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ChrisN

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Posts posted by ChrisN

  1. 3 minutes ago, Sasquatch said:

    Ok then. Brambles!

    After firing up the hot glue gun working one stop at a time, I laid down strips of the glue onto glass then stuck in clumps of rubberized horse hair. 
    69BE3E80-AA69-44C4-83FC-2875955E2FFB.jpeg.8c984a01ab3ce436254c958344a9efb8.jpeg

    The strips were removed from the glass with a Stanley blade and using track pins I put them onto a foam scrap and gave them a quick blast of

    Red primer. 
    C23B6F2F-DF2B-4A30-A0FB-8EB8D95CFCC1.jpeg.019fc5bcaaa912e25ed0ccf098a083db.jpeg


    784DB83D-5DB2-4DFB-837F-6DD87C6C2635.jpeg.3d78b866ab43c0139df2ae560a4de46e.jpeg

     

    Using Aquanet hairspray added a little bit of mixed yellow scatter to represent last years dead leaves, more hairspray and the green scatter mix. 

    7581C255-6E65-488C-B18A-DB4572653DD1.jpeg.779eff8644441eaade6af929540ad325.jpeg

     

    Hot glue on the underside of the bush to plant on the layout. 
    89AF7790-A62F-43DD-9682-BC68C04EABB8.jpeg.131d562e36b96da678e6e9746109e3e0.jpeg

     

    Before I do a huge production style batch I’d like to know what you all think?

     

    Two more images here…

     

    My attempt at an ash tree being attacked by the ivy. 
    92508682-AA1B-483E-AD6E-EF3BFA6580C0.jpeg.43c36ed414ee6a8c93652d36f657530a.jpeg
     

    And, a long shot from the other side of the layout

    0CDE9B51-87F2-43B1-A601-2D45F1D78EF8.jpeg.36325635b3e466efb1e60eee1fae5976.jpeg

     

     

     

    Shaun,

    I do like the ash tree covered in ivy.  The brambles are good, but I think they need to be a little denser, they see a little to open.

    • Agree 1
  2. 12 hours ago, Caley Jim said:

    To be pedantic, I think DAS is actually a form of very fine papier machè.   It's certainly slightly fibrous, which you can see if you water it down to the consistency of thick yoghurt, which is what I use for coating roadways etc, using a No.6 soft artists brush.

     

    Jim

     

    Sorry to cross post.

     

    Jim,

    Do you have somewhere where you explain how to do roads with DAS?  I have a road that I need to do, Macadam but no tar, and gardens, and am thinking about ways to do them.

     

    Thank you.

    • Like 3
  3. 3 hours ago, Neal Ball said:

     

    Thanks John, very kind. I want to add roof boards and seat numbering panels, I am also going to try adding corridor handrails as well.

     

    Looking at the photo in Russel, the seat numbers seemed to finish at 368 and it looks as if it starts at 304

    • 3rd class x 5 compartments at 4 across = 40
    • 1st class x 4 compartments at 3 across = 24
    • Which gives a carriage capacity of only 64 which doesn't seem very much.

    In Russel, some photos show carriage seat numbers, which always seem to be 3 digits - but some photos show letters - does anyone know when seat numbers were changed for carriage letters? It is possible that this is a post nationalisation scheme.

     

    Incidentally the typical rake for the 70ft South Wales stock was (Taken from the Comet models instructions):

    • Brake third = 4 compartments = 32
    • Third = 10 compartments = 80
    • Composite (above) = 64
    • Restaurant carriage H26 (1st x 18; 3rd x 32) = 50
    • Composite = 64
    • Third = 80
    • Brake third = 32

    Giving a train capacity of 402 - many years later a GWR 8 carriage HST would accommodate 487 or 557 depending on the configuration: https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/hst-trainset-capacities.73196/

     

    To be continued!

     

    Neal,

    Just food for thought, as I am not completely certain, but I have found on RMWeb, if you state something then someone will come along with the correct information almost immediately.  🙂

     

    Would the 3rd class not be 5 across?  I am fairly certain non corridor stock was 6 across.

     

    Also, When seats were numbered, at least in BR days, sorry for the foul language, the seats facing each other had the same number, so it would be defined as say, 5 facing the engine, 5 back to the engine, although this may have only been for non compartment stock.

