can we get down there this year?) but these do give details on how the hedges are constructed.

Cornish Hedges Library

Practical Conservation Online

After looking at the above sites I think I can say that, in brief, a typical Cornish hedge is a hybrid between a stone wall and an earth bank. The hedge sides are typically built tapered with an inward curve from the base to half-way up. The top of the hedge is normally about half the width of the bottom. The base is created by placing large stone blocks into the earth and packing them in with sub-soil. The sides are then built using smaller rocks that interlock randomly. When the hedge reachs the required height, the random laying of stones turns into neat rows of square stones called "edgers". To finish, grass is sliced from the ground and stuck on top of the structure with sticks. The internal core of the hedge is earth.

There is a good cross sectional diagram of a Cornish hedge here.

What we see, as we travel along Cornwall's lanes, as a green hedge is the result of years of vegetation growing on/over the base structure.

Well you learn something everyday.........This is what I like about this hobby, it's not just about the railway with its track, locos and rolling stock, it gets you looking at and understanding your surroundings.........

RCH 7 Plank Open Wagon (Pt.2)

2010-01-16T14:46:00.023Z

Unfortunately, due to problems at work, I was not able to get to this month's Scalefour Area Group meeting (Sorry guys). When I eventually arrived home I thought I'd to try and make the best of a bad day.

The RCH open wagon was still out on my bench so I drilled out the buffers and glued then in place. While the glue was setting on the buffers I fixed the solebars in place (these had been prepared a previous evening). Finally, with a little filing off the ends of the floor and solebars, I glued the sides onto the wagon floor. I felt I made a bit of a meal putting the sides together as I was dry run testing different methods to get the sides true. Eventually I think they look OK.

I then started to prepare the axleboxes and springs for fitting onto the W irons but realised the ones I was using had 5 leaf springs and pressed shoes. The plastic moulding supplied with the kit are only 4 leaf springs with shoes that possibly represent cast shoes. Hmmm.......is the kit correct? Out came my wagon reference books only to realise I don't have a reference photo of a fixed end RCH wagon!!! D'oh....That should have been my first thought when starting this kit.........have I any references that I can base this kit on?

It was getting late so I stopped at that point. Only a small amount of progress but it was a bit of good therapy at the end of a bad day.

Figures and big wave of nostalgia

2010-01-10T14:53:00.005Z

After the success of the Bachmann Pannier tank conversion, my thoughts have been turning to detailing and adding that personal touch to the model, adding a loco crew and other bits like fire irons, lamps etc. I'll probably use Springside Models (still available after all these years) for lamps and Fire Irons but I was not sure where to go for the loco crew until I remembered seeing a guy called Aiden (couldn't re-call his surname) at one of the York shows a couple of years ago. He was demonstrating painting techniques and selling white metal figures.

While searching for "Aiden miniature figures" in Google I came across Brian William Knott Fayle's web site. He has painted some very nice figures in O Gauge which compare favourably with a good standard of wargaming figure. I do agree with what he says about figures on layouts and he has also posted a useful page showing his technique. With my other hobby I paint 1:100 scale (TT Gauge) wargaming figures and do try to pick out face detail. Above all else I feel a well painted face on a figure does give it character and bring it to life. Adding shadow detail whether it be just black outlining or shading in darker colours gives a figure depth.

My interpretation of General Major Johann Graf Frimont,

one of my Napoleonic Austrian command figures.

I'm looking forward to upping my painting skills when tackling figures at the slightly larger 1:76 scale.

Though more to the point of this posting ...........While browsing though Brian's site I was firstly impressed by the amount Brian has contributed to the hobby over the years, but when I open the Harlyn Junction page I was hit with a huge wave of nostalgia. I was just thirteen years old when Harlyn Junction appeared in the Railway Modeller. I remember it being one of the first layouts that started to make me think about modelling rather than playing with my train set. The layout oozed atmosphere, being based on Coaley Junction, with attention to detail taken from the actual location, and well worked scenics made the layout really come to life. I think I may still have that well thumbed copy of the Railway Modeller up in the roof..... where's my torch........?

In the end, I did find Aiden's site and eventually his figure catalogue and hope to be placing an order for some of his loco crew figures very soon.........

RCH 7 Plank open wagon (PC73)

2010-01-04T23:45:00.002Z

To start the year off I've opened a wagon kit, dug out some old D&S compensation units along with Kean Maygib sprung buffers and made a start. This is a Parkside PC73 RCH 7 plank wagon with fixed ends. I'm sure one of these would have turned up at some point on the Wenford branch.

The mouldings are very crisp and the kit is supplied with w-irons and springs separate to the solebars which is a nice touch. I've soldered up the D&S W-iron compensation units, soldered the wheel bearings into the w-irons and popped in some Alan Gibson P4 8 spoke wagon wheels. I've also cut out and filed down some of the webbing from the underneath of the wagon floor. The aim is to have this as an empty wagon so I need to try to keep the internal planking detail. Then using the excellent Brassmasters Axle Spacing gauge, which I picked up at Scalefour North last year, I fixed the w-irons onto the wagon and ......... hey-presto ......... one nicely running wagon, well ...... a nicely running wagon floor.

This is the first wagon I've built for nearly 20 years so I'm taking it steady but I've started to prepare the sides and solebars. Hopefully another evening will see these in place along with the buffers.

I'm just trying to decide whether to use plastic axleboxes and springs or use some MJT castings ....... May well use the MJT castings as they should add a little more weight to the wagon and could be less hassle to fit.......Hmmmm...........?

Happy New Year

2010-01-03T19:45:00.001Z

I've been having a few Internet connection issues and been battling through an ISP support line for the last two days but eventually it looks like I'm back on line so may I wish everybody a belated Happy New Year.

My resolution for this year?............is just to enjoy the hobby. I'm just going to try and pace myself with doing something each week, whether it is one hour or more, with the aim of enjoying what I'm doing and gradually working towards building the Tredethy Wharf layout. No pressure, no time limit, just a bit of escapism.

Onwards and upwards.............

Walls and Hedges

2009-12-31T11:14:00.008Z

I'm having to spend some time this Christmas on a wargaming project. Painting some walls and making some hedges. Realising that this is all good practice for the forthcoming layout I thought I could justify posting my efforts.

My wargaming partner painstakingly carved a number of masters out of wax for these walls and from these we created moulds. The walls are then cast using plaster and painted with a number of acrylic colours before the bases are flocked. I'm practicing taking photographs with my girlfriend's camera as my camera has finally given up. The photo above is a little bleached in colour, the walls are a little warmer, but gives a reasonable impression of the finish.

The hedges are simply made from kitchen scouring pads and flocked and stuck on card bases. Wargaming structures do have to be more robust than those seen on a railway layout as they are constantly handled. Which does make me think that this is not the total method I will be using for hedges on the layout but I may use something like this as a base for hedging.

More can be seen at http://miterritorials.co.uk/

GW Pannier Tank 4666 (1)

2009-12-29T14:14:00.009Z

Well there it is, my first P4 loco and it works!!!!

The Ultrascale Bachmann Class 8750 'Pannier Tank' P4 wheel conversion pack has been sitting around for far too long. But today was the day I got to grips with it and 45 minutes after starting I had my first P4 loco. Placed on a short piece of P4 track and it ran just as well as it did as a OO loco.

Following Ultrascale's own conversion instructions for the Bachmann Pannier, I found the most difficult bit was removing the pickup plug. I was then extremely ham-fisted when plugging it back in and broke the plug socket off the circuit board (I didn't swear, honest). A quick repair with the soldering iron and all was well.

