Wykeham - Somewhere in the South.

[bulleidboy]

Hi
Having retired in 2009, and with the promise of the small bedroom in which to build a layout, Wykeham had been taking shape for a number of years, and is a purely fictitious town somewhere in the Hampshire/Dorset area, and named after the road I live in. Having commuted into Waterloo for forty five years, and worked a few minutes’ walk from what was originally Bassett Lowke in High Holborn, which then became Beatties, and finally ModelZone, I had a reasonable collection of mainly Southern Region locomotives and coaching stock. On retirement my son came back home for a few weeks, but stayed for five years, so the railway room was put on hold until 2013.
I had studied many books containing layouts, and one layout that had everything I wanted, was Cyril Freezers “Portable U” – although mine would not be portable. The room is 10ftx7ft with the door in the corner. The layout has a twin main line terminus leading to a fiddle yard, and a branch line that runs the full length of the “U”. It has a turntable in the shed area, and also one at the end of the fiddle yard.
In 2013 I purchased all the boards and legs required from Model Railway Solutions in Poole – they come in kit form, but are very easily assembled. This included a three foot lifting section that goes across the door – three feet is very valuable space when modelling in 00 gauge! The boards are birch ply and two feet wide around the three sides of the room, effectively giving me a twenty seven foot run. I have a board which is slightly lower than the running boards, which sits across the “U” and this is my operating/control desk -backscene boards are wall mounted around the whole layout. All the track is Peco Code 75, all points are medium radius electrofrog, and operated by Cobalt Digital iP motors in the scenic section, and Peco solenoid in the six track fiddle yard. Operation is through a Hornby Elite, that I bought years ago, and has had all the upgrades so far produced – I know many consider it a “toy” but it works for me. Points can be operated through the Elite, but are also wired for toggle switch operation, which is obviously quicker. I have a small mimic board on the control desk which houses all the point switches. The two turntables are Peco, and are powered by Locomotech direct drive motors, they hang (?) on the table shaft, and turn at 2rpm and are very quiet – they are operated via a H&M Clipper, with a switch directing power to whatever table is in use.
As I will be the sole operator, I have decided that eventually the layout will feature a timetabled operation – mainline trains leave the terminus and end up in the fiddle yard, where the loco uncouples, is turned on the turntable, runs down a line always kept free of stock, and can be coupled back onto the stock it brought in for later use.
I will try and add a couple of photographs showing progress over the last few years.
Barry

[bulleidboy]

Boards come in kit form and very easily constructed. Second picture shows lifting section across the door folded back through 180 degrees. Third picture shows the control desk.

100_0371 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

100_0383 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

100_0394 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

[bulleidboy]

Lift-up section over the door. Unfortunately the door opens into the room - re-hanging the door is still under discussion with "Management"!

The second picture, taken in Jan 2020 - shows the door now opening out onto the landing, but also the lift-up section, now a major part of the layout, with fiddle-yard, turntable and half a station. If I remove the station building, the section will lift. I'm currently still fit enough to crawl under this section!

100_0380 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

IMG_0530 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

[Bufferstop]

A little larger than my own space, but a great start for a layout! You resisted the temptation to close the U, well done, it eats into the straight runs much too far.

[bulleidboy]

A more recent picture. How things have changed?

IMG_0619 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

[bulleidboy]

A little larger than my own space, but a great start for a layout! You resisted the temptation to close the U, well done, it eats into the straight runs much too far.

Not to much of a temptation - I wanted a reasonable radius on the curves, and as you say, it would have reduced the straight runs. The lift-up section works well, it has a turntable and a large section of the branch line station on, in fact the platform is right over the joint, as are all the lines in the fiddle yard. The hinges were Model Railway Solutions own design, and work very well - no need for blocks and hinges, just two pieces of ply with a 10mm bolt.

[Ex-Pat]

Very interesting hinges indeed! I have an idea of how they work - but is there any chance of a photo of the hinge as viewed from the radiator just to confirm please?

Looks like closed cell foam on the baseboard top? (I'm a great believer in it!)

Before anyone beats me to it - any chance of a track plan please?

[bulleidboy]

The "new" Metcalfe Mainline Station together a number of shops. The station has had a Redutex Dark Slate roof fitted, as well as lighting throughout. It also has an extra "wing" on either end - leaving glue on the work board and putting a half completed station, printed side down - not a good idea - hence a number of spare parts! The Ratio SR concrete lamps are also now powered - although not yet connected to a 3v power supply.

