Faringdon

Presented by Rex Davidson and Stephen Williams

[@andrewblake2254]

Lovely Vaughan Williams. Perfect. Lovely layout and commentary too.

[@althejazzman]

The narration and sound effects make these videos the most relaxing model railway videos I've ever seen.

[@dougmccoy100]

If the purpose of a model railway is to recreate in miniature a snapshot of a time long past, then everyone involved in making and operating this layout are to be congratulated. It’s nothing less than superb! 👍

[@phaasch]

Thank you for this brief opportunity to step back through a door into the land of lost content.

[@Samuel-ix6vo]

Fabulous!

[@sansovino4124]

Vaughan Williams and steam - two great loves of mine.

[@Biggles-gm6tm]

Beautiful. I want to live there.

[@henrithehero]

That's a real labour of love - the narrator's intonation, as much as the video, takes you right back sixty years!

[@moonraker44]

Possibly the best model railway video I have seen. Well done.

[@robertcotgrave5920]

Beautiful and interesting narration.

[@stewart1235]

Being born in Australia, all my life wanting to go the old England and ride steam. The England I dream of, steam and small villages where everyone knew each other, I feel is gone and I'm looking through rose coloured glasses. Oh how I wish I had lived through that time. Thankyou for a trip down memory lane.

[@dickyyz465]

Some places still exist, I live in Kent, not far from me is a old steam train with station and coal yard, old signals ect, beautiful, unspoiled by todays living, buy a ticket go down the line, I still watch the trains at the weekend fantastic

[@fionamerrick9320]

That's fifteen minutes I won't get back - and I'm so glad about that! It was really lovely travelling back in time to a more peaceful age. Thank you.

[@robinatkinson6275]

Brilliant scene setting

[@dylansheppardmymodelrailway]

Absolutely fantastic what a great layout 👍👍👍👍 great vid love the Robin on the spade

[@marciebalme588]

excellent work

[@ingoprasse989]

I thank you for these wonderful moments. Your explanations are an enrichment. Many greetings from Germany. Ingo

[@timothykeech7394]

An absolute pleasure to watch. Beautifully modeled, what a gorgeous layout.

[@dylansheppardmymodelrailway]

Love this channel love the detail love the narration great looking locos FANTASTIC

[@patroller6567]

Awesome layout, the detail & realistic look of this is outstandingly good, one of the best layouts I’ve ever seen, scale modelling at it’s very best.

[@musoseven8218]

Ive seen this layout in MRJ when I used to take that publication, always admired it, beautifully done. I know Faringdon quite well, my father helped, sadly, to demolish part of the line and yard and was pleased that the station building was saved. He ran a nearby plant hire company. Also later hauled timber products from the area. My uncle and friends also worked in Faringdon. The 'new' builds remind me of contemporary new builds/ council houses in Shrivenham too. Rose tinted glasses, I know, and times were hard, but people still worked at the speed of a horse - after the past four years, I long for calmer, more genuine times. Stunning model, beautifully executed.

[@trainmanbob]

This is exactly following my principles of how a model railway should look and be run. I have retired my exhibition layout due to old age and ill health, but I run mine just like this. Just the commentary to sort out. Modelling a prototype is essential for this sort of result in any gauge (mine is N) Thank you gentlemen...perfection!!! Cheers, Bob

[@1972jonboy]

As someone born and bred in Faringdon I thank you for this it's fantastic. The station is now a nursery where both my daughters went when they were little. Absolutely lovely 😊

[@Michael43713]

A work of art.

[@malcolmtaylor518]

Wonderful evocation of the period, and less tedious times.

[@johnlunnun9769]

Beautiful!❤

[@colinrainsbury730]

Wow just came across this video what a wonderful model I hope my own modelling can reach this standard

[@saddaddrummer]

I worked from this building when I left school It was Russell Spinage builders then. As a tiddler I do remember sitting on my home made go cart at the gates watching the little train go off to Uffington. Lovely to watch this.

[@MervynRuss]

Great video, when I first viewed this I thought it came from the pendon museum archive, sound and narrative excellent. Reminds me of when we were taken to school at Faringdon from uffington by freeman's coach. We sometimes would glimpse the goods train making it way to Faringdon as it crossed the bridge over the road to Shillingford making its way over barrowbush, we used to know it as the Faringdon jonnie by then only goods traffic was using the line before it's closure, shame you have not got a diesel rail coach on your layout which they operated with for a time during the demise of steam, I had a antie that lived opposite the dairy in park road, your models of buildings are quite excellent, I'm glad it have found this, great memories thanks

[@MervynRuss]

Sorry I see I misspelled Shellingford perhaps would have been easier to type Farnham.

