Jaggzuk

After much procrastination and umming and ahhing I have decided to take a late plunge and enter the RMWeb 2010 challenge. Not sure how far I will actually get, but the challenge has really inspired me to get on do at least something. However, my modelling efforts will have to be shared with a rather long running and fairly extensive house renovation project. But for now here are the basic layout stats I am thinking of: Layout Name - North Marsh Road What Type - OO 4mm/ft - DCC Where is it - Eastern Region When - 1975 to 1995 Form - Scenic section - 45''x12'' - Full layout including fiddle yard and continuous loop - approx 10' x 6' Why - The 2010 Challenge and for some fun Introduction North Marsh Road will be a fictitious station based somewhere in the Eastern Region and possibly on the section line running from Kings Lynn to Ely in Norfolk, the London & North Eastern line. The track layout, scenic elements and typical railway operation will be based upon a mixture of the stations and surrounding areas at Wymondham, Littleport, and South Lynn (disused). I have purposefully chosen to create a fictitious layout as I like to idea of 'creating' a plausible layout at a justifiable location with prototypical operations. This, I feel, adds to the challenge of creating a layout that looks believable and would require a bit more research. It also frees me up from having to find an exact location that fits the baseboard size/room space or having to heavily modify an existing track layout to fit. What I have not yet decided is whether to locate the layout on an existing line such as the Kings Lynn line or to create a completely fictitious place. There are two schools of thought on this; one is to add a station as a 'what might have been' scenario, or make it fictional but to take on the look and feel of the line, local architecture, railway operation and regional railway style. I guess time will tell. Inspiration Having grown up close to Kings Lynn and spending my formative railway enthusiast years traveling out to such places as Ely, Cambridge and Peterborough, I now have fond memories of that region during the late 70s and 80s. The era that I grew up with at this time was BR Blue and then Sectorisation. It was a time of loco hauled passenger trains and freight services such as Speedlink and local trip workings. It was also still a time when many areas were ruled by semaphore signalling. From an atmosphere perspective everything looked run down; stations, track and infrastructure. Track rationalisation and modernisation had not yet really started either, so with many stations still retaining their old track layouts and disused sidings. Research Research, I think, is one of the fun parts about building a model railway. In fact I am sure many a layout idea gets researched but never built. I guess this is why I am entering the 2010 challenge, to actually move on from the armchair phase to the construction phase ;-) I have been in the armchair phase for many years now, playing with plans searching the web and reading books and magazines. During this time I have come across many fantastic archive photographs on the web and these brought memories of BR days flooding back. Some of the more specific web resources that I have found which have inspired this layout are as follows This is a video that really inspired me on the Wymondham track layout and fright operation for my layout idea - I think some of these photos really sum up what East Anglia felt like in the 70s and 80s = East Anglian Railway Archive and in particular Cambridge- Ely- Kings Lynn And of course I have found RMWeb a great resource and inspiration too Part Two - Further Idea Developments The Fictional History The station is located on a double track main line with a freight only branch line leading to local industrial facilities and a small port. At the station there 2 platforms, a good yard/loading facility, a good loop and some exchange sidings. The 1946 OS Map below shows the location of the station, the various freight lines, port and surrounding area. After the end of the World War II and then with the privatisation of road haulage in 1954, the volume of goods being handled by the port steadily declined. As a result and as part of the Beaching cuts in the mid 60s, the railway dock capacity was cut back with the double track branch line becoming a single track. This actually lead to an increase in shunting movements at the station as more freight was now trip worked from the port and local industries to the exchange sidings. Here they were marshalled into longer trains ready to be moved to other parts of the country. The reverse operation took place for goods arriving and empty stock for incoming goods. The track layout and sidings at the station were built to enable freight from the docks to be exchanged and marshalled. There were also facilities to allow locomotives to swap ends. These simple sidings also offer storage and shunting capacity for the small loading facility adjacent to the station. The original track layout at the station is still pretty much in tacked today. This loading facility with hard standing allowed for the handling of such products as cement, arable goods and other van load items. The track layout will be based on Wymondham Station in Norfolk on the Norwich to Ely line at the junction to Dereham. The current station track layout is show below. Rolling Stock The period to be modelled will be set between 1975 and 1995 and so the livery era will cover both BR Blue and the introduction of Railfreight Sector liveries. Passenger traffic will be formed by both loco hauled and DMU stock and goods traffic being formed from short wheeled based wagons including such formations as Speedlink short trip workings. The key traffic types are summarised as follows: Goods Movements Branch Line - Docks - Grain, coal, timber, steel and petroleum Branch Line - Local Industries - Food products (Campbell Soups), sugar, building materials and timber Station Goods Yard - Cement and agriculture Main Line - Anything within reason Typical loco types - 08, 25, 31, 37 and 47 Passenger Movements Branch Line - None Stopping at Station - Local stopping only - DMU (101, 108, 105) and short loco hauled (31 and 37s) Main Line - Loco hauled - 31, 37 & 47 with MK1, Mk2 coaching The rolling stock will mostly be RTR with some kit built wagons. I hope, over time, that all rolling stock will be weathered as I think it looks so much better. I have not yet fully decided on the coupling system to be used on North Marsh Road but it will be either 3 link or an auto coupler like Dingham - See here. As already mentioned the layout will be DCC, initially just for control purposes. But, ultimately, I would like to go the whole hog with DCC and taken advantage of sound and rolling stock internal lighting, but the cost is just too high for sound at the moment. I would like to install sound to a Class 37 and a DMU, as these do sound good so who knows. Summary of Key 'Wish List' Elements Scenic A set Period Semaphore signalling Run down feel Realistic Illumination - buildings, signals, etc Operation Must be fun to operate To provide a sense of the bigger world outside of the scenic layout itself. Train movements to be based on typical prototype operation Continuous running (to allow for watching train go by) and shunting DCC Prime function - Single operator, Secondary function - two person Construction Must be quick to build and also achievable in a short time period Test bed of modelling techniques, materials and experience Flexible - the layout design to allow future expansion Part Three - 2010 Challenge - How to fit all this in. "That's a lot to fit in 2010sq inches", I here you say Well here's the twist what I will try to build will be a very small part the Wymondham track plan yet give the impression, operationally and scenically, that it is part of the bigger layout. Time is short, so I needed to come up with a layout design that I could build relatively quickly without too much cost outlay. I needed to come up with an angle that would achieve all this but still be part of the 2010 challenge. After a little bit of sketching and some calculations in Excel, I came up with the following idea - how about modelling 2010 sq meters of real life but in 4mm / ft. This equates to 536.6sq inches of baseboard area and so a 45' x 12' baseboard (1.154m x 0.300m) would work quite well. As this would be the scenic board I would use the rest of the 2010 area to create a non scenic continuous loop layout and fiddle yard. What this means is that the small scenic board will be a small window of what is a much bigger layout 'off scene'. The trick will be choosing the right bit of a track plan to put in the Scenic window. Taking the original Wymondham track plan and turning this in to North Marsh Road and then selecting the 'scenic window' area I have come up with this. So the basic track plan I have come up with looks like this. This is the early idea for the 45' x 12' scenic 'window' section. (This was drawn in TRAX2 and then modified in SmartDraw to add the scenic elements) And the over all baseboard dimensions are shown below, this all adds up to just under 2010 sq inches. The green is the scenic base board, the yellow are the non scenic radius boards and the blue will be the fiddle yard, which will in the long term be a vertical traverse (thanks to Fen End Pit for the idea of a Vertical Traverser). The next stage will be finalising the track design so that I can move on with the final baseboard design. Not sure at the moment whether to make the baseboards to buy them. To get me going quickly I could get the 45"x12" scenic board from a local company, White Rose Model Works, but not sure at the moment. So there we are, a rather long introduction to my planned layout, but I hope an enjoyable read. I look forward to sharing updates and photos of the various stages of the build and I welcome any comments / feedback. Paul

