Outer-Space may be infinite - and when it comes to modelling, it seems very much a case of 'much wants more'. I started-off with a very vague, naive idea of making use of perhaps around 10' x 16' - a not inconsiderable space it seemed at the time. To house this, I was going to reconstruct a derelict outbuilding in the front garden. The problem was, that new plans/ideas required it to grow....quite a lot, to the point where it was going to risk plunging my house into the inky darkness of perpetual night.... That is how I ended-up refocussing on rebuilding another derelict building in the back yard where my newly reborn building would only serve to improve the Stygian gloom of what might pass, quite literally, for a scene from a Dickens novel. I have some flexibility available, as the existing run of buildings allow for a depth of around 12' - 15'. The length available is around 40', perhaps 50' at a push. However, I'm obviously unlikely to live long enough to fill that all with a finished detailed railway....well, one has to be realistic....! Thus the eventual size is not yet exactly fixed. I'm trying really hard to devise a plan which distorts 'reality' the least. I've had to make two compromises which will be familiar to all model-railway builders ;-

1) I've had to 'bend' the reality for the diorama, so that it can wind it's way around the building, and
2) I've had to accept some modest foreshortening. In this latter case, all of the stations, loops and sidings will remain to scale in length, but the sections between the Branch stations will be vastly reduced - and 'bent' as required. Needs must.

Another issue is the height of the layout relative to the ground-level - and whilst not a unique consideration, it's especially important in my case, since the outside OO lines will head-off down the garden, which has a slope on it. The elevated track must therefore start-out as low as practicable, in order for the lowest part of the garden not to require absurdly tall elevation....and/or an unacceptable gradient to enter the building from the garden. Even allowing for the garden trackwork to be elevated a nominal maximum of around 2' - 3' above ground-level the building will have a floor at ground-level with no step-up. If I have to sink the building partly below ground-level, then we are into serious 'tanking' to keep the water and damp out - and having done some on previous building-projects, I'm none to keen...! At the moment, there seems to be only two options ;- a) Accept the garden section at a considerable elevation, or b) Lower the floor of the new building. The latter works better, but that means building the new structure will involve the aforementioned 'tanking' it to keep the damp out. I've had to use this method of several buildings in the past, and it's a real pain in the Harris. This latter option will also result in a very odd-looking building - unless I just make it into a sort of semi-cellar. Compromise therefore looms.

It's clear that some sort of gradient is inevitable. The planned garden route will allow for a 'Licky Incline' of scale length, albeit with a curve at the bottom end to fit it into the garden, so the incline will have a slight 'L'-shape. I think I will have serious problems if this is too steep - and I'm so out of touch that I have little idea as to what is realistic to expect the locos to cope with. The real Lickey Incline, according to Wikipedia, has a gradient of 1:37.7 or 26.5% or 1.52 degrees, and I'm certainly not going to allow my incline to exceed this. The distance of the Lickey Incline is 2 miles, or 138.9' in 4mm scale/1:76. The construction of the garden run shouldn't take long, but it's will be the last element in the greater plan. Plenty of time then, to do some tests to see what locos can actually manage - and retain at least some sort of reserve. I'll not digress here into the area of locos, except to say that from my little tests thus far, some of them would struggle to pull much, even on the level....! Reworking or disposal may be the only option is such cases.

I mentioned in my first blog that the layout inside the outbuilding will be split-level. The lower level will be at the entrance/exit level of the garden lines. It is a storage and sorting level. This will connect internally to the main Gyrus and all of the (Many) storage loops. Most of the interior trackwork will be at this level, hidden behind a curtain. Spurring off these loops will be the inclines to, and from, the upper, scenic level. Again - some experimentation will be required to establish a maximum usable gradient, but the internal gradient will not be normally visible and much easier to keep clean than the outside one of course.
On the scenic upper level, the OO mainline crosses through the junction with the P4 Branch and is then quadroupled for a distance, allowing the Relief loops to take slower trains and for fast trains to pass in both a northwards and southwards direction as per the real location, although today, at the real location, only the northward loop remains, along with a crossover. If you have been brave enough to follow my inane ramblings thus far, it will be clear that most of the actual track footage will be either on the lower level inside - or externally in the garden. All of this footage is likely to be sourced from the most economical option, Peco Code 100. As well as being cheaper when new, there are vast amounts of this available cheaply secondhand, often unused or in near perfect condition. As I've said before - the scenic OO section (Only.) will be Peco Code 75 Bullhead. This new range is rapidly expanding, and I think Peco are onto a real winner with it, as it fills a real longstanding requirement. I'm very fortunate that this superb product is available right when I need it.

From a modelling point of view, the junction will, in essence, consist of an OO mainline, junction and goods yard, with the P4 element of the branch, slicing through and across the OO mainline to it's own separate bay platform with loop etc on the west side of the Junction. The theory is that the different gauges will not be too obvious, and for the most part, the original operation of the main and branch lines can be followed quite happily. Yes it's a compromise, but if opens-up a whole world of usability and effectively 'squares the circle'.

I won't reveal the actual location that I'm modelling just yet, as the description of that, it's history, and what still remains, can form another future blog post, but given that I've already stated that the main line was a north-south GWR/LNWR-LMS Joint, some readers will soon figure it out I'm sure...suffice it to say that whilst the Branch was, like many, culled in the 1960's, the main line is still very much alive, and almost all of the buildings at the junction are still intact today, albeit mostly put to different uses.

As well as the details and history of the locations modelled, I will bash-out a couple of blogs on locos & stock, and another on the systems and operation. This latter subject is one where I will be coping with the steepest leaning curve, as whilst I know what I want - I have very little idea, thus far as to how to achieve my desired aims...! There is a lot to learn and re-learn...

A simple example of my current level of stupefying ignorance is the design of baseboard. I know I need to keep the weight and therefore the size down. However, I also wish to attain quiet-running without the old childhood 'roar' to drown-out the expensive sound-effects. My current thought is 3' x 6' boards, with a 3/4" x 3" frames and topped with 5mm ply. I had been inclining to weatherproof MDF, but then I read a number of comments online about modellers baseboards suffering distortion owing to damp. I think this is unlikely if the quality of the MDF is good, but I'd rather not take the risk.
Speaking to some experienced P4 modellers, they seem to favour running their scenic area track on a foam base. I've also gleaned from the web the importance of trying to keep the track sonically insulated from the baseboard. Trackpins seem to be a 'no-no', but then I always used to pull them all out after the glue had dried anyway. Quite how one then fixes the track, keeping it in place - but lightly, I'm presently unclear. What I do remember however, is that granite ballast, after glueing sets like real concrete...! I need to know how to achieve quiet running - but without compromising the scale-like appearance of the track. Yet another steep learning curve for me....and no doubt many idiotic mistakes await me...!