Anthony Ashley

Thanks for the generous comment. It is reassuring to get positive feed back Regards, Anthony

LAYOUT PLAN OF THE WELSH DRAGON RAILWAY There has been a comment that the scale of the proposed layout may make it difficult for those reading the thread to understand my intentions without providing the full plan. Accordingly I shall provide a copy now. The stations starting with the one at the top of the layout and moving in a clock wise direction are Conwy, Penmaenmawr and Bangor. They are all located on the north Welsh coast main line between Chester and Holyhead. The layout is 35 feet by 16 feet and is in N gauge There are two turn tabletables which are 8 feet long each and comprise 18 track proposed at this stage. The are on the lower level. There are 2 transition points from the scenic area of the layout to the hidden or lower track area and both are hidden in tunnels. The first is on the right of the layout above Bangor. The second is on the left of the layout just below Conwy station. I shall now explain the operation of the layout as it is a little complicated. The operation of the trains is as follows. A train may commence a morning run leaving from the turntable at the bottom of the layout (ie Chester)Those leaving from the bottom turntable will enter the first transition area and appear on the scenic area below Conwy. The train will enter Conwy . From there it enters the second transition area and continues on the hidden track, completing a loop around the whole layout on that hidden track. There are 2 reasons for this . The first is to ensure that a train comprised of up to 16 passenger coaches does not get split between the Conwy section and the Penmaenmawr track areas as this would not be prototype correct. The second reason is that for the prototype the actual travel time between Conwy and Penmaenmawr is about the time taken to cover the loop. Once the train has completed the “layout loop” it will travel through the first transition point and arrive arrive back at the second transition (all hidden running). It then appears on the scenic area at the top of the Penmenmawr scenic area, arriving at Penmaenmawr. From Penmaenmawr it will travel on past the Pen-y-clip viaduct. The mountain towering above the viaduct will be approx 1.2 metres above base bard height and finish 2 inches from the shed ceiling. The train then continues into Bangor. From Bangor the train will enter the first transition point and enter the hidden track moving around the top of the layout. It continues through the second transition point on the left of the layout and enters the small loop on the layouts left. I have decided to create a giant helix stacking either 2 or three levels on top of each other using this loop position. The giant helix will be constructed by using the rod and nut technique. The rods shall be suspended from the scenic support boards, but rebated to sufficient depth to be hidden from the scenic area. This will allow continued access underneath the “loop helixes”. The advantage of creating two giant helixes on the left and right of the layout is that it allows the turntables to be sufficiently low to allow easy access to all track. The maximum track gradient is 1:100 . The minimum radius on the scenic area is 30inches and approx 22 inches on the hidden track. Once the train has completed the “loop helix” it enters the turntable on the left and completes the morning run. Similarly trains may commence the days operation from the left turntable (Holyhead), travelling via the hidden track at the top of the layout to Bangor. Trains may also depart from Bangor itself for the morning run. The reverse operation of that explained above would apply to these trains, finishing on the bottom turntable ready for the following evening night run. Once the morning/afternoon run is complete the turntables can be turned and trains depart for their night runs using the reverse operation. I hope that this explanation is understood. If any questions arise please reply and I shall respond. As this is my first layout I have sought assistance from local railway modellers in the planning and execution of the layout. Any constructive comments from readers of this plan would be greatly appreciated. Regards, Anthony Ashley

BRIDGING THE GAP One of the tasks required for the layout is to bridge the gap across the River Conwy. This is spanned by the Tubular bridge shown below and in the model is approx. 8750mm (nearly one yard). I have hunted for dimensions of the tubes comprising bridge, but not found any to date. If any has this information I would love to hear form you. The other issue is what to make the span from. My plan was to use 3mm thick aluminium U channel with a base of 30mm and sides of 20mm. I can join the track in the middle and therefore power the 2 pieces of track off the bridge. The 2 pictures below show the aerial view the prototype and my model with a steel ruler across the span. Does anyone have a better idea for the span to provide the required structural support. Regards, Anthony

I have previously indicated that I have created a data base of subject areas for magazines in excel. It includes approx. 1,440 magazines covering a large selection of mags. Anyone who wants a copy of it is welcome. Regards, Anthony

