Sedbergh, as a preserved railway

[Melyn]

I'm also returning to the hobby after a gap of not quite as long, with a plan for a fictional but hopefully fairly realistic/believable small heritage station and yard set "somewhere in Cornwall" - possibly with the mainline passing by - based on bits of several Cornish locations and memories of heritage lines I've visited (in particular Paignton-Dartmouth; Helston and the Bodmin & Wenford). Off-scene the line is being extended so assorted wagons are coming and going taking supplies and equipment, it's funny that you have a digger on a lowmac - I'm planning exactly the same, inspired by this photo from Bodmin:

 

I'm hoping to capture that mixture of clean and well presented locos and stations with scruffy, obviously working, yard - which I think you have done a great job of achieving!

 

I haven't even got my baseboards up yet though...

[Firecracker]

Nice idea, I look forward to seeing it develop.  I do like the preserved line as a prototype, it’s easily visitable and getting the smart/scruffy balance right is an interesting challenge.  More power to your elbow!

 

With Sedbergh, I ended up spending a surprising amount of time thinking about the fictional history, how would the line have been rebuilt?  If you look at Sedbergh station today there’s a house on top of one of the platforms, the station is a holiday cottage, but the goods shed, provendor store, bothy and weighbridge are pretty much as they were when the line closed (outside the goods shed there’s a short section of track still in situ).  So in my fiction, I assumed the station site was acquired before the offending house was built.  However, the road bridge immediately south of the station had already been removed by the local authorityfor road improvements.  Also further to the south at Barbon a housing development blocked the original line before the railway could secure the track bed.  So the railway initially built north in the direction of lowgill.  Then, as momentum gathers, they gain a bridge span and build south.  However, they run into the roadblock at Barbon, so this leads to a period of consolidation.  A new MPD is built, so the loco dept vacates the goods yard, this gets a slight tidy, the goods shed becomes a cafe and shop.  But (in my fictional world) wheels grind on, people talk to other people and slowly with agreement from a wide variety of people (including the church) a deviation  line at Barbon appears, along with a new station.  So the extension of the line southwards resumes.  However, remember this is rural south Lakeland, with roads designed for a (small) horse and cart, rather than an 8 wheel tipper lorry of ballast.  Hence, the yard at Sedbergh finds itself being used as a railhead.

 

Locos and rolling stock I’ve touched on.  Theres a theory on how an ex Tebay standard 4 could have entered preservation, or maybe Dai Woodham got slightly more 16t mineral wagons, so he didn’t put men onto cutting up locos instead.  Mark 1 coaches came when BR was selling them off en masse, other wagons came from BR and also post privatisation (hence the BDA and Mainline Seacow for the PWay dept., justified by the railway replacing earlier, life expired wagons).  There’s another idea in the pot, to raise funds the railway leases Middleton yard to an engineering company who focuses on spot hire locos.  The railway has a mainline connection at Lowgill.  Hence there’s movements of locos over the line on and off hire, plus a planned convoy of demics (for either spares or repairs) inbound.

 

Anyway, keep up the good work.  As above, I look forward to seeing what you develop.

 

Owain

 

 

Edited September 25, 2019 by Firecracker

[Firecracker]

And a few more, dragging the wagons out to test couplings and show off a few new weathering jobs.  Really like the grey 12t open, pleased with the effect (yes, I know unfitted wagons should be next to the brakevan.  It’s a preserved railway, they’re through piped).  Drums in steel open are painted in Morris oils colours.  Used to think that Dapol (nee airfix) brakevan stood up well, now, not so much (the yellowing transfers don’t help).  Must add chains to those containers as well.  

 

Owain

[Firecracker]

A bit more work, some scenics have started to appear on the latest board.  The layout is set June-ish, so I fancied modelling something appropriate to that time in the fields around the line.  Something I’ve never seen modelled before is a hayfield after it’s been mowed and baled, with the short stubble and long grass round the edges where the mower can’t reach.  With the modern timeframe, plus the time of year, I decided it was more likely to be silage in round bales rather than hay in the traditional smaller square bales.  As mentioned on my blog, this gave a justifiable reason to model a bit of my youth, shifting bales from field to wrapper, so the Oxford MF135 that I’ve blogged about makes its appearance.  The field is 2mm woodland scenics straw static grass, the cutting side is a base layer of ground foam.  