IMG_0529 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

[bulleidboy]

Very interesting hinges indeed! I have an idea of how they work - but is there any chance of a photo of the hinge as viewed from the radiator just to confirm please?

Looks like closed cell foam on the baseboard top? (I'm a great believer in it!)

Before anyone beats me to it - any chance of a track plan please?

A very poor photograph. The Plan is in Cyril Freezers "60 Plans for Small Locations. Baseboard tops are 9mm birch ply. My room is 10' x 7' so was able to "stretch" the layout slightly. Picture of hinge to follow.

IMG_0351 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

[bulleidboy]

Each hinge is made from two pieces of 12mm ply that have been reduced in thickness to 6mm at the circular end with the bolt through it - almost a male/female connection. When placed together the circular part of the hinge is also 12mm thick. The circular part of the hinge is angled, so that it sits above the side of the board - it's fairly clear in the picture. The "lift" where the track is, is a butt connection, and is immediate. Not a good description on my part, but the picture is fairly clear on how it works.

100_0375 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

100_0380 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

100_0392_zps149fc5f4 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

[Ex-Pat]

Each hinge is made from two pieces of 12mm ply that have been reduced in thickness to 6mm at the circular end with the bolt through it - almost a male/female connection. When placed together the circular part of the hinge is also 12mm thick. The circular part of the hinge is angled, so that it sits above the side of the board - it's fairly clear in the picture. The "lift" where the track is almost a butt connection, is immediate. Not a good description on my part, but the picture is fairly clear on how it works.

Many thanks - it does confirm my thoughts - the joins are so good that you just can't see them!

Thanks for the plan as well - will you be able to fix down the buildings, or will you have to move them when operating the flap?

[bulleidboy]

Each hinge is made from two pieces of 12mm ply that have been reduced in thickness to 6mm at the circular end with the bolt through it - almost a male/female connection. When placed together the circular part of the hinge is also 12mm thick. The circular part of the hinge is angled, so that it sits above the side of the board - it's fairly clear in the picture. The "lift" where the track is almost a butt connection, is immediate. Not a good description on my part, but the picture is fairly clear on how it works.

Many thanks - it does confirm my thoughts - the joins are so good that you just can't see them!

Thanks for the plan as well - will you be able to fix down the buildings, or will you have to move them when operating the flap?

As you can see from the photograph, with the lifting section in this position I can open the door ninety degrees from closed, I can raise it about forty five degrees and still have the door fully open, any higher and I have a problem. I can fit station signs, even lamp posts, but buildings will have to be removed when not in use. I have the Bachmann Scenecraft Shillingstone Station building to go on the branch platform, but that's still a little way down the line (excuse the pun). With the door re-hung to open outwards it would not be a problem, but this has been a contentious subject for sometime!

100_0379 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

[bulleidboy]

A view from the far end of the lift-up section. The hill in the far corner was created to make a scenic break before trains entered the fiddle yard. The branch line is on the left.

Each track in the fiddle yard has magnets place about a tender loco's length from the turntable to operate the Kadees.

IMG_0530 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

[Fratton71D]

Looking really good.

As a Southern fan originally from the South Coast I'm looking forward to seeing your progress over the coming months.

Tony

[bulleidboy]

Looking really good.

As a Southern fan originally from the South Coast I'm looking forward to seeing your progress over the coming months.

Tony

Thanks Tony. Following on from reading your thread (again), I have been putting down some cork sheeting today - as you said it saves on a great deal of ballast. I have also bought a Ratio Canopy kit - I will of course need more, but I think the canopies will be the next major job. I've was also looking at your "walling" again. I too have very little, if any room for scenery. I am thinking of changing the backscenes to Hills and Dales, and unlike your layout, my fiddle yard is in full view, so a full length retaining wall with some greenery hanging over the top could look good - I am also awaiting delivery of some hand built yard lamps from Robert at RML Electronics, the sample has arrived, and it really is very good indeed - so it may be possible for the fiddle yard to look a bit more interesting. I have also to fit some resistors to my Ratio SR Concrete Lamp Posts - I'm not really into the electronic side of things, so do need a degree of hand holding, but I think I know what needs to be done - with three volts and no resistor they are rather bright.

So I have a number of jobs on the go at the moment, I do tend to take some time studying something until I fully understand it, and making sure it's right. There are a number of things on my layout that I would do differently if I were to start afresh - but that is not going to happen.

Thanks for the interest.

Barry