Keyhaven by Andy York
Keyhaven is a small OO gauge portable model railway layout originally built for an RM competition. It features a dock and train ferry on the Hampshire coast.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Thinking small is a mindset I'd recommend to those returning to the hobby or those who feel a frustration that their large project is sapping a little too much time, money and commitment.
This is Keyhaven's parting shot at the end of its days in its current form; a layout which was constructed for a challenge to produce a layout in six square feet or less on RMweb.co.uk. Such a small area is not a lot to produce a layout which looks plausible and contains sufficient interest to entertain the modeller or its audience over an extended period. It is certainly possible and tight parameters focus the creative and planning mindset more sharply than having free rein. This all sounds very restricting but this is more than countered by the satisfaction of taking a project to completion, if any layout ever is, within a sensible time period.
Treating small projects as a test bed to try out new techniques is an ideal way to develop a personal skill set that pays dividends in future projects too, my personal challenges in this context were to plunge into the world of DCC control, produce inset track without the frustration I've had in earlier years and create effective water. Getting to grips with the first of those elements, DCC, means that this is a given for all future projects; if I hadn't done so the operation and satisfaction from the layout would have been significantly reduced.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
I think that most of us who live more than an hour away from the seaside associate the coast with summer, holidays, pleasure and happy memories and it is not surprising that a good number of us choose to model something which we associate with a feeling of well-being. Having said that; my modelling inclinations tend toward the mundane and down at heel rather than any coastal utopia. Keyhaven is an attempt to bring the two together, the basis of which came in a moment of inspiration when I sighted one particular product, a resin rail-ferry kit manufactured by Artitec in The Netherlands. For anyone not familiar with the Artitec range of boats and buildings it may be worth looking at as something different from the domestic market norm as there are quite a few structures that despite their continental origins will look perfectly at home on a British layout.
Why a rail-ferry? Surely any that saw the shores of the UK are much larger cross-channel affairs? Yes; but in six square feet there wouldn't be anything left so thoughts turned to the viability of a cross-Solent ferry to the Isle of Wight, after all a small ferry used to work from Langstone Harbour across to the island. Keyhaven does exist, situated on the creek of the River Avon a few miles west of Lymington on the Hampshire coast and is the shortest crossing point to the Isle of Wight at Yarmouth. This tenuous justification for an imaginary scenario then puts the potential for a model into a real environment, more of which later.
The layout measures a mere 48'' in length and 17'' in depth which left 48 square inches from the challenge limit to form a 24'' x 2'' swivelling sector plate off-scene. The baseboard was constructed as a simple frame at the edge of the 6mm ply top surface with additional bracing underneath added afterwards to accommodate the final position of the points which was determined by playing with stock permutations to gain the maximum operational potential out of the small area available.
The main feature of Keyhaven is the track inset into concrete forming the quayside surface but leaving the point switching blades exposed for ease of maintenance. The majority of the track became immediately inaccessible so I went overboard with soldering feeds to the base of the rails to minimise the risk of breaks in electrical connections. It is not a layout that would have worked well with a multitude of sections under DC control so a decision was made to make this my first DCC layout utilising the Bachmann Dynamis handset which meant that I wasn't tied to one operating position especially as I'm happy to stand toward the front of the layout at exhibitions and spend time chatting to viewers. The points are switchable via the same handset through the use of a Lenz LS150 accessory decoder. I can now happily stand or sit away from the layout to enjoy hands-free operation assisted by the use of magnetised uncoupling of traditional tension-lock couplings.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.![Posted Image]()
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.![Posted Image]()
Although the inclusion of a train ferry serves to differentiate the layout it would be limiting from an operational view so other quayside commercial activities were introduced in the form of a small marine engineering works which sees a regular flow of vans and open wagons with components and end products, an oil depot for the works and boats and a small fish merchants. Off-scene there is a small salt works still producing salt from the saltpans first established by the Romans. This enables a variety of wagon stock to be introduced and worked within an operating session.
[color=rgb(102,102,102)][font=Tahoma][size=3][size=4][font=arial]The locos and rolling stock are mainly ready-to-run items but often with significant adaptations such as the amalgamation of a Heljan 33/1 with the cab sections of a 33/0 to rectify the shortcomings of the original Heljan 33/0. The 07 is a real mongrel; a new Bachmann 03 chassis with the frames and cab of a Silverfox resin kit and Craftsman brass bonnet and boot sections. I can happily lose myself in spending far too long on making off the shelf products suit what I would like them to be. The ferry reach wagon is from M.A.R.C. Models as part of their Night Ferry range and the tube stock to be shipped to the island is repainted EFE until I get round to making vehicles from a 4-VEC or 3-TIS unit. I don't get hung up on always using the latest and best products and Airfix kits whose origins are as old as I am still earn their place on merit and show that we don
Keyhaven is a small OO gauge portable model railway layout originally built for an RM competition. It features a dock and train ferry on the Hampshire coast.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Thinking small is a mindset I'd recommend to those returning to the hobby or those who feel a frustration that their large project is sapping a little too much time, money and commitment.