    • Like 2
    • Interesting/Thought-provoking 2
  4. 1 hour ago, brumtb said:

    Modelling has been very slow of late with other responsibilities taking precedence as well as general lethargy.  However, the arrival of the Dapol Mainline and City coaches was very welcome (as was the Kernow Steam Railmotor).

    Here is Great Western 2-6-2T 3916 with a short rake of the new coaches heading out to Leamington Spa. The coaches are on loan to the Birmingham Area to assess their suitability for Birmingham suburban use!!!

    They are as out of the box at present other than the substitution of Hunt magnetic couplers for the rigid bars supplied by Dapol.  I really must tone down those pristine roofs, any suggestions for a "new but in service" finish?

    DSCF0045.JPG.53ead7ebc317adf7ffbf96dde75e2e17.JPG

     

    Thanks for looking

    Tony

     

    Tony,

    Very nice.

     

    In your era, is the roof paint lead?  If it is then it will react with the smoke and darken it uniformly.  If it is not, then it will just get dirty with smoke.  I am not sure how long the colour change would take, if the paint is lead.

    • Like 2
  5. 18 minutes ago, heraldcoupe said:

     

    😁

     

    I am very interested in producing saddle tanks and have some rough patterns done. The Bachmann chassis will be a good starting point for those sharing the same wheelbase and wheel size. I'm hoping many of the major structures will carry across to a Buffalo (and others?) in due course, but I've not done a deep dive on that yet. The latter will have it's own mechanism, the design features of that being proven on my Aberdare project.

     

     

    Do you have a website or is it just by personal contact?  I am assuming this is not your business.

    • Like 4
  6. As for the Cambrian there is a Mike Morton-Lloyd book that has images of those seen on the line, plus a list of local PO wagon owners, with or without photos.  This means that the likelihood of other PO wagons is unknown, perhaps I should look at other PO books.  However, this has not stopped me ordering two wagons, that it is not completely impossible to believe that they turned up on the line.  I have ordered these to support Rapido in the introduction of these wagons, as I want to encourage manufacturers in the production of pre-grouping stock.

     

    It may be that they may be encouraged to produce in future wagons for the Vauxhall Colliery, Ruabon, the Ruabon Coal and Coke Co., Cannock Case Colliery Co., Wigan Coal and Iron Co., Black Park Colliery and Westminster Colliery.  Any colliery around North Wales and surrounding areas seem appropriate.

     

    Given enough encouragement with these they may even produce a Sharp Stewart 2-4-0, or 0-6-0.  I can always dream.

    • Like 3
    • Friendly/supportive 1
  7. 1 hour ago, Mikkel said:

    Good to see this progressing Chris, the panneling looks really good.

     

    Recently I have become a little less enthusiastic about my magnetic clamps. On thin/soft materials I find that they can press together corners so tight that the areas above and beneath them "bulge" out.

     

     

     

    We are but human. A few days ago I had carefully marked some almost square pieces of plain styrene with arrows pointing right, to make sure I got their orientation right. Then I dropped them on the floor.

     

     

    Mikkel,

    Mine came from York Models and I have not noticed them doing that.  I shall watch out for it, but the alternative is, a bit more tricky.

     

    Yes, more mistakes seem to happen as you get older, or perhaps you are more aware it it.  Just have to be methodical, mark things, watch what you are doing, put knives down when not using them.............🙂

    • Funny 1
    • Friendly/supportive 6
  8. 1 hour ago, corneliuslundie said:

    I notice that you mention 10 thou square strip. I bought some from Slaters many years ago but it is both rather brittle now and nearly finished. I have not been able to find a current source. Any suggestions?

    Nice panelling using it though.

    Jonathan

     

    Jonathan,

    Mine is Evergreen.  I bought lots of different sizes years ago but I am fairly certain they are still available.

    • Like 1
    • Agree 2
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  9. I thought things would be slow on the house, and they have been, but they are going quicker than I expected.  Still, what I have not done is show you the progress on the Saloon Third.  Remember that?  It was ages ago I cut it out, and actually was a while ago when I did most of the work, but the pictures were even slower, but here they are.

