Woodsville NH

[5050]

Along with 2 friends I am currently involved in the construction of a new layout based on the old B&M station at Woodsville New Hampshire.  As the other 2 builders, Bob and Geoff, had already built the baseboards, laid the track (PECO Code 83) and wired it up for DCC, I volunteered to make the main railway structures and assist in the scenic work.  Bob is providing the stock and Geoff is carpenter-in-chief, painter etc.

 

There is plenty of information about the real Woodsville available on-line, suffice it to say that our layout is based on the station with adaptations and additions to save space and allow for more operational interest.  Personally I'm still not absolutely sure about the eventual operation but when I do, I'll let you know!

 

We are already booked for Halifax and Wakefield shows later in the year so need to make progress!

 

Here are some shots of how it looked this morning when we set up the front boards in Geoff's garage to view overall progress and make some decisions on how to tackle the scenic requirements.

 

1 - view down the length of the layout (approx. 16').  Nearest building is a (non-prototypical) woodchip plant for extra operational interest.

2 - from the other end.  Blank rectangle is the site of a (again non-prototypical) dairy.

3 - the REA Depot I built, working from photographs.

4 - the main depot building (which is still in existence but modified) still under construction.

5 - another general view with some of the test stock.

 

As we progress - I'll be back!

 

[garethashenden]

Always nice to see B&M layouts.

[CVSNE]

Reminds me of Paul Dolkos old layout.

 

What are you using for the shingle material on the station walls? I think Paul ended up using something he sourced from the UK, but it may have been Holgate & Reynolds.

 

Marty

[Andy Reichert]

 

I don't think this apprent "kink" is camera distortion. Might want to have the track person check that out for min radius. Could save a lot of giref later on if it is real.

 

Andy

Edited April 30, 2014 by Andy Reichert

[Northpoint]

We are already booked for Halifax and Wakefield shows later in the year so need to make progress!

 

Dare we hope that it might come to TVNAM next year?

[5050]

 

I don't think this apprent "kink" is camera distortion. Might want to have the track person check that out for min radius. Could save a lot of giref later on if it is real.

 

Andy

It's fine.

 

No grief will be experienced.

 

If there was any grief to be had then it would already have been experienced.

 

But thanks for pointing it out..................

[5050]

Reminds me of Paul Dolkos old layout.

 

What are you using for the shingle material on the station walls? I think Paul ended up using something he sourced from the UK, but it may have been Holgate & Reynolds.

 

Marty

I'm using Ratio N Scale roofing tiles.  Still a little bit large and a bit regular but once they're painted I'm sure they'll be OK.  Paul's shingles are very large in comparison.

[5050]

Dare we hope that it might come to TVNAM next year?

We can discuss it on the day this year.  The 3 of us will be there.

[Northpoint]

Will look forward to it.

[Oldddudders]

Great to see a slightly more "period" HO USA layout. Most such models on here are modern by comparison. Buildings look lovely, but if you wanted a Branchline Trains dairy and ice house, already built and doing nothing useful here, they could be yours.

[5050]

Great to see a slightly more "period" HO USA layout. Most such models on here are modern by comparison. Buildings look lovely, but if you wanted a Branchline Trains dairy and ice house, already built and doing nothing useful here, they could be yours.

Thanks, datewise it's going to be early 50's-ish.  Mostly 1st generation diesels but Bob also has some B&M steam locos which will hopefully be given an airing as well.  Most of the locos will be B&M but there is an opportunity for a CP E8 for through passenger working, Budd RDC for the Berlin branch workings and a Barre and Chelsea RR GE 70 tonner on interchange connections.

 

The dairy building (built by Bob, not me) is 90% complete already but thanks for the offer.

[doctor quinn]

It sounds like a Norman Rockwell painting made 3d - nice!

[highpeak]

Thanks, datewise it's going to be early 50's-ish.  Mostly 1st generation diesels but Bob also has some B&M steam locos which will hopefully be given an airing as well.  Most of the locos will be B&M but there is an opportunity for a CP E8 for through passenger working, Budd RDC for the Berlin branch workings and a Barre and Chelsea RR GE 70 tonner on interchange connections.

 

The dairy building (built by Bob, not me) is 90% complete already but thanks for the offer.

