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About this blog

I'm a fidget so always a new project coming.

Entries in this blog

Slowing down for a while - an expensive break.

I've never been the most prolific poster on here so I doubt I'll be missed for a week or two. The layout will shortly be on unspecified 'hold' as next week I go in for a spinal operation. NHS didn't want to bother because I was still fit & flexible, but they have no idea of the pain I have. So after a private consultation and parting with around £7K it will be done at a BMI hospital.   So just as I reach the point of working my river end boards I'll have a break. Here styrene risers show

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The sun came out, for almost a whole day ......

I can make excuses, but a little sunshine gave me a chance to start the final base boards. I needed the space outdoors to arrange the swap around, stripping the two high end boards out and getting the two low end boards on legs in place. That started with a small garage clear up. Now I have to cut the track-bed board and risers of 140mm on which the track-bed will be fixed.     This should enable me to get track wiring in which will not link between these two boards. It would seem that fe

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My garage is not THAT much of a mess - is it ?

Not the best summer is it ? Firstly I have too much going on, or stored in my garage to do much work in there. Hence this summer being a wash out is severly delaying my layout progress. For all those who enjoy seeing someone elses mess here it is :-     2012 weather is not the only bad news, as a member of the Milton Keynes Model Railway Society I have joined in the running of our railways as part of the Bletchley Park code breakers museum for the last 4 years. We have now been given noti

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Progress on the Nightmare boards

I see I claim to have started on these at the end of May. Outdoor weather has been less summer like than ever, and these are 100% outdoor work. I'm still day dreaming with little ideas, but have started the raised track bed. Also have made rough road under bridge formers out of 3 mm MDF, these will be used as a base for embossed plastic sheeting. The supporting uprights will have 9 mm beading attached across the top each side as per the base, onto which the track bed will be screwed and glued.

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Back to plaster work due to iffy weather.

Although I want to work on my 'river' end I need to work on that outdoors and today the weather looked iffy. In addition I didn't feel too good as my back was playing me up. As a result I started plastering more of the cutting where the boards are up in the garage.     Took this with one of my 3 x 14XX locos pulling a short freight. From track level that cutting looks quite deep. Still very wet and glistening .....   Probably slow up now as next week I'm away for a few days, while the c

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The Nightmare boards begin.

So far 'Castell Mawr' has proceeded at a steady crawl, but those gentle steps now give me 10 working layout boards with all 7 point decoders fully functional working my selection of points. The last posting shows the North end cutting taking on it's base plaster in preparation for adding grass and asorted other greenery. What I have done is to forget the Southern 180 degree section on two boards that sit just shy of 6 inches lower than the rest of the layout. On these I want a resin river, wate

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Plastered outdoors in the garden !

Bliss , or is it ? Working in the garden today laying a plaster/sawdust skin over styrene. Now summat went a little wrong as todays effort has developed cracks, yet that I did a few days back before the weather changed is fine. I presume that either the mix was too dry, or too wet, perhaps it dried too quickly out in the sun. Still no problem as the surface will be painted (and worked into any cracks) and then soaked in watered down PVA to attach all the greenery.   Just for play time I

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Is it really 7 weeks since I last posted ?

I suppose the 'hacking' problems with the associated down time made me leave on-line things well alone. Meanwhile progress has been the usual snails pace. No apologies as this is a hobby to be enjoyed at whatever pace the poster wants. We do so often let ourselves be pressured into actions we may not want. I suppose we oldies become rebels as there's nobody who can dictate to us (except the dear wife that is !!)   Castell Mawr rather than becoming a joint GWR/LMS route is becoming more or l

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No more points to lay ...... Another step forward.

When I started this in October I don't think I realised just how much work was involved in making a large portable layout. I had worked out the track would probably be 1K when points, decoders and all was built in, but this has just seemed to go on forever. However today I pinned down the last points by completing the south station throat with it's 6 assorted turnouts that includes a double slip and a 3 way.     From above it shows main lines to the right, with the left siding to serve

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Something Achieved !

Posting twice in one week - something of a record ..... As I can't find a way of extending a thread by additional postings we have a new one !!   After a couple of days 'messing around' I've at last made all the track on station boards 1 - 3 go live !! Not a single wiring glitch although two crossovers are not yet attached to their decoders due to being on separated boards and I've not bought the connecting plugs & sockets.   I so often hear of difficulties with double slips and being

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So Much To Do - So Little Achieved !

I have such long 'absent' spells that every time I come back it takes me ages to work out how to drive this darned computer !! Not posted anything new since January, ouch, time to show what has been going on. Firstly spending money, this layout has loads of points, each requiring motors, switches for frog polarity changing. Then as usual buying a few building kits and vehicles just to try and keep the enthusiasm going as well as working out what will go where ?   Work has been done on the '

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So Far A Non-Winter ........ So the next project has moved along

I'm never quite certain what to do with a Blog ? What exactly is it ?   Well I use this as a sort of diary of things done and to be done. I have always tended to look forward, but explaining rough ideas for the future would be a waste of time. As a result all I can do is show a few things that have been completed enough to have something to look at.   Back in October a few of us (4) decided to make a lightweight layout where we could have longish trains thundering around. This with a view to

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Winter, time for a garage modeller to move indoors ....

