Chuffnell Regis

[Barclay]

I accept that it's a harder decision now than when I made the change. Thirty odd years ago R.T.R. was rubbish so if it was a case of building kits anyway, you might as well build them in EM !

[Graham T]

Yes, that's the thing really.  An out of the box model can look very good, and then be lifted even further with better couplings and so on.  So spending a lot of extra time and money on then converting to EM - not so sure I want to do that!

[5BarVT]

11 minutes ago, Graham T said:

Yes, that's the thing really.  An out of the box model can look very good, and then be lifted even further with better couplings and so on.  So spending a lot of extra time and money on then converting to EM - not so sure I want to do that!

In case you haven’t seen it already, look at Stoke Courtney on here: he used OO-SF track for that very reason and gets a very realistic look even though it’s only 16.5mm.

Paul.

[Graham T]

In other developments, I've been giving some thought to what buildings I might eventually put on the layout (yes, getting ahead of myself I'm sure, but I like the planning).  So I made a quick mock-up of the Ratio goods shed, measured by eye from online photos, but with a footprint of about 155 x 170 mm.  And it looks huge once it's in place, much too big for the scene I think.  The station building is probably about right, and I don't want it to be overwhelmed, as it is in this set-up.

 

Time to look for something more in keeping - any suggestions would be welcome!

 

[Graham T]

12 minutes ago, 5BarVT said:

In case you haven’t seen it already, look at Stoke Courtney on here: he used OO-SF track for that very reason and gets a very realistic look even though it’s only 16.5mm.

Paul.

 

Thanks Paul - lots more to read!

[Gedward]

21 minutes ago, Graham T said:

And it looks huge once it's in place,

 

Exactly why I decided to find something a lot smaller for Bovey Tor. Hence I've gone for a 'freelance' version. A corrugated shed on top of a wooden trestle. Incidentally it's a 85x50mm footprint.

[Graham T]

I'll look forward to seeing that progress, really like the buildings you've done so far.

[Graham T]

So, the fiddle yard has been built, courtesy of the Fred Flintstone school of carpentry!  Thought I would start on the simplest bit of woodwork first; although none of the rest will be massively complicated anyway.  I do need to think about how to incorporate a dropped section though, as I'd like to have a small stream running through the landscape.  It will need to cross some of the cross bracing, so I will have to ponder on that for a while.

 

 

Edited April 1, 2022 by Graham T

[Gedward]

47 minutes ago, Graham T said:

It will need to cross some of the cross bracing, so I will have to ponder on that for a while.

 

Haha, the old cross bracing syndrome.

 

On Bovey Tor, I had to work out how the canal would intersect with the railway. Plus how to avoid clashes with point motors and the support struts of the slot shelving. Twas quite a headache TBF. Ended up making a number of mock ups in card, as it's a bit cheaper than plywood. 

[Graham T]

I've decided that Chuffnell Regis will live in deepest darkest Herefordshire (my home county).  So lots of gently rolling hills as the backscenes, and brick buildings mainly.  Plenty of cattle traffic.

 

You'll probably see some Lambourn influence in the track plans, with the addition of the bay platform serving a sleepy little branch line.  And of course the turntable, which is nothing like Lambourn but - Rule 1!

 

The buildings will be sized similarly to Lambourn I think.  Just a small engine shed and goods shed.  For those two, I quite like the look of these kits from LCut Creative:

 

Engine shed:  http://www.lcut.co.uk/index.php?product=B 00-08&title=B 00-08

Goods shed:  http://www.lcut.co.uk/index.php?product=B 00-13&title=B 00-13

 

I'm also tempted to put a water tower near to the turntable, something like the one at Witney, with a crane in between a couple of the tracks near the end of the platform.

 

For the station building I found a beautiful little former GW station at Rowden Mill, which I'm contemplating having a bash at scratch-building; fortunately that is no doubt a long time in the future though.  Does anyone know if plans are available for this building?

 

I also had another brainwave (dangerous I know) and thought about adding a double slip into the station throat, between the run-round crossover and the entrance to the sidings.  That would save me a lot of space and help to make the flow of the track around the goods yard and feed into the turntable work better.  I did wonder if complex pointwork like this might be more than a small terminus might have, but then thought to myself that the reason I want to use it might well have applied in the real world too i.e. to make better use of the space available.  I'd be interested to hear other opinions on this - I suspect there are a few!

