Workington Show (Solrail) 2024

Again, it was a great experience, and congratulations are due to all the organisers and helpers for putting on such a warm and friendly show. There seemed to be a good turnout of the public, along with many Scalefour members. For me, three layouts that made the biggest impression where; Bruntisland, Alston and Tarring Neville.

Burntisland must be one of the standout modelling projects of our time. A near scale model of the location in a period that entailed all items to be either scratch built or built from kits designed by the crew involved in its construction. It is a phenomenal piece of historical modelling.

Alston is just a brilliant piece of observational modelling with a thoughtful composition of buildings from the actual town framing an accurate rendition of the station at the front in 2mm.

For me, Tarring Neville brought a couple of novel ideas to the show, firstly being able to view the layout from three sides, secondly using cable to hold up the proscenium, giving a clear view from one end. It also was a fine piece of composition with scratch built OO track giving an interesting track plan along with well-placed and built buildings with supporting scenery all in 5’ x 2’. I really admire people that can produce an evocative layout that is interesting to watch all in a small place.

The Workington show (Solrail) was a big event for Rospeath Lane. It was the first outing when I had all components to pack in the car. Two scenic baseboards, two trestles, the support beams along with a good proportion of rolling stock and it all fitted in the car with space available for a toolbox along with small overnight bags. All the planning has been worthwhile…

There are some minor modifications required to the support structure. The proscenium does dip in the middle and the support beams sag a little on the right. Apart from that, it was good to meet many Society members for the first time as well as others I'd met previously. It was especially interesting to talk to two members who have also taken the plunge and entered the Jubilee Challenge.

So now I know it will be a doable project transporting the layout structure in one car with two passengers. I can press ahead with building turnouts and the control panel.

Lighting

Again, I'm possibly getting ahead of myself thinking about lighting for Rospeath Lane. Though I've also been thinking I might need some sort of light for the SolRail exhibition in a week's time. 

The ultimate aim is to introduce a little atmosphere into the layout by having lighting with which I'll be able to replicate a day from dawn to dusk. So, as a start, I've purchased 5M of CCT LED strip lighting with a temperature range of 2700 to 6500 Kelvin. If I'm understanding the description correctly, I'll be able to control the lighting temperature while also controlling the brightness of these LEDs. My belief is the colour temperature at dawn is around 2000-3000 Kelvin, rising to midday at around 6000 Kelvin, then decreasing back to 2000 Kelvin for sunset. 

These LEDs are relatively cheap to some that are available and as such might not give the best result. Even so they should help to prove the concept and allow me to experiment while construction of the layout continues. Just hope they arrive in enough time to be installed for SolRail.

Trees - general thoughts

I’ve always found identifying trees very difficult, even though spending all of my youth growing up in a small rural village then as an adult enjoying many walks in the varied countryside. On my book shelf there are a couple of books on trees which have skeleton diagrams of the different types.  I find using these diagrams alone to identify a tree in winter is impossible as no tree is the same shape even in the same species.  Some suggest that you can identify a tree by observing the colour and structure of its bark. Again, I could not master this technique.  So tree identification is one area of knowledge in which I’m embarking to improve.

The reason which has prompted me to educate myself in identifying trees is the dissatisfaction I have with the trees on Tredethy Wharf.  All trees on Tredethy Wharf are just generic tree like shapes with no perceivable representation of a particular species. The location I have placed Rospeath Lane means I’ll have to try to represent an area of damp/marsh/scrub land at the front with the ground rising at the back towards farmland. To help portray these different areas, I feel there should be ground cover and trees which would thrive in these different habitats. To carry this off will mean any tree will need to look like a particular type with supporting ground cover.

To this end I started to research which trees which are common to Cornwall. So far discovering that Alder and Silver Birch are good candidates for the damp area at the front of the layout along with ferns and wetland grasses. Whereas Ash, Elm and Oak trees with Gorse, Holly for hedging along with grass and brambles for ground cover would be possible for the back of the scenic area.

This post and time spent on thinking about scenics would seem to be too early in the layouts development. My thought is if I know which species of trees I need for the layout I can select certain trees and photograph there structure during the autumn winter months. Then, as the seasons progress take further photos as reference. While out walking the dog I've been identifying and taking note of local trees and there would seem to be a number of Ash, Oak, Beech and Sycamore trees locally. I’ve already identified one Ash tree which I'd like to base an model on. Also our neighbours have a large area of woodland in which they have many Silver Birch and apparently one Alder. 

