Model Railways On-Line - Littlehempston - Part 1
Littlehempston Part 1 - Introduction Paul Plowman describes his model railways and plans for the future Above: Torringford Mk1. A BR Class 3 2-6-2T waits to depart with a train of Kitmaster coaches. The locomotive is a Triang body on a modified Hornby Dublo "Duchess" chassis. Photo: Model Railway Constructor. I started my first model railway layout in 1962. It was a fictitious model of a small Southern Region terminus with Western Region connections somewhere in North Devon. I chose the name 'Torringford' to suggest the general area of Torrington on the Barnstaple to Halwill Junction line. The track was built from Peco kits as the Streamline range had not become available at that time. The kits comprised pre-punched fibre sleepers with code 95 FB rail dog spiked to every fourth sleeper. The turnouts were 3-foot radius and the crossing vee came as a cast unit. Peco recommended soft fibreboard for the baseboard, which would take the track pins easily but it wasn't long before the surface was sagging badly. 'Torringford' did not last long. The family moved house and my new bedroom was the wrong shape. I started building 'Torringford' Mark 2. This layout was 'L' shaped and I adopted the "Little Western" method of track construction using parts supplied by W & H Models with rail recovered from the previous layout. I had laid most of the track when Mum and Dad decided they wanted to redecorate my bedroom so the layout had to be stored in the loft for a few months. It was summer time, the loft became exceedingly hot and I had not made any allowance for the rails to expand. The track buckled badly and I just gave up the whole idea of trying to build a layout in my bedroom and concentrated on photographing and taking 8mm cine film of the remaining steam services in Southern England. Irene and I were married in 1967 and we were lucky enough to have our own semi-detached house at Staplehurst in Kent, which provided an opportunity to start work on a new layout. 'Torringford' Mark 3 was a modest arrangement on narrow baseboards erected in the lounge. The track was a combination of GEM plastic sleepers with Peco Code 95 rail but this time adequate provision was made for rail expansion. The turnouts were hand-made with fibre sleepers and the rail fastened with Peco rail pins (dog-spikes). I had chosen to use chipboard for the baseboard but found it difficult and time consuming driving in the track pins. Being a simple terminus it was possible to include full signal interlocking just using modified Hornby Dublo levers and the auxiliary switches on the point and signal motors. The switches on the point motors were used to ensure only the correct signals were pulled off. The auxiliary switches on the signals were all wired in series so that if any one signal was pulled off then all the points and signals were locked out until it was returned to the 'on' position. There followed a couple of house moves in a fairly short space of time. I kept the Mk3 layout but no further work was done to it. During this time I began to ponder the possibility of a change to EM. I built a tandem turnout and crossover in EM gauge using SMP code 65 rail. I also converted some rolling stock. There was unquestionably a significant improvement in appearance over 00 but the prospect of building a largish layout and converting a large fleet of rolling stock was daunting. In the end I reluctantly accepted that I was "locked in" to 00. I came to the conclusion that the only way I could improve the appearance of my next layout was to raise the standards by which I laid ready to run track. To achieve this improvement I would give particular attention to: adopting prototypical geometry, including cant and transitions wherever possible; positioning of sleepers, particularly at rail joints and adjacent to points; using the largest possible radius turnouts - Peco large radius; making adequate allowance for expansion and ensuring rails are free to move; above all, laying the track with care, as accurately as possible. A move to a chalet style house at Haywards Heath in Sussex provided the opportunity to make a start on a new larger Mk4 layout. The layout was built around our son's bedroom with storage sidings hidden in the area under the roof on one side of the room. The overall size of the layout was about 11ft-6in by 14ft. Once the baseboards were complete the track layout was drawn out as accurately as possible. The Peco code 100 track was fixed down by gluing with Evostic. Now, Evostic is an impact adhesive and it is recommended waiting 10 minutes before pressing the two surfaces together. However, I adopted the practice of placing the track just as soon as the glue was applied. This allowed several minutes in which to adjust the position. I used draughtsman's railway curves to check the alignment of curves locally and a straight edge to check the straights. Transitions were aligned by eye having set out only the frame points (ends and centre). Where the track would not remain in the desired position drapers pins were temporarily driven into the baseboard against the ends of the sleepers to hold it in alignment while the glue hardened. Some springing of rails occurred at a couple of rail joints because I had not pre-curved the rails sufficiently. This was rectified by driving a drapers pin