Hi all, My name is Matt and I've been an on-off modeller for years. I started this project about a year ago - progress has been very slow to date because our house is a bit of a doer upper which has taken over most weekends. My wife is also due to imminently give birth so progress will undoubtedly grind to a complete halt then! Anyway, I chose to make a micro layout because I figured I could work on it indoors on the table if and when the motivation is there. The baseboard is approximately 4' x 1' and is made from a softwood frame with a ply top. The backscene is an id product attached to curved MDF. Track will be a combination of Peco Code 75 pointwork and C&L flexi track and will consist of a station road with short run round loop and one siding. Train length will inevitably be short. Some buildings are visible in the photos and these are all scratchbuilt from card and embossed plastic sheet. Nothing is finished yet so is subject to change. I'm undecided about the station building in the photo above too. That's it for now, I'll post some pics of some of the stock I've been working on later. Thanks for reading this and looking forward to sharing my (very slow) progress! Matt
Great stuff Matt, looking forward to your sloooooooow progress. ain' no rush on here ....... take it from one who knows.
Great start Matt. Curved back boards make such a difference to a layout. Looks like the fiddle yard / storage cassette ? Will bo off to the right hand side? How do you plan to operate the points? Will be following your progress Kim
Thanks for the comments guys! Hi Kim - yeah the entrance to the fiddle yard is off to the right hand side. My intention is for the points to be operated with Gaugemaster motors. Here's where I'm stuck though - I've never bothered with point motors in the past, always sticking with operating them manually so I have absolutely no idea how to wire the layout! I've done lots of research but I'm still non the wiser at the moment! Mind you, I haven't even laid any track yet! Here's a photo showing a mock up of the intended trackplan: And a low level shot across the station - floating buildings not prototypical! Matt
IT could be helpful if you let us know what controller etc you are using as it may have a bearing on the best way to wire it. Any additional info the better. It should not be too difficult so rest easy. You've made great progress so far and the curved back scene really works. Cheers Toto
It'll be DC only (non of that fancy DCC stuff for me!). I'm planning on using a Gaugemaster Combi controller as I'll only be using one loco at a time. Several months ago I bought some PM10 point motors, a CDU and some mini toggle switches to use but the layout has been pretty dormant since then. Matt
Sounds like you have most of what you need already. I take it the controller has one output for the track and one for accessories? I'm sure there will be many jumping in to advise once you give the signal. We are very rarely short of enthusiasm Great stuff. Toto
Nice project on the go Matt. The curved back scene certainly makes the difference. I do like the scratch built buildings, very nice. Cheers, Gary.
Hi there Matt, Now that is a crackin' micro scene you have on the go, Toto will like it because you have a 25/1 in there and you have parcel vans me thinks this is the 1E24 Aberystwyth - York passenger parcel/mail working. the Southern PMV and converted fish vans are the give away. I look forward to following developments as they occur cheers for now York Paul
Thanks for the positive comments, I do appreciate them! Here are some recent stock projects. First up is a Parkside ex-Fish Van modelled as an SPV Express Parcels van: And a companion for a parcels train, also by Parkside: This last few weeks I've been detailing and repainting this Dapol LMS Stanier Brake Van: Thanks for looking Matt
Great project Matt, the wiring will be fairly simple for a small layout such as this, I know you say it will be 1 loco at a time, but if you are anything like the rest of us, that won't last long. So if I were you I would divide the layout into sections with isolating switches on a control panel. As you lay the track put isolating track joiners between the points and sidings, that way you can isolate one loco while driving a second. The long siding to the left front divide into two sections. The track in front of the station isolate, so a second train can come on scene via the run round. Once the train leaves from the station, the second, freight perhaps can be shunted. Loads of potential there mate. If anything puzzles you shout out! we are here to help. If you ask him, Gary would probably draw you a track diagram with all the power feed and section breaks, I'm useless with drawing diagrams, he's much better. Looking forward to seeing how you get on. Cheer's, Pete.
A Rail Blue SPV... there is something charming about weathered Rail Blue and hey that PMV looks ace. Only the other last three weeks or so I finished the BY version of the Slaters kit which is in the cue for airbrushing stock green. I have this mad plan to recreate the Leek Mirfield parcels train... an LMR working that had long since bitten the dust before the Corporate Image had taken hold. Great stuff there Matt please keep pictures coming. York Paul
I could do that for you, no worries at all. I'm about to leave for work, but I'll get onto that afterwards. Cheers, Gary.
Cheers Gary, very kind of you! Just spent an enjoyable evening building this: It's a Lanarkshire Models GWR buffer stop. I've used a combination of epoxy and superglue to assemble it. The sleepers are C&L - getting them straight was a real faff! I'm still contemplating the "middle" sleepers - think I might cut them from strips of plastic sheet and then glue the chairs on seperately. All the best Matt
Here we go Matt... A simple to follow break down of all the sections on your layout. I have broken it down to six individual track sections. The green lines between each individual colour are the insulated rail joiners. From right to left we have Section 1 Yellow : To control both sets of points only. Section 2 Lime Green : To hold train in platform (??) Section 3 Orange : control loop line Section 4 Magenta : Control part of siding Section 5 Light Blue : Head shunt control. To be able to isolate locomotive in this section, but still use the magenta section of the siding Section 6 Dark Blue : Head shunt and points. To be able to hold loco in head shunt and use sections 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5. In the diagram I suggested using DPDT (double pole double throw centre off) toggle switches. The DPDT switches allows you to change the direction of train travel without the need to change direction on your train controller. Having the centre off is a good choice with the DPDT switches as it allows you to stop the train before changing direction. A simple off/on application could be used by using DPST (double throw/single pole) switches, enabling you to simply turn off the required section of track. Wiring diagram for the DPDT Switch... I trust this helps ! Cheers, Gary.
That is a nice bit of kit Matt, I'm glad you have shared it as I have a pair of Great Eastern buffer stops in white metal in O gauge from Ragstone models to build and yours has given me some ideas on how to do it, cheer's. Pete.
I forgot to say, "great work on the buffer stops". One other thing, if you were to go down the DTSP switch, you would only need to isolate one rail, and have only one insulated rail joiner at the joins, A simple one way in/one way out on the wiring cam be achieved. Cheers, Gary.