Bron Effans

After last month's fantastic level of progress I need to curb my spending and focus on what the railway is actually in need of. I have purchased a Gaugemaster controller and have been testing out the trains, to varying levels of success. I am off work for the summer and have every intention of getting some good progress with the scenery on the layout and begin to lay some actual track. Thus far I have enough straight track to build the run around loop at the station. I just need the points to arrive in the mail before I test the layout of it. I have added two extra sidings to the layout so that I can get some variety around the station. Wiring is a complete mystery to me so I am going to ask my friend very nicely if he can help me wire the layout up. The layout now has an official plan. Something that will probably change. The plan does not show it but the track will run along an embankment as far as the river, which will have one bank higher than the other, owing to some ...

I've begun to  build my very first building for Effans Uchaf. During my most recent venture to Hattons, I noticed a Wills kit for a small ground level signal box... Perfect! I've gone for a yellow and red colour scheme, similar to the carriages and also as close as I can get to the colours of the signal box at Bolton Abbey on the Embsay and Bolton Abbey Steam Railway. This is another throwback to my childhood and one which I thought appropriate. There are a few more flourishes around this theme that I am working on in my head. More to follow...

So I haven't made the greatest amount of progress until now. This weekend I had the opportunity to visit the famous 'Hattons' near Liverpool. I had initially gone in with a list of things I would want to purchase, and ended up with quite a good deal more than I had bargained for. However, all of this is for the best as there has been quite a shift in terms of the whole project taking shape.  Track  I have finally secured some 009 gauge track for the layout. This is quite a coup for me, as I had experienced a bitter defeat with the old N gauge track that I had used on my old layout. The Peco track really is something to behold. I hadn't realised how good it could potentially look on the railway, but I am a convert. So far there is about a full metre of 009 gauge track on the layout. I am going to bite the bullet and get the mainline points as a Manning Wardle is just too gorgeous to pass up.  Rolling stock The rolling stock side of the layout is where I am maki...

I've done it! My first ever kit! I am really happy with the results. I bought a Ffestiniog based compartment carriage that I've built as an open 2nd class carriage. It still needs a few flourishes, like the window surrounds and glazing, but it looks brilliant. I've gone for a mock Carmine and cream livery for my railway. The finances this month would not allow me to get several sets of railmatch paint, but I am happy nonetheless. Once it's glazed and weathered a bit it will fit in very well. I've learnt a lot of lessons for my next carriage kit and can't wait to tackle the next one. I want to do a rake of these Ffestiniog style carriages and then maybe a rake of VoR style carriages. I may even use a different livery for those. Scratchbuilding is a long way off for me. But I am beginning to see the appeal. You will also notice that there is a FR style bug box hanging around. This came with the diesel. I'm thinking of using it in a works train rake but I nee...

I admit I am not the most confident of painters. My idea of painting consists of an item being one colour all over. This came to the fore when painting my kitbuilt diesel. It was another purchase off eBay, with a chassis and a bug box carriage. Quite a find in my opinion. It came in a grey livery, which was well done, just not really to my taste. I wanted to replicate something like Upnor Castle on the Ffestiniog/ Welsh Highland Railway. I opted of a livery of Sherwood Green with Yellow warning panels. I daren't try and do wasp stripes yet. But judging from the wonky line at the top of the cab panel, I'm going to need to go over it again. Doh! In original grey. Resplendent in its new livery.

I have recently been in touch with the guys at Budget Model Railways for some advice and to place an order for some new rolling stock for the Bron Effans Line.  They have been incredibly helpful and I am happy to report that I have every intention of returning to their store to order some goods wagons once ive actually made some headway with the line. I am in desperate need of some couplers for the Fletcher Jennings and could do with some additional carriages. I have learnt many lessons from the Dundas kit but would like to try and model something akin to the tin cars that the Ffestiniog used in the 1960's onwards. The issue with this comes from the size of my layout. I would only realistically be able to marshall a two car consist on my line at this moment in time. So I have ordered a couple of the carriages from the team at Budget Model Railways. At this moment in time I have no idea what the livery of my new stock will be but I  will get back to you on that.

I must open this post with an apology for not posting for a while. Unfortunately, due to the nature of my job, I don't get a lot of time to do any work on the railway. I have been involved in several projects at work and literally haven't had any time to focus on the Bron Effans Line.  I have decided to readjust my focus on the line for now and break the issues down into more manageable steps. I have to consider boring things like budgets and times and appointments etc. So, to this end, I have some weeks off work booked in July/August to spend at home and on the railway. My main priorities are the following. 1. Scenery. The Bron Effans line currently looks like a large sheet of chipboard. I am going to build up the scenery and create the elevation before my time off work. It's all well and good me keep talking about the railway and building rolling stock. I need something for it to run on. 2. Tracklaying. I still only have the old and frankly tired N gauge track f...

My first locomotive gave me a lot of consternation. Whilst I was keen to get a loco to test on my railway, I didn't want it to look like a toy train compared to my other locomotives. So the question about the "Eger" locomotive whizzed around my head for some time. It looks ok but a little toy like. I decided to hit the internet and try to find a different livery which would look a little more serious. I settled on solid black with a red lining, similar to most DB steam locomotives. I still need to line the windows and pick out a few details, but I think the effect is striking! The more astute modeller will notice that this loco is More suited to a HOe gauge but I like the idea of using it as my shunting locomotive. Which I will probably stick to, unless I run short formation trains with the bug box and an additional coach for a "Low season" train.

At the time of writing I have not yet begun construction of my railway. I hadn't realised how much actually goes into the construction of a fully functioning model railway. The whole thing is a financial millstone. But I am determined to make it happen. I've saved a lot by keeping it small. The layout is 7 feet by 1 1/2 feet. I would love to build a mega layout with two stations and lots of scenery but I must be realistic. A small station layout will be enough for me right now. I tried to cut costs by dismantling my old N-gauge track and repurposing it. However, the condition of the track and it's sheer age has meant this cannot be. So I have been researching the different types of track you can buy. I'm going for Peco set track as it seems the best. However, here lay another dilemma, that of gauge.  Most of my rolling stock has short wheelbases and can cope with virtually any curve. However the rub comes with the advent of the Heljan Manning Wardle locomot...

The first model I bought for the railway was a small "Eger-Bahn" locomotive. I loved how compact it was and thought it would be good as an initial locomotive to use for testing and marshalling around the layout. I'm determined that everything on my layout will have some use. I didn't really like the faded blue livery it came with. I've decided to try and replicate that classic German narrow gauge livery by giving it a coat of black gloss and weathering it. Here is the progress so far.