brylonscamel

"Norwich Central in 7mm O gauge" ... did you stray from this layout or just soak it up all day?

Progress with a scratch-built 'Caledonian' engine shed for my father's layout 'Braeside' First off! .. Ignore the mismatched brickwork! I'm just waiting on another order of embossed brick in the right pattern to add the next layer (that largely covers the plain bond brickwork. I've switched to using some materials and techniques that model-maker Pete Goss (of this parish!) uses when creating his beautiful buildings. The carcass material is mountboard (the sort of thing picture framers and graphic designers/photographers use). It really is a beautiful material to work with; cuts very cleanly and takes a bit of sanding if you're careful. The other technique I nicked from Pete Goss is the brick headers. I struggle to get a really neat finish - Pete's solution is to cut a ribbon of embossed brick and then notch between each brick with a knife blade. Done carefully, the bricks naturally fan out and are flexible so can be fitted in snugly.

Bang goes the weekend! Looks like I'll be up to my ears in mount-board and glazing. I have been inspired by Pete Goss' latest project to try my hand at his use of materials and methods. Turns out mount-board is a lovely thing to cut. My efforts with a lining pen are also starting to improve, getting some uniform lines among the odd disaster!

Cheers Lez.. it really jumped out at me when comparing photographs!

Oops! I thought my old model (from which I based this copy) was correctly proportioned. But looking at photos of these buildings at various Scottish sheds, I realised the chimney was all wrong! After some brick counting and head scratching, I added the necessary height by chopping off the top of my chimney and extending it by 20 bricks. I cheated by adding a metal brick straps to hide the join.

I'll keep it a secret between the two of us! PS dragging it about dead-in-train might have been a realistic scenario given the reputation of the class. Although I don't know if the reputation lay largely with the 21s?

Ooh this is a great set of photos - full credit to you that yours stand up so well alongside the Dapol version. They might have you beat on the crispness of some of the details but yours looks every bit the Class 29 in these photos. I must admit to abandoning my workbench 29s once I saw the Dapol one was closer to production. Did you get to give the Dapol sample a spin on Crinan? PS your buffers look much more convincing

Pete - Thanks again giving a detailed response! I had spotted your use a traditional drawing board. I had a big A0 drawing board many years ago but it went in various house moves! .. But I like the your DIY solution : steel rulers and wood I've got a small collection of brick buildings on the workbench at the moment and appreciate what you say about building and painting simultaneously. I got into a right pickle recently with mis-matched colours on a collection of whisky distillery buildings. It all came out OK in the end but I regret doing the painting in batches!

Here is a replacement for a building that sits alongside the shed. The building houses a kiln for drying sand as well as acting as a sort of workshop. The current building had the right feel but used Metcalfe glazing and some of it just didn't look right, It was a also lacking in any texture. Hopefully the new one will look great when painted.

Hi Pete ... I missed this comment on first read - but has neatly answered all the questions I had about your brick course / headers technique. Thanks so much for taking the time to photograph your step-by-step guide. I had it in mind that your headers were 3rd-printed or laser cut etc but this 'analogue' method is perfect. I've taken to scratch-building fairly recently and find your solutions increasingly appealing (lining-pen windows, hand cut arches etc.) Your techniques make it easier to adapt to the various sizes, styles and proportions that a building dictates. Mind you - your method still demands a great degree of design, cutting and measuring skill!

By comparison to the tiny Hornby Peckett, I picked up a Minerva Peckett in O gauge - I just wanted one without a realistic plan for making a layout! It has been a fun thing to start weathering and may yet find a little diorama layout as home.

.. here it is with an embossed plastic makeover! I should have the valance in a day or two and can paint it on the weekend.

One of the less glamorous buildings that's getting a makeover is the fish market that sits on a corner of the harbour. The basic structure was OK but it was looking a bit rough. The corrugated sheets were lifting and buckling. the brick columns were wonky, the lamps damaged and the brick-paper scuffed. .. here is the offending shed, in a sea of now largely redundant buildings! And here is the scene after removing most of the clutter and surplus buildings. The station is the next major thing to go!

Here's a) the main loop with the sidings that act as a fiddle yard and b) the engine shed and distillery branch

Hi Martin .. it's actually a bit more train-set than you suggest! It's a large two-track oval with various sidings and a line through the harbourside. We made a lot of early progress some years ago but had a recent re-think after visiting a few exhibitions. My growing interest in scratch-building has also changed things. I'm a bit more ambitious than I was 10 years ago and want to make the setting for his railway more appealing! Apart from ripping out some sidings to accommodate the distillery, we are keeping the original track-plan. It is-what-it-is and functions very well so it's just the buildings and scenery that are getting an overhaul. PS I'll post the mimic panel diagrams as that's the nearest track plans to-hand.