Northolt International

[Tom Curtis]

Hello all,

 

 

This is my first post for a little while on this fourm.

 

This is my layout Northolt International which has been on the exhibition circuit since 2004. Below are some of the recent completed projects. The most recent and complex of which has been a model of the Nomix-Chipman Weedkilling train which was compleated at the end of this year.

http://www.northoltinternational.fotopic.net/c1168092.html

 

Compleated loco projects

http://www.northoltinternational.fotopic.net/c243901.html

 

NPCCS's

http://www.northoltinternational.fotopic.net/c243901.html

 

 

Northolt International

4mm - OO

24' X 8'6"

Continuous run

Exhibition layout

 

A fictitious station setting set in 1992.

Located in Northwest London it features many Network Southeast services, Royal mail trains (TPO's), London Underground's Central Line and many more detailed below...

 

After the Second World War passenger air travel was the preserve of the rich. However the technological advances bought about by the war led to the founding of airline companies, and the building of aerodromes. To the north west of London the ex Royal Air Force base at Northolt was converted to civilian use, and during the following decades grew to become one of London’s major international airports, and indeed one of the busiest “hubs†in the world.

 

The nearby Great Western/Great Central railway offered the possibility of rail connections to the airport, and British Rail has developed this to the station you see today. Besides the mainline trains, London Underground’s Central Line also serves Northolt, and the line briefly runs above ground immediately before entering Northolt International’s platforms.

 

As the airport has grown so has the diversity of destinations with direct trains to and from Northolt. Rail Privatisation is looming and several new routes have been established to serve the airport. One of these is run by Regional Railways North West and brings class 37/4 hauled trains to the area. Meanwhile the South Wales operation of Regional Railways is using class 158 units on its services to Northolt. Unfortunately the line through Northolt is not electrified so West Coast Main Line trains have to be dragged by diesel locomotives to serve Northolt. Despite the expense of doing this electrification cannot be justified, yet passenger numbers are healthy enough warrant the continuation of this style of working. Many international passengers need to travel between Northolt and Gatwick airports, and the Gatwick Express is the easiest way to do this. Unlike the Gatwick – Victoria part of the Gatwick Express operation which uses one class 73/2 loco in push-pull mode the Northolt service is run with top ‘n’ tail class 73/2s due to the distance they have to run away from the third rail electrification.

Passenger trains are only part of the scene however, and the Royal Mail international terminal provides much traffic for the railway. Considerable tonnages of freight also pass through Northolt. One new flow is building aggregate and cement which is being used to build a new runway. Also to be seen are MGR coal trains, Mendip stone trains, petroleum tanks and civil engineers traffic.

 

The Fotopic site for Northolt International below. This site is always being added to.

http://northoltinternational.fotopic.net/

[YesTor]

Great layout, I love the attention to detail. How was the red station canopy constructed?

 

The hung monitors really look the part too, very fine detailing. I could use some of those myself. Are they scratch-built or a commercially available product?

[DavidB-AU]

Very nice layout and very believable back story.

 

Cheers

David

[Tom Curtis]

Great layout, I love the attention to detail. How was the red station canopy constructed?

 

The hung monitors really look the part too, very fine detailing. I could use some of those myself. Are they scratch-built or a commercially available product?

 

Hi,

 

The canopy is simply an several old Airfix kits. The monitors are scratch built based on the type found at Bristol Temple Meads.

 

Bachmann do a station accessory pack now which does have monitors in there but these are a much smaller type and I think don't look as good.

 

 

Cheers,

Tom