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It’s a great place to model, the variety of loco hauled, freight and units is astounding. I tend to think of my time frame as 1986 - usually September 86, as that’s the only time you could see a 33 alongside a trans-pennine liveried coach! That’s still a lot of DMUs to choose from. The summer lash ups of DMUs are definitely something I’ll look to recreate - although with the current cost of DMUs it’s an expensive aspiration! I’ve not really done much research into the DMUs yet, but I love reading up and finding out the history. I think my next unit priority is something AC... Did the 123/4 get withdrawn around 84?

New resident 25 on shed... Whilst renumbered (and my class favourite) 47402 Gateshead waits in the holding road, primed to disappoint some peak fans.

DMUs have been a missing piece of the Christleton jigsaw for a while now. That changed with the fitting of sound to my 108 and the unexpected receipt of a sound fitted 101. Mediocre commuter services are go!

Forgetting that the 87 is Hornby. Is the Bachmann a better model?

They may do a spare for the 87. The models in later liveries have the right ones. 87027 received the new style in about 85 I think.

I keep meaning to get a proper one, in the meantime I needed to keep them out of the way! If it works...

A little work on the backscene at the Crewe end, meaning that pictures of the fireplace are a thing of the past. An overall view of how it looks. I managed to reduce the size of the mantle shelf (late 20C badly stained pine) meaning the backscene can sit almost flat. I have recessed a short section to allow the platform to be a touch wider. The right hand corner where it turns into Bluebeck shed will need hiding. I’m thinking of a tower block on the corner here. A view looking south, with the lines departing to Crewe. The double junction for the fiddle yard starts before the scenic break, so the road bridge will need to be at an angle. Here’s a mock up of the bridge for height and angle. It should look quite good, with the stabling points semi-hidden under the bridge. The advantage of electrics is you can stable them in any old hole! I’ll need a sign reminding diesel drivers not to smoke the place out. Next, an overview of the whole station area and shed. I have some plans to illuminate the alcove so it’s less full of shadows. I always try to get a running session in as well as some work. It’s nice to give the locos a good stretch every now and again. D200 brings in a relief service over the viaduct. A 47 waits time at the head of a Holyhead trans-pennine duty in the background. Finally, a driver’s eye view of two 16 wheelers from the tea room by the electric stabling point.

A little ballast weathering makes quite a difference. 03 and 25 are on shed, admiring the rusty floodlight. The two type 4s are next in line for renumbering and weathering. I’d like some weeds on the ground and some trees behind the yard wall. Something to look forward to buying when the shops re-open. The next bit of work will be backscene and stage exit at the Crewe end. I’m going to get some mdf to start mocking up the bridge and retaining walls. Meanwhile we see an 85 and 87 pausing between duties where the bridge will go. The 87 has become my favourite of the class “Wolf of Badenoch”, which has a nice Gresley reference to it too. I need to find a decent pantograph for it at some time.

Thanks. Both those look like suitable candidates for the job. I only have the Bachmann mk1s so far, so it’ll be good to see them in the flesh. Both would presumably need work to fit close couplings, but that would seem achievable.

The link says it’s forbidden (which makes a mk1 sound a lot more exciting)! I suspect the project has just slipped a bit further down the list of priorities. I don’t think such a body shell is produced RTR. Brass overlays may be an option for the future, although the pesky white line around the grey puts me off anything too serious with blue and grey livery. I love all the research into rolling stock of the period.

Back at the end of January I made some bold statements about the next few projects. Amazingly all are now complete. The sound units were mainly a doddle, except the 87, of which more later. The 31 and 85 were harder to separate the body from chassis than to fit the sound. The 108 was alright, but the speaker is in the passenger compartment at the moment. It probably needs some sugar cubes in the underframe. Only one coach has been declassified, a mk2a FK, seen below alongside the intercity BFK. It’s also had a light weathering, which has had the affect of making the other 50 coaches look like toy trains! The other coach lined up for declassification was a mk1 fk, but it transpires only mk1 fo’s were downgraded. A few of them ran in the Trans-Pennine sets, so that project will move to the longer term list. I don’t think Bachmann do an FO, but I suspect the RFO is the same externally. Iconic D200 we have seen previously. The first of two GUVs have been repainted in blue, then heavily weathered. It’s the front coach in the picture behind the 31. The second GUV is on hold as I contemplate making it a NLV, which had mk1 corridor connections. The 03 has gone through something of an identity crisis, when it was pointed out that 03073 had a flowerpot chimney. Luckily 03162 was a witch’s hat type, and also Chester based (and dual braked) in ‘86. Both transferred from Gateshead sometime around ‘85 - what a journey! Christleton’s 03 is now 162 (mental note to change the DCC address). Time then to give some thought to the next priorities. Ballast weathering (particularly in the shed) is probably first. After that I’m spoilt for choice! Either the south end bridge and fireplace covering structure, or the viaduct. Or a bit of both. I’ll probably also start working through renumbering the other locos (45s and 47s) and giving more coaches a light touch of dirt.

