Penhayle Bay

[Markeg]

Hi Rick,

 

I have put the date in the diary.  I will try and make it.  Otherwise I will contact you re visiting during week.

 

Hope you had a great Christmas and have a happy new year.

 

The two railway workers in front of the Santa special Class 17's are checking the Christmas list.

 

I have had some running time the last few days and working on some scenic in a corner.  My new chassis Bachmann V2 BR died on Monday unfortunately.

 

Mark

[ess1uk]

Happy new year.

[Andrew P]

Hi Rick, Happy New Year to you and all yours.

[Gwiwer]

Hi Rick, Happy New Year to you and all yours.

 

Thank you Andy.  And likewise to you.

[Gwiwer]

The dates for our move are now confirmed with flights booked.  Sharon leaves on 27th February and I shall also be away from then for a few days to settle her into London life before returning to pack up our affairs in Australia.

 

Penhayle Bay will close as per the statutory notice after traffic on Easter Monday 17th April.

 

I cannot yet confirm dates for a final closing event but the weekend of 1st and 2nd April is looking likely with an evening option on either the Friday (31st March) or Saturday.  By this stage much of the house contents will be packed or otherwise disposed of and some of the rolling stock boxed for shipping.  The intention is still to take the Penhayle Bay station and beach section with me and the viaduct which is on a small lift-out board.  The rest will be dismantled for storage after component recovery.  

[D1072]

I am also in the process of layout downsizing in order to move to London, with a lot less space available.   It may be many months before anything runs again!

 

Finding that many things in London are organised very differently than other parts of the UK which I'm familiar with.

[Danemouth]

Rick,

 

Would it be possible for you to show some overall photos of the layout please? I've actually no idea of its size.

 

Regards,

 

Dave

[john flann]

Sad and hard task Rick, I faced it when we moved from the UK to USA in 1990.

 

I finished up scrapping a great deal but harvesting structures and the like that could be readily removed. Some found a new home on Hintock. However once off the layout many looked a bit off and I thought I'd do better next time. Ruthlessness pays.

 

I did box up one baseboard complete and brought that out. It survived with no damage and was, and remains the nucleus of Hintock.

 

It all takes a long time and at least twice as long as you bargained for.

 

My best wishes for Sharon's settling in, yours too, and all the donkey work down the line for you.

[Gwiwer]

Rick,

 

Would it be possible for you to show some overall photos of the layout please? I've actually no idea of its size.

 

Regards,

 

Dave

 

Did you see this?  Not an overall photo but a driver's eye view giving some idea of the size.  I can also post some "long shots" over the next few days.

 

[Andrew P]

That looks amazing Rick, I can see why you cant just box it up and ship it home now, superb.

 

Thinks I'd stay in Aus just for that alone. hhahha

[Gwiwer]

Thanks Andrew.  It also features guest appearances from myself and two other members of this establishment.  

 

You know an era is ending when one of the major British retailers asks what I intend to do with the layout in terms of selling, scrapping or otherwise.  Or perhaps Kernow MRC were concerned that their business might suffer adversely!  The truth is that even if we were to stay Penhayle Bay could not have lasted much longer at least in its present form.  It requires major track replacement and levelling - and ironically I had bought the track only weeks before we learned of the move - and the largest boards which support the Treheligan and clay dries scenes plus the fiddle yard rest for support on the garden fence rails.  That fence is in need of renewal and the layout would have been removed from it before the job could have been done.  

 

Quite apart from that nothing lasts for ever and the recent flooding and rotting of part of the yard was shown in earlier posts.  A full repair was intended with a major cut-out and replace of the woodwork but knowing the need was no longer urgent a patch-up is all that it got.  The boards have been wet several times and have sagged slightly - but visibly - in the centres for some time.  There is only so much track levelling one can do to mitigate that problem.

 

So a box of 23 yards of flexi-track will be among the items packed into the shipping container; the other two were used in the fiddle yard repair job.  With improved-scale and bull-head track now available that lot is potentially destined for some future yard rather than main line use as what ever I build now it would not have Peco's code 100 on the visible running lines.  Either code 75 or the new bull-head style would be used.  I'd be interested in building my own track but won't have the workshop facilities (probably not even desk space) to do so while we are in rented property so that's maybe a few more years away yet.  

