Tim Peacock's EM Gauge High Wycombe layout

[@bri.Dolan1978]

Super layout ,excellent work !

[@neilfranklin5644]

Nice job

[@tracynation2820]

An excellent video. Hello from the Tracy Mountain Railway in Colorado. 💙 T.E.N.

[@johnbristow8099]

I found this video very interesting as I was brought up in HW and spent many evenings watching the trains.

[@timpeacock8952]

John Many thanks.

[@eventail2001]

I grew up in Wycombe. I watched steam going past from my Primary school in Priory Road in the early 1960's and meeting my Dad off the Marlebone train. As others has said many features you have modelled like the shed next to the phone box I remember. Was it once a taxi office? Very nice layout. Thanks for sharing it.

[@timpeacock8952]

I think the shed might have neen for bus crew or possibly a refreshment stall. The taxi offices were down the hill a bit tucked in by the goods shed.

[@veryhappychappy12]

Amazing skill, amazing detail. Thanks for sharing.

[@johnjmc]

Very nice work Tim, do pass a hello form me on to the RDMRC, all the best John Gay.

[@timpeacock8952]

Thank you John. Will do. T

[@argonaut6386]

Having lived in Wycombe all my life your model of the old station brings memories flooding back. One thing that the station is really famous for is the Brunel engine shed to the West of the station, did you include that?

[@timpeacock8952]

Thanks. The old station and combined engine shed was converted to the main goods shed and I am close to finishing a model of that - albeit reduced slightly in length. It's been a huge task. The building should be installed in the next month or so. I plan an update video next spring in which the buidling will feature so please come back in due course and you will see it.

[@argonaut6386]

@@timpeacock8952 lovely I can't wait to see it. As a kid in the 70's part the old station and shed were used by a tyre and exhaust centre. I remember the old tracks that were in the tarmac of the main parking and drop off area. I now work in a building on Gordon road and can see the tracks and station from the canteen window.

[@piggybakkers]

Excellent detail and great video. My old mate Allan Downes would have loved this.

[@railwayjim6154]

Absolutely superb.

[@mezzomanUK]

Superb layout. Brings back many memories especially as my school backed on to the sidings. Also of the Maidenhead branch through my home village of Wooburn Green.

[@genixia]

Did you take the train to school? The closure of the line between BE and HW was a terrible mistake.

[@chairmakerPete]

What a fabulous layout! Congratulations - the details are incredible, and you've got a project for life on your hands there! Thank you for sharing. Really, really enjoyed seeing a station I use occasionally in its former glory.

[@regal1668]

An amazing depiction of a sadly under represented railway, marvellous piece of work . All I can say is fantastic.

[@davidmullins8472]

Used to use this station 1975-1982 and this model really brings back memories of the architecture and general layout!

[@mikejames6105]

Excellent layout. It reminds me of trips to London in the early 1960s when steam was rapidly being replaced by diesel multiple units.

[@Shelfandtabletoplayouts00gauge]

Scarily real, from the signals, signage to the trains themselves. Even the characters dotted about are magnificently painted. What a beautiful model, I hope to get to finish the project!

[@rhobatbrynjones7374]

As a newcomer to EM gauge, this is a very inspiring layout.

[@robertofficer6044]

Excellent!

[@larryduncan6756]

WOW! THIS LAYOUT TO ME RANKS WITH BUCKINHAM,NO DOUBT IN THAT,SHAME MY SOUND HES GONE OFF,BUT JUST SEEING/WATCHING IS GREAT,WELL DONE TIM!-AND TEAM!

[@timpeacock8952]

High praise indeed. I'll need to watch my ears as I go through doorways!! Glad you like it.

[@andrewjditton]

Top notch! Thank you for taking the time to produce this video and share this magnificent layout. Looking forward to updates as and when.

[@timpeacock8952]

Thank you. Progress is slow (at times glacial) but when we have a significant advance, I'll post more.