     

    It was August last year that I showed you this.

     

    010ThirdSaloon11.jpg.04517a7ee7ff97c82f54132842a503ae.jpg

     

    August 23rd to be precise.  The laminates had been laminated and 10 thou x 10 thou rodding put on mimicking panels.  It stayed like this for quite a while then I filed the ends to make a bevel and then fitted them together.  It was not very precise.  I then held them together in my magnetic clamps and applied Limonene.  I waited and it worked.

     

    011ThirdSaloon12.jpg.9d3df8d5dd7f4487fb370156b003f677.jpg

     

    From the end.

     

    012ThirdSaloon13.jpg.519271a5700670837bf19f7965a4ea30.jpg

     

    I tried filling the gaps at the ends between the sides with Humbrol filler, but when I opened it, all that came out was liquid, which stank.  As my wife has insisted that I move my modelling desk into the warmth of the lounge, (here be carpet monsters), I put the top on rather quickly.  It must have separated out, and I am not sure if I can shake the tube to mix it again.  I will need some sort of filler to strengthen the joints.

     

    012Thirdsaloon14.jpg.dc421fed28ad0cfe30bcf41b399fed8b.jpg

     

    I then cut out a floor , and filed it to fit, then glued it in.  Yes, I took the precaution of making sure I knew which way round it was.  (What me?  Glue it in upside down?  As if?)  The markings on the bottom are the centre line, the middle, where I got the middle wrong, and the position of the wheels.  I had thought it would go on a Ratio chassis, but of course it is far too short for that, so it will be MJT W irons and homemade footboards etc.

     

    014ThirdSaloon15.jpg.c685c57cb22bd3610a4679885c412887.jpg

     

    This is Z shaped plasticard, with one side nearly cut off except for steps below the doors.  I have no pictures of this saloon in running condition, but other coaches of the 1860s on the Cambrian had this arrangement.

     

    015ThirdSaloon16.jpg.b5c79212fdbf8bfa6166d3c20dcbf2b4.jpg

     

    I glued them in place, much easier as it is Z shaped.    Of course it is better to remember that the buffers go all the way across before you do that but, as you see, it is not irreversible.  The buffers are 4 x 2mm plastrut.

     

    016ThirdSaloon17.jpg.c46f827042c8c8058dcf161176a331c0.jpg

     

    Hope that is not too dark.  The buffer positions were marked before they were cut off the length, drilled out with a 1mm drill, opened out with a 1.6mm drill and finally a six sided, or so broach used to open them still further until I could get the buffers to push fit.  They will be glued in later.  I am thinking about seats next, but there are some other challenges which I shall maybe mention the next time this coach is reviewed.  When that will be I am unsure as it is done when the main project is drying, but as there are lots of bits, and you can do one while another is drying it may be a while.

     

    If you have been, thanks for looking.

     

     

     

     

    • Like 5
    • Craftsmanship/clever 8
  10. 7 hours ago, Nick Gough said:

    I completed my radiotherapy treatment last week and feel generally okay whilst I wait for the side effects to wear off.

     

    As and when I have felt energetic enough I have been doing bits and pieces of scenic work on the layout - mainly bridges and landscaping:

    P1400661.JPG.a7df2c9dbe05bedffa3c33c2fb68284f.JPGP1400664.JPG.3494b53795518b22ca597e1c60dc8af6.JPGP1400691.JPG.5cd80da3e0e4037478aa21f223549b97.JPGP1400689.JPG.c9a5d246c8d7b3f8b7a56712b106e7c9.JPGP1400685.JPG.0cd1dfc38d9adb0d41f8354c9a4289c4.JPG

     

    I have found no contemporary photos for the road, under this bridge, for my modelling period.

    Since it is an unclassified road I have assumed it would have been an untarred 'rural road' in line with the second paragraph on this interesting website:

    https://www.igg.org.uk/gansg/00-app1/roads.htm

     

    Therefore, I dug out this ancient tub from the depths of the garage:

    P1400657.JPG.245e8983ae23b1a06ccadfb08894f5d2.JPG

     

    Finding it was still reasonably runny I added some black paint to the mix then painted a couple of coats over the primed plywood, forming the road surface, making it thicker in the centre to create a slight camber.P1400655.JPG.2316efd8e15785d92f9ff2f735df5201.JPG

     

    I think it makes a reasonable impression of a plain, macadam road.