I decided to trim off the brake pull rods rather than file them down. I will refit them shortly. I also have some Bill Bedford coupling rods to solder up and fit. This will be done when some Carr's 188 solder arrives. All I then need to do is apply some balance weights to the wheels followed by general detailing and weathering of the Bachmann model.

4666 along with 4694 were allocated to Wadebridge shed (72F) in early 1960 to take over the duties performed by the SR Class O2's.

Happy Christmas

2009-12-24T19:03:00.006Z

Happy Christmas t0 all.

Many thanks for following this meander and leaving any comments,

it's all much appreciated.

Yan.

Groundwork

2009-12-23T23:50:00.000Z

Just been thinking through how I'm going to construct the baseboards. Last time I built a baseboard for a layout it was in the days of 2" x 1" timber frame topped with chipboard. I keep reading about how important well laid track is for smooth running (which does make sense). So I figure that a flat, rigid baseboard that (hopefully) will not twist or warp has to be a basic requirement.

The above diagram is my first thought, nothing new as it's all been done before.

Cross beams constructed from plywood and softwood creating a sandwich. The track bed will be supported by risers and also fixed to the 'Back facia contour board' to create an 'L girder'. The 'Front scenic support board' will be fixed straight onto the cross beams and also to the 'Front facia contour board' again forming an 'L girder'. I am hoping that the combination of the cross beams and 'L girders' front and back with give stiffness. I may cut some circular holes in the 'Scenic support board' and cross beams to reduce a little of the weight. Polystyrene packing will be used on top of the 'Scenic support board' and 'Track support board' to form the base for scenic material.

I would like to have the Backscreen curved around the corners from the back onto the ends. At the moment I have a bit of a blank in how to do this. Using hardboard for the backscreen is a thought and curving this between the plywood 'Backscreen support board' and the 'End board'. Problem is it will be a very tight curve and until I get some hardboard I won't know if that will work. May just use some stiff card pasted onto the 'Backscreen support board' and 'End board' with a plywood former at the top to help create the curve.

If anyone has any suggestions or can see pitfalls please comment.

Unbalanced picture

2009-12-23T16:16:00.004Z

I've been looking at the plan of Tredethy Wharf again and I agree with Trainspotter-USA that the layout is a little unbalanced. With buildings on the right and open country on the left the weight is on the right, never the less I think it should be OK.

The line at this point in the valley does pass though open country before entering a wooded area again. I've discounted a line side hut with some platelayers in attendance as I'm not sure there were any huts on this line. There were no signal boxes or signals on this line either. There was an interesting watering point at Pancarrow Woods further down the valley, stage right, between Helland and Boscarne. Not sure I could justify moving this further up the valley. I know it's my universe but I'm also trying to keep it reasonably close to reality. I'm struggling to find anything else to put at the left other than suggesting the line is entering a wood.

There are some interesting trees that feature in photographs on this line. I've not yet identified type of trees but my hope is that I can create a couple of them and plant them mid left to help balance the picture a little.

Tornado saves the day

2009-12-23T15:12:00.011Z

I thought I must give this a mention, this is such a brilliant story. Steam comes to the rescue and proves that it is a more reliable means of traction in the current cold conditions.

The text below was posted on the SEmG forum:

"Tornado rescues Southern commuters last night at Victoria
Posted by: "rog"
Tue Dec 22, 2009 11:12 am (PST)

Hello there and hope you are all well.

We were out with Tornado yesterday as you may know on the SR Kent coast lines, we were the ONLY train around in the area almost all day !

Saw a few Javelins, parked up, and a poorly Southeastern train being doubled headed by 2 x class 73's !
We had a slow run in the morning but in the evening as there were no electric trains around we had a good sprint!

When we got back to a snowy Victoria for the dinner run at 1745 we had about 100 commuters who were stranded at Victoria and couldn't get home to Kent on SE and SR trains. They came over to platform 2 to see that we were stopping at Bromley,Swanley and Maidstone, and as we were not full and took them on free of charge. They were very grateful and many said they never even normally get a seat !

Such fun, and some very happy converts to steam, albeit not a SR one but we all had a hoot.

Merry Xmas
Rog"

The BBC have the story at, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/8428097.stm

Now that is what I call a Christmas special.......... What more an you say but fantastic.

Tredethy Wharf

2009-12-22T09:39:00.002Z

Oh no not another plan.......... Well let's hope this is it..............

After finally making it to the December Scalefour Area Group meeting and riding the initial comments of 'Who are you?' and 'Hello stranger', I was treated to some advice........ 'You need to get something running'. Well, I must admit, I have been beating about the bush a bit, and probably spending too much time composing blog entries although it has all been about setting the scene and developing my world around Grogley Junction. I do feel it is coming together but the guys are right I do need to get something running. I was impressed with Gordon's Fish Dock shunting puzzle layout as a quick essay in layout building and came away with renewed thoughts about trying to build an Inglenook Siding style layout.

Over the past couple of weeks I mulled over the question: What to build? What ever it is, it still has to fit the following parameters:

1) Be part of the overall project so any stock can be used on subsequent layouts

2) Be smaller than my original proposed Boscarne Junction starter layout

3) To be achievable as a first project.

The story so far with the different layouts:

Grogley Junction? Far too big and advanced for me at the moment.

Boscarne Junction? Considered too big, but have not totally discarded the idea.

Polbrook Engine Shed? Discarded on size and I'm not sure it fits in with the project.

Wenfordbridge? Would be nice but even when compressed, with the scenic section at 12ft long, it's too big.

Ruthernbidge? Again too big.

Nanstallon Halt? Nice but only one siding, so minimal operation and could well end up with more hidden sidings than scenic section.

Dunmere Junction? It is what it is, a junction and even if extended to Dunmere Wharf would only be one siding and become too big.

Dumere Halt? Again nice but no sidings.

While all these thoughts and plans were being mulled over there were two photographs in my collection of books that kept popping into mind. That of a Beattie Well tank crossing the road at Hellandbridge crossing and a Beattie Well tank shunting at Tresarret Wharf, both on the Wenfordbridge line. I've been intentionally avoiding any serious considerations on this line due to it being a 'goods only' line. I then suddenly saw this as an advantage. With the pace I've been working and time available it does considerably reduce stock requirements. So how about combining the two images into a fictitious wharf on this branch? Recollecting that Tresarret Wharf had a siding removed in 1932 .... eureka ..... there was my Inglenook siding layout. OK not exactly the 5:3:3 ratio of the original Inglenook but never the less it is in a similar style.

Ultimately this will need hidden sidings at each end to allow through workings of china clay trains but on its own, without the hidden sidings, I think it could be a small shunting puzzle. Not a very complex puzzle but something to operate in 7ft. The loop holds three wagons, the siding holds seven wagons. I may take up a two to three wagon spaces at the end of the siding with a small unloading vignette. From the left hand baseboard edge to first point there is enough space for a 57xx and three wagons. At the right hand side just enough space for a 57xx and one wagon. I know the 57xxs didn't work this branch but until I purchase a suitable loco I'll have to make do.

Why Tredethy Wharf? .... Tredethy is the other side of the river to Helland. My alternative history is that Tredethy financed the bridge across the river Camel and so this area became known as Tredethybridge not Hellandbridge. Hence the layout being named Tredethy Wharf .... tenuous I know and I do apologise to the inhabitants of Hellandbridge for taking this liberty.