[@bianchikat]

fantastic project, excellent modelling. I grew up beside this line closer to London. Began my train spotting in 1961/62. Pleasant memories of waving at the northbound Master Cutler before it was transferred to kings Cross, Kings thundering along, The Cambrian Coast Express,, the new Western diesels and the Cup Final and other specials heading to Wembley

[@TheDaf95xf]

Really lovely layout depicting a real iconic station from back in the day 👍🏻5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[@andrewgriffiths9744]

What a treat to see this fine scale layout from down under here in Adelaide, Australia. Just getting started on my own layout based on 1960's to mid 70's South Australian. Can only dream of creating such a magnificent accomplished here. Well done.

[@NOELTM]

Amazing skill and craft. Thank you for sharing and taking the time to make the video so that we can see the tremendous modelling skills you and your colleagues have.

[@timpeacock8952]

Thank you

[@davidclough7346]

Amazing layout. Glad to know it's 15 years in the making so far - gives me a great deal of comfort for my own build 🙂👍

[@stewarthughesstewart]

Terrific layout. Some memories for you. I went to Wycombe Tech school in nearby Easton Street in 1963 (aged 13). I distinctly remember watching a young guy shunting 6106 in the station sidings and spinning the wheels. 6106 is preserved at Didcot. I also remember Wren. There were 2 or 3 other similar carriages named and unnamed. I lived in Deeds Grove on the southern side of the valley and could see the railway line towards West Wycombe on the opposite side. There were plenty of Kings in those days and WD hauled freight. I watched the Kings disappear to be replaced gradually by Western diesels as their colour schemes were experimented with. I had a friend who lived on the A40 and whose house backed onto the line which was in a cutting. We used to put pennies on the rails in front of those clanking WD locos to flatten them and we fired cob nuts and apples at the passing freights using a bicycle inner tube mounted in a garden tree. Fun days! Cheers, Stewart

[@timpeacock8952]

Stewart, thank you for your memories. The King is in the pipeline to be built (don't hold your breath!). I now have a WD converted and running and she will apear in a film update which I hope to commission soon. Currently working on the goods shed and want that in place before I do another film.

[@moshihus]

Excellent stuff!! More please!!

[@stephensmith799]

Hah… my first encounter with a diesel was here… a Brush Type 4 on a Down CCE. Got out for a look and probably held up the train for several seconds, the guard whistling impatiently at myself and Dad. I thought it looked cool but a bit weird as it was not obvious how it worked.

[@wideyxyz2271]

Love it. The cameos are brilliant. Amazing detail and I always love a layout with working signals (I was a signal geek when i was a kid!). Thank you for sharing Tim....

[@timpeacock8952]

Thanks - appreciated.

[@robertbrooks87]

Absolutely brilliant. Love the details and the sound. The research is spot on. I know the station well.

[@megamanmuppet]

Beautiful layout.

[@AndreKgooner]

I'd love to see more of High Wycombe and neighbouring towns in model format

[@feeyles991]

High Wycombe is my home!

[@redred7289]

Its crazy that today maidenhead to high Wycombe is via london.

[@flippop101]

Really enjoyed this presentation. Wonderful model and excellent workmanship!

[@timpeacock8952]

Thank you

[@cheshirecat9081]

What a superb layout , amazing realism . Well done !

[@timpeacock8952]

Thank you

[@medwaymodelrailway7129]

Nice video .Enjoyed it very much .Got my support.

[@medwaymodelrailway7129]

Hi if you get time Have a look at my channel.See what you think.Thanks for your support and time.

[@johntyjp]

Amazing ! I feel I could just walk onto the platform like I did in the 1950s train spotting! All those splendid GWR Kings, Halls and Castles slowly going through on the fast lines!?😄

[@timpeacock8952]

Kings and Halls yet to come but in the schedule. Castle built and in process of fettling - 5082 Swordfish

[@michaelmiller641]

Nice!

[@Austin4098]

As a youngster in the early 70s myself and my two brothers travelled every day from Risborough to H Wycombe to attend the local Grammar School. Whilst the steam era had long-since passed, the 4-track was still in place and provided a good viewing spot for some interesting thru-traffic. In the morning, we would cross from the up-line side of the station via the underpass, which I see you have faithfully reproduced. and make our way through the station which, even in the70s, had not really been altered much from the condition that you have captured. At the end of the school day (16.00) I would have to run hell-for-leather down Amersham Hill to try to catch the 16.24 Birmingham Express to Risborough, but often I would arrive too late only to see the train pulling-out under the bridge. The telephone box that you have also reproduced, would have often have be my next port-of-call to let my mother know that I was going to be late home. You have done a marvellous job in recreating this unique slice of time. It certainly brings back many memories for me.

