Bodmin

by Ray Green

"Bodmin" is my current 'O' Gauge layout and is far from complete. It is quite a big project which I am undertaking, as the room is 28' x 12'. All the points ares hand made using Peco products. All the track is now laid and operational.

The locos are not powered through the track but use Exactoscale's 'Red Arrow' system which uses an infra-red beam (similar to your tv controller) to control the locos which have 9V batteries on board.

The running is super smooth and of course absolutely no hesitation over the points. In fact you have to really control the locos carefully for if they derail (heaven forbid) they keep moving!! Slow running is very good too. The Portescap motors help a lot!

All the buildings are scratch built using available plans. The stone effect paper used to cover the buildings has been produced on my computer using photographs that I took at Bodmin a couple of years ago and some from magazines showing these buildings as they were.

The other side of the room will house Bodmin Road at one level and Boscarne Junction at a lower level. Boscarne also has the LSWR connection, so china clay trains will be featured a lot. Getting photos of these stations has been quite difficult and there are still area where I have no information i.e. the goods yard at Bodmin behind the goods shed.

The lever frame is a replica of the one at Bodmin in the 1930s so far as I can ascertain. There is no mechanical locking but as the levers move micro switches that operate the signal and point motors, my friend Roger Hobson from Essex, who has given me enormous support in this project, plans to put a form of electrical interlocking in place.

There is a lot of work to do on the rolling stock which will have some attention once the main scenery has been constructed. I have a lot of wagons to build yet and another Prairie is ready to be started.

 

Videos

Further to the above pictures, Ray has posted three videos of the layout on Youtube.