Thanks for the comments. We have had difficulty painting heavily clouded area. The second to last photo n page 1 is the best attempt and that was after at least seven attempts at painting the whole of the panel. We tried spay paints and a whole variety of techniques but the best effort is that in the current storm panel. I have spent some of today taking advice on the cheapest means of acquiring large numbers of mineral and planked goods wagons. Given the size of the layout I shall eventually require a few hundred. I shall have to slowly accumulate to recreate my part of Welsh history. Next reply I may reveal the whole of the layout. Penmaenmawr is nearly completed, but Bangor needs more work for the town plan, although the track layout is completed. I am interested in all comments and criticisms. Regards, Anthony

On my last entry I meant to indicate that if anyone wants a copy of the whole of the data base, which is formatted as an excel spread sheet please contact me. The modelling database includes the following topics with entries listed alphabetically by subject - scenery, DCC, kit building, Fictional Layouts, base boards, layout techniques, loco reviews and others. The prototype data base has over 1,500 layout and prototype stations listed. Regards, Anthony Ashley

CONTINUING DEVELOPMENT OF THE CREEK LINE IN CONWY These series of photos shows the development on the creek line to the south of Conwy with the hill next to the line taking shape. This photo shows the paper pattern I made prior to cutting the ply. I draped it over the wooden and foam supports, drew the relevant shape and used it to exactly cut the correct ply shape. I have used this technique for all the ply shapes on the layout so far given the complexity of each piece. I hope to finish the base for this section by the end of the week end. I have also enclosed a fraction of my magazine data base. The subject of this small section is scenery. If any one wants a copy . Type Article Mag Year Month Page No Comment Adhesives MRC 72 Jul 260 Ads SR BRI OO Oct 40 AEC majestic Truck MRC 78 Jun 319 Air brushing BRM 1O Aug 56 ******* Air vent Tunnels OO RM O7 Jul 487 * Airfields RM 84 Jan 20 Ash Pit Horn 12 Feb 42 *** Ash Pits OO RM 90 Jan 33 Ash plant BRM O9 May 70 **** Ashpit BRI 94 Dec 128 Ashpit Plan BRI 94 Apr 385 Axeminster Water Tower RM O3 Sep 558 Back Scene Painting I RM 95 Jan 6 Back Scene Painting I RM 97 Jan 28 Back Scenes RM O9 Apr 260 ** Back Scenes MRC 81 Sep 607 Backscenes BRM O9 Mar 62 ** Backsecne Painting MRJ 93 65 219 Bakery OO RM O1 May 216 Balasting MR O7 Apr 37 ** Balasting West Coast MR O7 Mar 41 ** Ballast RM O3 May 286 ***** Ballast Application RM O7 Aug 548 **** Ballast Geoscenics BRM O8 Sep 88 Regards, Anthony Ashley

DISTANT VIEWS OF EITHER END OF THE BACK SCENE AND CREEK LINE DEVELOPMENT I have enclosed the distant views showing the wide view of the back scenes. The Conwy view has had the rainbow slightly deepened to make it stand out. This photo is of the creek line in front of the castle. I am slowly working on this area using a combination of pine structural support, ply sea walls and foam to create the creek banks. The hill to the south of the creek line has also been started using card board lattice and news paper. Plaster bandage to follow. Regards, Anthony

To all those who have responded thank you for your encouragement. I am also in the process of catalouging a number of magazines back to 1972. Some of the more popular include Railway Modeller, British Model Rail, Model rail, Model railway Constructor, Locomotive Illustrated and a number of others. I have divided the databases into two including Prototype and Modelling and then subdivided into separate pages (ie scenery, DCC, Kit Building, Fictional layouts etc). If those reading are interested in seeing this material please contact me via a RM messenging system of reply on this means. I still have a few hundred magazines to go! regards, Anthony Ashley

BACK SCENE DEVLOPMENT Jenny and Sarah have been further refining the Conwy back scene, adding depth to the vegetation as shown below. There has also been further work on the river area blending in the colours to more closely match the environment. Horizontal surfaces and sea walls in Conwy are now being added. Hope you enjoy the additional detail Regards, Anthony

THE EARLY STAGE OF LAYOUT DEVELOPMENT I am enclosing a couple of photos of the early stages of the layout development showing the process of insulation which I completed with assistance from my father-in-law. Those of you who have followed through the replies will realise the layout has become a family affair. The photo below shows the stages of insulation for the shed. In Australia the insulation is mainly required to deal with the heat rather than the cols as is the case in the UK. The framework of the shed was used to hold wool bats. Over the top of the bats I put silver foil and then 18 mil thick villa board. This was the last section to be insulated and shows the frame work around the window, which was then covered with Villa Board. The shed with the insulation process completed and primed. My next task was to talk my mother in law and wife into painting the back scene. As you have seen I succeeded in that task. There is no doubt that you need to have a large variety of skills to create a large layout from scratch. Next reply I shall show further development of the back scene and the Conwy section have been primed to reduce the effect of moisture. Please reply if you are interested in this blog or have any questions, as I find the interaction with other modellers to be rewarding. Regards, Anthony

