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St Marys Church Hall, Hobs Meadow, Solihull, West Midlands B92 8PNOPENING TIMES: 10:00am-16:30pm
ADMISSION: Adults £5.00 Children £3.00 Family £15.00 (2+2)
10 Working layouts are invited plus trade and society support. Free parking is available.
Buses to Hobs Moat road that stop in front of the nearby ice rink: 72. Buses that stop at Wheatsheaf, A45, Coventry Road: 60, X1, X2. Bus Information: Available from Network West Midlands: 0871 200 22 33.
List of Traders: Keiths Model Railways, Elaine's Trains, Baz's Model Rail - 12 Volt DC, Steve Currin Book Sales, Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway Society.
List of Layouts:
1. Grange aggregates
2mm scale, N gauge
Solihull Model Railway Circle
Grange aggregates started up many years ago. The canal was cut in order to transport the stone out instead of using horses and wagons. The narrow gauge railway was then laid to take stone to the crushing plant. Steam engines were introduced on the narrow gauge in the 1800s. When the main line railway was built, the loops and sidings to the quarry were also put in. All these forms of taking the stone out are still very much in evidence, with stone going out by canal, road, or by rail.
2. A scottish branch
4mm scale, OO gauge
Solihull Model Railway Circle
A end to end branch line club layout based on scottish practice, displayed here partly built to give an insight into layout construction. It is 16 feet long and just over 2 feet wide, and we are using SMP code 75 bullhead plain track and handmade Marcway points. It has been constructed to run with either dcc or traditional control. There is a terminus station at one end and a hidden 'fiddle' yard with a traverser at the other, with a scenic section in between. A major part of the concept is the use of very deep baseboards, with the railway running through the middle, allowing greater depths and heights of scenery for a more interesting appearance. The major architectural feature is the curved viaduct based on Killiecrankie.
3. Avonbridge
7mm scale, o gauge
Solihull Model Railway Circle
This layout is 30 feet by 13 feet, three track, continuous run with station and storage loops. Early in 2013, we widened two of the front boards to provide some space to allow for shunting.
The boards are made from 9mm exterior plywood with some aluminium box section bracing and steel box section legs with rubber door stops as feet. Peco code 124 bullhead track is laid to a minimum radius of 6 feet. Points are operated from the main panel using Hammant and Morgan motors.
The buildings are based on local Midland Railway prototypes and therefore the layout represents a busy MR branch line somewhere in the Midlands, although the stock run, is from a variety of companies and eras to suit our varying interests. Most buildings are scratch built from a combination of plastikard and wood. The main station building is a model of Northfield, and the small shelter on the opposite platform is from Moseley. The signal box is modelled on Luffenham, with Marton Junctions coal bunker. A scratch built scale model of the goods shed at Eckington on the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway is at one end of the station and future developments have include a footbridge between the platforms, back scenes and a small engine shed.
4. Maun valley
N gauge, 2mm scale
Leicester Model Railway Group
The real Maun Valley is located near Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. However, our layout is fictional. The scenery is loosely set in the late 1950s, but as you will see, we run a wide variety of stock up to and including that of the present day. It features two continuous circuits with a passing loop and branch line running off the inner track.
The two circuits are isolated from each other with the outer track normally operated on dcc (Digitally) and the inner on dc (Analogue). The digital side is run using the Engine Driver smartphone app, allowing trains to be controlled wirelessly. Points are worked using a custom-made panel, and the colour light signals are controlled by an Arduino microcontroller.
5. BNSF Metra Chicagoland
N gauge, 2mm scale
Nigel Harrold
BNSF Metra is a North American N scale dcc sound layout, with a small town and station situated somewhere on the BNSF Metra commuter line, which is one of the many running in and out of Chicago. The station see's regular stopping Metra and Amtrak passenger trains on their way to and from Chicago. The tracks also see varied container and freight traffic running through on the two bi-directional tracks serving the many container and distribution depots around the city.
6. Illie Town
OO gauge, 4mm scale
Keith & Aaron smith
Illie Town is a small modern image layout based in Cheshire. Passenger services are operated by Arriva wales, East midlands, Cross Country and Northern Rail. On the freight side, there's a ballast siding and a warehouse that imports steel, which is served by a variety of locos from different companies. A two-road depot with a separate fuelling point for servicing locos. With a timetable of nearly 300 movements, well make sure there's always something to watch.
7. A Remote Depot
EM gauge, 4mm scale
Jeff Pike
Modern image EM gauge layout depicting a ballast loading yard, featuring a small fleet of radio controlled vehicles.
Wagons are brought in, filled with gravel from the storage bins by one of the resident wheel loaders, before being taken away by the class 08 shunter. Road vehicles (trucks, buses, vans and cars) arrive and depart all day - Plus, there are regular aggregate deliveries by tipper lorry, and flatbed lorries are loaded/unloaded by telehandler and forklift trucks.
8. Bond Lane
009 narrow gauge, 4mm scale
The Limbrick Family
Bond lane is a unique OO9 / OO model railway layout incorporating lighting, video and audio to create an atmospheric and dramatic display. The effects run on a four minute cycle that includes a sunset, a firework display and a thunder storm. The layout is set at high level but can be lowered for wheelchair users.
9. Bell end
O gauge, 7mm scale
Chris Gilbert
While Bell End is an actual place, the branch line itself is imaginary. You'll find the real Bell End on the A491 feeder road from Hagley to Fairfield in North Worcestershire. The branch line ran from Kidderminster to Fairfield just north of Bromsgrove, which was a small branch shooting off to top Hagley. The line was originally constructed as a light railway as a whim by Charles George Lyttelton, 8th viscount cobham, who was known for cricket, railways and architecture.
It was taken over by the GWR in 1905. The GWR did what it could to improve the line and over the years, the goods traffic increased. On the other hand, the passenger numbers never amounted to much and with several trains each way, they were never packed. While general goods were handled at the stations goods yards, the railway also had a number private sidings. The busiest was the one serving the dairy at top Hagley with a daily evening milk train. The next busiest was the siding that served the sand quarry at Wildmoor. Probably the most interesting of the private sidings was the one just the other side of the bridge at the north end of Bell End. They were a couple of sidings that were connected to the government pipeline storage system, a secret fuel supply network created during the second world war. All three of these private sidings lasted well into the late 60s.
The model is set in the BR western era of the 1950s to the mid-1960s. The lightweight construction of the branch, the line was originally classified as un-coloured and the lightest of engines were allowed. With the construction of the oil sidings, the GWR took the opportunity to upgrade the line to a yellow route. The upgrade work also included a new signal box at Bell End.
Passenger trains were in the hands of either a 14xx and a single auto coach or an ex GWR railcar. On market day, this is upgraded to a B set usually hauled by a pannier tank or small prairie.
The daily goods train is also in the hands of a small prairie, as is the milk train. The sand and oil trains warrant a 41xx large prairie.
Footnote: I was born in 1965. I never saw Steam on British Railways. I can't remember BR diesels in green. So much of my inspiration comes from many of the preserved railways around the country.
The model is based on my interpretation of what it could have been.
10. Bricks in Motion
1:40 scale
John butler
A brick built town with an accompanying freight railyard, with several passenger and freight trains
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Hobs Meadow, Solihull, United Kingdom
