WelshMidland

It's been a long year for this layout. Unfortunately, due to space constrictions and a few other issues, the Welsh Midland Railway will have to be saved for another day, when, perhaps, a larger layout space might be available. This all being said, I shall return, for the time being, to "N" scale, and model something I actually live (almost) right next to. The intersection of the old Boston & Maine Railroad's Portland-Boston mainline and the Portsmouth-Manchester "Portsmouth Branch" is only in the next town...so Rockingham Junction it is! I find the B&M to be a fitting modelling subject for family reasons as well, as my great-great-grandfather was killed on that road, way back in the steam days, up in Maine. I shall enjoy the easier access to the area being modelled, as well as easier access to the models themselves (it's easier to drive to shop in local Manchester than it is to order from a shop located in the overseas Manchester!). The Raymond & Rockingham layout, I think, shall be a fun build. I do look forward, though, to a day when my GWR clerestories may run regularly, and my "singles" aren't just pretty to look at in a box. Happy Modelling, Rob

Thanks Mikkel, I hope to have more to show soon

Greetings, all! It has been kindly pointed out that my last entry belonged in a different section...I'll figure this site out eventually, I'm sure...I'm slow with computers . I appreciate any and all "how-to" tips and tricks anyone shares! As stated previously, this blog shall follow the construction and development of the fictional standard-gauge Welsh Midland Railway. Opened in 1867, it linked narrow-gauge slate and coal traffic in the mountains with ports in the south of Wales, along with the competing Cambrian and Taff Vale railways. Less than twenty years later, in 1886, the line was purchased by the Great Western, and operated into Nationalization, though becoming more and more decrepit, until the WMR eventually cost more than it profited and had to be closed. The typical operating period is fairly loose. Covering between 1900 and World War I allows me to operate a myriad of different liveries and locomotives in combinations I doubt would be seen in any other time period. I'm a sucker for anything painted in GWR chocolate and cream, but that lake livery is quite taking! I choose freelancing my own line over a specific prototype because it allows me more freedom to build as I like...I model what I think looks good, without venturing too far out of ordinary practice. The current state of the two-piece layout is one table complete, the other needing assembly...with the completed table being covered in a mess of tentative track plans and unsecured foam...rather unpleasant to the eye, but it will get there sooner or later. A rushed model shall certainly be of lower quality than the model time was spent on. The station (still in need of a name) is based roughly on the old King's Wharf station on the Talyllyn, although turned ninety degrees, so that the standard and narrow gauge lines run parallel to one another. The standard gauge line leaves the station and enters a tunnel, looping around underneath itself 4 percent into staging, while the narrow gauge, closest to the operator and the front of the layout, loops up 4 percent over the standard gauge to a small station at the back of the layout and possibly a slate mine's incline...though a lot of this, especially the narrow gauge, may change as space (or lack thereof) dictates. Suggestions are heartily welcomed! I shall post some pictures as soon as I have pictures depicting some kind of progress. Happy Modelling, Rob

I think I must have got the exception to the rule...the door hinges were not included on my droplight etches, as they were on the U12 and T20 I received in the same order...interesting. I have managed to get three of the thirty hinges in place, but I think this van shall come together quite slowly -- they are difficult to grip even with tweezers! Thanks Much, Rob

Hello, RMwebbers! This blog shall chronicle the construction of the Welsh Midland Railway, a fictional standard-gauge line running through mid-Wales, sharing connections with the neighboring Great Western, Cambrian, and Midland railways. At the present time, the layout is in a very confused state of development. The rolling stock is coming along quite slowly, and the track plan (at times) seems to change by the day! The current issue seems to be the construction of a 4-wheeled Great Western PBV to diagram V5. I almost feel a fool for asking, as the rest of the kit (from Shirescenes/Ratio) seems so easy to assemble...how do the door hinges go in? The picture I have included is a rather poor one...but the two little glints in the light are door hinges. Does anyone have any advice on the assembly of this interesting little kit? Many Thanks, Rob