[Graham T]

I think I may have a cunning plan for how to include the stream running through the layout.  I'd appreciate any thoughts on whether this looks like it will work, or if it's actually worthy of something Baldrick might have come up with...

 

 

 

Edited April 1, 2022 by Graham T

[Graham T]

Still a great deal of head-scratching going on here.  Am I right in thinking that Marcway track does not have chairs?  If so, my track solution is beginning to look like this...

• Peco Code 75 BH flexitrack
• Peco Code 75 BH large radius points on main running tracks, unless I need a curved point, in which case...
• Peco Code 75 FB curved large radius
• Peco Code 75 FB double slip
• Peco Code 75 FB medium radius points for the engine runround crossover and the goods yard

I'm hoping that some judicious use of ballast should make everything look absolutely wonderful

[Ben Alder]

Cosmetic chairs applied to Code 75 points improves their appearance a lot.

 

[The Johnster]

I also live in a rented flat, and built my layout to the specifcation that, although it is intended to work as a permanent erection, it should be demountable at a push.  The wisdom of this was bourne out about 18 months after I started, when my landlord decided to refurbish the flats in the house and I was required to move acrosss the hall for some 7 weeks while mine was done. 

 

You can follow the story in Layout Topics under the heading 'South Wales Valleys in the 1950s', which gives details.  Many rules have been broken and much recieved wisdom ignored, particualarly in respect of baseboard construction and the use of insulfrog turnouts.  The baseboards are skip-raided Ikea 'LACK' shelves (NHY 581of this parish, Rob Gunton, uses these as well).  Like you, I am a returnee, in my case after an enforced hiatus following a nasty divorce and a long period of an unsettled lifestyle.  Without wishing to play the violin, my income is fixed and small, couple of pensions, and I am not a highly skilled solderer, 

 

Therefore the concept was to built a railway that was a) cheap, b) reliable, and c) could be got to a running state fairly quickly and to an acceptably 'complete' condition in not much more than a year.  I am not young and playing the long game is not my best option, and my intention is operating firstly, to the 1955 Rule Book as far as possible.  The Lacks (there are 3 of them) are supported by various cabinets and tables, with skip raided 2 x 2 inch battens arranged ad hoc beneath them to cope with the different levels of the cabinets and tables, and support the boards where they bridge the gaps between them.  I would not recomment anyone to build baseboards in this way. 

 

As I am using mostly RTR locos and insulfrog turnouts, and require reliable running at slow speeds with small locomotives, it is essential that the baseboards are absolutely flat, particuarly at the joins and in the areas where there are turnouts.  My running is very reliable indeed, not far off 100% even with the colliery's Hornby W4 Peckett, but track, wheel, and pickup cleanliness is vital for this as well.  I found out very quickly that my eyesight and hand/eye co-ordination had deteriorated during the hiatus and that I was no longer capable of using 4mm scale couplings; this provoked a period of re-assessing some of the limitations.  I decided to 'revert' to tension lock couplings, which has allowed me to use R3 and R4 setrack turnouts and curves in the fiddle yard. 

 

I can haul or propel all my stock with all my locos to any point on the layout and the DC electrics are reliable and simple.  The current goes where the road is set from a single feed position and two bridging wires for kickback sidings, and the only switches are for Dapol working signals and one isolating section.  Cleanliness at the interface between the turnout blades and the stock rail is vital and so far I haven't had to wire around any of them after 4 years fairly intensive use.  I suspect that regular use helps to keep things running without problems. 

 

My trackplan has similarities to your 'mark 1' plan, and the necessity for mineral trains to access my colliery from the platform road and a real time timetable (based loosely on Abergwyfi 1960 WTT) means that operating can be a challenge, as the shunting must be completed before a passenger train is due, and if it is loco hauled the run around loop cannot be used to shunt the mineral train into out of the way, unless it departs back down the branch as soon as the passenger clears into the platform, allowing time for the signalman to put the electric token he has recieved from the passenger driver into the maching, block back, release the token, and give to the coal train driver before he clears the loop starter... 

 

I have been operating this layout most days a week for over 4 years now and am nowhere near bored with it; the challenge of operating correctly, at realistic speeds, allowing time for the staff to move about the layout, within the limits of the timetable is the sort of challenge that kept real railwaymen occupied on real railways; I love it!  The layout, rule breaker and cowboy built or not, is to my mind a complete success; it works, and it does exactly what I wanted it to do.  The plan is somewhat minimalist but deceptively challenging to shunt; less is more!

