Pilton and Chelfham

Updated - 3 June 2020 with link to Bournemouth West
Updated - 30 May 2021 with nameboard for Chelfham
Updated - 12 September 2023 with Concrete Complete 

This is the site for a merger of Pilton Works and Chelfham as at September 2018. The concrete blocks are roughly where a viaduct will carry the O gauge across the L&B into Bournemouth West. The viaduct will be a mix of Branksome and Chelfham.

Pilton Works will be in front of the viaduct. I think I have room for three sidings which will run under Bournemouth West and provide covered storage for my rolling stock.

Behind the viaduct I have laid the concrete base for a passing loop representing Chelfham. There will be one siding off. The loop will also be used for shunting Pilton Works.

I have stuck every other yard of Peco track on the outside of the loop with Evo-Stick Strong Stuff Waterproof Adhesive. Hopefully that will allow me to separate the joins to substitute 3D printed fishplates for the Peco ones once I have got round to drawing and printing them. In the meantime the track is solid enough for me to run trains.

I bought some Cliff Barker track as an alternative to Peco with larger radii points but the chairs look gross compared to the L&B lightly laid track. I think Peco is closer. However I do like the fishplates which is why I am going to try producing my own 3D printed ones. A yard represents approximately two 30' track panels so I will try to make them so that I can snap them into the middle of a Peco yard length with a dummy cut in the head of the rail. Time will tell!

It is now July 2019 and I have made the most of the good weather to do some more concreting as shown below.

The first turnout is the start of the passing loop for Chelfham and the second is the entry to Pilton Yard off the loop. The third turnout is a siding for Chelfham, not in the prototype position but suits my purpose better. The bricks beside the loop mark roughly where the platforms will be and the three brick stacks are sitting on the concrete base for the viaduct which will carry the O gauge into Bournemouth West.

July 2019 has been very productive. I now have a loop at Chelfham laid as described here and illustrated below. You may need to click the picture for a closer look. I have started laying the bricks for the viaduct. Between the loops you can see my experiments with the cess. The first, black, area is fine coal dust laid on concrete and then polystyrene foam. The white area is foam that has not been covered and the stones beyond that came off my garage roof when the felt was replaced. These stones are too coarse for ballast and I don't know yet if I will use them.

Chelfham Station Furniture

Here is my 3D printed platform nameboard for Chelfham. This is based on the drawing in Measured and Drawn.

The nameboard would not fit my printer in one piece so each leg has 2 parts pinned to the main board with 1mm nickel silver rod and the legs are joined with thicker brass rod. I have yet to glue the assembly together.

Concrete Complete

This is September 2023 and I have completed the concreting. Here we have four sidings in Pilton Works. The two on the left will be in a carriage shed. The third one is the goods shed siding and the right hand one is the goods yard. It had a Scotch derrick crane but I might move that to siding three just outside the goods shed because it needs the extra width.

The bricks to the left will form the viaduct carrying the O gauge into Bournemouth West which will be supported by the white beams above the Pilton sidings.