Mike, I shall keep a close eye on the layout featuring Penmaenmawr. I shall email the creator and try to swap information, as I do have a substantial number of photos and info. Thank you for the information and reply. regards, Anthony

PROPOSED CASTLE CONSTRUCTION For the castle I was thinking of using ply for the straight sections clad in plasticard moulded as stone. The difficulty is the towers. I have been collecting a variety of cardboard tubes to replicate the interior and exterior walls. The walkway around the top of the towers would provide the spacer for the interior wall. I will cut slices out of the tubes and fit and glue the straight wall sections into the gap in the tube. I was thinking of taking a mould of the plasticard and then using modelling clay impressed on the mould and then wrapped around the tower which had been precut. This will provide the flexibility needed to wrap around the tube. I will need to experiment with this technique to see if it will work. I have drafted a 1:1 scale plan of the castle and it is very impressive when viewed against the rolling stock, coaches and locos, with the length of the castle being over 2 1/2 feet long in N gauge. If any one else has a better idea for the castle I would be interested to hear it. Regards, Anthony

PROTOTYPE VIEW OF CONWY I have included a couple of actual photos of Conwy castle and the rail lines in front of it to give the perspective which from the lower operating area of the layout. I think the picture is inspiring in terms of my modelling the castle. Regards, Anthony

John, Thank you for your comments they are valued. My team of painters have rather less to do on the layout than me, as I am doing everything but the back scene with a little help from other modellers. We wanted to finish the Conwy end as that will be the first section of the layout completed, so that the painters do not need to take paint around a completed scenic section. I think the second rainbow looks less cartoon like and more realistic. Regards, Anthony

DEVELOPMENT OF THE CONWY BACK SCENE AND THE HORIZONTAL SURFACES AND SEA WALLS FOR THE LLANDUDNO GOODS AREA I have included a few photos of the reworked rainbow over the far bank of the river Conwy and the Llandudno goods storage area which has been clad with horizontal surfaces and ply forming the base for the sea walls. I am interested in comments as to whether the attached rainbow or the one above looks more effective.

BACK SCENE AND BASE BOARD DEVELOPMENT The back scenes continued to be developed by my family and I have provided a sample of the photos featuring the area to the rear of Conwy. 1st draft of the mountain and hill behind Conwy Early effort on the town wall around Conwy A more recent photo of the town wall. The river Conwy to the right of the town. Hidden track with the 1:100 gradient. Two pairs of tracks rising and falling. Horizontal surfaces have yet to be added. The view of the hidden track taken form the other direction. The town of Conwy will be above this track. The far bank of the river Conwy with a first effort rainbow. The rainbow will be deleted and my family will try again with this feature. If you have enjoyed these photos please reply so that I can ascertain interest in continuing the blog. Regards, Anthony

Commencing the base boards and back scenes. The first part of the project was to complete a very accurate plan of the layout. The plan has taken at least 100 hours and has been evolving since I started the project.Part of the plan is listed below and features Conwy. Main lines are shown in blue and purple with hidden track in green and red. The grid lines are 12 inches or 304 mm apart. The grey area at the bottom of the section of the plan is an operations area. I have completed the town plan for Penmaenmawr and will show that section on a later entry. The large area of water is the river Conwy. The castle is self evident. The other large yellow structure is a church. Conwy station is in the lower left hand corner of the plan. The brown dotted line is a medieval town wall which you may notice has a portal for the main line to run through. Below is the area comprising the hidden and lower track area which will not be visible as part of the scenic area. The gradient on the hidden area for both track going down and up is 1:100. I have maximum radius curves on the scenic area of 30" and 20 "in the hidden and lower track area. This should allow me to run prototype rakes of 16 coaches, which was not uncommon for the holiday passenger traffic in the 1960s on the Chester to Holyhead line. There are two transition areas on the complete plan to facilitate movement for the scenic to the lower track areas. I shall be running the layout on DCC. Below are a few early shots of my base board construction and early back scenes which are being painted by my wife and mother in law. Both are very talented artists and I am fortunate to have them involved in the project. To the rear of Conwy lies a small hill and a mountain. These will feature in a future entry. The back scene comprising the shed walls adjacent to Penmenmawr and the Pen-y-clip viaduct are sea scape and shots of them are below. Lighting for the layout is comprised of 8 50 watt LED spot lights. A shot of one of the lights is below. The base boards for Conwy are shown below prior to adding the horizontal surfaces. Future entries will feature further back scene and base board developments. Please reply to this topic if it is of interest. Regards, Anthony

