Lofty Business

You may have noticed that my modelling output has been rather limited the last few months. Partly this is because sometimes I do a lot, sometimes I don't. It is a hobby after all, and after the EXPO challenge last year it is nice to not have deadlines. However another factor is that we moved house at the end of last year, and while the new house doesn't need a lot of work, there have been more DIY jobs than usual to content with.

One such task has been to make usable space in the loft. Like many houses built in the last 50-years it has a low-profile roof with pre-fabricated roof trusses, which combined with extra insulation makes the space difficult to access and no use at all for storage.

The first task was to make a floor for safe access. Some pieces of chipboard from an old chest of drawers were fixed to the few planks at the top of the ladder, but I didn't want to remove any insulation. So I got some 4"x2" timber from a local timber merchant, who cut it to 4' lengths too, these are then screwed on top of the joists between the insulation and could then support 18mm chipboard flooring. This provides crawling space (no room to stand!) but allows air to move above the insulation.

Next up was to provide storage space. I had a load of old bed slats which were cut and screwed across the outer "vee" of the trusses as seen above. More chipboard recycled from old furniture could then sit on top of these to provide a shelf. The shelf is about 18" deep and the trusses are around 18" apart (though it does seem to vary!). Having just dismantled a built-in wardrobe I have now fitted out about half the loft in this way (the water tank makes the rest of the space more difficult to access).

Now I suppose this space could be used for a model railway, but it isn't really ideal. Apart from the temperature variations, poor light, limited space for humans, and the difficulty of getting any layout in or out, it isn't a sociable place to be! Nonetheless it will help by allowing stuff to move out the garage (you know, Christmas decorations, spare bedding, all those railway mags and anything else that probably isn't needed but isn't ready to be thrown away), meaning perhaps one day I'll have enough space there to build a layout!

Methodist Exhibition

The South Downs 009 group were invited to show a layout at an exhibition at a Methodist Church in Patcham, we thought a small straightforward layout would be easiest so I volunteered Awngate. The organisers had a small but good variety of layouts through a couple of rooms, and provided a very welcoming atmosphere making for an enjoyable day. It did seem very quiet though, it would have been nice to see a few more visitors through.

Here's Awngate in exhibition mode, with Martin looking relaxed at the controls. Or perhaps he is pondering which switch to press...

A sneaky view behind the scenes showing the trestles, vital mug-shelf, and the power box hanging beneath. Martin must be concentrating on a shunting manoeuvre, having moved in close for a good look! We ran a couple of mixed trains which needed the wagons shunting, so providing more interest for us though at a higher risk of coupling-stress. Generally things went pretty well though.

Behind us was this super HO German layout "Bahnhof Laufenmuhle" by Alan Peacock, which I've admired before.

Little Teisleigh in OO by the Brighton Model Railway Group is a GWR branch, with added minerals.

This model of the Brighton Volks Electric Railway in G1 is often seen at local shows, the models are very fine and there interesting displays about the prototype, though I think it would be nice if a little more scenery were present as the 36' length is mostly table-top with a track on it.

Chemin de Fer de la Baie de Somme

I heard about the Chemin de Fer de la Baie de Somme through an NGRM forum posting, and once we'd decided our holiday this year would be in Northern France I was determined to pay a visit. The meter gauge railways around the Somme estury towns opened in the late 19th centruy and a fair milage has now been preserved. We took the train from St Valery sur Somme to Le Crotoy via Noyelles sur Mer, there is also a branch to from St Valery sur Somme (though not at the same station!) to Cayeux sur Mer.

Waiting for us at the quayside station in St Valery is this elegant locomotive with a train of bogie carriages. It's a 230 (or 4-6-0) tank engine built by Cie de Fives-Lille in 1909, quite a big powerful beast.  It seems we picked a bank-holiday weekend to visit and the trains were crowded, parking was a nightmare, and they really need more than one toilet at the station!

A couple of hundred yards down the line we passed the "town" station which serves the branch to Cayeux sur Mer. It is timetabled to be run by railcar or diesel but, perhaps due to the bank holiday crowds, this delightful 2-6-0T (130 in French!) Corpet built in 1906 was on duty.

Noyelles is the junction with the SCNF main line, and also the mid-point passing station of the line from St Valery to Le Crotoy. It is also a terminus, and trains from both ends of the line reverse here. Looking back as we left the train to St Valery can be seen departing over the scissors crossover, the tracks run parallel for a few hundred yards. The far right track is dual gauge, standard gauge rails straddle the meter gauge, this runs all the way from Noyelles to St Valery.

At Le Crotoy the loco takes on water by the shed at the end of the line. The main depot and workshops are just outside St Valery, but the trains start from both ends.

Leaving Noyelles on the return journey the two trains, having reversed in the station, depart in turn then the second overtakes the first. This appears to be "stage managed" to allow passengers to see the other train, and just for the fun of it! The locos have swapped trains during the proceedings, perhaps to get back to the correct shed for the night?

Back at St Valery the loco is turned on the inset turntable on the quayside, in front of the station building, which also acts as the release to the loop. The turntable is electrically operated from a control panel (near the parking meter on the left). I don't really know why they bother though as this is the only turntable on the line! This loco is a Buffard 031 (0-6-2) of 1910, and was designed to run cab-first for visibility on and by the road.

Despite the crowds we had a great trip, the locos and coaches are beautifully restored and kept, and it's a nice ride. For more pictures check out the album. If you are in the area (it's only an hour from Calais so even possible on a "day trip") this line is well worth a visit.

Fettling Thakeham

In the run up to the SWING show I had Thakeham set up for a practice. I had forgotten how fiddly it was to load the wagons without derailing them! The magnetic stick works fine, but to get the load into the skip and off the magnet requires a steady hand and a careful twist of the stick. Then I had a cunning plan...

