Sevenoaks - Spring update

[tjf4375]

Thanks Freightman - very interesting info. I have noticed the smooth cladding on the footbridge the last few times I've been through the station. It does give it a much more modern (if bland) look. Since the corrugated steel cladding was very much a characteristic of SEV for several decades, I'll be sticking with that  

[SED Freightman]

Further to my earlier note re the use of ragstone on bridges north of Sevenoaks Station. I should of course have mentioned that prior to re-building the platform walls were also largely of ragstone construction, a short section of which still remains under platform 3 as seen in the appended photo taken on 20/10/17.

 

[tjf4375]

Interesting info, thanks once again   On the layout I have gone with concrete platform edging along the whole length of the platforms which was a bit lazy I admit, as there is clearly some variation and some brickwork remaining from the original station! SEV is very much 'alive' in the sense that it is a station that continuously evolves and changes - this makes it a challenging subject from a modeling point of view, but I think generally the layout will end up being a representation of it as it was throughout the 1990s and 2000s. The focus is very much on capturing the essence and atmosphere of the place, rather than getting every detail exactly right (I would never achieve the latter as I'm nowhere near patient or proficient enough!)

[Revolution Mike B]

Interesting info, thanks once again   On the layout I have gone with concrete platform edging along the whole length of the platforms which was a bit lazy I admit, as there is clearly some variation and some brickwork remaining from the original station! SEV is very much 'alive' in the sense that it is a station that continuously evolves and changes - this makes it a challenging subject from a modeling point of view, but I think generally the layout will end up being a representation of it as it was throughout the 1990s and 2000s. The focus is very much on capturing the essence and atmosphere of the place, rather than getting every detail exactly right (I would never achieve the latter as I'm nowhere near patient or proficient enough!)

Completely agree - if you were modelling an exact replica that you were taking out to shows then fair enough, but you're building a very good representation of it. I can't agree on your lack of proficiency though Tim, there's nothing wrong with your modelling skills.

[tjf4375]

Thanks Mike  

[tjf4375]

Hello and hope everyone's well. It's been a long time since I've posted an update on here - I think about 4 years in fact, so I'll understand completely if everyone's lost interest!

 

Some longer term members might remember this layout from when I first started the post back in 2015. A lot has changed since then, and after the death of my cat in 2017, who loved playing with the layout, I lost all enthusiasm for working on it and eventually it became stagnant.

 

I did, however, leave it all in place, in case my inspiration and enthusiasm for it returned eventually. And I'm so glad I did, as the enthusiasm seems to have returned! Back in September I tentatively made the decision to remove the reversing loop, so that I could reclaim a bit more of the room again. As the original photos and plan showed, this jutted out quite a bit into the room, and also made wiring of the layout unnecessarily complex. At that point I hadn't really committed to working again on the layout, but once the loop had been removed and access improved, I started looking at ideas for a simplified fiddle yard on the remainder of the boards. 

 

A couple of months later there is a new 6 lane EMU stabling area where the reversing loop used to be. The intention here is to model this area on Grove Park, so it too will have some scenic detail, including lighting gantries and access platforms. The hope is that I can use it as a 'test bed' for scenery and weathering of the station areas. 
 

Anyway enough waffle for now - I'll be adding more photos and info as more progress is made, but would welcome any feedback, comments or suggestions on the plans.

 

Thanks for reading, and if you were here for the original post, thanks for sticking with us!

Pic 1 - here's the original reversing loop and siding area

Here's the original plan:



Here's a few pics of the new sidings and the transition in and out of the scenic areas at each end:

[jamest]

Hi,

 

Great surprise to see this one pop up again.

 

Good to hear you have got your mojo back and really looking forward to seeing you progress. Your work always spurred me on to get better myself.

 

all the best,

James

[tjf4375]

Thanks James, that's really nice to hear. Hope you're keeping well and still going with your layout? Hopefully more to come on SEV in the next few weeks - I've got a lot of work to do but the mojo is definitely there again so hopefully it will be enjoyable - I'll stop doing it when it feels like hard work lol!