 

Unless an offer is made for the main scenic sections then I shall remove the buildings, point motors, signals and other significant structures before clipping all the wires and taking the Dremel to the board joins for a quick disassembly.  The slotted steel supporting frames will unbolt readily enough and the whole lot should come down in a day. The scenic sections will go to store here apart from the two pieces which I shall bring to London.  The large surf beach scene will not survive as it was a bolt-on to the original build and will simply fall apart when I dismantle the rest.  The breaking waves have been a source of discussion and of some respect among the wider modelling community.  I have had comments from some very experienced modellers indeed to the effect of "that is as good as it gets" and even asking how it was done.  

 

The layout is fairly well known around the internet and therefore around the world because I have taken time to present it through social media.  I have never managed to attract the interest of any of the magazines which I find a little sad but understandable as there are many other perfectly good layouts out there.  It's also expensive for them to send their house photographers over for a "shoot" and while my own photography isn't bad I don't have stacking software nor portable lighting which has given rise to some depth-of-field issues over the years and some less-than-ideal shadows or washed out spots.  My own images could be used but they don't match the professionals for quality.  What the printed world loses the internet gains as the layout has almost 7000 followers on Facebook quite apart from the hundred or so who follow it here and perhaps another few dozen on a couple of other much smaller forums.  Over the weekend I shall be posting the news of the closure to the Facebook page and while I have plenty of pictures I could use to keep it going that page has served its purpose.  My work has been shown to a world-wide audience who can chose to like and follow or ignore as they please; many have liked and followed.  Some have been encouraged into the hobby as a direct result of that page which was one reason I set it up.  We need new blood (doesn't have to be young but that can help) and if one more person has taken up the hobby after being inspired by Penhayle Bay then that is very satisfying.

 

I started with an oval of track on a table-top as a beginner with a fair knowledge of railways and some of the hobby.  In a few weeks I shall be closing down the first layout I ever built but one which has brought me immense satisfaction, happiness and the friendship of others.  It may have earned me a step on the ladder towards becoming one of the more skilled and respected members of this hobby.  I sincerely hope it has brought others at least a sense of what is possible starting from nothing with next to no knowledge at all; none of us knows the limits of possibility until we have tried.  We all started as beginners. 

 

Join two pieces of track together, put a 4-wheel wagon on them and push it along with your finger.  And go from there until you cannot go any farther.  There are no limits here.

[bigwordsmith]

A valedictory post there Rick, and good luck with the move!

[Donw]

Rick a bit of workspace shouldn't be a problem heres my solution

 

 

The first photo shows the work tray sat on a folding TV table (i.e designed for eating watching TV)

The second shows the work tray in the old briefcase I use to transport it.

 

You wouldn't need much space for building turnouts in 4mm the problem would be where to store them when built or if laid on the baseboards where to store them.

 

I can sympathise with you over the pictures. I think the magazines place too much importance on high quality photos whereas a lot of modellers are more concerned about the quality of the subject rather than the photos. A lot of magazine articles show a series of close ups and little of how the layout connects together or fits into a room. When I was editing the Gauge 0 Gazette the photos were professionally scanned and the person doing it would often give me grief about the photo quality but I would insist and they usually came out reasonable. Obviously  full page enlargements need a high quality photo.

 

Don

[D1072]

That's a great video for three reasons - first it's technically a good video (what camera system did you use?). Secondly, the driver gets away from most signal stops very smoothly.   The result is better than a real Railscene cab ride video taken in 50022 in 1986 which is incredibly shaky (and hence not that great to watch!).

The third reason is that the trackside paraphernalia is all there - AWS ramps, location cabinets, gradient posts and stop boards (which were widespread in Cornwall and complete in South Devon until the late 80's), mileposts and speed restrictions; so the driver's eye view looks right.   

The constant curvature is very Cornish.

 

The loco liveries say 1966-70.   When did flagmen start to wear the small orange vests?   Late 70's?

 

Are you going to make an official looking closure notice?

 

Regards,

Paul

[brushman47544]

Are you going to make an official looking closure notice?

 

Regards,

Paul

He did - you must have missed it...

