PannierTanker14

I recognised your work from YouTube and I must say it is superb! The level of detail of the locomotives match that of the real thing. I have a question about the layout: where does the tunnel lead?

The Riverside Loco Works was an idea I came up with for a video game where locomotives from preservation are serviced as fast as they would have in the steam era. (I watched a 30s film where an LMS loco was under general repair and was out in under two weeks!) This idea has now been incorporated into the Castle Rock project as the sheds that the railway heritage society and the colliery society share for repairs to their stock. I’ve created a plan to build a small part of this loco works in O gauge as a photographic diorama so I can photograph individual rolling stock with a suitable background. This diorama will probably accompany the main layout during exhibitions as a place to store locomotives when not in use (since the layout will at first be D.C. therefore only one locomotive can be on the track at one time) This diorama will probably be the first to be finished since it’s small and easy to make. The Castle Rock railway has a wide range of locomotives from across Britain (and even the world if you count the BR-52 and the S160s) and require a place to service them that has a wide selection of parts. The loco works are capable of creating parts from scratch therefore there has been many a plan to start building locomotives from scratch too. Locos like the Bulleid diesels or even a replica of the Zaamurets armoured train. The works also assist other railways in the upkeep of their locomotives and provide uncommon parts and boiler servicing too.

(There will be some changes at a later date. I’ve written the whole thing down but I can’t remember where I put it. So until I find it, here’s the basic story) Castle Rock colliery sits in the middle of a fictional town called Castle Rock. The town has this name because when the colliery was first built it was called “Castle Rock Colliery”, since there was a huge castle in the middle of the town on a rocky hill which gives the name Castle Rock. When more and more people moved to the town, it’s original name was replaced with “Castle Rock”. The castle itself is called Dracona Castle after a local folk tale from before the town was even formed. The colliery closed down earlier than most others, so the site remained derelict for decades. The whole railway through Castle Rock was closed down by 1968 ,having been closed to passengers for 6 years already, leaving many stations to demolition. A small group of preservationists made a deal with BR in 1971 to leave Castle Rock’s main station intact, since the group’s new society didn’t have an official home. Soon after BR left the area, the preservationists moved in to secure the station and begin work on bringing it back to running again. This was achieved in 1974 and the first loco to run on the newly restored station was a local Andrew Barclay 0-4-0 which used to work at the paper mill near the river. Soon after, another locomotive arrived. This time it was a ex-BR Black 5 fresh from the scrapyard. Later, the society extended their small track to Broadsword station in 1979. During this time, another society of preservationists moved in to restore the colliery the town was famous for. Later in the year a section of track was laid to connect the colliery to the railway once again. Also during this time, both societies’ rolling stock was increasing. With the gain of an E4 from the south and several ex-WD tank engines, the Castle Rock Heritage Railway society formed a longer timetable to accommodate holidays. As for the colliery, more Barclay 0-4-0s and an Avonside B4 0-6-0 lent a helping hand in shunting the abandoned coal stock from the sidings, since by this time the colliery was only 20% restored and much of it was still an overgrown mess. It wouldn’t be until 2004 when the colliery would be three quarters restored. The shunting puzzle is to represent a small set of sidings that are at the end of the branch line to the colliery and are hidden behind the sheds where both societies restore their rolling stock. Usually it is used to dump wrecks and broken stock, however sometimes it is used to hide special guests from public view until big events.

If you want a locomotive with good detail that isn't pricey then the Hornby railroad range fits that description. Plus there are plenty of second hand locomotives that are in good condition to use. (Sorry if this is of no use, I'm fairly new to all this)

OO is a good scale for a small layout, because you don't need much to have a good set. N scale is good for large scale places eg if you were to put together a massive station like king's cross. Personally I choose OO scale because it's a decent size and not too costly for a few engines and wagons. I don't know if this helps but I hope it does.