Hi Andy, great to see you being able to finally spend some time doing nice things like modeling rather than the constant fighting with software and sever hosts. Although doing wasp stripes might have be just as much hard work looks good though. Paul

Hi Jon, one of the best 'how to' I have read, really useful and very inspirational too, thanks Now I know how to work my recently bought Bachy VAA, VBA & VDAs. Just one minor observation on the Blogging, it would appear that the caption text you have written for each photo is appearing directly under the preceding photo rather than being formatted on top of the one it is linked to. Not yet having a Blog, I unsure if you can control this formatting or if it just the way it works ??

Thanks for the conversion details and extra photo, I might have a bash at something when I get round to respraying my crane from black to yellow. Don't be surprised at the level of interest, your layout just oozes atmosphere and your stock looks great I do like the variety of daytime, evening and night shots. Paul

Hi Kevin Love the recent set of photos in including the ones of the steel blooms and the crane. Can I ask what wagons you have used to form the support wagons for the crane? I have made the Dapol crane but as of yet not worked out how to create appropriate support wagon for 1980s era version. Thanks. Paul

These look great Jon! I thought it had gone a bit quiet on the Sandhills front, but then I thought it was just you taking some R&R recovery time after the Vac incident ;-)

Wow... I do not know you work so quick Jon and these shots just look tremendous!! I especially like the last colour one and the B&W versions work well too. Some of your photo angles have that Knottingley TMD feel. Great work, and it is not even Jan of 2010, let alone Oct, what are you going to do for the next 10 months ;-) Have a great new year. Paul

Looking fab there Jon. The photographic angles you are going to get will be great in natural daylight. The shadows the big building will create will be quite dramatic I think. You have placed and sized the buildings so well such that when viewed at track level you have no big gaping holes in which a backscene would be need to be filled... roll on summer 2010 for them outdoor shots!! Have a well earned break. Happy Christmas. Paul

