HO Grafenwalde a restored HO BLT

[Tim Hale]

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Having previously failed, this the last attempt to describe the rebuilding of layout belonging to the Dorset Reichsbahn Gruppe that was sold in 2008 and subsequently ‘lost’. However long story short CLICK HERE, the remnants of the layout were found by Brian W on the Isle of Wight and subsequently returned to Dorset in 2024.

At the start of 2025, the existing ‘new ‘ layout, Pottendorf, had just been captured for posterity by Peco and the workbench was being used to restore old buildings, locos etc. The restored buildings and stock found their way onto the new layout and a decision made to sell the now surplus bits and keep the restored items, this was not difficult as both layouts shared the same space in the workshop and almost identical trackplans.

I hope to provide a narrative of both the backstory and the restoration of the layout in subsequent posts.

Thank you

 

[Tim Hale]

Grafenwalde, the why and wherefore

1990 was the first opportunity to really travel throughout Germany both East and West, that summer, we crossed at Lobenstein beside the Frankenwaldbahn on the newly reinstated road to Probstzella, the former transit point. From there to Saalfeld and onwards to our first ‘stay’ Frauenwald up on the Rennsteig amongst the Thüringer Wald, the small village that was once at the end of a short line from Rennsteig. Although, we went on to visit as much of the former Soviet zone as possible, it was this tiny village that has remained a favourite to which we used to return almost every year until 2023. The line was long gone by the time of our visit but it was well documented by two excellent books and the local Apotheke (chemist shop) was an enthusiast who offered archive photos of the village and the line.

In 1999, we relocated across the county and gained a small, well appointed 4,8x3m shed in the process, Frauenwald* was the obvious candidate to fill the shed and by ‘06 the layout was ready for the public. The build was a joint affair, four old friends, collectively the ‘Dorset Reichsbahn Gruppe’ we took the layout to a number of events both in the UK and across the channel. Unfortunately, it was not to last as four became three and then two, just in time for our debut at the NEC Warley show, during the show we were approached by a gentleman who was aware of our loss and made an extremely generous offer, this was the last time that we saw the layout.

Between ‘09 and ‘18 the shed was used to build a succession of small exhibition layouts but the last Christmas in ‘18 was marked by the first visit to the local ICU and an enforced decision to either cease completely or simply stop exhibiting, consequently in ‘22 the large incomplete ‘roundy roundy’ was dismantled leaving just a vestigial four bare boards.

The boards were stripped and sanded​

Much worse was to come as the original four became just one.

*Frauenwald is a popular subject amongst German modellers, Martin Silz, suggested an appropriate epithet, Grafenwalde

Tim

 

[Tim Hale]

With four old flat boards, planning was not difficult thanks to inspiration from Peco's archive of images but at first the theme was not East Germany, that was to come later, the first priority was to build the layout.

To provide some degree of continuity, these are the trackplans, the original and the current versions. Please note that both are 4,8m x 0,76m, the lack of FY in the first image is misleading. The original design was a cutdown version of Frauenwald, in reality, it is Germany’s Ashburton, often recreated as a model.

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Given the fact that shed is not the Tardis, the similarity is due to my lack of imagination and a change in circumstances as I could no longer exhibit nor move with any degree of alacrity. The station now faces the operator rather than the public and the cassettes were replaced by a four road FY. The loco shed moved to the opposite end of the loop to provide some visual balance. Thanks to clever software, it was a doddle to flip the plan into a simple computer generated image that could be ‘tested’ before committing.

The increased length of the FY had a negative effect on the exit but subtle changes in landscape using multiple layers of foamboard were more effective than we had hoped. To disguise the exit, a small farm and trees do a fairly good job. The rural roads are typically unmetalled and hardly used except by farm vehicles.

By the end of ‘24, everything was going well, the layout merely needed to be used however it was unprepared for the cataclysmic changes that was about to happen in ‘25

Tim

 

[cmax]

Good to see the new layout in this months Continental Modeller

 

[Tim Hale]

Restoring the buildings - the station group

2007
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The first of the recovered buildings arrived at the end of 2024, not sure where they had spent the past 16years but their condition was ‘reasonable’, although the windows of the iconic station building, originally built in 2000, had turned bright yellow and all the twiddly bits were either missing or broken.

2025​

The original manufacturer of most of the buildings was still in business although under new ownership, manufacturing had shifted to Hungary but when contacted with some archive images, Kibri was extremely helpful providing sprues at no cost. All the buildings were cleaned, repaired and those that never returned were simply replaced where possible such as the ticket collectors hut below.