[@timpeacock8952]

Austin. Thank you for your memories and kind comments. Evoking this sort of thing is exactly what I am hoping to create - so thank you

[@chrisvaughan159]

What a superb layout! I especially like your working banner repeaters - any chance of a guide to how you constructed them, please? Looking forward to many more instalments! Thanks.

[@risboroughdistrictmodelrai6628]

Chris, many thanks for your comment. The banner repeater was made in a similar method to our tutorial video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z169p6qmmpKqotE

[@timpeacock8952]

There should be an article appearing soon in the next MRJ.

[@chrisvaughan159]

Thanks I'll look out for it. Still impressed with the video of your layout. Can we see more please?

[@bern047]

Fantastic layout, the only thing missing is the smoke and steam then it would have been perfect

[@mewsdo]

What a great layout! I'm impressed by the wonderful level of detail... except that station poster advertising the Bucks School of Music, Principle Frederick Bailey (2mins 22 seconds into the video). I guess it's a tiny mistake in EM gauge, but still...

[@timpeacock8952]

Well spotted Sir. Spelling corrected, poster reprinted and will be stuck in place tomorrow. I wondered how long it would take someone to notice ..........🙄

[@mewsdo]

@@timpeacock8952 Well, being a musician, the word 'Music' got my attention... I then looked into the history of the school and and Frederick Bailey. Very interesting. You don't need to reshoot the whole video, by the way...

[@Ralph2]

This is very nostalgic for me. I built an almost identical layout in OO finescale, everything running on super rollers with brass bearings etc. It was on a 33' long attic board with runrounds to the fiddle yard like yours. Some of the shots could be of my layout, especially the stationmasters building by the bridge. It was almost 30 years in the making, but to be fair sometimes a year would go by with hardly any progress (young children at the time) Would love to know if there was a way to send you pictures. I also have VHS footage but it's too poor to post on KZbin imo.

[@risboroughdistrictmodelrai6628]

I will pass this message onto Tim.

[@Ralph2]

@@risboroughdistrictmodelrai6628 👍

[@timpeacock8952]

Ralph, thank you for your kind comments. I would enjoy seeing your photos but I, too am unsure how we go about this. I am reluctant to share my email address on a public channel. Do you use facebook? A pm there would be safer.

[@Ralph2]

@@timpeacock8952 Totally understand and agree. Have contacted the Club directly.

[@genixia]

Outstanding modelling! I wish the video were longer. What was behind the decision to use EM over P4? If you started again today would you make that same choice? You have some operational licence on the branch line. Although in later years the branch only handled short passenger trains, as the line was the first into Wycombe from London, it previously handled goods that would have later taken the joint line. It was originally built as broad gauge and later narrowed, so the curvature of the line itself would have been limited. Loudwater continued to handle goods through the mid '60s, with paper mills there needing materials and providing goods out. The '50s and '60s saw excursion trains, including the 9F Evening Star, so we know the line could handle large engines. I'm in the early planning stages of something along that branch, probably Bourne End, either Edwardian, or just post-WWII. Edwardian might entail some baulk track - I believe it was relaid with sleepers after 1914 but before 1919. I might cut my teeth on Loudwater - there's a photo showing the original line in baulk, next to the later loop on sleepers.

