It all started, with a map drawn on the back of a lecture handout:
A very rough idea of a railway situated around a lake. I have always wanted to make a small, exhibitable lake railway layout for myself, but never quite known in what sense and what gauge I'd like to make it. I had had some very ambitious ideas for the layout, like creating a tank to actually put real water into, and using a wave machine to make it appear like a real lake...
At the same time, my ambitious plans for t
Here are is my new back scene en situe. I've been working from a few books, some photographs I bought copies of, and the ever useful Flikr for this particular bit of scenery. It is much more accurate than the red brick backscene I made for the previous incarnation of the layout! I wouldn't call this scratchbuilding (not in the same league as some of the true scratch builders - I will NEVER forget Jim S-W's 4mm scale padlock...!), but to all intents and purposes it has been: I used the ScaleScene
The above shows an unpainted concrete floor for a steam-era shed. I hope!
Basically I needed to make a proper concrete floor to the shed to give it some realism. I followed Andy Y's advice on his excellent Keyhaven thread (thankfully and delightfully fully ported for RMweb's viewing pleasure) by using Polyfilla. Easy to mould, quick to dry, and then easy to sand down, its a perfect tip for making something look like concrete. And this was my very first attempt...I plan on trying this again s
It was about mid-August 2009 before I could do any more work on the baseboards. Part of the problem was funding. Being a student, I don't have much money! However after three weeks working as a fencing Instructor for a Kids Camp (thats the sword fighting variety and not the white picket fencing variety) I was ready to start work once more!
Scenic matts were ordered from Noch, and stuck own with diluted PVA glue after being cut to size and shape. I tightened the matts at the edges with a nail
After I took the decision to dismantle the old set and build a new one, I got straight to it! Track taken up, scenic mats ripped up and chucked, buildings removed (but stored for possible further use), and then an ideas session where I looked at track available RTR and thought long and hard about what I wanted and what I needed from this new set.
Shots for filming meant that the layout would be seen in extreme close quarters. There would be no snow to hide the lack of ballasting or weatherin
Copley Hill is a shed I am fascinated by, and indeed is the subject of my external blog, found here:
COPLEY HILL
Over the years I've tried modelling Copley Hill in an extremely small space, as part of a film project I have been working on, known as The British Railway Series. The series is set around Leeds in the 1950s, and the focal point for the locomotive characters to meet is, typically, the shed.
The idea was to make the set as believeable as possible while making the most com
It seems rather fitting that my first actual modelling update on the new forum should involve a locomotive very, very close to my heart. It's numbered one, but its not Thomas!!!
In 1994 I saw Flying Scotsman for the first time, at Llangollen in Wales. I was awe-struck by this machine: I remember with incredible clarity looking up at the black & gold nameplate and just studying its polished finish for several minutes.
It very quickly became my favourite locomotive (and in my heart of
Welcome to the New Copley Hill Works!
I much enjoyed my time updating the old Copley Hill Works blog on the old RMweb (and for those interested, it can be found as a link in my signature for the time being), and in my time updating the blog, I had a stab at making quite a few locomotives. Some went well, some didn't quite make the grade, but nevertheless I thoroughly enjoyed working on my projects and was delighted to share them with so many knowledgeable people willing to help
