It's time to try again to make a layout

[TimWay4]

I think over the last few years I've posted in here a couple of different layouts and they mostly haven't gone anywhere for one reason or another, but I seem to have found some drive to try and make a new layout. Here's the thing I need help with is, my plan is to model the Japanese equivalent of what in the UK would be a Heritage/Preservation line. So I've ordered a Station model and some patforms that fit the style I have in my mind, but If anyone has any pictures of any or resources they can point me at that would be amazing. 

 

So anything is good, but some specifics I'd like to see are:

Loco & Wagon storage (in the UK there is usually a shed with the main stock and then other stuff is just parked on disused tracks)

Station areas (just to give me an idea of what might be fun to add)

Some Idea of what stock they keep

 

I'll be doing my own research into this too, but appreciative of any resources/pictures people can point me at. 

 

I've gotten some baseboards that fit in a box, they are laser cut and I've already got them glued and the bottoms painted brown to give the idea of soil. My plan is that when the station and accompanying bits arrive I'll do some dry fitting to get it how I like the look of it. This is the station I've order - https://www.traintrax.co.uk/23241-local-line-small-station-building-prebuilt-p-1914.html  I also ordered some platforms to go with it as I'd like a two track station. I need to work out how to power 2 boards that come apart as well, I've never done that before and I don't have a lot of electronics knowledge. 

 

That's kind of where I am with it at the moment for those interested here's my current Job list for the layout:

Research

Dry placings of station and platforms (when they arrive)

Need a name

[Kamome]

Glad Keith at Train Trax is still doing a good business and his prices are always reasonable. 

 

The Oigawa Tetsudo Railway in Shizuoka has a a mix of steam and electric, yes they have the Thomas C11 but also a normal C11 as well as some other steam engines and old EMUs from various private companies. There wasn’t much in the way of goods from what i remember though.

 

http://oigawa-railway.co.jp/en/local.html

[TimWay4]

Yeah I order every so often from Keith, he's my go to when I want Kato stuff 🙂 

 

Oh of course there's Oigawa, I actually have the Tomix Thomas on pre-order for later in the year 🙂 There English language site is amazing thanks 🙂 It shows I'm on the right track with C11s lol I never expected them to have C56 (Not sure why it was a surprise to me, but apparently it was) 

[railsquid]

2 hours ago, TimWay4 said:

I think over the last few years I've posted in here a couple of different layouts and they mostly haven't gone anywhere for one reason or another, but I seem to have found some drive to try and make a new layout. Here's the thing I need help with is, my plan is to model the Japanese equivalent of what in the UK would be a Heritage/Preservation line.

 

FWIW there aren't any direct equivalents of UK-style preserved lines in Japan; the closest are the various minor private lines like the Oigawa railway which run second- and third-hand stock cascaded down from other lines/companies. Some have steam excursion services, but other than a few preserved steam locos, old stock tends to end up scrapped once it's no longer economical to keep it running. If it's lucky it might end up statically "preserved" in a shed or something.

[TimWay4]

1 minute ago, railsquid said:

 

FWIW there aren't any direct equivalents of UK-style preserved lines in Japan; the closest are the various minor private lines like the Oigawa railway which run second- and third-hand stock cascaded down from other lines/companies. Some have steam excursion services, but other than a few preserved steam locos, old stock tends to end up scrapped once it's no longer economical to keep it running. If it's lucky it might end up statically "preserved" in a shed or something.

 

That's kind of what I thought might be the case unfortunately. So I thik I'll just end up basing my stock on what is commonly in the Museums. I guess I'm kind of surprised due to interest in trains Japan conveys, that they have never seemingly embraced the Heritage/Preservation line. Not that either approach is wrong, just interesting to me.

[Kamome]

Not to say you can’t create your own version of a Japanese heritage railway that have freight photo opportunities for the rail fans. That static display cover that Tomytec is bringing out would make a great display by the station. You could use Oigawa as inspiration.

The sheds are not that interesting so you’d need some artistic license. Here’s C56 James chuffing his way out of “Tidmouth Sheds.”

[TimWay4]

Yeah I think that's what I'm going to do, I like the idea enough that I'll stick with it. I think like I said above I'll probably use inspiration from the Museums about what to have, though I won't be using that as a reason to have Shinkansen lol. Yeah based on that photo I might end up using a standard shed, or a thought I've just had is maybe use the shed to hide the entrance to a fiddle yard. 

 

I'd like to have some freight on it just kind of because, so if I've got space (big IF right this second) I might borrow the UK method of an unused trak where the freight just stands, I did like the static display cover which I may buy and see what kind of loco it can take, I like the idea of static exhibits, not sure what I would put on it, I need to take a look at what I actually have, I'm sure Ihave something suitable if there is space for it 🙂 

[railsquid]

The Chichibu Railway has a nice little outdoor "museum" at its Mitsumineguchi station, visible in Streetview here:  https://goo.gl/maps/ivQiSLuSwBjemSGF8

and in more detail here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/railsquid/albums/72157670119290154. Though I believe it is now "had" as some or all of the exhibits have been apparently been scrapped as they were not at all well preserved, as is visible from the phtotos.

 

It would be perfectly plausible to have the end car of an 0-series Shinkansen on static display, there are quite a few of those knocking around.

 

 

[bill937ca]

Over the years many of the minor railways have taken on the air of a museum line because of there vintage rolling stock and aged facilities..   Lines like Kotoden, Hiroden tram lines in Hiroshima, the Kominato Railway, the Chosi Electric Railway,  the Fukui Railway and the Kambara Railway. With time most if not all these lines have acquired modern rolling stock, but back in.....

 

A few articles from the old Japanese Railway Society Homepage

 

http://www.japaneserailwaysociety.com/jrs/members/kiyohito/kmntrw/kmnt.htm

 

http://www.japaneserailwaysociety.com/jrs/members/naito/kmbr/kmbr.htm

 

http://www.japaneserailwaysociety.com/jrs/members/snzk/steam.htm

 

http://www.japaneserailwaysociety.com/jrs/members/oliver/fukui/fukuirailway.htm

 

http://www.japaneserailwaysociety.com/hiroshi/smph/smph.htm

 

http://www.japaneserailwaysociety.com/jrs/steam/steam.htm

 

I did something like this with my Kamakura layout. iI was a minor station on a local line with a train museum in an old engine house.  That way I could have modern stock as well as steam powered trains with a great variety of stock on the layout.

 

Edited April 13, 2021 by bill937ca

[TimWay4]

Thanks these links look super helpful and will give me something to look over until bits start turning up 🙂 

 

The Chichibu railway seems to do something like what we do here where some stock just seems to be parked about, I'm not super bothered about finding a prototype to support what I'm doing, if the layout goes to any shows it'll only be in the UK and most people won't know what Japan is like so I can easily do what I like 🙂

 

I'll keep up the research, but I'm really getting attached and excited about this idea, now I just need the bits I've ordered and to convert this enthusiasm into actually doing it 🙂