N.E. Thing

Had a bit of a slow couple of weeks on the layout, however I have had a pleasurable bank holiday hacking up and burning my expensive Peco track, which took bravery at first but soon got into the swing. Left hand /corner baseboard complete with a new Peco curved point procured from Jane's Trains on Saturday. This is technically my local model shop, but well over an hour's journey away. (I live in East London) Central baseboard. Future location of the coal drops at the back. I miscut the track in this area, had a right struggle getting it to fit and had to rework the 'top' two goods loops (with the crossover points) Right baseboard, with very crude mock ups of station buildings. The goods and passenger sidings will have loco isolating sections. The bay platform is designed with a Railcar in mind, although I don't actually own one. Long view of all the track, cut to size and ready to solder. The plan is to solder together a few sections and then paint it before fixing. Close up of a baseboard join. I had a right fiddle figuring out how to solder the brass-covered sleepers (C&L Finescale) to the track in the right positions. This is a tricky little spot. I've given myself a challenge by having points right up to the baseboard joins. Also had some struggles getting the curved sections to fit nicely. So that's the progress, a bank holiday well spent. Hopefully get a bit more soldering done during the week, it's a lot of trial and error. Probably used too much solder in some cases, and miscut the track a couple of times. I wonder how people normally get round this? I am essentially trying to lay the track by "eyeing it in" Next thing it to purchase some aerosols online in preparation from spraying the track (outside on the balcony). I think I am going to go for humbrol 29 for the rails and precision paints Sleeper Grime for the, er, sleepers. I am considering layering the entire baseboard in a charcoal base layer of paint to represent ash ballast which seemed to be commonly used in the North East. I painted a small test area (under the mocked up engine shed on the right hand baseboard), it doesn't look too good over cork board so i will need to seal the cork somehow. I need to hack out a couple of holes in the baseboard for the loco inspection pits - i am not too sure how long to make these. I have bought one of the Peco inspection pits, but I may put the engine shed on hold until I have done some more research on this area. It may not be long enough for two pits. Next update next weekend, depending on progress this week. The aim is to finish cutting the track into the fiddle yard and soldering the sleepers where needed, and get the paints ordered. Cheers! Colin

Thanks! That is true, the curved point does make a slight difference and visually looks a bit smoother. i might well do that - thanks!

Hi, I'm just starting out on my first project and was wondering how best to paint the track. This looks a great method, think I will give it a go. Hopefully I will catch your layout at a show, looks fantastic. Cheers.

Thanks, I will bear those in mind when I come to do the turntable. I can't see that happening any time soon, there is plenty of other stuff still to build. I will probably stick the peco turntable in the fiddleyard and turn locos off screen, as someone else suggested.

Hi, I'm just starting out on my first layout and this is good to know - I'll be using plaster cloth. Cheers

Hi thanks for your comment, I just updated the track plan before reading this. I agree with you - I did away with the two sidings, it didn't seem quite right. I had Richmond in mind by having two, although one of those was a run round loop. I have omitted a run round loop in the station due to the platform being quite short (4ft long - ish), also that was the layout at Guisborough which was my original inspiration. So, a train will have to back out into the loop before the station in order to run around. The double slip was a space saving measure - i'll have a look at alternatives as that may allow the platform to be extended. I'll have a look at those links tomorrow, thanks for those. I read that Richmond was frequently visited by larger locos, but then it did have a massive 268yard platform for troop trains which is probably about the length of my entire layout.

After a bit of messing around with track on a Monday night, listening to 5 live, I have come up with the following revised trackplan: -Peco 76' turntable abandoned, smaller (50'?) to be sourced at a later time (tips welcome on where to find one!) -completion of turntable baseboard put on hold -removed a carriage siding from the station as it was a bit cluttered -goods shed and station roof moved to the right to allow larger loading dock -engine shed moved to the left to allow better operator view into station and loading dock -added a bridge to disguise a sharp curve (but all landscape is tbc anyway) Next step: finish laying the cork underlay which I have started, even though I have recently read that this is largely pointless with modern RTR locos. Still, it will help with forming the landscape around the track. After that: learn how to paint track and start practicing on some old bits of Hornby... I don't own an airbrush so perhaps spray paints are an option. Cheers!

Evening Gents, thanks for the comments. It is indeed a Peco turntable and it does look a bit big, unfortunately I already bought it... However I am going to look for slightly smaller versions, not sure what is out there. I own a B1, a V2 and 02 and I'm hoping to get the Q6 when Hornby release it so there will be a few fairly large locos knocking around, despite the short platforms The platform can take 3-4 non-corridor coaches by the way. I have a couple of tanks such as the L1 which will also be on passenger duties, and a J21 for goods. The track plan in the station approach is largely based on Guisborough's, although I decided I would like a turntable as Guisborough trains used to reverse in and out of the station from the mainline which didn't seem that interesting from an operating point of view.

Hi all, This is my first attempt at building a layout. I would appreciate any and all tips on designing and building a layout. I've already built the baseboards and there is not much room for expansion - baseboards are J-shaped (joints in red) with a fiddle yard not shown. The main scenic area is 11'6" long and 20" wide. I'm using Peco Code 75, the layout will be DC, points will be motorised, and I'm learning everything as I go.... I've been tinkering with the track plan for some time without committing to fixing any of it down yet. It's not going to be a faithful recreation of a particular location, instead I'm trying to incorporate as many typical NE features as possible into the space I've got. "North Eastern Branchline Termini" (Ken Hoole) has been the main source of inspiration. I'd be interested to hear what you think of the trackplan. Where should the signals go? What about catch points? I'm still considering a few changes: perhaps just one carriage siding in the station trainshed, and moving the cattle dock to the end of the bay platform. I'm considering shifting the engine shed to the front centre, rather than next to the bay platform where there is not much room and it tends to block the view. Thanks!

Sorry to hear this news, RIP and thanks for the inspiration! From one of your many online fans. It's clear the legacy will live on, and that's a tribute not just to the obvious model building talents but to the man himself with the great spirit that showed through in forum posts.