[@james2524]

This fits so well with Adlestrop by Edward Thomas..... So evocative of a lost time.

[@martintunnicliffe8934]

0:33 The detatched house to the right (our right) of the cream coloured semi used to belong to my grandparents. My great grandparents and my great aunt lived on that street too.

[@7007GreatWestern]

Absolutely exquisite! A fabulous evocation of a lost way of life. Well done.

[@leekent5010]

As a born & bred resident of Faringdon of 53 years this brings back fond memories of walking what was left of the old branch line back in the 70's & 80's. As kids we would walk from Cadel's yard on Park road past the coal yard & Oriel cottages through Wicklesham copse under the red brick bridge and on to Cole's pits. From there it was on to South farm, Fernham over the dismantled railway bridge on the Shellingford road and down hill to the signal at Moor mill. Sadly there is not much left to show it was a branch line apart from the signal just before the main line juction. Congratulations on a superbly detailed layout which I would love to see. Will it be displayed anywhere locally in the near future?

[@scalefoursociety172]

Faringdon will be the star layout at Scaleforum 2022, held at High Wycombe on 24-25 September. Full details of the event are online at www.scaleforum.org. We hope to see you there!

[@loubylou55]

What a delightful film. The attention to detail is amazing and I almost forgot I was looking at a model. It made me feel nostalgic for the past. Fantastic work.

[@VintageChap]

A beautifully made video and railway.

[@stevenperry7493]

How relaxing to watch & enjoy .Just subscribed & looking forward to more videos .Thank you .

[@davew2452]

Thanks so much for letting us see and hear this wonderful layout, with narration that brings the whole scene to life. Brings comfort and peace. Dave W

[@kittapscott4168]

So agree with what's already been said - lovely attention to detail, in all areas. The story with it just adds to the realism.

[@oggarage9388]

Thank you 🙏❤ i love his story

[@gregoryhale2202]

In a word.....BRILLIANT

[@TONYNORTHEASTERN]

Wow facinating to watch. .......cheer's Tony

[@petert9749]

Very impressive. large and not so large things come to notice. Things like the glazing effect on the Collett Goods; the thin plate-steel effect; the superb starting and stopping of the 45XX; Hand built locos, stock, buildings, and scenery. And the painting. That pass coach with all the gas tanks seems familiar from the Wild Swan series on coaches. What are the pedigrees of the locos? Are they Mitchell or Finney kits? Today - 'head scratching', snips in hand, trying to solve scratch-building problems. So few of us now. I wonder if you know how encouraging films like this are? It gives something to aspire to. As I write this the thin plate-work on that tender flashes in the mind, as it will continue to do. Strange how imagery works. Thankyou

[@SENSORITES64]

I always love when a layout has attention to detail! The narration truly makes it sound like a documentary about the area.

[@PaoloVignati]

Very beautiful & realistic!!! Love the narration

[@leemarsh3569]

Really nice to see this layout in action.

[@jkirk888]

A joy. Thank you for posting.

[@michael32A]

Had to keep reminding myself this isn't O Gauge! Great work.

[@tonydaly2642]

Very well presented. Thank you.

[@jerryhorwood7528]

I used to work at the station years ago when it was owned by Russell spinage builders, we had a joiners workshop at the rear, also they were a funeral directors as well, sounds a bit weird I know but then a lot of building firms were. Seems like yesterday but was forty years ago, christ I feel old😂

[@johnclayden1670]

Mesmerising!

[@davecooper5951]

Very atmospheric indeed. Well done !

[@ricktownend9144]

Enchanting - a real view into the past

[@peterthomas2013]

Thank-you for making time to create and share this great layout video. The narration adds a great deal ;o)

[@dfishpool7052]

Thank you for a most evocative presentation - the quality of the model is astounding and the soundtrack truly inspirational - congratulations on producing a masterpiece,

[@johnjephcote7636]

I enjoyed making Concertina coaches back in the 1980s. I made the bodies from two layers of clear acrylic sheet. One of them was indeed, an ex-Concertina 70 foot slip coach, still with the cylinders underneath (I use Russell's GWR Coaches books).

