4mm Lyminster Junction

[Vardnoodleblast]

Since the last posting I have made progress in fits and starts. To recap, my focus has been on the section at the southern end of the room (the 'Umborne' area on the diagram), where the main line runs on an embankment, through a cutting and into the Fiddle Yard which occupies a restricted area below roof eaves. Getting levels correct is important as a branch line appears from beneath the eaves, running via a under-bridge on the main line and then after bridging the outlet of mill ponds, descends to a lower level relevant to the coastal station of Lyminster. The 'Umborne' name comes from that of a river that runs from Shute (Seaton Junction) towards Seaton. This section has a small halt, "Umborne", and a small group of sidings, the purpose of which is as yet indeterminate, but is there to provide operational interest.

Here is a hand-crafted map to explain the layout scheme:

Yellow=below the eaves therefore limited headroom.
Green=scenic areas, full height.



Note that in a geographical sense 'north' in the model scheme reverses going from Lyminster Junction to Lyminster. The two branch lines, if in the real World, would form a loop to the coastal town of Lyminster. The implication is that the lines have to loop round in order to approach Lyminster from the correct model scheme east and west directions.

Facilities at Lyminster will (according to the geographical re-write) be a through station with locomotive shed, home to locos that operate services to the Junction and beyond (Yeovil Town, Salisbury, Ilfracombe, Torrington) plus a harbour branch. The station will have an overall roof a la Exeter Queen Street, and the is being fabricated from Walther's Milwaukee Road train shed kits, modified with more typically British cast-iron support columns and a lower height smoke vent. The inspiration is an LSWR version of Ramsgate Harbour but as a through station.

The lessons learned from the work so far are:

• Working with Woodland Scenic's high density styrofoam as a track bed is satisfactory for the simple plain line section at Umborne. When it comes to Lyminster Junction with points and point motors I will revert to a plywood structure. The Umborne section has benefitted by the ability to slew the main line and the village lanes to obtain the effects required.
• Often 'less is more' - the squirrelling away of numerous Skalecraft and Scalescene buildings over a decade is going to be excessive in terms of actual need. So many will go on eBay when the requirements for the coastal town of Lymnster are finally defined. I envisage a townscape set on a hillside that blends features from Lyme Regis and Robin Hood's Bay with multiple street levels, nooks and crannies, through which the railway has carved a course and created space for a reasonably substantive station serving the resort with a harbour branch with some sidings on the quay.

The relative narrowness of the Umborne scene has forced a change in plan for the Umborne station building. I had previously built a structure based on a shortened Hornby 'Dunster' kit. I came to the conclusion it is too big ( it is over-scale anyway) and given the proximity of the mainline on the embankment, it just over-dominated the foreground. I trialled an RTP station building from Bachmann and I think this will provide indicative dimensions for another attempt at a station for Umborne Parva.


Umborne Parva station - sawn off Hornby Dunster kit using Wills sheets to cover the shell. Wonky chimney was a try out for a an alternative style recovered from another project from many moons ago.




The RTP building tried as an alternate to the Dunster kit building. This seems to blend much better in terms of overall dimensions. I will therefore have another attempt at kit-bashing a station building with a canopy. Please mentally filter the Brighton - Plymouth Pullman service passing on the main line.

The sidings at Umborne are there to provide operating interest. However, their purpose is shrouded in the mists of time. I fancy they were rather like Coaxden Siding north-east of Axminster that served an outpost of the Blue Lias Cement Company where kilns were once located. At Umborne the history goes that the quarry ceased cement operations and was then occupied with sidings to serve (purpose to be imagineered). I have worked through options from milk loading depot, milk tank wash-out facility, military sidings, P Way sidings, agricultural produce, mill product output and the inevitable Fubarite mine (Geologist's humour creeping in there).



I used DAS clay to make up the platform surface and fine sand on plastikard in the foreground. The end loading ramp is a bit cramped which suggests it was built for horse-drawn vehicles rather than motor vehicles.

Umborne Parva is taking shape. The roads use Woodland scenics inclined track bed profiles curved to suit. I then glued many redundant business cards to the roadway with PVA (pinned down with the Woodland Scenics steel pins which were then removed once the glue had set). When dry, a coat of PVA and a first covering with an exceptional fine sand. When dry, more PVA and a second coat of fine sand was applied. To finish I will apply weathering powders (as seen with the station building picture).