into the baseboard against the side of the rail and trimming with wire snips level with the top of the rail foot. Adequate allowance was made at rail joints for expansion. All rails were electrically bonded with wires soldered at the mid point on the underside of the foot before fixing down to hide them from view and so as not to restrict expansion. Above: Torringford Mk4 under construction. An HST sweeps through the transitions between reverse curves. The layout was fully interlocked with a push-button control panel. I used Peco Insulfrog points, which do not require the vee of the crossing to be electrically switched. This freed all of the auxiliary point motor switches for use in the interlocking. The results surpassed my expectations. The sight of long trains gliding through reverse curves with hardly a sign of wobble of the stock was impressive. However, when it came to fixing ballast the water based glue caused the underlying base to swell. The baseboards were 12mm thick chipboard topped with a track underlay of 12mm wood fibre insulation board. In hindsight the fibreboard should have been sealed or better still I should have used sealed cork. The layout was ruined, no further work was done to it and I eventually broke it up when we migrated to Australia in 1998. Above: Torringford Mk4. Moisture from the water based glue used to fix the ballast had soaked into the fibre board track bed causing it to swell. The layout was now hopelessly prone to derailments. I now am able to make a tentative start on a new layout. Again, I am proposing to use the same track laying techniques with Peco Code 75 rail but with the sub-base properly sealed. This time I am making extensive use of computers and have already built several virtual layouts and taken drivers eye cab rides through them. Choosing a location for my fictitious layout is proving to be a fascinating exercise. To those outside the hobby this is one aspect which makes them think we are all nuts. To be able to build a realistic model this seemingly eccentric activity is essential. The choice of location sets the topography, the railway companies, the rolling stock, the architecture, the vegetation, the vehicles on the roads, the track layout and the style of signals. If the combinations are illogical the model will lose realism. My initial requirements are for a double track Western Region main line in a rural location with occasional Southern Region services. The Exeter to Plymouth section of the WR is an obvious choice because this was the regular diversionary route for the Southern Region services during weekend closures of the line via Oakhampton. To enable crews to gain route knowledge, Southern locos, including Bullied Pacifics could occasionally be found working local stopping services with WR coaching stock during the mid-week. The location of Totnes appeals to me with the Ashburton Branch nearby. The first step has been the construction of a new brick built 2-car garage measuring 7m square over internal buttresses. This will be large enough to accommodate one car and a reasonable size permanent layout of 7m x 3.7m. A quantity of Handy Angle and Dexion has been acquired to support the proposed layout and about half of it has been erected to date.
I started my first model railway layout in 1962. It was a fictitious model of a small Southern Region terminus with Western Region connections somewhere in North Devon. I chose the name 'Torringford' to suggest the general area of Torrington on the Barnstaple to Halwill Junction line. The track was built from Peco kits as the Streamline range had not become available at that time. The kits comprised pre-punched fibre sleepers with code 95 FB rail dog spiked to every fourth sleeper. The turnouts were 3-foot radius and the crossing vee came as a cast unit. Peco recommended soft fibreboard for the baseboard, which would take the track pins easily but it wasn't long before the surface was sagging badly.
'Torringford' did not last long. The family moved house and my new bedroom was the wrong shape. I started building 'Torringford' Mark 2. This layout was 'L' shaped and I adopted the "Little Western" method of track construction using parts supplied by W & H Models with rail recovered from the previous layout. I had laid most of the track when Mum and Dad decided they wanted to redecorate my bedroom so the layout had to be stored in the loft for a few months. It was summer time, the loft became exceedingly hot and I had not made any allowance for the rails to expand. The track buckled badly and I just gave up the whole idea of trying to build a layout in my bedroom and concentrated on photographing and taking 8mm cine film of the remaining steam services in Southern England.
Irene and I were married in 1967 and we were lucky enough to have our own semi-detached house at Staplehurst in Kent, which provided an opportunity to start work on a new layout. 'Torringford' Mark 3 was a modest arrangement on narrow baseboards erected in the lounge. The track was a combination of GEM plastic sleepers with Peco Code 95 rail but this time adequate provision was made for rail expansion. The turnouts were hand-made with fibre sleepers and the rail fastened with Peco rail pins (dog-spikes). I had chosen to use chipboard for the baseboard but found it difficult and time consuming driving in the track pins.
