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Norton961

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  1. Norton961

    Janus 0-6-0 Diesel

    By Norton961,

    This loco from Oxford Rail was to nice not to buy! It arrived in a NCB Blue (as per Littleton Colliery) but I did not like the colour so I have repainted as per the demonstrator from Yorkshire Engine Co. My plan is to convert to P4 and use on Trench Sidings, the fiction being that BR is trialing the loco at Trench (the reality was it was trialled by BR in the Sheffield area).
  2. Norton961
    I have been planning to build Trench Sidings for 20 years and have finally made a start. But first lets place where it is. In my teenage years I lived near Trench Crossing station which was a small station between Wellington and Donnington on the line to Stafford. The line was ex LNWR/LMS. Just down the line from Trench Crossing was an interchange yard called Trench Sidings where there was a curved line down to a canal basin which was bounded with a number of iron works. There was a small loco shed which closed in 1943 but the shed remained standing until the mid 1960s. The line from Wellington to Stafford had a regular passenger service usually 3 coaches with either a B5, Standard 5, Fowler 2-6-4t and re built Scots and Patriots. Freight was usually B5 with 8fs, with some of Wellingtons Pannier tanks working pick up freights to Donnington. Most ex LMS locos could be seen and occasionally the line was used by diverted expresses. Not wanting to model a station the interchange yard seemed a good choice as the line into the canal basin was still used until the mid 1960s.
  3. Norton961
    The only buildings on the layout are the loco shed and signal box here are 3 photos of the loco shed. These are the only photos I could find.
    The resident loco up to 1943 was an ex Caley 0-4-0 but when this was away for repair etc an ex L&Y Pug was used.
     

    I dont have a model of either of the 2 resident locos, but after the formaytion of BR the responsiblility for shunting the yard passed to Wellington, and the usual shunter was a Pannier tank (of which I have modelled 3 of Wellingtons locos.
    The next picture is of the model of the loco shed, built for me by Peter Leyland as modeling buildings is not my thing!

  4. Norton961

    Brassmasters Patriot

    By Norton961,

    Over the last couple of months I have been busy painting and linning, both for my own models and for other people. Attached is the current status of a Brassmaster Unrebuilt Patriot, (built by Len Cattley). This is a model of one of Nuneatons Patriots which were seen in 1961/2. I have always like the prototype so a model was a must have. Still some work to do, the footplate valance wants linning out and it then needs weathering and couplings, buffer etc adding. The linning is Fox transfers.
     


  5. Norton961
    I realised that the track plan that I posted at the start of this blog was not very clear so here is a better version taken from Track Layouts Sec 32 East Shropshire by R A Cooke. This is an excellent series of track layouts and recommended. The part I am covering is the section top left of the diagram but it also shows why there was a loco shed at the junction.
     

     
    Originally the line diverging from the main line not only served a number of Iron Works near the junction but continued for a distance to service Wombridge Iron Works and it was known as the Wombridge Branch. Later after the building of the Coalport branch, Wombridge Iron works was servied buy a connection from the Coalport branch.
     
    Another view of the loco shed and Pannier tank.
     

     
    For those who are interested in the railways of East Shropshire I have written a book which may be of interest it also covers the Lilleshall system as well as Granville Colliery as well as Wellington, Oakengates, Coalport, Coalbrookedale, Buildwas Power station. Available from Crowwod Press.

  6. Norton961
    Thought it may be usefull to post a few photos of some of the prototype trains for Trench. The first photo is in 1936 showing the loco shed with its resident Pug 11218 with a Black 5 5254 passing on the main line.

    The second photo is of one of Shrewsburys Standard Class 5s with a train at Stafford for Shrewsbury circa 1962/3.

    The 3rd photos is one taken by me circa 1965 of 46519 (Shrewsbury) leaving the Ordenance Depot at Donnington and heading back to Wellington and shortly to pass Trench sidings. Note the wartime built signal box.

    the last photo again taken by me in 8-1964 with a cheap camera is of Staffords Fowler 2-6-4 tank usually seen on the 3 coach passenger trains heading towards Stafford with a freight and with the Ordenance depot sidings behind.

  7. Norton961
    I thought I would post a couple of prototype photos and then my model version. The Fowler 2-6-4 tanks from Stafford were regulars on the passenger trains and sometimes on freight. here is a J B Buckley photo of 42389 at Stafford shed.

    This is followed by my P4 version based on a GEM kit, this was one of the last "new" models offered by GEM before George Mellor sold the business.

     
    Th next photo is of the model of 46519 which I photographed leaving the MOD depot at Donnington with a pick up freight for Wellington. This was a Shrewsbury engine at the time.

    Here is that photo, its poor quality but at 16 years old I could not afford a good camera!!

