DriffCharlie

Excellent locos/stock..... infact so nice you have me tempted...very very tempted!!! please could you point me towards where to buy/view more details of the "Ruston & Hornsby 44/48HP type diesel shunter" Please??? good luck with the weather.... Charlie

Thought I had better improve on the stock so heres some details of the growing stocklist ( allthough the REAL thing had only ONE loco and a solitary hudson skip) the yellow loco below is scratchbuild on a "Underground Ernie" chassis and is to no particular design, i just made it up as i went along!!! The skips I eventually decided on Slater's 1/32 offerings and once re-wheeld with larger wheels they look the part in 1/24, of course much weathering and "mud" needed here!!!! Then I got a "home brewed" kit of a water cooled simplex which looks pretty good now, this is based on the Bachman On30 streetcar chassis and is a fantastic running loco.... This last piccy also shows another item!!!, I recently bought a video of the real Barton Ings line in action.... a BAD MOVE !!!!. there is a really "different" drive-through loco shed on this video and as a result i just HAD to have one, so a little alterations were called for and hey prestos glue-gun & ply later.... ( even more bricks to carve now though)!!!!! All in all its getting quite busy in the works now.... Oh, and the chimney got some "mortar" between the bricks now!!!! Enjoy, Charlie

the buildings you see are really quick/cheap to make, simply being 3mm ply then hot glue-gun to join them. on the prototype everything is made from bricks particularily bad workmanship and kaka quality of bricks too, i suppose they sold the good ones and used the pooh for their own stuff, makes sense i suppose. Anyways the brickwork is all made in the same way..a bit time consuming but a cheap and effective method i think. I cover the ply in a thin layer of ready-mixed lightweight filler plaster, once set it is pretty easy to carve/impress, I use various scrapers/knives/bits of brass tube etc..with which to impress with brickwork. Some piccies to explain better than I can... here the big chimney is complete, and the bricks have been picked out in various shades of red/browns...just needs the "mortar" applying to the joints........ also evident here is the growing rolling stock collection and thers grass beginning to grow also.!!! as you can see i still have L-O-A-D-S of bricks to carve on the kiln building..... Enjoy, Charlie

Hi Neil, thanks for the accolade... I've fixed the embedded link now (hopefully).. Glad your liking the "mud" hahahaha.... ..and oh yes theres LOADS of muddy water on order for the layout too...LOL... Charlie

Thanks John, yes thats the general idea for the wet look allthough I have LOTS of "greenery" to make first ie reeds/bullrushes/weeds etc that line these Banks, for the mud I've been experimenting with artists acrylics as they leave a convincing "sheen" rather than a full "gloss".... onwards......

The following links should help to show how very "low-budget" and MUDDY this site was... www.ingr.co.uk/faring so the mud has started ... Ive used Lightweight filler mixed with poster paint, seems to be a convincing start so far....but got a long way to go to get to this messy stage.... then I aquired the much needed mini-digger, there isnt really enough room on the layout for a scale JCB backhoe and besides the full size tile works now has a mini-digger on site..so its prototypical.... and the weeds have started to grow already..... Enjoy, Charlie

Time for another layout!. I wanted a round & round layout to watch trains go by... another requirement was for it to be viewable from all sides so it could sit on a table etc.... Recently I've spent much time on the Lincolnshire side of the Humber Bridge & its muddy banks. Many dog walks later I gave in to the tempation to attempt to model one of the small privately owned Tileworks that once lined this VERY muddy riverbank..... The baseboard is 2x1, 6mm ply then 50mm "pink-foam" insulation...then a 6mm ply topping...This turned out both light and VERY rigid. Heres the starter piccies... The General idea is that clay is extracted from the flooded clay-pit at the right of the layout via a "JCB" type digger, this is transferred to a Hudson skip pulled by a suitably basic "critter" this clay is then taken to an "off-stage" pug mill, where it is "dealt" with , then the products find their way into the large brick kiln to be fired, thus the HUGE chimney. Lots of finished products will be stored in the yard area at the left side of the building...and in true respect of the original.. junk, overgrowth and most of all MUD!!! will be in abundance.... Heres the very first video.... Always pleasing to get the first run of a new layout, I was well pleased as this is the first time in ages i could sit & watch trains go round-and-round. also shows the first time i have really taken advantage of my DCC investment .... Enjoy, Charlie