Layouts
Current Club Layouts
We have our own facilities with space for 6 medium/large layouts, including:
Wellbridge (OO)
Wellbridge is a 4mm scale, OO gauge, finescale layout. It is based on Southern Region practice under British Rail in the late 1950s/60s. Wellbridge is a fictitious layout and the name comes from Thomas Hardy's Wessex novels & poems. While not based on any prototype, train operation follows the traffic patterns of Branksome and Parkstone.
Groenen Creek (On30)
Groenen Creek is an On-30 logging layout based on American practice during the 1940s. It is freelance in design with ideas drawn from various sources. One of the main objectives was to have fun and provide a layout that is slightly different from many others. The layout is viewable on up to 3 sides and the scenic area measures 10 feet by 8 feet. The layout is operated with DCC which gives us greater flexibility in locomotive control.
There is a through station where the main narrow gauge line connects with the logging line that climbs up through the trees to the timber felling operations off-scene. Although the track plan is an oval, we operate the layout more like an end-to-end arrangement. To the west of Groenen Creek is the local mill, a harbour on the west coast and the cities of Redwood and Sloe Rapids. To the east is the local quarry and Upwood Falls. In addition to the services to and from these locations there are frequent trains up and down the logging line.
Most of the rolling stock is ready-to-run with some kit or scratch-built examples. Many of the RTR locomotives are made by Bachmann with other examples by Broadway Limited. Some of the locos are fitted with sound decoders but not all. All the buildings except one are scratch built and based on prototypes typical for the area. However we have been flexible with the dimensions to fit them all in! The track on the main line is code 80 by Micro Engineering and on the logging line it is hand-laid code 73. All the turnouts are handmade by various club members and operated by Tortoise motors.
West Tilgate (N)
West Tilgate is a N Gauge layout that depicts a 1950s - 60s station and goods yard on British Railways Southern Region, somewhere on the former LSWR main line. The layout is a freelance design with a track plan intended to provide operational challenge and interest. The main line has been upgraded to portray Third Rail DC electrification, permitting the realistic operation of appropriate EMUs and DC locomotives.
Most buildings are scratch-built with one or two modified kits. The scenery is built up with polystyrene, and plaster bandage and is covered with a variety of shades and textures from the Woodlands Scenics range.
Rolling stock is a mixture of RTR, kit-built and scratch-built representative of BR (Southern Region) in about the 1950s-60s. The secondary cross country line provides a route for inter-regional trains to access the seaside towns of the south coast allowing a variety of stock to be run. There are three operator positions, two for the main running lines and one for the goods yard. All points are electrically operated using Tortoise motors. The layout has a schematic control panel with indicator LEDs showing route and section settings.
Neuhausen (HO)
In this video we see the club's HO German layout Neuhausen, set in the late 1960s to early 1970s. This layout is special as it conforms to the 'FREMO' standard. FREMO is a group of railway modellers who all build layouts compatible with each other, so large meet up in halls can be achieved by interconnecting each end of of the layouts. These massive layouts all run to a time table and are very exciting to attend, whether a locomotive driver or signal operator. Several periods and countries are modelled per meet up but most popular is German railways.
You can find out more about FREMO here: https://www.fremo-net.eu/en/home/
Rothern Bridge (O)
Rothern Bridge is a finescale O-gauge end-to-end arrangement featuring a through station based on Torrington in Devon during its Southern Railway or British Railways (Southern Region) days. Its viewing length is 32 feet and is 55 feet long with both fiddle yards. From its original conception, the layout took five years to get it ready for its first exhibition. There are eight main baseboards in the viewable area and each is 3ft wide by 4ft long. The end fiddle yards are both 11ft long and incorporate a screw-driven end-pivoting traverser with seven storage roads. At the far end is a separate cassette for moving locomotives from one road to another.
When we exhibit the layout all the stock run is typical for the area and could be Great Western, Southern Railway or British Railways (Southern Region). Trains will be correct for their period - i.e. a locomotive and the stock it pulls will be of the same era but may not be the same era as another train on the layout. So you may see some GWR carriages pulled by a Hall alongside some BR freight stock behind a Standard Class 4. Given the varied interests of club members, some occasional out-of-region visiting trains may be seen.
Rolling stock seen on the layout uses the club's standard O-gauge couplings using the Sprat and Winkle design but 4mm scale rather than 7mm. Uncoupling is done over hidden magnets although sometimes these are too well hidden!. If you're into O gauge and want somewhere to run your stock, come and visit us in our clubhouse.
Merrybrook Parkway (OO)
Merrybrook Parkway is a modern image layout, designed to please the present day modellers at our club. The layout is split into two sections, an upper level with a station to allow for passenger stock to be run. The bottom level is a yard area so freight locomotives and rolling stock can be used, including Class 08s, Class 66s, Class 67s and Class 37s to name a few. Merrybrook is fully DCC to allow for maximum operation flexibility.