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The above
Gauge One, 45mm gauge track and 10mm scale, branch is situated on Granny
Wendy’s Railway or G.W.R. for short, deep in LMS territory.
The
layout is some thirty feet length overall and two feet wide, it came into
being in 2006 when the exhibition manager of the Inverness and District
Model Railway Club said “Can you do something in Gauge 1 for the annual
exhibition?” A reluctant “Yes” and then “There’s thirty feet available and
you have two months!”
A rather
bare 24 feet of base board appeared with a platform and little else other
than a belligerent crofter, Sylvanus McRidd, a Brittain’s figure, (alleged
to resemble G.W.’s husband) who refused to make way for the railway, thus
giving us the excuse to end the line. A friend produced a copy of an 1880
Ordinance Survey map showing the proposed route of the Fearn to
Portmahomack branch passing within a few yards of home, that gave us
the name.
This
year, 2007, as you can see a transformation has been wrought due to a
concerted effort by the family. Additionally a three road traverser six
feet in length takes care of the stock when off stage. Why didn’t we buy a
bigger car?
At the
2006 show a solitary Johnson 1P 0-4-4 tank engine trundled back and forth
with a few kit built wagons, there was no passenger stock at that time. As
this locomotive was purchased for use on a garden railway it is battery
powered and radio controlled. In spite of frugal use the battery failed
about an hour before the end of the show.
As a
result of enjoying ourselves a council of war decided another locomotive
and passenger stock were needed. Accordingly an order was placed with RPM
of Oldham for a Fowler 2P 4-4-0 to join his Johnson 1P, and for a rake of
four L.N.W.R. suburban carriages from Curlew Coaches of Southwell,
Nottingham. As a result of G.W. surfing the net she has also managed to
acquire a scratch built Highland luggage composite (green), this was built
by Mr Kennedy of Inverness in about 1970. For exhibition purposes this is
paired with a L.N.W.R. brake third. We have a photograph confirming this
as a genuine pairing in the early grouping years.
The goods
rolling stock was purchased as a job lot and includes stock from the big
four and British Railway. Track and
points were supplied by Tenmille of Ringshall, Suffolk and ballasted with
red granite chips in the usual laborious manner. All
structures were scratch built with plywood and plasticard and painted by
G.W. who claims to have enjoyed this her first effort at modelling.
Alan Ridley |