     

     

     

    Nick,

    Glad you have finished your Radiotherapy, you should gradually start to feel better.

     

    The bridge is looking good, with enough seating for a large crowd to cheer any vehicle on.  😄

     

    Just noticed that the paint is Texas.  How long ago did Texas go out of business?  I might have paint that old but it has probably all gone hard.

     

    Will you need to sand the surface?  It is difficult to tell from the image.

    • Like 1
  11. I thought at first it was a 2-4-0, as the coupling rod appears to stop at the front visible wheel, but the rod is divided into two, so it could be an 0-6-0.  Also, the visible part of the loco is identical to a Dean Goods.  The tender is GWR and not Cambrian.  As to which one.......

    • Agree 2
  12. 1 hour ago, Citadel said:

    Trackwork basically complete, had some short flat headed screws from fitting the galvanised steel MHVR ductwork in the roof space of my house which came in very handy to temporarily hold it down in place.  Will now wire everything up (what could possibly go wrong....) followed by a thorough test before finally fixing everything down with PVA, No More Nails or similar. 

     

    TrackLaid5.jpg.4df96abdef4605d92022de4a5d1d7db1.jpg

     

    Initially found the fishplates / rail connectors really fiddly but once had got the hang of it went quite quickly.  

     

    Rummaged through the storage cupboard and opened up a couple of stock boxes and plonked a few carriages in place to see what it looked like 🙂

     

    TrackLaid3.jpg.019fb4664e8bb5e836c63df5b752d2ef.jpg

     

    LNWR dominates at the moment.  Need to start thinking about representation from the North Eastern and the Caledonian.  Bought a CR horse box at Model Rail Scotland to start to redress the balance - will be the next project once the MR 6 wheelers are complete..

     

    TrackLaid4.jpg.3186948e18d9f9adb615c765adadfb88.jpg

     

    Right, better get ordering electrical bits and bobs - a steep learning curve awaits but will do my best to keep things as simple as possible.

     

    I do love those coaches.  30ft 11 1/2" six wheel LNWR stock?  Did you make those yourself?

  13. 2 hours ago, Northroader said:

    What’s the glue/s you’re using, please?

     

    Yes, sorry, I should have said.  To glue the random stone sheet to the foam board I have used both Limonine and polystyrene cement.  I used both to see which was best, or if there was a difference,  So two sides were done with each.  The Limonene obviously dries more quickly and you have yto get the sheet on it quickly and it has to be accurate first time as it sticks immediately and you cannot move it around, which you can with the polystyrene cement.  Both seems to stick easily well.

     

    As to plastic on the foam, I tried a sample using a cutout, and used both PVA, and a Tacky Glue, (Aleene's Original, Quick Dry Tacky Glue), and both seemed to do just as well.  You need lots of PVA though.

    • Like 3
    • Thanks 1
    • Informative/Useful 1
  14. Well, surprise surprise, I have done some more modelling, but first, it is said that all Physicists should have a six inch ruler.  I did have one a number of years ago, but it disappeared, so when I went to the Model Railway show a few weeks ago when I saw one for sale, I bought it, along with a 2ft ruler as well.  (I mean, you know how frustrating it is when you are measuring something that is about 330mm.)  So, in case you have never seen one, here it is.

     

    Rulers.jpg.128cd8e74d918ee8f3f40c873ca44be3.jpg

     

    You will note that it is not shiny, which is very useful when working under a bright light which I often do,  Secondly, it has half mm divisions.  You will note that the foot ruler below also has half mm divisions, but in a way that is impossible to read.  I have found it very useful.

     

    So what have I been doing?

     

    003Markingout.jpg.1fd064e6bd60541faffd0d9ccbad9318.jpg

     

    Marked out on 5mm foam board, is Mr Price's house, and his neighbours.  It is based on the house in Barmouth.  The one at Barmouth had the Station Master's house on the right, and the one on the left was an exact repeat, it was not mirrored.  This meant that the blank wall of the Station Master's in the middle was repeated on the outside on the left.  This meant that the right hand house was 'posher' than the left, and so was let out to a Ganger.  My house however will have the houses mirrored, so that they will be the same.  My only problem now is, who to let it to?  I had thought the local Signalman, but in the status conscious world of 1895, is he senior enough to have the same house as Mr Price?  I had thought of a Traffic Inspector, but he would have to be back on the last train every day which would not be very late, although he could be out early in the morning.

