Dungrange

I agree, it looks a bit like some of the Brio layouts I created with the kids that were designed to make best use of the pieces that we had. I really want a straight, but we have none left, so lets just use the last point or put in a couple of curves to make a reverse curve. The kids at age four didn't mind as they knew noting about real railways, but I'm presuming that the OP isn't four years old.

Well, looking at the OS maps, there are points that perform a trap function shown at many locations, but it may be that these are the full point type where the trap leads to either a buffer stop or sand drag. I would however expect a trap point at the north end of the station at Long Sutton (on the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway), but nothing is shown on the OS map at this location - https://maps.nls.uk/view/114654108. It is possible that one wasn't provided in reality because of the gradient, but it may also indicate that the cartographer didn't show trap points when they didn't extend as far as the common crossing. The diagrams in Peter Paye's book seem to align with the OS maps, so for example a trap is shown at the Wisbech Harbour Junction, but I haven't seen a photograph to show what that looked like in reality. That would seem to align with the example at Long Sutton - ie true trap points (ie the single or double blade types that don't extend past the common crossing) aren't shown. Therefore, their absence on the W&U isn't evidence that they didn't exist. However, it seem that the consensus is that they weren't required / provided. I just don't want to build a model based on the W&U and then someone ask me why there is no trap point.

Well, I don't think much of it. It only looks as though you could shuttle two car multiple units or single locomotives between the various terminal roads. The critical ones to the left can't hold anything longer than a 600 mm (2ft) train. Some of the random sidings aren't even long enough to hold any from of multiple unit, so it's difficult to see what their purpose is. There is no ability to run round, so locomotive hauled trains aren't an option. There is also a few locations where proper track centres haven't been maintained (particularly the reverse curves at the bottom), so it is likely that opposing movements on adjacent lines will result in whatever rolling stock you intend running to come into contact with whatever is on the other line. There is no indication of baseboard sizes and access, but I'd guess that if you were to try to build it, the middle part of the layout may be hard to get at for track cleaning and sorting derailments. Does it achieve what you want it to achieve? What are your priorities?

I think the answer to this is no, but I just want to check that no-one knows differently. Looking at 25 inch Ordnance Survey maps (for example, https://maps.nls.uk/view/114484330, which was published in 1906) seems to suggest that there were no trap points separating the goods facilities from the passenger line. Of course that could just mean that the surveyor didn't include them in the map, so I can't take that as definitive evidence, even if it suggestive that there never was. Similarly, there are track plans in Peter Paye's book 'The Wisbech and Upwell Tramway', published by The Oakwood Press (2009). Again, none of these diagrams show trap points at any of the depots. Again, it's not definitive evidence that they were never fitted, but again suggests that may be the case. Finally, there are a few photographs that definitely show locations without trap points. Peter Paye's book includes one at Boyce's Bridge and one at Outwell Basin, both of which clearly show the locations at which I would expect to see a trap point on a mainline railway. There isn't a trap point in either photograph. However, these photographs are from the 1950s and 1960s, which is long after the passenger service ended on 31 December 1927 and therefore long after they would have be required on a mainline railway. Therefore, while I can be certain that there were no trap points in BR days, it's not inconceivable that there could have been trap points in the early days that were removed during maintenance following the withdrawal of the passenger service. My gut feeling tells me that they were never fitted on this line, but does anyone know differently, or can anyone confirm that my assumption is correct?

The problem with that analysis is that the bundle you linked to that included an LNER J15 is sold out. The same is true of the other LNER bundles that included either a D16/3 or a Q6. I have to agree that I don't see much merit in a bundle that includes an odd collection of items from different eras - especially when you can't even choose the locomotive.

According to the Revolution Trains website - https://revolutiontrains.com/product/caroline-975025-inspection-saloon-oo-4mm/ Caroline was in BR Network Southeast livery from 1991-2003.

But that is just a link to the hard drive on your PC.

