Glen Loch 1980's Scotrail Branchline.

[Simon Moore]

So firstly let me set you the scene,

It's Late October 1959 the leaves are falling from the trees & winter is just around the corner, Farmers are still busy sending Cattle here, there & everywhere by rail. The Quarry at Helwith Bridge is enjoying using the railhead it has gained from this little backwater branch in the Yorkshire Dales & the railway is thriving with everyday life.

Austwick is a little village situated between Settle & Clapham in the heart of the dales & it is the location of my fictional rural branch. I've had many false starts when ti comes to layout building & i did wonder if i would ever get one off the drawing board as it was. I've had plenty of time to gain inspiration for something & i've amassed a good collection of models over the years to construct something.

Apart from spending a huge amount of time in the Dales i gained a large amount of inspiration from a book i must have read 10 times. The book is called '' Ganger, Guard & Signalman '' It's a personal account by a man called Dick Fawcett. The books painted a very vivid picture of the railway within the area i plan on modeling.

Quite sometime ago i purchased a book off this very forum by Iain Rice called '' Finescale layouts in small spaces '' This book had some fantastic plans & i decided to go with the plan for Elan.
The Elan layout plan is a very basic layout with a slip & 2 points built within 6ft 6inch x 18inch. My version has been altered to suit my tastes & also give the layout a little more scope for the trains i wish to run.

I penned in today as a workshop day, first job get the speedway bike ready for practice tomorrow & build the baseboard for the layout. It's been a great day i have managed to get plenty done & get both projects finished off & even get some track down.

Below are some photos of todays progress & some bits & pieces laid on the board to mock up how it's going to look.

Firstly the large piece of PCB that is for the cassette system i am going to be using.



Second up is a view of the bay platform track that is freshly laid



Next up a selection of views around the layout showing the station & goods yard areas





A Fairburn prepares to leave Austwick with a stopper to Skipton





Thats all for now its bedtime early start tomorrow but i'm aiming on getting all the trackwork done within the next week.

Cheers

Simon

[Worsdell forever]

Great work Simon. The tapes are up and you're already round the first bend, lets hope it's 'no brakes' all the way to a 5-1 finish...

 

I really like stations with curved platforms and I wish I could have fitted a bay platform on to Felton Lane like you have but you have a bit more room it seems.

 

Looking forward to seeing this progress.

[Simon Moore]

Thanks Paul let's hope it is a 5-1

 

I was hoping by making curved platforms it would give me just that little bit more room to run realistic trains. The baseboard is only 6ft 6inch x 2ft in it's entirety so trying to squeeze as much out of the space as possible is vital with something so small.

 

Simon

[Mike Bellamy]

Austwick - I couldn't believe it when I saw that - the location for my first Scout camp about 45 years ago. Poured with rain and the site was under water and so we spent two or three nights in a farmer's barn instead - eventually the water level went down and the sun came out but I can't remember much else that happend that week!

 

Good luck with the new layout

 

Mike

[A1X]

this looks like a good layout in the making

but isn't your fiddleyard a bit short ?

[Simon Moore]

 

Good luck with the new layout

 

Mike

 

Cheers Mike, weathers still as bad as when you were at your scout camp all those years ago. The fields behind Settle Junction box flood every single year

 

this looks like a good layout in the making

but isn't your fiddleyard a bit short ?

 

I was wondering when someone was going to bring up the fiddle yard section i'll try to explain.

 

Before i went ahead with the build i mocked up the trackwork & various other bits & bobs on the kitchen lino to get a few measurements & check everything fit. The original design had a sector plate where my cut out is but it restricted the size of the trains you could run. You would get an 0-6-0 tank & a couple of coaches etc which wouldnt be any good for me. My idea is that the cut out is to be filled below using the off cut from when i chopped it out. Bsically my idea is to have a selection of cassettes which will all just rest on the board, i've test this out already & it will work. Its nt the best way of doing things but again i am trying to squeeze as much out of the space i have & give me the fredom to run trains i want to run. The biggest loco on my layout will be an 8F & a small rake of wagons. It's hard trying to fit so much into such a small space.

