Coleshill (Forge Mills ) layout and stock

[46256]

Wow..I have always loved railways in the garden. As an eleven year old I walked up an access driveway between houses in Watton Lane Water Orton. The driveway became an L shape leading left and right to the back of those houses and their garages and sheds. I looked to my left and at the end of the drive I saw an O gauge 94xx crossing a trestle bridge with a long goods train. I walked up and discovered in that garden a replica of Hatton station. The owners were the Underwood family. They were a family of railway enthusiasts . I was spotted engrossed by the spectacle of their railway. I’m pleased to say rather than tell me to buzz off they invited me into the shed which housed the stock and work bench. I had the pleasure of visiting many times later. 
 

The years passed and in 2014 I had my layout of Water Orton published in the April 2014 edition of BRM. I was contacted via the magazine by David Underwood, who now lives in Vancouver Canada with his wife, also from Water Orton. They were visiting the UK that summer, could they visit and view the layout. They both visited and whilst our wives conversed David and I went to the loft and fifty odd years disappeared ….wonderful. I couldn’t understand though how a family who lived so close to the splendour of the Midland at Water Orton, had photographed it even ,  had adopted the Great Western. The answer, trips to Hatton during the heyday of Castles and Kings. 

 

I couldn’t believe how kind fate had been to grant me this opportunity to show my work to one of the people who nurtured that interest all those years earlier.

 

I think I may have recounted this story earlier in this thread, no matter worth repeating.

 

Edited March 31 by 46256

[46256]

Two of Davids Water Orton photos seen before but worth repeating

[Methuselah]

2 hours ago, 46256 said:

Wow..I have always loved railways in the garden. As an eleven year old I walked up an access driveway between houses in Watton Lane Water Orton. The driveway became an L shape leading left and right to the back of those houses and their garages and sheds. I looked to my left and at the end of the drive I saw an O gauge 94xx crossing a trestle bridge with a long goods train. I walked up and discovered in that garden a replica of Hatton station. The owners were the Underwood family. They were a family of railway enthusiasts . I was spotted engrossed by the spectacle of their railway. I’m pleased to say rather than tell me to buzz off they invited me into the shed which housed the stock and work bench. I had the pleasure of visiting many times later. 
 

The years passed and in 2014 I had my layout of Water Orton published in the April 2014 edition of BRM. I was contacted via the magazine by David Underwood, who now lives in Vancouver Canada with his wife, also from Water Orton. They were visiting the UK that summer, could they visit and view the layout. They both visited and whilst our wives conversed David and I went to the loft and fifty odd years disappeared ….wonderful. I couldn’t understand though how a family who lived so close to the splendour of the Midland at Water Orton, had photographed it even ,  had adopted the Great Western. The answer, trips to Hatton during the heyday of Castles and Kings. 

 

I couldn’t believe how kind fate had been to grant me this opportunity to show my work to one of the people who nurtured that interest all those years earlier.

 

I think I may have recounted this story earlier in this thread, no matter worth repeating.

 

     Fifty years ago, when I said that OO would be OK outside, as there was nothing to seriously decay with Peco Streamline - I was ridiculed. Now, I find that there are many OO garden railways that have been running successfully for thirty years or more. Perfectly do-able with the right approach. Once my basic indoor set-up is running, I have an extension into the garden planned......🙂

[46256]

I remember an article from Railway modeller back in the sixties N gauge in the garden. A garden layout in any gauge is an attractive proposition, getting the necessary planning permission from the authorities another matter. 

 

 

[46256]

House move over now settling in to our new home. We have quite rightly concentrated on getting the inside of the house to our preferences, followed by the garden. I have now turned my attention to the garage. My son has done a fantastic job putting in a ceiling then lighting and extra power sockets. It still requires plastering and flooring. I have though set up my modelling desk. 
 

My stored locos are slowly being removed from safe packaging. 
 

Appropriate one of the first on the rolling road 46256

Edited May 20 by 46256

[John Tomlinson]

Well done, on the right track now it would seem!!

 

John.

[Barry O]

Great news! I don't think I could move again...

 

Baz

[46256]

Progress on my new layout. The scratchbuilt buildings positioned and track laid through the station . Please excuse the chaos, my wife keeps threatening to tidy up,! 
 

My Gaugemaster controller finally gave up the ghost, the AGW has been kindly lent to me by Methuselah ( Stephen) It is currently being used to test point motors. The baseboards were built by my son who insisted I now work at a reasonable Chest height after the many years lying on my back in the loft under Water Orton. It is still a struggle mind, and have the usual dent in my forehead where a tortoise point motor fell whilst I tried to screw in those blinking screws. 
 

You can see the wall abutment will create an interesting dilemma on how to incorporate it into the scene.

 

I have deliberately made the two end sections removable and have been putting some tips from YouTube into practice to ensure alignment and concealment as shown in second photo. This corner is my strictest and have been testing various locomotives through it. All have been ok except for the U1 LNER Garratt . It is good seeing trains run again after all these months.

[Barry O]

Great to sering major progress!

 

Baz

[Methuselah]

You're off to a flying start there Brian....!

[46256]

A day of fitting more point motors. Whilst every effort has been made to avoid beams and point motors, a problem has arisen with the motor, situated under one end of the double slip. This point is at the end of the platform, it leads from the two storage sidings , and into a  short spur at the platform end. My son has done a fantastic job with the boards and supports, creating in the main, ample room to work. On this one though, a lower support beam prevents the fitting of my usual tortoise motors. I have a number saved from previous layout. A remedy would be removal of the lower beam and relocating . I though hit on another idea. A Dcc concepts cobalt . It is smaller. One ordered and arrived today. It’s is an impressive product. It has copious instructions, mainly for DCc operation. I though intend to stick with analogue. There is a plain warning not to fit power input wires to certain terminals. Indeed a sticker is in place to prevent. I therefore tested prior to fitting. Wires from the 12 v dc agw controller…to the correct terminals nothing…then a short. A call to DCc concepts technical apparently it needs to be 12 v dc regulated which to my unknowing self a train controller isn’t. I fear I have ruined an expensive item.

 

Undeterred I then removed the offending beam, such is the strength of the overall construction of the boards

, no detriment to the solidity of the remainder. I then tried fitting a tortoise motor, would the blinking thing throw the point arm of the slip..no …

all not lost tortoise successfully fitted to another point. 
 

The double slip is on the board where I intend to build my control shelf and panel, if needs be I will change it manually…it would be once in a blue moon just like the original….then again tomorrow is another day.

 

NOTE

since completion of the majority of the buildings this  new layout needs there will be little scratch building or kit builds for quite a while. I have a corresponding thread in layout topics …it makes more sense to update layout progress there

 

best wishes Brian

Edited August 7 by 46256

[46256]

Or even update both threads:

 

control panel.  Red down to Birmingham Blue up fo Derby and Leicester and black Hams Hall loop and sidings 

[46256]

12061 testing the station goods yard sidings, Hams Hall no 12, appropriately Hams Hall exchange sidings and loop. 

Edited September 1 by 46256

[46256]

New storage sidings added, whilst an 8f trundles past the Hams Hall duo

[46256]

Bachmann unrebuilt Patriot with rake of porthole stock passes Bachmann crab on freight. There is something very satisfying on seeing two trains pass one another, onwards now with scenery, now trains running ok.