A freelance 009 scale model railway by Laurence Smith and Jenna Kelly.
“Hodgemead” is a fictional place set in deepest Dorset, mostly populated by farms and ex army men and women. It’s also home to a 2ft gauge railway called The Kings Lea and Hodgemead Valley Railway. The railway was built to service the farms of the valley and the port at Kings Lea (Kings Lea is the name of the next layout on our build list).
The railway has acquired locomotives and rolling stock from other N.G lines in the country and pressed them into service still in their old liveries, it’s not a particularly well off railway so paint is less important to the owners than getting the milk and cows to market.
The layout is a first for both myself and Jenna, it being my first 009 layout and Jen’s first ever model railway build. It’s been a learning curve for us both as we’ve used new techniques to us that were but a distant dream back in my 00 gauge days and not really needed in the garden for our 16mm scale live steamers.
“Hodgemead” specifications:
The layout is 4ft long and 2ft wide and requires an extra 4ft space behind it for operators so 6ft x 4ft overall.
It has its own legs in the form of a camping table so it doesn’t require a table at shows. It requires two plug sockets for operation, one for track power and lights in the buildings and the second for the overall lighting rig. In terms of operators, there are two of us, occasionally three at maximum. We’re based in Milton Keynes but can travel within 2 hours drive from home as the layout fits comfortably in the back of my car so a van is not required. One day shows are not a problem, but two day shows ideally need some notice especially if far from home as I’ll have to sort cover for my dogs.
The layout’s value is around £300 and rolling stock value is around £500.
If you’re interested in having “Hodgemead” attend your exhibition, feel free to call or email me:
laurence703@hotmail.com
