Weymouth Tramway - Someone's Finally Doing It

[DCB]

Just thinking about how much "You've been framed" or "Destroyed in Seconds" would pay for a clip of a preserved 03 waddling down the tramway pushing parked cars out of the way...  The insurance companies might be a bit awkward, "I parked my car on a railway line and a train hit it" might not sound like much of reason why it was the train's fault.

[DLT]

Brilliant, Weymouth Quay branch is one of my favourite locations, really looking forward to seeing this project develop.

All the best, Dave.T

[Tim Dubya]

[mullie]

Just found this, I live on Portland so know this well, I also have the dubious claim to fame that I have played music on the tramway having played gigs outside the Rendezvous on a stage built in the road and over the harbour. There are some great photos on here, some I've not seen before, you have gained another follower.

 

Please see my Heritage Lottery link if you are interested in the railways of Portland as well.

 

Martyn

[DLT]

An progress to report on this excellent project?

Thanks, Dave.

[Jwnewall]

Thanks for the interest in this project, makes me want to start the project right now!

 

At the start I did state I make this forum a bit early as all the ideas were in my head. I live in a very small room which has a large shelving unit, my computer/modelling desk and bed, so the table that currently houses Kingbarrow Railway Centre is all the space I have left, with my O gauge ironing board layout under my bed! So to start the tramway layout now would be a really terrible idea. One as I would have to be constantly moving the layout around my room (as I did with the Kingbarrow layout before I had the table) and also the parents wont allow it, they didn't like me starting my O gauge layout and I even have a lot of N gauge stock but I can't build a layout for that yet!.

 

Kingbarrow Railway Centre is set to be deconstructed after the exhibition at the end of October, the layout took a lot of my spare time in a year so I want to get it to two shows before starting the next layout. I'm not sure if I will build the layout straight away, to get Kingbarrow to the Weymouth MR club is a pain as my mum's car is very small so having the tramway layout fit in the car without cutting through the middle of the baseboard, like I had to do with Kingbarrow, will not work well. It might fit into my dad's van however he lives away and comes down to get my layout to the show, not the club, meaning I wouldn't be able to ever take the tramway layout to the club.

 

Hope you get the picture of that

 

Anyways, I would like to use whatever is left of the baseboards of kingbarrow as fiddleyards for the tramway layout however I just don't want to think that far yet. I really, really, REALLY want to build this layout as I have a massive passion for the Weymouth Tramway, but its the small things like car transportation is a massive pain. Getting Kingbarrow out of my door, down the stairs and out the front door is much harder than you think without bashing it on any walls...which I am guilty for! 

 

I'm not calling off the project but I don't think many updates with be coming soon. I am slowely progressing on the O gauge layout with making a turntable from a CD holder and a warehouse skeleton shell, but also my College work. It isn't as bad as GCSE's but theres still deadlines and the days that I have college, I spend about 4 hours at home till I sleep and I get home shattered, hense the reason that Kingbarrow has come back from the exhibition and I literally havent touched it since.

 

Thanks for the interest and hope that I can build this some day before anyone else does!

[DLT]

I feel for you! 

I know how frustrating it is to have lots of creative ideas without the time/space/money to bring them to reality. 

My layouts were buzzing round in my head and on umpteen bits of paper for years before they ever appeared in the flesh.

Hang in there, things will happen!

All the best,

Dave.

Edited January 21, 2018 by DLT

[Jwnewall]

Despite my comment yesterday I decided to clean my table as it was covered in scenery offcuts and mess from just plonking stuff on the table.

 

I layed the track down to see if the baseboard would fit onto the table and i'm happy to say its the perfect fit.

 

 

Not too sure on this corner though, the board that will be the point to the bridge will be separate and try to use one of the Kingbarrow baseboards for that section, but as seen on the track plan on the first page of this forum the curve doesn't stop like how i've placed it on this board. Some work will need to be done on that.

 

 

 

[Jwnewall]

And now for this weeks installment of what I found on the internet! 

 

I've discovered someone's made a Weymouth Quay layout before however not exactly what the track plan was, thank god! This layout was made in 2001 and you can see it all here: http://members.bitstream.net/minetyoo/weymouthindex.html

 

 

 

HuntleyFilmArchives released this video a while ago of the tramway in the 1940's!.

 

 

Another very special piece of footage in colour from 1956 when the Wessex Wyvern travelled down the line.

 

 

 

 

 

[Jwnewall]

Decided to go for a stoll after college past the quay corner and didn't expect this nice sunset in January! Took some pictures where the point used to be to try and have a better idea of the radius. It seems the be the same size as the Peco curved point but not as sharp radius as the Peco curved point. Think scratch building is the only way. There are also some abandoned buildings next to the point, are they the original buildings from the 30's?

 

 

 

 

[Guest theonlydt]

You should be able to get a very good idea of the radius using google maps. Note - it's not consistent radius.

 

I'm old fashioned and would look for a 1:10,000 ordance survey (or finer) and measure by hand - but the smart GIS and computer people of the world must have figured out a google maps process by now.

