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Cambrian Layouts


alanbuttler
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A whopping sixteen feet to play with!  This should be spectacular, to say the least!

 

What do you intend to use as a scenic break at the Junction end?  The wide-open-spaces nature of the place doesn't offer any obvious options.

Hopefully my basic modelling skills can do this justice ! Haven't really got as far as thinking about the junction end . Perhaps a bit of a rocky outcrop with a lone pine tree ??
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Hi,

 

Just thought I'd add Llangerisech to the list of Cambrian layouts. Although the location and track plan are fictional, most of the buildings are based on genuine Cambrian items. The layout is 2mm Finescale and we exhibit it in various eras. Most effort goes into the 1930s period with scratchbuilt Dukedog, Jones Goods and Mogul, although we devised a conversion chassis for the Ixion Manor too. I attach a few pictures, but more can be found on the Wealden Area Blog http://wealden.2mm.org.uk/wealden2mm/

 

post-25417-0-25889600-1460913198_thumb.jpg

 

View of the engine shed. This is a shortened version of the prototype at Llanidloes.

 

post-25417-0-16125500-1460913553_thumb.jpg

 

The signal box being passed in 1970s mode.

 

post-25417-0-49883300-1460913831_thumb.jpg

 

And finally, a view of the main station building. Anyone who has driven northwards up the A470 through Llanidloes will be familiar with this side of the station building.

 

We wll be exhibiting in 1930's mode at the Chatham show in June if you fancy a closer look.

 

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Hi,

 

Just thought I'd add Llangerisech to the list of Cambrian layouts. Although the location and track plan are fictional, most of the buildings are based on genuine Cambrian items. The layout is 2mm Finescale and we exhibit it in various eras. Most effort goes into the 1930s period with scratchbuilt Dukedog, Jones Goods and Mogul, although we devised a conversion chassis for the Ixion Manor too. I attach a few pictures, but more can be found on the Wealden Area blog....

 

... And finally, a view of the main station building. Anyone who has driven northwards up the A470 through Llanidloes will be familiar with this side of the station building.

 

We wll be exhibiting in 1930's mode at the Chatham show in June if you fancy a closer look.

Wonderful, inspiring modelling!

 

I'm working up to a 2mm layout based on the Cambrian at or near Oswestry. I'm very much at the research and planning stage, also cutting my teeth on a shunting plank in N gauge fiNescale.

Beyond that, I'll have a go at scratch building a loco and buildings. Could you possibly give me some pointers to drawings, photos, etc which would help me get started? Any advice on how begin would be very welcome.

 

Thanks in advance,

Andrew.

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Hello Andrew,

 

Thanks for the comments about the layout. The reason I chose 2FS over N gauge was the ability to scratch build locos using the components from the 2mmSA ( See the 2mm Finescale forum area) whereas FiNescale is suited to running standard N wheels. To make things like the Dukes and Dukedogs, I'd find it tricky to use standard N wheels.

 

Other than that, I have taken inspiration from many books, by Kidner, CC Green and Christiansen, visited the area many times and taken about 15 years since the boards were glued together! Forums such as this are also great for sharing info. Anything finescale takes time, practice and learning through mistakes - don't be afraid to make them is the best advice I can give. For loco building the Russell books have many plans.

 

The main building is designed on a computer and windows cut using a Robocutter before everything is finished by hand. The same architect was responsible for Oswestry, so similar techniques could be used. A detailed article appeared in the 2mm Scale Association magazine a few years back and all editions are available to members.

 

Current exhibitions are Chatham in June 2016, Wycrail Nov 2016, Tonbridge Feb 2017 and Warley Nov 2017. If you attend any, feel free to ask questions.

 

Nigel

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Hello Andrew,

 

Thanks for the comments about the layout. The reason I chose 2FS over N gauge was the ability to scratch build locos using the components from the 2mmSA ( See the 2mm Finescale forum area) whereas FiNescale is suited to running standard N wheels. To make things like the Dukes and Dukedogs, I'd find it tricky to use standard N wheels.

 

Other than that, I have taken inspiration from many books, by Kidner, CC Green and Christiansen, visited the area many times and taken about 15 years since the boards were glued together! Forums such as this are also great for sharing info. Anything finescale takes time, practice and learning through mistakes - don't be afraid to make them is the best advice I can give. For loco building the Russell books have many plans.

 

The main building is designed on a computer and windows cut using a Robocutter before everything is finished by hand. The same architect was responsible for Oswestry, so similar techniques could be used. A detailed article appeared in the 2mm Scale Association magazine a few years back and all editions are available to members.

 

Current exhibitions are Chatham in June 2016, Wycrail Nov 2016, Tonbridge Feb 2017 and Warley Nov 2017. If you attend any, feel free to ask questions.