[jamest]

1 hour ago, tjf4375 said:

Thanks James, that's really nice to hear. Hope you're keeping well and still going with your layout? Hopefully more to come on SEV in the next few weeks - I've got a lot of work to do but the mojo is definitely there again so hopefully it will be enjoyable - I'll stop doing it when it feels like hard work lol!

Hi again,

 

yes still going….changing my mind, starting, finishing, selling stuff!

 

I’m currently working on North Molton, in my sig below, and an O gauge similar project (not in my sig). It’s in the 7mm section under “New layout - 7mm newbie BLT” 

 

look forward to your updates.

 

You may remember we lost our two cats in the year before you. We have a couple more now, not everyone wants to I know, but the house was empty without any cats, and there were two farm cats nearby in need of a good home.

 

Cheers,

James

Edited November 13, 2021 by jamest

[tjf4375]

Ah yes I do remember you mentioned your cats at the time, I was very sad to hear that and could certainly relate to how you felt. Good to hear you've got another pair of terrors! I'm sure they are very grateful to have a good home as well. Funnily enough I also have two furry recruits who arrived back in early 2018. Like you said, the place didn't feel right without cats being around. They don't play with the railway like my old cat used to do, but one of them does like to chew on the trees and bushes and pull them off the scenery which is frustrating but quite amusing as well. I often wake up in the morning to find bits of torn off bushes scattered all over the railway line, a bit like the aftermath of a heavy storm!

 

I will be sure to take a look at your North Molton and O gauge layouts, cheers James,

 

Tim

[shanks522]

Glad to see you back, excellent layout. 
 

Graham 

[tjf4375]

15 hours ago, shanks522 said:

Glad to see you back, excellent layout. 
 

Graham 

Thanks Graham, much appreciated! 

[tjf4375]

Hi folks hope you're all well.

 

Firstly thank you to everyone who reacted and/or commented on my previous post, really appreciate all the support.

 

I've been doing a 'reccy' of the layout to see what needs doing and, well, let's say it would be quicker to make a list of what doesn't. 4 years of neglect and being walked on by furry paws does take its toll. I've included a couple of pics of the station bridge area as this looked particularly like a storm had it hit - and the cats have been using the road as scratching board! After hoovering up all the dust and fur, I'm going to concentrate on getting the wiring re-done, and the aim is very much to go DCC now, although I am going to start with two distinct 'circuits' so I can plug in my old Hornby DC controller and have a couple of trains running round while I'm working  Once all the droppers are in place I'm going to fit a switch so I can flip easily between DC and DCC.

 

I'm rather pleased with a new addition to the layout I bought last week - this is a Hornby Railroad 'Plus' Class 73 in GBRF livery, and I have to say I'm really impressed with the detail. Amazingly for a railroad model, it also comes with etched nameplates. I think these are the old Lima tooling, which I think still holds its own alongside modern locos. I don't have any of the Dapol 73s so can't comment there, but for the price (£70 in this case but can be got cheaper) I think these are brilliant and can highly recommend them.

 

Thanks for reading and comments most welcome!  

 

[tjf4375]

Hi all,

Hope everyone's keeping well. Having enthusiastically tried to make a return to working on the layout in November, life unfortunately had other ideas and it's only now, 8 months later, that I'm in a position where I can report any real progress. 

 

Over the last couple of months I've focused on signalliing, and have acquired a few 4 aspect signals from Train Tech, along with Heathcote boards, and I've been able to install a couple of these at the northern end of the platforms. One of them is operational, but access is so abysmal under the baseboards that I haven't yet got round to wiring the other one!

 

In addition to this, I've also made some repairs to the London Road bridge across the northern end of the station, and added the somewhat derelict taxi office which sits, rather oddly, at the end of the bridge. It's always struck me as being a very strange place to put such a structure, and I'm surprised it's survived here for so long. I note that over the years it's been a number of different things, including a hi-fi shop. According to Google maps, it is now used as offices by a web design company called 'Today I Should'. I've slightly overdone the grass flanking the pavements on the west end of the bridge, which makes it look like Sevenoaks Council has fallen upon very hard times!