  8. Norton961
    For those that have known me for many years know that I have always had an interest in the LNWR and some years ago I was the newsletter editor for the LNWR Society. I have now decided to have a pregroup period for the layout (freight only!) and have over the past few weeks built 8 LNWR wagons, all from ratio kits. I have also added a few GWR wagons as the Lilleshall Co who had many pits in the area supplied loco coal to the GWR, Cambrian and North Staffs.



    A few more wagons are waiting to be built along with a LRM LNWR 10 Brake van.
    The trigger for this has been the announcement by London Road Models of a Ramsbottom 0-4-0 Saddle tank as one of these was allocated to the small trench Sidings loco shed.

    This is the loco and what looks like a Shropshire Iron Company wagon.
    Whilst I am waiting for that I have started on a conversion of a Bachmann 0-6-2 Coal Tank.
     
    David
  9. Norton961
    I have been progressing some more pre group wagons, with these 3 just completed and weathered.
     
    I have also repainted and re numbered a Brassmaster G2 that I bought in a few months ago, bringing my fleet of these up to 2. This was the first kit that I and Jim Barnes developed to start the Brassmasters range. I have a prtially built one to complete as well.

    I was going to number it as one of Staffords locos but this has been built with the sand fillers on the cabsides and none of the Stafford allocation had these and a tender cab. I have therefore numbered it as one of Crewe Souths locos and can if I wish also give it a Yellow stripe wich it received in August 1964 and was withdrawn in December 1964.
     
    I have also been painting and linning a Brassmasters Black 5, this loco (allocated to Crewe North) was seen working between Shrewsbury and Stafford on the stopping services.
    It is a long way from being finished needing some satin varnish, light weathering, couplings and a coal load.

    I like to photograph locos and rolling stock when part built as it shows up any remedial work required, the eye sometimes misses things but the camera does not.
     
    David
  10. Norton961
    Whilst I am currently painting and linning out Dave Holts excellent Caprotti Cl 5 I have been painting some of my own stuff, including this Bachmann Class 40. The body was built for me by Dave Room has Bachmann noses fitted to a Lima middle section. It has been sitting around unpainted for a few years so I thought I had better get on and finish it. Still nees weathering before I put the glazing in last.


     
    I intend to use the loco on Trench Sidings and it has already had P4 wheels fitted. Th the headcode at one end is 1Z01 which is for an inspection saloon, and at the other end 6V20 which is the headcode for a Stafford to Cardiff freight. The livery and number is circa 3/1967. Just need to invest in a sound chip now.
     
    I also paint and weather some US lbrass locos and here is the latest one.

  11. Norton961
    This is an official LNWR track plan showing the interchange sidings and the line down to the various Iron works. The need for a small 0-4-0 tank loco was the presence of a weighbridge just after the line crosses the main road and this had a weight limit. The only change I have made to the track plan is to add in another siding parallel to the one marked for the Lilleshall Company. This will allow me more shunting movements on the layout.
  12. Norton961
    I have been using a linning pen for many years but it is a slow process as you can only do one side at a time and only one colour at a time.
    However I have been experimenting with using the excellent lining sheets from Fox transfers. Attached is an example I used for 45593 Kholapur.

    I had already started linning out a Black 5 wirh a pen and decided to complete the job with Fox transfers and could not tell any difference!
    The cab side is linned out with a pen and the tender with Fox transfers.

    Another example is the tender I recently did for my friend dave Holt for his Crab.

    The key is to put the transfers on in stages for a tender I cut the transfers into 7 or 8 sections and do them one at a time, having carefully marked the overall length.
  13. Norton961
    .
    These are the last 2 of a batch of pre grouping wagons built in the last few weeks. I posted a request elsewhere on RMWeb about loads for single plank wagons and got some interesting replies.

    The BR wagons have been hanging around for months in the nearly finished state so I have had a finishing purge and these are the result. Mostly Parkside (what would do without this range!)
     
    David
  14. Norton961
    I recently (last week at S4 North) aquired an MPD 3F built in P4 and fitted with a sound chip from Digitrainsound Zimo specifically for a 3F with a sound file by Paul Chetter. Now whilst I have DCC/sound for most of my diesels I have never been impressed by the sound chips for steam locos, untill now! I was blown away by the sound and that when you turn of the power the loco coasts (no chuffing) before coming to a stop.


    I had considered just running the layout in Dc for the steam era and DCC for the diesels, but this sound chip is causing a major re think. The problem will now be fitting sound chips into locos that are complete and where there is no chance of putting a speaker in the tender. Paul Marshall Potter on his Albion Rd blog has fitted some chips into ex GWR Pannier tanks so I think further investigation will be required. I also see that people have fitted sound chips into the delightfull Hornby Peckett so if it goes into one of them then anything is possible.
     
