LNERW1

Time period is going to be roughly mid-80s to modern day- I'll try not to add too many features that mark the time period too precisely, but I will of course operate whatever I like at home (it is intended for portability, as I would like to exhibit it at some point). All electrification is intended to be removable, so the time period(and location) can again be shifted around a bit. Also, thought I'd share a detailed outline of the layout now, as these details are more or less finalised now. The intention is to have a layered layout, with the levels progressing upwards as follows, with electrification options outlined as well: Baseboard level: Canal ~1in up: Waterside street scene, with tracks usable as dockside tramway or modern tram system (removable catenary)(may also have removable platform etc, in pavement-like style seen in and around Dublin city centre)(Passing loop on single line) ~4in up: Removable third-rail (London Underground and SR style)(double track) ~7in up: Removable overhead electrification, usable as DART, WCML, ECML, London GWML, Woodhead, etc.(double track with central express road) ~10in up: Royal Park housing development, removable tower blocks for transportation as they will reach well over a foot above baseboard level. The third-rail and overhead line platforms will be joined by a removable footbridge, and stairways will connect ticket barriers to RP housing development and street below. Not sure of the plan for the canal really, but I will most definitely be adding a narrowboat as they're just lovely, as well as wanting a challenge in building one from a kit(I believe Alphagraphix make narrowboat kits). Royal Park will have both numbered and named blocks, ie; 2 Royal Park, Clifton Block, this being inspired by my school's naming of buildings after past pupils and notable members of staff, but also referring to them by numbers: Swift Buillding, 90s (The building being named after Jonathan Swift (!), but also being home to classrooms 90A,B and C and 91-98). There will be cassettes either end of the layout on all three levels, with the fiddle yard boards being stepped as well so cassettes don't need to be held in the air as trains run onto them.

I have a VERY rudimentary (it's literally made out of six pieces of printer paper) model of a pub I was planning to remake to a higher standard. The actual "model" I have is completely unfit for use on any layout, with two colours of paper used to make a roof, and windows, doors, even roof thatch, drawn on by a literal child. I don't have any layouts to put the remade model on and I need a bit of cash so I'd be happy to build it for you, sell it for about 20 quid? Just to say, I'm not a brilliant modeller and if you don't like how it turns out you're under no obligation to buy, just trying to see if I can be of any help. Just give me any ideas or specifications for the pub and I'll try meet them- I'm still a relatively new modeller and I'd love a challenge!

Double sided tape as a solution for affixing points is a technique I've seen used before, by YouTuber That Model Railway Guy, but using it for all track and ballast is a new one, and quite smart too.

Fowler House, the Metcalfe kit bought at the show, is progressing nicely. Don't have any photos at hand as I'm typing this up on PC, but rest assured photos to follow.

I’ll see if I can find the video. Think they may have been PEPs, as they are his favourite units and IIRC most of them were being withdrawn last year.

I think I recognise this formation-the TikToker Francis Bourgeois (A trainspotter btw, for anyone not aware) chased something akin to this from Willesden to Newport Sims (I think) in a video posted to his YouTube channel last year.

If you’re doing the west of Ireland, might I respectfully suggest taking some inspiration from the Galway-Clifden line? There is currently a project underway to restore the line around Maam Cross and much of the trackbed is still intact, if you get the chance to visit. There’s also an excellent book by Jonathan Beaumont about the line. I am aware of it as I drive directly past Maam Cross station on my family’s annual, often month-and-a-half-long holiday to Connemara.

Spotted them, do I get a cookie?

The board is quite deep, contemplating adding trams? Further marking it as Ireland. I think the third rail should be removable just in case.

The show changing venue is the MRSI exhibition. I actually first mentioned this on the thread about the change of venue.

They already have their hands full with a couple old BnM locos just rusting behind their works building. These would best be restored rather than just taking on more burdens, plus the SWR has enough locos as it is really, considering the line is relatively short and has a sort of “one engine in steam” policy.

In fairness, as they only have a couple which probably don’t see particularly frequent use, replacing them at closer intervals would mean they wouldn’t get the use out of them. Edit: just to clarify, I know nothing about buses except that they go vroom and that they’re kind of like Pacers with road wheels. Don’t ask me any in-depth questions, because Lord knows I can’t answer them.

Little Siddington was brilliant, but the 4F you got a photo of seemed to either have an incorrect or completely out-of-sync sound profile, as it sounded like an idling mainline diesel for some reason!

