Pete Waterman's Brand new 'OO' Gauge WCML Layout | Making Tracks II at Chester Cathedral

by



This summer, a two month exhibition has launched in Chester Cathedral and the centrepiece is the mammoth 64ft long ‘OO’ gauge model of the West Coast Main Line built by Pete Waterman and his friends. MIKE WILD and RICHARD WATSON visited the build in its final location to find out more.

Grab your copy of Pete Watermans Greatest Layouts here:
https://shop.keypublishing.com/collections/modelling-specials/products/pete-watermans-greatest-layouts

Get the latest issue of Hornby Magazine here:
https://shop.keypublishing.com/collections/modelling-single-issues/products/hornby-magazine-aug-22

Video Chapters:

Don’t forget to visit our Advertisers:

Tony’s Trains of Rugby
Studio 4&5
The Locks
Hillmorton
Rugby
Warwickshire
CV21 4PP
Tuesday to Saturday 10:00-17:00(Saturday 16:00)
https://tonystrainsofrugby.com/

The Model Center
Hill Farm,
Beck Hole,
Whitby
YO22 5LF
https://www.themodelcentre.com/

Smiths Model Railways
10 Station Road
Sheringham
Norfolk
NR26 8RE
Tue – Fri: 9:30 – 5:00 ​​Saturday: 10:00 – 5:00 ​Sunday: 10:00 – 4:00
https://www.smithsmodelrailways.co.uk/

AGR Model Railway Store
9 High St Mews
Leighton Buzzard
LU7 1EA
https://www.agrmodelrailwaystore.co.uk/

Rails of Sheffield
21-29 Chesterfield Rd,
Heeley,
Sheffield
S8 0RL
https://railsofsheffield.com/

Hattons Model Railways
17 Montague Rd,
Widnes
WA8 8FZ
https://www.hattons.co.uk/

Drone footage courtesy of ‘GET OUT THERE’: https://www.youtube.com/c/GETOUTTHERE

source

33 thoughts on “Pete Waterman's Brand new 'OO' Gauge WCML Layout | Making Tracks II at Chester Cathedral”

  2. Awesome Show one of the biggest Problems is as Pete Said is to get Kids wanting to do Trains we a Dying Club and do our best to get new Members But its Hard Shows Like Pete Does Helps Big Time to keep Modeling Going and he really has a Great Team of Modelers it Looks so Good Thank You all That Made it Possible that every one can Enjoy Model Trains Thanks

    Reply

  3. A marvelous layout. We took our Grandsons to see it and they were enthralled. The girder bridge at the end is where Pete Waterman did his train spotting as a lad. He would get under the girders so the Signalman couldn't see him.

    Reply

  4. Hi Mike & Richard,
    Thanks for this insight into this great model railway and I am very pleased that it is coming to GETS in October I will be there and I hope that like Making Tracks 1 when it was at Milton Keynes last year I will be able to run my Cube camera around it to give a drivers view as you have here and it will be good again to see you both and your GCR layout again.
    Cheers Robert.

    Reply

  6. I may model O Gauge exclusively now. But wow what a layout. Always amazing for Pete Waterman to talk about his time and how important it is to get younger people into our hobby. What a legend and representitive of the model railway world in the UK.

    Reply

  10. Fantastic layout, with a quite considerable investment in time, money and skill …. !!
    I was a little surprised to see it undulating in places – probably ironed out now?
    Al.

    Reply

  11. Great video, remarkable layout too – dedication.

    PW is right, we need more youngsters for the hobby to continue on. I think that's now more important than before (because it's been spoken about for at least a couple of decades) to those of us that care about the hobby because the hobby has done so much for us. It could be that we are about to crest past the zenith of the hobby?

    It's true to say that modelling saw an upturn during the lockdowns, but it must be remembered that western governments were printing money like mad back then. Now we face stagflation and then recession as the cost of living skyrockets (some of that is due, it has to be said, to artificial factors with certain elites controlling the flow of critical assets/commodities). Thus we could see a return to traditional values and disposable income slashed.

    Some (including small retailers) are concerned about the cost of ever more detailed and complex locos and stock. For youngsters such things may be outside of pocket money allowances or even birthdays and Christmas presents etc. Okay there's always second hand, but manufacturers need to be aware of such issues if they want to encourage fresh blood into the hobby. Also as PW says youngsters like tech and lights, features etc.

    I'm a "young modeller" – in my mid 50's, soon to be a grey beard! So the hobby is getting older.

    We have three layouts; a micro layout in O, a small garage to garden line in O and a small SM32 layout. The latter, the easier to build, caricature modelling, now twenty years old, has a life of its own, more than the sum of its parts and completely, unexpectedly, successful. It was built to entertain adults and children alike, staged to be viewed at child's eye viewing level/height and from deck chairs for adults. Several kids who've visited and operated the layout have gone on to do engineering at university because of the layout, others have taken up the hobby because of the layout, and the layout has enabled us to raise charity funds too and was the subject of a series of radio programmes. It's nice to give back to a hobby that has given so much to us and supported us.

    I'm concerned about duplication in the hobby and increasing prices, notwithstanding whether or not value has improved, if disposable income drops then it will affect the hobby. Over reliance on communist China also concerns me too.

