2ft gauge miniature railways

[danny]

I know most miniature railways have small gauges and would have to be modelled on either 3 or 6.5mm gauge in 00 scale, but some, such as the now closed Southport Pier Miniature Railway ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVsZ1wpk2R8 ) were built to 2ft gauge and could be modelled in 009. What do others think?

[Isle of Stoner]

Go for it. I had a plan for a 7mm scale layout with an 0:16.5 NG line, an O9 scenic railway and a O6 (Z gauge) ride on train. This was all set around a seaside town with a pier head station for the 0:16.5. Maybe one day I'll tear up all the 009 and build it. But not this week.

It would be an interesting project. I started buying Dapol water tower kits as the legs would make good pier supports.

Cheers


John W

[MickT]

Several years ago Laurie Cooksey built an HO scale 9mm gauge layout based upon a pier railway called (wait for it............) The Pier.

It was featured in RM and many members will have seen it when it was exhibited at Expong and probably elsewhere. Laurie used 3

[B.Meldon]

I actual fact

[JulienW]

It's been a while since I was there but isn't the 2' gauge Seaton Tramway essentially a half size model of standard gauge trams?

[danny]

I believe the Legoland Express is also 2ft gauge.

[Isle of Stoner]

I think you're correct about Seaton, they would work well on a seaside layout.

Nice idea for a layout.

Hmm


John W

[B.Meldon]

Seaton tramway is actually 2 ft 9 in gauge.

However Seaton is not the first location that some of these half size trams operated as previously Claude Lane had a line at Eastbourne in the 1960

[Hobby]

That OP confused me, we were there two years ago and the pier railway was still going... As was the Miniature railway a few hundred yards away... I see what you are getting at though, as said Severn Lamb make stock for such lines, usually diesel powered, we saw a couple when we were there 10 years ago, but I don't know where they were bound...

[Cambridge Paul]

Hythe pier east of the New Forest

[danny]

I've done a little bit more research on this and it seems that the most common use for 2ft gauge miniature railways is in theme parks with Severn Lamb equipment. It also seems that newer lines are being built to narrower gauges as this becomes cheaper, so there are not that many 2ft gauge miniature railways left. It would be interesting to see how the size of the 'miniature' 2ft stock compares to normal 2ft gauge equipment.

[B.Meldon]

Hi Danny
The basic dimensions are on the Severn-lamb website with extensive Photos to illustrate their various sizes of locos and coaches.

They are each listed on the web page I provided a link to in my first post on this subject:


http://www.severn-lamb.com/rail_trains.asp

But for convenance here are the illustrations from the web pages with people to give an idea of the scale and the links each page:

http://www.severn-lamb.com/arrow_river.asp

http://www.severn-lamb.com/texan.asp

http://www.severn-lamb.com/lincoln.asp

http://www.severn-lamb.com/jupiter.asp

Brian Meldon

[engerth399]

I'm told you should never try to look under the trams at Seaton as they do not have "Corgi" stamped into the bottom.

Peter

[danny]

Having done more research, I think there is also the confusion between 'miniature' and 'narrow gauge' which is why the 2ft ones are not always listed in miniature railway books. Could you use N gauge stock to model them?
Also I have found another example at http://www.flickr.com/photos/bogbrush6666/4659891032/ . I think it is loosely based on a Class 33.