[@Petelmrg]

Wonderful to watch; if that is a Haye Developments Concertina I remember building one around twenty years back for my 'Drefach Felindre' exhibition layout.

[@Tauraco00]

Amazing🎉, regards Elizabeth

[@SDD3204]

Superb

[@ericdeluca1880]

Magnifique 👍👍👍👍

[@paulgray2387]

Such a shame there’s no branch line now. Although the station is still visible along with most of the route.

[@Brinkly1000]

Lovely layout. I've seen it a couple of times in the past and always meant to ask, what are the dimensions? Kind regards, Nick.

[@NSRJohn]

N R The length of the layout is 22ft, of which 4ft constitutes the fiddle yard, whilst the width varies between a maximum of 3ft at the station end, which narrows to 2ft over the last 8ft of the scenic section and into the fiddle yard.

[@eonmichaelides1415]

One of you gentlemen is surname Williams,the Farringdon branch was beloved of one Adrian Vaughan,(ex signalman and now author)and the accompanying music to your superb video is by Vaughan Williams.Coincidence?

[@Shelfandtabletoplayouts00gauge]

Speechless…..

[@_RandomPea]

Brilliant modeling. How was the grass done? Looks like it used a basket liner but I can't find any videos showing the process to create something like this in Faringdon

[@lowiepete]

A wonderfully told story, but not quite accurate. The pannier with its train would have travelled all the way to the buffer stops. On a rainy day, Lady Wotsit from Verynearby Hall, would not be amused having to alight onto a puddled platform from her 1st class compartment when there was a fully functioning canopy available on the station building. The General Manager would personally receive a hand-written telling-off for such an imposition! This stopping short of the run-round points is a prominent feature of today's health and safety regime where propelling a partly loaded train is frowned upon, as on preserved lines passengers rarely fully vacate coaches.. Back in those days there would be platform staff to ensure the "all change" was observed before, under the guidance of the guard, the train would later be propelled clear of the loop points. Then the run-round would take place with the removal of the tail traffic coming next.

[@dougwalters5763]

Super layout thanks for sharing. Can you tell me if the 6 ton crane was scratch built or from a kit? I need one for my Radstock layout and the plans I have suggest the winding mechanism will be a challenge to build. Thanks in advance. Doug.

[@NSRJohn]

Doug Walters The yard crane is scratch built in brass and nickel silver using General Arrangement drawings published in the first issue of the Great Western Railway Journal (the Preview Edition) as the source of information. Although the crane is able to rotate on its base, the winding gear is purely cosmetic, although it copies the actual arrangement as closely as possible.

[@dougwalters5763]

@@NSRJohn Thanks for the information, I have the plans you mention so it will be out with the soldering iron methinks. Thanks again.

[@rogerking7258]

It's impossible to understate the difference that P4 standards make to the realism of the whole scene here.

[@dougmccoy100]

P4 track and wheel standards are clearly evident by how little 'wobble' is seen when the rolling stock is in motion. 👍

[@robertsulley]

I would love to see this. Any idea where it can be seen?

[@philkirk4571]

Come on, own up. This isn’t a model! It’s real, isn’t it? Incredible skills. 😅

[@sansovino4124]

Did Faringdon trains work through to Didcot in real life?

[@RicktheRecorder]

Modelling at its very best.

[@jacquespats2128]

excellent sums it all up. O scale?

[@scalefoursociety172]

4mm to the foot (1:76.2) to Protofour (P4) standards

[@Itsonlymeee1]

Hmmmm... I have some way to go in my modelling lol😊

[@martynmiller4247]

As the station closed to passengers in 1951, this can't be "sometime in the 1950s".

[@TheGameCamer360]

It’s called modellers license.

[@paulsevers7740]

dunno whether the loco sound was dcc or superimposed, but the exhaust beats simply never co-ordinated with the motion - sad because it's a super layout

[@michealmatthews9377]

is this te fairford branch

[@MervynRuss]

No sorry Micheal the line stopped at Faringdon, there was a plan to extend it onto Fairford but it never went ahead, I believe the Fairford branch line went via Brize Norton towards oxford but I could not be totally sure.

[@andrewbayliss5421]

Will this layout be exhibited?

[@dierkschurack2425]

Wonderfull I like verry mutsch dierk

[@peterheath9002]

very attractive model. it's a shame the chuff is not good on the pannier tank. There should be 4 'puffs per wheel revolution