#heljan

Nottingham Walk is a OO Gauge Model Railway, my son and I have built together over the last 10 months. In July last year I saw an advert for a very run down Model Railway. Having picked it up in a hire van and brought it home we set to work restoring it and improving it. Basing it on the Network Southeast era of the late 80’s early 90’s and using much of the unit’s and locos that my Father drove (an ex BrickLayers Arms, Hither Green, Charing Cross and Slade Green Driver). Nottingham Walk has over the following 6 months been restored to glory with a new station, new buildings for the town centre, a Depot with fueling point. Farm with a campsite and a fire station.

Over the winter, where running was limited, thoughts turned to what can we do to improve the layout. Before we lived in our house my family and I lived in a flat where the only model railway layout I could use was a small shelf layout. Taking this out of storage a plan was devised to link the two layouts together. Changing the shelf layout (previously named Loxley House TMD) from a Depot to a terminus station. Linking the layouts together using a metcalfe bridge and the space between the layouts a canal basin giving the improved Nottingham Walk a water feature that it currently lacks.

The station was built on the shelf layout in April and then while other commitments occurred we were unable to finish it then, having time off over the last week meant I was able to build the stand that the shelf layout was to be positioned on, source the materials to scratch build the bridge/canal basin. Over the last 24 hours the build really came together. Having cut and rubbed the wood down and built the basic structure on Saturday I was able to sit down last night and build the bridge round the structure. After a good nights sleep I woke up today and cracked on scratch building the canal basin, using metcalfe card kits and some left over old platform kits to make the tow path for the canal basin. Connecting the two layouts for the first time this afternoon and giving the new formation a good test.

While there is still work to do, especially painting and modelling the water for the Lock is going to be a new process for me, also electrifying the line between the main layout and the station itself on the former shelf layout, now known as Loxley Lock. Signalling needs to be installed too.

The photos attached show the shelf layout in original form as Loxley House TMD, the transition from Depot to Station. Then the build to the bridge/canal linking the two layouts.

Now the original layout will have a branch line to Loxley Lock.