Possible Ash tree to base a model on

Slow progress since Scaleforum

As the title states, progress has been slow since Scaleforum. Contributing factors being contracting Covid for the second time then, after recovering, having days preparing for and entertaining a few visits by friends and family.

Though we really enjoy having visitors I'm hoping the next couple will have fewer distractions. My aim is to have the layout self-supporting with both tops installed for November 16th/17th at the SolRail show in Workington. I have already have one trestle built and two of the six support beams constructed along with the top for baseboard one. Workington show is a little over two weeks away so there is still chance that the layout could be presented at the correct height with lighting pelmet installed. Unfortunately I doubt I'll have the lighting stripes installed as I'm still researching options for controlling the lighting to represent an autumnal day from dawn to dusk and onto into the evening. So for the show some sort of temporary lighting will have to think of.

Anyway, what progress has there been made? Since Scaleforum, the track for the three coal roads on baseboard one has been laid along extending the running shed roads to the baseboard joint. More chairs have been threaded onto rail ready for laying. Other tasks have been to install the pelmet support on the right hand cassette board along with solving a slight issue with the slope up to the coal sidings on this board. There had also been a modicum of progress in the construction of the Y turnout on baseboard one.

Frontal view

Looking stage left

Looking stage right

Cassette board two showing the offstage slope down to the cassettes

Deciding on period for the model

As previously stated, my aim is to run the engine shed to a timetable. This should make operating the layout at home and at exhibitions a little more interesting than just randomly moving locomotives around the shed. At exhibitions, it might entice a few people to linger longer to view the model and have an interest in its operation.

This does mean I need to create a timetable of trains arriving and departing from Penzance along with creating fictious workings for the lines west of Penzance. Ideally I'd like to bring on shed one or two diesel hydraulics. This will set the model in late 1950s. D600 Warships arrived at Laira in June 1958, D800 Warships arrive in Cornwall in October 1958 followed by Class 22s in February 1959. I currently have two Class 22s both converted to P4. Unfortunately, both these Class 22s are of the later design of D6306 onwards. These didn't arrive at Laira until October 1959, which sets the period post October 1959. Hmm... this is a good excuse for creating an early autumnal scene.

The benefit of a fictional layout and location is I am a master of my own world. That said I would like to portray something of the services that actually ran to and from Penzance. Timetables in my possession are a 1955 passenger and 1958 goods along with The District Controllers View - Plymouth to Penzance (set in the mid 1950s). I'll never have enough locomotives to replicate every train, so I will extract services from these timetables to match the quantity and type of locomotive I currently have. Hopefully, this should give a good representation of locomotive workings to and from Penzance in the late 1950s. 

Not being from a BR steam background nor "back in the day" as a young lad did I visit steam sheds so I have a lot to learn about steam shed operation and its environs. My lack of knowledge is one attraction for me to create this model. Over the next two years, as my knowledge grows, I will make many amendments to the timetable. By September 2026, the hope is to have a working timetable which is gives a good representation arrivals and departures of a west Cornwall engine shed. Then locomotive liveries will need changing  to portray the 1959/60 period.

Post Scaleforum 2024

I was very concerned about taking Rospeath Lane to a Scaleforum at such an early stage in its construction. I shouldn't have worried, it was a great experience. I suffer from what, I have discovered, is called the imposter syndrome, especially when attending a Scalefour event, either as a paying customer or exhibitor. I still feel like a newcomer to the society, what I am producing being fairly basic to the standards other members are achieving. So it was comforting receiving positive comments and being asked questions about my challenge entry, also learning much from other members with interests in engine sheds.

Rospeath Lane (early on Saturday morning)

I took with me a box of stained sleepers along with a small quantity of PVA. This was not with the intention of spending the whole show gluing them in place on the track plan, but in case I felt a bit of a lemon behind the layout. Anyway, there were a couple of quiet moments, so I did start to glue some in place. This turned out to be a magnet for people to take an interest in what I was doing and ask questions. At the end of the show, Neil Smith and I finished laying all the sleepers for the sections of plain track, which was a tremendous help in progressing the layout. 

In the brief time there was to look around the show, I felt all the layouts were excellent all to a standard I aspire to. Ventor was especially superb and just as the recent article in Model Railway Journal 306. Being able to see Ditchling Green and Butley Mills in the flesh was also a privilege. Combined with the demonstrations, it certainly was a show of modelling excellence.

Ditchling Green

Ditchling Green

Butley Mills

Butley Mills

I left the show on Sunday tired but inspired and extremely happy I attended with Rospeath Lane.