So in reality this layout is set at Hellandbridge but with the wharf siding the other side of the road, not behind the farm buildings as the original siding. My Tredethy Wharf siding would have stayed open until 1970 which was when Tresarret Wharf closed. This will allow me to build a loco roster consisting of a Beattie Well tank, 13xx tank engine, and Class 03, Class 08 diesel shunters. I will probably only need a selection of fifteen wagons before embarking on building a couple of rakes of china clay wagons. The layout is much smaller than I was hoping but more than enough to keep me going for the next twelve months.

Better get an order off to P4 Track Company for their new line in turnout chairs then start building the baseboards..............

Diagram of lines connected to Grogley Junction

2009-12-07T23:40:00.012Z

I've been carrying the diagram below around in my head for far too long and thought I'd better put it down on paper in case I loose a few more grey cells. The diagram might also help those that don't know the area very well and are trying to follow this blog and understand this alternative universe.

So below is an outline diagram of the lines in the area including my modifications to history. This should help plan goods and passenger traffic, which in turn will affect the design of Grogley Junction's track plan. I will probably need to add distances and finally decided station locations on the extension to Mawgan Porth to create a new timetable.

The lines in red indicate my alterations/additions to history

The building of the line from Ruthernbridge to join the Newquay line reduces the number of reversals required to transport clay from Wenfordbridge to Fowey. It would also take this traffic away from the GWR man line.

The inclusion of two stations on the Mawgan Porth extension are only speculation at the moment. Thought St Columb Major was mentioned in a proposed Wadebridge to Truro line.

Polbrook Engine Shed - first plan

2009-12-02T21:31:00.026Z

Below is a screen shot from Google Maps of the proposed location for Grogley Junction’s Engine Shed at Polbrook. Last time I was there I remember this area (to the north of the road bridge at Polbrook) to be reasonably flat between the old track bed and the river. Scaled down to 4mm scale it would cover an area of approximately 12 foot long, from bridge to trees at the top just short of the river, by 3 ft 6 inches at its widest point.

Below is my first interpretation of how this engine shed might have looked. I've reduced the area that the engine shed to under 8ft long and the width down to just under 3ft.

Anyway…….I've tried to let the actual location dictate the layout of the engine shed but must admit that there is a little of GW’s Leamington shed in the design. Hope that carries no offence to the staunch LSWR followers. If I do build the layout it would work mainly as large moving diorama for displaying locos. The main line, running though the layout at the back behind the coach sidings, would initially be non functional.

I’m thinking of basing all structures on those at Wadebridge. The engine shed being constructed from wood cladding with a brick base to the water tower. The coaling stage was a platform with a corrugated roof where coal was shovelled from wagons on one side and loaded onto locos the other. With that said I'm still trying to research other LSWR engine sheds for ideas. Wadebridge's original engine shed was sympathetically extended in a rebuild. I'm proposing that the LSWR, instead of this rebuild, built a brand new engine shed at Polbrook so they might have considered a new stone structure rather than move the original wooden one.

I have increased the size of the turntable to 55 ft as 50 ft seems very tight to turn an N Class loco. A 50 ft turntable must have been big enough as Wadebridge had a 50 ft turntable which was used to turn N Classes. But a 55 ft should give a little bit more lee way when trying to operate the layout and position an N class on the turntable's deck.

The map above shows the relationship between Polbrook and Grogley Junction. The yellow line indicates the course of the track bed, The red area indicates the approximate area covered by my proposed Grogley Junction.

One thing that I'm not sure about with this layout is the way I am connecting the engine shed with Grogley Junction. I am proposing that the engine shed line exits the layout stage right and runs parallel with the main line to join Grogley's goods marshalling sidings loop, entrance to the engine shed being controlled by Grogley's signal box at this point. I'm also proposing two ground signals within the engine shed area, one for the carriage sidings and one at the exit of the engine shed itself, both being controlled by Grogley's signal box. I need to run this past my local P4 Area Group to see if this might be correct.

Overall I like this plan and think it has great potential. Viewing the engine shed across the river between a couple of trees with the coach sidings and a gentle tree lined embankment behind seems just right for this area. Perhaps there are couple of Maunsell two coach ‘P Sets’ in the coach sidings with an O2 backing on to one of them? A couple of Beattie Well tanks and a 57xx Pannier on shed while an N class is being turned and prepared for its next duty. Nice.......

Overall, with scenic areas, the layout is big at 28 sq ft. This makes me wonder how practical this track plan might be especially as it has been drawn with only two baseboards each being 4ft x 3ft 6in. I need to discuss this with the new boss. :-))

BUT….. possibly more importantly for this project, designing this layout has started me thinking about Grogley Junction again. I now have to decide if there is enough room or not for an engine shed and carriage sidings at the proposed site for Grogley Junction. The above plan looks good for a stand alone layout but for the whole project it has to be right and fit in. If there is enough room within the environs of Grogley Junction for an engine shed I doubt that the LSWR would have built a remote one 500 yds up the line.

Oh well, one thing is certain I’m enjoying using Templot and I’m also enjoying the thought process in creating this alternative universe. Not sure that I’m any closer to a layout but more will definately follow......

Universal thoughts

2009-11-30T19:27:00.005Z

Thanks for your last comment Iain, I’ve not come across Schrodinger's Cat theory before. Wow...get your head around that one.

I'm currently reading Phillip Pullman’s 'His Dark Materials' it’s all about parallel universes and could not resist the mention in my last blog entry. It just seems to fit where I'm going with this project. Don’t we all, if we cannot find a prototype that fits our needs, invent a little history that could exist in an alternative universe? Just need a Subtle Knife to open a window and there it is.

Boscarne Wharf/Junction would make a perfect starter layout for me as it has minimal buildings. After some failures many years ago at scratch building buildings I'm very nervous about an Engine Shed layout. So much could go wrong with all the required structures. But as space is a big issue a smaller layout it has to be. Wanting to keep what ever I build as part of the overall project I’m struggling to think of another layout that would be worth while building that is smaller than Boscarne Wharf/Junction on this proposed branch.

My first thoughts with Grogley Junction were to keep it as real as possible and not over blow the ‘what ifs’. With this new “what if” I’m a little nervous that the project is drifting away from reality a little too much. I can hear the purists barking already. This sounds like I’m searching for a reason not to build this Engine Shed. Trouble is I’m getting to really like the idea. A small but busy Engine Shed backed up with a couple of carriage sidings and single track main line behind, all situated on the banks of the river Camel. It will be a real test for my track building skills as I’ve already included a 3-way turnout and a turntable but I’m now thinking a single slip might be needed. Oh dear what I’m I getting myself into?

Just need to stop planning and get started, though they do say that ‘the devil is in the detail’.

Change of tack

2009-11-26T23:40:00.006Z

After much musing I'm gradually coming to terms with the possibility of an engine shed layout. Many designs have been sketched and much thought has been given to events that will create my alternative universe for this branch. All very 'His Dark Materials' stuff.

I'm currently Temploting a couple of plans for a loco shed but think I have almost settled on one in particular. Just need to get to grips with drawing a 3-way point and a turntable in Templot. Nearly there though. Once finish I'll publish the plan.

Extra background and events that I've so far thought through to justify an engine shed at Polbrook are as follows (my alternative universe events in red):

1862 - An extension from Ruthern Bridge to Withiel was constructed for the Iron Ore mine.

1873 - An extension from Ruthern Bridge to join the Cornish Minerals Railway was built and used to transport Clay, Iron Ore and De Lank Quarry stone to St. Blazey and Fowey which offering better sea access than Padstow.

1882 - North Cornwall Railway, with the backing of the LSWR, obtained an Act to build a line from Launceston to Wadebridge and Padstow.

1882 - The North Cornwall Railway with the backing of the LSWR obtained and Act to extend the line from Ruthern Bridge to Mawgan Porth.

