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coombe junction - moorswater - highs and lows...

bcnPete

Entry posted by bcnPete

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Update - This one is not very upbeat I am afraid - I was hoping to have cracked the cladding last night...and not my mojo :(

 

On the high point - after Scott's excellent descriptive piece about china clay dries and Moorswater, I thought I had better redo my homework. Out came the photos of Moorswater then and now and sure enough I had missed off the step in the building to allow the conveyor to pass from one to the other :angry:

 

I think this oversight was because there is a lot of 'kit' outside/attached to the buildings which I thought could be built later once the main building shells were built and clad but this one not so. So out with the scalpel and a few cuts later, a new end wall to the largest building and a modified side wall to the building, which is currently undergoing the cladding options. The conveyer has had to be reduced in length as my building is about two thirds of the prototype, so I tried to keep the angle of it the same so it doesn't look like a ski lift. This will be clad later and steel beams added beneath to recreate the support structure. I also managed to cut a small opening for a doorway which leads to the external structures by walkways.

 

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This is with the modification to include the conveyer...

 

Scott's note did also get me to requestion what I am trying to achieve here. I knew I could not represent Moorswater in full, and to model all the buildings to exact length would mean losing quite a few elements, but at least if I can recreate enough of it to 'give a sense of place' and that people could recognise it as Moorswater, albeit slightly condensed. So where possible, buildings have been built to scale height and width with only the length being cropped to suit.

 

Now the low point - taking on board as many comments as possible from before, I redid a cladding test using a thin strip of paper to create a minimal overhang and instead of using strips of horizontal cladding, I cut them into 6mm widths as Scott had noted they were 7 foot by 3 foot panels generally. This has proved more difficult than anticipated as to cut the panels between the troughs, butt them tightly together in the horizontal and try to align the ribs vertically...well let's just say the air was blue last night :blink: It didn't even make it to the morning to look at it with fresh eyes because it looked so awful. Not so much the overhang, which is more subtle, but the overall clustering of panels does not look convincing.

 

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Individual cladding panels on paper spacer...

 

So...cladding removed...blank canvas again...and time for a rethink. This morning I had a look at (one of many) of Chris Nevard's inspirational layouts, namely Cement Quay to see how the cladding has been handled in 4mm. It looks like a lot of the structures have overlaps to the cladding but not necessarily individual sheets but the painting and weathering and colouring all comes together to make a unified whole...and very pleasing it is, to look at.

 

Perhaps the individual panels are not the way forward for my building and I will have to either score them or rely on the painting and weathering. This last shot (copyright Mark 46444) does demonstrate how the horizontal banding is very prominent, whilst the lapping is only noticeable by the small fixings to the panels.

 

blogentry-3290-083162600 1291210113_thumb.jpg

 

Sorry that it's not such a great post, but as I treat my blog as a diary, I think it's important to show that not everything goes quite as planned - Back to the drawing board CAD machine for me :rolleyes:

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Kris
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Hope the CAD machine is not getting abused to much.

 

Finding the positives.

1. The missing bits of the machinery were identified before any of the surrounding buildings were complete, so no loss of finished models.

2. You have identified what does and does not work for you in terms of the cladding. If looks like the overhang part is solved. (With regards to butting thing up, I guess that as the sheets get cut there are slight angles added that prevent the very close joins that are needed, and with the burrs that happen as you cut plastic this just exaggerates the issue.

3. Mojo's are like yo yo's, they bounce up and down, just don't forget to keep tugging the string.

4. With all the blue air the swear box loco fund must be well up biggrin.gif

 

 

p.s. how you're better at using a yo yo than I am, I can managed the down bit but the rest is a mystery.

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Mickey

Sorry to hear things are on a bit of a downer / sticking point....Trust me I know where you are coming from here!

 

On the matter of individual panels for corrugated sheeting; I don't think I have ever seen them applied in that fashion that looks right in the smaller scales - as the photo shows you really can't make out where the joints are in the vertical plane, even though you know they are there.....

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bcnPete
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Kris - Thanks - you have nailed exactly the problem with the butt joints - I can't quite see how I can improve on that without destroying the effect rather than enhancing it.

 

After last night, the funds are almost ripe for expenditure now - it's whatever comes first...Dapol 121 or Farish PCA's...or HST in T scale :O

 

Mickey - Thanks also - Yep, am coming to that conclusion too...it's always the 'knowing it's there' bit which is the mental tease...

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Kris
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Kris - Thanks - you have nailed exactly the problem with the butt joints - I can't quite see how I can improve on that without destroying the effect rather than enhancing it.

 

After last night, the funds are almost ripe for expenditure now - it's whatever comes first...Dapol 121 or Farish PCA's...or HST in T scale :O

 

I think that scoring might be the only way.

 

With the HST you could fit an entire layout on an ikea shelf. blink.gif

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bcnPete
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With the HST you could fit an entire layout on an ikea shelf. blink.gif

 

:lol: Let's not even go there...

