Jump to content
 

awoodford

Members
  • Posts

    174
  • Joined

  • Last visited

4 Followers

Recent Profile Visitors

748 profile views

awoodford's Achievements

564

Reputation

  1. Quote: "Is it not working automatically from the link?" It's OK, the link points to the right place. It's just the page won't load... a local problem I assume. I get the Internet through public library computers, which are riddled with Net Nannies and Policies, so I guess there's something in there that they take exception to. Alan.
  2. Quote: "For those who don't click on the link you are missing much of the story." Sadly I haven't been able to access the website for over a year, for some unknown reason, so I appreciate being able to catch the 'match highlights' here at least. Keep them coming. Alan.
  3. As mentioned in an earlier blog, the intention for this incarnation of Tweedale was to make it a double deck system, by stacking modules on top of others like bricks. Some progress has now been made in that direction. The Castleport and Docks Branch modules were built before the double deck idea came along, and for best viewing they needed to be at a particular height. That meant everything else had to be fitted around them. As I wanted to operate both decks from a seated position, the new deck had to be inserted beneath the old. The frames at each end of the layout are where cassettes are located for transferring trains between decks. Due to the viewing constraints, the lower modules had to be restricted in height to a mere 7 inches. That in turn has forced the track layout to be fairly simple and near to the front edge. It will also require a low horizon to the scenery when I get that far. There are two station areas here, seperated by a longish 4 feet section of (literally at the moment) empty countryside, where the trains have a brief chance of stretching their wheels. The current track plan is shown here... In order to maximise the length of run, I'm treating the lower deck as if it represents two different sections of the route, as shown in the operational diagram below. Keeping everything synchronised, so that the Poshington to Castleport trains don't clash with the Mine to Tweemoor trains, all adds to the operating challenge. Note that although the gas works is actually located at Poshington, it is considered to be on the same branch as the power station, and both industries are worked by one trip out from Tweemoor. It will probably take some time before I get around to the scenery on the bottom deck. The next section to receive scenic treatment will be the industrial area at the top left of the layout, adjoining Tweemoor Yard.... However as the cold dark days approach, I've started winding down for my usual winter break from model making, so little else is likely to be added before next year. Cheers, Alan.
  4. Tartaruga, thanks for your comment. ian, True there is a longer walk now, but at least the short cut across the stile is still there. Unfortunately the boozy excursions have now been discontinued, due to rowdiness, and replaced by a regular and respectable passenger service. No more communal singing on the way home, by order. Irish Padre, thank you. The hills were simply painted on thin card with 2 shades of grey emulsion, then 'colour tinted' (like old Victorian postcards) with thin watercolour washes, before being cut out and stuck onto the sky. NeilHB, thanks. I'm pleased with the way its progressing at the moment, and feeling more motivated which is a good sign.
  5. As I continue to wallow about in Tweedale's little backwater of dubious freelancedom and outdated technology, I keep getting these feelings of deja vu. It started with the reappearance of Castleport. Now Tweemoor Yard has also made a comeback. If I'd known I would be going around in circles like this I would have hung on to the original versions! Although the new scene is not an exact copy of the original Tweemoor, there is a rather creepy family resemblance. I had a couple of 'givens' for this scene before I started. In the first place I particularly wanted a marshalling yard (if that's not too grand a description) at this location. Secondly I wanted it to be rural and act as a green belt against the creeping urban-industrial ribbon development that was threatening to take over. The Slaghill Low module had worked well here in the interim and fulfilled the first of these criteria, but not the second. There are only a limited number of track arrangements that can be fitted into these small scenes, so it was pretty well inevitable that the Inglenook configuration would crop up again for the yard. For the rural scenery it made sense to re-use the leftover trees from the original Tweemoor, which had been sitting in a box for years awaiting their resurrection. Then it occurred to me that it would all come together that much quicker, and with less thinking involved, if I more or less repeated what I'd done before. Thus Tweemoor was reborn. The bridge is there, the road at the front is there, so are the buildings at the back and the Jolly Poacher pub. As far as the railway is concerned the main differences are the addition of a kick-back carriage siding, where the railbus can rest its weary wheels between trips... ...and the relocation of the station. Mr Yardley the yardmaster can be seen sitting on the steps of his 'portacabin' looking a bit dejected, as well he might. He was enticed out of retirement by the promise of a more spacious yard office, only to find it consists of a disused camping coach brought up from the coast. How it survived the journey is anyone's guess. The company admits that it is in need of refurbishment, but adds that it is ideally situated and includes living accommodation, thus allowing Mr Yardley to work from home. The smell of rotting seaweed will no doubt fade in time, and he can brush up his handyman skills while off duty. A spot of weeding might be in order too while he's about it. Speaking of which, as I was running short of ballast I decided to embed the yard tracks in crud and weeds instead. This was done by draping strips of thin toilet tissue over the sleepers. The tissue was then fixed in place by carefully soaking it with slightly thinned grey emulsion paint, using a soft brush so as not to tear the paper, which easily disintegrated when wet. Once the painted tissue was dry it formed a hard crust. The impression of the sleepers was still discernible where the paper had sagged between, and they could be enhanced by dry brushing and weathering. Any wrinkles or holes were disguised with patches of weeds. The technique seems to work quite well on plain track, but is probably not very feasible for use on points. The new section has now taken its place on the layout, next to the Docks Branch module, and is busy earning its keep. More detailing could be done, but probably won't. I might do something about that jarring caterpillar-like hedge at the front though, before moving on to something fresh. Cheers, Alan.
