10sidmouth

The train on the right is the Sidmouth to Sidmouth Jct branch train and consists of a former SECR 100 seater coach attached to a Maunsell BCK. There were 11 sets of this type, very short-lived. Formed in 1958 and disbanded in 1959/60. So this dates the photo. The SECR coach will be in crimson livery. The BCKs were then attached to Maunsell SOs and continued until the introduction of DMUs. The van is possibly the vehicle that brought the newspapers down in the morning and is now being returned empty. The engine is an 82xxx Standard 3 2-6-2, The Std 2-6-4s did not appear on the line until about 1963. The train on the left is no longer a puzzle. In the cold light of day and with rested eyes I can see that the train on the left is a second branch set. The SECR coach is at this end. It is definitely not a GUV - the roof profile, the shape of the buffers and the canted vac pipe are giveaways. Apologies for the misleading first post!

Spoiler alert! Sidmouth appears (if only briefly) in the guise of East Bay in Episode 4 of ITV's 'The Larkins' on October 31st. 8.00pm

Many apologies for not replying to your question. I read somewhere that the company was founded in the early/mid 1950s, so I guess their tenure of the former engine shed (closed in the 1930s) dated from then. I was told that there were light and heavy machine shops in the building and that SE refurbished components from tanks and armoured vehicles for the MOD. Perhaps your friend could throw more light on this subject?

Latest addition. A third Martin Finney M7. Painted and lined by Ian Rathbone

Here is the completed BR Std 3 2-6-2. She joins her sisters 82010 and 82019 on the layout. Fireman just checking his injector prior to departure for Sidmouth Jct.

Apologies for the slow response. The concrete posts are from Ratio, so not wholly correct. I believe that some enterprising soul is producing an authentic version in brass. As soon as I know who, I will will post it on here. The 'wire' is very fine (0.1mm) nylon thread

Tavistock will follow shortly Richard

Many thanks phixer 64 for your excellent photos. The following are pics of recent additions to the motive power available. Both Bulleid Light Pacifics in original form are built from PDK kits. The rebuilt Bulleids were too heavy for the branch and never appeared. The only evidence I have of 'spam cans' visiting Sidmouth was an excursion from Plymouth hauled by 34104 Bere Alston, an engine I also have. I have seen it written that 34011 Tavistock was seen hauling a freight. No evidence for 34069 Hawkinge though. She was a 72A Exmouth Jct engine so not beyond the realms of possibility. Anyway, it is my railway. Third picture is also a PDK kit - this will be my third BR Std 3 Tank. The kit is not one to be undertaken by a novice to this hobby, I would say, particularly in P4 as the valve gear clearances are so tight. The chassis is designed for 00 only, as you might expect, so needs some careful modification.

Next show is Basingstoke, March 2021. Fingers crossed it takes place. Richard

Gentlemen, Thank you very much indeed for your very kind comments. I would like it known too that the stock boxes are first class and have themselves been much admired. Richard

So how does one start to describe a layout under the heading 'New Topic' when it has been seen by a large number of people at various Shows for the last 4 to 5 years? It has also appeared in MRJ (Issue 243) and in two other illustrious publications. The layout was also awarded the Railway Modeller Cup for 2017, the Bachmann Trophy in 2018 at the NEC and the Sir William McAlpine Award also at the NEC. Well, as much as I would like to continue with the list of successes , I frankly admit there have been a number of brickbats too, some deserved, some very harsh and dismissive, particularly in the early days when operation was not as good as it should have been. Having then only had very limited ability to erect any part of the layout for pre-Show test purposes, it became painfully obvious that it would not improve quickly until it could be run more or less as a whole. A house move allowed me the opportunity to build a longer shed that accommodates all but the fiddle yard, some 5.5 metres. Following a programme of (what turned out to be) minor improvements to the track and to the front and rear bogies of the various 2-6-2 tanks, that I use, the incidence of derailment virtually disappeared. The bogies are sprung and are checked thoroughly before each Show to ensure the springing is engaged. I found that, as these engines sit in boxes for some weeks between shows, the springing can jam. I have also added sprung arms that ensure more weight of the engine is exerted on the top of the bogie. I discovered a slightly misaligned coach bogie too. In P4 these small discrepancies matter. Perhaps it would be wise to finish at this point and leave another couple of photos in my wake. Layout photos by Barry Norman for the MRJ. Richard

