HillsideDepot

Thank you for your comment GW. The layout is 9' 6" x 2' in it's original form, and the scenic extension I am working on is an additional 9", but it doesn't really add anything operationally, it's designed really to provide a better "end" in photos. The track plan would fit easily on an 18" wide board, but I think that would be less successful in terms of representing (hopefully) a railway in its environment.

Back in the '70's life was so much simpler. If you wanted electricity you went to the local Electricity Board, in our case Southern Electricity. Gas came from the Gas Board, later British Gas, and if you wanted a telephone you went to the Post Office, and waited your turn for them to come and install it. What hasn't changed is the regular quarterly appearance of the utility bill, although nowadays it will probably come by email rather than brown window envelope. And it looks like we're due our electric bill again soon as the Meter Reader's van was spotted parked at the end of the road this morning.

After my previous photo from Bath Spa showing the Steward on the VSOE, two much more mundane images from yesterday. The driver of 158959 looks back along the platform to confirm that the crowds have all boarded the 08:31 to Cardiff (1F06 0600 ex Portsmouth Harbour). This train was especially busy with many standing passengers throughout the length of the train. A few minutes later the driver of 150122 passes the time of day with a member of platform staff as they wait for departure time (2V90 0643 Weymouth Town - Bristol Temple Meads). The train arrived a minute early and with the crowds all on the train ahead a few minutes chat are most welcome before the serious business of safely despatching the train.

South West Trains certainly don't see a problem with coupling with passengers on, as well as the 444s it seems to happen to the majority of Exeter - Waterloo 159s when they arrive at Salisbury. The Guard/Train Manager just announces that "we are now arriving at Salisbury, change for here, there and wherever. Please note that there will be a short delay before we unlock the doors as we are coupling to another train". I simply sit in my seat until I feel the "pull away" test, then get up and head to the door. I've heard similar announcements on GWR services at Temple Meads involving various classes of 15x Sprinter, and at Exeter last summer a Barnstaple - Exmouth pair of Pacers coupled to one already in the platform, and uncoupled the 2nd of the pair that had come from Barnstaple which had become defective. The passengers on the defective unit had to alight, obviously, and there was a bit of confusion as doors on all three units were open, then had to be closed for the coupling/uncoupling and then were opened again once the "new" train had been formed, but the whole thing was done with passengers on board and, to the credit of the fGW (as it was then) staff, well within the scheduled dwell time. One would hope that such flexibility won't be lost with the class 800 family.

And here they are passing Crofton, under a bank of cloud.

I saw a pair yesterday at Salisbury, top 'n' tailing some yellow NR test coaches. I was passing on a GWR 158, so was too close to see the numbers (and on the wrong side of the train) but from Real Times Trains website it seems they are doing Paignton and Penzance today before returning to Old Oak and then Derby. They are certainly spreading their sphere of operation.

Further to the repainting of stations, I was at Westbury (Wilts) today and noticed that it has had a green repaint (although it hardly looks green in the photo I admit). However, it has also had a visit from the black paint brush. It is very hard to tell from the photo, and not much easier in real life, but the column is green and the fence around the subway stairs is black.

The degree of "redundancy" (or not) in the HST fleet is such that I am told that the DfT has instructed that 43160 (the Plymouth accident victim) must be repaired, despite serious structural damage.

Agreed. The question needs to be "does it look right?" If the answer is "yes" does it matter if its "correct" regardless of whether it is exactly 4mm/ft (whatever that means with the "wrong" gauge) or if an optical illusion has been employed to make it look "correct". At "normal viewing distances" - and with digital cameras that can be cruelly close-up - this track has chairs making it instantly different to Peco. I'm certainly looking forward to release of the points as I have a number of new layout ideas all on hold awaiting the specs and details.

I should be back in Taunton on Saturday, so will have another look. I think Totnes has also been done, that looked green the other day, but not the same green that the trains are, more a concoction of 'bodywork green' and 'door grey' I'd say.

