Its a few days less than a year since we moved house. That anniversary was my deadline for have trains running again - and I've hit it with just a few days spare. The continuous run is fully laid out, wired and running.

Not only that but I have the junction station (Evenley) in place (the two halfs never got joined on MK1), the incline to it is built, ready for track laying (that never existed on MK1), a lifting flap has been built and I now have 10 storage loops instead of 6. Ok, I haven't wired the loops, fitted the point motors, built the diode matrices or control panel (the MK1 version cannot be used), but trains are running again. What is more, the layout is feasible, in a better location and with better baseboards.

So why a continuous run?

Many modelers run a mile from continuous runs, unless its a roundy roundy with through station and fiddleyard. In my case I like to see my models moving for a bit longer than just round 2 or 3 sides of the room from A to B. It is also useful for running in or testing. However, I can't abide seeing the same loco going through the same station time and time again. So my rationale is:-

- the circuit has to be through countryside only, no stations

- has to be level so trains can be left running

- is to be used to add time to a journey from A to B

- is to be mostly visible so I can see the trains running, but broken up by bridges etc to avoid the train set oval look

- is to have the largest radius curves I can get away with.

Most of my layout owes its design to Peter Denny, but this aspect was squarely nicked from the Gainsborough Model Railway, which originally had two continuous runs in its route from Kings Cross to Leeds. These days it only has one, but it is still effective in keeping trains running and buying the operators time.

For me, i will be able to watch my favourite trains roll by through countryside while indulging in a bit of shunting or whatever.

The wiring is DC common return, so there are just 3 bus wires running in a circle below the tracks. These are quite thick (24/0.2) to reduce voltage drop. Droppers are of thinner wire (7/0.2), soldered in the traditional fashion to the outside of the rail, but connected to the bus wires with scotch locks. Droppers are about every 2 yards. I rely on the fishplates for the rest of the connections. Time will tell, but it won't be hard to add more droppers if needs be. Its fine at present.

Common return means that the outer rails of both tracks are wired onto just one bus wire. This is connected to one terminal of each controller. Each inner rail has its own, discrete wire back to the other terminal of its own controller. So for each track one rail has its own wire, whilst the other rail shares a wire:the common return. I have no idea why the two controllers do not get confused, or how they can both work in opposite directions without problems, but they do. There are plenty of clever people on here and the wider web, who can explain. All I know is that it works and saves wire and bother.

At the lifting flap, the bus wires go down the legs across the door threshold and up the other side. The track feed droppers come over the hinge. The common return is treated differently. There is a length of track on each approach to the flap where the return rail (outer) is isolated. The return feed to each of these sections and for both tracks on the flap are connected through two small shoot bolts on the closing edge of the flap. If either of these are open, then the approach roads are dead. Hopefully this feature will never have to be used, but I couldn't bare the thought of a train taking the plunge.

Anyway, on with the construction....