Cadhay Sidings

[CDGfife]

Since I've now joined the RMWeb experience and have started documenting the 2mm FS layout build, I thought I'd start a thread for my Cadhay Sidings layout.  It's a P4 exhibition layout set on the Sidmouth branch in around 1930 (with a few liberties taken in that respect).  Here's a few pics to start with and from time to time I'll add some detail about how it all works.

 

 

 

Photo courtesy of David Goodwillie

 

 

 

Thanks for looking

 

Cheers

 

Chris

Edited May 29, 2020 by CDGfife
correcting typo

[Gedward]

Some lovely modelling right there. The scenic work looks excellent.

Hope I can achieve something as good on my layout, Bovey Tor.

 

George

[CDGfife]

Thanks for the comment George.  Nothing like having a go/making a start to hone/develop the skills.

 

Thanks also for the likes.  Couple more snaps from the archive.  I can't take any at the moment as I have something else clogging up my workshop and Cadhay is stacked in one corner, but I will add a few more of the archive stuff over the next few weeks, by way of introduction.

 

Here's an aerial view of the right hand end of the layout.  You can tell this is a "posed" picture as the switch that defeats the interlocking has been thrown (not allowed during operations) and this has in turn allowed the right end running signals in both directions to be pulled off. At least one will have needed to be pulled off to energise the track relays & token system at this end of the layout.  I usually only use this config for loco/stock testing but this one snuck in and I do like the photo.  Through the backscene is the Sidmouth Junction fiddle yard.

The loco is a re-wheeled Hornby M7.  It's (still) in the queue for a new scratch built chassis with CSB which is now my standard 0-4-4 conversion, but to get it operational it had the re-wheel.  Behind it is a set of ex LSWR carriages from a pair of Roxey Mouldings kits and behind them is a pair of Hornby Maunsells which have simply been re-wheeled, close coupled between them and one end of each replaced with AJ couplings.  They all still needed weathering when this was taken.

This pic also shows the confluence of the rivers Tale and Otter.  Cadhay in real life was the site of the crossing of Fairmile Lane which heads north out of Ottery St Mary.  The bridge, confluence and crossing are based on these but the crossing keepers cottage is missing from between the railway and the bend in the road.  The sidings are a figment of my imagination/modellers license but allow for constant movement at exhibitions.  As of last summer the real crossing gates are still in the hedge!

 

 

This is a view that only comes out when the rear farm building is removed.  I like it as it shows, between the stable block and the barns, the old gate marking the entrance to the old farm track to the fields that are now cut off by the railway.  Miller & Lilley were a local merchant with offices in Ottery, Sidmouth and Honiton.

 

Thanks for looking

 

Cheers

 

Chris

Edited May 31, 2020 by CDGfife

[CDGfife]

Couple of early (pre-weathering) views of the Sidings at Cadhay.  These date back to 2018 with the Horse Dock not quite finished.

 

 

 

Plus a shot of the rivers

 

Thanks for looking 

 

Cheers

 

Chris

 

[Gedward]

The rivers look very convincing. Love the different depths of the water and the way the light dances on the top.

What did you use for the water effect? The vegetation along the edge works really well too.

 

On Bovey Tor, we have a long canal winding away along the front edge. I decided to use perspex for the water. Not sure if I'll introduce ripples or not. Like the idea of seeing the narrow boats reflected in the water with reeds and shrubs along the edge.

 

George

[Gedward]

Oh and the cobbled courtyard looks the business too, nicely weathered. Did you scribe it out of Das?

 

George

[DLT]

Beautiful!

Dave.

[Gedward]

I will probably get myself banned by saying this. But I am more into modelling than the railway. 

And a sleepy bucolic scene like this, just does it for me.

 

George

[CDGfife]

Thanks for the comments folks.

 

George - the water is mainly Realistic Details' Magic Water 2 part resin.  Each area's final pour was stippled but there is about a 1hour window about 11 hours after mixing when the stippling (to create the ripples) is most effective and you can really get them to stand up.  Only on one pour did I have to set the alarm for 0300 so I could then do the stippling! (pic taken before the fascia was added!)

The flow over the weir was achieved using Woodland Scenics Water effects.  Some photos of that will appear over time as I dig them out!

 

I've used Perspex for flat water previously and it works well.  Small wind ripples can be added by painting on a thin layer of mod podge gloss and blowing ripples in it whilst wet with an (unloaded) airbrush.  Look up Luke Towan (Boulder Creek) on You Tube for a great tutorial on this.

 

The cobbles were scribed into just dry polyfiller lite, then a coating in grey acrylic plus several washes and dry brushes for weathering.

