Afon Wen

[MartinWales]

We are equipped with a Captain Kernow Early Warning System here, so are forewarned of your approach to the Principality!!!.

[Mike W2]

Are you aware of the layout Rhydy Clafdy?

 

It was featured recently in a Hornby magazine and has been exhibited a few times. It's right up your street, as it's fictitious but set near Afon Wen and Pwhelli and roughly in the same era. I know the guy who built it as I used to be in the MRC he's a member of. It's very good - lots of Manor class locos and BR Std locos, Mk 1 coaches etc.

 

Might be worth you getting a copy of the mag for inspiration.

 

thanks

Mike

[MartinWales]

Are you aware of the layout Rhydy Clafdy?

 

It was featured recently in a Hornby magazine and has been exhibited a few times. It's right up your street, as it's fictitious but set near Afon Wen and Pwhelli and roughly in the same era. I know the guy who built it as I used to be in the MRC he's a member of. It's very good - lots of Manor class locos and BR Std locos, Mk 1 coaches etc.

 

Might be worth you getting a copy of the mag for inspiration.

 

thanks

Mike

 

Quite right Mike! I know Phil too , having also been luck enough to operate the layout on several occassions

[southern42]

Quite right Mike! I know Phil too , having also been luck enough to operate the layout on several occassions

 

And we had the pleasure of being let in early at Swanick (Butterley) on Saturday and spending quite some time looking at this layout before the official opening time of 1000am and chatted with the lone operator for some time while waiting for the others to arrive on scene.

Great layout.

 

I will have to watch developments on Afon Wen - looking good.

[Jaakko]

Are you aware of the layout Rhydy Clafdy?

It was featured recently in a Hornby magazine and has been exhibited a few times.

Mike

 

Yes indeed, the Rhyd-y-Clafdy layout has been featured in the several articles recently. I have the following articles:

 

Hornby Magazine, August 2012

British Railway Modelling, April 2010

British Railway Modelling, May 2010

 

Jaakko

[MartinWales]

Don't forget the original BRM articles from Feb/March 2002!

[Jaakko]

Re The Door: Is their space in the adjoining room for the door to be rvrsed ie open the other way. I used this method on my layout Wencombe.

 

Unfortunately there is no space in the adjoining room because of a big sofa, as shown in the snapshot in the thread # 16.

[Jaakko]

Thanks to all who clicked "Like This" or made kind comments! It is nice to know that some of you are reading my thread.

 

A couple of weeks have passed since I added anything to this thread, but actually I have been making a little progress on the baseboard construction. So, there are a few pictures of the progress here.

 

The starting point is my solid-bottom baseboard construction. The profile of the cross members proves basic contours for the scenery.

 

 

Then a roadbed is cut to the shape.

 

 

The blue extruded polystyrene board (Styrofoam) is my favourite scenery material. First, Styrofoam boards are cut to fit in the space between the cross members.

 

 

Then the scenery contours are carved with a knife and a dovetail saw.

 

 

After generating a lot of polystyrene particles the scenery contours are taking a desired shape...

 

 

Finally the Styrofoam boards are covered with light weight filler.

 

[southern42]

I live north of Afon Wen and am following this with great interest.

Keep up the good work.

[MartinWales]

Yes Jaako-please keep us updated with your developments!

[Donw]

Interesting project. I am also modelling Cambrian Railways but much earlier. However I shall be interested to see how you get on.

Don

[Mike-Greg]

Hi there

 

Looks a good layout

the one thing that struck me

I know you say the wireing and testing was done before mounting on top of the book case

but you have points and I expect point motors in this section

how do you get to them for maintenance once the layout is finished

because you can be sure that at sometime in the future you will need to !!!!!

 

Mike

[Jaakko]

This is a tricky question Mike! The roadbed is secured in place with screws and it can be lifted off if necessary for a maintenance (not too often I hope!). This is not an optimal solution but I can live with that. Fortunately there are only three baseboard sections utilising the solid-bottom baseboard construction method. Other sections are made using a more conventional solid-top baseboard construction way meaning that the maintenance of the point motors etc. is easier. I hope that the following pictures will explain my ideas: 

 

 

[Jaakko]

Don't forget the original BRM articles from Feb/March 2002!