In the yard, the containers have been sat on concrete sleepers (a tiny detail I like, in the real world it’s done to give ventilation under the floor and prevent it rotting).  Around the signal box and the car park fence have also been breathed on.

Finally, the PO wagon I picked up at Shipley has been painted internally, again a small detail that I feel makes a real difference to an empty wagon (one of these days, I’ll do a step by step blog on my method, it’s basically a light tan, dry brushed with greys and browns in in the direction of the grain, then a grey wash with the excess removed with a cotton bud).

Owain

Edited September 29, 2019 by Firecracker

[PannierTanker14]

This layout is truly inspiring! Great work!

[Firecracker]

2 hours ago, PannierTanker14 said:

This layout is truly inspiring! Great work!

Ooh, you’re making me blush.....glad you like it, if it inspires people to try something and have a go I’m well capped!

 

Owain

[Firecracker]

The loco fleet has expanded again - one of the Oxford Janus shunters (which I’ve been eyeing up for a while) in ICI livery has entered preservation.  Fitted with a Zimo decoder, it poses for its ex. works photo.  

On a pway working.

Stabled with wagons, a bit of light skip rummaging and the results of a spot of demolition has been loaded into one of the 16 tonners, to become lighting up material.

Discussions at wagon group HQ on the new arrival.

 

Owain

 

Edited October 13, 2019 by Firecracker

[PannierTanker14]

Looking brilliant, as usual.

do you mind if I gain a massive amount of inspiration from this? I’m nearing the time where I can begin to build my layout and I find that your layout is a superb source of inspiration for it.

[Firecracker]

1 hour ago, PannierTanker14 said:

Looking brilliant, as usual.

do you mind if I gain a massive amount of inspiration from this? I’m nearing the time where I can begin to build my layout and I find that your layout is a superb source of inspiration for it.

No, but I may adopt a grin worthy of the Cheshire Cat.  Excellent, that’s what this is all about.  

 

Owain

[Firecracker]

And just a few more little bedtime tidbits of inspiration.  First up, at the north end, a barrow crossing has gone in.  Needs painting, weathering and a gate or two.  Plus the point rodding to lay and that silver blob of solder wants getting rid of.

A few more gates and fences...

The Langley foden got a bit of weathering (made over 20 years ago, so it’s held up well), it’s going to get the tarmac weathered around it, to suggest it hasn’t moved for a while.  Also two random thoughts, first I discovered that VW camper is actually LHD, so I have a crazy urge to fit it with German plates (yes, I know there’s far bigger fish to fry...) and second, gawd, that carama mini looks crude alongside Oxford’s offerings.  It’s being replaced....

 

Finally, whilst rummaging a bits box for some buffers, found two sets of mini diesel snowploughs.  A bit of rust and three pallets later, they’re parked up on top of one of the containers.

Owain

[Calidore]

This is wonderful Owain. I know people have said before, but you've really 'got' the preserved line atmosphere and scene set perfectly. The 'skip rummaging' and 'wagon group hq' photos show off that cramped feeling where everything has been stacked up and left for a decade so perfectly. Maybe it's strange to enjoy seeing such scenes modelled! So long as you stop short of a rotting Bulleid pacific abandoned in a siding somewhere...

 

Best, Adam

[Firecracker]

10 hours ago, Calidore said:

This is wonderful Owain. I know people have said before, but you've really 'got' the preserved line atmosphere and scene set perfectly. The 'skip rummaging' and 'wagon group hq' photos show off that cramped feeling where everything has been stacked up and left for a decade so perfectly. Maybe it's strange to enjoy seeing such scenes modelled! So long as you stop short of a rotting Bulleid pacific abandoned in a siding somewhere...

