Page 12 - September October 2014

My Layout
Since the very early ’50s at the age of 5 when living at Suffield Road in Chingford, Essex, I have had an ongoing interest in the model railway hobby It began by pushing a broken clockwork engine around the floor with the “dog end” of one of my Father’s cigarettes stuck in the chimney!! I started with Triang OO, followed some 20 years later by a Berliner TT Bahn 6 ft × 5 ft L-shape layout. Then moving on to a Bachmann G scale garden layout at another house. Finally ending with my joining the Black Diamonds NMRA (BR) Group in the mid 1990s and building my American HO modules and this later layout.
The layout, in my mind, represents part of the CB&Q Lincoln to St Joseph route, on the Crete to Wymore sub-division between
Garden layout: Depot with mill and warehouse on passing loop
Berliner TT Bahn East German layout. Far end “Y” goes left to tunnel while right loops over river to fiddle yard.
All photos this page: Dennis Leighton
Dennis Leighton
G scale garden layout, Lawson Little’s RDC. Later a second line looped round the pond to join the bridge over the path
1957 and 1960. Although not an accurate track plan of the route itself (I have to claim a large amount of modellers’ licence on that, as I did not have a specific route in my thoughts at the time), I had found a track plan that suited my givens. It came from an Ian Rice book, flipped and altered to suit the only suitable space (which just happens to be what should be our main bedroom!).
It is in sections that have had to be moved and altered on a few occasions, but hopefully is now in its final form. I use a 4-way, waybill and car card system to operate the layout to a sequence, based approximately on timings of the route from R. Kistler’s book, The Wymore Story.
The layout as it exists (see photographs) consists of Wallace, a small town with a depot, a short 4-track yard, freight houses, team tracks and various industries – printer, electrical home appliance manufacturer/repairer and corn products factory. There is a main line with passing loop plus an interchange to what is now a short line. There is also a branch line with a grain elevator, fuel dealer and a distillery at its furthest point.
Well, that’s my layout. I hope other members find it of some interest. I must add a big Thank You to a very tolerant and understanding wife.
Happy Railroading to all.
Next page photos (all by Steve Wallace):
(1) Waiting at the Wallace depot on a sunny morning for mail to be loaded is Train 15/42, a CB&Q baggage/mail motor car #9767 (a much modified Spectrum doodlebug), southbound to Kansas towing a heavyweight coach, with the yard, small town and some industries in the background
(2) Later that afternoon, CB&Q Pioneer Zephyr as Train 41/16 approaches Wallace, northbound for Lincoln still with its fourth coach, soon to be removed. (A little while after my headlight modification Con-Cor brought out their twin-light version!!!) The Bluffs Creek short line, Wallace Junction, is just visible in the far background.
Being the CB&Q, for specific locos I have had to try and modify items to the best of my eyesight and abilities! There are more to go, eg the Silver Pendulum coach and the Silver Charger loco, both unique!
(3) In the foreground are some railway offices, the interchange track in centre view and a major industry in the background (4) Just out of town – The “Big Blue”(?)
(5) Part of the CBQ branch running out to Danesville via a helix (6) Cassettes are used for train changes on the Bluffs Creek line and each ‘end’ of the Crete/Wymore line, while switching takes place elsewhere
(7 & 8) My “Lincoln (Crete), Wymore and Bluffs Creek yards” with cassettes under
DCC is the power supply with 3- or 4-digit loco numbers and most have sound, but I use manual ground throws. Except for Danesville the layout is now mostly scenicked.
12 ROUNDHOUSE