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The 'missing' building is the lavatory block, the station buildings did not provide any comfort facilities for passengers other than a ticket office. Currently in the 'tbd' queue, the Kibri building will replace the goods shed on the platform as the latter is no longer relevant, seen here in 2008, are being replaced with a new set from Kibri.

An early view of the station sans vegetation​

Twenty years later and trying to capture the same atmosphere that the old layout had in spades. The trick was the choice of depressingly dire palette of greys, greens and browns. There are no bright tones other than the flowering weeds in bright yellow and the green of the vegetation, intentionally contrasting the building.

One important feature is the profusion of trees, these were a later upgrade to the original layout which resulted in this final image of the station entrance from the last outing to Warley. The latest crop of trees came from MBR in Poland, in total about 20+

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The loco shed is a casualty of neglect, the vulnerable doors did not survive and are being replaced however it is largely intact and an imposing structure. Currently, a lovely wooden shed by Neil R, has taken its place.

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The loco servicing facility was another loss but the opportunity was taken to build something more appropriate. The blue containers hold a water treatment chemical often seen on the rear of tenders by the water hatch.

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The next episode is the non-railway buildings

 

[Tim Hale]

The farm buildings

The farm is a legacy from the 'Pottendorf', based on a small farm close to the border at Bad Rodach, it shares much of the characteristics with its neighbour in Thuringia where Grafenwalde drew its inspiration.

It comprises a low farmhouse, stable block, silo and two barns, one of which is part wattle and daub predating the wooden barn'

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The other building is a very small einfamilienhaus that provided basic accomodation in less than 60 sqm. These became widespread in the '50s as there was a dire need for housing throughout the DDR, the detached house designed by the VEB district construction company Bau Meiningen goes back to the designs of the civil engineer Reinhard Blumenstein.

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I remember that in my childhood, chickens (and other domestic birds) were bustling around in every village. The owners of the poultry seemed to have no concern for their safety at all. A constant image was the birds taking carelessly walks along the road running through the village buildings, this sometimes ended in a tragic accident under the wheels of a passing car.

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The next episode is the various small details

 

[Tim Hale]

The small details

This was the attempt at depicting rural power in '04, the image caused apoplexy on a well-known forum, which was nice.

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There were a few mistakes but it was a start, the current effort is a smaller, less ornate Trafohaus that will supply both the little house and farm.

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It is important to show the correct details, from the front the overhead line at the tower station would first go to the upper insulators and then be braced with the lower insulators. In between (soldered) it goes into the house. Low voltage as an overhead line then on the left (nx four conductors). There should be a yellow warning sign on the door and below it on a white background the name of the supplier, e.g. B. "TEAG" (Thuringian Energy) and the station, e.g. "Grafenwalde Ort" or whatever. Or just the station name on the door and above the door on the utility building in larger letters. Here's an example. It doesn't necessarily have to be TEAG, of course. "Gemeindewerke Grafenwalde" works too. And if it's supposed to be from the GDR era, then something with "VEB Energiekombinat Grafenwalde.

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The next episode is the flora

 

[Tim Hale]

Beyond the track and beside the road

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The ditch beside the rural road is nature’s highway, home to a wide variety of flora and fauna such as the common iris amongst which the stork will hunt for food, here are a few of my favourite habitats

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Here are the irises

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Just placed something beside the plant to give some of scale as they are truly tiny and super fiddly, this group of six took 30 mins, I have another thirty-three to make/plant. These are an excellent iris that is easy to plant but needs a dab of yellow or purple as preferred.

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Unfortunately, the little paper plants need to be supported after 'planting' in scenic glue for at least 45mins, just two at a time.

Weeds

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Many years ago, inspired by Gordon Gravett, I took some bristles and dipped them in green flock, today they were finally planted, the Swan Vestas box is helping them stay sober whilst the glue hardens.

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Thinking about the plants in the ditch and these two are the outcome, at just 10mm high, they were really fiddly to make using mini-forceps and a hot glue gun blobbed onto kitchen foil. The glue blob will be covered in green scatter. How I managed not to burn my fingers is beyond me, unfortunately I need another half dozen.

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Just a few left-overs with dabs of Dulux tester.

Buddleia - the butterfly bush

Known as the butterfly bush, the fragrant flowers of buddleja are a favourite nectar source for butterflies. These undemanding, mainly deciduous shrubs, find a place in every garden with their spectacular displays of blooms and honey scent.

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The next episode is the Schrebergärten movement