Weston Interchange specifically, an urban UK scene, but it was a different kit used on the layout. I mentioned to the guy who built it the Metcalfe kit and he pointed to a stall in the corner and said “I think he has one”. This was at the very end of the show and I got over just in time- the guy was literally packing up as I ran over. The reason I’d been talking to the guy, though, was that I’d had a plan for a tail chaser with a housing estate as the focal point of an inner-suburban junction between an electrified main line and a small branch to a single platform station and a small industry of some kind. It was going to have a housing estate as it’s focal point, and would be called Royal Park. I don’t consider these plans to be for the same layout, as both the general arrangement and the flexibility (The original plan was to have only one type of electrification, as third rail would instantly mark it out as London, and it was to be exclusively GB-based).

Should clarify I was the one who damaged the clip!

Alright, so this is a long term plan, with my other layout, Ardree Quay, taking precedence until completion. This is intended to be a 00 layout with two levels and a cassette yard on either level. It’s intended to be a newer station, built in the 50s to serve the Royal Park housing development, as a spur off a mainline in a large city. The upper level will have SR-style third rail electrification, while the lower level will have overhead. This will allow me to use West Coast and Woodhead electrics, SR EMUs and maybe even @murrayec’s DARTs if I can find one secondhand. I’ve had something like this in mind for a while, but I’ve just bought a Metcalfe kit for a tower block, and so thought I would start it now. I have a sneaking suspicion I have ADHD, so having a few projects on the go means my butterfly mind can hop between without much fuss. I don’t have much spare pointwork at the moment, so I won’t be able to lay much track yet, but I have about 6M of Flexitrack (Code 100) so I think I can begin tracklaying on the lower level. I’ll buy two points to allow for a run round and build a couple loco cassettes. Don’t expect too many updates on this for a while, it’ll stay on the back burner till Ardree is completed.

Few questions- 1- track code 2- curve radius 3- any photos of the fiddle yard? Doesn’t seem to be any here. 4-also wondering about ease of fitting isolating sections, for use with some analogue stock.

I'd say cork is better for both easier application of trackpins, for a realistic ballast shoulder, and to dampen running noises. It's easy enough to apply as well, and I've some I could drop around to you if you want.

UPDATE: THE ARROW BADGE IS BROKEN, I AM DEVASTATED. It'll probably be fine, just the clip on the back is damaged slightly. I can probably just replace it with one from another badge.

That was great, wasn't it? I met a couple of YouTubers I'm a fan of, and bought an Arrow 2600 badge from the Táilte stand and a Metcalfe kit. I hope everyone else had a great time too.

Yeah, I do of course appreciate the needs of all involved with the exhibition, I'm just saying that quieter spaces need to be provided. At the Wexford show, which I have just left, there was an area just before you entered the main hall, where there was tea, cakes etc. I thought this functioned really well as a quieter space (although I didnt at any point feel the need to avail of it). Maybe classrooms aren't the way to go, but I feel they do provide a much more conversational and friendly atmosphere, apart from being a little more sensory-friendly. But then I suppose the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.

Loved it, thanks.

As someone diagnosed with autism at age eight, and of course a railway modeller, exhibitions can sometimes bring conflicting emotions. I’m about to leave for the Wexford show, which is a nice, relatively quiet affair, but it’ll be the fourth exhibition I’ve been to, and out of all of them, last year’s South Dublin show sticks out as an interesting one, as it was set up in classrooms, with the only really large hall being relatively quiet. This, along with last year’s Autumn Wexford show, was a sharp contrast to the Great Electric Train Show, last year in Milton Keynes, which was a busy, full-on affair with very little accommodation for those who might have difficulty coping with loud, concentrated noise, busy spaces, etc. I suppose this may be a large attraction of a show- the hallowed “atmosphere” of an exhibition, but I don’t think providing some quiet space nearby would affect that. Please share your opinions on this, as I think accommodating those with neurological disorders such as autism, or ADHD, even things like dyslexia, with more legible signs, is important. Model shows have actually gotten really good at accommodating physical disabilities, but maybe it’s time to look towards helping those with invisible disabilities- it’s just as helpful. Edit: sorry, I should have clarified that the importance of this may be more, well, *important* because a growing number of railway modellers are affected by neurodivergence (which I feel is actually a slightly disrespectful term, but most people seem to prefer, so I’ll use it here).

Maybe this is just me, but I kind of prefer individual classrooms with corridors between. I feel like it kind of allows for better compartmentalization of layouts, as well as providing quieter spaces, which could be viewed as important as a growing number of railway modellers (myself included) are being diagnosed with autism, and so naturally quieter spaces could help provide a relief from louder areas. At the Great Electric Train Show 2023, in Milton Keynes, I remember much preferring the two upstairs balcony areas to the louder downstairs hall (apart from a high-pitched buzzing that I can only assume came from some rogue electrical component or speaker). I think I’ll start another thread about this as it’s kind of an important issue, but isn’t very relevant to this topic.

Be there tomorrow. look forward to seeing everyone.