Jencaster - 1930's LMS OO Gauge Layout

[ianLMS]

Good morning everyone. This is my first thread I have started describing my OO gauge layout I have been building since 2012. I had a layout when I was in my teens, but this this is the first one I have built since "growing up" . We moved house and my wonderful wife granted my planning permission request for the use of a spare room. This allowed my to build a 12ft x 8ft layout, with space for a workbench and storage area. The only "rule" was to keep it tidy and allow access to the window at all times. I of course abided by these requests to ensure permission was not revoked!!!

 

I run standard DC, utilizing a Gaugemaster twin controller. Track is Peco Finescale, but I do now wish I had gone for SMP track. Buildings are a mixture of scratchbuilt, Scalescenes downloadable kits or Scalescenes kits with Slaters Plasticard for the textured surface. The ballast is from Greenscenes, and most of the scenery is covered with static grass applied by my home made static grass applicator using a Negative Ion Generator (Luke Towan on Youtube explains how to make one). Cost me less than £20, saving me almost £100 for a Noch one. The stream was made using the "Woodland Scenics Realistic Water and Water Effects". I still have a very long way to go but its getting there! Hope you like the pics. Ian.

Edited November 20, 2015 by ianLMS

[380John]

Looks excellent thank you for sharing.

 

Anymore pictures?

Would like to see some action!

 

Cheers,

 

John

[ianLMS]

I will try to get some "action" shots with a few trains in over the weekend. I hadn't ran a single train for almost 12 months whilst I concentrated on the main part for the scenery, so I was pretty chuffed last week when I had my Streamlined Duchess of Hamilton pulling a 5 coach train and a 3F pulling a 12 wagon train around the layout with only a few minor issues (sticking points etc). I still have no end of scenery, detail and electrical work to do, plus build several wagons from kits and weather the rolling stock so I will be kept busy for many years to come me thinks!

[LNER4479]

A track plan would be good too! (in your own time, of course)

[ianLMS]

I have attached the track plan for Kirkby Stephen which the layout if loosely based on. The schematic is the control panel which I still need to add a few more LED's to etc.

[ianLMS]

Here is a picture of the Static Grass Applicator I made following Luke Towan's instructions on You-tube (two part video). The tub was from a Peanut container with screw lid, the mesh from a sieve, the body from a 50mm plastic tube and matching screw end caps. The 12v Negative Ion Generator supplied by "Oatley Electronics" was approximately £15 incl shipping from Australia. It can be powered using a 9v battery, or 12v supply using a mains adapter (better static production). This works just as well as a Noch or WWS Static Grass Applicator and I can change the tub size depending on the area I need to apply static grass to.

 

Note: The Neg Ion Gen's available on Ebay, although cheaper, are not the same product as the ones from Oatley and will not work in the same way. I found this out to my cost! If you follow the video on you tube, you wont go wrong!

 

[ianLMS]

Here is a pic of the Scalescenes church I am building. I am building it to 3mm/ft scale as it will go at the back of the layout and I am hoping it will provide some perspective.

[Allegheny1600]

Hi Ian,

You've done a great job there mate, I shall enjoy seeing more pictures whenever you're ready!

Cheers,

John E.

[ianLMS]

Cheers John. Busy working on the Scalescenes farm in 3mm/ft to join the church at the back of the layout at the moment. When its complete, i'll get more pics and upload them.

[ianLMS]

Good morning and Merry Christmas to all,

Slow progress has been made on the church and farm buildings for Jencaster, but here is the latest. Both structures are from Scalescenes, scaled down to 3mm/ft for the back of the layout to give a little forced perspective. I have formed the ground surface from polystyrene sheets covered in polyfila and the road using a piece of 3mm hard board. I painted the area "Cley" and then added weathering pigments to give the dark brown colours. For the church, I scratchbuilt the Lychgate from balsa wood and styrene strips and the walls from 2mm card laminated between Plasticard textured styrene sheets. I weathered the roof tiles on the structures with Moss Green pigment and stuck the structures down with "No more nails" blending the base into the surface.  I have lots left to do such as plant the headstones, add static grass, weather the walls, road and farmyard, add detail and finish with trees and shrubs etc.

[ianLMS]

Here are a couple of pictures from different perspectives from the layout. No action shots as yet as the layout is covered in tools etc while I finish the back corner where the church is.