 

The original article in the December 2002 issue of BRM is now available here:

 

https://www.model-railways-live.co.uk/ryc

 

Also the spectacular O gauge Barmouth Bridge layout is available at Model Railways Live:

 

https://www.model-railways-live.co.uk/barmouth

 

The layout was featured first time in the pages of BRM in October 2009.

[Jaakko]

Well, it has been a long time since I updated this. I have not been able to do a lot of work on Afon Wen layout due to the work and family commitments. I have, however, made some progress with some scenery projects as shown on my RMweb Blog: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/1277-jaakkos-blog/

[MartinWales]

Good to see you back Jaakko and look forward to seeing more progress reports!

[coachmann]

I spent many happy hours at Afon Wen. I was convalescing at a friends hotel in Abergele in 1955 and decided to go see the GWR! It was the first of many trips when it could still be done by rail from the north Wales coast. While living in the grotty mill town of Oldham I had only read about the GW and so when I alighted at Afon Wen and saw chocolate & cream paintwork on the station and an outside framed 'Dukedog' waddling towards me from Pwlheli I wasn't one bit suprised!  Only in later years did I realised how fortunate I had been in seeing the line at that time. Look forward to seeing developments on this model.

[steverabone]

I've just stumbled across this thread and I'm delighted that somebody is building Afon Wen. When I wrote the article in the book that Trevor Ridley and I produced,  I imagined it would need to be built in a large room to allow those long summer Saturday trains off the Bangor line to be replicated. However, I'm delighted that you have succeeded in shoe horning it in. 

 

Personally, I'd run it in weekday mode and forget the long summer Saturday trains as you still have the opportunity for running the "Welshman" through train to Euston and then there were the Liverpool to Pwllheli steam hauled stopping trains as well as DMUs as well as the Cambrian Coast trains.

 

I look forward to future progress reports.

 

Stephen Rabone

 

 

[Lindricksteam13]

I have just 'stumbled' on this topic (18 months after the last entry) - I too am anxious to model, and intrigued by, this 'unique' station and have acquired all the relevant books and obtained maps from Gwynedd Library and from the N.A..  However, no-one has been able provide details of the track layout from Afon Wen to Penychain after 1948 when double-track and bi-directional working was introduced between these two points.  Has anyone been able to find more about this - specifically track / point / signal dispositions - or even, dare I say it, a PHOTOGRAPH of the actual junction?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   Bill Rear has only one photograph taken at the actual junction in all of his books and it is of a train approaching from the East and taken at a low angle so that there is no opportunity to even guess at the track design.

[tynewydd]

I have just 'stumbled' on this topic (18 months after the last entry) - I too am anxious to model, and intrigued by, this 'unique' station and have acquired all the relevant books and obtained maps from Gwynedd Library and from the N.A..  However, no-one has been able provide details of the track layout from Afon Wen to Penychain after 1948 when double-track and bi-directional working was introduced between these two points.  Has anyone been able to find more about this - specifically track / point / signal dispositions - or even, dare I say it, a PHOTOGRAPH of the actual junction?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   Bill Rear has only one photograph taken at the actual junction in all of his books and it is of a train approaching from the East and taken at a low angle so that there is no opportunity to even guess at the track design.

The SRS has a couple of diagrams at http://www.s-r-s.org.uk/html/gwu/S3243.htm.  The second shows the revised double track to Penychain - in support of Billy Butlin's camp there - and the signalling of it.

 

Adam

[Lindricksteam13]

The SRS has a couple of diagrams at http://www.s-r-s.org.uk/html/gwu/S3243.htm.  The second shows the revised double track to Penychain - in support of Billy Butlin's camp there - and the signalling of it.

 

Adam

Hi Adam;

 

Only just caught up with this (after 2 months!!!!) - many thanks for the reference, it's just exactly what I required - I was ignorant of the existence of SRS but now know where to look.  I am awaiting the CD with the details that I expect to find to be 'enthralling'!!

 

I send you my regards - and greetings to San F. - I was last there in 1989 when visiting an Uncle (now long deceased) in Oakland.  Perhaps one day if / when the projected layout gets built I will be able to publish some photographs.  However, the immediate priority is replacing the roof on the station of my garden railway (16mm radio controlled steam) - destroyed by sliding snow off the garage roof following a blizzard here in N. Nottinghamshire on Boxing Day night - oh the pleasures of modelling outdoors in the UK.

 

David.