Flying Pig

As Zomboid says it would be worth looking at some prototypes. Pending that, I like it apart from the handling of the bay platform and the associated loops which don't look like any prototype formations I've seen. How would a bay be used - do you even need one at this station? It isn't nearly big enough to terminate traffic off two double track routes, which presumably continue to a larger joint station along a section of joint line. So effectively it's just a wayside station on two separate lines.

Only somewhat - there are a number of differences and yours is usefully more compact in this situation (West Kirby in model form here). Your version has appeared on RMweb before as a conventional double track throat (see here).

Try http://www.jpaerospace.com/ Also, people might find the Upward Bound playlist on Isaac Arthur's Youtube channel of interest. There are an awful lot of ways of getting to orbit. ...an unimaginably long time into the future - billions of years, though it is possible Earth will become uninhabitable in only hundreds of millions of years. We'll either be as long gone as the trilobites by then or well capable of dealing with the issue. My favourite approach to fending off fiery oblivion is Star Lifting which requires no new physics (just very big machines) and could extend the habitabity of Earth to trillions of years. That should be enough for anyone regardless of the size of their kit stash.

Try http://www.jpaerospace.com/ Also, people might find the Upward Bound playlist on Isaac Arthur's Youtube channel of interest. There are an awful lot of ways of getting to orbit.

That's my favourite too and with the slightly wider panhandle I would add another goods siding at the front. This is one of the most appealing schemes I've seen in a while - bookmarked for future reference.

The thing is if you buy a surfeit, they all come in a single pack with one copy of the instructions. He was probably overcome by solvent fumes trying to build them all at once: a salutory lesson to the rest of us to work in a well-ventilated room.

The curves on the inner loop where the flexi meets the Setrack look a little tight to me, especially on the right where Anyrail is warning you with a red line. I suggest you continue the Setrack with another half curve (Peco ST-227) at each end to give the flexi an easier time (assuming you don't follow DavidCBroad's suggestion and use Setrack throughout). That will give you a more realistic idea of the space you have for a platform.

I don't like to quibble but the old Comet site lists D1925/69 which was a 1935 design, as well as post war variants, though I haven't checked current availability from Wizard. Which reminds me that the Bachmann porthole composite is of course an option for @Aire Head too (duh moment there).

Quite true and unsurprisingly not easy to represent using rtr stock only, the only rtr period III compo as far as I know being the old Airfix model, which shows its age badly and tbh always had its issues. Hence the advent of Comet sides to stick on them, which I guess is still an option. For completeness I went looking for LNWR elliptical roof stock and there appear to be kits in the 51L range.

There must be thousands of Mainline/Bachmann Period I composites sloshing around the second hand markets and the prototypes ran well into the BR era. Very nice models too, particularly the later ones with metal wheels.

Keeping the loco sidings separate from the station maximises the stock storage capacity of the station yard, which is important on a layout without hidden sidings. Your design does reasonably well in this respect, although I think wagon capacity is always going to be tight in the space available (particularly due to the limited width of the panhandle). One aspect of this station that I like is that the rear runround could be used as a carriage siding and probably would be on a mostly DMU railway. I think a two track shed would be too much in a small space like this - remember that most depots have a lot of siding soace in the open. A single road maintenance or fuelling shed on the further siding could help break up the main line visually and wouldn't hide all your locos.

I'd suggest retaining the loco sidings, given the tendency of model railways to accumulate locos. They're quite credible as a stabling point, perhaps the rump of a former mpd and I think you'll find that they form a separate scene on the layout, despite their closeness to the station on the plan. I like the idea of a couple of level crossings across the legs of the triangle very much, but then my imagination always gravitates to the Eastern region for this period and particularly Lincolnshire where level crossings in inconvenient places were legion.

Overall I like the plan, but this is a pity - a trip from the station yard to shunt it would have been a nice move. Can it be relocated inside the loop?

Ah - I thought the track spacing for the island platform might be an issue. This arrangement loses a little in appearance I feel, but it's still the most appealing of the sectional track designs. I don't think converting the station to a blt with effectively a single approach line adds anything and it will reduce operating flexibility. I still like your earlier 'St Botolphs' in streamline best.

I think this is a neater arrangement of setrack for the throat and it gains about a point length.

I like the look of this, but it does need room for a proper headshunt this side of the nearest points - I don't see how it can be worked otherwise.

Not sure I approve of this cupboards business. Aren't you supposed to be able to see the junk that accumulates under layouts?

To be pedantic, this isn't St Botolphs, which has a single platform face (in fact, Zomboid's layout is pretty much identical to my earlier generic sketch). However it has the advantage over a more accurate rendition of St B. that a passenger train can work the upper platform while a freight shunts and runs round, so has considerably more operating potential. And much a much better fit to here than Yet Another Minories imo. Fun layout in the making!

I don't know, but possibly by handsignals.

Continuing my trawl through the s-r-s thumbnails, I've found several termini without - see e.g. Allhallows above and Ilfracombe.

I was imagining something simple like the following, but Colchester St Botolphs also comes to mind (signal plans for 1957 and 1958).

A quick look through the plans on the Signalling Record Society site found this arrangement at Allhallows on Sea. Wouldn't the release crossover 3,6 need to be worked from the box or a ground frame rather than plain manual levers?

I think on balance I prefer the passing loop and second station on the left of the circuit as this separates it from the terminus better. However, I like the way the loco sidings are on the terminus side of the junction in this version. Operationally of course it means loco shunts don't block the circuit, but it also shows that the loco depot belongs to the terminus rather than floating on its own. Two lines from the terminus to the triangle will also probably look better. I'd suggest a single island platform with a runround on the bottom road and goods sidings kicking back towards the junction from the loop. Ideally both facing and trailing crossovers between the main lines, but this depends on space.

Would it be worth angling off the top right corner to provide an access point for a small agile person?

Ah - non-trivial then! Perhaps swap the positions of the crossovers between the inner circuit and sidings like this? I've also provided a headshunt separate from the canal branch.