 

Personally, I do not like loco sheds on BLT layouts.  Not all BLTs had them, some had locos provided from the big shed at the junction, and on a layout they are dead areas from the operating point of view as the loco is off shed most of the working day.  I would prefer to use the space for a factory, colliery, quarry, dairy, or some such, something that generates traffic and adds to the operation.  I would suggest also that there is no need for a turntable on your layout; tender locos simply work tender first in one direction. and if you are using 14xx and panniers the branch is by definition short enough to dispense with tender locos; this is of course entirely your decision and you will proceed in the way that gives you the locos and stock you want, but I am taking the opportunity here to explain my approach and the rationale behind it.

[Barclay]

10 hours ago, Graham T said:

Still a great deal of head-scratching going on here.  Am I right in thinking that Marcway track does not have chairs?  If so, my track solution is beginning to look like this...

• Peco Code 75 BH flexitrack
• Peco Code 75 BH large radius points on main running tracks, unless I need a curved point, in which case...
• Peco Code 75 FB curved large radius
• Peco Code 75 FB double slip
• Peco Code 75 FB medium radius points for the engine runround crossover and the goods yard

I'm hoping that some judicious use of ballast should make everything look absolutely wonderful

I believe Marcway track is basically soldered PCB track, as you might make yourself with an SMP kit, so I presume no chairs. Unlike chaired track the rail sits directly on the sleeper so there may not be room to fit cosmetic chairs. 

 

 

[Graham T]

9 hours ago, Ben Alder said:

Cosmetic chairs applied to Code 75 points improves their appearance a lot.

 

 

Thanks Ben, I could certainly do that with the points I suppose (there will be ten probably, so more than enough to get suitably cross-eyed).  But must confess I'm leaning towards Peco at the moment...

[Graham T]

8 hours ago, The Johnster said:

I also live in a rented flat, and built my layout to the specifcation that, although it is intended to work as a permanent erection, it should be demountable at a push.  The wisdom of this was bourne out about 18 months after I started, when my landlord decided to refurbish the flats in the house and I was required to move acrosss the hall for some 7 weeks while mine was done. 

 

You can follow the story in Layout Topics under the heading 'South Wales Valleys in the 1950s', which gives details.  Many rules have been broken and much recieved wisdom ignored, particualarly in respect of baseboard construction and the use of insulfrog turnouts.  The baseboards are skip-raided Ikea 'LACK' shelves (NHY 581of this parish, Rob Gunton, uses these as well).  Like you, I am a returnee, in my case after an enforced hiatus following a nasty divorce and a long period of an unsettled lifestyle.  Without wishing to play the violin, my income is fixed and small, couple of pensions, and I am not a highly skilled solderer, 

 

Therefore the concept was to built a railway that was a) cheap, b) reliable, and c) could be got to a running state fairly quickly and to an acceptably 'complete' condition in not much more than a year.  I am not young and playing the long game is not my best option, and my intention is operating firstly, to the 1955 Rule Book as far as possible.  The Lacks (there are 3 of them) are supported by various cabinets and tables, with skip raided 2 x 2 inch battens arranged ad hoc beneath them to cope with the different levels of the cabinets and tables, and support the boards where they bridge the gaps between them.  I would not recomment anyone to build baseboards in this way. 

 

As I am using mostly RTR locos and insulfrog turnouts, and require reliable running at slow speeds with small locomotives, it is essential that the baseboards are absolutely flat, particuarly at the joins and in the areas where there are turnouts.  My running is very reliable indeed, not far off 100% even with the colliery's Hornby W4 Peckett, but track, wheel, and pickup cleanliness is vital for this as well.  I found out very quickly that my eyesight and hand/eye co-ordination had deteriorated during the hiatus and that I was no longer capable of using 4mm scale couplings; this provoked a period of re-assessing some of the limitations.  I decided to 'revert' to tension lock couplings, which has allowed me to use R3 and R4 setrack turnouts and curves in the fiddle yard. 

 

I can haul or propel all my stock with all my locos to any point on the layout and the DC electrics are reliable and simple.  The current goes where the road is set from a single feed position and two bridging wires for kickback sidings, and the only switches are for Dapol working signals and one isolating section.  Cleanliness at the interface between the turnout blades and the stock rail is vital and so far I haven't had to wire around any of them after 4 years fairly intensive use.  I suspect that regular use helps to keep things running without problems. 