This is the blog for an N gauge layout set on the north Welsh coast in the period 1960 to 1970. It will feature the stations of Conwy, Penmaenmawr and Bangor. This is the first layout I have built and it will be a case of slowly but surely. Currently I am working on the Conwy section of the layout and intend to complete at least some scenery prior to commencing the next base board. I have built a large shed to house the layout in, which will be 35'X16'. I have been researching for approximately 10 months and have pictures of most of the rail facilities for the 3 stations. The name of the layout is the Welsh Dragon railway. Conwy has the fantastic castle and medieval town wall to model, is on a river, has 3 impressive bridges, a small freight shunting area and a few hills. The castle alone will be approximately 2 1/2 feet by approximately 1 1/2 feet. and nearly 12 inches tall. An approximate map of the area being modelled is below. Penmaenmawr is on the sea, is a picturesque holiday town, has a fantastic mountain right next to it which includes a marvellous rail and road viaduct between the ocean and mountain. I am also going to slightly distort reality and operate the light rail facility which moved the granite for the mountain to the main line rail service up to the 1950s. I understand that this closed some years earlier but will take some licence, as it will give me the opportunity to model a Welsh quarry light railway. Bangor is a great station to model given its position in a valley with tunnels at either end. It is quite large And from my reading was a hub for rail freight traffic in the area in the early 60s, allowing a great variety in the types of goods subject to movement to and through the station. Given it was a primary station on the route to Ireland, this would also provide varied freight requirements and considerable variety in passenger trains . The layout will be in 2 levels. The upper level is scenic with the 3 stations. The lower has two 18 track turntables to store all stock and rotate to facilitate a morning and afternoon run of trains. I have started a previous blog on RM Web and will update this site with the same material. This will remain the web site for the Welsh Dragon Railway in the future. Please reply if this is of interest to anyone and I shall continue entries. Regards, Anthony

Ian, I am going to my first meeting with a British model railway club in Brisbane Australia in about 1 1/2 hours. I have a long list of questions based on my research and am looking forward to the meeting. Anthony

Gilbert I am a 53 year old Australian who will finally be able to settle in a house after moving with my job for 30 years. As an 8 year boy I developed a love of British railways with my uncle showing me his trains, including the Flying Scotsman ( I would love to see a picture of the Flying Scotsman if you have that model on the layout). I am now able to design and build a layout. I decided to model 1961 with the arrival of diesels in England during the peroid that steam was still operating. I chose Peterborough about three months ago as an ideal station to model due to its size and proximity to Alconbury airfield (fictional aircraft musem will be a part of the layout). Given my location in Australia I have been struggling to find plans of the station, tracks ands signals for Peterborough. I have looked at Google satelite images and thought that in 1961 the area just north of the Crescent bridge, currently heavily grassed but showing evidence of approximately 12 goods sidings, would have been operating at that time. It would seem from your layout this was not the case. Are you able to confirm if this was the case or not. I wondered if you could tell me where you got the plans for your layout. Particularly I am trying to locate buildings, track, signals and the specific design of buildings in the immediate area of the station. I have been searching with minimal success. I have found that the LNER encyclopedia is very good but have not been able to locate any plans on this resource site. I was very excited to see your layout last night for the first time when I was looking for more information to assist in my research. The layout was very familiar given the 1,000s of photos I have looked at of the Peterborough area and station in parrticular. I was blown away by the station buildings as only yesterday I was trying to find ready made models to simulate the station. Having seen the great effect with your layout I now believe I shall need to scratch build (a lot of practice needed).Given my nil experience with train modelling and despite 30 years collecting and painting napoleonic 15 mm figues I shall need to do a lot more research proir to commencing anything. I intent to do a layout 19'X15' with a fiddle yard on a lower level. This may not be pratical but I will talk to guys at my local British railway club for advice. I wouls appreciate if you could reply to me queries as I have spent many hours on the internet and have strugglrd to find answers. All the best with the layout and I shall be a very interested spectator to your mavellous railway. I move into a new house in 2 months and will keep researching. Anthony Ashley