The last paragraph on this post - https://revolutiontrains.com/easy-come-easy-car-go-oo-4mm-caroline-and-fna-ds-arrive/ states: "Please note when you pay a balance invoice the website automatically updates the deposit part of your order to “Complete” and sends you an email saying your order has been despatched – this is an automatic software bug that we can’t change. Your order is actually despatched when we mark the balance part of the order as “Complete” ie despatched." After paying my own balance I received an e-mail titled "Your Revolution Trains is now despatched", which is just the automatic e-mail that should be ignored (ie it was sent less than hour after I paid the remaining balance). If I go to the website, and select "Shop", "My Account", and then look at my "Orders", I can see that the final payment for Caroline is marked as "Processing". That means that it hasn't yet been dispatched. At some point, the status on the website for the second part of my Caroline order will change to "Completed" and at that point it will have been dispatched. I agree that the descriptions are not particularly intuitive. If you choose to pay 50% upfront and then 50% when the goods arrive in the UK, then you will have two order numbers for the one item. The first is generated when you place the order (which in my case was 20/08/2020) and this will initially show as "Partially Paid". Revolution Trains then raise the balance payment request, which is given a separate order number (in my case dated 25/07/2023). It appears that when you make the balance payment, the status of the first order is automatically changed from "Partially Paid" to "Completed" and this is what is causing the "Dispatch" e-mails to be sent out in error. Revolution Trains will manually update the second order number from "Processing" to "Completed" when they actually send out your model and in one of my previous purchases, that was actually after I had received the model. I'd therefore recommend that you ignore the dispatch e-mail and just check in your account.

Of course that could just be the automatic e-mail that you receive when you pay the final balance (assuming you only paid 50% up front). As it says on the website, that doesn't mean anything.

Did it go to your Spam folder? I received my e-mail to pay the outstanding balance on 25 July 2023. It was sent from orders@revolutiontrains.com.

Perhaps more likely to get a response on the Templot Club website - https://85a.uk/templot/club/index.php

But in that image the top of each letter t is horizontal, but that is not on the photograph of the model posted above, where the top of each letter slopes from lower left to upper right.

That's great. I wasn't expecting them to work on DC, but was concerned that passing DC through them may result in damage to the unit. When you're running DC, are your accessories still DCC operated, which means that the YoMoRC units are still powered through LocoNet? I note that the Railcom version seems to be powered from the track or accessory bus.

Can the unit not be powered from the USB? I'm interested in the solution in relation to a proposed club layout, which, whilst being proposed as DCC, I think needs to be DC compatible.

What colour are the buffers to be on the pre-1919 pack? The only pre-production artwork I've seen from Rapido shows these as red, but everything I've read suggests they were blue when they entered service. I'm aware of a photograph in Yeardon's which quite clearly shows that the buffers are in a different colour from the skirts, but I suspect the photograph dates from the post-war period and the buffers have been painted grey, but not the full skirts, which are still in the pre-war livery.

Have you tried all Revolution retailers or was that just an attempt to order direct from Revolution?

Yes, which is the reason that most of us run a more intensive train service than would have existed in reality - to try and keep their interest. Most of those who attend model railway exhibitions only spend an average of five minutes or so at each layout. What I have tended to note is that after the first couple of minutes they will stay while there are trains moving, but as soon as the layout is 'quiet' (because a train has moved off scene), they tend to take that as the end of an 'Act' and move onto the next layout (or 'show'). In effect the 'tweaks' that you are making are an attempt to increase the amount of time that someone spends standing at the front of your layout. I'm not surprised. Most people outside of the hobby (ie the families who attend the 'general' shows) don't know anything about track or the track gauge, and therefore don't realise that the gauge used for 00 is too narrow. The extra effort of modelling in P4 is therefore lost on them. There are plenty in the hobby who don't care about track either, which is why P4 has a minority following. What is a model railway? It's a model that is meant to represent the real railway (preferably a specific location at a specific point in time). However, the pre-grouping period predates most viewers life experiences and therefore automatically makes it less relatable to many people unless they are interested in history. Chinese railways (or indeed any other foreign railway) would fit into the same category: the modelled subject probably isn't something that we have experienced in real life. Researching the pre-grouping period is obviously more difficult than modelling the contemporary scene because there are fewer available photographs, they are of lower quality, a site visit possibly can't be undertaken as the site has been demolished and built over, and it's difficult to determine colours from black and white photographs. There is also less trade support for the period. However, unless you've tried researching the nineteenth century or the history of a line on the other side of the world, you're unlikely to fully appreciate the effort that the builder has made to get things right. Finally, many people are looking for inspiration for their own 'train set' at home. Something built with track, building and stock that they can purchase in their local model shop automatically makes the layout seem more achievable to their skillset (even if they accept it's too big for the space they have available). Of course there is also a herd mentality. If you pass a restaurant and it's busy, you may assume it must be good. If you pass and it looks empty, you may assume that's because the food is not good. It's possible that some people will assume that the layouts with the biggest crowds are the ones that they need to see, which would encourage more people to congregate around the busier layouts and overlook the ones that everyone else has also overlooked. As you say, develop the layout to match the preferences of the potential audience.