I have this thing about wagons, I don't think there's a locomotive here I wouldn't swap for a clutch of good wagons. But wagons have/had a tough old life and the 'as bought' condition tends to turn me off any layout, they just spoil the effect. I think it strange so many modellers spend a fortune on re-naming and re-numbering locomotives yet put up with basic factory finish stock. Not all thank heavens and we do see some superb weathering.   My latest play is some Dapol 21 ton coal hoppers,

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I certainly don't spend too much time on here !

Well again months roll by and I've not done too much. Just a little weathering to 4 Ore Hoppers, trying to decide which was best, Dapol, or Bachmann.     From my own point of view I find the Dapol version better because there are less plastic moulding marks. Having said that Dapol have an incorrect wagon number and although 22 or 24 ton they marked theirs 12 ton !! Once weathered a swipe of rusty paint over part of the number and weight hides the mistake. With the Bachmann even a splash

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I did say I'd add the layout I made earlier this year

After I'd completed my diorama Carsons Quay I thought I'd get back to my small roundy-roundy layout, but stupidly I said I'd build a suitable Thomas layout by the Silverfox DCC clubs exhibition tomorrow. We wanted something cheap, simple, easy to transport, you know all the impossible combinations !! I insisted that it had to be fully scenic, with little direct 'Thomas' influence so it could look good with anything running on it. The design was for a fully folding double oval with small opera

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Wow, no postings since March !

Well although I've not been posting it dosen't mean I've not been working on anything.   I started a small diorama in January that was finished by the Spring Equinox. The idea was similar to Andy Y's 2011 competition in as much it was in limited space. In the end I settled on 9.1/2 inches wide by 15 inches long and made to represent a corner of a small town quay. By trying to be non-specific it allowed me to 'set the stage' with anything I fancied. These small dioramas allow experimentin

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Winter Ends - Almost time to look in the Garage !

Winters more or less ended and I can at last spend a few hours in the garage without freezing ! Mind you , can't show what I'm doing there because it's still too early in the building stages for these hallowed walls !!   What I've enjoyed doing this winter is another diorama. What I like about these is the short span from start to finish. The ability to be creative with modelling ideas at minimal cost and little difficulty in finding somewhere to keep them. So here is an almost finished '

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Try to be Tidy !

Oh dear, I'm on here as I can't continue with my conversion build - modelling's better than computers !!   The story is thus :- I bought a Killin Pug conversion kit from Dean Sidings, the build up went easy to start with, but if you've ever used a Hornby 0-4-0 then you'll understand their running tends to be doubtful ! So much time & effort went into sorting the chassis. Now I want to continue I can't find the cab floor and firebox ....... looked most places, even moved furniture 'just in

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Just playing silly beggars

Having recently had a couple of holidays, bad back and general lack of energy I've not done any real work on St.Oval for several weeks. Tonight I went to the garage and just fancied running something ........ but what ? few laps with a Baccy 56XX, no didn't feel right, Vitrains 37's phew only just make the 1st radius curves. So I got out Marilyn my favourite loco ...... forget 9F's, Collett Goods, 37's, 47's, 33's, single wheelers, I'm in love with Marilyn !!     Hope it didn't freeze whi

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Building bridges - the easy & hard way !

The St.Oval fights back - or why didn't I think first !!   St.Oval has 4 bridges, the tightly curved viadict ..... or is it a bridge with 3 spans, 2 over the stream, one for road the other the branch line, then a much higher road over bridge. These are never as easy as first thought. First the Viaduct has not been a problem yet although putting the 3 arch linings in on a curved structure will no doubt cause me some difficulties. skinning with plastic card will be easy enough when I find which

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Now back to work on my simple oval

Well, with the programming track "End of the line" finished I'm back working on my simple oval. Everyone should have a roundy, roundy, or how do you run a new locomotive in ??? It was started early this year, but having nowhere large enough to work on under cover it was dependant on good weather. Then a halt while my old garage was demolished and the new one put up as well as playing around with what I'll now refer to as "End of the line". Now up in the garage and live, seemingly not having su

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End of the line

Well almost the end of the line ........ The day my MDF was cut was 13th July, here we are 13th August and apart from some very minor 'touch-up's' the scenic programming track is done. This week the weather has been a little damp, that combined with being out nearly every evening caused some delay. As an example my Fresian cows are now brown although still need some detail painting. The tractor has not been 'worked over' with mud and grime hence all these small side elements not yet added to th

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A little work and then some play !

Although it's only 39" (1 metre) long and just one piece of track I want to develop an authentic feel - but all artistic (I hope) from my imagination. I've added vegetation to both sides of the stream, I'm still not happy with the reeds and will have to add more when all this is securely set. From the scenic side - well there is another 1.5" at the embankment base - the cow needs to become brown, the tractor getting dirty, and those reeds, need a bit more. I've already touched up the paint on

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Current Diorama, or is it a Micro ?

I'm a fidget, I can't sit watching TV for long without wanting to do something with my hands.   Had over 35 years of scale aircraft modelling, but needed a change a couple of years ago. As with many I'd always dreamed of having a model railway, but never had the space, time, or finance. With retirement and the children all having flown the nest that just left finance, with interest rates at such low levels I thought I'd spend some money before it became worthless.   This means my knowledge o

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