A Sulzer overlap…

Although an unusual concept, Chris’s ‘overlap’ can create some fascinating schemes where it’s possible to blend inspiration into a smaller space…

Just as I love flicking through a new (or secondhand) book of period photos for those moments of ‘I’d love to model that’ there are a number of great Facebook groups where I can find the same… a few months ago I found some photos of the Dyserth branch on the North Wales coast. By the end of its life it existed to serve a lime works and the loop had been removed, so trains reversed the couple of miles from the mainline. The site itself was almost a Y with the track to the limeworks continuing beyond the goods yard, now unused except for shunting loads and empties.

Equally as inspiring were photos of the truncated line to Mold where the Synthite works sent out chemicals by rail until even later. This level crossing scene is crying out to be modelled…

Blending the locations together, adopting the lime works traffic and using Class 24s you could create a lovely exhibition treat, or selfishly indulgent home based layout. The nature of the prototype operation, where trains were propelled means we don’t need to worry about run around loops, you could almost do away with turnouts all together… creating a curving layout like this is easier using a ply egg box structure, that said, at home, the plain track and level crossing could be a shelf on the wall with staging on the right, and a promontory sticking out into the room. A cameo presentation could work, equally a neat shelf with artful spotlighting and a mix of modelled and un modelled (totally plain dark grey board and track) would give a high impact presentation. 

Until next time, more soon…

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