    Let's hope MT2 and other ventures help to promote the hobby and enthuse youngsters away from their mobile devices. It's not an easy task. Perhaps 3D backscenes with AI will be the order of the day in the near future, maybe VR 3D layouts will be, who knows, but I think that the hobby has to be aware of the challenges that it faces.

    Reply

  13. Fantastic. Might travel to Chester to see it, because there were so many people at GETS that I couldn't really appreciate the first one properly.
    I only have 1 train of containers, 8 pairs of bachmann ones so 16 in total, and it's one of the longest train on my loft layout (which is now disused as I've moved away, but my stock will slowly move down with me).

    Reply

  26. Great video. I'm planning on taking my 5 year old son in the next few weeks, the only problem is the hobby is so expensive these days. To have a fully DCC layout with modern stock isn't possible for me, we'll be picking up used Lima/Hornby stock wherever we can, I'm sure we'll enjoy it just as much but I'll have to explain to him that all this computer controlled stuff ain't gonna happen

    Reply

  27. I am a slot car guy but can’t help appreciate the attention to detail that Pete and the guys have put into it. Here’s a couple of suggestions for use why don’t you produce soundboards for slot cars ? Pete Waterman next project 1960s style British Grand Prix circuit. Cheers Jim

    Reply

  32. I wanted to know why don’t dig a tunnel and do an extension for the main line Train so they extend the new abandoned underground stations.

    Why couldn’t they use the part D78 Stock train doors on the sides and also restructure the front face of the A60 and A62 stock that includes the class 313, class 314 and class 315 remix and make them all together and also redesign them an overhead line and also make them into six cars per units and also having three Accessible Toilets on that six cars per units A60 and A62 stock trains and also convert the A60 and A62 stock trains into a Scania N112, Volvo TD102KF, Volvo B10M, Gardner 6LXC, Gardner 6LXB and Gardner 8LXB Diesel Engines and also put the Loud 7-Speed Voith Gearboxes even Loud 8-Speed Leyland Hydra cyclic Gearboxes in the A60 and A62 stock, class 313, class 314, and class 315 and also modernise the A60 and A62 stock and make it into an 11 car per unit so it could have fewer doors, more tables, computers and mobile phone chargers?

    A Stock Train and also having 8 DisaAccessiblelets on those A stock trains. why couldn’t we refurbish and modernise the waterloo and city line Triple-Track train tunnel and make it bigger and extend it to bank station, making it into a Triple-Track Railway Line so those 4 European countries such as Germany, Italy, Poland And Sweden to convert the waterloo and city line Triple-Track Train tunnel into a High-Speed train?

    The Third Euro tunnel Triple-Track Train line to make it 11 times better for passengers so they could go from A to B. then put the modernised 11 car per unit A Stock and put them on a bigger modernised waterloo and city line Triple-Track train tunnel so it could go to bank station to those 4 European countries such as Germany, Italy, Poland And Sweden. The modernised refurbished 11 cars per unit A stock could be a High Speed The Third Triple-Track Euro Tunnel Train So it is promising and 37 times a lot more possible to do this kind of project that is OK for London Germany, Italy, Poland And Sweden. Oh by the way, could they also tunnel the Triple-Track Railway Line so it will stop from Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex so that the Passengers will go to Germany, Italy, Poland and Sweden and also extend the Triple-Track Railway Line from Bank to Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex Stations so that more people from there could go to Germany, Italy, Poland And Sweden Easily.

    Why couldn't they extend the Piccadilly line and also build a brand-new underground train station so it could go even further right up to Clapton, Wood Street and also make another brand new tunnel train station in Chingford and could they extend the DLR?

    All of the classes 150, 155, 154, 117, 114, 105, and 106, will be replaced by all of the Scania N112, Volvo TD102KF, Volvo B10M, Gardner 6LXB, Gardner 6LXC and Gardner 8LXB Diesel Six carriages three disabled toilets are air conditioning trains including Highams Park for extended roots which is the Piccadilly line and the DLR trains.
    Could you also convert all of the 1973 stock trains into an air-conditioned maximum speed 78 km/hours (48 MPH) re-refurbished and make it into a 8 cars per unit if that will be alright, and also extend all of the Piccadilly train stations to make more space for all of the extended 8 car per unit 1973 stock air condition trains and can you also build another Mayflower and Tornado Steam Locomotive Companies and they can order Every 17 Octagon and Hexagon shape LNER diagram unique minor no.13 and unique small no.11 Boilers from those Countries such as Greece, Italy, Poland, and Sweden, can they make Mayflower and Tornado Steam Locomotive speeds by up to 117MPH so you can try and test it on the Original Mainline so it will be much more safer for the Passengers to enjoy the 117MPH speed Limit only for HS2 and Channel Tunnel mainline services, if they needed 16 Carriages Per units can they use those class 55’s, class 44’s, class 40’s and class 43HST Diesel Locomotive’s right at the Back of those 16 Carriages Per Units so they can take over at the Back to let those Mayflower and Tornado Steam Locomotive’s have a rest for those interesting Journeys Please!!!, oh can you make all of those Coal Boxes’s 16 Tonnes for all of the 117MPH Mayflower and Tornado Steam Locomotive’s so the Companies will Understand us PASSENGER’S!! so please make sure that the Builders can do as they are Told!! And please do something about these very important Professional ideas Please Prime Minister of England, Prime Minister of Sweden, Prime Minister of Germany, Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister of Poland and that Includes the Mayor of London.

    Reply

Leave a Comment