Apologies for the poor quality of the photo, taken with my phone through an HST window on "The Devon Express" this morning, but painters are busy at work painting the platform canopy columns at Taunton into GWR dark green. Also seen today was the first green (and refurbished) class 158 which had a car and a half outside the shed at Bristol Barton Hill, where the work has been done. No photo as I was on the wrong side of a very crowded 153, but it looked very smart from the glimpse I had of it.

A Pullman Steward makes use of the loading time at Bath Spa to open a bottle for his passengers aboard the 17:00 Bath - Eastbourne VSOE on 25th June 2016, drawing much comment from passengers waiting for the following 17:06 Sprinter to Weymouth, which doesn't even carry a trolley service.

Day two of my Rail Rover (after 'rain stopped play' yesterday) and a few observations west of Chippenham. One of the main feeder stations is located at Thingley Sidings, but I was on the wrong side of the train to see it clearly, so need another trip past before commenting. The compound at Farleigh Down Sidings which was used as the access point during the Box Tunnel works last summer is still active, although with nothing more specific than a collection of Transits and Portacabins. A similar compound has been set up at Westmoreland Goods in Bath, while Saltford Station holds a stock of piles. Bristol East Depot was busy with various electrification related items in store, including some signal gantry parts. It was also playing host to a rail grinding train. There has also been piling along the embankment across the meadows between Twerton Tunnels and Saltford (I want to call it Kelston Meadows, but aren't sure that's correct). Apparently these were done when the line was shut for other engineering work. I then set off for Kernow, travelling on the Down Cornish Riviera Express and the Up Royal Duchy (thanks to the later running half an hour late). My return was via 'Glastonbury Festival Parkway' (Castle Cary) - "please remember to take all your luggage, wellies and tents with you" as the Guard said over the PA - meaning I did the Melksham line to get home. The Up side view from Beanacre to Thingley reveals the scar left by the earthworks where the main power feed cables are buried, although it won't be long before it all grows back. On the approach to the Junction there are a number of pile locations marked with yellow pegs (the result of test pits?) so it appears that it will be possible to stable an electric train on the branch clear of the mainline (although with the increased Melksham service it would soon find itself causing an obstruction). Interestingly though the parapet on the branch bridge hasn't been raised, despite the road being closed for months while the adjoining mainline bridge was rebuilt. While I was changing trains at North Road I managed to photograph power car 43002, looking great wearing its original livery again - some memories there for me, but it started me wondering, what will we think of SETs and indeed the electrification infrastructure in 40 years time?

I've been out and about Rail Roving again (Freedom of the South West this time) and tried to have a look at progress west of Swindon today. I say 'tried' as spotting piles at HST speed given the way the grass is growing at the moment isn't easy - I certainly don't have The Stationmaster's skill for it. Anyway, there are now more masts on Dauntsey Bank, mainly on the Down side, and not a consistent run, but a number of groups. There are a few near Wootton Bassett Incline Signal Box (which is still standing), again on the Down side, as well as those previously noted near Vastern. There are some piles on position between Wootton Bassett Junction and Swindon, but no masts. I'd say there are areas of piling, rather than the whole section with odd "difficult" ones missing - but the growth of lineside vegetation may be giving a false impression. There are some piles in the Christian Malford area, but again several short lengths rather than a continuous row from Dauntsey. There are also a couple of occupation bridges between Dauntsey and Christian Malford which haven't been rebuilt, nor do they seem to have raised parapets. So one or the other will be needed. I then went via Gloucester to Cardiff (just because I can on a Rover). I am much less conversant with locations in South Wales, but there are several bridges being rebuilt, including the big one at the west end of Newport station which must have featured in thousands of photos over the years. There are piles at various locations, but no masts until England and the split level section east of Pilning where there have been a few groups for a while now. The new depot at Stoke Gifford Tip appears to be complete, but not all the connecting point work is in place. My first impression is that it is very squashed in, the sort of thing we might be guilty of a modellers trying to squeeze something in on the corner of a layout! I didn't see a SET either. On the South Wales Main Line most of the bridge work appears to have been done, although a few sites are still active. The bridge at Farleaze which will be known to photographers now has a big "car park" in the field, which I assume will become a work base for the Road-Railers once they finish in the Thames Valley. There is a fairly long section of piling (on the Down side, at least, couldn't see the Up side) in the Little Somerford area, and it is notable that the piles there are all filled with concrete. And that's that. I might do Swindon - Bristol Parkway in the Down direction to see the Up side works, but my main focus for the Rover will be, as it's name suggests, South West.