[Gwiwer]

That's a great video for three reasons - first it's technically a good video (what camera system did you use?). Secondly, the driver gets away from most signal stops very smoothly.   The result is better than a real Railscene cab ride video taken in 50022 in 1986 which is incredibly shaky (and hence not that great to watch!).

The third reason is that the trackside paraphernalia is all there - AWS ramps, location cabinets, gradient posts and stop boards (which were widespread in Cornwall and complete in South Devon until the late 80's), mileposts and speed restrictions; so the driver's eye view looks right.   

The constant curvature is very Cornish.

 

The loco liveries say 1966-70.   When did flagmen start to wear the small orange vests?   Late 70's?

 

Are you going to make an official looking closure notice?

 

Regards,

Paul

 

 

He did - you must have missed it...

 

 

Indeed I did and it was posted above.  An A4 version is also posted above Penhayle Bay station.  However as the wording has changed slightly to reflect the confirmed date of closure it is reposted below.  I intend that scaled-down versions shall be posted on both stations over the weekend.

 

[Gwiwer]

Paul and Don thank you both for your comments.  We shall know what space might be available for hobbies in around two months from now when the rental agreement is signed for our future medium-term home.  That space, or absence of it, will determine to some extent how much I can ship over of the existing collection, tools, materials and even chunks of layout.  There will be two bedrooms and it is possible that one could have a cabin-style bed above a work area if it helps to increase available space.

 

Kind comments regarding the video which was arranged thanks to SRman of this parish.  I was quite happy with the result even if the necessarily wide angle of a barrel-shaped camera reveals an awful lot of "off-the-edge" and those glum-looking Cornish giants!  I was carefully monitoring its speed and we were all hoping the camera stayed aboard its wagon!!!  To achieve a reasonably slow speed it was pushed by a Hornby 08 with its slow-speed gearing helpful while on about half power to keep things moving.  The apparent SPADs are an effect of having the camera mounted at the front of the wagon and no part actually stopped ahead of the signals.  

 

I'm not sure when orange vests became mandatory but it wasn't as early as green diesels on the main line.  The time period on that clip is intended to be around 1966-7 though I can run from around 1960 right up to 2000 allowing a little leeway with fixed structures and totem nameboards.

[jukebox]

*snip*

 

The layout is fairly well known around the internet and therefore around the world because I have taken time to present it through social media.  I have never managed to attract the interest of any of the magazines which I find a little sad but understandable as there are many other perfectly good layouts out there.  It's also expensive for them to send their house photographers over for a "shoot" and while my own photography isn't bad I don't have stacking software nor portable lighting which has given rise to some depth-of-field issues over the years and some less-than-ideal shadows or washed out spots.  My own images could be used but they don't match the professionals for quality.  What the printed world loses the internet gains as the layout has almost 7000 followers on Facebook quite apart from the hundred or so who follow it here and perhaps another few dozen on a couple of other much smaller forums.  

 

*snip*

 

Rick, I find this point quite disheartening.   For any layout builder, a feature in print must feel like the ultimate accolade from his or her peers - and Penhayle certain deserved such a podium.

 

There have been many less-than-inspirational efforts that have made it to print, and I struggle to fathom how, in the internet age, an editor couldn't do some remote art direction and help get you to take the shots he wanted - it is not rocket science, and even if it took a back-and-forth three or four times to get it right, could be done.

 

Thanks for taking the time to record and post so many wonderful shots of your layout for us.  It's been inspirational.

 

Regards

 

Scott

[St Enodoc]

Rick, I find this point quite disheartening.   For any layout builder, a feature in print must feel like the ultimate accolade from his or her peers - and Penhayle certain deserved such a podium.

 

There have been many less-than-inspirational efforts that have made it to print, and I struggle to fathom how, in the internet age, an editor couldn't do some remote art direction and help get you to take the shots he wanted - it is not rocket science, and even if it took a back-and-forth three or four times to get it right, could be done.

 

Thanks for taking the time to record and post so many wonderful shots of your layout for us.  It's been inspirational.

 

Regards

 

Scott

There is nothing wrong with the quality of photographs in the Australian Model Railway Magazine, and there was nothing wrong with the quality of the photos in the series of "Layouts Down Under" in one of the mags a couple of years ago. Strange as it may seem to some editors, folk down here do know how to take decent pictures (I exclude myself from that remark however...).