    The 3F since I aquired it has been renumbered (and re weathered to hid the shiny bits around the new number) to one of Shrewsburys allocation in the mid 1950s and the loco was photographed on the Coalport branch so I know it worked in my area.
     
    This could be expensive!
  15. Norton961
    The overall track plan I posted was a little crowded to see the detail. The baseboards were built with the help of my good friend and fellow NAG member Ken Kirk in his well equiped wooworking shed. The baseboards were constructed of 12mm furniture grade plywood which a NAG member put us in contact with. The photo shows Ken making sure everything was flat and square and the boards were screwed and glued with Gorilla glue.
     
    Once the boards were built they returned to my garage, and here lies a problem it was a concrete sectional and despite my attempts to insulate it was damp. So layout building came to a stop whilst I had a new concrete sectional garage built but this time fully insulated and a set of cheap kitchen units from B@Q formed the "legs" for the layout and gave storage. However this whole process took a year out of working on the layout.
    The pointwork was built by a fellow NAG member Tont Wilkins and Tony also printed of the track plan for me to lay down on the layout. I used cork for the track base however the rolls are dificult to get flat, and cork floor tiles are sealed on one side and I was unsure about how things would stick, but I found boxes of untreated cork tile at my local charity shop for a few punds and this solved the problem. Having laid the cork I then stuck down the trackplan with the type of wallpaper past that you put on the wall first and that worked a treat.

    There are only 2 buildings on the layout, a signal box and the loco shed.

    The interchange sidings are opposite to the signal box.
  16. Norton961
    I have for more locomotives than the layout requires but most of them are locomotives that I saw operating the line between 1962 and 1965 (the passenger service stopped in Sept 1964) but freight continued.
    The first locomotive is one I saw pulling into the Army depot at Donnington with a daily freight usually pulled by one of Burton on Trents newly aquired Jubilees and within a few months I had seen all of them. 45593 left Burton for Leeds and eventual preservation, but here she still has the Stanier 3500 gallon tender she ran with in service. After withdrawel she swapped tenders with 45562.
    The loco is a Brassmaster one built by Len Cattley and I have painted it linned it out and this is the current stage of the weathering, I just need to add a little more, particularly around the wheels and underfarme. I weathered the loco and then took most of it off on the boiler, cab sides and tender sides.
     

     

  17. Norton961
    A couple of photos of some of the locomotives for trench sidings. The first is D5083 which turned up one day on the Granville Colliary coal train from Donnington to Buildwas Powere station instaed of the more usual 8F. This is a Bachmann Class 24 and has been modified with Shawplan glazing and a Brassmasters circular exhaust port. The handrails have been thinned down and it is fitted with Branchlines P4 wheels.

    The second loco is another Bachmann Class 24 with Brasmasters headcode boxes (complete with a correct headcode for the line) and again Branchlines wheels and renumbered.

    The 3rd loco is one of Wellingtons Pannier tanks. I bought this as a bit of a wreck, my friend Tony Sheffield sorted the chassis whist I sorted the body. Still some work to finish though.

  18. Norton961

    Latest Purchase

    By Norton961,

    I recently purchased on ebay a Hattons (Heljan) Class 14 complete with a set of Ultrascale P4 wheels and DCC chip. The plan is to fit a set of Brassmasters coupling rods and do some weathering.
    Always liked these since I saw a row of them at Cardiff Canton shed in 1967. I have no excuse for one of these but Rule 1 applies!
     
    David
  19. Norton961
    Although I have only started this blog recently I have been building locomotives and stock for the layout for many years, so I suppose I should post some photos of some of the stock I know have.
    The first pictures show my collection of 9 brake vans, why 9 i hear you sk, no idea I say I just started building them and then realised I had enough!
    The majority are Bachmanns latest offering but with P4 wheels, screw/3 link couplings, roofs repainted and given some weathering. The 2 ex Midland ones are parkside, built for me by my friend Tony Sheffield and then painted/lettered/weatherd by me. The 21 ton ex LMS is a Chivers kit which I need to letter before weathering. having bought some of the Modelu lamps I need to buy some more for the brake vans.long
     

     

  20. Norton961
    A few more of my wagon fleet, this time tube and plate wagons, mainly Parkside.

     
    My reasoning for the layout depends upon the steel fabrication company (it was called Summerfields) which occupied the old ironworks sit was larger than it actually was and would justify incoming trains of steel plate and sections hence the number of plate wagons.
    Trains did work into the site but by the early 1960s were on an "as and when required" basis. Trains of plate wagons would also justify the appearance of a Froddingham WD of whic I also have a model. This is a Dave Bradwell kit built for me by my friend David Boorman from a Bradwell kit. Since arriving with me I have painted and weathered it, still a little more weathering to do though.

