Beacombe in the Sunny South!

Dedicated area to show the community your model railway projects.
User avatar
King Anorak
Posts: 9
Joined: Wed Jul 31, 2024 5:29 pm
Contact:

Beacombe in the Sunny South!

#1

Post by King Anorak »

Beacombe is the first layout I've built after a hiatus of over 40 years away from the hobby. In fact it's the first layout ever, all my others as a young teenager were very much in the 'train set' category.

Beacombe is a small seaside town somewhere between Southampton and Bournemouth and the DC layout is set in the mid-60s with electrification almost complete. I run the usual Waterloo expresses, normally hauled by Mr Bulleid's finest (these are a mixture of Hornby, kit and one partially scratch) and there's a 4-CEP that appears sometimes on proving trials. Alongside this are various summer specials from other parts of the network together with a busy goods yard.

It's all very much a work in progress and there'll be plenty to do this winter. First will be laying third rail followed by finishing the scenery on top of the tunnel. Much of the layout looks deliberately down at heel, and I'm trying to capture the feel of the dying years of steam. Taw Valley especially is in dreadful cosmetic condition and much as she looked shortly before withdrawal.

Hope you like it and I'd welcome any ideas as I'm very much a returning beginner to this. It's all nostalgia fuelled and I've always found something melancholically attractive about the slow decay in the 1960s.
Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image
Using yesterday's technology, to create tomorrow's problems, today.
User avatar
bulleidboy
Posts: 2358
Joined: Thu Oct 04, 2018 6:30 pm
Location: Basingstoke, Hants
Contact:

Re: Beacombe in the Sunny South!

#2

Post by bulleidboy »

That's looking very good - Beacombe is certainly a layout to watch. Have fun with the 3rd rail.
User avatar
King Anorak
Posts: 9
Joined: Wed Jul 31, 2024 5:29 pm
Contact:

Re: Beacombe in the Sunny South!

#3

Post by King Anorak »

bulleidboy wrote: Thu Aug 08, 2024 10:19 pm That's looking very good - Beacombe is certainly a layout to watch. Have fun with the 3rd rail.
Thanks, glad you like it. I did make a start on the 3rd rail but it was so monotonous that I gave-up after an hour and had a beer instead. I think I'd build it all differently if I started again - I've made the mistake of trying to cram as much track onto the baseboard as possible and it loses realism as a result.
Using yesterday's technology, to create tomorrow's problems, today.
Carl L
Posts: 350
Joined: Sun Oct 14, 2018 6:05 pm
Contact:

Re: Beacombe in the Sunny South!

#4

Post by Carl L »

Welcome back to the hobby. That is looking very nice indeed, I look forward to seeing more images. Nothing wrong with trying to cram too much in, I’m guilty as charged :D
User avatar
Walkingthedog
Posts: 5023
Joined: Thu Oct 04, 2018 5:51 pm
Location: HAZLEMERE, BUCKS.
Contact:

Re: Beacombe in the Sunny South!

#5

Post by Walkingthedog »

It is pretty common to cram track in.
Nurse, the screens!
cheshire lines
Posts: 400
Joined: Tue Oct 09, 2018 4:40 pm
Contact:

Re: Beacombe in the Sunny South!

#6

Post by cheshire lines »

Nice work.
Looking forward to more pictures in due course.
Too Tall
Posts: 130
Joined: Thu Mar 09, 2023 2:21 pm
Contact:

Re: Beacombe in the Sunny South!

#7

Post by Too Tall »

Lovely looking layout, as above I look forward to seeing more of it.
User avatar
Chops
Posts: 1141
Joined: Sat Oct 06, 2018 8:11 am
Location: El Paso, Texas USA
Contact:

Re: Beacombe in the Sunny South!

#8

Post by Chops »

Ditto all above. Third rail, you say? Remarkable!!
User avatar
King Anorak
Posts: 9
Joined: Wed Jul 31, 2024 5:29 pm
Contact:

Re: Beacombe in the Sunny South!

#9

Post by King Anorak »

Thanks again for all your kind comments.

I've had a year away from the layout. A lull in interest plus some financial issues stemming from a serious bad debt to my business. I've even had to sell some locos and the controllers, must be bad! I'm sort of back on it again now and have started to plan the next phase.

Will keep y'all posted.
Using yesterday's technology, to create tomorrow's problems, today.
User avatar
Chops
Posts: 1141
Joined: Sat Oct 06, 2018 8:11 am
Location: El Paso, Texas USA
Contact:

Re: Beacombe in the Sunny South!

#10

Post by Chops »

Yikes, Godspeed to you.
Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 0 guests