Club layouts

Norton Vale

Portishead TMD

designed and created by Jack and Charlotte Butler

This layout is based on Portishead Railway if it had remained open and developed into a modern DB/EWS and DRS Depot to service Portbury and Portishead Docks. It is a full DCC sound OO Gauge Layout. It contains a 4 row engine shed with 2 central inspection pits with a detachable half roof which reveals a fully detailed workshop. There is also a 4 bay refuelling station and fuel unloading area. The layout is fully weathered, full working yard lights, workshop lights and signals. A range of locomotives and rolling stock from 2000 up to present day as well as rail charters visiting locomotives. Head on over to their Facebook page for info on upcoming shows or to book them https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61560779545819 This layout has won best in show at Barnstaple Model Railway Exhibition 2024

Morella Light Railway

The Morella Light Railway is situated somewhere in Southern England. It started life in the 1880s as a means of transporting stone from Birds Hill Quarry to a couple of nearby towns. Unfortunately a brickworks started up not far away and their building material proved to be a lot cheaper, even if it did not look so good!
The line managed to survive on the reduced stone traffic for a few years, and then a passenger market started to develop which was not completely killed by the motor car. Nowadays the tourist attraction of a narrow gauge railway has proved to be its salvation. There is still a little stone traffic!
The layout build was started by the late H.R. Norman of Wimbledon Model Railway Club to 009 scale in around 1960 and finished by my father, Don Dickson. The baseboard is an old wicker edged tea tray. It provides proof, if any is still required, that you do not need a lot of space to produce an interesting model railway.

Contact Details: Heather Hatch
Email: heatherjhatch@gmail.com
Tel: 07581 182561
Layout Size: 3′ x 2′, table required
Based near Bristol, fuel cost only, possible overnight if daily travel not suitable.
Insurance: £1500

Morella Light Railway Mk2

Set a number of years after the Morella layout.
The fortunes of the quarry have improved, this has enabled the buildings to be re-built and improved, and the track layout updated.
The passenger station and line has become a ‘heritage line’ and therefore also, as money permits, is being upgraded.
This new layout was built as a ‘learning experience’ for myself. The original layout was owned by my dad, Don Dickson, and I wanted to keep it going in his memory, but as the layout was so old (think originally built in the early 1960’s) it was falling apart. Most of the stock was hand built or adapted from kits by Don and are named after the family.
I had never done any carpentry, track laying, electrics etc so it has been a steep learning curve but I hope the end result pays tribute to the original and Dad.
Heather Hatch

Contact Details: Heather Hatch
Email: heatherjhatch@gmail.com
Tel: 07581 182561
Layout Size: 3′ x 2′, table required

Often as a pair of layouts with dad’s Morella. Total space required 8’.