It's a simple sheet of black plasticard set carefully to just clear the back edge of the skip wagons, which stops them being pushed or tipped off the rails. Since the wagons are always propelled under the hopper there's no issue of clearance for other stock. However it does make the process of loading them much easier: the magnetic stick is used to push the load down into the sip, then slid forwards, as the wagon is held by the plastic the load is pulled from the magnet, and the stick can be lifted away.

Also while testing I was not happy with the way the O&K loco ran, it's always had a grinding noise when running in one direction and occasionally seemed to stick, so I stripped it down to apply drops of oil to the gears. The construction of the chassis means that without the body on the layshaft driving the rear axle (under the driver) is free to rise up. I wondered whether the body was not restraining it enough, so I folded a small strip of bass and superglued it into the recess in the top of the chassis so it holds the layshaft in place.

With the chassis now able to be tested without the body it ran smoothly, so I added the body, only to find it wouldn't then move at all! Slackening the bolts off allowed it to move, but the grinding noise was louder than ever, so it was clear the body was catching. There is a recess in the footplate to clear the worm gear seen above, using a burr in a mini-drill I deepened and widened it as shown. With the body refitted and the bolts done up tight the chassis ran without any grinding.

That said, it's still hardly a quiet chassis, none of my O14 locos are, due to the low gearing and metal bodies. The bigger wheels means it can do a reasonable speed without the motor screaming as the Lister (with similar gearing) does. But it does run reliably and slowly now, and spent Saturday alternating with the Hudson Hunslet running on Thakeham.

Thakeham at SWING

The SWING (Small and Wonderful Industrial and Narrow Gauge) show in Bognor, organised by the local 7mm NGA group, has become established both as an exhibition of quality narrow gauge models, and as a friendly show. So it was great to be invited to take Thakeham along. It doesn't take long to set up so there was time for Joshua to have a practice before the show opened.

The layout ran well with no issues, and received positive comments which is nice. Joshua proved quite adept at operating, and indeed it was difficult for anyone else to get a turn! Thanks to Paul Davies for helping out, and to Tim Sanderson and Stephen Fulljames for taking turns too. All that help allowed me plenty of time to look round the show, and chat to many familiar and new faces too. Roving Reporter Mick Thornton had his camera out so I'm sure he'll have a quality set of pictures on his blog in due course, he also had his visiting railcar, and due to a slight gauge and scale discrepancy Thakeham Tiles were pleased to provide a flat wagon!

Peter Kazer's "Owd Ratty" is a model of the original 3' gauge Ravensglass & Eskdale Railway terminus at Boot. It was at EXPO-NG a few years ago but it was hard to see due to the crowds, so it was nice to get a good close up look. The quality of the 1/4" scale models is amazing, and it was no surprise that this was awarded the best layout by the visiting public vote.

Stewart Green's model of Southwold in OOn3 has also been at EXPO and recently in Railway Modeller. My friend Simon Wilson was helping operate, and it was interesting to compare Stewart's faithful model to Simon's 009 interpretation (at the Sompting show last week). Stewart has really shown how the station sprawled across the quiet countryside, the line sliding through the golf course and past the allotments. Again the modelling is excellent, and again won an award - voted by the exhibitors and traders.

Lyndon 1870 by Lyn Owers is a model of London in Victorian days, inspired by the life and work of Charles Dickens, there are references to his books and characters throughout the dozens of buildings and crowded streets. There's also some 009 trains weaving through the scene, but the model would be just as interesting without them!

That's just a few of the layouts, for a full set of photos click here. An excellent show and great fun.

Southwold at Sompting Show

On Saturday I popped into the small show in Sompting. I mean small, as the hall used is quite tiny! Still there were about 10 layouts plus some dioramas, a Thomas layout for the kids to play with, and two traders too. This time I was accompanied by my 5-year-old daughter, which made a change, and she seemed to enjoy it.

A good range of modelling was on show, as well as typical RTR-based layouts in N and OO there was a very nice model of Wantage in 3mm fine-scale (that's 14.2mm gauge).

I also really liked this German (I think?) layout in HO. Simple in track plan but excellent running, and detailing. I've no idea if the buildings are kit or scratch-built but they were well done either way!

Narrow gauge was well represented, with 4 layouts in different scales. One of them was Southwold, by my friend and Sussex Downs 009 group member Simon Wilson. Although the Southwold Railway was built to 3' gauge Simon has used 9mm gauge, which looks fine with the small Southwold stock. Southwold station is easily recognised, and he has modelled the river bridge and a proposed extension branch. This means that despite being a relatively small layout he doesn't just have one station...

Nor just two stations...

...but three! Simon has captured the railway in the landscape look, and a real feeling of the openness of the landscape of that part of Britain. With trains running on both main and branch there was a fairly intensive service running too.

 You can see more pictures from the show here.

My kind of garden centre...

In Britain a sunny bank-holiday is not to be wasted. We had a family day out in the South Downs, which we live close to. Exploring a ruined castle, a picnic lunch in the woods, and a visit to a garden centre. OK, a garden centre with a steam railway...

The South Downs Light Railway is a 10 1/4 inch gauge line within a garden centre just outside Pulborough, it has a surprisingly long run with a challenging climb, and some nice locos and coaches. Our train was hauled by the Exmoor Locomotive "Pulborough", though passing the sheds (with a nifty traverser) revealed several other locos, including "scale" miniatures.

I don't know what the arrangement is with the garden centre but being in a relatively out-of-the-way location it can't do them any harm. Apparently we needed some plants while we were there...