This is Keyhaven's parting shot at the end of its days in its current form; a layout which was constructed for a challenge to produce a layout in six square feet or less on RMweb.co.uk. Such a small area is not a lot to produce a layout which looks plausible and contains sufficient interest to entertain the modeller or its audience over an extended period. It is certainly possible and tight parameters focus the creative and planning mindset more sharply than having free rein. This all sounds very restricting but this is more than countered by the satisfaction of taking a project to completion, if any layout ever is, within a sensible time period.
Treating small projects as a test bed to try out new techniques is an ideal way to develop a personal skill set that pays dividends in future projects too, my personal challenges in this context were to plunge into the world of DCC control, produce inset track without the frustration I've had in earlier years and create effective water. Getting to grips with the first of those elements, DCC, means that this is a given for all future projects; if I hadn't done so the operation and satisfaction from the layout would have been significantly reduced.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
I think that most of us who live more than an hour away from the seaside associate the coast with summer, holidays, pleasure and happy memories and it is not surprising that a good number of us choose to model something which we associate with a feeling of well-being. Having said that; my modelling inclinations tend toward the mundane and down at heel rather than any coastal utopia. Keyhaven is an attempt to bring the two together, the basis of which came in a moment of inspiration when I sighted one particular product, a resin rail-ferry kit manufactured by Artitec in The Netherlands. For anyone not familiar with the Artitec range of boats and buildings it may be worth looking at as something different from the domestic market norm as there are quite a few structures that despite their continental origins will look perfectly at home on a British layout.
Why a rail-ferry? Surely any that saw the shores of the UK are much larger cross-channel affairs? Yes; but in six square feet there wouldn't be anything left so thoughts turned to the viability of a cross-Solent ferry to the Isle of Wight, after all a small ferry used to work from Langstone Harbour across to the island. Keyhaven does exist, situated on the creek of the River Avon a few miles west of Lymington on the Hampshire coast and is the shortest crossing point to the Isle of Wight at Yarmouth. This tenuous justification for an imaginary scenario then puts the potential for a model into a real environment, more of which later.
The layout measures a mere 48'' in length and 17'' in depth which left 48 square inches from the challenge limit to form a 24'' x 2'' swivelling sector plate off-scene. The baseboard was constructed as a simple frame at the edge of the 6mm ply top surface with additional bracing underneath added afterwards to accommodate the final position of the points which was determined by playing with stock permutations to gain the maximum operational potential out of the small area available.
The main feature of Keyhaven is the track inset into concrete forming the quayside surface but leaving the point switching blades exposed for ease of maintenance. The majority of the track became immediately inaccessible so I went overboard with soldering feeds to the base of the rails to minimise the risk of breaks in electrical connections. It is not a layout that would have worked well with a multitude of sections under DC control so a decision was made to make this my first DCC layout utilising the Bachmann Dynamis handset which meant that I wasn't tied to one operating position especially as I'm happy to stand toward the front of the layout at exhibitions and spend time chatting to viewers. The points are switchable via the same handset through the use of a Lenz LS150 accessory decoder. I can now happily stand or sit away from the layout to enjoy hands-free operation assisted by the use of magnetised uncoupling of traditional tension-lock couplings.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Although the inclusion of a train ferry serves to differentiate the layout it would be limiting from an operational view so other quayside commercial activities were introduced in the form of a small marine engineering works which sees a regular flow of vans and open wagons with components and end products, an oil depot for the works and boats and a small fish merchants. Off-scene there is a small salt works still producing salt from the saltpans first established by the Romans. This enables a variety of wagon stock to be introduced and worked within an operating session.
[color=rgb(102,102,102)][font=Tahoma][size=3][size=4][font=arial]The locos and rolling stock are mainly ready-to-run items but often with significant adaptations such as the amalgamation of a Heljan 33/1 with the cab sections of a 33/0 to rectify the shortcomings of the original Heljan 33/0. The 07 is a real mongrel; a new Bachmann 03 chassis with the frames and cab of a Silverfox resin kit and Craftsman brass bonnet and boot sections. I can happily lose myself in spending far too long on making off the shelf products suit what I would like them to be. The ferry reach wagon is from M.A.R.C. Models as part of their Night Ferry range and the tube stock to be shipped to the island is repainted EFE until I get round to making vehicles from a 4-VEC or 3-TIS unit. I don't get hung up on always using the latest and best products and Airfix kits whose origins are as old as I am still earn their place on merit and show that we don