 

Best, Adam

There’s nothing wrong with a Bulleid Pacific that can’t be cured with a set of gas cutting gear.  Only joking, they are fascinating pieces of engineering.  I just want to know how (or why) they were signed off for production at a time of materials shortages and I'm ready to bet whoever designed that oil bath never had to change a driving spring on one. 
 

All I can say is that I’ve spent a lot of time from childhood visiting preserved railways and always preferred the grotty yard and shed areas to the tidy public areas.  So I suppose there’s no surprise what I want to model.

 

Owain

[Colin]

This is just so credible, so believable - looking at it almost makes me wonder if I could have visited the line while visiting our old friends in the North! As others have said, you have really got the preserved line atmosphere.

If you ever fancy a rebuilt Bulleid Pacific btw, I understand that 34045 “Ottery St Mary” went to Barry but was unfortunately scrapped before the preservation movement really got going. Also, if a currently preserved loco takes your fancy, why not assume that it’s been hired in for a while or is visiting the line (you know the sort of thing - all prices increased for the Flying Ripoff!)

I look forward to seeing future developments!

[Firecracker]

4 hours ago, Colin said:

This is just so credible, so believable - looking at it almost makes me wonder if I could have visited the line while visiting our old friends in the North! As others have said, you have really got the preserved line atmosphere.

Thanks a lot, your first sentence is exactly what I set out to achieve.  Stay tuned, there’s a lot more to come (the work rate recently has picked up due to investing the princely sum of £10 in a 2kw oil filled radiator (from an Age Concern shop) and a new Bluetooth speaker).  

 

Owain

Edited October 15, 2019 by Firecracker

[Firecracker]

With 2kw of oil-filled goodness doing its stuff, it’s come a bit further on the barrow crossing.  A bit of paint and some fencing, plus the stub behind the goods shed has gained a raised flowerbed/bufferstop.  The fencing is entirely temporary, yes, I know it’s not vertical.  The idea with the gates is based on Goathland, white gates are locked as a train approaches (also why it’s at this end of the platform, under the window of the box), there’s a refuge on either side, the gate to the car park is staff access.

When finished, the flower bed is getting some of these Noch goodies planted in there.

On the vans, they are just there as page holders.  They’re being replaced (when I build them) with a pallvan in an appropriate but definitely non-authentic livery and this, on a new chassis (probably a suitable parkside dundas effort, when I work out which one’s right.  It’s got to be better than the original).  The idea is that they’re stores for the shop/cafe in the goods shed, so won’t be shunted.

Owain

[Firecracker]

And a few little bits more.  First up, the flower bed has got some brick coloured paints, plus some soil (Games Workshop, Stirland Mud) added.  Just the mortar and the concrete capping strip to do.  The express dairy van has been mocked up, to see how the spacing will work out.  There’s a bit of creative work next, because those vans are getting an access dock/platform between them and the passenger platform.  The scenics at the far side of the crossing have been breathed on.

One of the platform lines has been ballasted.  Before the rest of the ballast goes down the point rodding in the 6 foot needs sorting. A base for the last section of platform emerged from an offcut as well.

Owain

[Firecracker]

It’s three nights on the trot, but nuts, I’m rather taken with this.  First up, a little gardening and pointing (noch plants as above, valejo concrete grey for the pointing and capping slabs.

The view from the other side,showing the platform for the vans and a bit of foam core board that shouldn’t be visible.

A quick testing and development session with the DMU, to prove the crossing on both lines. The extemporised backscene is nothing more than a bit of scrap white hardboard, balanced on top of the electrical boxes with the aid of a block of aluminium.

 

Owain

[Firecracker]

So yesterday featured an exciting session of sorting the attic!  It’s something that’s needed doing for a while and I was concerned that it was going to herald its demand with the arrival of something  heavy through the ceiling.  Anyway, 3 large bags of crap and a defunct (and rather heavy, see above) CRT television later......

 

I reached the lower layers, stuff that arrived shortly after I bought the house over 10 years ago and hasn’t been touched since.  Mixed in with this is various railway stuff, some of which is usable, some saleable and some is going to appear on the ‘free to a good home’ here before it gets a guided tour of the dustbin.  Anyway, in the usable section we have:

Possably PWays crane (built for a shunting puzzle designed to fit in uni accommodation, United Marine and Locomotive).  Needs a runner, a facelift and kaydees, but I think it’s got legs.