1886 - An agreement drawn up between the LSWR, Bodmin and Wadebridge Railway and the GWR to control GWR access to Grogley Junction. The LSWR were to rebuild the Bodmin and Wadebridge Railway including a new station at Grogley Junction.

1888 - (3rd Sept.) GWR completed the extension from Bodmin to Boscarne

1895 - LSWR arrived at Grogley after the opening of the Delabole to Wadebridge Junction section of the North Cornwall Railway on the 1st June. But instead of running directly into Wadebridge the connection was direct to Grogley Junction and then on to Mawgan Porth. Mawgan Porth now being the end of the North Cornwall Railway not Wadebridge.

1907 Instead of rebuilding Wadebridge's engine shed the LSWR took the decision to build a new Engine shed at Polbrook and move all Wadebridge's loco facilities to this new location.

All the above means that my first thought of a triangle being formed at Wadebridge Junction does not happen. I've got to think a little deeper as to how all the above would affect operation on the North Cornwall Line but it does give me scope for creating an important junction station at Grogley.

Brief summary of traffic though my version of Grogley Junction:
Grogley Junction to Wadebridge/Padstow passenger and goods. (SR)
Grogley Junction to Bodmin North passenger and goods. (SR)
Grogley Junction to Bodmin General passenger and goods. (GWR)
Grogley Junction to Wenford Bridge goods including china clay traffic (SR)
Grogley Junction to St. Blazey/Fowey goods including china clay traffic (GWR)
Grogley Junction to Par passenger (GWR)
Mawgan Porth (Grogley Junction) to Okehampton/Exeter passenger (SR)
Mawgan Porth (Grogley Junction) to Exmouth Junction goods (SR)
The Ace would split at Grogley Junction – 2/3 coaches for Wadebridge/Padstow and 2/3 coaches for Mawgan Porth.

I'm debating whether Grogley Junction will become the main hub for all goods traffic in the area. i.e. all Exmouth Junction goods workings terminating at Grogley then split and forwarded on via local engine hauled pickup goods to Padstow, Bodmin, Wenford and even onward to Mawgan Porth. This would give me an excuse to shed an N class and other tender locos over night at Polbrook Engine Shed. I'll have to re work my proposed timetable a little.

I've also still to decide how the above would affect Shed allocations in the area. I would like to keep some identity with the real life location (Beattie Well Tanks, O2's, T9's, N Class, 57xx, 45xx, etc.) but I could have opportunities to pull in other locos (0-6-0 700's). In this universe I think Padstow and Wadebridge would not, by the 1960s, have ended up with any turntables. Which would mean, without the triangle at Wadebridge Junction, Polbrook Engine Shed may require a 60ft turntable. Mawgan Porth would have loco stabling facilities along with a turntable to turn the West Countries and other tender locos that would have reached the end of the line.

Would Grogley Junction also need coach sidings? I think it might. I've a rough idea how Grogley Junction would look but not completed any sketches yet. It will certainly be different to the one published earlier in this Blog.

21-11-09 An evening to remember

2009-11-26T20:08:00.001Z

I'm sorry this is not a railway related posting and hopefully I will not be offending too many people as I realise this is not everyone's taste in music.

Saturday 21-11-09 six of us trolled off to Leeds to see Skunk Anansie for bit of a music anniversary and a birthday celebration.

10 years ago (10th October 1999) I 'corrupted' my two offspring by taking them to a Skunk Anansie gig at the Town and Country Club in Leeds. Amazingly Muse were the support act that night. Previously I'd taken them to a V Festival and they'd also been to see Bryan Adams, Take That and a few other stadium type gigs but not to, what I would call, a proper gig. A small, standing only, hot and sweaty gig were bands make contact with the whole audience and perform with passion/attitude. In the years that have followed they have both commented that it was that gig that really turned them on to music and seeing bands live. Both have been to countless gigs of this type since plus numerous festivals and it still ranks in their top 10 best gigs/acts seen live.

For those that have not heard of Skunk Anansie they were, in the 90s, a top selling Alternative Rock band. They recorded three platinum selling albums and had good chart success with 14 single releases. The band were named, in 2004, as one of the most-successful UK chart acts between 1952-2003 with a total of 141 weeks on both the singles and album charts. They split in 2001.

We have seen Skin, the vocalist, as a solo artist a couple of times since 2001 and my partner was well impressed. When I heard that Skunk were reforming and playing at the O2 Academy in Leeds (The old Town and Country Club) the week of my son's 24 birthday, I had to get tickets.

I was concerned that after 10 years they would not have cut the mustard or that I was excepting too much and building up the gig too much. I should not have worried as it was an excellent gig. With all things considered, this being an anniversary for the three of us, the first Skunk gig for my partner along with my partner's daughter and son's girlfriend who all thought they were awesome, along with the meal and drinks before the gig, it was possibly one of, if not the best gig, I've been to in 30 years. My son even passed the comment that it was the best birthday present ever. A memorable night, big smiles all round.

Video clips are gradually appearing on YouTube and below are a couple of links. As always with these clips quality of sound is very suspect and the view is from the balcony not the same as that from the floor. They give a good impression but don't quite capture the atmosphere.

Compelation from the Leeds gig, Skin literally walking on the audience.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9z1E6ZdPoo

Skin climbing the lighting rig and working the crowd on the balcony.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkSFE6YcoNk

New track 'Because of you' live at Leeds
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ap2n035lhCM

Welcome back Skunk Anansie. New album out in Feb. 2010.

A smaller project

2009-11-09T14:40:00.003Z

On holiday in the Lakes. Sitting looking up at Hallin Fell from our cottage window....... I'm thinking about Grogley & Boscarne layouts. With all that has happened in the last four months I'm considering a smaller project. Just a couple baseboards using the two points I've nearly completed. Enough to get my teeth into and keep the project rolling towards Grogley. The constraints being, any starter layout will be part of the overall project, be an extension not a distraction. Any stock built/collected to be used on all layouts. But what to build?

During the last couple of weeks I've given some thought to a shunting puzzle but been struggling to justify one within the overall project. Also struggled to find a location in the area that would warrant an extra Wharf siding. Considered Wenford Bridge but to do it justice would take more than two baseboards. I have almost resorted to sticking to my original plan of Boscarne until another 'what if' cropped up.

The original premise for my version of Grogley Junction was the LSWR extending the Ruthern Bridge branch to Mawgan Porth. Also a proposed branch was built to link Ruthern Bridge to St. Blazey via the Newquay branch. Any North Cornwall train would have a reversal at Wadebridge to continue though Grogley. My 'what if' is that this reversal could be removed by the building of a triangle junction outside Wadebridge. Being away from reference books and with no access to the internet, I cannot remember the name of the junction between the North Cornwall main line and the Bodmin Branches (Shame on me). Wadebridge and Padstow would be operated as a branch from Grogley. This would probably give justification for moving the Wadebridge engine shed to Grogley. Shedded there would be branch engines like the Beatties/13xxs to operate the Wenford Bridge branch and O2s/57xxs for Bodmin North to Padstow passenger. Mawgan Porth would have facilities for larger locos. Would Grogley be the focal point for all goods traffic? If so, it would become an important junction for transfer of freight and passenger workings including an engine shed. The ACE would split at Grogley. Rear coaches for Padstow front coaches to continue to Mawgan Porth.