  21. Norton961
    The pointwork for the layout was made by Tony Wilkins some time ago but everything went on hold as I built a new garage.
    The main section of pointwork was made in one peice and I have attemted to lay this, first soldering on wire droppers (tinned coper wire) but have now hit a problem. There are so many droppers that I cant find a way to get them all into the holes I have drilled in the baseboard!
    The first photo is of the pointwork before I added the droppers.

     
    The second photo is the underside with the droppers added.
     

     
    The suggestion is that I solder on some flexible wire onto the end of the stiff droppers, so that will be the next job.
  22. Norton961
    I managed not to add the photo of the little Bagnal I mentioned in the previous entry!

     
    I am also building a North British 0-4-0 Deisel (D29xx) from a Judith Edge Kit, but this is far from finished.
     
    Because I saw the Granville Colliery stud of Austerity 0-6-0s I have also built one of these froma Brassmasters kit (now no longer avaliable). Just needs a Cab number and weathering.
  23. Norton961
    Photographing the rolling stock for this blog has made me rethink all the wagons that i have built. I have tended to just build things that interest me rather than thinkinging hard about what is appropriate. The wagons here fit clearly into my proposed traffic patterns but I notice Midland Mole has actualy sat down and worked out the rolling stock for each of his trains(along with the loco hauling it). This to me seems an eminantly sensible way to procedd so I will be making a start on this process which will then reveal all the wagons that no longer fit! The excess will be passed onto my friends Tony Wilkins (who need lots and lots of wagons for his new layout) and to John Jennison who is constructing a model of Gresty Lane,Crewe.
    The same applies to the locomotive fleet, I have 4 times the quanity of locos that the layout needs, so the exercise of matching locos to wagons to trains should prove interesting.
    2 locos that will definately be staying are 2 8fs, one being a Shrewsbury engine and the Fowler tender one being one of Staffords. The Shrewsbury 8F is a DJH kit and the Fowler tender on is a mixture of Comet chassis, Bachmann body and Brassmasters Fowler tender.


  24. Norton961
    It has taken me a long time to realise that although i enjoy building large locomotives the real need for the layout is for shunting locomotives. I also have an interest in Industrial locomotives and used to go and watch the NCB locos hauling loaded coal trains into the exchange sidings at Donnington a few miles from Trench. I have already mentioned the ex GW Pannier tanks but I have also built some other shunters, the first two being some converted 08 diesels from Bachmann. These are fitted with Ultrascale wheels and I have fitted Brassmasters fine scale coupling rods. One has been weathered and one I still need to do. The loco without the wasp stripes is modelled after I found a photo of it on Wellington shed circa 1964 still without stripes.

     
    Because Trench sidings had lines down into a Canal basin and also a number of Iron works for my model I have assumed that these iron works continued and had their own shunters. The access to the works went over a weigbridge so that is why ex L&Y Pug and ex Caly Pugs were used in the 1930s and 1940s.
    Both these Industrial are built from Impetus kits, the green Bagnal being built by me some 25 years ago! Unfortunately it is fitted with a high speed motor coupled to a 40-1 gearbox so it is not exactly a slow runner, but that was the only motor that would fit. The Hunslet is another matter though and runs very slowly. I just need to decide what number to put on it and what lettering style.

     
    david
  25. Norton961

    G2s for Trench sidings.

    By Norton961,

    The opertion of the layout will trains arriving into the exchange sidings and being shunted into the connection into the canal basin and for this I can use a number of locos. One of my favourite classes of locomotive is the ex LNWR G2. Some 25 years ago with my late friend Jim Barnes we created a 4mm brass kit for this class and started Brassmasters so this class will always have a place in my heart. The arrival of the excellent Bachmann model meant that I have never finished my personal Brassmasters kit, but I will one day.
    The first loco is one of Staffords engines 49126 and this has been converted with Alan Gibson wheels and re numbered. I still have some weathering to do as I swapped the tender top from another model.

    The second loco is not yet converted but has been renumbered to yet another of Staffords locos and is the loco shown on a previous post in this blog at Wellington station. I have recently retired from Brassmasters but development work was started on an EasyChas conversion some time ago by my Brassmasters colleagues so this loco will get one of the EasyChas when they are avaliable.

    I have modelled one loco with a tender cab and one without.
    I have modelled one of the last of the class based at Bescot complete with yellow warning stripe (1964), but I decided I had to many locos waiting for conversion so I have sold it. I used Fox transfers for the yellow stripe but if I did one again I would use my trusty linning pen.

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