They come from Holman Bros works on the Roskear Branch at Camborne and are often seen travelling 'up country' by train. Sorry, I slipped into the reality of the thread! In model terms they also come from Camborne though, but from Kernow Model Rail Centre http://www.kernowmodelrailcentre.com/p/51303/44-500Y-Bachmann-Scenecraft-Holmans-Compressor-Twin-Pack

There is, First's 6 & 7 from the bus station next to the railway station https://www.firstgroup.com/bristol-bath-and-west/plan-journey/timetables/?print=pdf&source_id=2&service=6/7&routeid=15328951&operator=3&day=2 to Larkhall Square. The bus stop is a little past the Square itself, opposite the Co-Op, but a footpath leads off left from the bus stop to the exhibition venue which is about 50m away.

I love the contrast between the stark, bare, boards in the foreground and a piece of glorious English countryside beyond in this photo: Opposite ends of the creative process, captured on one view - wonderful.

Your planner has missed one out, Jim: Minehead! 56302 has been there today for the WSR Diesel Gala and has been named "Peco" http://cgibin.wsr.org.uk/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?h=Snapshot&p=2016/06/117

Some rolling stock news/confirmation http://www.focustransport.org/2016/06/new-trains-for-thames-valley-services.html My late night nosey at the signal panel web-page spotted an interesting "wiggle". 1A37 departed Didcot Up the Down Relief, crossing over onto the Up Main at Didcot East, before being switched to the Up Relief at Moreton to wind its way around several squads of the Orange Army. The Challow to Wantage Road four-track section was also playing it's part with Down trains using the Up Main and Up trains using the Up Relief. No sign of any work west of Swindon this week on the signal panel, and the Wiltshire page NR website hasn't been updated since 31st May, so I assume there is nothing to notify people.

Hi Jo, yes it was the TA centre originally, but by the same builders as the former Police Station in Wood Lane, which was originally a NAFFI. Back in the days of the Bridge Centre model railway club we did a few exhibitions, usually Westinghouse's show at the Neeld Hall. We did take Hollerton Junction down the corridor at the Bridge Centre for a youth activities day, that would have been 1985 as there is a photo of me somewhere with a GWR150 badge on. There was also a War Games show where Middle Longstone was on display in the club room (part of the booking condition for the War Games club!). The shows which were held there were under the auspices of Bentley Model Railway Group, when they ran youth model railway club in return for some storage (if my memory is correct). I remember that when we measured up the various rooms they were exact dimensions, in whole feet, no odd inches here or there, presumably a legacy of the military origins of the building. As for the future, I don't think that there are any definite plans, but the notice to Wiltshire Council staff said that the hoardings will remain in place once the building is demolished and the rubble cleared. Funnily enough a part of Bumper's Farm might become a diorama for me at some point - Faresaver's depot would make a good display area for some of my many EFE buses.