 

[ianLMS]

Good afternoon all,

After a very busy few weeks, a major re-organization (and clean) of the layout room and workbench, I have finally completed the model of the farmhouse and church, and set them into the scenery. Still a few bits of detailing to do, but I am making good progress. Please accept my sincere apologies for the poor photography - not my strong point:

 

 

[Buhar]

Really good stuff, Ian, you're creating a lovely sense of space and a flavour of Pennine country.  I hope you aren't tempted to over-populate it, it looks great as it is.

[ianLMS]

I really appreciate the comment. If it even remotely resembles that area, I will be very happy with the end result. As for buildings, I only have a small engine shed to go bottom left and maybe a timber yard/builders merchant office to go where the additional sidings are and that's it. Lots of detailing to do though, but the main part is almost complete. Where the road meets the field in the last picture I need to add a flexible strip to join it up. The hillside lifts up for access to the fiddle yard underneath so it needs to be flexible. The gap behind the wall along the top of the field will be filled with spongy lichen covered in scatter as well so its wont restrict the lifting top. I don't intend to place too many people on the layout so hopefully I wont over do it. A few cows might be ok though. Ian

[Buhar]

In that neck of the woods it's sheep you want.  Then, if there's space, add a sheep.

[Edwardian]

That Cyril Freezer comment, something about knowing where it is even without stock present.  Well, you tick that box.  It certainly says "North Country" to me, while the railway infrastructure is identifiably Midland.

 

It looks like a Pennine town, the river is very effective, and you have used the Scalecenes stuff really well.  The church and farm group is full of atmosphere.

 

Nice to see a pre-war layout, too.

[gismorail]

Sir what a wonderful layout you have created will follow you progress with interest and inspiration 

[ianLMS]

Thank you all for your very kind comments. It appears I now need to find suitable sheep, not cows! May I ask probably a silly question, but did sheep used to travel in cattle wagons, or did they have a specially designed wagon instead? I only ask as I have a rather large cattle dock on the layout and a selection of cattle wagons/kits!

[uax6]

The only railway I know that had sheep wagons was the Highland, so yep cattle vans it is. And in the 30's you would get a lovely selection of pre-grouping types as well as standard ones.

 

Slaters did a MR type, now presumably that is in the coopercraft black hole!

 

Andy G

[ianLMS]

Cheers for that Andy. I have a few old Airfix Cattle Wagon kits that I intend to make (one day), and a few grey Bachmann R-T-R LMS ones which should be ok. I will do some more research to see what I can dig up. I spent last night cleaning all the tools etc off the layout so tonight I might just be able to run a train or two if I can clean the track good enough- ideal photo opportunity me thinks!! I just need to get a kitchen pass from my lovely wife to go and play trains for an hour or two! I have one of those Woodland Scenics track cleaning tools. Makes it an easy job, but still use the old track rubber block for hard to remove stuff.

[Danemouth]

And in the 30's you would get a lovely selection of pre-grouping types as well as standard ones.

 

 

Sheep or wagons? 

 

Hat, coat, gone,

 

 

Dave

[ianLMS]

I have not found any pics of pre-gouping sheep unfortunately, but one has to assume they look similar to the sheep of the 1930's! As sheep are herding animals, I would say grouping is within their nature, especially when the Border Collie in on their case so pics might be hard to come by!

 

I will look again for pre-grouping wagons just in case you were pulling the "wool" over my eyes!!!!!

 

Ian

[uax6]

The Airfix ones are BR standard ones, which can be bodged to look like GWR ones, The Baccy ones are the old Mainline ones, which have all sorts of compromises. One version of the LMS standard type is done by Parkside, and if you look at the latest post in Ben Alders Far North Lines thread, you'll see how nice they are.

 

The Slaters ones (if you can find them) can be modified into Medium versions, and I am halfway through making a LNWR large version from one.

 

Then there are the old Model Wagon Co kits, that turn up every now and again.

 

Andy G

[ianLMS]

Cheers Andy - I am a ways off from tackling my loco's and rolling stock to get more realism/prototypical types but I will definitely look out for some of those kits in the future. I have a Parkside LMS brake van to build (1st wagon building venture) so will see how I get on with that before investing lots of time/money.

Edited January 27, 2016 by ianLMS

[ianLMS]

I have just checked out Ben Alders thread. Utterly stunning and superb layout. The wagons are extremely good. I have a long way to go to achieve that standard!