The engine shed would basically mirror Wadebridge facilities minus the turntable, the triangle being used to turn any locos that might need turning. Could this engine shed be built as a separate item on two baseboards? Probably yes. Until I get home and check, I'm thinking of sighting it at Polbrook. I seem to remember there is enough land Wadebridge side of the road overbridge between the river and railway. Can it be built with just two points? No, but a smaller almost selfcontained layout at the present time might be an advantage. Something that would fit on the dining table and allow me to run a few locos backwards and forwards. Time to get sketching a few plans. I'll post these as soon as I can but this 'what if' would also change my original Grogley plan.

Hmmmm..... gives me something to do while I'm away and may well produce a very interesting Grogley Junction.

(Posted while in The Crown at Pooley Bridge have a swift half).
-- Posted from my iPhone

I'm still alive

2009-10-15T00:54:00.002+01:00

No progress to report on this project but I think I can see light at the end of the decorating tunnel. I've booked most of next week as holiday so should have most of the rooms finished by the end of the week.

Adding to the above madness I've been honoured by my girlfriend. She has decided that she can put up with me and there is a lot to put up with :-). I am very happy. We are in the process of trying to reoganising and package two houses into one. Not an easy task especially as we have made the crazy decision to move into the smallest house. As mine is not very big I'm loosing the garage to storage boxes. Hope to have a little space left for baseboard construction. The rest of this month is going to be interesting.

On top of all this my Mum ends up in hospital with a broken leg.

The above, highlighting my lack of time (or is that mis-management of spare time) combinded with loosing space, has started me to rethink my P4 project. I can now see that Grogley Junction is a couple years away from being started. Boscarne Wharf might now be a tad too big for my current situation. Too soon for a final desision on that but I am becoming more interested in micro/shunting puzzle layouts. At least as a starter to practice P4 skills. The important thing is I get something started soon and stop thinking about it.

More to follow soon when life settles down to some sort of normality.

Scaleforum 2009

2009-08-25T22:15:00.002+01:00

After reading the 'Scaleforum Weekender 2009' that came with 'Scalefour News' this week I could not see how I could miss this exhibition. To see Bodmin again will be worth the journey, let alone the other layouts and traders that are attending. Discussed the trip with my partner and discovered she wants to attend a conference in London on the Saturday so this sealed the trip. Booked train tickets this evening to travel down together.

This will be my first visit to Scaleforum and will my first trip to London by train for many years. Sounds a little naff but I am quite excited. A wants list will have to be drawn up to make sure I spend wisely. Let's just hope I can find a little bit of time to do some modelling before then ......

Class 25 on a china clay train at Par in 1976

2009-08-15T00:08:00.009+01:00

Decorating is progressing steadily. Two rooms done another nearly finished, just hoping I don't have to start decorating the outside.

Previous posting was probably showing some of my frustration that I've no spare time for either hobby at the moment. Both comments that were left were correct. I was over complicating things, I have to concentrate on getting this house ready for sale or re-letting. Also a class 25 fitted with sound would be nice. Could not resist a quick search on the net for info on class 25's in Cornwall. Found a few photos, the one below were taken in 1976 so a little later than I am thinking but still nice shots.

I like the weathering on the front of this loco.

Clay wagons were not all white!! Nice

It looks like the top of the axle boxes have been weathered with clay dust but the bottoms are black, unless that is a shadow effect. I will have to learn some subtle weathering techniques to achieve anything like the above finish on my proposed fleet of wagons.

More photos of Class 25's can be found on this excellent reference site here.

Onwards and upwards and back to the decorating tomorrow.

Thoughts while decorating

2009-08-02T09:44:00.019+01:00

While decorating, my mind is tending to wander a little......

I keep getting thoughts about the amount of stock I have planned to build for Boscarne. The realisation that I have to plan my next purchase due to the extended lead times of some manufacturers means I have to place my next order soon. Also the need to know what I need so I can purchase other items when I come across them (as they might not be in production for long). These thoughts are causing me to ask myself continuous questions. This flipping decorating malarkey is also putting me well behind schedule! How can I get myself back on track?

My original idea was/is to base both layouts in 1961/62. During this period there were many changes to the locos shedded at Wadebridge and seen on this branch. These changes give opportunities for the following locos to be used: 1 x Beattie Well Tank, 1 x 13xx, 1 x N Class 2-6-0s, 1 x O2, 1 or 2 x 45xxs, 1 or 2 x 57xx, 1 or 2 Class 22 Hydraulics, plus an 1 Ivatt 2-6-2T 2MT. This is 8 - 11 locos to convert or build and detail. This is without listing all the coaching and freight stock required.

Hmmmm .... Irrespective of the fact that all the above will also be seen running though Grogley Junction, I'm thinking this may be a little too much to be my first objective for a reasonable timetable to be represented. Granted I would not require it all straight away but Boscarne Wharf Junction layout is only suppose to be, a test P4 layout, a layout on a plank, something I can put together in a reasonably short period of time!!!! Trouble is it is starting to grow arms and legs and becoming more than I originally planned. This might not be a bad idea as ultimately, if it turns out OK, it could be an extension to Grogley Junction. Question is, just for now, do I need to cut down my thoughts for Boscarne's initial stock list? Doing so may enable me reach a state of completion that will allow me to progress onto the main project, Grogley Junction, sooner rather than later. Think I need to put some blinkers on ......

My thoughts over the last few days are turning to considering the 1970s as a possible era for Boscarne. The line was freight only by then. I think passenger services ceased in 1967 but Wadebridge was kept open for freight via Bodmin General until 1974. I would only require two locos and a few freight wagons plus clay wagons with or without hoods depending on year. One Class 08 and, depending on when in the 1970s, one of the following, a Class 22 or Class 25 or Class 37. The thought of hearing a Class 25 stood idling in amongst the trees on a hot summers day (it's a shame we can't depict a misty/rainy Cornish day with dripping trees) while waiting for the 08 to bring full clay wagons down from Wenford is attractive.

Operationally this will be limited but would enable me to reach a point where I could say 'finished for now'. I could then move on to the main project, Grogley Junction. Two problems are: I would struggle to justify running these locos through Grogley as its track would probably have been rationalised in the 1970s and I think all wharf sidings on the line were closed or lifted by 1969.

I'll keep stripping and painting ........ and thinking.

A little progress (not a lot)

2009-07-26T21:51:00.026+01:00

For those of you trying to follow my meanderings with this project I must apologise for the lack of postings recently. It has not been intentional. A situation has arisen that means any spare time has to be spent stripping ................. wall paper, from six rooms plus hall stairs and landing of a three bedroomed house. Then all I've got to do is redecorate, all in evenings and weekends plus any days holiday I can take at short notice. Oh well I didn't have much else to do in my spare time !!! If anybody wants to buy a house by the sea with a 22' x 13' garage (suitable for a model railway room), give me a shout!

With all that said I've been able to find a few moments here and there to work on the quarter scale model.

It's starting to come together but I still have a little bit to do.

I was hoping to be able to hide all entries/exits by well placed trees but the exit to the Bodmin North line is being difficult to mask. Looking through the trees, up river, it is easy to mask both exits at this end of the layout. As you progress further towards the signal box and level crossing it gets more difficult to mask the Bodmin North exit.

Looking up river.

Looking towards Bodmin North exit from opposite the wharf siding.

Also I have been thinking about adding a provender store on the wharf siding not typical on this stretch of line but thought it might add a little more interest. At the moment I think it unbalances this end of the layout so I am undecided about whether to include it. If I do include the store, the siding will have to move slightly closer to the running line to give a little more room around the store.

With provender store

Without provender store

After trying the cottage in a couple of positions I've decided that it looks best in the position shown on the photograph above, which is roughly its actual location. It seems to balance the signal box in this position and stops the signal box looking like an orphan on that side of the track.