 

I do like to see a railway in a landscape.  Whether that is country or urban is less important to me than it being well modelled and looking convincing in it's landscape.  For me it's important that the landscape before the railway came is readable - hence the old track from the farmyard cut off by the railway referred to in the earlier post.

 

Thanks for looking

 

Cheers

 

CDG

[CDGfife]

This popped up on my YouTube feed this morning.  Cadhay was filmed at Cupar show last year, but I was not aware what for.

 

 

It was late in our timetable day when he arrived so the filming is of a Q class popping into the sidings to make up the 2010 departure from the sidings which sends the working horses (in horsebox) home to bed.  Also a quick shot of the B4 on Sidings shunting duty.  It just happened that neither of these locos are mine.  They're both on loan from my mate Chris McCarthy.  We know the Q has slipped slightly through the space time continuum back to 1930 (and is probably a bit heavy for the Sidmouth branch), but Rule1 and all that!  We ran a BR early crest N2 on Cadhay at Glasgow in 2018 and I'm not sure anyone actually noticed - certainly no-one commented!!

 

This video must have been the only time that weekend I was rostered on Signalling duty.

 

Some lovely layouts on there also, including my mate Ray Nolton with United Mills.

 

Cheers

 

CDG

[CDGfife]

Cadhay has working point rodding, made from the Ambis etches.  Powered by servos, the rodding controls all the turnouts.  The (only) facing point on the passenger lines also has a working facing point lock.  In this pic the flat bar that extends towards the camera from the FPL has a web for about half it's length (making it T shaped), the web interfaces with 2 slots on the stretcher bar thus locking the point in either position.  On the lever frame you MUST release the FPL before moving the point, but since the lever frame locking has not been built yet, I've always had to stress to the box operator(s) that they will break the (plasticard) stretcher if they pull the point lever before releasing the FPL.  In 3 years of exhibiting plus practice sessions only 1 person has broken a stretcher - yep it was me!!!  The language that day does not bear repeating.  Signal wiring and pulleys have been added since this photo was taken, but unfortunately I could not make them actually work.

The treadle bar you can see on the right actually swings up and over as the lever is pulled/rodding moves as per the prototype, so if there is rolling stock sitting on it, then it will derail (rather than stop the treadle moving) - not quite what the prototype version does, but that's the non-scaling of physics for you!

 

I often think the track in this pic looks like OO but I promise the gauge is 18.83mm - I think it's just that the sleepers are 9' since my premise is they are the original LSWR pre-grouping ones!

 

Thanks for looking

 

Cheers

 

Chris

[CDGfife]

Small set of early photos today.

 

First up continuing the theme of the last post, the toe end of the trap point and rodding protecting the running line at the exit from the sidings.  It's a tricky one for exhibition shunter drivers.  They are stationed out front and often find themselves talking to punters whilst shunting.  The trap point prevents an over run of the shunt limit from causing a disaster (Good) but it does result in the loco derailing (prototypical) and hence falling down the embankment into the river (obvious & embarrassing - especially when it's your own layout!!).  My own response when I have done so (it's happened twice!) is to explain that this demonstrates the need and functionality of the trap point!!

 

Next is a shot through the wood at the extreme right hand end of the layout, which is the view blocker.  This loco is a Hornby and at the time of this photo was a re-wheel job.  It is now on it's second scratch built chassis (it was the one I made all my learning mistakes on!!) on Gibson wheels with Mashima motor and High level gearbox and now lives as No 320.

 

Couple of old shots of the farm yard environs.  First one looks at the water tank and the second is a not easily accessed view down the back(layout) or front(building) of the pig sty and stable.  These were both taken before I completed the greenery around the farm and also before the gate was added.

 

 

Buildings are all thin ply shell with Polyfilla added and then scribed.

 

Thanks for looking

 

Cheers

 

Chris

 

 

[scottystitch]

My goodness, how lovely is this? 

 

I can just hear the birds singing in the trees...

 

Fantastic stuff, thanks for sharing. Another inspiration, regardless of scale.

 

Best

 

Scott.

[CDGfife]

Thanks Scott for your kind comments.

 

Actually birdsong (and other nature noises) has been in the pipeline for a while, probably with a DF player and speakers on each baseboard controlled by the CBUS.  However I did draw the line at the suggestion of modelling the sound of the rivers flowing!  Not sure I and the other operators could get through an hour shift with that running!!

 

Cheers

 

Chris

[scottystitch]

Is there a track plan at all?

 

It looks reasonably self-explanatory, I concede, but sometimes a 2d drawing does wonders.

 

Best

 

Scott.

[Rivercider]

Very nice.

I'm too young to remember the line properly, but I remember making a trip with my dad on the last day of service from Exmouth to Sidmouth Junction.

