mega_mort

Smoothed over and painted up the road way on the layout now, few coats of different shades of black and a wash of dark brown in the hope it will make it a much industrial type of road. Once I finish this set of shifts will start on painting the track.

The building for the right hand and has gone in today, and started the small path/road across the tracks and linking up the buildings. Decided that was a good idea to do before I started weathering the sleepers and track. Will smooth the clay down tomorrow before starting on the painting but want more of a used haphazard path than a perfect road surface.

Hi in the break between days and night shifts managed to get the layout down for a couple of hours. Decided not to start on the painting of the track but to try and fit in a couple of buildings I made to complete the back scene of the layout. Oooooohhhhh that's a little close for comfort... One saw cut later.... Good job using card kits that made the surgery easier Everything in place along the back of the layout.

Hi Guys Ok this is a small thing my local model railway society are doing, is this ok to post here if not feel free to delete, this is open to anyone anywhere in the UK. We are trying to keep the club going as it's only a year old and just before lock down we got access to a unit in the local market place shopping centre. Now trying to keep the club alive we are seeing if this competition will bring some funds so we can stay in the unit. Bolton Model Railway Diorama Competition To show our support to all the NHS heroes out there and to celebrate VE day we are pleased to introduce the BMRS War Diorama Competition! We are inviting everyone to take part in creating their very own war scene, it can be railway related but doesn't have to be. The competition starts today and runs until 30th May 2020, the diorama's will be judged by non other than Jenny Kirk and Les Cliffe, with the winner being announced on the 1st June. Judging criteria - build quality, realism, creativity. The winner will receive a Dapol streamlined Diesel Railcar 00 gauge. (DCC ready) worth £150. To enter you have to create your diorama no bigger than 12 x 10 inch, take 3 photos of different angles and email them to bmrscompetitions@gmail.com no later than 12 noon on 30th May 2020, also we would like you to make a voluntary donation of your choice to our club of which 25% will be donated to NHS charities and 25% to the Royal British Legion. Please go to - http://www.boltonmodelrailwaysociety.uk/ and click donate. Please help us support these great charities. Open to UK residents only. Again if this not allowed just delete Cheers Neil

So new paint arrived today, can start experimenting with weathering wagons and track. So start with the track experiment Both base colours added to the track left the middle 2 as idea of the starting point. Ok so may have a better idea on what to do after playing lots with shades. After some mucking around got to the above, think I like the sleepers, chairs think I may mix the two shades, and going for the brown with a slight yellow wash as the bottom of the rails for the rails, wash to be added post ballasting so get a rust tinge to the ballast. Also sleeper grime to be added as glue is added so the ballast takes a brown tinge.

I tend to go for bridges, only because if I ever did a level crossing it would have to have moving gates and lights, which is currently a little beyond my skills. Also tarmac can be broken up by puddles, potholes and weeds breaking through depending on how dilapidated you it to look.

Right before I start 4 shifts back on the desk and need to put the layout away a little update on how it's getting on, modelling has been slow since I wired the layout up and started playing with it and fixing all the dry joints in the soldiering, annoyingly all the ones to the inside of point blades... Test fitted some of the buildings as well at the same time. Had to readjust the un-coupling magnets which was a lot easier pre-balasting due to playing/testing which is my justification for doing very little modelling and just running trains around.

Oh yeah it makes a mess.

one way I've used to remove scatter before is to add more water to the area, not a lot just enough to dampen it and that then loosened the glue and made it easier to scrape off. Think this only works if used diluted pva to stick it down.

This is a nice looking layout, like the idea with the fencing saves drilling lots of little holes in the posts.

Wow....... That's amazing....

Hi Terry, Just found the magazines at my house, building number 1 is the creamery kit from March 2019 and can be got by getting the digital back issue ( I got it on pocket mags). The building in number 4 is the low relief factory which came with November 2019 not sure how you will get that as it came with the print only version on a big A2 sheet of paper. Cheers Neil

They are both free scalescenes kits that came with the Hornby mag over the last couple of years, can't remember what issues they where in though sorry. Well until I can get back to my dad's to dig through his library.

Good point, on my other layout that folds in half I use this method, but I use a massive nail that was a snug fit into the hinges as the tapered end helps pull the hinges together. Then on removal can just tap out from the bottom, also helps if you slightly blunt the point of the nail.

At the moment I'm back on shift working from home, the modelling desk, aka dinning room table, doubles as the home office desk so the layout has to be stored away for next 4 days. Will probably at the minute pack and re-drill the holes in the back. I do have some small hinges and a dremmel copy so could take the pins out out of the hinges. Power feed was going to be via fishplates on the track connecting the 2 as it was to be semi permanent when layout in use. Quick pic below of how far out I was.