Geep7

Here's a couple of pics of the layout from the show today. Hopefully will get a few more tomorrow.

Well the layout is all up and ready to go for the morning. Just a couple of minor things to sort first thing, including cleaning the Bachmann 08's wheels and pickups. Will definitely get some pix of layout and post them up tomorrow night....

Layout and stock is all packed up and ready to go to the REC Woking show. If you're in the area, come along and say hi. Blackhurst will be stand no.69 in the main hall. Fingers crossed all goes well, but i'm sure, as it's the first exhibition for the layout, that there are bound to be a few teething problems. Will post a few photo later on once the layout is all set up.

Well, the layout is pretty much ready for its first public appearance this weekend. Here is a panorama shot of the layout. And a few more closer up pics. And finally the obligatory bus on a bridge shot....

I've sort of settled on a date somewhere in the summer of '69 (nothing to do with the song).... mainly due to that is when all of my locos are known to be in the liveries they are in, but a couple of years either way won't hurt too much.

Great stuff, have been trying to get photographic evidence of coal traffic in to the 70s. I have got a some coal staithes on the front siding, and I was just going to use modellers licence to serve them with a couple of coal wagons and the staithes mostly empty, but I guess I can fill them up a bit now. I also have plans to add a loading dock onto what is now a headshunt on the run-round loop. But this will have to wait until after the Woking show.

Thank you for your comments Kevin. As regards the Oxted unit, I think Britannia Pacific used to make them ready-to-run. I say used to, as they are based on the DC-Kits kit, and i'm pretty sure Charlie has all but stopped making his kits, although he may have a few in stock still. Pity really, as i'd love to have an Oxted unit.

As promised here are a couple of pics of the weathered oil tankers. Have also managed to kadee and weather some other stock ready for the Woking show. The Heljan 33/1 had received a bit of light weathering to the underframe and roof only. D6511 only went blue in Apr '69, and as the layout is set roughly around Aug '69, I would imagine it would not be too dirty. There is now a cross-country rake of 4 Maroon / Blue & Grey mk1's hauled by a Green 47. The parcels / newspapers train is complete, formed of a Mk1 GUV in blue, 2 x Mk1 BG's, 1 in Blue and 1 in Blue & Grey, a Mk1 CCT in Blue and a Bogie 'B' still in Green. The 47 is still to be weathered, as is the green Hymek, which I think should be rather filthy. Which just leaves the 2-Hal and my 2H. The Hal underframe really needs pretty much a full repaint as it looks way too clean, and a bit if light weathering. However, i'm debating weathering my thumper.... being a special edition, does it pay to leave it as is? More updates soon......

Here's a close up pic of the platform starter signal. It's not 100% finished by a long shot, but it looks ok for now. However i'm debating whether to finish it, or go for an MSE kit.

Yep, they're exactly that, a mixture of older ones and some railroad ones. They're roughly based on the Class B tank pics on Paul Bartlett's excellent website: http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/brtclassbesso As for the transfers, the large white stars are from Fox and the rest from Railtec. I given them a good weathering since those pics and i've decided to forego putting the walkways and ladders back on, until I get hold of some etched brass ones. I'll upload a couple of close-up pics later.

Here are a few more photos, this time with trains in them! 2-Bil 2086 waits to depart from Platform 2 with a stopping service to Redhill JB E6029 shunts a Bogie 'B' 2H 1122 sits in platform 1, waiting to depart on a service to Guildford via Haslemere. A view across the layout towards the signalbox

I realised i've let this thread languish for a bit too long, but i've been frantically working on getting the layout ready for it's first exhibition at the REC's Woking show in just over a week.... So here's a few photos of where the layouts currently at. Still a few more details too add, along with some people and vehicles..... More photos and closer up shots will follow in the next few days.

Fantastic, that's exactly what I needed. Many thanks.

Hi, I was wondering if anyone knows when D7017 was repainted into Blue and/or Green FYE? Reason for asking is my layout is set in the Summer of 1969, and i'm adding Small Yellow End Panels to my Heljan D7017, and really want to avoid a renumbering job. Many thanks, Chris.

If I recall correctly, the 73/0 (JA) could not work in multiple with the 73/1 (JB) via the 27-way jumpers, only by the blue star (I think) mu system. This meant they could not multiple with an SR EMU either, including the TC's, but conversely, I think they could multiple via the high-level jumpers with the SR DEMU's.

Thanks for sharing that. Doesn't look too much different to the one at Caterham. A cut and shut on the kit wouldn't be too difficult as you say. My reason for making it up as stock is the impending exhibition deadline. I may replace it with a more prototype accurate model at a later date though.

The kit is based on a Saxby & Farmer signal box used on the Eastern region iirc, but there are plenty of similar looking boxes on the ex LSWR and LBSCR routes.

It's the Wills SS48 timber signal box kit, made up pretty much as per the instructions, with their interior detail kit inside. Still needs to be weathered, but i'll probably do that once it's attached to the layout permanently.

Ok, here are a couple of pics

It's been a couple of months since my last update, and in-between other things (job, family stuff, diy projects) i've been cracking on with getting the layout finished for it's first exhibition in September. I've had a list a mile long of things that need to get done, and i've been steadily working through them. So, the track has been finally ballasted and weathered. The one job I really love to hate on a layout actually turned out to be quite a pleasurable experience for once. For those interested in such things, I just used the usual method of laying the ballast dry, wetting it down with a spray of water with a couple of drops of washing up liquid, and then flooding the lot with dilute PVA and yet more washing up liquid. Once it had dried, i've sprayed the whole track with a coat of Humbrol no.29 (cheers Pete 75C). The supports have been made. Each boards has a pair of legs at one end, except the fiddle yard, which has two. The legs are made up of 34mm x 34mm softwood, and spaced apart on both sides by 34mm x 12mm softwood. Hopefully this should stop them twisting. I intend to fit adjustable feet to the bottom of the legs eventually, but for now i'm using the low tech solution of beer mats to level things up. Other things done are the fitting of the point motors, finishing off of the signal box and station building, and fitting of the level crossing. I've got the lighting gantry fitted, and temporarily added some LED kitchen unit strip lights, but I think i'm going to go back to proper tubes, as the light i'm getting for the LED's isn't even enough for my liking. I've also slightly altered the trackplan by removing the point on the goods sidings at the front by the bridge. This is now a single siding, serving a small fuel oil depot. As a consequence of this i've moved the signal box back to where it was originally intended to go against the retaining wall at the back of the layout. I'm really happy with this, as it's broken up, what would have been about 5 feet of wall and embankment. On the stock front, i've started work on detailing up some Hornby TTA tanks to serve the oil depot, finally renumbered my Class 73 and set about completing my 4-TC set (I really should finish it before the Kernow/Bachmann one arrives) Photos to follow later today.....

Thanks. You know I read that whole 1st post, and completely missed that bit.

Also to add more about where they ran, I believe a 3-TC (maybe even a 4-TC?) was booked on the Reading - Redhill line in the very late 60's / early 70's for a peak hour working.

Sound option, the same as any other SR EMU, just no traction motor sounds, so EP compressor, horn, brakes... but not much else....

Just a thought. Will the all blue version have etched silver BR arrows?

Yep, both Driving Trailers are identical....