 

Simon

[Simon Moore]

Today i've made real progress with the layout & got a good percentage of the track down on the board. I took a trip up to my local model shop this afternoon & traded in some ideas & got myself some new bits & pieces for the layout.

 

I've got more or less everything building wise now to complete the main body of the layout although i want to detail each area with some cameo scenes. Today i picked up an oxford minature soft top land rover which is a local farmers. I also picked up 2 packets of cows & 1 of sheep to go with the Ratio cattle dock i got. Thats some bits to work on in the near future but anyway here are some snaps of my progress today.

 

This photo is showing the trackwork i have laid today i am very happy with everything & got further than i thought i would.

 

 

This is how i intend my cassettes to work in the fiddle area.

 

 

Couldn't resist a shot of my new loco & stock i got today.

 

 

Tomorrow i plan to get the rest of the trackwork down & maybe get a train to run. I've to lay the yard sidings but i cannot fully finish it until my good shed kit arrives because i need to see how big it is overall.

 

More tomorrow

 

 

Simon

[Worsdell forever]

Just make sure that cassette is well secured, that heavy 25 at the end of it...

[Simon Moore]

Paul i have this covered ( i think )

 

Basically the idea is to use a door bolt cut down which will hopefully give electrical contact & keep my lovely locos from taking a 4ft plunge. There is also going to be metal wire each end of the cassette once there put together to stop run away trains going to far.

 

Simon

[Simon Moore]

Well tonight once my hands & feet had defrosted i did the final bit of track laying in the yard area. I'm happy to say the whole of the trackwork is complete & ahead of time too which is a bonus. I've ammassed a large collection of model railway items over he past god knows how long in various scales & eras countries etc. So now i have a real layout for something to operate i have decided to thin my collection to just 60's steam OO gauge. I traded in today the n gauge items i had & got myself some decoders & a Bachmann 3F along with a few scenic items that will come in use in the detailing stages.

It's been another really long day & i have not had time to take any photos of the progress but i will have some up tomorrow. Tomorrow my aim is to fit the DCC droppers & solder them to the track & run my first train to test all the points & joints on the layout & hopefully everything will be fine because it's a bit late now i have glued all the track down. The coach push test seemed smooth & no derailments.

 

Thats all for now

 

Simon

[Simon Moore]

Time for an update....

 

Although not much has been done things are afoot, I've finished off laying the trackwork & had planned on doing the droppers before weekend & the wiring etc finishing off today. Basically its not happened i decided to start on some kits instead.

 

 

 

 

General views of the layout above

 

New visitor arrives from Barrow

 

 

Lastly a few views of the cattle dock base & the goods shed.

 

 

 

 

I'm planning on painting & weathering the base of the dock & the good shed tomorrow all being well.

 

Cheers

 

Simon

[Ramblin Rich]

Hi this looks like it's going to be rather good I can't see in your posts any mention of the plain track work, obviously not Peco - what have you used?

[TheFonz1]

Well it looks like your'e not hanging around building this! Looks a smashing little project.

[Simon Moore]

Hi this looks like it's going to be rather good I can't see in your posts any mention of the plain track work, obviously not Peco - what have you used?

 

The trackwork is peco code 75 for pointwork & SMP code 75 flexi i've wanted to finescale model i've tried various gauges & i think this is my set now. I'm not keen on the over complex HO track peco do but using just the points is acceptable for me now i am happy with this mix it works it looks good & it isn't time consuming building scale turnouts.

 

 

Well it looks like your'e not hanging around building this! Looks a smashing little project.

 

Thanks Fonz

 

I am enjoying the project i must admit i am trying to figure out how to make a running timetable at the moment to give each loco, wagon & carriage a proper purpose.

 

Cheers

 

Simon

[MRDBLUE17]

Hi Simon,

 

Just came across your layout tonight - the mention of my hometown caught my attention! Great progress so far and I like your nice flowing track plan as it looks interesting and also realistic in a small space. Still looks like you have a lot of operational potential especially with all the shunting you can do. I also saw your mention of speedway - we use to go and watch Poole pirates during school holidays back in the 90's it is always a great night out to go and watch!