Being a simple terminus it was possible to include full signal interlocking just using modified Hornby Dublo levers and the auxiliary switches on the point and signal motors. The switches on the point motors were used to ensure only the correct signals were pulled off. The auxiliary switches on the signals were all wired in series so that if any one signal was pulled off then all the points and signals were locked out until it was returned to the 'on' position.
There followed a couple of house moves in a fairly short space of time. I kept the Mk3 layout but no further work was done to it.
During this time I began to ponder the possibility of a change to EM. I built a tandem turnout and crossover in EM gauge using SMP code 65 rail. I also converted some rolling stock. There was unquestionably a significant improvement in appearance over 00 but the prospect of building a largish layout and converting a large fleet of rolling stock was daunting. In the end I reluctantly accepted that I was "locked in" to 00. I came to the conclusion that the only way I could improve the appearance of my next layout was to raise the standards by which I laid ready to run track. To achieve this improvement I would give particular attention to:
A move to a chalet style house at Haywards Heath in Sussex provided the opportunity to make a start on a new larger Mk4 layout. The layout was built around our son's bedroom with storage sidings hidden in the area under the roof on one side of the room. The overall size of the layout was about 11ft-6in by 14ft. Once the baseboards were complete the track layout was drawn out as accurately as possible. The Peco code 100 track was fixed down by gluing with Evostic. Now, Evostic is an impact adhesive and it is recommended waiting 10 minutes before pressing the two surfaces together. However, I adopted the practice of placing the track just as soon as the glue was applied. This allowed several minutes in which to adjust the position. I used draughtsman's railway curves to check the alignment of curves locally and a straight edge to check the straights. Transitions were aligned by eye having set out only the frame points (ends and centre). Where the track would not remain in the desired position drapers pins were temporarily driven into the baseboard against the ends of the sleepers to hold it in alignment while the glue hardened. Some springing of rails occurred at a couple of rail joints because I had not pre-curved the rails sufficiently. This was rectified by driving a drapers pin into the baseboard against the side of the rail and trimming with wire snips level with the top of the rail foot. Adequate allowance was made at rail joints for expansion. All rails were electrically bonded with wires soldered at the mid point on the underside of the foot before fixing down to hide them from view and so as not to restrict expansion.
Above: Torringford Mk4 under construction. An HST sweeps through the transitions between reverse curves.
The layout was fully interlocked with a push-button control panel. I used Peco Insulfrog points, which do not require the vee of the crossing to be electrically switched. This freed all of the auxiliary point motor switches for use in the interlocking.
The results surpassed my expectations. The sight of long trains gliding through reverse curves with hardly a sign of wobble of the stock was impressive. However, when it came to fixing ballast the water based glue caused the underlying base to swell. The baseboards were 12mm thick chipboard topped with a track underlay of 12mm wood fibre insulation board. In hindsight the fibreboard should have been sealed or better still I should have used sealed cork. The layout was ruined, no further work was done to it and I eventually broke it up when we migrated to Australia in 1998.
Above: Torringford Mk4. Moisture from the water based glue used to fix the ballast had soaked into the fibre board track bed causing it to swell. The layout was now hopelessly prone to derailments.
I now am able to make a tentative start on a new layout. Again, I am proposing to use the same track laying techniques with Peco Code 75 rail but with the sub-base properly sealed. This time I am making extensive use of computers and have already built several virtual layouts and taken drivers eye cab rides through them.
Choosing a location for my fictitious layout is proving to be a fascinating exercise. To those outside the hobby this is one aspect which makes them think we are all nuts. To be able to build a realistic model this seemingly eccentric activity is essential. The choice of location sets the topography, the railway companies, the rolling stock, the architecture, the vegetation, the vehicles on the roads, the track layout and the style of signals. If the combinations are illogical the model will lose realism.
My initial requirements are for a double track Western Region main line in a rural location with occasional Southern Region services. The Exeter to Plymouth section of the WR is an obvious choice because this was the regular diversionary route for the Southern Region services during weekend closures of the line via Oakhampton. To enable crews to gain route knowledge, Southern locos, including Bullied Pacifics could occasionally be found working local stopping services with WR coaching stock during the mid-week. The location of Totnes appeals to me with the Ashburton Branch nearby.
The first step has been the construction of a new brick built 2-car garage measuring 7m square over internal buttresses. This will be large enough to accommodate one car and a reasonable size permanent layout of 7m x 3.7m. A quantity of Handy Angle and Dexion has been acquired to support the proposed layout and about half of it has been erected to date.