Creech Bottom: Russell...

It's been in hibernation (above my workshop bench) for months and months, but I decided to get it out, clean it up and give it a run, what am I on about? Creech Bottom itself of course...

This was my first 009 layout, completed over a few weeks back in late 2014. It's first exhibition appearances were in 2015, and it did a few shows, before taking an unplanned retirement (through lack of invitations) a year or so ago...

Russell is my new project, and that was the catalyst for this outing. She's not finished yet, still waiting on custom nameplates, cab footsteps and some trickery to depict the rear wheelset, but she's weathered and runs very sweetly (if a little noisy).

Very much at home in the sylvan surroundings of Creech Bottom, oozing atmosphere of the early 1950s when working at Norden on Purbeck, just a stones throw from Creech Bottom. Hopefully when she is finished I'll be doing a bit of a photo shoot for another magazine article that is planned.

It's been fun 'playing' trains rather than working on models again and reminded me of why I enjoyed 009 so much - so that once my 006.5 project is finished I may well look to build a new 009 layout this year. There are lots of plans floating around, but I suspect it's a toss up between something Eastern European forestry based, and a follow up to Creech Bottom.

We'll see.. More soon...