Grimleygrid

Thanks Lukasz, not sure I share your optimism!

Thanks Worralls, I am beginning to think that a smaller depot might have been a better idea!

BigT, thought you might like it! Might have to extend it to allow some MGR trains to run passed! Only joking??¦??¦

Hi Jon, Tugs 1 and 6 are more than welcome to visit any time. Don??™t worry it is being made to be fully transportable outside!

Porkie, well there is always time in the future for you to model Tinsley. I certainly didn??™t think 20 years ago whilst walking around Toton that I would attempt to build a model of it!

Great photos Peter, especially the Large Logo 47s. I can see a couple of those visiting my new depot!

And may be a couple of peaks too!

Glad to see that you have been working on the extension.

Hi Dave, just wanted to say that I agree with previous posts about Waverley West in Model Rail, I thoroughly enjoyed reading the article. Great photos as usual, good work Sir!

Whilst doing some planning for Grimley depot I was thinking about putting a lightweight overhead crane (as per the ones normally found in many of the small maintenance depots around the country) in the other shed. Then I got thinking that this would stop me having the new Bachmann lifting jacks, unless I just had one road with the overhead crane. This then got me thinking of perhaps having a larger depot shed and my thoughts turned to Toton??¦..

I think it was back in 1987, whilst a teenager I came across a Modern Railways which had a photo of Toton depot and I could not believe it. The sheer size of it and all the locos there just shocked me.

After doing some further research I really wanted to visit said depot and managed to organise a visit on a Sunday in February 1988. This I have to say was fantastic, as I live in Essex it was very hard to see Choppers, 56s and 58s so to see a large shed and sidings full of them and in one place was just amazing. Sorry to bore you! Ever since that visit I have been fascinated by Toton and always thought how good it would be to have a model of such a large depot although it would be very big in 00. So the long and short of it is that I have now gone completely raving mad and decided to start a new project which is going to be a model of Toton but known as Boxenby TMD. It would be nice to have a large depot to park up some of my 60s in!

Here are a couple of photos taken back in February 1988:

The other day I managed to find my notebook for the 20^th of February 1988 and cannot believe how many Grids and 58s were there that day!

Although I plan to have my depot loosely based on Toton it will not be exactly the same as I can only work from photos that I have and those that are available on the internet.

After further research I decided to see how big the depot would be by coming up with some rough scale drawings of the depot shed.

As this didn??™t put me off I decided to come up with a rough track plan on the kitchen floor:

Here is the layout plan so far:

Due to the demise of the class 60 my plan is to have Boxenby in the period 1988 to 1992 but due to the majority of my stock being for the EWS period, initially the depot will be for the present day until I can build up enough locos to go back in time. Whether it is because that period was great with 20s, 31s, 37s, 45s, 47s, 56s, 58s and the 60 just entering traffic and with so many different liveries to be seen or was it just because I was young and what I remember the railway to be like I am not sure. All I know is that I really enjoyed going out and about then and loved seeing such a variety of traffic. As mentioned before I am looking forward to having BR blue, Large logo, Original Railfreight, Red-stripe Railfreight and Trainload/Sector liveries. Quality!

The other week I had some scale drawings printed off ready to construct the depot shed but then realised that I didn??™t have a large enough surface to allow me to build it! So that was put on hold until the first board had been constructed.

Yesterday after a visit to B&Q and the local wood merchants, Grimley Senior and I spent the afternoon building two boards. So there is no going back now??¦??¦..

Here they are finished in my garage. The larger of the two is taller than me!

Hopefully I can make a start on the depot building over the weekend and have the shell finished to allow the first of the inspection pits to be put in place.

Looking good, you are making good progress. I like the buildings, good work Sir.

I hope you are right Beast!

Problem is there are so many rumours doing the rounds that it is difficult to know what is true and what isn't. I suppose we will have to just wait and see. My feeling is that if they get withdrawn we just won't see them return......

I see double-headed sheds is the order of the day on a few workings this morning!

Excellent Photos Peter.

I for one am in the leave it as a terminus camp, to change it would be a crime!

It would completely change the character of the layout but I am probably not the best person to ask as I do not like change!

As you know Grimley is a roundy roundy layout and it is great to just run trains around but your layout is superb and should not be changed! Do the extension and start a new layout for the changes that you have in your head.

Hope that has been helpful!!!

Excellent photos Dave, I especially like the shed scenes.

Looking forward to seeing Waverley West in Model Rail!

Very sad news that the 60s are to be stopped for good within the next week or so.

As previously mentioned, in the original design for the 60s, they should have had an overhaul every 8 years so. Therefore some if not all are due for their second visit to the works. Despite the comparison by some in the railway media and those shed lovers on the web it just goes to show how well these locos have done to keep going for nearly 20 years with the lack of servicing and maintenance that they have received. Would a Shed be in a better state with the same treatment?, I think we all know the answer to that looking at certain examples today after only 10 years.

A question for those on here that work on the railway and have the knowledge and experience to answer; the latest plan is to double head sheds on certain workings.

From what I hear for example the Lindsey to Westerleigh which is normally a 60 (on 28 TEAs) uses approximately the same fuel as a shed on a lighter load (same working). If you then double head it with a pair of sheds then the fuel consumption will be near enough double just to move a few more tanks. How can this be economically and environmentally better than using one loco? I appreciate the cost of maintaining these old locos compared to the newer sheds is higher but in the long run it surely can??™t be cost saving.