 

Nigel

Nigel, thanks for the good advice. Your point about wheels for scratch building locos is a very good one which I hadn't really thought about, really in starting off in N fiNescale I was still in the mode of thinking about rtr and trying to avoid re-wheeling, but as you rightly say I'll need to scratch-build if I do the Cambrian. I think I feel a 2FS layout coming on! Anyway, this is helping me to get my thoughts clear, so thank you.

 

Also looks like I need to be saving up for a Robocutter or Silhouette!!

 

Anyway, in danger of diverging from the intended topic, so I'll hand the thread back now.

 

Andrew.

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My layout Pentrefan, mentioned on page 2 of this thread, will be appearing at ExpoEM - which means that two weeks from right now I will be checking, re-checking and triple-checking everything while waiting for Mike Brough to arrive so we can load and depart.

 

A month or two ago I was happy to make jokes about being the lowest common denominator, there to make everyone else look good and demonstrate that EM was achievable even if you hadn't got much in the way of budget and even less in the way of talent.  Now, looking at the list of the great, the good and the legendary who will also be there, I cannot fail to appreciate just how low a denominator I am and the joke suddenly doesn't seem anything like as funny.  Am I, at 58, too old to wail "I want my mum!"?

 

What increases the pressure even more is realising the distances that people are intending to travel to the event.  The coasts of North Norfolk and West Wales have been mentioned as departure points.  North Devon and South Wales have also been mentioned (I assume they are going to rendezvous on Lundy and complete the journey together) and you know, you just know, that if the South Wales massive are going to be there, then so will The Oracle . . .  (Gulp!)

 

So if, in a couple of weekends time, you are in the Thames Valley area why not visit Bracknell Leisure Centre  and offer some much-needed moral support?  Once you've got over the disappointment of my layout there'll be lots there to inspire you.

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What increases the pressure even more is realising the distances that people are intending to travel to the event.  The coasts of North Norfolk and West Wales have been mentioned as departure points.  North Devon and South Wales have also been mentioned (I assume they are going to rendezvous on Lundy and complete the journey together) and you know, you just know, that if the South Wales massive are going to be there, then so will The Oracle . . .  (Gulp!)

 

You missed out West Cornwall.. and I shall be bringing 'The Oracle' with me too, from the border country, on Sunday.

Yes he will only be there for ONE day.  

His base camp will be at/on/under Ynsybwl.    Look forward to meeting you Mike.

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My layout Pentrefan, mentioned on page 2 of this thread, will be appearing at ExpoEM - which means that two weeks from right now I will be checking, re-checking and triple-checking everything while waiting for Mike Brough to arrive so we can load and depart.

 

A month or two ago I was happy to make jokes about being the lowest common denominator, there to make everyone else look good and demonstrate that EM was achievable even if you hadn't got much in the way of budget and even less in the way of talent.  Now, looking at the list of the great, the good and the legendary who will also be there, I cannot fail to appreciate just how low a denominator I am and the joke suddenly doesn't seem anything like as funny.  Am I, at 58, too old to wail "I want my mum!"?

 

What increases the pressure even more is realising the distances that people are intending to travel to the event.  The coasts of North Norfolk and West Wales have been mentioned as departure points.  North Devon and South Wales have also been mentioned (I assume they are going to rendezvous on Lundy and complete the journey together) and you know, you just know, that if the South Wales massive are going to be there, then so will The Oracle . . .  (Gulp!)

 

So if, in a couple of weekends time, you are in the Thames Valley area why not visit Bracknell Leisure Centre  and offer some much-needed moral support?  Once you've got over the disappointment of my layout there'll be lots there to inspire you.

 

Mike,

I will be putting the extra effort of travelling the enormous distance of.........................................

 

 

a fifteen minute walk, just to see your layout.  (Well, the traders as well to be honest.)  I have waited two years to see your layout I the flesh so I am not going to miss it.  I shall be there on Saturday, probably late morning once the queue has died down.  I am busy all Sunday as far as I remember so I will not be back on the second day.  So if you see a guy in a blue fleece, brown cords, (now how do I know what I will be wearing?  :) ) with greying brown hair then hide because it is likely to be me. 

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Sandy. Can you give me ten minutes notice of when you will be releasing him into the community?  That should give me enough time to take refuge in the bar so the unflappable Mike Brough can deal with his look of disappointment?

Chris.  Well . . .  Ditto, really!  But be careful, because if I'm there you might find a controller thrust into your hand! (Why should Mike and I suffer alone?)

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On a more serious note, for a while I've been uncomfortably aware that although the layout is supposed to be set at the Grouping, the majority of the rolling stock is pre-Grouping while most of the locos are post-Grouping.

