more-kits Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 Hello, Wondering if some of you knowledgeable gents would help me a bit. I've always modelled British Railways but more nowadays I'm finding myself quite drawn to the idea of doing some foreign. Over the years Ive visited France, Portugal, Germany and Italy but theres something about the French system that attracts me so naturally, I would like to get on with some French railway modelling. The only problem, in total honesty, is that I haven't got a clue about anything about French Railways. I have a nice Acho set with a BB16 electric (think that's right?) but I would love to do a layout. I have room for a small HO layout and a board from san abandoned n gauge project of 5x1 ready to use. Thinking along the lines of a small inglenook with station. Something rural and simple. I love the look of the Picasso and Bugatti railcars. No idea what period that puts me in! Cheers all David. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kintbury jon Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Have a look at the second and third photo on this thread: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/81253-sncf-society-winter-rendezvous/ It shows Tim Hill's excellent layout La Planche Port. I had the pleasure of assisting with operations at the Eurotrack show and had plenty of fun with it. I think it's about 5' long and the track area is about 1' wide so might be a good one to look at. Certainly for me, it's got wanting to do something similar myself thoughi'm having a look to see what I can fit on a 4' by 1' board. There are some nice French locos out there and they don't have to be expensive. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Andy Hayter Posted February 26, 2014 RMweb Premium Share Posted February 26, 2014 Hello, I love the look of the Picasso and Bugatti railcars. No idea what period that puts me in! Cheers all David. Hi David The Picassos started life in 1950 and ran until the 90s. There are still several in preservation, so you could perhaps base your layout around that. The Bugattis (and there were quite a lot of different designs) started in 1934 and the last was withdrawn from service in 1958 - which incidentally was the date of installation of the first BB 16000 - which I assume is your AcHo model. For further inspiration you could try and get hold of a few copies of the French model magazines - RMF, Le Train or Loco Revue. Even if you cannot read French, pictures tell a lot. Don't be afraid to ask questions. There is a lot of experience on the board. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
141 C 78 Posted February 27, 2014 Share Posted February 27, 2014 Hallo, Starting with something small sizewise sounds like a good idea. But something you can easily extend at a later stage if you have the time, space, urge... You might want to decide early whether you want to build a steam- or post-steam era layout - could make a difference in terms of trackplan, buildings, etc. Also, think of whether you want to go down the "Voie Normale Secondaire" (VNS) road (akin to UK standard gauge light railways), i.e. a railway not operated by SNCF (more freedom when it comes to motive power and rolling stock, lightweight rail, meaning NOT code 100!), or model an SNCF line. Take a look at the LR PResse forum, either the Loco-Revue section or the Décor part. There are some nice projects being discussed there. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.