 

My trackplan has similarities to your 'mark 1' plan, and the necessity for mineral trains to access my colliery from the platform road and a real time timetable (based loosely on Abergwyfi 1960 WTT) means that operating can be a challenge, as the shunting must be completed before a passenger train is due, and if it is loco hauled the run around loop cannot be used to shunt the mineral train into out of the way, unless it departs back down the branch as soon as the passenger clears into the platform, allowing time for the signalman to put the electric token he has recieved from the passenger driver into the maching, block back, release the token, and give to the coal train driver before he clears the loop starter... 

 

I have been operating this layout most days a week for over 4 years now and am nowhere near bored with it; the challenge of operating correctly, at realistic speeds, allowing time for the staff to move about the layout, within the limits of the timetable is the sort of challenge that kept real railwaymen occupied on real railways; I love it!  The layout, rule breaker and cowboy built or not, is to my mind a complete success; it works, and it does exactly what I wanted it to do.  The plan is somewhat minimalist but deceptively challenging to shunt; less is more!

 

Personally, I do not like loco sheds on BLT layouts.  Not all BLTs had them, some had locos provided from the big shed at the junction, and on a layout they are dead areas from the operating point of view as the loco is off shed most of the working day.  I would prefer to use the space for a factory, colliery, quarry, dairy, or some such, something that generates traffic and adds to the operation.  I would suggest also that there is no need for a turntable on your layout; tender locos simply work tender first in one direction. and if you are using 14xx and panniers the branch is by definition short enough to dispense with tender locos; this is of course entirely your decision and you will proceed in the way that gives you the locos and stock you want, but I am taking the opportunity here to explain my approach and the rationale behind it.

 

Thanks very much Johnster.  I'm going to build mine in 40 x 36" sections, so they should be "man-luggable" in theory.  I need to wait until I have a definite track plan before I build the boards though, so that I can try to avoid having points across baseboard joints if possible.  I must confess I haven't even looked at wiring options yet - electrics and soldering are not strong points of mine...

 

My interest is more in the looks of the whole thing, rather than the operation, although of course I want it to look feasible - and I might just want to "play trains" on it now and again too!

[Graham T]

It's a small step for a man, but a giant leap for Chuffnell Regis.  The first locos arrived today, via a well-known auction site.  I'm really quite pleased with them out of the box, they look far better than the clunky models I remember from my childhood.  That being said, I have a long list of improvements I'd like to make, including:

 

Real coal, lamp irons, some light weathering, brass number plates, smokebox darts, paint the details inside the cabs, add crew, change the couplings, add vacuum pipes and fire irons.  No doubt there will be more.

 

I particularly like the look of the Dean Goods, I must say.  And please excuse the horrible track, I picked up some second-hand in a local shop just so that I would have something for them to stand on!

 

 

 

Edited April 1, 2022 by Graham T

[Graham T]

I need to add "glaze the cab windows" to the list as well.  I have some kristal klear that should do the trick.

[Gedward]

5 hours ago, Graham T said:

My interest is more in the looks of the whole thing, rather than the operation, although of course I want it to look feasible - and I might just want to "play trains" on it now and again too!

 

This is exactly why I got back into the hobby. TBH, it's a three dimensional painting I'm after achieving.

[9C85]

1 hour ago, Gedward said:

 

This is exactly why I got back into the hobby. TBH, it's a three dimensional painting I'm after achieving.

I found I enjoy 'staging ' compositions and posting them on here more than I thought 

[Graham T]

2 hours ago, Gedward said:

 

This is exactly why I got back into the hobby. TBH, it's a three dimensional painting I'm after achieving.

 

Couldn't have put it better myself.  Must remember that you're also a painter!

[Graham T]

1 hour ago, 9C85 said:

I found I enjoy 'staging ' compositions and posting them on here more than I thought 

 

I'm looking forward to doing that myself, but think it might be a little while yet

[Gedward]

2 minutes ago, Graham T said:

 

Couldn't have put it better myself.  Must remember that you're also a painter!

 

If you ever get the chance, you can check out my work on instagram. 

#gdamerum

[Graham T]

Ah, thank you.  I was just thinking of asking to see some of your stuff, so that's really timely.