Definitely worth asking. I would have been searching model shops for a specialist cleaning cream! I’ve been having limited success with a variety of methods, so I’ll give this a go.

As this isn’t the BBC, can you share the brand of cream cleaner?

Over the last week I’ve been chiselling away at the excess ballast, topping up the thin bits and then fettling the points to get them to work again. I’ve also been fitting sound to the remaining mute locos of the fleet. I’m trying to renumber them and give them a quick coat of filth whilst they get rechipped. Hornby 31 was next for treatment. It’s a fairly easy loco to sound fit if you sacrifice the fan for the speaker (the fan itself can go back on top of the speaker). It’s renumbered as 31144, the only Bescot toffee apple in 1986 as far as I can work out. All the other variants were London or March based, so slightly less likely to work to Chester. As a Bescot loco it’s turned out in the very best of filth. There’s a little work to do on the dirt before I’ll be happy with it, but sound, dirt and ballast make a world of difference. Has anyone found a way to make the Speedlink red fade to pink?

Loving the look of this layout, very inspirational indeed. They say plagiarism is the highest form of compliment, although I’m not sure I can match your modelling skills I’m definitely inspired to have a go! I’ve been wondering how to achieve some depth on what is essentially a flat backscene, what you have done here works really well. And who doesn’t like a grubby mill?

I’ve noticed that locos not is use have to be turned off too, despite really liking their sound. I think this is because they become ‘white noise’ when you’re not focusing on them. I thought having a few locos idling away on shed would be fantastic, but it’s really quite annoying unless you are actively focussing in it. I still love the sound each loco makes when moving though and I find running without sound a bit 2 dimensional now; there is a balance between loco volume and track noise to be found, which varies on acoustics and train speed (I have CV63 usually set to 75% - normally 90). Sound fitting a 25 (and the lights) is fairly easy, so don’t restrict yourself to a prefitted one. I have just found a new joy in the sound of an 85 - have a listen on my thread and you’ll be dreaming of putting the wires up!

I haven’t yet got around to uploading any videos of the new layout yet; time to change that. I have just fitted the 85 with sound (easiest job ever) and it is too good not to share. Indeed it’s going to be hard to resist putting the wires up - but there’s quite a bit to happen before I can. The sound is just as I remember a roarer, and it adds quite a dimension to AC traction. It’s seen running centre road past a scratch rake, which includes the new BFK. I have a GUV repainted in blue awaiting transfers and another couple of sound units to fit. I also need to finish fettling the ballast and then weather it.

Indeed. I’d say it’s turned out pretty good for a first attempt.

I’ve been admiring some of your handiwork following discussion about 31s on the Red Bank thread. I’m getting to the stage of having too many projects on the go again! I have deliberately put off starting anything new until the layout was running and ballasted, now that it’s almost there I’m like a kid in a toy shop. I have a growing collection of parcels that need attending to and I really need to sort some priorities. Sheffield has been in my mind for a while. I certainly think a tall retaining wall is in order, I’m not sure yet if the station building will somehow get incorporated. Normanton is a station I vaguely know from my youth, so I’ll go refresh my memory. I may even have some photos in a book. I love the mid to late 80’s because you get the run down of the mk2s, some of them just creeping into new liveries. A decade later seemed a lot duller place.

Meanwhile, the shed pilot has been renumbered as Chester based 03073, a dual braked loco making it much more useful to have around. The shed foreman has asked the driver to spot an open wagon down to the fancy new drivers’ messroom, complete with shed sign. Stop Boards have been added to the shed entrance too. Hopefully the p’way will be along soon to dirty the ballast a bit.

Hard to believe that this little chap was in Highland green and cream a couple of weeks back. It still needs some work on it, but I’m delighted with progress so far and a run out on an inter-regional working seemed only fitting. Not many PV mk2s made it into intercity livery, and hardly any are modelled (I think I’ve only seen one other), so nice to have this in the fleet. On to some more mundane GUV painting next!

Surely you were at the other side trying to get a glimpse of what was on shed? When I eventually get around to passengers in coaches, FCFW is all yours on the Cardiff set!

40122 passing through on empty vans to the West Midlands.

Both appeared to be under power leaving just now. Hellfire!

I fully agree with your philosophy. My layout is fictional, but everything else has to fit for Crewe / Chester in September 86. The variety is fantastic enough without contriving more stuff to run (even if a deltic on a transpennine pullman sounds very tempting). I think as you progress through the 80’s the liveries become more interesting, but the locos less so. Plus the later you go the more you need Sprinters, pacers, fixed formations, less freight and demise of newspapers. I was always very conscious in layout planning about how much operating potential a layout has, and I’m fortunate in having almost enough room to keep it varied. I think for smaller layouts, a computer run schedule that has randomised additions and alterations, will give a lot more depth. The computer could add vehicle defects, additional catering required, relief services, charters etc. If you had a maintenance road or shed it could also rotate coaches through for brake exams etc.