Good Morning All,

After a glut of non blogging, I think I finally have something worth blogging about again. This is my current scratch building project in progress. It is a cattle dock destined for a small siding on my photo plank. It is scratch built using A hot glue gun and mounting card ( the same kind utilised for picture framing) . This was then covered in PVA glue to seal from the damp clay ( which does not actually work too well). In future I think I will paint all the card with an undercoat of acrylic paint which dries water proof and then put the clay on as this prevents any form of lifting within the card. Next clay was smeared on by mk1 fingers and smoothed out with water ( which causes the card to lift, which you then need to stick back down with PVA when the clay dries.) I prefer to let the clay dry completely and then re-wet the surface utilising a mister which i find makes it easier to get the clay to a state where it is easly scribed without it lifting off. If it gets to dry whilst scribing its a case of just spraying it again with the mister. Once scribed I let the clay dry before giving the mortar cracks a wash with white/ cream paint. finally the card was dry brushed with a series of colours ranging from sand stone to dark brown to give the stone course texture.

Originally I had planned on using wooden match sticks washed with burnt umber paint ( in the same style as my cheap fencing )and then using cotton to create the fencing wire. (at three feet I feel this is still visible and quite convincing) however I found that there was not the structural strength to maintain the posts virtically so these were ripped off ( thus explaining the redish marks on the side where the top coat of acrylic dry brushing has been liffted ). This as a result has prompted my first foray into brass construction. I was surprised when I bought the materials as they were much more reasonablly priced than I thought. So armed with a new twist drill and tungsten tipped scriber( dont we all love reasons to buy new tools I made my first attempt at replicating metal fencing using brass.

Overall I am quite happy with the results and once soldered up and weathered I believe that It will be quite convincing. ( now to work out how to make a tap and drain in brass, I think I will have to learn how to etch )

I will endevour to put up some progress photos of the layout soon as there has been a little progression with the scenery ( just waiting on a massive order of greenery from the UK ) After this layout is completed no further work will be done to extened it as it has been deemed a chainsaw layout. ( or mayby a photo plank depending on the amount of room I can find in the house ) The future direction is a prototype based on Evercreech Junction on the S&DJR.

Owen