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Guest jim s-w

Guest jim s-w

Posted

Hi Pete

 

When I first did my signal box I tried cutting the cladding as seperate pieces and adding them one at a time. Not only is it really slow but it also looks scruffy. When I redid it I laid complete sides and cut them once on the building. Much faster and much neater! Even more so if you can still lay the walls flat. My preferred method of building now is to do as much work as I can on flat walls before making a box.

 

If worried about burrs get one of these - http://www.bare-metal.com/Introduction-To-Using-Bare-Metal-Foil.html

 

HTH

 

Jim

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jackrob

Hi, just want too drop by and send my appreciation.Shame to hear that you've temporarily lost your mojo I'm loving what your doing here and I assure you I've been lurking on your blog for a little while now and I'm really impressed, not to mention inspired by your work. Keep it up. I'm loving your attention to detail.

 

By the way, are you going to fit 3 links to all your wagons? And what method do you use?

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bcnPete
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Hi Jim,

 

Thanks - that tool looks great...am getting online this evening to purchase one :D

 

I can see the benefits of flat work too - my closing thoughts last night were to 'build each facade elevation' on a piece of plain postcard, which would allow a little more control and then apply these individually to my cardboard shells with double sided tape.

 

I think your post now underpins that as a good way forward - thanks.

 

Pete

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bcnPete
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I've been lurking on your blog for a little while now...

 

Hi Jackrob,

 

Have seen you! I have my 'latest visitors' column set to 50 as am always curious to see who drops in on my blog :lol:

 

Many thanks for your kind words - always helps top up the motivation, especially when you have just hit a brick walll....or cladding in my case.

 

With regards to couplings, I am going to try 3 links (homemade from some chain found for modelling ships) and perhaps make small rakes of 4 wagons ( For the Hoods / CDA's / PCA's etc) and a DG loop at the end of each rake, as with this layout, I can't see much shunting of individual wagons. Locos will have a DG at one end only and front end detailing on the other.

 

Many thanks for your interest in the project.

 

Pete

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bcnPete
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I've been lurking on your blog for a little while now...

 

Hi Jackrob,

 

Have seen you! I have my 'latest visitors' column set to 50 as am always curious to see who drops in on my blog :lol:

 

Many thanks for your kind words - always helps top up the motivation, especially when you have just hit a brick wall...or cladding in my case.

 

With regards to couplings, I am going to try 3 links (homemade from some chain found for modelling ships) and perhaps make small rakes of 4 wagons ( For the Hoods / CDA's / PCA's etc) and a DG loop at the end of each rake, as with this layout, I can't see much shunting of individual wagons. Locos will have a DG at one end only and front end detailing on the other.

 

Many thanks for your interest in the project.

 

Pete

 

EDIT - OOOPS....Sorry....really need an iPad as it's too small on the phone....in case you are listening Santa...

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Mickey

Pete

Are the weathered CDAs the ones sold as "weathered"?

They look like a prettttty good representation of a "cleanish" wagon.....

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Guest jim s-w

Guest jim s-w

Posted

Hi Pete

 

Cant remember where I get mine from but it is a UK supplier - I'll see if I can find the receipt and report back

 

Cheers

 

Jim

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buffalo

All these setbacks may be temporarily affecting your mojo, Pete, but I reckon you are saving many of us a great deal of experimenting by publishing your experiences in this way.

 

As some of the others have said, it looks to me like scribing the verticals and concentrating on the weathering to simulate the individual panels is the way forward. By the way, have you tried using a sewing needle mounted in a pin chuck for scribing?

 

Nick

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bcnPete
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Jim - Many thanks again - looks like something the Dentist used on me last week :O I hope it doesn't hurt the cladding as much as the Dentist did me - am on the case - Cheers, Pete

 

Nick - Thank you also - No pain no gain I guess...I suppose when we find the right solution, it's all forgotten about, but the process is very important. Haven't tried the sewing needle idea yet....just off to check my wife's diary to see when she is out for the night again so I can have a rummage in the sewing box ;)

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Kris
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If she's not going out just add something. It might surprise her when she gets where she's going and finds that a "mistake" has been made, oh deary me my dear etc etc laugh.gif

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bcnPete
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When I said diary I meant 'password encrypted calendar uploaded to iPhone'...in case you hadn't guessed it, I have taken a short break from modelling and immersed myself in Season Eight of 24...copy that ;)

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Stoker

Hello again Pete!

 

From looking at your photographs I think what's really stuffed you in terms of length is that the buildings are at an angle compared to the baseboard. Is there any reason why the baseboard itself can't go off at an angle, to follow the direction of the tracks? I'm assuming you've got a very good reason for making the boards as narrow as they are, but since you appear to be doing them in modular sections I just wondered if perhaps that would make your life a lot easier, if it isn't already a bit late?

