TonyMay

Turn it upside down over a concrete floor and hit it with a hammer.

Would it not be a better starting position to start with a Bachmann C class and convert that either with (1) a new cab/bunker and saddletank or (2) a completely new body?

If not a fiddle yard, some kind of cassette system to get stock onto and off the layout. As for something with unusual stock - a preservation centre.

It looks to be an improvement. Friendly questions though; (1) how does it sit within the loading gauge, e.g. next to wagons? (2) I think it needs more coal capacity, maybe extending the side tanks forward to just behind the smokebox would allow firebox-side bunkers without having to extend the frames out at the back (assuming you're using the original chassis). (3) I think it also could benefit from a larger chimney that matches the height of the cab. Just my opinions of course.

Have you considered N gauge?

Also technically, if you want to be prototypical, curves should be transitioned so that there are no abrupt changes in radius, e.g. from dead straight to tightly-curved.

The bunker definitely is undersized. Building up a bunker at the back would allow for the use of a slightly longer chassis or a shorter boiler. In the paintshop of the red 0-6-0T the boiler looks too long. I don't think the cab is as bad, but probably could do with more height (if possible within the loading gauge), and maybe a little more length.

There's a video here on someone trying to bash one into a OO9 coach. Not super convincing as it ends up being too tall. Further surgery to remove the top panel from above the doors, might produce a better result.

To me the back end doesn't look substantial enough to merit trailing wheels. You could however extend the frames backwards, and build a more substantial bunker at the back. Possibly you could use a bunker from a Hornby pannier tank.

Helices. It's Greek.

You're probably going to have to be a bit more specific than "not that big".

How big do you want it?

You shouldn't have *any* facing points on an S&C layout. Save yourself the cost of a single/double slip. It should be as per the upper track diagram. Goods trains were reversed into the yard. This is to render impossible a route being set that misroutes a train off the mainline into a siding, which would lead to a derailment or a potential collision.

The basic idea is functionally quite sound and works quite well for fiddle yards, but it's not really prototypical.

Is the headshunt in the northern station long enough for your longest loco? (probably a 9F or a Princess). It looks a bit short. Also, at the north station, is the loop long enough for the trains you want to run? Again, looks rather short. Again, single track is also probably better than double given the space and prototype. I'd also consider having one of the ends (probably the northern one) as a fiddle yard. The scissor crossing requires a bit of point hacking to get the spacing right. But if you go for single track you won't need it anyway.

Oh, I should add that only 1 preserved line has turning facilities at both of its termini, and only one of those is a turntable - the other one is a triangle.

Assuming "North" is at the top of the screen as we look at it: Assuming left-hand running and British practice, because you've got a facing crossover in the neck of the north station, the two uppermost tracks are unusable as anything running into them can be run round but is then obliged to run wrong line (i.e. on the right) back to the other station. This is not so much of a problem at the South station, where you've got two arrival tracks that can also be departed from plus two departure-only tracks that can be shunted into from the arrival tracks. Having the turntable at the end of the line would be unlikely to be signed off on safety grounds Most heritage railways (in fact, all except one) are single track. Reducing your track to single track would allow room for a little more scenery, and maybe a passing loop half-way. You need to use flexitrack on the corners. The set-track curves and straights combination is not pleasing. Both stations are very much alike operationally and scenically. Is this really what you want?

The crossings can also be bent a little bit by cutting the webbing if you want to achieve a curve throughout the junction, especially if that curve continues after the junction.

If more space is available, could that not be used? Even if it's just a plain double track board with no scenery in places?

There is some degree of authenticity if you restrict yourself to specific locomotives and stock that have actually been preserved.

yeah because what's going to happen in operation is that in the morning a loco will arrive light engine from Haworth, unlock the frame, collect a rake of four (should be 6) coaches from the shed, withdraw that rake from the shed and propel it into the platform to form the 1st service and retrieve the token from the frame. 45 minutes or so later the 2nd one will do the same. The train will appear a few times during the day, when the loco will run round. At the end of service the opposite will happen The whole point of the carriage sidings is to hold full length rakes that don't need to be remarshalled every day. Occasionally coaches are swapped in or out due to needing maintenance, say for a wheelflat or other issue. But generally the rakes are fixed.

If you're goign to run 4 coach trains, can the shed hold a full 4 coach rake?

I'm pretty sure the sheds were a fairly recent addition, probably lottery-funded, before which the coaches were left overnight in the same sidings open.

The sheds are modern carriage sheds that were erected in the old goods yard. Typically the K&WVR operates 6 coach trains. But it only really needs to run two rakes; the crossing point at Damems is nearer to Keighley than it is to Oxenhope; the loop at Haworth cannot be used for crossing trains, and Oxenhope itself is not fully signalled. The ground frame at Oxenhope is unlocked by the Damems-Oxenhope token. Though locos can be locked into the carriage sidings. That means there can only be 1 train south of Damems at one time; that train must travel all the way from Damems to Oxenhope, run round at Oxenhope before running all the way back to Damems again to pass the one coming the other way. Keighley is signalled, and has the capacity to hold 2 passenger trains, so they can also run with 3 if they want to, but only 2 can be moving at any one time. Anyway, in terms of operating potential, a fully working goods yard is going to be much better than carriage sidings. So an LMS or BR era station would be have more operating potential, I think.

It's generally better to go for a cenotaph type coaling stage than one with a ramp as the ramp takes up far too much space. The longest turnable LMS loco is a Princess. Garratts are longer but they can't be turned.