 

Anyway, thanks to everyone for sticking with the layout, and I hope you enjoy these latest pics! Feedback and criticism very welcome as always :)

 

 

[Oldddudders]

Love the taxi office! I think it is more or less where Richer Sounds' hifi shop used to be. I bought a Nakamichi cassette tape deck there. Anyone remember tape?

 

The view through the bridge looks so authentic. Pity the site photo issue stops me reminding myself of how far you had got previously, but this all looks very good. 

Edited August 2, 2022 by Oldddudders

[westerhamstation]

Hi, instantly recognisable well done, looking forward to progress as it happens. All the best Adrian.

[tjf4375]

Thanks Olddudders - surprisingly Google Street view still has some views from 2008 which show it to be trading as 'Soundseducation' - I wonder if that's what it became after Richer Sounds moved on?

 

It is a real shame that they've lost all the old images from the site - I don't know whether they'll ever be reinstated. A lot of really good stuff lost from many great layout posts.

 

Kind regards,

Tim

[tjf4375]

Hi all, hope everyone's keeping well!

 

Over the last few months (lost track of how long) I've been working on a Southeastern Electrostar for the layout. Inspired by James Makin, I hacked about two Turbostars that had been sitting on the shelf for years, and had a go at making some cabs and other bits using the Shapeways 3d printing service. The project is now complete, and if you're interested it does have its own thread in the modifying RTR forum here: https://www.rmweb.co.uk/topic/174514-southeastern-electrostar-conversion-project-underframe-detail/

The layout itself has had a few additions although admittedly not a lot of progress - I am in the early stages of tackling the large BT office building that sits just north of the station on the down side. That's taking a lot of planning and headscratching and I'm still not exactly sure how I'm going to tackle it, but the footprint is laid out and I will post a few pics of progress with that once there's something to look at! 

 

In the meantime, I had a go at making a 'cab view' video, having got hold of a Go Pro Hero Session 4 on ebay - although the settings are a bit fiddly, I've managed to get it working and also installed some strip lighting above the boards to improve the picture quality. It's quite fascinating seeing the layout from this perspective, and took several takes as I realised how much rubbish and fluff had accumulated on the tracks!

 

Anyway here's the video - thanks for following, and comments and suggestions most welcome as always :)
 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhNI7FctgZQ&ab_channel=Sevenoaks-OO

Edited December 7, 2022 by tjf4375

[tjf4375]

Hello and seasons greetings to everyone, hope you're all keeping warm and well.

 

Just a quick update for Sevenoaks - as you know I've been busy over the last few months with an Electrostar conversion, which I'm really pleased to say is now completed. With that out of the way, I had been itching to do another Networker Class 465 conversion, to compliment the NSE one I made a few years back. As I still had some spare bodyshells and chassis parts, I had a go at doing one in the current dark and light blue livery.

The process is well documented and fairly self explanatory so I didn't really take many photos of the build, but here are a few pics of the almost completed unit on the layout. I'm quite pleased with the result although it still needs the connex branding removed from the windscreens, and correct running numbers applied! The latter have been very kindly provided by railtec transfers. 

You can also watch a short video of the unit running around the layout - it's rather short because the wheelslip started to get worse! 

Southeastern Class 465 Networker - OO gauge model - YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdgwRgBdDRk&ab_channel=Sevenoaks-OO

[shanks522]

Superb work on both the electrostar and the networker, Brilliant! 
 

Graham 

[tjf4375]

1 hour ago, shanks522 said:

Superb work on both the electrostar and the networker, Brilliant! 
 

Graham 

Thanks Graham, that's really appreciated!

['CHARD]

466035 does look fantastic, great work. 

 

But which 465 has it borrowed its centre cars from?  😏

[tjf4375]

5 minutes ago, 'CHARD said:

466035 does look fantastic, great work. 

 

But which 465 has it borrowed its centre cars from?  😏

Thanks! As I mentioned, it does still need renumbering - something I hope to do in the next few days. The running numbers are those for 465919.

['CHARD]

26 minutes ago, tjf4375 said:

Thanks! As I mentioned, it does still need renumbering - something I hope to do in the next few days. The running numbers are those for 465919.

 

That's brilliant!

[shanks522]

Just seen your latest YouTube video, very nice. With your networkers, have you used the original motor bogies?? 
 

Graham.