 

I have to take a diversion though, from your thoughts, along with everyone elses, on the necessity of modelling every single overlap on every single sheet of corrugated! You've got a vast amount of building to cover, and honestly it's a waste of time because even in real life at those distances (if you were a scale 100 feet away from the building you'd still only be 20cm away from bumping your nose into the building) it's not visible. Corrugated fibrocement sheets used in the clay industry are a mere 6mm thick, and have a single corrugation overlap, meaning that from a distance none of the vertical overlaps are visible, and sometimes even the horizontal overlaps are difficult to make out. They got lost among all the corrugations. In the vast majority of my photographs, except those taken by VERY high resolution digital cameras, it is impossible to see any overlaps at all, except the horizontal ones.

 

Personally, I use ratio accessories N gauge corrugated sheet, 4 packs of 75mm wide x 90mm high corrugated sheets pre-moulded with overlaps at 7 scale foot intervals. Looks fine, and it's easy to use.

 

I would suggest that if you are going to spend time ripping things apart and redoing them, I'd spend it making the buildings scale length, as I'd imagine that the construction paper you're using is a lot cheaper than the cladding!

 

Anyway, as promised, here are some photographs of my rotary dryer building, based more on ECLP design protocols rather than any specific building, but taking design elements from Blackpool, Treviscoe, Trelavour, Wenford, and Moorswater. The building is currently unfinished. Coins and a ruler have been added for scale.

 

IMAG0154.jpg

 

IMAG0153.jpg

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The steam exhaust system was a ###### to build. The prototype exhaust scrubbing unit has a system of pipes around the outside, which carry the liquid sprayed under pressure into the chamber. This liquid is intended to capture dust particles and neutralise sulphur dioxide emissions. I was originally intending on modelling these pipes, however it proved to be so fiddly and tiny that I gave up in the end and just left it without. I have still got to figure out how to do the safety caged ladders! The safety railings around the platforms are plastruct, however I think I would probably have been better off finding a brass alternative as the plastic is a tad thick. Nevertheless it looks fine as it is.

 

Also, some of my weathering on a CDA and an OOV. The cat attacked the CDA a while ago, so it's missing some wheels and other bits!

 

 

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Stoker

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Also, I've diagrammed one of your photographs, to point out some specific details on the exterior of the drying plant.

 

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The two steam exhaust vents toward the end of the building were placed there because at this end of the building the clay discharged from the rotary dryer, and was still boiling hot. Without them the building would literally fill with steam and clay particles, which would "snow" down onto all the equipment inside.

 

Once again I hope I've been of some help and of course if you've got any questions, get straight in touch. :)

 

Regards,

Scott.

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bcnPete
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Scott, hi

 

Many thanks again - this is all very useful information...and inspiring.

 

To answer your points, I guess I am trying to model an extract of the line from Coombe Junction to Moorswater as opposed to purely a model of a clay works (I do have another project undergo in 7mm just based on Wenfordbridge dries...but that's another story :blink:) and the whole layout is an exercise to show what is achievable on a set of IKEA shelves...which obviously gives constraints...but forces you to be selective about what you want to represent. For me, it is more convenient to keep the layout long, thin and linear as it means I can store the 3 shelves at high level in our long thin spare room...and it also gives me a chance to get a vista down the whole layout...albeit balancing on a stool.

 

Fair comments on the cladding too...I think I am just coming round to representing the horizontal banding and scribing the panels and hope can pull the rest off with careful painting and weathering. I do like your models...the steam exhaust stack is terrific and I think you have included the right amount of detail to date. The roof cladding looks nicely done too.

 

In terms of your wagons, I am guessing the clay hood is from Mevagissy models (?) or have you found a source for the ECC logos?

 

Thanks again for posting - Normally I would send a PM but I think that perhaps other people might find this information both interesting and compelling too.

 

Do you have a thread/blog? If not, you should do so...for me, you can never have enough china clay layouts ;)

 

Thanks, Pete

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bcnPete
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Scott - I have just reread my reply a couple of times and I hope it didn't sound arrogant when I referred to not building a clay works - whilst I recognise this is a large undertaking in itself, it was more important for me to give a flavour of the works to contrast with the viaduct (extract) and coombe junction - compromises had to be made and I had to make some hard choices! - apologies if it did not read very well in my last reply...Pete

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Guest jim s-w

Guest jim s-w

Posted

Um Scott

 

Arent CDA and HAA hopper bodies aluminium? I dont think they rust.

 

Might be wrong though

 

Cheers

 

Jim

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Donw
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I've still got you 3 nil up. The conveyor and the small door are great contrast to the monotony of the cladding.

Don

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bcnPete
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Don - Thanks again - I have ordered a scribe as per Jim's suggestion and I have a new plan for next week for horizontal strips applied to flat sheets applied to the shell afterwards - if I can get the oil drum built and the structure as per Scott's model then I think it will start to look a lot more convincing as a clay works - Pete

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