To a certain extent that is absolutely correct because hardly anything got re-liveried immediately and repainting goods wagons came very low on the list of priorities (Somewhere on RMweb is a 1926 photo of a major goods yard somewhere in Lancashire where only one of the scores of wagons featured is in post-Grouping livery)  But, even so . . .

 

But what?

This is the advantage of modelling the early 20's.

No one is going to give an iron mink in GWR livery a second glance.  They certainly aren't going to look at it closely enough to notice that it isn't wearing OK axleboxes or Swindon buffers.  Paint it in Barry Railway livery, on the other hand, and they will notice it without bothering to even glance at the axleboxes or buffers.  The same could be said of the Taff Vale covered van and the Brecon and Merthyr open wagon kits I've got that I probably won't have time to build.  This, I keep reminding myself, is why I set the layout at the Grouping, before salving my conscience by painting some of my numerous Cambrian two-plank drop-sides in post-Grouping GWR grey.  It also belatedly occurs to me that one of Dragon's Cambrian covered vans is different enough to attract attention even in GWR grey and that it's one-piece resin body means it can probably be built in time for the show.

 

Things are a tad trickier on the loco front.

Years ago I built a Manning Wardle that has fought me tooth and nail ever since.  One minute it will perform prodigious feats of haulage, the next it will limp along like a drunk on crutches.  I tend to do battle with the thing for a few weeks before suppressing the urge to hurl it at the wall by putting it aside and walking away for a few months.  The latest few months ought to have ended some time ago, so I'm about to tackle the beast again, but it is quite definitely more in hope than expectation of being rewarded with success.

 

I have succeeded in building Lady Margaret, however, and she is quite definitely appropriate to the area and era.  Even so, she is still very new and hasn't had anything like enough running-in to settle down or iron out any teething troubles.  What doesn't help with this one is the growing suspicion that Halfords have changed the formula of their grey primer and that the latest version is even less brass-compatible than its predecessors.  Within days of being applied paint was starting to flake off and it seems to need little more than a hard look for even more areas of bare brass to appear.  I'm still tweaking pick-ups and experimenting with weight distribution so do not yet regard her as finished, but already she is looking like a scruffy old-stager in need of a refurb.

 

Then there's the Dean Goods.

No!  Let's ignore the Dean Goods for the time being.  Let me tinker with it for a while and report back.

 

If all else fails, I'll see you in Bracknell in a couple of weeks.

Edited by mike morley
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..... What doesn't help with this one is the growing suspicion that Halfords have changed the formula of their grey primer and that the latest version is even less brass-compatible than its predecessors.  

Fully agree with you on that on Mike, it's caused me a few problems too... 

See you soon then.......    :prankster:

 

BTW - The Manning Wardle, is this the K's one ?   If so I will bring mine on over, there wasn't a lot of clearance as I remember.

Edited by Penlan
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Mike don't do yourself down. Act modest listen to advice given (you can always ignore it when you get home and it avoids offending someone). Beware of things 'just finished for the show' they may not be fully tested. First time I took my 0 gauge layout to Guildex Bracks loaned me a scratchbuilt 633 and a coach as I was short of stock. My locos (all two) stuttered from time to time and played up but Alan's 633 was steadfast, One reliable loco is enough to keep something moving.

I haven't been to an EM gauge do since the Great Western Hotel days they were a good crowd then probably much the same today. Enjoy it.

Don

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The Manning Wardle is indeed the Peter K version.

 

It will run like a dream for a while (It's finest hour was out-hauling a quality-built Mallard 28xx 2-8-0 through some complex pointwork and up a gradient) before suddenly starting to exhibit what appear to be classic symptoms of slipped quartering.  Except it only does it when running in one direction.

You pick it up, examine it, find nothing obvious wrong and put it back on the track, whereupon it will

a) Resume running like a dream

b]Continue lurching along like a drunk on crutches in one direction.

c) Start lurching along like a drunk on crutches in the other direction.

d) Any combination of the above.

 

When I'd finally convinced myself it could not be the quartering I reasoned it had to be something catching somewhere.  The only obvious candidate were the pick-ups so I bent them clear of the wheels, one by one, without making the slightest difference.  Eventually desperation set in and I removed the pick-ups completely and ran the loco up and down my test track with a fly-lead trailing behind it.

Guess what?  It didn't make the slightest difference!

 

The pick-ups have now been tweaked, bent, altered, adjusted and butchered so many times they are beyond saving and as replacing them is not an easy job (The Manning Wardles are very low-slung and there is hardly any clearance twixt rail-tops and frame undersides in which to insert pick-ups) means it is at best 50/50 that they will get replaced in time for ExpoEM.  A further complication is that all the tweaking and fiddling has resulted in at least one, possibly two of the wheels suffering Gibson's "They all do that, mate" problem and dislodging its tyres.

Oh yes.  Having suffered Gibson's wobbly rims before, its already on its second set of wheels.