 

I shall enjoy watching your layout develop.

 

Thanks,

Mark

[Simon Moore]

This weekend has been a really good weekend for me i have managed to get plenty of work done on the layout. Firstly i got the kits needed to finish the layout off started & there not far off complete. Tomorrow i have a appointment at hospital so i am going to get the primer on the goods shed & the cattle dock base. I plan to brush paint these & then pick out random stones etc with dry brushing techniques.

 

It's taken me a while to figure out how i am going to keep my electrics tidy. The electrical side of model railways has never been my strong point i'm not a fan of wires etc but it is all part of railway modeling & it needs to be done. I've done my DCC dropper wires today & decided to go down the copper tape route it's a new thing for me but i want my wires to be neat & tidy & with as little as possible dangling under the layout. It's taken over a week to get it in my head how to do this but i am confident it should come off perfect first time. I'm going to do a DCC bus out of tape & once everything is soldered & running i am going to use a varnish to seal the tape to the wood so nothing comes unstuck & it stays in place.

 

As long as everything goes to plan i can get the rest done within the next week hopefully the majority of it next sunday because the family are all out & i am home resting after the nightshift.

 

Simon

[Simon Moore]

Hi Simon,

 

Just came across your layout tonight - the mention of my hometown caught my attention! Great progress so far and I like your nice flowing track plan as it looks interesting and also realistic in a small space. Still looks like you have a lot of operational potential especially with all the shunting you can do. I also saw your mention of speedway - we use to go and watch Poole pirates during school holidays back in the 90's it is always a great night out to go and watch!

 

I shall enjoy watching your layout develop.

 

Thanks,

Mark

 

 

Thanks Mark i also think with all the shunting it will be fun to operate thats part of the reason for the build although i am still to figure out a working timetable.

 

Pooles a great track, Elite league racing isnt my bag i prefer premier league racing. I am a mechanic for a German rider but i also ride myself.

 

Simon

[Simon Moore]

Infact a few more shots Jubilees at Austwick

 

Hong Kong about to leave with a stopper to Bradford Fosters Square.

 

 

 

The local Fairburn tank shunts the goods yard in preparation for it's return down to Hellifield.

 

 

 

 

Cheers

 

Simon

[Simon Moore]

Today has been one of those days where i cannot sleep after the first day on the nightshift which is a real pain in the backside because i know by wednesday i'll be like the walking dead. Although i am not 100% i can still do some tasks to the layout & try my best to fit in what i can when i can so to speak.

 

Yesterday i put on a basecoat of stone on the goods shed & then realised that i had put the wrong color on first. Because the Hornby station building is pre painted i want to try & make the rest of the builds match the paintjob so it doesn't look unrealistic. What i had done was lay down a dark color on the model first when i should have put on a light coat. What i am trying to achieve is getting the mortar into the courses on the brickwork & i didn't really think about this beforehand i was just going to pick out random stones & build it up that way.

 

What i did was try to do the wax on wax off trick with paint & try to get it to sit in the joints but it didn't work so i decided the best thing would be to give it a coat of off white color. My new plan is to simply dry brush or semi dry brush the stonework now with the original stone color to give me the color of the stone but also give me the mortar in the joints so it gives the building more depth & will resemble the station paintwork too. I'll upload some photos of the building later on if i have time.

 

The copper tape i have ordered for the DCC bus should arrive tomorrow so i am hoping to get that onto the boards & solder everything up so i can run a train around the whole of the layout & do the first goods yard shunt. With a saturday morning finish this week i am planning on doing the point motors whilst no one is about & then the whole layout will be wired up & finished then i can get on with some scenic work because wiring isn't something i enjoy i'd sooner paint rails & ballast.

 

Simon

[Worsdell forever]

Hi Simon, don't know if you've seen this, http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/4463-felton-lane-goods-west-durham-in-the-1940s/page__view__findpost__p__54933 It's my method of painting stone.

 

Layout's looking good. B)

[Simon Moore]

Thanks Paul i'll take a look at the link now.

