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Wincoleton Introduction

Layout Details 

Wincoleton the fictitious station on the Somerset and Dorset Junction Railway line was midway between Evercreech Junction to the South and Masbury in the North. The small mining town of Mangaford, to the east of Wincoleton is also served. Both the mine and town are reached by a five mile branch line which joins the main line at Wincoleton. Wincoleton station has staggered platforms the one on the north east side, has all the main buildings on it. Trains to Mangaford leave from this platform and run out of the station over the "wrong" line of what is normally a double track section of the main line. This is to gain access to the branch line, which is actually within the fiddle yard. Most of the main line trains call at the station on route to Bath, Bournemouth, and Evercreech Junction and beyond. There is a centre road within the station, similar to that at Evercreech Junction. This is used to hold the branch train and pilot or banking locomotives. These locomotives are needed to assist some of the heavy trains on their climb up the 1 in 66 gradient towards the line summit at Masbury. The summit is 811 feet above sea level. Many of the freight services are still in the hands of the Fowler 7F’s, which were built for the line. It will be another five years before the line will benefit from the Standard 9F 2-10-0’s. Passenger trains are in the hands of a mixture of Midland, LMS and Southern locomotives with streamlined West Country Pacific’s being used on a frequent basis following their successful trial in the early years after nationalisation. The Fowler class 2P’s are still used on front line duties to pilot the heavy passenger trains

Magazine Features : The layout was featured in the July 1996 edition of British Railway Modelling and the December 2000 edition of Railway Modeller

Wincoleton was seen at the following exhibitions:

14th Redditch Model Railway Exhibition - 8th & 9th May 1993

Bromsgrove Model Railway Exhibition - 6th November 1993

Kingshurst Model Railway Exhibition - February 1994

Bournville Model Railway Exhibition - February 1994

15th Redditch Model Railway Exhibition - 7th & 8th May 1994

Evesham Model Railway Exhibition - 24th September 1994

Quinborne Model Railway Exhibition - December 1994

Bromsgrove Model Railway Exhibition - 7th November 1994

Cheltenham GWR Modelers Group Exhibition - 28th & 29th October 1995

17th Redditch Model Railway Exhibition - May 1996

Stourbridge Model Railway Exhibition - 12th & 13th April 1997

Bournville Model Railway Exhibition - February 1998

30th Anniversary Redditch Model Railway Exhibition - 17th & 18th May 1997

19th Redditch Model Railway Exhibition - May 1998

Doncaster BRM Model Railway Show - 13th & 14th February 1999

1999 Derby Model Railway Exhibition - April 1999

A49 Leominster Group Model Railway Exhibition - September 1999

Warley National Model Railway Exhibition - 9th & 10th October 1999

Wakefield Model Railway Exhibition - November 1999

21st Redditch Model Railway Exhibition - May 2000

Alsager Model Railway Exhibition - 18th & 19th November 2000

22nd Redditch Model Railway Exhibition - 12th and 13th May 2001

The layout has travelled a total of 1198 miles to and from the above exhibitions

(for more information on Wincoleton)