Small World Layouts

Firstly the lighting. I've sunk, but not wired the lights in. Apart from the halt light. I need to build the Veissmann kit for that. As said before, I know that these are a little rough around the edges but for as they're scratch built I'm kinda proud of them. They light well!

So a bit to catch up on? Well here goes. The main area of work has been the pond area covering the tunnel mouths. (The practicality of 'digging' tunnels underneath a watery pond area never crossed my mind - its my layout etc.) Trees are from The Model Tree Shop, some proprietary brand and Asda (grape stalks!). Generally I think they look good bunched together.

But there were a few stages to its construction...

Firstly the pond was marked out and begun with the Dremmel	Next the underneath ply part was 'dug' down.	Then the surface was smoothed.	Finally it was painted a 'pond bottom mud' type of colour!

Well worth doing I reckon.

Track wise, the biggest development is the tunnels at the far left side. Both are in place and the covering country and cliff faces have been finished. The cliffs were done in finishing plaster, with a bit of ballast mixed in. Sounded a good idea but in all honesty a waste of time! The finishing plaster was just brushed on in dabs. When painting it I used a base grey enamel, then a bit of green and brown, er, enamel then dry brushed (well fairly dry) white, erm enamel on the top. I have a lot of enamel paint. It all looks pretty bad till the final white goes on and this really lifts the texture I find.

The cattle dock has been scratch built and the jury are still out on this. I quite like it but final tests will be when its permanently in situ with bovines. But rather funkily the gate hinges, yes in N Gauge. So theoretically I can show unloading and loading of wagons with the gates either open or closed.

The platform and station halt are in place but need a little more attention to make sure that they sit nicely in their environments. The building is a Lyddle End product. Everyone I speak to thinks these are a great range of products, me included. I did repaint the cerise-y red bit out though as I didn't really care for that too much. I also glazed it to be posh. There are also a couple of park lights on their way to adorn the platform, but these are gonna need repainting white.

I did the surface of the goods yard out with more finish plaster and copious amounts of powder paint (great stuff!) Again, need to live with it a bit to really appreciate if I like it.

And yes, you do need many-coated-prehistoric dinosaurs to guard the sidings down at Scalesceugh. It's a rough ol' place.

Getting slightly concerned about what to do with the left hand side, over tunnel section. Do want it to be removable as I think that this would be better but not feeling very inspired about it.

The ballast was mixed from a choice of three with the watchful eye of the artistic one advising! Looked good, had to say. Put it down and then saw it dried and it looks ok but will get some toning down of the colour with some powder paint methinks!

The backscene has disappeared off to be painted by said artistic one. Looking forward to seeing that. I think it's going to be a real good personal touch to the layout.

Have been experimenting - again! Trees this time! This is probably as old as the Ark method but I used some dried up grape stalks as the base. They've had the first bits of stuff added but i reckon will add some more to make them bush a little. They also need not to look quite as samey!

The first picture shows the track newly painted. Don't like shiny track on layouts, my preference. But running a size '0' brush with Phoenix 'Light Rust' over the layout is a major pain! Looks okay when finished with a little black over the top; ruins yer best sable brushes mind!

The tunnels are now glued in place with 2 coats but obviously need finishing with more painting/ varnishing later.

So here you go...

I have been constructing the 'tunnel end' with a beautiful sketch plan of canals and fishing etc by my Uncle (which I will post up here soon as I can get the scanner to work again) as a design plan. However it just wouldn't fit! Mebbe in the future...

I have also built the lamps for the yard sidings. As previously stated upon this web site, being a bit of a tight Northerner, and fiercely proud of it, I was begrudging skimping on the number of  lights I wanted purely because I couldn't afford to pay the (quite reasonable) £4.50 a shot required. So I built some.

I bought some grain of wheat/ rice, which ever are the smaller! Some Slaters plastic tube and and some Slaters Brass tube and thin wire. Paint the lot black and I think they look okay, which as always on these pages, is the main thing! 

Tunnel completion nearing

I commented on the inspiration caused by a show visit at a similar time last year...click here for a reminder.

Well the same comment stands for today, and yesterday too. I returned to Kidderminster for the Wyre Forest MRC show. It was extremely well attended and I had to queue to get in a little after the doors opened! So anyroad it was great to see the layouts, and I was well impressed with a minimum space OO layout which was little more than a shed with three lanes and a throw back line. But it ran so well and the models were brilliantly detailed and weathered. Wish I could remember the name...?

So to the update...I have chopped up the polystyrene (thanks Rodney!), garage in usual mess...laid track, soldered extremely badly, (but getting better, well 'better' in the way that I actually did it this time instead of asking Chris!), started to construct the cattle dock, painted bit of the back scene (and a lot of the back yard) with the engine driver yesterday and installed the shuttle system.

Now a word about the shuttle system. I bought it online from Modelex. Now between getting, and fitting, it a screw became 'lost.' So I saw the company today at the show and asked if it would be possible to replace the screw. "Don't worry about it, I'll do it when I'll replace it when I get home. Here's another unit." Now if that isn't brilliant service? So here's the plug... Shuttle system here... Modelex shop site here...

View showing the polystyrene embankment, goods shed and grey cattle dock.

The shuttle unit in place with the 14xx and autocoach stopped to perfection!

I wanted to utilise the track from 'Strad Sidings' as I still fancy an inglenook track plan. I always fancied building something I could just take pleasure in watching work. So here goes.

The idea is that the upper level will have a shuttle circuit and the train (engine and autocoach/ small coaches ) will run on the high level from out of the tunnel and stop at the station halt, then reverse back into the tunnel.

The raised section will fall away to the floor section by way of an embankment which is looking perilously steep! But got a few tricks up sleeve for that! Watch this space!

Underneath all this shuttling there is the inglenook goods yard. this features a goods shed given to me by my good friend Mr Ken Jones and also features real rust! None of yer shabby imitation weathering here! Mind this is by virtue of it being made from metal!

I am also going to construct a cattle dock. Why? Because I want to and because i like painting those white metal cows!

The points will be operated by DIY wire in tube method that I am fond of.

It's all been powered by a huge Hornby HM2000. It's big bulky but I own one and it will run all the lights etc. Speaking of which i am endeavouring to construct my own. Far too expensive (being tight again, it's the Northern in me!!) to buy. The bulbs are too large, but again, I have them to use. Watch this space.