It's perhaps going off topic slightly, but this relates to the question of why do people attend model railway exhibitions? In essence, model railway exhibitions are a form of 'entertainment' and as an exhibitor, I see our role as being like part of a 'stage production'. Our job is to ensure that attendees leave feeling that they have enjoyed their visit (or the series of 'performances' that they have viewed). Of course they won't all be looking for the same thing - some want ultra-realism, whilst others just want to see 'lots of trains'. That's not really any different from those who may go to see a serious thought provoking play versus those going to musical theatre, for the light-hearted combination of songs, dance, colourful costumes and impressive lighting effects. Attendees at most model railway exhibitions are not a homogenous group (unless perhaps at events like Scaleforum) and exhibition managers generally need to try to cater for a broad range of tastes. Some attendees want to see large layouts that they can go 'wow' at, whereas others want to see smaller layouts, which they hope will give them inspiration for the space they have at home. An exhibition manager therefore needs to find layouts of different sizes in most of the major scales, and hopefully some narrow gauge or foreign railways, as well as British standard gauge, and representing different time periods, in the hope that most attendees will find at least some layouts that they like and fit with their interests. Your layout benefits from the fact that it is perhaps the only Chinese layout in the UK, so will always fit the 'something different from the norm' category. Ultimately, I think you can pick where within the spectrum of potential exhibition attendees interests you want to pitch your work. If it's a home layout, then it is obviously constrained by your own approach to the hobby, perhaps striving for 100% accuracy, but it will also be constrained by the space you have available at home. By creating an 'exhibition-only' layout, you've effectively released yourself from some of those shackles and just like a stage director, you get to choose how to 'wow' your audience. Whether you do that by including unrealistically bright lighting in coaches to highlight detail, or running a more intensive timetable that results in passing trains in the station area is up to you. You are the stage director and it is your show. Make it the show that you want to put on rather than worrying about those who may criticise some of your choices, so I think the 'teaks' that you're highlighting are perfectly acceptable.

Thanks, that is indeed another question. I'm assuming that repainting into LSWR livery probably wasn't a priority during World War 1, but if any were still carrying the S&DJR livery post-war, they would have been repainted as the wagon works caught up with the maintenance schedules that were neglected during war (for obvious reasons). Either way, I guess this makes this particular wagon a less appealing purchase for a post-war layout, so I might just go for the LSWR vent van instead - they'd both have been rare enough in East Anglia.

... Except if you move to O gauge that will become your new normal. Sure, you can sell all of your 00 stock and replace 20+ locomotives with four or five in O Gauge. However, what you previously considered to be a one off will be what all subsequent O Gauge locomotives that you wish to purchase will cost you. Perhaps the principal advantage of O Gauge is that you'll have less stock and perhaps a reduced likelihood of overstocking the layout if you feel you can't afford another locomotive (ie it will curtail you past desire to splash out on £150 locomotives - you'll have to think three times as hard before buying yet another locomotive that you just like the look of). I agree with the other suggestions to build something small in O Gauge that sits above your 00 fiddle yard.

Does the photograph you refer to have a date? I'm just wondering how long the S&DJR van would have lasted in that livery.

Our club's going the other way, with what appears to be a declining interest in O gauge, but we have an O gauge layout and a couple of primarily 4mm modellers have recently turned up at the club with an O gauge locomotive, which they claimed was 'a good price'. I don't think either of them plan to switch scales, but want something to run when our O gauge layout is up.

If you're planning to sell as a job lot, I'd agree that's probably about what you'll get. If you want more, I suspect you need to sell each model individually and obviously they need to be well described if selling online. It then becomes more work to get back a greater value.

I've never changed scale, so can't answer your question. However, I'm a member of a model railway club, and if I did fancy dipping my toes into O Gauge, then I could do that by just buying a locomotive and running it on the club's O gauge layout, without scrapping my own home layout (assuming I ever get it built), which will be 00. If you're not sure about the switch, would joining a model railway club help? My other suggestion would of course be to sell your 00 stock in stages (ie just sell whatever you need to sell to make your next O Gauge purchase) rather than selling everything at once. That therefore means that if after making a few purchase you start to regret the switch, you will hopefully still have some of your 00 stock. I'm guessing that you probably already own more 00 stock than you need to operate the layout that you have, so start by selling the surplus. Of course the other reason for suggesting this approach is that it doesn't leave you without a layout for too long. Still having the opportunity to play trains (in 00) whilst making a start in O may help with the motivation to keep going.

There is always old fashioned paper and a pencil. To answer your original question, the answer is yes. The purpose of the a fiddle yard is principally to provide somewhere for trains to go to and where they will return from (but not immediately). If you can design a plan where the journey taken by a miniature passenger of your railway is always in the scenic area, then there is nothing wrong with that. All of your coaches effectively 'live' in the carriage siding and all of the locomotives 'live' in the traction maintenance depot (TMD). You run then round a return loop back to where they started.