  6. Thank you Edwardian for the review, which I came upon by chance while idly scrolling through the forum and being hooked in by the word Amberdale. Like others here, I remember this layout from the MRJ article, and was blown away when I saw it then. I'm not an internet shopper, but I'll certainly be scrutinizing the exhibition bookstands in hopeful anticipation of finding the book there. As an aside, an even earlier version of Mr Harvey's ECR featured as Railway of the Month in the December 1957 edition of RM, when he was no'but a teenager, if I've done my sums right. Although that layout was very much of its time it inspired me as a youngster, and the article makes for interesting reading in the light of what he was to go on to achieve. As he writes there... "Indeed even now I am thinking of my next effort - which I hope will be a distinct improvement on the present layout - but that is well in the future." Aah, bless. Be careful what you wish for...! Alan.
  7. Mikkel, thanks for your comment. From the start of the old project I had a nagging doubt as to whether I was taking on too much, so perhaps it was already pre-doomed back then. At least I'm feeling more confident in the new direction its taking.
  8. Last year's slow listless progress on the layout was a sure indicator that all was not well. I finally came to the conclusion that I was being over ambitious in trying to build a room sized layout. Well I'm no stranger to giving up projects part way through, and the decision has now been made to abandon the large layout and go for something more manageable. The old benchwork has already been dismantled and the timber reused to just build a straight shelf along one wall rather than spread out into the room. The height has also been lowered. The former project had the baseboards at a height of four feet, designed to be operated from a standing/walking position. The new layout is at table top height and operated seated from a rolling chair. The viewing height with respect to the model is about the same in both cases, however the lower structure is a lot less overwhelming when you walk into the room. OK, its not looking particularly tidy at the moment, with a mixture of boxed and unboxed modules on top of the framework. In due course the older open modules will be enclosed and the scenery filled out. The layout itself currently consists of four of the pre-existing modules, with a few extra bits of track hanging off precariously. This is only a temporary arrangement in order to keep the trains running. Although the modules are plugged together in a different configuration to previously, they still allow the operations to continue much the same. The sketch below shows the current setup. The new long term idea for the layout is to eventually create a double deck system, with a couple of layers of modules stacked like bricks. Cassettes would be used to swap trains between levels (simulating an off scene passing place). The double deck scheme has been tested with mock ups and seems feasible. I found that if I restrict the module heights to around 8 or 10" it should be possible to run the both layers in a visually satisfactory manner from a seated position (adjusting the seat height accordingly). The extra deck is not likely to happen this year though. It may not happen at all if this turns out to be yet another dead end! But for now it serves as something to aim for and keeps the enthusiasm going. Meanwhile construction has started on a new module, four feet long, divided into two scenes. It will replace the Slaghill module at the left, which will be used elsewhere, but more on that as things progress. Cheers, Alan.
  9. Thanks Corbs. The blog output was pretty sparse last year. I'll try and do better this year. Mikkel, thanks for your comment. The single industry seems to work alright, though wagons do also get dropped off to the far left and right of the scene on days when there is no coal traffic.
  10. Although I was hoping to get the Docks Branch module finished before my usual winter break from modelling, it was not to be, and I've only recently got around to completing it. Or at least as completed as its likely to get. The image above shows an overall view. Although the original intention was to have several different rail-served industries along this branch, the coal wharf seems to have hogged the scene and pushed out the other potential customers. The main feature here is undoubtedly the crane. This was based on a photo of the contraption that used to crawl along the Holyhead breakwater dropping rocks into the sea. However the resulting model only retains a superficial resemblance to the original, and I've no doubt HM Inspector of Cranes would give it the thumbs down if he ever to found his way to this backwater. The crane model was constructed from cardboard, which is probably not the most obvious choice for such a structure, but it's a material I like working with. The whole thing was sealed with a couple of coats of Humbrol matt enamel, before being weathered with washes of poster paint. Operation Although the wharf has its place in the greater scheme of the layout's coal operations, I was concerned that the module might turn out to be an under-performer, with little scope for being drawn into the scene and absorbed by the action. I mean to say, all we have here is essentially a two foot long siding. Wagons are left at the coal wharf, then some time later they are removed. It looked like what was needed was some extra make-work in order to expand the amount of time spent here. To that end, I decided to try simulating the weighing of coal wagons on the weighbridge. If we take as an example the scenario of loading empty wagons with imported coal, this is how it goes... A rake of up to three empty wagons enter from the right, propelled by the loco, and are shoved one by one over the weighbridge. This is situated at the left hand end of the wharf