Outline & Era
The Station Road layout is modelled on British Railways outline during the era of the modernisation scheme where steam locomotives were being phased out and replaced with diesel traction. This era allows for a broad range of locomotives and rolling stock to be operated on the layout, spanning from the late 1950’s through to the early 1970’s.
History
The first inception of the layout began in 2014 as a rudimentary 8x4 layout in the garage. It was operated via an analog DC controller. At this point the layout never developed beyond the 8x4 configuration to retain some level of portability while residing in a rental property. In late 2015 the layout moved to its current and permanent home in the double garage of a purchased property.
The first extension was added in 2017 which turned the layout into a ‘L’ shape. In the same year operation was converted to DCC using a Hornby Elite controller and a Hornby Select as a slave unit. In 2019 another extension was added to the end of the original layout giving the section additional length. Later that same year the Station Road youtube channel was launched. In 2020 the control system was upgraded to the Digikeijs DR5000 system which introduced wireless control for locomotive operations. Late 2020 saw the final extension added forming the overall footprint that exists today. This extension turned the layout into a ’T’ shape, or a long rectangle with a wide central peninsular.
The original Metcalfe Station - 2014
Tight curves and steep inclines - 2014
Current Track Plan
Control Systems
Train control is via the YaMoRC YD7001 DCC Controller (Digikeijs DR5000 with YD9401 upgrade module) with the addition of Z21 WLAN multiMaus and TCS UWT-100 Wireless Throttles. Point control operates independant from the DCC system via analog switches and solenoid point motors.