Bob Hordern

Hi David You will be pleased to know that there is an article on the quarry section in the current GOG Gazette with a full page photograph (by Andy York) of the quarry train crossing the trestle bridge. Would have made a great magazine cover but heyho. Yes, with regard to the wagon loads, full wagons leave the shed, go up to Kirtley bridge and then end up in the hidden sidings. Here their loads are removed to allow empty stock to return to the quarry later in the timetable. The public view of the shed appears to show that the track inside is parallel to the shed walls but this is a dummy track and the actual siding runs at an angle taking wagons closer to the hidden sidings behind, thus allowing access from the rear. This makes re-loading relatively simple. The accompanying photos show how this can be done. Best wishes, Bob

Currently building and fixing up semaphore signals So here's the first of the single dolls. They are being driven by a newly installed Megapoints controller. Note the 'bounce' and 'draw' at each end of the arm movement. Only my old Iphone I'm afraid. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1O0JfKLSqKo

Splendid weathering Chris. I am new to this site but will post a few 'uptodate' things from Kirtley Bridge now and then. Seems a much 'gentler' world than GOG Bob

Only just got onto this site Howard, though I have met Andy Y before. Good to see some familiar scenes and some new ones. You do have an excellent 'eye for country' and the recent video is splendid. Bob

Thanks for your nice comments guys. Here's the latest situation at Hebden Beck Quarry. I've recently added a third siding to house the workmen's coach which brings shift workers in from Kirtley Bridge. Other traffic includes a daily limestone train leaving from the transhipment shed which is also pulled by the Hudswell Clarke. Note the weathered version and the ex-works condition in the last photo. A stores train, usually using a Fowler diesel, arrives occasionally and also moves gunpowder up to the reservoir site at Dalehead. Some older rails, now disused, are also modelled and a 'dummy' loop inside the shed completes the trackwork. This end of the layout is pretty much complete so I've added an early stage and plans to show it has worked out. Apart from (hopefully) entertaining the public the quarry also hides the layout's traverser/storage sidings.

Hi Tricky, I was about to post four photos to show you the flavour of the trains I run....................... Then up pops Andy's reply with three of the photos I was looking at. Very Spooky indeed Hi Andy, thanks for this Leeds passenger service This is made up of an LMS 4-4-0 Class 2P tender loco and two Clayton coaches. These run throughout the day, the loco usually running round its train at Kirtley Bridge, before departing back to Leeds as soon as possible. The loco No 323 (Skipton) was bought second-hand having been built from a brass kit. It is one of only two tender locos on the Kirtley Bridge branch. The coaches were built from Slaters kits though the painting and lining was completed by a fellow modeller. They have been only very lightly weathered (Photo courtesy of Andy York). Goods vans This train is made up of a class 4F 0-6-0 Tender loco and vans. These are all ex-MR stock and are a daily arrival into Kirtley Bridge. They are destined for the goods shed, returning later in the timetable. The loco No 4197 (Skipton) began as a Bachmann Brassworks RTR product, painted and weathered in LMS livery. It has since been given a replacement chassis (Uncommon Kits), gearbox and motor - following the failure of the original drive. It runs with five kit-built vans (Slaters and Parkside) usually consisting of two vents, a meat and a goods van - plus a brake. The photo (again courtesy of Andy York) shows the train passing Kirtley Crossing. Hebden Beck Quarry train This consists of a Hudswell Clarke 0-6-0 ST loco and five quarry wagons. These are collected from Hebden Beck Quarry and brought over a trestle bridge (see photo) in batches of two or three. They arrive into Kirtley Bridge station loop. From here they are taken down the branchline as part of a daily mineral train. On their return, as empties, they are propelled back into the quarry. The model consists of contractor’s loco No6 from Ixion Models - an economically priced RTR - and up to five quarry wagons. All have removable loads of limestone and were built from Slaters and Parkside kits. Heavily weathered, they are a feature of this end of the layout and can be reloaded by hand behind the scenes ready for the following day. Other traffic through the quarry includes a workmens’ coach, a gunpowder wagon and barrier wagons, plus occasional supplies of fuel and equipment. Local pick-up goods This train is pulled by an ex-midland 3F 0-6-0 loco as it makes its way up and down the branch each day with an assortment of wagons and vans - some loaded and others empty. The fixed ingredient is however the daily milk traffic collected from and returned to the dairy siding. This, my first 7mm purchase, is a kit-built 3F numbered 7417 (soon to be 7419 Manningham), which performs very well after some early repair work. The present milk component is a weathered Dapol RTR tanker and a Milk van built from a Connoisseur brass kit. The NE brake with full interior was scratch- built by a colleague.

This is my 7mm layout Kirtley Bridge It represents a small branchline in the Yorkshire Dales during the 1930s. It appears on other websites, bloggs, etc but as it is now beginning to get bookings at Exhibitions I thought I'd introduce it here. Hope you like it.

Thanks for the invite to Kirtley Bridge and your members' hospitality, we enjoyed a good weekend in Hull. You had a good variety of layouts and traders - well done to all of you. Pleased too to pick up a couple of trophies - bit of a surprise given thay o gauge layouts often get overlooked when giving out awards. Best wishes to all, Bob Hordern