     

    You might notice that there are mistakes in the drawings, which is not unusual considering who drew it.  I also decided that I would have a foam board floor, so it is 5mm higher than just the sides of the house.  This actually fits with a house that would have been built with ground floor joists, and not a solid floor.

     

    004Cutout.jpg.ddcff786a2bc4c91c58cae352adfb595.jpg

     

    Windows cut out before separating the sides, I thought that would be easier.  Interesting cutting foam board, as you need to be careful not to cut the foam deeper that the plastic coating.

     

    005RandomStone.jpg.ebedf54fa2083480a410e2b5624c3e0a.jpg

     

    Random stone stuck to the cut out sides.  I have used SE Finecast sheets for this house, rather than the Slaters Random Stone I used for the station, as the stonework looks different between the station and this house.

     

    002Frontview.jpg.a6943146f47917ae725069cd918420f6.jpg

     

    Looking at this image of the house I am not sure the stones are really large enough, perhaps an '0' gauge version would have been better?  I had the same feeling on the station, that the stones should have been larger.

     

    This house is not without its interesting points, by that I mean, things that should be straight forward, are not necessarily so.  Cut out windows and lintels next, this could take some time.

     

    If you have been, thanks for looking.

     

     

    • Like 11
  15. 3 minutes ago, Schooner said:

    3d printed chassis perhaps? Again, I've no personal experience but they do seem to be becoming more common.

     

     

    There is a printed 3D chassis that you can buy with the superstructure, and I probably have one.  It is on my list of things to do, after the buildings, the coaches, and perhaps before the wagons.

    • Like 2
    • Informative/Useful 1
  16. 2 hours ago, Schooner said:

     

    https://www.sparkshotcustomcreations.com/

     

    ...but anyone interested I'd suggest getting in touch to make sure there's a suitable chassis and that it's been at least test-built with the recommended motor, gears and wheels. Not me personally, but heard first hand from a couple who had to work quite hard (and spend a lot more time and money than lead to believe) to turn these into decent models. 

     

    This is, hopefully, no longer the case cos they're gorgeous locos :)

     

    @Edwardian and I were going to try and do a combined build, well he op 'norf, and me darn sarf, and do it at the same time but COVID got in the way.  My preference would be to use a powered tender chassis with something like aa tenshodo spud, or similar, if they still exist.  There are no RTR chassis to fit as far as I know..

    • Informative/Useful 2
  17. 3 hours ago, Mikkel said:

     

     

    Hurrah, big milestone. The guttering looks good. It's interesting what a difference it makes to the appearence of a model roof when this is added. Somehow integrates the roof and walls, visually. And can help to hide problematic alignments, in my case 🙂

     

     

    Thanks Chris, my new word of the day. I'll remember it by thinking of suffragettes. Sounds like their children.

     

     

    Mikkel,

    Actually, I got it wrong.  They are not soffits, they are facias.  The soffits run from the downward facias to the wall.  In my case they are imaginary.  (Soffit is a better word though.)

    • Like 1
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    • Friendly/supportive 3
  18. Finally a report on modelling.  I have added gutters to the station building roof.

     

    092Gutters.jpg.850ae589e4c1b959276a0513aa20ecf6.jpg

     

    I decided that I would use Ratio guttering as they were acceptable and not horrendously expensive.  I know @westerhamstation would have used the folded edges of Weetabix packets.  I looked at these and decided that they probably were not large enough.  Now having used them once, I shall proabley have to continue with them for consistency.  Shown is the gutter, and two strips of card, and a reinforcing piece of card.

     

    093Gutters.jpg.316f45e4e978663a0a2818928133e362.jpg

     

    I realised that the gutters need to be horizontal, but the roof has no horizontal portion to it, so the piece of card on the roof is for the gutter to lean on.  The soffit was then put in position.  It was all glued with PVA.