[Jwnewall]

You'd think I wouldn't, but I do have exactly that

 

I was given 6 A1 survey sheets of the line from the 90's in a 1:500 scale along with a load of other paperwork when they were testing the parry people mover's down the line, video of that working here: 

 

They sadly don't have the points as they were covered up by then (not removed!) so they unfortunately aren't on the survey.

 

 

 

And also this evening I was very frustrated to be beaten in an auction for a Dapol Cosens wagon, it would have been perfect for the layout! I could have one it but I'm not paying £30 for a OO wagon, ugh.

 

Edited January 31, 2018 by Jwnewall

[Guest theonlydt]

You'd think I wouldn't, but I do have exactly that

 

I was given 6 A1 survey sheets of the line from the 90's in a 1:500 scale along with a load of other paperwork when they were testing the parry people mover's down the line, video of that working here: 

 

They sadly don't have the points as they were covered up by then (not removed!) so they unfortunately aren't on the survey.

 

IMG-0565.jpg

 

IMG-0566.jpg

 

And also this evening I was very frustrated to be beaten in an auction for a Dapol Cosens wagon, it would have been perfect for the layout! I could have one it but I'm not paying £30 for a OO wagon, ugh.

 

Capture.PNG

Perfect!

Are you able to go down at a quiet time and measure "in real life" a few points you could then sketch out on the survey? It's been a year since I was last there, but you can still see at various locations where the points and line ran? Enough to make a good estimate?

[Jwnewall]

A trip to the Weymouth Library today helped out with a few new images.

 

Some very good illustrations from the 'Buildings of Weymouth Book 2'

 

 

 

 

Various books included a picture or two, every little helps!

 

 

 

 

 

4th July 1930, Mainly for the building on the left.

 

 

And ofcourse, no walk around Weymouth misses out a stroll along the harbourside

 

 

 

 

The pictures of the line that I'm not modelling can be seen on my Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/145870537@N08/

 

Edited February 1, 2018 by Jwnewall

[Ncarter2]

Looking forward to seeing the finished layout. A couple of years back I conducted a survey on the condition of the line, my employer, NWR, had been approached by several individuals about running some final excursions along the tram way. While the line is still currently in situ parts are very poor indeed. I do believe the council are actively pushing for the final removal of the tracks from the tramway, it’s only a matter of time I believe before it’s final lifted/tarmac’d.

[Jwnewall]

A whole bunch of pictures of the railway can be viewed on my Flickr, yeah sounds normal but this is the first snow that Weymouth has had in 7 years! All gone this morning. Walking back home across the causeway in 70mph winds was not the best idea in the snow: https://www.flickr.com/photos/145870537@N08/

 

 

Concerning the layout, nothing has really progressed. I recently purchased a Class 27 from Heljan, these worked in Scotland but will look fine on the layout as Class 33 diesels ran on the line starting in the seventies, albeit not in the British Railways green livery. I also sold my Bachmann 108 in Network SouthEast livery and brought a Class 105 in British Railways green livery. Not really fitting for the layout but I prefer the green over the Network Southeast. Lastly I brought a Hornby FGW 153 as it was offered to me for £80, which I couldn't turn town as they normally sell around £130, and I had been looking for a 153 for a while. Again, not really fitting for the Weymouth layout however that's the stock I will be using to test the layout throughout its construction (If I am building it that is).

 

 

Edited March 3, 2018 by Jwnewall

[phil_sutters]

Thanks to having to search through the new-look website (and consequently stumbled upon this thread) and because I can't refer you to these photos in my now-vanished gallery, here are Dad's only three photos of the tramway. I realize that they are a bit early for you, but thought that they might be of interest.

Edited February 19, 2019 by phil_sutters

[Welly]

I have just watched this cab ride video taken during June 1994 along the tramway from Weymouth Quay to the headshunt at Weymouth station. https://youtu.be/V0JAL1nKvog

 

What different times eh? Try spotting the old cars!

[Bomp]

I used to go through Weymouth regularly on my way back home from and returning to the Channel Islands.  It was by far the best port, until Condor did Weymouth's legs and bought the wrong boat.  I always used to drive round the back after leaving the port specifically to drive on the tramway.  I will be watching this thread to see the layout develop.

[Akerbill]

Hello J W,  I've only just found your thread on your model of Weymouth Tramway.  I am preparing to do a model of the tramway circa 1984 in n gauge - so that the ferry doesn't dominate the model as I'll be concentrating on the harbour station.  I have a copy of a booklet by C L Caddy on the Tramway produced for Dorset Transport Circle and printed by Sherrins in Weymouth.  If you're still working on the layout do you have a copy of the booklet or would you like me to scan it for you.  Some of the plates relate to the period you're working on. Alternatively, you may well be able to get a copy locally. If you're happy to have a discussion, I'd be really grateful to have a conversation about the tramway.  My wife and I had intended to visit Weymouth earlier this year but lockdown put paid to that.  Very best wishes with your project.  Bill Matthews (W J J)