There is a lot more undergrowth to be added. In all the photographs I have seen the bank at the back looks heavily covered with trees and bushes. The level crossing also needs to be represented in some form along with the gates at the entrance to the Wharf siding. I am also going to play around with adding more trees and bushes at the front of the layout as again this edge seemed overgrown in the 1960s. At the front the trick will be adding enough to indicate this overgrown vegetation but still allow good viewing angles between and through the trees.

I could really do with another site visit to get a true feeling for the place and take a few shots of the cottage and road area around the level crossing.

Beattie Well Tank 30586

2009-07-12T09:12:00.003+01:00

I've been browsing the web for photos and discovered this little gem.

What an excellent photo of the one that did not survive into preservation.

Taken 17th July 1962 and can be viewed as part of ricsrailpics collection on Flicker. He has published many photos from the 1960's up to the present day.

Two nice discoveries

2009-07-12T09:07:00.001+01:00

Class 22

Just discovered Genesis Kits and their Class 22 pilot scheme loco kit (D6300 - D6305). These were all shedded at Laira shed during my chosen period. As yet I haven't turned up any photographic evidence that they would have been used on the Bodmin General to Wadebridge duties but one would be a good addition to my collection.

In stock to build I already have one old MTK kit which is earmarked to be D6339 as seen on the branch in 1962 near Grogley Halt. This will be built with the split headcodes (two roller blind route indicator panels) and finished in green with yellow warning panels and the 25kV warning signs. I also have a Silver Fox Models resin kit which is earmarked to be D6315 as seen at Wadebridge in 1961. This one has the folding head code discs and will be finish in all over green livery (no yellow front ends).

Recently, while scanning though one of the railway magazines in a newsagent (should have bought the mag really), I read that Dapol are going to produce a model of a Class 22. It's like waiting for a bus.

Beattie Well Tank

Kernow Models have come up trumps with their proposed model of a Beattie Well Tank. I've been putting off buying a kit for one of these locos as I'm not sure of my skills at soldering brass kits together. OK the model will be OO but hopefully not too difficult to re-gauge. At the pace I am going, Ultrascale may have a conversion pack ready by the time I need to run a Beattie ..... here's hoping. I've just got to decided which one to order out of the three they are proposing to produce.

Getting side tracked (again)

2009-07-03T22:03:00.010+01:00

With all this talk about pink foam on '4mm scale agonies' blog and using it for baseboard construction, it got me thinking about my proposed quarter scale model of Boscarne. I purchased some foamboard weeks ago just for this purpose but it has been languishing beneath my bench waiting for me to pluck up the courage to make a start ever since. I say courage but the will is probably more to the point. I've never really seen the need to build a scale model of a proposed project before. I know Mr. Rice and Mr. Norman advocate it as good practice but I've always thought I held a good picture in my head of what I wanted to achieve. With my Boscarne Junction layout I am/was having problems with deciding how to make a start on the baseboards, especially the Y shaped board at the junction end. This started to convince me that building a quarter scale model might be a good idea.

After wangling a day off in lieu, for some weekend work I did a few weeks ago, I decided to make a start. Should I have finished off the A7 point kit? That might be a good question and yes ought to be my answer but I felt in the right mood to attempt something new today. Also I have to build baseboards before I can install and use any points I construct. I also have to decide on how to construct the baseboards. So the point can wait a few more days.

This model is nowhere near finished but it is being a very useful exercise. It has already given me a better idea how to tackle the Y shape baseboard. It has also highlighting that I had not thought enough about the ground contours in Y of the junction. As you can see it is this area that I am still working on. It's very easy to draw contours on paper but to see them in 3D brings them to life.

I am not sure how far I will detail this model over the next few weeks. Adding trees of some description should help me decide how to break up the layout into frames to create views that the trains can pass though. Adding the few buildings is also a must just to check sizing and position. I am still not sure about adding the cottage/house that is behind the signal box at the real location. Need to give this some thought, but to be honest I've never been that confident about scratch-building buildings.

It's a shame there is not a building on the same side of the railway as the wharf side but on the opposite side of the road to act as a scenic break for the fiddle yard. If I do build the cottage/house it might fall foul of my fictitious history and be moved to this position ..... would probably balance this end of the layout better by being moved.

Sorry about the quality of the photos but I had to use my phone to take them as my camera is playing up.

A7 point kit

2009-06-28T18:10:00.022+01:00

Where has this week gone...? It doesn't feel like over a week since I started this point kit. This weekend being first opportunity to pick this kit up again since the 18th. Thought I would put up a few more photos showing progress.... mainly for anyone who does not know these kits, or is hesitant about having a go.

This is what you get in the kit.

I had already started to solder a wire dropper onto the V before taking this photo. As with the previous kit I found the instructions to be daunting, along with seeing all the small chair components. When seeing the kit laid in the above photo there doesn't seem much to it.

I was not happy with using the plastic sleepers on the first kit. This must be something to do with reading Ian Rice's books on track construction and his use of ply and rivet construction, also due to my early results in staining wooden sleepers. I have been very pleased with the stained plywood sleepers and think I will find it very difficult in achieving the same result using plastic. So picking up from my last blog on this point kit I discarded the plastic sleepers.

I have purchased Templot software to help design the track plans for these projects and find it an intriguing piece of software. I thought I'd build this kit over a Templot template using wooden sleepers.

Above photo shows the V in place and so far so good. The plastic chairs seem to be sticking to the wooden sleepers well.

Apart from the sleeper spacing and overall length being different between Templot and the kit, there is also a difference where the V to closure rails end and start. I only realised this once the V was fixed. Don't think this will affect the points operation just the visual look. It was not until later that I spotted Martin's comments attached to my previous blog and read the form entries on this link to RMWeb.

This photo is showing the closure rails going in place.

Next day (Sunday morning) and daylight.... switch assembled.

At this point other events took control of the day. Not sure when I'll get back to this kit but hope to finish it during this next week. I've taken note of a comment re the check rail. It is thought that making the check rail live improves running though the point, something I hadn't thought of with these kits. Coming from Paxolin sleeper construction this was never a problem.

Being new to P4 standards (I really consider myself a novice to railway modelling - full stop), the questions that have been thrown up regarding these kits accurate are beyond me for the moment. Using these kits as supplied enables anyone to make a very functional P4 turnout that certainly looks the part. Exactoscale have got to be commended in bringing P4 standards closer to the masses. Beautifully made they give anyone, with a modicum of kit building experience, the capabilities of building P4 track. I need to finish the kit before deciding which standard to follow, Templot (reality) or Exatoscale (functionlity). In the end there will be few people that will be able to notice the difference. It will all be down to me accepting any inaccuracies.

57xx coupling rods

2009-06-20T12:31:00.003+01:00

Some Bill Bedford coupling rods for a 57xx arrived in the post this morning. Now I've got no excuse to complete the conversion. That's if I can work out how to put these coupling rods together!!!

I've found some assembly instructions for a NER E1 here on Bill Bedford's web site . This kit looks to have similar coupling rods to the 57xx so may be able to use these instructions as a guide.

Ultrascale order but more to the point

2009-06-18T23:19:00.002+01:00

My Ultrascale order has arrived : P4 wheel conversion packs for a Bachmann Pannier and a Class 29. Hmmm ........ which one to tackle first.

While I am now excited by the thought of quickly having a P4 loco, I am also bathing in the success of the B7 point kit. So this evening I've made a start on the A7 kit but using wooden sleepers.

Templot template PVA'd to 3/16th balsa with the pre-stained sleepers.