so that the loco itself doesn't need to cross it. As each wagon sits on the weighing machine, empty weights are jotted down on a scrap of paper. These weights are actually provided by a little pack of cards on which random weights have been listed for the different types of wagon. I suppose an alternative might be to use a magnifying glass to read the tare weights off the side of each wagon. After weighing, the wagons are pulled back beside the bunker to be loaded. The virtual train crew then abandon their loco and sneak off to the Bankside Cafe for a cup of tea. I don't really have a clue as to how long it would actually take in real life to load a wagon with a crane like this, but I've allowed a token 15 minutes (Tweedale Railway Time) for each one. That gives the crew a relaxing three quarters of an hour for their cuppa. I hope they appreciate it. In reality the crane is not a working model, so while they are away I cheat by placing dummy loads into the wagons by hand. By the time I'm ready to resume, the crew have returned and the wagons are shoved back over the weighbridge, where random full weights are jotted down from the cards. Before the train finally departs, the actual loads are calculated. As Tweedale is set in the era of tons, hundredweights and quarters there's some head scratching involved, but hey, when you get to a certain age a bit of brain exercise is no bad thing. A 'ready reckoner' table for this calculation would be more efficient, but the whole point of all this palaver is to drag out the time here. All in all it adds about an extra 10 minutes of interaction and immersion in the scene. You have to be in the right mood though! Cheers, Alan.
  11. Hi Corbs, I've had a break away from modelling over the winter, but I'm getting back into it again now, and trying to finish off the Docks Branch module. There should be an update in the next couple of weeks. Alan.
  12. Quote: "How many of you are attracted to the post by the pictures?" I for one appreciate the highlights from the operating sessions shown here, as my 'heritage' internet access can't cope with the full session from the website. Ok I accept that's my problem, which could be overcome by throwing money at BT and upgrading to the 21st century. In the meantime however I would be sorry to miss out altogether on the everyday story of Altonian country folk. Alan.
  13. Hi Corbs. '...crack on with scenery'. That made me smile. I always considered myself to be quite slow. I suppose it helped that the area was quite small and stuff could be re-used from the earlier version. BlackRat, thanks for the comment.
  14. I was rather late getting back into the swing of modelling this year. The trouble was indecision over how to proceed, which brought everything to a grinding halt early on. While I was happy with the track design and operation of the layout, the overall appearance was a disappointment. The minimal scenery idea with which I was trying to speed up construction, by ignoring anything outside the boundary fence, hadn't really come up to expectations. I still liked the idea in principle, but I don't think it worked too well with the arrangement I had here. However the main gripe was the straggling nature of the beast. I guess I'm a small-layout man at heart, and I found these long sprawling scenes just didn't sit comfortably with me. So what to do? Carry on as normal and hope for the best, or think up some other way of continuing? By May I was getting frustrated at the impasse and lack of modelling. Finally I threw up my hands and decided to just leave this area of the layout to stew in its own juices for now. Instead I moved downdale to the Castleport end of the system, starting afresh on a couple of new modules, and back into my comfort zone by building them in a more conventional fish tank style. I started with a couple of box frames, constructed using the method described in an earlier post. They each measure 23x10x10 inches. The end of June saw them in the state shown below, with lighting and sky backgrounds added. The left hand scene represents an industrial branch serving the coal wharf and dockland. The track at the rear will be hidden behind buildings, just leaving the track along the waterfront visible. The odd looking structure seen at the left is the start of a concrete bunker for the coal wharf. The right hand scene is the Castleport station and town area, with part of a waterside mill in place. During July and August work concentrated on the Castleport scene, which is now almost finished and shown in the images below. Some buildings were re-used from the old Castleport, but there was not enough space here to fit in all the original town buildings. The station is quite an elaborate affair for Tweedale. The original inspiration was St Aubyn on the Jersey Railway, but then a local chap came along offering a cheap rate on some fancy 'art doily' fretwork for the train shed and I couldn't resist. I think his enthusiasm waned somewhat when he realised how quickly he was getting through jig saw blades, but like the fellow on the telly, he felt that having started he was obliged to finish. In the end you get what you pay for, and the general feeling among the Tweedalers is that at least this monument to bad taste is unlikely to withstand the onslaught of smoke, steam and salt-laden river damps for long. The mill at the other end of the scene was cobbled together from bits of the original. I'm not entirely happy with the part at the back, which will probably get reconfigured later. Road access is through the ancient town wall, what's left of it. The local authorities have insisted on crossing gates being installed here after a councillor got a horrible fright when he came dashing through the arch on his bicycle and found the morning goods bearing down on him. The railway company are still dragging their feet on the issue while they try to work out how to squeeze the gates into the restricted space. On the whole I'm pleased with the way the scene has come together. I'll finish the adjoining module next, then assess whether to continue the rest of the layout in this style. The supporting substructure on the main section of the layout would need extending before I could connect this pair of modules to the rest. Until then they will probably sit on a shelf as static dioramas for storing spare stock, but at least they served their purpose of freeing up the modelling deadlock. Cheers Alan
×
×
  • Create New...