     

    098Soffitreinforcement.jpg.4cd5b4896752da6183d447656a46279d.jpg

     

    When it had dried  then the reinforcement card was glued into place.  I was concerned that the soffits were only stuck on where the supporting prongs from the gutters were, so was not convinced that they would hold very well without further support.

     

    094Gutters.jpg.a04bcd2fa23203a8c140af10460555f6.jpg

     

    Gutters in place.

     

    095Gutters.jpg.0a92943f58c966a5043c3a4e4d527c48.jpg

     

    The other side.

     

    097Soffitsandflashing.jpg.e78b6a8f845f7d3352186b9330049110.jpg

     

    The soffits, plus the flashing.  I have painted the soffits as well.

     

    I finally managed the flashing.  The straight flashing was easy.  The flashing down the chimney is the third or fourth attempt.  I tried card and cutting it in situ down the brickwork, but it was too soft.  I then tried cutting the card in step fashion and then gluing it, with PVA, but it was still too soft.  I then took some more card, this time 2.5 to 3mm wide and cut steps in it.  I then shellacked it.  When I went to paint it, it had disappeared; no idea where it went.  I repeated the process and this time was able to paint it with Humbrol 64 light grey.  This time it was a bit hard, but I tried to wrap a small amount onto the roof.  You notice that the flashing on the front of the chimneys is a bit long, that is because I had to cover the gap between where the bricks stopped and the roof started.  I am not the only one with this problem.

     

    So, the roof is FINISHED!  I would do this differently next time.  I would make the bricks on the chimneys go further down below the sides, I would have some method of making a flat surface at the bottom of the roof to attached the gutters, and yes, finials, they should go on near last as I have managed to break one, and the bit has disappeared, I think I saw it and put it in a bits pot.  

     

    If you have been, thanks for looking.

     

    P.S. The building itself still needs painting.

     

    • Like 5
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  19. 1 hour ago, Nick Gough said:

    I'm now halfway through my radiotherapy sessions, with another two weeks to go.

     

    I'm not experiencing any serious side effects and the actual procedure is no problem - the biggest issue is trying to find a parking space at the hospital. However, I haven't been feeling at my best this week - mainly because I have a stinking cold and had a tooth extracted on Monday!

     

    Since I don't feel anything, during the sessions, and the only indication that anything is happening is the movement of the equipment, it's hard to believe that it is actually having any effect.

     

    My steam railmotor arrived in the post last week though, unfortunately, I had to send it back due to poor running. The replacement arrived yesterday, so a nice quick service. It needs running in but is definitely better. A lovely model - full of detail.

     

    Nick,

    Glad to hear it is going well.  I did wonder if it would make you tired.

     

    Trust me, it is having an effect.  There are not 3ft thick concrete walls around a machine like that, or whatever they use there, if it was not able to give out a serious amount of radiation.

     

    Hope the new steam railmotor works out alright.

    • Agree 2
    • Thanks 1
  20. I must admit what you have done so far is quite impressive.  I had not realised quite how big it was going to be.  You have certainly made progress, I am not sure how long it took me to get my baseboards built, let alone the track laid.  I assume that you have a nice flat floor so that you do not need adjustable feet, (on your baseboard legs that is).

     

    I read a notice once distributed by the Cambrian Railways, from about 1920.  It was an encouragement to do better, and it had a list of

     

    Trains more than 5 minutes late,

    Trains more than 10 minutes late

    Trains more than 20 minutes late.

     

    There were quite a few in each.

    • Like 3
    • Thanks 1
  21. All you needed to know about Victorian Sanitary Acts.  Maybe not all.  

     

    Sanitary Act 1866,

    Under the Act, overcrowding in residences became illegal and local authorities were required to take responsibility for ensuring sewerage systems were in place.

     

    This would mean that Traeth Mawr Council would have had to have a sewage system, perhaps even by 1867 when the station was built, even if the sewage pipe flowed directly into the sea, which it probably did.

     

    Public Health act 1872.  (Note change of name, interesting in itself.)

    The Public Health Act 1872 established sanitary authorities in both urban and rural areas. These were to provide public health services and appoint medical officers of health.

