My new retirement project - Baymouth Town and Baymouth Quay.

A Southern Region late 1960s-mid 70s pastiche of the south coast. Lots of worms - EMUs, DEMUs, WR DMUs and cross country services, SR locos on parcels, short cement trains (Tunnel cement, Southampton) and even short Boat Trains, WR locos on Yeoman aggregate traffic. Think anywhere between Weymouth and Littlehampton, but stealing ideas from Fareham (aggregate siding), Gosport (lifted quay lines), Crewkerne (station overbridge), Swanage (seaside town), Weymouth (quay), Lymington Harbour (quay), etc.

There is a main line to London, a coastway line to Brighton, and a diesel only line to the Quay. There is a bridge where the model railway line terminates, which historically would have gone down to another quay (think Gosport). This leaves it open for extension if I ever got a bigger room. Rationalisation means the main lines are bidirectional now (I didn't have room for a double track main line into the fiddle yard).

It's just down the line from Bishopstoke, my N gauge roundy roundy, which is somewhere near Eastleigh, and is mainly Era 5-6, plus Rule 1 era 7 and 8, whereas Baymouth is more fixed in Era 6-7.

Stage 1: Baseboards

The baseboards arrived today, from Model Railway Solutions in Poole. These are 9mm Premium Birch Ply, laser cut, plus backscenes, supplied with all fixtures, fittings and even glue.

These are so beautiful, I had to post these photos of the pristine parts. Don't worry, they will be assembled ASAP so they don't warp. I hope they go together well!

There are 3 baseboards: 5' x 2' plus 6' x 2' make the long length and then 5'10" x 2' make the L shaped fiddle yard and town quay.

The layout is DCC sound (so that I can learn all about DCC and DCC sound, which is 100% new to me). There is only one problem for you, my readers. It's in OO. But what I learn with this build, and hopefully from my new membership of Syston  MRC, will help me finish my N gauge project, which has somewhat stalled.

More photos of the build will follow, as these things cross between all scales.

Bob G

Strange - my heap of empty cardboard boxes is bigger than yours. That means I've been buying more than you, which I never thought possible

Quote from: Newportnobby on January 20, 2026, 06:45:34 PMStrange - my heap of empty cardboard boxes is bigger than yours. That means I've been buying more than you, which I never thought possible

I've had a clearout to allow me to build the baseboards on the garage floor. Sorry to disappoint.

Good luck bob especially with 3rd rail juice territory

Look forward to updates. Chris

Today I started with the smallest board. A 5' x 2' one.
Lovely assembly, and the choice of assembly tools was just right 






Tomorrow its screw the ply baseboard to the frame, make the other two boards and rehome them in the garden office railway room

Bob G

The lump hammer's a bit worrying 

I guess you need something like that when you're dealing with OO 

Quote from: Newportnobby on January 21, 2026, 09:53:02 PMThe lump hammer's a bit worrying 

Those interlocking ply parts are very snug. It was a very helpful persuader 

Two days on and the three baseboards are finished.
Big shout out to Model Railway Solutions of Poole, for the laser cut ply. It was wonderful to work with.

Positives: everything went together exactly as designed.
Negatives: I like screwed rather than glued fixings, and I was about 30 screws short. Not a problem, as I'm off to the tip and B&Q tomorrow to dispose of the cardboard packaging and get some more screws.

Tomorrow we also move the boards to the former Garden office now model railway room.

Bob G

Quote from: Newportnobby on January 20, 2026, 06:45:34 PMStrange - my heap of empty cardboard boxes is bigger than yours. That means I've been buying more than you, which I never thought possible

No. It's just that you don't have to hide the evidence of purchases like Bob does.

Quote from: emjaybee on January 24, 2026, 12:00:04 AM

Quote from: Newportnobby on January 20, 2026, 06:45:34 PMStrange - my heap of empty cardboard boxes is bigger than yours. That means I've been buying more than you, which I never thought possible

No. It's just that you don't have to hide the evidence of purchases like Bob does.

I don't need to hide anything. I have to fight my way through piles of handbags and shoes in certain rooms...

Quote from: Bob G on January 23, 2026, 11:34:58 PMI like screwed rather than glued fixings, and I was about 30 screws short

Hence the term "He's a few screws shy of a baseboard", maybe

Quote from: Bob G on January 24, 2026, 09:04:57 AM

Quote from: emjaybee on January 24, 2026, 12:00:04 AM

Quote from: Newportnobby on January 20, 2026, 06:45:34 PMStrange - my heap of empty cardboard boxes is bigger than yours. That means I've been buying more than you, which I never thought possible

No. It's just that you don't have to hide the evidence of purchases like Bob does.

I don't need to hide anything. I have to fight my way through piles of handbags and shoes in certain rooms...

Bob, how you dress in the privacy of your own home is your business.

 

Quote from: emjaybee on January 24, 2026, 09:15:17 AM

Quote from: Bob G on January 24, 2026, 09:04:57 AM

Quote from: emjaybee on January 24, 2026, 12:00:04 AM

Quote from: Newportnobby on January 20, 2026, 06:45:34 PMStrange - my heap of empty cardboard boxes is bigger than yours. That means I've been buying more than you, which I never thought possible

No. It's just that you don't have to hide the evidence of purchases like Bob does.

I don't need to hide anything. I have to fight my way through piles of handbags and shoes in certain rooms...

Bob, how you dress in the privacy of your own home is your business.

 

  

This is the last set of baseboard photos.

The boards are in place (but not screwed together because the boards need to come up for tracklaying and wiring) with a bit of track, trains and buildings placed to show what I'm working towards. A Southern 1970s look. The plan is 11' x 7'10" and I can just about separate each board from the others to get underneath! The fiddle yard will take 2-car EMUs on the branch and 4-car EMUs with a loco or e.g. a Motor Luggage Van on the main line.

I've chosen this era because the stock is much more available in OO than in N, and it is what I remember from my trainspotting days. My N model is slightly earlier transition era southern and western, and there is more than enough stock (with some 3D printed models) to do that some justice.

I've kind of stalled in my N gauge modelling, so this is giving me new enthusiasm.

The next set of photos will cover wiring, as I'm sure you are not interested in OO gauge layouts or what happens above the baseboard 

Huge shoutout to Model Railway Solutions as I'm very happy with the boards - you can either pay for baseboards in time or money, and as I didn't want an open-frame design, after a seven week wait, including Christmas, these went together in three days. I didn't have the time or inclination to build these from scratch, and in any case they are better (and lighter) than I could have done.

While I was waiting for the baseboards, half of the storage units underneath them were rebuilt from full height storage cupboards for my paperwork when I was self-employed, so they were recycled into half-height cupboards and additional shelving, while waiting for the baseboards.

That's it for now.

Bob G

PS The pictures on the wall are geology themed, by a former London artist, who has exhibited in London. They are watercolours and oils on board.