The line in the foreground is the branch to Lyminster. From here it will pass onto a new board section that crosses the stair well. The road will extend over the bridge in the background which crosses the main line. Beyond that point I am considering the use of forced perspective by using TT or N Scale buildings.

The next phase for the scenic work is to go over it all with a coat of polyfilla and then paint a ground colour over that prior to administration of grasses and trees.

I have been able to run trains on both the branch and the main line and that provides encouragement to keep moving forward with the overall project even though it is literally just shuttling back and forth.

 

[Vardnoodleblast]

Since my last post I have made progress on the 'Umborne' section of the layout. The progress has been principally with carving scenery formers from various styrofoam types and putting the plaster bandage over them in preparation for a coat of plaster.

This section of the layout had to work with critical levels being 1) roof eaves for the upper level main line level, 2) branch line clearance under the main line adjacent to Umborne Parva Halt. Then the main-line curvature was planned with transition curves and as large a radius as possible.

From a scenic perspective the question was the treatment of the foreground with the halt station and a small goods yard for operational interest. The more I have worked on the section, the benefit of the 'less is more' approach makes for a better outcome.

Having almost completed the 'perma-frosting' of this section, to be followed by plastering, I will move onto converting the 'temporary-way' into 'permanent way' with a re-lay of the track and ballasting.

Lessons learned on the use of Styrofoam and polystyrene are that it was satisfactory on this section of uncomplicated running line. For the Lyminster Junction station board I will go for a classic timber frame and ply surface as I cannot see how operating points with a motor set below can work unless there is a plywood track base. With fine bullhead track it is hard enough to keep the track level as it is. However, it is good for scenery formers. I had the use of a hot-wire cutter and the big advantage with this is that you don't end up with lots of plastic beads all over the shop!



Picture 1: 34004 Yeovil posed with a westbound train with Umborne Parva Halt in the foreground. The RTP station building stands in for what was a larger structure which was too dominant in the foreground. Similarly the Type 1 signal box was swapped out for the pagoda roofed ground frame box (inspired by that at Daggons Road). I was not happy with the main-line over bridge to the branch and so am working on a replacement using Wills plastic sheets. The branch line will go under the eaves and climb up to Lyminster Junction where it will re-emerge. This will be to the right of this view. The hill upon which St. Trinian's, Umborne Parva resides is there to suggest why the main line is deviating in its westerly course on the run to Honiton Tunnel (Lyminster Junction is operationally a combination of both Axminster and Seaton Junction).



Picture 2: Apologies for the poor iPhone camera work but this is the 'easterly' view with a Q1 putting on a gallop on the mainline. This shows what will be the transition to the Lyminster station board. This section is narrow as it runs inside the eaves and has to accommodate passage of people from the stairs to this end of the layout. The bridge was to have been a short tunnel (a la Crewkerne) but in the end I opted for an over bridge, crossing the line on a rising gradient and at an obtuse angle. The thought process being that when the layout is operated from the station board area, the Umborne section will look and feel like is is part of the station layout, i.e. there is not a scenic break. A backscene board will be run behind the scenic work, curving around behind the church with the usual artistic treatment.



Picture 3: 'Yeovil' posed on the embankment with an Exeter bound train. The track here is on a transition curve with increasing cant. The train is crossing two mill stream conduits that drain into a pond that will be created between the embankment and Umborne Parva Halt. Sluice gates control drainage to the headwaters of the Umborne River. My plan is to build a cut down version of Clapton Mill ( One moment, please... ) on the hillside to the left of where the post van is seen. The plaster bandage work at the rear may look a bit ribby but that is intentional as I try to set up some geological features for the plaster work.




Picture 4: LN 851 'Sir Francis Drake' leans into the curve as she crosses the obtuse under-bridge. Some adjustments will be needed to position the bridge correctly, and I need to build the other side of it! The Shark brakevan is on the headshunt of Umborne sidings.


Picture 5: 851 with a Waterloo bound train. This is taken from an access void at the rear of the layout. This is what I set out to acheive in terms of a flowing curve where the trains can pass at a realistic main line speed, with transition into and out of the curve.