     

    Public Health Act 1875 

    Authorities were obliged to provide clean water, dispose of all sewage and refuse, and ensure that only safe food was sold. It gave them the power to ensure that homes were connected to the main sewerage system. The Act forbade the building of new homes without such connection.

     

    If the 1866 Act said they had to have sewage pipes then what did they do with the sewage as they were not told to dispose of it until 1875?  I have seen a photo of East Ham, I think in the 1930s but maybe later with an open sewer in the street.  My dad lived in Hoxton and in 1917 contracted polio from a 'stream' at the bottom of the garden.  I have often wondered, but only when it was too late to ask if this was a stream or a sewer.

     

    I understand that it was different in urban and rural areas.  In the 1920s my mum was being brought up in a village in North Hertfordshire, and the water supply was a stand pipe in the street.

     

    So, the Railway Inn was on mains sewage from the start as so were the other houses in the road, and some had piped water from the start.  This means inside toilets, not privies at the back of the garden.  Where the toilet was at the start I do not know, although there are some buildings to the left of the house on the map.

     

    MapLocation.jpg.a04d0ea1d5cc0ba329c3e5d2de9cd3c8.jpg

     

    I assume that toilets at the bottom of the garden/yard were either rural or were for houses built prior to 1866.  (Fascinating, this could be a rabbit hole, but I doubt it.)

     

    SewerPipe.jpg.acf4ffe1a907f1a4a52b4b250c30b656.jpg

     

    This is Barmouth, and the station is in the bottom right hand corner and the sewage outflow is in the top left.  This means when I do my 'front scene' of the beach I do not have to include a sewage pipe.  🙂

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  22. 44 minutes ago, Northroader said:

    My pals grandma lived just down the road from us in the village in an old house, with a little brick outhouse across the yard for a toilet, with quite a large garden behind. This drained into a sort of small pond round the back, rather like a black porridge. Every so often the council sent a tank wagon round, referred to as the “druggon” and they uses a scoop with a long handle to lower the level and cart it off.

    i would think the late Victorian developers would build roads with sewer pipes for new build hotels and so on in Traeth Mawr, and the older houses and railway buildings would get connected where they went by.

     

    When the railway arrived in 1867 the Town Council had the market square redeveloped and houses then gradually got built along Station Road between the market square and the level crossing.  The first to be built was The Railway Inn, and gradually up towards the market.  Somewhere in that the Methodist Chapple and Manse were built and an impressive house for the doctor.  Other houses were then built towards the market.

     

    Finally in the late 1880s, the girl's school was built and opened.

     

    Now just found a newspaper article for 25th October 1889 about a proposed sewer outfall, into the sea of course, for Barmouth.  Apparently there is still a lot of sewage going into the sea along that coast, according to internet headlines I have just scanned.

     

    Flush toilets it is then, but I do not recommend bathing, and is that why the herring and crabs' taste is so distinctive?

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  23. 46 minutes ago, Donw said:

     Sorry I don't have any postcards

    However around 1860 were two inventions the earth closet and the septic tank which avoided the smell of cesspits. However both still required a decent size of garden to dispose of the waste. The septic tank more so as it required a drainage field  whereas the contents of an earth closet could usefully be buried in the vegetable plot. The house must be fairly close to  the sea and today there would be concerns of a septic tank or a cesspool leaking affecting the water.  Although in 1895 it might have been quite acceptable to have drainage than just ran out into the sea. An earth closet would usually be in a little hut down the garden or in a brick outhouse. 

    My suggestion is that the railway had provided drainage running out to sea for its own use and the station masters house was connected to it.

     

    Don

     

    Don,

    Thank you.

     

    I am not sure if it is clear from my photos that the back garden is very small and is very close to the railway line.  This picture shows how close.  My first photo was taken from today's car park, and the stone wall is the boundary of the railway.  Before about 1930 or so when they built the new sea defences the car park would have been the beach, or sea depending on the time of day, tide etc., so it would have been very easy to have a pipe running down into the sea.  Earth closets would have been very close to the house, as there is no space at all.  This all makes sense of an early change to indoor plumbing.

     

    As for Traeth Mawr.  Well the Refreshment rooms and toilets have to drain somewhere, so could either be onto the beach, or main drains once the houses across the road was built, the same could go for Mr Price's house.

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