 

Simon

[Simon Moore]

Firstly thanks to Paul Gallon for him pointing me in the direction of his stone weathering techniques. I followed it more or less to a tee & i think the photos of the goods shed below speak for themselves. The stone work is now fully matching the Hornby Skaledale buildings & i am really happy with the finish so far i think they all look great.

 

I've still to weather the roof of the building & again i've layed down a light color & i am going to try something out along the stone weathering lines. All being well the idea i have will pull off & the building will pave the way for the roof weathering on the rest of the buildings.

 

 

 

 

as the goods shed building shell comes close to being finished there is something that is niggling me & that is the final details. I've still to fit the drainpipes & the doors & i am unsure of what color to paint them. The drainpipes & gutters i was going to do black but the doors i am still gazumped by. Today has been one of those trawl the internet days to find some color evidence of goods shed doors on the S&C. The problem is everything is black & white so could anyone help me with the correct color to paint an ex midland good shed door.

 

Nothing much on the layout front because the copper tape didn't arrive. I'm rather glad it didn't in a way because it has given me time today to take a good look under the baseboard & decide where my bus wires are going & where there going to end up so.

 

After a successful first Ebay sale i used the proceeds to purchase the only Derby Lightweight i could find. It was full RRP but i am happy i have one that being the only missing link to the stock of the layout.

 

Cheers

 

Simon

[Russ (mines a pint)]

Just picked up on this one, very nice!

 

-you will be making me homesick for the dales. The fiddleyard should work ok- it goes without saying that at least half of the mass of the train needs to be in the supported section, using bacchy locos a 2'6 section balanced but a 3 foot didnt which is why I rarely used the 3 foot cassette. Think you will be ok with the train lengths you have in the photos.

 

Will follow with interest.

[Simon Moore]

Cheers Russ,

 

I've had the cassettes on my mind all this week & how i can keep them where i want them. Working the nightshift gives me plenty of time to plan how to do things & get a very good picture in my mind before i start anything.

 

Yesterday afternoon i checked the post behind the door to find a nice package with the copper tape so i spent a good portion of the afternoon getting the DCC bus sorted. All the wires have been soldered now & everything is looking good. Having done the bus i had to run a train & did test the layout. The Co Bo ran perfectly at super slow speeds all over the layout without a hiccup but the Fairburn doesn't like one part of the slip. The Fairburn seems to stall going 1 way only on 1 frog of the slip & unless it is going a bit it will not clear without stopping. I'm going to do some more tests over the weekend using some other steam locos because the diesels don't bother about it.

 

The goods shed is also coming along nicely i've managed to now fully finish the roof picking out individual slates to give depth & also i have got the brick arch courses paint & fitted the windows. All i have to do to finish off the goods shed now is paint & fit the drainpipes & doors but i've not got the correct color of paints to do this i shall be getting all this after i've had some sleep i've just finished the last nightshift of the year

 

Later today i am going to finish off the electrical side of things. I plan to wire up the point motors & also get them fitted to the baseboard & before weekend has finished i want the whole of the baseboard finished with extra supports fitted, all the wiring done & have the cassettes built up so i can have a operating session either sunday night or monday morning, it'll be the icing on the cake if my box of new locos & stock turns up from rails.

 

Simon.

[Simon Moore]

Well firstly it is time to put my feet up & enjoy this can of Worthy's i'm cream crackered.

 

Basically today i've managed to get a fair bit done on the layout not as much as i would have hoped but all the main cassettes are finished & ready for track. I've picked up some brass tube & bar to make the cassettes stay in place when being linked to the layout. Before i sleep tonight i plan on getting at least one of the cassettes fully functional so i can see if my design works correctly.

 

I must admit this morning when i was planning my way of making the cassettes which are done completely with 9mm ply i was worried it wouldn't work out & the ply would split. Happily i've managed to build 5 cassettes & they are all very strong & sturdy so far so good.

I'm hoping to solder some bar & tube to the copperclad on the baseboard edge & some on the cassette so it keeps the cassette in position, gives electrical contact & stops my beloved locos from taking an unsuspecting plunge of the end of the layout.

 

I'm documenting the build with photos i will post once i have one running.

 

Simon