Stumpytrain
Active Member
Introduction
I've been an avid armchair 2mm Finescale modeller for years, but little real progress has ever been made. As an operations and signalling enthusiast with a penchant for British Railways Western Region in the late 1950's, I've always been fantasising over dramatic projects such as Bristol Temple Meads East Junction, Newton Abbot West and The Royal Albert Bridge. All fully signalled, absolute block, correct carriage workings and suchlike. I've enjoyed developing timetables, daunting locomotive and rolling stock lists and coming up with eye watering checklists of point ends etcetera.
Despite these dreams, a ScaleSeven model of Ashburton has been brewing in my mind for sometime. This bizarre deviation can be entirely blamed on Simon Castens of this parish and Titfield Thunderbolt bookshop fame! Simon's been subjected to hours and hours of me rambling on about my latest crackpot scheme each visit and probably grown weary of my promises of have tangible evidence of railway modelling by the time I next drop in. I've always been impressed by his 1/32 modelling and jealous of how much presence, detail and weathering that can be enjoyed in that scale. At some point I thought it might be a good idea to have a bash at a 1/32 wagon, something that I could loan to Simon and enjoy seeing on his railway. Browsing the internet, hunting for kits, my mind quickly turned to a recurring project, Bristol Old Station (I actually built the baseboards for a 2mm model!), and how I've often thought it would really suit a large scale, one side of the train shed cut away so you could peer in, "stand on the platform", and look up at the "sunlight" dappling through the Brunel roof. Maybe with "steam" à la John Dornom, as a tired 4F brings in empty stock for an express to Newcastle. "It wouldn't need much stock", a Peak or Jubilee for the Midland, a 4575 for the Avonmouth, Ivatt 2MT or BR Standard 3MT for the Bath Green Park, maybe a 4F for variety, oh, a GWR Diesel Railcar, 5800 as station pilot, a rake of Mk1s in Maroon, a 3 coach Southern set... woah, stop! I quickly realised that even shrinking to 7mm to enjoy greater commercial support I had fallen into my usual impossible dream trap.
Now, as a Devonshire lad and South Devon Railway signalman, for as long as I can remember my Euromillions dream has been to restore Ashburton Station, the one that got away. A cheeky base for my new build 1401, 'Thunderbolt', Wisbech & Upwell tram carriage (with Real Ale bar for those "do you think you own the ruddy railway" moments), D63xx and a restored AC Railbus. Now I made a leap from 12" to the foot to 7mm foot as a Euromillions win was proving tricky to secure... Enthusiastically I confessed my new proposal to Simon, elated he rummaged through his top shelf stash to find a copy of Starting in Scale OO. In it Cyril Freezer promotes his plan of Ashburton because it's "advisable to begin with a simple system that can be brought to fruition with a short time". Sound advice that I'm hoping I may finally heed.
So, here with have it folks. Ashburton, BR (WR) mid to late fifties, a 1400 tank, maybe a 4400 prairie in the future, two brake seconds, two auto trailers and a handful of wagons all wrapped up in arguably the most picturesque branch line terminus in the country.
Maybe a little bold in ScaleSeven but with a little determination I certainly feel this is achievable. I'm still mulling over a little compression and forced perspective of the background mill buildings, but the included plan shows what I've got in mind. The Parish Road will be the foreground baseboard edge. This natural route allows exhibition viewers to walk along the lane and enjoy the most common views recorded by many photographers fortunate to have experienced the station for real, occasional trees acting as view blockers.
If you've read this far, thank you for indulging me. I wonder if this project will actually get off the drawing board? I'm still feeling optimistic!
Alex
......lovely idea
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