Something a little different this morning. As you'll know Mortimore's Yard, whilst a fictional location, is very much based on childhood memories, and includes models of (or inspired by) structures in Chippenham. My childhood was a good while ago now, and so much has changed that I am often going on memories and what few photos I can find on the internet when I try to recreate something. So, it is important to record what I can now, especially if things are about to change. Fortunately I got word that the old Territorial Army Centre in Chippenham is about to be demolished, so I set out early this morning, before too much traffic was about, to do a quick photo survey. I don't intend to model the building, at least not at the moment, but if I change my mind after it's flattened it'll be too late to go and look. For most of its life the building has served civilians rather than the T.A. being the town's youth centre. I'm not sure when it was "de-mobbed" but I've only ever known it as The Bridge Centre, the name given to it by Wiltshire County Council, and it was definitely that at least as far back as 1979. I know that as there was a model railway club there, albeit I had to wait until 1980 to be old enough to join. The layout there when I joined was called Foxhill, with a branch leading to an unnamed terminus. Hollerton Junction followed, a GWR cross country route with diverging branch line. As the membership changed (my school friends) diesels came to the fore and Hollerton made way for Penham, a suburban station with wagon works and diesel depot, followed by Middle Longstone a layout where passenger trains reversed having travelled only about 1/3 of the layout with the rest being "freight only" to a quarry (we thought that was quite radical, at the time). Albeit taken from ground level, this is pretty much the view from one of the windows of the model railway club room, the GWML being on an embankment beyond the former "tank" shed. The rifle range is on the right and the drill hall on the right. The garage on the right between the range and the garage facing us is a smaller 1987 replacement of the original, built when the town's inner relief road was built behind it taking some of the land and making The Bridge Centre an roundabout. I wonder if anything in the Oxford Diecast range of military vehicles would be appropriate for a '70s T.A. Centre...... While I was out I took a few other building shots, all filed away for possible future use. And I suppose that's the point of this rambling, look around and record what you see. So much is worth modelling! The thing I am finding is that up until now my buildings have been too square and level (well, intended to be my skills don't always allow that!), but the real world is lumpy and bumpy, and buildings have to fill odd spaces between their neighbours. Who knows what will emerge from the plastikard and Wills sheets in the future, but what is certain is that without photos and research, without grabbing today what will be gone tomorrow we are making our modelling so much harder. Farewell Bridge Centre! My Monday evenings and later Tuesday afternoons spent there certainly helped lead me to where I am now in modelling terms. Thank you Mr Catt (centre manager), Mr Parmenter (model railway club leader) and indeed Mr Green (yes, he really was Chris Green) our Head of Sixth Form who let us spend our "sports" time building railways!

I went out this evening for an "inspection of works" and found no visible signs of progress in the Christian Malford area, other than a big fenced compound where the Down platform would have been at the halt which appears to be for some sort of sub-station/switch gear. I couldn't see any signs of piles there, or up at Friday Street where I'd seen the HOPS train on Tuesday. That's not to say they aren't there, just that they aren't visible from the road. Certainly there are none that have "failed" and are sticking up in the air as seen elsewhere. I then continued to Grittenham (just east of Wootton Bassett Incline 'box) and again there were no sign of piling work. However driving a bit further along the lane a distant view of the line towards Vastern (Wootton Bassett direction) reveals a few masts! Not easy to see, and certainly not worth trying to photograph, but they are there. A quick trip into Royal Wootton Bassett proved no masts on the South Wales Main Line east of Callow Hill. Back on the A3102 the view is poor across to the line, but there don't appear to be masts between the ones spotted from Grittenham and Bassett Junction itself. I decided to return home via Lyneham Banks, which was fortunate, as a glance across to Dauntsey Bank let me spot a few masts there. Doubling back I headed for Trow Lane which I thought was closed for parapet raising, but is actually open, even though the work is only part complete. So, for what are possibly the most westerly masts (excepting Filton Depot)... The view east through the bridge works fence (not the best shot, I know) The view down Dauntsey Bank, with the now traditional 2 here, 3 there, random mast arrangement. The Down Line pair The Up Line trio Trow Lane Bridge. I must admit I hadn't really expected to see masts today, if I had I'd have gone out earlier when the light was better. But for the record I hope these shots are good enough.

Following a mention of Colletts Models on the Bargain Hunters thread I checked their website and a pair of Hornby fGW 08s were soon on their way to me (oh, and an Airfix Vulcan bomber!). The parcel arrived promptly, but 1 class 08 was missing, with a worrying looking hole in the box side. A quick email to Colletts to advise them of the situation yesterday afternoon, and Leigh rang me first thing this morning to apologise and explain he's been so busy it was his packing mistake and the 2nd 08 would be in today's post. An excellent response to a glitch. I had a short chat with Leigh, and Exmouth has gone on the agenda for my Freedom of the South West Rail Rover in a few weeks time, it sounds like a shop worth a visit.

Larkhall is too, looking at it from where you are in the far, far south west.

Maybe with the rails still embedded in the road for the 2nd track, but not connected to anything?