Templot's sleeper spacing or the length of the point does not match the P4 Track Company's kit. Not sure that this will cause too much of a problem. I hope to be using Templot to build other points and the rest of the track so this should be a good starting point .... sorry about the pun.

All ready for tomorrow night...!

More posts will follow along with photographs hopefully in the next few days......

.............................

Sorry .... just noticed that posting date for this blog was wrong not sure how I manage to post this before I'd started doing it!! Amended posting date to 18/06/09 (20/06/09).

At last I've built it

2009-06-16T07:55:00.018+01:00

Last night I finally finished my first B7 P4 Track Company point kit. I'm really pleased with the result and the crossing V seems to be OK. Ran a couple of wagons through the crossing V with no problems, nice and smooth. I still feel the V is out of specification but this does show that there are some tolerences within P4. Next test will be a six coupled loco.

I only broke one fishplate and lost one very small part chair component from the switch assembly. I also seemed to be two slide chairs and three S1 chairs short. Replaced most with spares that come on the sprues but had to resort to some C & L S1 chairs to finish the job. There are a few chairs that may need tweaking in the future but at the moment I am just pleased I've got this far.

Next task it to work out how to weather the sleepers to match the wooden ones I'm producing for the plain track. My first attempt is not good need to rethink colours and how to apply the paint. I also need to think about how to operate the point. Tortoise motors seem to be the favoured option and I've purchased a pack of P4 Track Companies base plates. Just need to purchased some motors.

Overall I think these kits are superb and more will be purchased, just a shame that the sleepers are plastic and not wooden.

North Cornwall Railway (An Illustrated History of)

2009-06-06T21:46:00.004+01:00

For anyone that is interested in the North Cornwall Railway this book has got to be part of their collection.

Bought by my partner as a birthday present, I have only, up until the last few days, scanned the pages. While I've been away I've started to read more and found this book to be a very in depth book on the NRC. Chapters cover the history of all stations from Okhampton to Padstow, including track plans and signal diagrams and a few drawings of typical structures. Also chapters on freight and passenger workings, and loco diagrams along with excellent appendices containing coach diagrams and timetables. Included throughout the book are many splendid photographs with very informative text, in many cases itemising train make up with coach numbers and freight descriptions. So far I have not read anything that might alter my proposed layouts or my alternative history for Grogley Junction but there is plenty of information that will help to enhance the project.

A truly excellent book.

Sunny weekend or a point kit. No contest.

2009-06-02T21:13:00.017+01:00

Still not much practical progress on this project. Firstly, when starting my first B7 point kit from the P4 track company the crossing V seemed out of specification. Secondly the Pannier and Class 29 (22) wheel conversion sets have still not turned up. Thirdly my wargaming interests (MI Territorials and planning a game for last week) have recently had to take priority.

The point kit was a disappointment. One side of the V seems very tight and had this confirmed by a another Scalefour member. But after speaking to the P4 Track Company they assured me that the crossing V should be OK. So I put this last weekend aside to start the kit and hopefully complete it.

But how could I spend this last weekend indoors with the weather forecast and a suggestion that we might go camping. Out came the tent and we swanned off to the Lake District to spend a fantastic weekend bagging five Wainwright's (Cat Bells, Arthur's Pike, Loadpot Hill, Wither Hill and Steel Knotts).

Ullswater from Loup Knott on the way up to Arthur's Pike

On my return home Monday evening I set out the point kit, reread the instructions and put a little thought into how to match the plastic sleepers with wooden ones. Got stuck into the kit Tuesday evening. The V is in place complete with all chairs, sleepers painted but not sure I have achieved a good enough result. Then realised I should have soldered some wire droppers off the V before applying the chairs. Oh well....it is said that success is buried in the garden of failure. I am learning as I go along. I'm now away from home until Friday evening and working this weekend but hope to find time to complete the point kit.

On the plus side I have just received a reply from my email to Ultrascale enquiring about my order and the wheel sets should be with me in the next couple of weeks. I've also ordered a few MJT components from Dart Castings for a some wagon kits I have to build and I hope to see these soon.

The Timetable (version 1)

2009-05-17T15:03:00.032+01:00

So far this month I have been very disappointed with myself. Was hoping to have made progress with baseboards for Boscarne Junction, built my first P4 point, and built at least one wagon. Not only have I been unable to complete the above but I've also missed a Scalefour Area Group meeting.

Looking on the bright side there are another 14 days to the end of the month and I have made progress on a timetable for Grogley Junction and Boscarne Junction. The creation of this timetable has been going in the background for many months during short amounts of spare time and/or when I've been away from home. The main aim of this project is to build Grogley Junction, the emphasis is to create a timetable to make Grogley Junction an interesting layout to operate. But if I can build Boscarne Junction successfully there is the potential that I could operate both layouts together. So the idea behind putting the timetable together before I start building either layout is, I hope, to confirm the track plans and confirm that they will work together.

The timetable below does show that my original Grogley Junction track plan will probably need altering. This junction has developed into an important goods exchange between Wadebridge, Wenford Bridge, Bobmin General, Bodmin North, St. Blazey and Mawgan Porth. There are a number of goods movements which may prove that the two original exchange sidings are not enough. It also raises a question that I might be able to justify creating a duty for a shunting engine at Grogley Junction to shunt the exchange sidings. It is becoming a small marshaling yard.....

Below is the complete timetable so far, 9 pages in total, outlining 59 movements though Grogley Junction and 38 though Boscarne Junction. I am/will also be adding to this document all stock, loco rosters and duty numbers required for each train movement but this is it for now.

The timetable is still a work in progress but it looks like the track plan for Boscarne Junction will be OK. Any comments would be welcome.

Fiddle Yard

2009-05-06T21:08:00.003+01:00

I have only just found time to read the latest Scalefour News and found the article by Bryan Johnson on his Thurstaston project very interesting. He has already spent many years collecting and building locos and stock while continuing with researching the site. Something that I wish I had been able to do. What I did find really interesting was his thoughts on fiddle yards. Like myself he is proposing the cassette style fiddle yard and like myself he has freight trains that travel in one direction though the layout that need to be returned to their starting point behind the scenes.

My decision for a cassette style fiddle yard was made for two main reasons:

1) saving space,

2) the need to swap full/empty clay stock between fiddle yards behind the scenes.

Though I am worried about walking stock between the fiddle yards I could not think of another way to move the stock from one end of the layout to the other. But Bryan is suggesting installing a hidden track behind the back screen. What a thought.... Could still use cassettes but then slide the cassette across the board to align with the track that runs behind the layout. This would help avoid the catastrophe of a dropped cassette, containing eight or more precious hard to replace Ian Kirk clay wagons, while moving them between fiddle yards. Need to look at how this can be incorporated into my baseboards but I do like it.

Nice one.

Boscarne Junction + Wharf (5)

2009-05-04T21:35:00.035+01:00

I've been thinking for a while about building a quarter scale model of the layout. Seems a little over the top for a test bed but then nether have I built a quarter scale model of a layout before. A test model of a test model, I'll be making Russian dolls next!

Whether I build this quarter scale model or not, I need some idea, as a starting point, of the external contours of the layout. So I've spent a couple of hours this evening looking into the scenic contours around Boscarne Junction. I have eventually decided that the height of the trackbed above river will be in the region of 26 feet (104 mm on the layout). This is not as high as I was expecting but the decision has been made after many measurements on Google Earth and also looking at all the photos I can find. I've marked other heights on the track plan below (trackbed being zero). These are all best guesstimates with an eye on trying to create a good impression of the real location.