Excellent choice of period. There were a lot of fascinating operations all over the North country with plenty of pool services and cooperative workings. Those CP E8s were very attractive engines, that paint scheme really suited them.

I saw a picture in the book on Northern New England passenger trains book that the B&M wasn't above using the CP engines on a fill-in turn on the Sundays only milk train that picked up milk cars off the Beecher Falls branch at Lancaster, normally that traffic went on the MEC via Portland but the St Johnsbury-Portland train didn't run on Sundays. There probably is a prototype for just about everything in Northern NH/VT.

I think you have a winner there.

[Alcanman]

Great looking layout. Looks like you will have your work cut out to finish the layout in time for the exhibitions.

 

Look forward to seeing your progress.

 

The F- unit on your pic reminded me of this.

 

 

Mal

 

 

 

 

[mog]

nice. Hopefully see this at Wakefield. I agree - it's nice to see something a little earlier too.

[5050]

Great looking layout. Looks like you will have your work cut out to finish the layout in time for the exhibitions.

 

Oh ye of little faith.............................

 

Working on some element of it is all I seem to be doing at the moment!

 

Thanks for the complement though

[Mike Boucher]

Woodsville is a great choice for a layout.  I'm looking forward to seeing the progress.

How many woodchip hoppers are you getting?  I started kitbashing 4 of them in N, even had custom decals made, and then Bluford shops announced theirs.  Still might finish mine...

[5050]

Some more work has been done and it seems we are (slowly) 'getting there'.  Main jobs currently are trees (mainly to disguise the exits to the fiddle yard), timber bridge, positioning buildings correctly (and finishing them! - especially the main depot), ground cover and blending ground cover colourings.  The vast majority of the open areas have been 'grassed' with 'grass mat' to give a base for the eventual detailed work.

 

The Woodchip Plant is fixed in place -

Depot building has progressed - it now has a roof -

The Dairy is attached and the Houses are positioned -

 

[GTi]

Geoff (GTi) has been busy making a load of switchstands for the pointwork, using some of the photos we have for inspiration.  The bodies are turned from brass rod with wire shafts and handles and thin sheet brass targets which will be painted either Red or Yellow depending on whether they are on the main or in the yard.  The bases are various thicknesses of styrene.  Please also note that they are non-working.

 

They are also now painted - photos to follow!

 

[Simon Moore]

This is looking great. I've been awaiting an update on the layout.

 

What's the total size of the layout?

[5050]

This is looking great. I've been awaiting an update on the layout.

 

What's the total size of the layout?

It's approx. 16' x 8' with a central operating well.  We generally have a couple of 'hands on' sessions with the layout during the week but each of us tends to be working on something related to the layout on the other modelling days.  Today Bob brought a list of the stock required to operate a typical list of daily prototype trains.  He is currently servicing all his locos etc. to ensure they are all working correctly.

 

The scenic side is moving on and there will soon be some more photos showing developments.

Edited June 24, 2014 by 5050

[5050]

My 'homework' the past week has been involved with the Train Order Signal that hangs from the station depot canopy.  It is slightly unusual in that, although a 2 arm version, both the arms face the same direction.  The left one was for the Berlin Branch and the right one for the continuation of the main line.  We don't think they were used very often, especially in later years and, so far, no photos have appeared with them raised.  Thanks to some good close-up photos I've found on the net I've been able to determine the shape of the spectacles and related balance weight and made the overall representation from 20 thou brass and  3 x 12BA and 1 x 14BA washers.  An interesting excercise for my rusty soldering techniques!

 

The overall rough shapes were cut from sheet brass with a piercing saw and soldered together.  The centres for the spectacles, balance weight, operating wire and pivot point were marked and drilled.  The 3 spectacle holes were then reamed out to be a close fit on some panel pins (themselves a close-ish fit in the 12 BA washers) which were tapped into a piece of wood through the holes and the heads snipped off.  The 2 arms were separated and cleaned up and individually placed over the headless pin 'jig' and the washers sweated on.  These holes were then reamed out to a suitable size for the 'glass'.  The balance weight and pivot point holes were left at 0.5mm to clear Peco Pins.  For the balance weight the pins (proper brass ones!) were superglued in and the excess removed from the rear.  The head was then filed flush with the face of its surrounding washer 'frame'.  The pivot point used the 14BA washer and the head of the pivot pin was reduced in diameter by filing.