[@timpeacock8952]

Ian I'm glad you like the video. However, that 8 minutes took all day to shoot and then some considerable time after in editing. We plan to do another some time this spring. EM vs P4. At the time of selecting a gauge nearly 40 years ago I was largely influenced by availability of parts and at the time, I didn't think my skills were up to that needed for P4. Would I choose differently now - definitely not! I have modelled in P4 since and on a layout this large, I need simplicity and reliability. EM is much more forgiving and takes a lot less time in the building. None of the 4 wheel stock is compensated or sprung. Longer wheelbase vehicles are compensated and locos likewise. Outside valve gear is just that little bit easier in EM and fractions of a millimetre make a big difference. Likewise, on track, I have been able to use tighter curves which has given me more length on the scenic section. Many people think EM stands for 18mm. Well it does but it also stands for 'Easier to Model'!! Branch line. It is inended to have a represntation of full services up the branch with outer suburban trains from Paddington 61XX hauled and freight services as well. Good luck with your model of Loudwater. Regards Tim

[@landhopper4296]

Tim, it’s just tremendous, I absolutely love it! How do you keep it so dust free?

[@risboroughdistrictmodelrai6628]

Land Hopper, many thanks for your comment. I understand that Tim, uses similar methods of cleaning to that of Pendon Museum, whom he is a member of. Basically, light brushing and hoovering and a bespoke track cleaning train.

[@timpeacock8952]

Thank you. Comments above on cleaning are spot on. Also, it's in its own shed and I make sure I keep dust generating activities done elsewhere.

[@charlie1872]

Can you tell me the size of the text used on your station name board? I have a filament 3d printer but have gad a fried print some items on his resin printer. I recently purchased a Cricut Maker and am in the process of experimenting with it. Before I retired I was in Cad and hood to remember how to use it🤣 I have z friend from Aylesbury- small world. Great looking layout and I love everything youhave designed and built.👍🖊📐

[@timpeacock8952]

Hi Patrick High Wycombe is font size 15. The rest of the text is 8 except the small 'and' which is 4. All done with Trebuchet MS which is as close to Gill sans as makes no difference. I had them printed with a laser printer. hope that helps. Best wishes Tim

[@Tindallhall]

Beautiful model, particularly the sweeping quadruple lines. I am thinking of EM or P4 for my next project to produce some realistic track work (still wonder whey OO wasn’t phased out decades ago!) Can I ask, what made you go for EM rather than P4 - was it easier of conversation of rtf rolling stock?

[@timpeacock8952]

Thank you for your positive comments. I selected EM over P4 many years ago when P4 was in its infancy. I would make the same choice again today. For me, the extra effort to get P4 to run nicely on a big layout is disproportianate to the minimal extra visual gain. I have done quite alot of modelling in P4 for others and our club project so do have some experience in this area. I would rather spend the time on fine detail modelling. Also, if you set the layout high enough and, therefore, are looking across the tracks, there is little to choose. As I say a personal view and choice - it's horses for courses.

[@Tindallhall]

Thank you for taking the trouble to reply - that’s very interesting and very helpful!

[@HemelDownModelRailway]

Hi really enjoyed this video I’m from High Wycombe and I was thinking of joining the model railway club - is this the KZbin channel for the club?

[@risboroughdistrictmodelrai6628]

Mark, it is the KZbin video for the Club. We will be reopening the Club this Friday (23rd July). Please feel free to pop in and see what we are about. More details can be found on our Facebook page: facebook.com/Risborough-District-Model-Railway-Club-103436715224270

[@HemelDownModelRailway]

@@risboroughdistrictmodelrai6628 many thanks for the reply will be sure to check it out thank you

[@timpeacock8952]

See reply above, but to be clear, we are not the High Wycombe club - they are a separate entity - but as advised above , we would be delighted to welcome you to Risborough - just up the road!

[@tonypetts6663]

I lived in Wycombe for fifteen years (until February this year) and I think you have captured the curve in the platform perfectly. I didn't notice it on the layout but are you going to model the old Brunel trainshed as well? From my recollection it's the last remaining one in the country (I admit I could be wrong there), I was glad to hear before I moved that they are going to do something to properly preserve it.

[@risboroughdistrictmodelrai6628]

Tim is already making progress in building the Brunel Goods Shed.

[@timpeacock8952]

The goods yard board is now in situ and I'm in the process of drawing up the goods shed on CAD ready for laser cutting. It's quite a big job! Full scale, it is over a metre long. I'm scaling it back to about 800mm so it doesn't over dominate the layout.

[@tonypetts6663]

@@timpeacock8952 look forward to seeing it when it's done.