The trackbed to Bodmin North looks as if it rises slightly. At the moment I am unsure of the gradient but thinking it might be around a 1:120/150. Thing is, I doubt that this would be that obvious on the layout. So may not recreate this gradient. I do like the idea that the Wharf siding should be slightly lower than the branch so have added a 1 foot drop (4 mm) from siding turnout to just past the gate. This will be approximately 1:100 gradient and should leave about 2 feet of level siding to play with.

Though I knew of the footpath that crossed the line I was unsure of its exact position and had purposely missed it off the plans. While looking though some photos on the web I discovered a photo of this path crossing the river over a bridge adjacent to the rail bridge on the Bodmin North line. This looks an interesting feature so I've started to draw this in on the plan but cannot decide how to squeeze it into the rest of the layout. A little more investigation is required over the next few evenings before I finish adding this footpath.

The other scenic item that I'm questioning is the Mill Race. I am beginning to think that in my alternative history in the early 1960s, as possibly in reality, it would have been disused. So an overgrown, if not completely hidden by undergrowth, Mill Race will be probably modelled.

I am beginning to get a good feel for the layout now. Starting to see a 3D image and I'm surprised at how low the contours are. Still have ideas about changing the track plan slightly to increase operational potential but not convinced myself yet. Have only got a couple of weeks left to decide, as once baseboards are being built the track plan will be set. I will have to revisit my proposed timetable to see if my thoughts can be justified.

Boscarne Junction + Wharf (4)

2009-04-29T20:57:00.007+01:00

While driving to work this morning I was reflecting on what I was doing the previous evening. Watching the Barcelona v Chelsea game, more sleepers where being cut and stained. I also opened the P4 point kit and read though the instructions. This brought me to thinking about my lack of progress with Boscarne. To create another short piece of test track and/or build the point kit is fine but I don't feel I'm making any progress. Building baseboards is where my head is really at at the moment and putting this off until I have more information on the Boscarne site is frustrating me. So why have I not put the wood to the saw? It's because I have this demon that says it has to be right. Boscarne is a real location so my layout should reflect this, including the correct height of rail above the river bed. Without this information I don't know the height of the baseboard edges. Hmmm.... is this so important?

This layout is suppose to be a test bed to see if I can achieve an acceptable standard. It is not an exact model of the real Boscarne Junction. A real location it is but with a fictitious history applied creating a junction that is different to the reality. I've already shortened the track plan and moved the river closer to the junction. I do need to keep an eye on the scenic areas to try and capture the feel of this location but it should not matter if I am a few feet out in the height of rail over river bed. I need to start building the layout soon.

So Bank Holiday weekend coming up should be an ideal opportunity .... but working Sunday and Monday, this is after a trip to Stratford upon Avon, for a bit of culture, on Friday/Saturday. Baseboard building will have to be postponed until the following week. At least I've made the decision to make a best guesstimate of track height. If it doesn't match reality I'll have to live with it.

Bodmin Parkway (Road) station

2009-04-18T18:05:00.002+01:00

Many years ago in the mid 1980s a Model Railway Club thought about building a layout based on Bodmin Road station in Cornwall. Why a railway club based in the flat lands of Lincolnshire ending up with this as a potential model I will not go into here. Apart from the track plan in R.H. Clark's Survey of Great Western Stations we had little to go on. So one of us wrote to a local club in the Bodmin area and asked if someone might be kind enough to take photographs of the station. I have published the resultant photographs here at http://iansrailwaystuff.fotopic.net/. The date I have put on this survey is 1984 but this is approximate. If anyone would like to own up to be the gents that kindly took these photos please do as I will then gladly fully credit you on my site. This was the start of my interests in this area, Bodmin Road, to Bodmin General and eventually Wadebridge, Padstow and the North Cornwall line.

I've also posted a few other photos taken of the station in the mid 1990s, approximately 1994. These were taken as the Club had by then folded and I was hoping to build the layout myself. Though the 1984 photos are extensive, I was struggling to workout heights of structures. So, much to the amusement of the family, I packed a piece of 2" x 1" marked with 1 foot increments. This you should be able to see in a few of the photographs.

May be one day I might be able to contemplate this as a model again but in the mean time I hope they are of use to someone.

Progress over Easter

2009-04-15T18:25:00.008+01:00

Easter has come and gone with reasonable success. I've been able to create some space in the garage which should be enough to build and put up a couple of baseboards. This was after four trips to the local tip. More trips will follow if I can get permission to throw more out. Why do we keep so much rubbish?

The camping trailer was found and is still receiving some TLC but should be up for sale soon. Once that has gone even more space will be created which should be enough for the whole Boscarne project.

One bonus is that I think I've found enough softwood for the baseboards, second bonus is I've discovered a small supply of plywood at work. Possibly a little on the thick side as it is 9mm but it will help to create strong stable baseboards which hopefully will not add too much to the overall weight. Will still need to purchase some 4mm for the side edges, as I doubt I'll be able to curve the 9mm.

So what next?

Build my P4 Track Company point kit?

Build another length of track with full height sleepers?

Build a small quarter size mock up of the layout to work out lie of the land?

Build a wagon or two with compensation?

I suppose realistically I need to concentrate on the mock up. As I will need to know rise and fall of the land before building any baseboards. Could also do with knowing approximately how high the tracks are above the river. Last time I was at the Bodmin and Wenford Railway in 2007, when looking from the train, I was surprised at how high the bridge was over the river. A guesstimate would be between 30 - 40 feet, but this is from memory. I know I could throw the modellers' licence card into the ring at this point but ..... Is this a good excuse for another visit? I'll have to work on it.

So if the mock up and progress to baseboard construction has to be postponed until more information is found, it has to be testing track/point building techniques and/or wagon building.

Ballasting (3)

2009-04-13T21:40:00.007+01:00

"What type of ballast are you going to use?" was a question asked and to be honest, though I have several published colour photos of the branch, due to potential colour casts in reproduction I was still unsure to type and colour.

After posting a thread on RMWeb I've been informed that the likely source for the ballast during S.R. days would be Meldon Quarry on the edge of Dartmoor. If anyone else in interested the three links below offer a reasonable background information about this quarry and include photos.

http://www.devon.gov.uk/meldon_summary.pdf
http://www.dartmoor-npa.gov.uk/sheet_3c-b.pdf
http://www.dartmoor-npa.gov.uk/sheet_3b-b.pdf

If there was any ballasting completed after being transferred to WR, Stoneycombe quarry would possibly have been used.

I'm still trying to track down if any of the branch was re-ballasted during the 1950's and 1960's but I am now more confident about the colour of two photos on this website taken in 1986. To me this looks like ballast from Meldon. But I do believe ColourRail have a number of slides of this branch which I am also going to try and purchase as reference.

The thread on RMWeb is still running so more information may well surface.

Clay Wagons

2009-04-11T00:21:00.006+01:00

Just a quick posting to record a reference site.

I'm going to need one or two clay wagons for Boscarne and Grogley and just landed on Paul Bartlett's fotopic site showing clay wagons. What an excellent reference site.

http://gallery6801.fotopic.net/c163031.html

http://gallery6801.fotopic.net/c163789.html

Looking at the photos I'm not sure that I'm looking forward to weathering these wagons.

Already have a dozen Ratio kits to build and 8 Ian Kirk kits. The Ian Kirks will need converting as I was build them to EM gauge specifications. Could do with some more Ian Kirks but they are very hard to come by.

Project for Easter

2009-04-10T09:21:00.003+01:00

Well there it is....... where it's all going to happen. Underneath all that there is a camping trailer that needs some TLC. First I have to find it, then administer the TLC before selling it. With that out of the way and some general tidying up I should be able to create enough space to start building some baseboards.