As a child I knew we had several generations of railwayman in my family working in Exeter and East Devon. Since my dad passed away and I did a little research I find that my widowed great great grandmother was given the crossing keepers job at Gosford Gates, the census shows her there in 1881, 1891, and 1901. So the LSWR lines in East Devon are a bit special to me,

 

cheers 

[Gedward]

The best just keeps getting bester!

 

George

[scottystitch]

42 minutes ago, Rivercider said:

... my widowed great great grandmother was given the crossing keepers job at Gosford Gates, the census shows her there in 1881, 1891, and 1901. So the LSWR lines in East Devon are a bit special to me,

 

cheers 

 

What an absolutely wonderful thing to have discovered.

 

 

Best

Scott.

[CDGfife]

1 hour ago, Rivercider said:

Very nice.

I'm too young to remember the line properly, but I remember making a trip with my dad on the last day of service from Exmouth to Sidmouth Junction.

As a child I knew we had several generations of railwayman in my family working in Exeter and East Devon. Since my dad passed away and I did a little research I find that my widowed great great grandmother was given the crossing keepers job at Gosford Gates, the census shows her there in 1881, 1891, and 1901. So the LSWR lines in East Devon are a bit special to me,

 

cheers 

 

That is lovely - thanks for sharing it.  Gosford was the next set of gates up the line (towards Sidmouth Junction) from Cadhay Gates.  Like Cadhay, the crossing keeper's cottage is still there.  I was down there last summer for some further research (ssshh - there may be a phase 2 at some point) and took this of the Cadhay Keeper's cottage.

 

 

The gates are still in the hedge up on the hump to the left and the rivers are to the right.  Excuse my hound getting in on the act on the right.

 

I had to leave out the cottage on my layout as I just did not have the space, but over the years at exhibitions I've still had a few chats with folks who remember the line and recognise the situation.  It's always a pleasure and it's such a lovely part of the world.

 

Cheers

 

CDG

 

 

[CDGfife]

Thanks also Scott and George for your comments.

 

Here's the exhibition plan (I only have the actual track plan part in CAD and this is much quicker to post)!

 

 

And for those of a techie bent, here's the CBUS implementation plan, which does at least show a zoomed track plan on the three scenic boards!

 

 

Thanks for looking

 

Cheers

 

Chris

 

[Rivercider]

1 hour ago, CDGfife said:

 

That is lovely - thanks for sharing it.  Gosford was the next set of gates up the line (towards Sidmouth Junction) from Cadhay Gates.  Like Cadhay, the crossing keeper's cottage is still there.  I was down there last summer for some further research (ssshh - there may be a phase 2 at some point) and took this of the Cadhay Keeper's cottage.

 

 

I had to leave out the cottage on my layout as I just did not have the space, but over the years at exhibitions I've still had a few chats with folks who remember the line and recognise the situation.  It's always a pleasure and it's such a lovely part of the world.

 

Cheers

 

CDG

 

 

My great great grandmother was given the job and cottage at Gosford Gates after my great great grandad was run down and killed by a train at Broad Clyst in 1877 after recently having been made up to a ganger. 

 

Back in 2013 I had a day out and walked from Feniton (Sidmouth Junction) to Ottery following the route as best I could.

The crossing keepers cottage at Gosford Gates has also been modernised, and some gate posts were still there.

Gosford Gates crossing keepers cottage with concrete gate posts still standing. 13/8/2013

 

I do try to visit a number of exhibitions each year in the South West, but do not remember seeing Cadhay, do you still exhibit the layout?

Edit - I see you are in Fife, so a bit of a trek for me I suspect!

 

cheers

 

 

 

Edited June 19, 2020 by Rivercider
Added text

[scottystitch]

3 hours ago, CDGfife said:

Thanks also Scott and George for your comments.

 

Here's the exhibition plan (I only have the actual track plan part in CAD and this is much quicker to post)!

 

 

And for those of a techie bent, here's the CBUS implementation plan, which does at least show a zoomed track plan on the three scenic boards!

 

 

Thanks for looking

 

Cheers

 

Chris

 

Ah, now I think a penny has just dropped.

 

Was the layout at Model Rail Scotland a couple of years ago?  The individual "booths" for signaller and driver is ringing a bell with me now, and the layout was familiar when I first so it...

 

Best

 

Scott.

[CDGfife]

Scott, yes (although not really finished) we were at Glasgow in 2018.  Bells and all!  This one was taken at S4um later that year:

 

 

Pelmet has been sign written since then!

 

Kevin - thanks for the photo and your info, very interesting.  Furthest south we've been so far was Scaleforum at Aylesbury in Sept 2018, but I would certainly be open to a trip to the South-West when this rubbish is all over.  Got relatives in Brixham & lived in Plymouth for a while also, so whilst it is a trek we've done it a few times albeit without a layout!!