SiHumph

Back from a great time at Ally Pally with the Rydes Vale goods yard section being exhibited for the first time since around 1980! the locos performed unbelievably once warmed up with me able to demonstrate scale walking pace over a three way point with not even a stammer! Saturday I didn’t get a chance to look around as constantly had visitors all of whom couldn’t believe the age of the layout and performance plus great to speak to people who remember it from central hall and one that knew Bert and worked with him! Sunday my son was with me and took the lion share of the operating (I couldn’t get a look in) and had kids under the Rydes Vale animation spell Possibly will be at another show this year after some brief discussions and also the target is now to have the complete Rydes Vale together for next year albeit probably in a work in progress state

Tim you are quite honestly an artist. That is a brilliant repair and retaining as much of the original as possible keeps its character and retains its originality. Thank you so much for your work on getting these locos back running and putting smiles on faces for years to come. Forever in your debt Si

Next job for after Ally Pally is to get to work on the hill and get it looking lush and back to life. Also to relay the fence that has not faired well but have enough pre drilled posts to do the job plus many more (need loads for the mainline)

Other little jobs done. The two nearest sidings to the front both had missing buffer beams so these have been added and blended in. The water tower has had its ladder straightened and fixed as well as the water being purified! The goods shed has had the office roof replaced and painted and the hole in the roof temporarily repaired (the chimney was lost). A few holes filled in the baseboard that had cover poles in. Finally the near shutter was given his pile back

This is my first attempt at creating something in this scale from scratch so after a few mistakes (thanks for picking that up Tim) and a bit of rework and a first attempt at making my work blend in I am quite pleased with the result (I might rework the closest corner top plank as it’s too high I think)

Prior to this weekend I thought I need to get to work on a couple of bits so I thought I better update the post with a few things I have done to the good section. First was to check the wiring and make some changes in order that it can in the future be reunited with the main line. More on that later. From a viewer perspective I think something needs to be done to stop the lying down cow from escaping!

Hi Peter Thats a great recollection and something I have sorely been after. I never had the priviledge of seeing the rydes vale exhibited or used in full, indeed the only time I saw the main line was when it was pulled out of the loft in Guildford (first time it saw daylight after being taken from Queens Walk which was before I was born). If you have any other recollections on operation and indeed on anything realting to the layout and Bert, HH I would love to hear them. David and I are keen to get the whole layout back in front of the public (which is where it belongs), I am taking the lead on this as it is something so close to my heart. As a 5 year old I have memories of operating the MPD section at the Astolat Exhibition In Trinty Hall, Guildford (and pictures). Today the mission is nearly complete as the MPD section along with HH locos and stock are off to set up at Alexandra Palace for the weekend show. I am hoping the mainline will be at a standard to get in front of the public next year and be coupled to the MPD section for the first time in over 50 years. In fact next year will be 60 years since it was last in front of the public in its full glory at Central Hall (Bert exhibited on his own in 65 and the stress of it wasnt good on his health apparently) Please keep in touch Simon

Looks like the coach bogie frames are for an emu that I had the ends for in another box but missing 4 bogie frames (sorted).

I will be at Warley at the weekend with Copenhagen Fields, The thought is to bring thsi and some other unidentified bis up with me and can have a chat with anyone up there that is interested that may be able to shed light. There are quite a few vintage bits and bobs that were just in the usual cigarette boxes and floating loose

Along with the Rydes Vale section my Uncle had a a root around for some bits and pieces and we have managed to find a couple of missing coaches but the one thing of most excitment is that for many years we knew that HH was starting on a tender loco but we have no information at what stage this was and had no information on its progress. Was it just talk or did something actually exist? Well the answer to that is in the photo. This is loco number 16 from the HH 2mm stable! This is all I have (althoough I do have a set of cleaned up white metal castings that do seem to fit the wheelbase (but were not with it). Ther is no paperwork or anything else so I am a bit keen to know what was it he was building, a few checks on the wheelbase tend to indicate it could be a Midland loco and its definately an 0-6-0 tender loco The big question now is how to progress with this? Do I just leave it and thats it or do I look at getting the last HH loco bult to a running model to grace the Rydes Vale and the other locos that will again run on it?

Ok so its been a long while since I last posted so I thought its time for an update. I have to admit I havent done a lot on the layout since I meet a load of you at last years 2mm event in Derby but that was because a of a bit of a health issue and me having too many other things on my plate. I was alos looking at the viability of spliting the main line into a couple of shorter manageable sections but as that stands that is on hold at the moment. This Autumn has seen my attentions turning to the Rydes Vale but something a bit different! I picked up the Goods/MPD section last week so the focus now is to get this cleaned up and running and marry it up again with the mainline section, which will be the first time since 1965 they have been together. Fortunately this section has stood the test of time a bit better as it hasnt spent the majority of its life in a loft and been used as recently as around 1980! As you can see the mainline section is in the background (as well as a load of junk (got told off for that one by my wife who wants the dining room back!! Once I get going on this I will get back on the updates but that isnt all!

60 year old groves loco looking every bit the part on CF. The 2-6-2 and three others ran too but was too busy watching them and smiling to get anything on my phone. There’s a couple more pics on my Rydes vale post and the CF post.

Another imposter on the North London Line

Great to meet so many people at the weekend and all of which were so appreciative and supportive of what I’m trying to do. So much thanks to Tim for all his support and encouragement in my project and thanks so so much to Mark for all those wonderful bits from RV that will prove invaluable. Was amazing to watch the locos make brief cameos on CF North London line. They really looked at home amongst the other superb models on there

As a slight aside from the layout work, which is ticking over, I have been concentrating on something that hopefully visitors to Derby will enjoy. We couldn’t let an event like the diamond jubilee go by without a little bit of homage paid to Bert and his father. So David and I got together to see what we could cobble up. I will have a selection of the original HH locos on display (and thanks to Tim W in running condition) as well as a few interesting items of rolling stock, tooling and moulding dies from the Rydes Vale. Mark, the folding test track is still surviving too!