 

The posts are Evergreen 80 thou square with various small pieces of 10thou for reinforcing plates etc.  The strengthening rods are Slater's plastic rodding.   Along with added small plastic rod cubes to represent the threaded outer ends of the rods, these give a slightly more interesting 'feel' to the otherwise plain posts.  When fully finished there will be a continuation of the lower angled rod that goes 'through' the canopy to brace against the main support post below.  Lamps attached (I think correctly) to the tops of the posts are suitable diameter sprue with caps from 'mushroomed' Slater's rod and microstrip lenses.

 

I have also made a couple of angle cranks to represent the operating system which will be fitted with fine wire - but not with the intention of having them working please note!

 

First, a real B&M Train Order Signal arm.

 

Now my parts.

 

And in position - but not finished!

[CVSNE]

Very nice job scratchbuilding something as delicate and complicated as a lower quadrant train order board!

Are you going to be adding the other boards? (they may have been gone from the prototype at the time you're modeling, I'm not sure)

 

Marty

Edited June 26, 2014 by CVSNE

[Andy Reichert]

My 'homework' the past week has been involved with the Train Order Signal that hangs from the station depot canopy.  It is slightly unusual in that, although a 2 arm version, both the arms face the same direction.  The left one was for the Berlin Branch and the right one for the continuation of the main line.  We don't think they were used very often, especially in later years and, so far, no photos have appeared with them raised.  Thanks to some good close-up photos I've found on the net I've been able to determine the shape of the spectacles and related balance weight and made the overall representation from 20 thou brass and  3 x 12BA and 1 x 14BA washers.  An interesting excercise for my rusty soldering techniques!

 

The overall rough shapes were cut from sheet brass with a piercing saw and soldered together.  The centres for the spectacles, balance weight, operating wire and pivot point were marked and drilled.  The 3 spectacle holes were then reamed out to be a close fit on some panel pins (themselves a close-ish fit in the 12 BA washers) which were tapped into a piece of wood through the holes and the heads snipped off.  The 2 arms were separated and cleaned up and individually placed over the headless pin 'jig' and the washers sweated on.  These holes were then reamed out to a suitable size for the 'glass'.  The balance weight and pivot point holes were left at 0.5mm to clear Peco Pins.  For the balance weight the pins (proper brass ones!) were superglued in and the excess removed from the rear.  The head was then filed flush with the face of its surrounding washer 'frame'.  The pivot point used the 14BA washer and the head of the pivot pin was reduced in diameter by filing.

 

The posts are Evergreen 80 thou square with various small pieces of 10thou for reinforcing plates etc.  The strengthening rods are Slater's plastic rodding.   Along with added small plastic rod cubes to represent the threaded outer ends of the rods, these give a slightly more interesting 'feel' to the otherwise plain posts.  When fully finished there will be a continuation of the lower angled rod that goes 'through' the canopy to brace against the main support post below.  Lamps attached (I think correctly) to the tops of the posts are suitable diameter sprue with caps from 'mushroomed' Slater's rod and microstrip lenses.

 

I have also made a couple of angle cranks to represent the operating system which will be fitted with fine wire - but not with the intention of having them working please note!

 

First, a real B&M Train Order Signal arm.

B&M TO Signal top.jpg

 

Now my parts.

Train Order Signal Parts.1.A.jpg

 

And in position - but not finished!

Train Order Signal .1.A.jpg

 

Magnificent work! I have several pix of the local SP (Oceano) preserved trainboard and rods if they would be of help.

 

Andy

[Andy Reichert]

Geoff (GTi) has been busy making a load of switchstands for the pointwork, using some of the photos we have for inspiration.  The bodies are turned from brass rod with wire shafts and handles and thin sheet brass targets which will be painted either Red or Yellow depending on whether they are on the main or in the yard.  The bases are various thicknesses of styrene.  Please also note that they are non-working.

 

They are also now painted - photos to follow!

 

DSCN0487.JPG

I'd love to see a photo of the prototype of these type of switch stands. I can't find any here in my west coast area.

 

Andy