Approaching the home straight!
Entry posted by andyram
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Has another week passed by already? Time really is flying at the moment and that is more than a little scary. As I drove out of school on Friday night, and headed off towards a half term break, I reflected that the next time I would be making the same Friday journey it would be on the eve of the model railway event. By then the hall will need to have been cleared, tables set up and there may well be some layouts already on site. The event really is that close now. Without doubt I am approaching the home straight.
The week gone by has seen me re-measuring parts of the school and some of the tables as I try to finalise the floor plan. Following this I was able to confirm the latest layout which will be appearing. Rolleston on Dove is now booked to attend and will join:
Darley Green, Skaleby West, Moxley Heath, Pending, Waterfall Junction, The Works, The Suitcase Layout, Belper Modular layout, Summat Colliery, Irton Road, Guy's Cuttings, Friarsgate, Layout in a tv, Thomas the Tank Engine and Board Lane.
That is quite a pleasing line up of layouts. And to think that back in February I was stressing that I would not find enough layouts to make it worthwhile! One of the pupils also approached me on Friday and is desperate to bring his layout too. That caused even more measuring on the Friday evening. I think I can squeeze him in and I still have space for the vanishing layout from Butterley. I really wish I had taken the gentleman's details on the day. He took mine and promised to be in touch. I have heard nothing since so I assume he is not coming. A real shame that he couldn't at least contact me and let me know this!
On a more positive note I received a further raffle prize. Stand up and take a bow the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. They have become the third preserved line to offer a prize and they are not even a local one. I take back all my summer criticisms of their diesel hauled train! Mind you as a working member of one local line I feel a little embarassed by their lack of response so far!
With more layout descriptions now received the show guide is starting to come together. My target is to have it finished by the end of half term week so that I can tackle the printing during the week leading up to the event.
And so from the show organising to the layout building....
I now have just 2 weeks left to complete Skaleby West, or at least have it ready for showing. After a visit to the Wirksworth exhibition I finally sat down and began tackling the card goods shed kit. This was a free kit from the first issue of the Hornby magazine. As I did not want to wreck the issue, I used the school's photocopier to make a colour copy onto card. Shhh don't tell the headteacher about the use of the school's ink and card for my modelling purposes!!! (She doesn't read RMWeb thankfully!!).
Unfortunately the quality of the copy wasn't that great and some of the detail has actually smudged during the construction process. I was a little disappointed with the look of the model once I had assembled the intial structure. I know I am a kit building virgin and my attempts were not all that accurate, but the whole thing really does not reach the standards I want. Sadly there is no turning back now. I haven't the time. The kit is my only option as no off the shelf product will fit the small space I have on the layout. I will just have to perserve, finish the kit and hope that with some weathering and additional detailing it will become just about passable. Maybe I can hide some of the worst bits with other scenery once it is added to the layout. At least it does fit the space.
The incomplete goods shed kit can be seen here, posed on the platform of my home layout - Skaleby.
And so as I look ahead to the half term week I now have a plan of action I must:
* finish the kit and place onto the layout.
* build up the end enbankment to the height of the goods shed.
* add trees and scenic scatter to the area.
* add flowers, people and detail to the rest of the layout.
Oh - and build the fiddle yard!!!
A busy week ahead then - until next time...
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