**** Since writing this article "Sustenbahn" has been dismantled. I hope to publish a similar description of my new layout in the near future ****
Sustenbahn....Part 1
Having modelled British “N” gauge for several years I was becoming more and more frustrated at the quality of the stock available. During my first visit to Switzerland in 1991 I experienced its legendary trains which until then had only been photos in books. The excellent model shops were filled with miniature versions of these trains and the quality was far better than most of the British stock that I was running. You could take a loco out of the box and it would run smoothly. No more bending contacts and adjusting wheels. I was hooked. Within a year my British layout had gone and a Swiss one was in its early stages. Re4/4s were starting to glide along where Class 47s had previously faltered. I started with an Arnold limited edition “Swiss Anniversary” set from MG Sharp in Sheffield which was a cancelled order and included three locos and a wagon. From these small beginnings the amount of stock has increased considerably and I now have something like 40 locos and several hundred items of rolling-stock.
The
layout is centred around the town of Zweikirchen, a fictitious town in the Gental and Gadmental area of Canton
Bern. It is imagined that the BLS branch from Spiez to Interlaken Ost has been extended along the southern shore
of Lake Brienz to Meiringen (competition for the SBB Bruenig line!!) and on to Goeschenen where it meets the SBB
Gotthard route. The first section was originally built to link Interlaken with the fictitious market town of Winkeldorf,
with Zweikirchen being just an intermediate station. Later, when the through route to Goeschenen was built Zweikirchen
became a junction and it's size and importance increased. The through route, which is jointly operated by the BLS
and SBB provides a year round alternative to the Susten Pass road which is closed during the winter months. Had
the line actually been built it would probably have become known as the “Sustenbahn” hence the name of the layout.
(Please visit my "History" page if you would like to read an imaginary account of Sustenbahn's development) It was never the intention when building the layout to aim for absolute realism but simply
to produce a miniature area which reminds me of my favourite country and enables me to run models of my favourite
trains. No doubt the purists will disapprove but who cares ?
Peco Streamline code 80 track is used throughout, with medium radius turnouts
on the visible sections and small radius turnouts for the hidden sidings. It is ballasted and painted with Humbrol
track colour to enhance it's appearance. I have used Peco track for many years now and have always found it to
be very reliable and compatible with most makes of locos and rolling stock. In my opinion, when space is at a premium,
medium radius turnouts are the ideal choice as they provide a good balance between realism and size.
The layout is divided into switched electrical sections and power is supplied from Gaugemaster controllers via
Relco track cleaners. The visible sections are fitted with Vollmer catenary and although the loco pantographs make
contact with the wires no power is collected from them. As can be seen from the photos the catenary is actually
DB style but it is sturdy, gives few problems and is easy to install. In the near future it is my intention to
carry out a partial re-build of Winkeldorf and I will be using the finer-scale Peco code 55 track and the correct
Sommerfeldt SBB catenary.
The buildings are constructed from kits and are from a variety of manufacturers including Vollmer, Kibri, Pola,
Arnold and Faller. Zweikirchen Bahnhof has four platform faces and is the junction for the short branchline to
Winkeldorf. It has a small freight yard and a loading bay for the car-carrying service which operates when the
Susten Pass road is closed in winter. An operating cable-car links the Bahnhof with Zweikirchen Dorf and it’s winter
ski-slopes. Winkeldorf, at the end of the branchline has two platform faces, a small freight yard and the rail
connected saw-mill of Tungen and Gruver AG.
Due
to space limitations the layout is quite compact. The trackplan shows it's principal dimensions and it has been
quite a challenge to include all the features that I desired in the available space. I apologise for the limited
number of different views in the photos but as with the real thing, overhead wires create a problem especially
in such a small area. On my previous layouts I had made the big mistake of trying to squeeze too much into too
small an area and I hope I have managed to avoid this with "Sustenbahn". It is basically an end to end
single-track spiral with the visible sections including Zweikirchen and Winkeldorf at the high point. The ends
of the spiral are on a lower board which houses the hidden storage sidings. Trains start at the lower level and
appear on the visible scenic section where they can pass in Zweikirchen Bahnhof before continuing their journey
back to the lower board. In typically Swiss fashion there is always a connecting service to Winkeldorf waiting
at Zweikirchen ! Because of the need to increase storage space for my rapidly growing stock I have recently made
use of the intermediate level below Winkeldorf (see layout
plan). A new branchline (The Grünsee line.... named after the lake)
has been constructed to link the main layout with 6 new storage sidings. Very little of the line is actually visible
but the additional storage space is invaluable and it gives increased operational interest.