Graham, Please allow me to add that the photos were taken by Barry Norman for the article MRJ. Many thanks, Richard

Hello Graham, May I be allowed to add 'Sidmouth' to the OP please? Great to have somewhere for Southern devotees The layout is P4 and depicts Sidmouth Station and yard as they were in 1959/60. It has featured in BRM and MRJ and will reappear on the exhibition circuit again, once we have the current distancing restrictions lifted. Best wishes, Richard

Just a word of thanks from the Sidmouth virtual team for a wonderfully executed Show. Well done Andy and congratulations to all your team.

On behalf of the ‘Sidmouth’ team I would like to thank Alex and his team for inviting us to the Show. We all had an excellent weekend and what a superb venue. Wonderful

On behalf of the Sidmouth team many thanks for inviting us to Wimrail. We had a most enjoyable weekend in excellent surroundings with the bonus of good food. Once again many thanks.

Well Dave, to bring you up to speed on this issue, we were specifically asked by a representative of the German press whether we could run a camera as you describe. It was actually a 5 plank wagon. He was visiting a number of layouts for this purpose, including Liverpool Lime Street. Apparently, such video is very popular with the readers of the Model Railway press in Germany. I apologise for interrupting the normal sequence to do this, but we like to be as cooperative as we can. I would like to correct you on another point. The operator was not on his own, I was there too and we were both trying to hurry the whole thing along. If you had been there earlier in the day representatives of the BRM magazine were also taking video shots around Sidmouth. This involved rather more interruption. Like everything else in life I suspect that even an exhibition layout has a certain shelf life. Bearing this in mind I try to fit in with the wishes of as many people as possible, while they still want to have a piece of me and my layout. Clearly this approach has upset you and once again I apologise. If you visit a Show in the future, and Sidmouth is there, please make yourself known to me so we can discuss further. Richard Harper

In light of your comments you might be surprised to learn that "this lot", as you so dismissively state, won both the inaugural Sir William McAlpine award for best layout but also the Bachmann award for best 4mm layout. So, we must have been doing something right, I guess. As to "nothing moving yet again", you cannot have stayed very long, because we invariably run trains every two minutes or so. For goodness sake this was a single track branch line that boasted a maximum of 15 trains each way a day. The service we run is in accordance with a strict sequence, is very varied in nature to interest the onlooker and involves completely prototypical movements. Furthermore, it is vastly more intense than was ever the case in 1959/60. Let me tell you that the sequence and the layout took a lot of time and effort to put together and my team and I do not appreciate being kicked into touch in the manner you have employed. If you think we are not pleasing you, the public, then talk to us and tell us what you think should be happening, rather than hiding behind a nom-de-plume and posting these unhelpful comments. Richard Harper, owner of Sidmouth.

On behalf of the Sidmouth team I would like to thank all the Exhibition organising staff for making us feel so welcome, for assisting us unstintingly with unload and load duties and for being so willing to ensure everything went smoothly for us. We all enjoyed the catering too. Wonderful weekend, thank you. Richard

Many thanks to Andy Y and others for their kind comments regarding 'Sidmouth'. Thank you also to the organisers. Our team had a most enjoyable time. Richard

On behalf of the Sidmouth team I would like to thank David and his team for looking after us so well. We had a most enjoyable time. In response to DavidB I would say that we try our damnedest to to run, stop and start at realistic speeds. We also make every effort not to 'ram' shunt our stock. Sometimes under exhibition conditions (particularly when it is very warm) engines do not perform the way we would like. If we disappointed you we apologise.