Note- Shorley Knott is a member’s private layout, but we think you will be interested to see how ingenuity can result in a working layout in a very small area. This text and associated images have been provided by courtesy of RD.
Shorley Knott (analogue DC) is an O9 micro layout, built in the ridiculously small space of 2 feet by 1 foot (610mm x 305mm) . . . proving that everyone has room for a model railway layout, even in O scale! The layout is 7mm scale (O scale or 1/43rd) on 9mm gauge (N gauge) track representing a 15-inch gauge narrow gauge railway. O9 is often used to model miniature railways, such as the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway or the Romney Hythe and Dymchurch Railway. Shorley Knott, though, represents a 15-inch narrow gauge railway, such as built by Sir Arthur Heywood, who believed that 15 inches was the narrowest practical gauge for a narrow gauge railway, especially as used as an estate railway such as the Eaton Hall Railway in Cheshire or the Duffield Bank Railway in Derbyshire.
Shorley Knott’s design was inspired by a 5ft x 1ft O gauge standard gauge micro layout, called Halstead, spotted on the Internet . . . except that I’ve added an extra siding at the front.
Shorley Knott was built as a quickie layout whilst my main layout (O-16.5 and 4 feet long!) was boxed up prior to moving house. NOTE: if you’re building a layout in a more obscure scale/gauge combination, there’s no such thing as a quickie layout.
The baseboard is made from 6mm MDF except for the trackbed which is 6mm plywood. The backscenes and the footbridge, also 6mm MDF, are all integral and structural making it quite strong and very rigid. Parts of the baseboard and parts of the trackbed are double thickness with cut-outs where possible to lighten it whilst still strengthening the joins and providing a base for the sector plate (stick).
Track is Peco OO9. Power is DC analogue via a Gaugemaster Combi controller. Points are operated by bicycle spokes, cut off, glued together in pairs end-to-end with brass tube collars. Bent paper clips, coiled around the bicycle spoke are used as point actuating pins. Everything is then Araldited together. This allows operation from front or rear.
Buildings are from a number of sources: laser cut kits and plastic kits including two (engine shed and yard hut) made from parts from Dapol (ex-Airfix) kits.
Locos are a mixture of 3-D prints, parts of plastic kits and cut up OO engine bodies on N gauge proprietary chassis. Rolling stock is mainly 3-D print, resin, or plastic kits.
Nothing on the layout has been built as the manufacturer intended!
For quite some years my trademark has been a TARDIS in an obscure position. This layout is so small, that I’ve had to make the TARDIS low relief – much to the amusement of the proprietors of a certain model shop!
Gallery
This shows what can be achieved in such a small space, in O gauge!
