Layout inspirations 2 - Ashburton

Ashburton by John Birkett-Smith
Viewed at The International N Gauge Show 2006
Featured in Model Railway Journal #94 (April) 1997

 

Photo by Des Brailsford

For me this was the stand-out layout at The International N Gauge Show in 2006. What captivated me about this GWR branch layout was the scenery. The grass looked like real grass! I spent 10 minutes just taking in the view, then realised that the operator had gone off for a tea break and no trains were running. It didn’t seem to matter. I hunted down a copy of the MRJ feature, which reveals a clever baseboard construction approach and a sector plate that swivels under the scenery - not something I’d seen before (nor can I describe it well either!).

Anyway, check out John’s web site of the layout here.

And so it begins...

After several years (not kidding) of planning and prep, not to mention the numerous distrations and diversions. The layout is officially underway. Whoo hoo.

Let's not get carried away - what this means is that I've cut an 8' x 4' plywood sheet into four 1200mm x 600mm sheets. But hey, it's a start.

Some pictures to mark the momentous occasion:

From

To

Four neat matching boards. The job was made easier by getting a decent handsaw - I picked a cheap one up from Screwfix that cuts both ways. Less effort and less of a ragged edge to the uncut side.

Next up - bracing to support the plywood.

Layout inspirations 3 - Basingstoke

Basingstoke by Farnham and District MRC

Viewed at Farnham & District MRC Show 2009
Featured in Railway Modeller Oct 98, Model Rail Oct 2000 and Hornby Magazine March 2009
Web page: http://www.farnhammrc.org.uk/basingstoke.htm

I finally managed to see Basingstoke after having read about it in various publications and references to it (mainly from Noel Leaver) on the Yahoo N Gauge forum. It's long - 28ft or so - which shows off the pluses of n gauge very well. Full length trains moving at scale speeds - the effect that I'm after.

I took some pictures. Stupidly I only took a telephoto lens with me, which meant that most of the photos have a tiny depth of field (and that therefore much of the picture is out of focus). Should have listened to my wife...

More (and better)pictures are here courtesy of Mike Boydon. Also here courtesy of the N Gauge Society (of which I am a member).

Turntable at Beattock

What's a suitable turntable to use? The obvious choice is the Peco NB55 model, and according to the catalogue is "based on a Ransome and Rapier 73ft well type turntable, supplied to many railways both at home and overseas." In other words, it's generic.

The turntable deck is 151mm (6.1 inches) diameter. It's just too big to fit comfortably on the layout, according to XtrkCad. The turntable at Beattock was "a balanced 54ft unit from Cowans Sheldon nearby at Carlisle" (source: LMS Engine Sheds, Vol 5). So it was 19ft (36mm in N gauge) smaller than the Peco effort. It was probably only used to turn banking engines - a Duchess or similar would never have fitted on it.

Re pictures, there aren't any. The only source I have is my North from Carlisle video (B&R videos, vol 33) which has a scene where they turn CR439 class 55234 prior to towing it off to be scrapped. You can see that it's a well-type table, but barely long enough to squeeze the tank onto.

My plan, such as it is, is to buy a secondhand Peco version on eBay and cut it down. I suspect I'll need a few goes at this, hence using the cheap option.

***Update: the video source is Cinerail's North From Carlisle, not B&R.

Timber arrives, but...

... it's in 4.8m lengths, not precut to 1.2m lengths as ordered. Two choices - send it back or cut it myself. I have room to store it in the garage (just) so I'll cut it myself. I bought a very cheap circular saw to build a deck a couple of years ago, so it shouldn't be too onerous.

Layout Inspirations 1 - Bishop Wearburn

Bishop Wearburn by John Spence
Featured in Railway Modeller, October 2004 and Hornby Magazine October 2008
Viewed at Southampton MRS Show 2009

 

Picture (c) Nick's Railways

These layout inspirations are in no particular order, nor have I necessarily even seen them in person. But in each case there’s something (or often several things) that inspired me to have a go, perhaps even emulate one day. It's purely a personal, subjective token of admiration and envy.

In the case of Bishop Wearburn, the double track main line, sweeping curves over 20’ and the bridge all encapsulate what’s possible in N gauge. I read the feature in the first Hornby mag I bought (“N gauge and Hornby – surely some mistake?”) and made sure I made it to Southampton to check it out. I was the bloke who just watched the trains go by for 20 minutes at the end of the show. John was operating and is very approachable, giving me tips on baseboard construction (“If building a loft layout make sure you build it in sections – you will want to move it one day…”). Thanks for that, John, and for tolerating the sad chap spotting your trains.

More pictures are here courtesy of Mike Boydon.

Baseboard redesign issues

As I noted in this post, I'm planning to have a cantilevered board at either end, to allow the trains to turn 180 degrees and trundle into the fiddle yard. These boards are designed to be 600mm wide (roughly 2 feet) - same width as the main boards.

I also want to use as large a radius of curve as possible to minimise loco running problems. And eventually I'd like to run my locos with the scale-size leading bogie wheel that GF and others now provide (although the smaller size wheel still look pretty good). So large radius curve will help.

The largest standard Settrack curve is Radius 3 (product number ST-17), which is 298.5mm (11 3/4in) radius. This 'should' fit my baseboard. But it doesn't, according to XTrkCad. I checked with the N Gauge Yahoo group, which confirmed this - radius measurements are to the centre of the track, not the outside. Why does no-one tell you this?!

Anyway, the simplest solution is to make the cantilever boards 50mm wider at the back (hidden side) of the layout. Minimum of difference in construction, and little (if any) additional cost.