[Gwiwer]

Thank you Scott.  It's been a huge learning curve for me over the years and if I were to post "then and now" pictures of some spots on the layout I could show exactly what I mean and how far I have come in that time.  In learning skills and techniques I have also learned product ranges and manufacturers.  I have learned to think and look outside the square especially when seeking something out of the ordinary.  And I have always maintained a couple of whimsical scenes on the layout which include the mermaid, Dr Who and his Tardis and the kangaroo among the trees which is a nod to my Australian location.

 

Who knows what might yet happen?  There are a few months yet before the last train runs though not many opportunities for running days.  The light can be too strong in mid-summer for good photography but I take what I can get and make use of the lower light in the evening which has also produced some of the best shots I have of the layout.  If an editor was looking to feature the layout - even some time into the future given the normal lead times for these things - I have the material ready to go.

 

Based on the feedback from fellow modellers, those who have seen Penhayle in the flesh and those who only see it via the internet, I feel it should stand among the better layouts of its time.  For that much I feel deeply grateful and honoured as I have seen some remarkable feats of micr-engineering in the few short years I have been actively involved with this hobby.  There have been lacklustre layouts on public show at exhibitions - though most are certainly worth paying to see - and I even managed a brief moment in the light when I brought Boghouses over to show at RMweb / SWAG's Staplegrove member's day.  As I said at the time it might not have been the finest piece of modelling on show that  day but it stood up to scrutiny and, after travelling in a suitcase from Australia, it worked.

 

Once Penhayle is put to bed I'll be back with something new.  I have some ideas ready to work on just as soon as I know what sort of space I am dealing with.  The space may also dictate the theme though given the content of the rolling stock collection and parts in stock it is more than likely to involve the BR WR / SR borderlands.

 

If Penhayle Bay has been inspirational then I hope to be able to create something which can venture onto the UK exhibition circuit and take that inspiration out to the people face to face.  And perhaps with a small photo display of Penhayle in the background as well.

[SRman]

The camera is a Panasonic HX-A1M "wearable camera". I use it on an older Bachmann bolster wagon, held in place with Blu-tack, and controlled wirelessly by an app on my (Android) mobile phone.

This photo was actually taken on another modeller's layout.

[Gwiwer]

Only one of the latest release of Bachmann Warships is joining the fleet.  I resisted the temptation to add more blue and green given the need to pack everything away fairly soon.  Maroon with full yellow end is under-represented however so D838 "Rapid" arrived just before Christmas and in the past couple of days has had its crew installed, pipework fitted to the leading end and cab steps (which are designed to locate into recesses on the body for static display) glued to the bogie frames as has been done for the other class 43 locos.

 

Today saw the new arrival weathered and tested.

 

In tandem with classmate D835 "Pegasus" from the earlier class 43 release:

 

 

Running the other way to show the opposite side and somewhat aptly named for the urgent traffic which is a milk train

 

 

And broadside on to show the weathering and "cast" name and works plates which are included by Bachmann as etches for this loco; all others have had to be sourced from Fox.

 

[ggdixon]

I've been following a fairly small number of layouts on rmweb for some years now, Penhayle Bay being one of those, and probably the best of the lot. It is a great layout and I will miss the regular updates.

 

Speaking as someone who has recently moved, and had to take apart a layout entirely, i have found that it does indeed give you the chance to start again and learn from the mistakes of last time - on which basis I'm hoping the updates from son/daughter of Penhayle Bay layout will be even better!

 

Best of luck with the move too.

[Gwiwer]

Many thanks for your ongoing interest, comments and, it appears, your first post on RMweb as opposed to being an observer.  

 

It's good to hear from people who have derived satisfaction and enjoyment from Penhayle Bay; positive feedback is also always welcomed though I take note of and learn from the comments pointing out errors or inaccuracies too.

[Bogie]

I know this is bordering on heresy but I do not understand what you see in these Warships.  I cannot put my finger on exactly why I find them unappealing - but unappealing they are.

 

I of course never saw one in the flesh so the models do not conjure up any memories - good or otherwise.

 

But each to their own as I say.

 

Great photos as always and all the best for the big move.