These brakevans, of unknown provenance.

Some silver birch trees (ex Teeside Coil, the previous, incompleted P4 effort)

And another addition to the pway fleet.

Finally some tatty ratio signals.  A mix of LMS and LNWR, they were made over 20 years ago for an earlier layout based on an fictional preserved railway.  Need repairs, but they’ll do as pageholders.

 

Owain

[Firecracker]

A few more bits, the wagon group has been busy.

 

First up, a few more additions to the pway fleet.  Now, as far as I know, none of these have entered preservation.  However, some have been scrapped and preserved railways with air braked pway stock exist.  So, why not?  There’s already an MTA loaded with concrete sleepers, so here’s a few more to keep it company.

A steel open, discovered in an attic tidy (there’s a couple of 12t vans that’ll be joining it as well)

Finally, for something different, a steelworks roll wagon.  I believe Clarke kits (not sure if they’re still in production) and based on those used at Skinningrove.  Idea is once I work out how those kadees are going to fit and add some buffers, it’s becoming a runner for the sentinel, to give the little beast some extra pickups.  Also having read a book on Skinningrove, toying with renaming the loco as one of those based there.

 

Owain

 

 

[Firecracker]

And now for something completely different, breathing on the Booth crane seen above.  Made from the Dapol kit and as far as I can find, there’s next to nothing out there about it (there’s plenty on the rigid chassis version BR bought)!  I’ve found one publicity image (found on Graces Guide, if you’ve got an interest in industrial history and haven’t found that site already, bung it into Google and wave goodbye to several hours) to show at least a prototype was produced, but apart from that, nothing.  The only surviving Booth industrial crane I can find is the smaller 5 ton version, so if anyone knows anything else, shout up!  First up, the publicity shot.

Next, it needs a runner.  This had to be a) available, b) long enough (so not a lowmac), c) ideally something that’s survived in preservation elsewhere d) easily fitted with kadees and e) satisfy my engineering sensibilities and look ‘right’.  This GWR sleeper wagon fitted the bill nicely.  It’ll get a full repaint, but it’s a start.

Fitting kadees on the crane is easy, there’s already a slot moulded into the bufferbeams for a tension lock coupling.  Enlarge it to take a No.5 drawbox.

Add a pad of scrap styrene on the inside.

Slap some more No.5 kadees onto the redundant tension lock mounts on the runner and shunting trials can commence (incidentally, that wiking HO tractor is seriously undersized, I must replace it and sort the missing buffer head).

Finally, with some Evergreen styrene, a start is made on the jib cradle.

Owain

[Northmoor]

Always good to see another Kitmaster/Airfix/Dapol kit put to good use.  The crane is often forgotten but you've shown how a very good model can be made from it with a little care and thought; no-one would think this came from a kit at the very bottom end of the price range.

 

Rob

[Calidore]

That’s a wonderful bit of bashing there Owain, it really looks the business 

 

Adam

Edited November 2, 2019 by Calidore

[Firecracker]

There’s a few more bits to do, shunting trials have shown two of the cranes wheel sets have a back-to-back measurement that isn’t quite right, it’s getting rerigged and gently weathered (the plan is not to touch the body or jib paintwork (it was built for a layout set in the 1960’s, the livery is being kept as a tribute, however the chassis is being repainted because half the paint has worn off).  It (and the runner) also need ballasting.  A spot of filler around the kaydee cutouts in the bufferbeams might be a good idea.  But considering it was built in ‘02, the runner in 199~something and has been in storage ever since (in two different houses), it’s held up well.  

 

Owain

[Firecracker]

A bit more, the crane runner has had more detail added to the jib cradle, then given a coat of grey primer.

Further shunting trials have shown no issues with the jib whilst negotiating pointwork, so I’m happy.

Owain

[Firecracker]

And one final one for tonight, rigging tidied and adjusted, chassis and runner given 1st coat of Matt black.  Runner is going to be finished with yellow ends to match the crane.

Owain