Hi Trevor Wow how come I missed this one on RMWeb3???? What a lovely little layout, and I just love the unclutteredness of it It really shows what can be done with a few buildings and some carefully placed items like cars, people and other scenic accessories. It just oozes character of the 70s. This has to be one of the best first post to a new thread I have seen and some great well taken photographs!! What are your plans with the layout now? Regards Paul

Hi James Having been very impressed with the look of OO Easytrack when compared to OO Peco I went looking on the web for a supplier, but drew a complete blank. Where can you buy OO Easytrack from? I assume the plain track lengths work like flexi track does. Regards Paul

Great work there Jon!! Love the look of the concrete apron and the weathered look of the track and ballast. The buildings are really starting to look like they belong in the scene now.

Not sure how you think posting great photos means your are outstaying your welcome , far from it keep them coming. Just out of a matter of interest do you have any history photos of Leaford under construction? And I am sure I could work it out from the various shots you have so far posted, but do you have a layout plan? Paul

Thanks David for the additional details and photos, very much appreciated. This is only the 2nd vertical traverser fiddle yard I have seen. The other one was very much on the huge scale and was motorised too. But I have to say on the size side and also the simplicity front I really like yours! It has certainly inspired me to consider this solution and so enabling me to go for a round-e-round layout now. I even like the idea that with a cover to the front, rolling could be stored and protected in the traverser rack. Paul

Was just scanning through the recent Blog updates and came accross your - looks good. I was most struck by your fiddle yard design. So could second James in the request for some further info on the fiddle yard build - it looks such a great idea and very economical on space too. Regards Paul

Even at this early stage, as soon as you put some rolling stock on, the imagination does the rest - on a nice sunny day out for a stroll down past the quarry and came across an idling 60 while an 08 shunted some wagons to be loaded... Looking good Jon

Hi Kevin Thanks for the reply on the VEA wagons, and yes having check out Parkside website, the VEA wagon is still being produced. I then thought to myself, "Mmmm" of all those Parkside kits have have made over the years (no layout at the moment, just lots of kits being made and then safely stashed away ready for they day I get round to building one) I wonder if I have made one of these? After a quick search, sure enough I have!!. So thanks for the pointer anyway. I guess now I have one made, I have another question, if that is ok, where did you get the Railfreight transfers from? Paul

Yep is indeed coming on. Glad the measurements all worked out, would have been a kicker to have built the layout to budget and on time only to have found out it was indeed a 2012 layout and not a 2010 one

Hi Hampshire Hog Some great looking shots there in you first post!! Can I what manufacture the Railfreight VEA wagons are and do you know if they are still in production - I am after a load of these for my "one day I will get round to building a layout" Cheers Paul

Hi Pugsley Hay great to see the successor to Chittle, looks like the beginning of a nice little layout. The baseboard looks very lightweight but strong too. I note the Tag of 1991, is this the intended year the layout will be set in? Looking forward to the next installment. Paul

Thanks for the reply Mason, so RTR bashing it is then! Looks so much better with open doors in a camio scene I think like what you have done. Is your VDA the Hornby one? I think these are now disconnected, so I will have to hunt out a second hand one. Some close up shots would be great to see, thanks. Paul

Hi Mason I have just seen a post of yours on PCMs "Llanbourne North Wales in the 80s" thread and I noticed your avtar with I think a Railfreight VDA wagonwith open doors. I have just bought some VAA and VBA wagons from Bachmann and was a bit disappointed to find that the sides are a solid molding, so no ability to open the doors - well not without a craft knife or saw! So I was wondering if you could let me know how you achieved an open door on the wagon, was it a RTR, kit or modified version? Thanks you and regards Paul

Also, forgot to ask, will you work Brooke Stone so that the Brookefield Farm Crossing can be linked in somehow for extended running? But obviously not part of the 2010 size. Paul

Weh-hay, gona like watching this one develop Jon. :icon_clap: I thing the 5 road no points idea is certainly a novel angle on the 5 year aspect of the challenge. I agree with James on the use of Bull Head rails. I have a length of it I bought at a show a while back an it certainly looks the part. With a bit of your weathering magic I think will look great at the stone facility. Can't wait for the next installment. Plus, I am glad it will be on the blog format, as I have said before it suite your story telling side. Paul

Just added your blog to my Tracking list as it look rather interesting. Great to see Widnes in Blog format and I like the vids too. Odd seeing the Grand Central off territory though, I travel on it every day, but on the other side of the country Regards Paul

Hi Flood Just found your thread (and Blog), great looking layout. I have added the blog to my favorites as I will want to follow this one. I have to say that I like your mix and use of of thread and blog. I think it is a great way of using the RMWeb4 functionality. It certainly enables there to be both a place for discussion and chat and another place for the uncluttered and easy viewing of layout progress. Keep the updates coming. Regards. Paul