People often compare the Lindsey to Kingsbury which often loads to 30 bogie tanks which a shed handles no problem compared to a 60. But from what I hear it is working on full power all the way there. That is not what a shed was designed for, pulling heavy freight trains day in day out. Therefore that is putting excess stress and strain on the engine which cannot be good for it, especially as that is not what the engine was designed to do. So in short they can cope on some of these heavier workings but for how long? As mentioned by other members they are already showing signs of wear and tear so this will only make it worse, especially as it has been less than a year since sheds took over the heavier workings!

Nice photos, can we have some more please!!

The M.O.D. tank train looks rather nice. Excellent stuff.

Really like the look of your layout and especially like your planned stock. Can just imagine a 60 on the Murcos tanks trundling along and another one on some BS tipplers. Please keep the updates coming, great layout.

You can use a 2nd handset on the std dynamis. I am sure Hattons were selling off hansets for abut ??45 or complete sets split from trainsets for ??70, that would give you a spare / back up reciever + std box and power pack.

I baught my original dymanis for ??80 and 2nd hand one for ??60.

 

As i said, you can have one set of locos (say the "up" trains or all diesels) on one hand set and another 40 on the other, so 80 locos for little more ??.

I didn't know you could use two handsets with the basic system, I thought you needed the Pro-box to allow multiple controllers.

Thanks for the info. Piemanlarger.

Thanks for your views and thoughts Nigel. As I am not a member of a club it is difficult for me to test out a few systems so need to rely on those in the know with experience.

The signals and points are controlled by a PC interface so I don??™t need to worry about that.

I will have a look on Ebay to see what is around.

To be honest I am not sure if it is better to just stick with the Dynamis system and put up with the 40 limit, which although can be limiting and also a pain if a loco not on the roster is required for running rather than looking into an alternative. Especially as I do not want to spend huge amounts of money on it at present.

I was planning to get the Pro-box and another handset to allow two of us to drive at the same time. I just don??™t know??¦??¦..

Blimey Ron it seems this DCC is quite expensive??¦??¦.might have to ask Gordon for a loan if I decide to try another system!

I am looking forward to seeing the viaduct structure and scenery finished and a nice Tractor trundling over it!

Great work Sir.

No need to apologise Dave, great to see them again!

Agreed, wouldn't be the same Waverley West.

Thanks Nigel.

I have been thinking of what the requirements are. After looking at the timetable that I have created for Grimley, it is possible to have three trains moving at once not including locos shunting in the depot. Being realistic, the maximum number of trains moving at once (not including the depot) is going to be four e.g. A Multiple Unit arriving on the Down Slow, HST passing through on the Down Fast, Voyager passing through on the Up Fast and a freight on the Up Slow. There are obviously other permutations etc. but I think the maximum main movements at any one time will be four trains which means four drivers and therefore four controllers.

Being wireless is a great feature as this gets rid of the wires on the loft floor and enables the driver move with the train as it trundles around the layout.

On the number of locos on the layout at any one time, having a limit of 40 is not a problem. For example, five DMUs, one HST, one Voyager, two freights and even say ten odd locos at the depot still leaves you well below the 40 limit. It would be nice however to have the ability to put a loco on the track without having to delete one from the roster and then add the new one. Not the end of the world though.

Having quite a few locos on the layout does require more power and so I do need to purchase a booster.

The other major factor to consider is the cost, as I already have one handset would it be cheaper to just add the Pro-box, booster, another handset etc. or switch to a comparable system which fits the bill? I don??™t know.

Not being an expert on DCC I cannot really think of any other requirements. It may well be quite a while before I even attempt to run the Grimley timetable with four drivers. May need some drivers and a signalman!

It would be nice to be able to have a drive of something at the same time as my eldest. Don??™t seem to get many goes at driving these days??¦??¦

Thanks for the information Craig. I too have the basic controller after realising that the only way to operate our layout realistically as per a prototypical timetable, DCC was the way forward. The idea of four wireless controllers was very appealing so that is why I went down the Dynamis road.

Not sure what to do now.

I suppose 40 locos on the layout at any one time is quite a lot but having to chop and change between them, programming etc. could be a potential pain in the backside. Although saying that I don??™t spend that much time playing these days!

Still one day when I eventually do run the layout properly that will be the time to decide. Perhaps for the extra cost of the Pro-Box, that would be better value than starting from scratch. As I do not know the cost of other systems available, would this be economically the best option. Any thoughts?

I am planning to ask Father Christmas for a Pro-Box and so this discussion is very interesting.

My understanding is that you can have 40 locos on the layout to control but how many decoders is it possible to have? Is that a maximum of 40? My problem is that with the standard Dynamis I have reached 40 but cannot program anymore chips?

Sorry but my knowledge of DCC is very limited so apologise if I have not fully understood!

Superb Peter, as soon as I got the gen, went straight down to Llanbourne and managed to bash 693 all the way to Crewe!

Great photos, that really is a fantastic layout with stunning scenery. Superb modelling Peter.

Can't believe it, I was at Peak Forest on the Monday just after! Would have loved to have seen it at Hazel Grove.

I agree with the previous posts it is great to see Llanbourne again on RMWeb.

Just wondering when we will see a Crewe built, high numbered Large Logo Grid on test?

Or come to think of it 60001, 60002 or 60003 freshly out of Brush on test with your rake of HEAs!