 

Where do I go from here?

Answers on a postcard . . .

 

Edited to wonder why three attempts at removing that emoji have all failed?

Edited by mike morley
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Steve Naylor put together a Dock Tank for me which ran superbly however at some point in a two day show it would stall. Pick it up look underneath replace it on the track and it was fine. Although the loco ran really well it was noisier than Steve liked so he swapped the motor for a small ABC motor gearbox. Next time out it didn't stall at all but at some point fetched the slide bars off on one side. We deduced that when all the tolerances aligned up in a particular way the coupling rod on the front wheel was catching the slide bar. With the old motor it would stall as soon as it was picked up something would move and the clearance was there. However with the ABC gearbox the high efficiency means extra torque so the slide bar gave way. You could have a problem somewhat similar maybe too much side play in the axles so it would be affected by which way you held it. Just a thought.

Don

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I've been compiling a "Things to do" list and a recurring theme quickly emerged.

 

1197

Front vacuum pipe

Front coupling

 

Lady Margaret

Fix cab roof

Rear coupling

 

Trojan

Re-install driver

Both couplings

 

Dean Goods

Fire irons

Front coupling

 

Planet

Cab windows

Both couplings

 

I cannot help but be reminded of Douglas Adams thoughts about missing ballpoint pens; that they make their way through miniature wormholes in space to a planet where they are able to follow a more biroid lifestyle.

Is there, somewhere, a planet where Smiths screw-link couplings go to enjoy a happy retirement?  Are they able to make the most of that lifestyle after leaving their coupling hooks behind, still attached to their donor loco?  Is there a coupling version of racism and, if so, how will the instanter coupling I've found missing from my Kerry road van fare in such an environment?

 

And, on a more prosaic note, which of the traders attending ExpoEM stock Smiths couplings?  Will any of them be willing to sell me some during set-up on Friday evening?  Who will mind my beer while I fit them?

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I've been compiling a "Things to do" list and a recurring theme quickly emerged.

 

1197

Front vacuum pipe

Front coupling

 

Lady Margaret

Fix cab roof

Rear coupling

 

Trojan

Re-install driver

Both couplings

 

Dean Goods

Fire irons

Front coupling

 

Planet

Cab windows

Both couplings

 

I cannot help but be reminded of Douglas Adams thoughts about missing ballpoint pens; that they make their way through miniature wormholes in space to a planet where they are able to follow a more biroid lifestyle.

Is there, somewhere, a planet where Smiths screw-link couplings go to enjoy a happy retirement?  Are they able to .  make the most of that lifestyle after leaving their coupling hooks behind, still attached to their donor loco?  Is there a coupling version of racism and, if so, how will the instanter coupling I've found missing from my Kerry road van fare in such an environment?

 

And, on a more prosaic note, which of the traders attending ExpoEM stock Smiths couplings?  Will any of them be willing to sell me some during set-up on Friday evening?  Who will mind my beer while I fit them?

 

Mike,

You may have to reserve them first.  I already have reserved two items.  It may take a while for me to find you as I will have bought out several traders.  So I will be the guy with the empty wallet and large bag of goodies.

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Edited to wonder why three attempts at removing that emoji have all failed?

Suggestion: use square brackets rather than round parentheses, i.e. B] instead of B).

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  • 5 months later...

Very good work indeed. I saw the layout at Wycrail on Saturday. The Jones goods loco was really looking the part. I love Cambrian layouts :-)

Hi,

 

Just thought I'd add Llangerisech to the list of Cambrian layouts. Although the location and track plan are fictional, most of the buildings are based on genuine Cambrian items. The layout is 2mm Finescale and we exhibit it in various eras. Most effort goes into the 1930s period with scratchbuilt Dukedog, Jones Goods and Mogul, although we devised a conversion chassis for the Ixion Manor too. I attach a few pictures, but more can be found on the Wealden Area Blog http://wealden.2mm.org.uk/wealden2mm/

 

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just found this topic as a new user on here, will post progress reports on my Welshpool station layout. so far the track is on the baseboards but not secured yet. 

 

Russell,

I will wait for this with interest.  What time period will you set it in?

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probably 1950s 60s to allow Gw and standard motive power, although when I grew up  the regulars included DMUs and class 24s. basing the plan on the 50s would give some flexibility to run it in most periods except post 1986, Also hoping to get the W&LLR station into it too. I have a plan to build the Earl or Countess. Ever since I was I school ive always wanted to base a layout on the Cambrian. Odd how all my rollingstock from then is Manors , moguls and suchlike. The Bachmann Dukedog was the latest addition and no doubt will be followed by more. the Oxford dean goods will fit in too alongside the old mainline colletts I have. Maybe need to order some etched chassis before they all fall apart.

Edited by russell price
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