AdeMoore

2 steps forward 3 steps back 2 steps forward. maths went bad made up some extra height with foam blocks, I didn’t need! temporary cross braces until I can nail the track bed width. When the deck was offered up it was too high. Oh by those foam blocks! Wrong alignment below now sorted! Old viaduct deck ditched and recut in ply in one piece and an overlap made to hang the removable viaduct on this end. Below we’re getting there Foam blocks removed. The deck is a bit short! No problem to sort. Next mould the concrete bases. Then it’s glue time.

Getting the track height right to the prototype ready for cutting the viaduct supporting girders. I thought they were round but it appears they are square section with ribs. One of those funny copper topped engines in the last photo!

Made a paper template of the viaduct then cut the timber ready for the build! Wish me luck!

June 12 I started it, but with a summer break September 21st I really got going on it. 6 and a bit weeks! Some of you would of had a layout built complete in that time!

Tricky having the trolley board on carpet, think the castors could of done with being larger, but to give consistent baseboard height without the need for height adjustment it works! Toggle latches on we’re about done! Phew Now you can see why I’ve been putting off building this board for so long! I look back in a minute and see how long it’s taken! But with a view to getting trains running as discussed earlier in the thread it had to be done. I’ve lashed some colour on it to make a start and get the white gone. Cheers for looking in.

Now you can spot the deliberate mistake. First side made up wooden/plastic runners. opposite side supporting woodwork attached with 6mm bolts. Then support runner attached the trolley runner just placed on glue still wet for photo. Its in clamps now over night to take out a slight twist.

Much done but not a lot to see! The foam board top was PVA masking taped down as per @Andy P s method on formers. then layer after layer of PVA watered down 50/50 to start then more towards neat probably 8 coats on there now ready for the first river colour to go on. Also making up runners for this board to sit on either side to hopefully alleviate constant adjustment to the castors. Need some traditional curtain track now for the running faces. Thrown loads out in the past! Thought I had some in the loft which I did but not quite long enough. There is a deliberate mistake on the woodwork! More soon

ummm dawned on me today viaduct is too high! about 3 locos high as opposed to about 2 it was intended to be! I could change it by raising the tea trolley board and rebasing out the turn end board. But I think I’ll plough on to get something running goal.

Foam board tops.

Probably should of dropped the cross braces etc. to allow a nice flat top to be laid. Anyway I didn’t so the solution was drop some square 5mm timber around the top to protect the foam board edge. I‘m leaning towards having both viaducts removable. For photo opportunities and they will both be there for playing trains! I mean when operating the layout.

Coming together now! Decided insulation board would be light and keep it parallel! And provide a top to go away from. But what a mess! Hoovered up now though and tidy. Bartoline grab adhesive works great on the insulation board, cheap at my local outlet. Proper Job.

1st October post. More done today. That’s how far the boomerang shape was lying out of line. braced it up, I won’t say square as there’s not much square on this board but parallel shall we say! Cross braces in track abutments next. More soon. Cheers for the likes and looking in. Probably off to Portishead WC&P show tomorrow.

Inspiration came it doesn’t need to swing! 4 castors slides in slides out. Al la tea trolley! screwed it in place after putting the other side panel on. To make building it easier so I’m hopping over or ducking under for now! Temp screwed to next board. Cross brace blocks added. The 8mm supposed to be 9mm ply a bit boomerang so braced up with a chump of timber. To keep straight while measuring up for the cross braces. Had to do the same on the other side. No photo of that. Enjoying this now. Pond/stream coming on a tad too. More soon.

Previous post was June 12th 2022 This post 21st September. Summer turns to autumn so back to the train room! Bit of scenic work going on between chippying the missing board. Working up the pond/stream the basket liner is just base for static grass. Anyway the contraption board as Jeff Grainger (Gill Head etc, Fame) christened this board. After planning it way back and angling in each side all looked good in my minds eye! But setting the 2 ends and front panel up screwed and glued it’s not feasible to swing it back! I guess I should of listened in geometry! Below left hand end the hinge side and pivot point. I angled the edge so the movable board didn’t need to come back to a right angle. How to remedy the situation, my gut feeling is the angle on the right hand end where green meets red line needs taking back towards the left to a point where the green line arc no longer chops into the right hand board. Then the right hand board with the rock face on it needs extending to meet the new angle of the movable board. Also tempting to cut a piece out of the front arched panel and join back up together rather than cutting a new front panel. If anyone should be looking in any view on the deliberate mistake and fix would be welcome. Cheers Ade All was not lost here though days later I had a brain wave as you’ll see.

So cracking on as per the above. The next board is potentially a duck under to get to the centre well. Knowing that’s no good long term, not a fan of lift out and tip up would hit the ceiling before being upright . I‘ve come up with an alternative a swing back! Probably ill conceived but worth a shot, bits are in place. Sketch sorted let the timber cutting commence! The potential duck under as above. Please chip in with your views… Cheers Ade

Cheers Rob I didn’t tag you in my post as I didn’t want to make you feel obliged! But having read your excellent summary of your approach it makes perfect sense. Out with the wood working tools it is. Only trouble is this is a complicated board I’m building it to swing for access to the centre hole. As I didn’t want a duck under or lift up. That means wheels! And with 2 viaducts on it. I may just plank those for now and duck under! But hinges in place ready. Needs thinking about. Watch this space

For context of where I’m heading next I’ll take the liberty of posting Rob & Alan’s posts from WT. Alan Always get something running. Only do the basics of scewnery that might be difficult when the track is laid. Whilst layout building it is nice to have a play as well as a plan. Rob Hi Ade, I'm definately in the get stuff running section. I tend to get the track down and spend quite a while playing sorry testing things out before moving on. For me, this helps to visualise the layout. As you know, I use mainly RTP buildings so I take the time to place the structures, looking for good views, sightlines. It also helps with getting ideas for the scenery, what compliments the buildings etc Once the track is painted and ballasted, things can then move quite quickly as in effect you have already worked out the basics. Everything literally just drops into place. Of course, if the truth be known your great nephew won't care one jot if there's no scenery or buildings.....it's the movement that provides the entertainment, initially at least. Rob. Cheers Alan having also read Robs reply below yours it has to be the way to go with 2 unanimous votes! I definitely leaning that way. Cheers for the reply

Albion Yard a blog I follow Paul had a Link to Lance Mindheim’s blog which I found interesting, then explored further and this post HereI found rung very true to me. Get trains running! forget the scenery bridges and viaducts plonk some timber in their place etc etc. So having read this and to add I had a great nephew round Monday and he’s a train fan at 4, I could only run up and back 7ft on a single line. Now if I crack on with one more board I’ll be around the room for a tail chaser. I have 2 boards already done that are in the shed awaiting their return to the train room. But I was going down the split the layout up into manageable chunks route. Hence the Lellizzick Quay thread here, doing one board to scenery stage. Though it is part of a tail chaser. I see modellers like Andy Peters, Rob and Chris doing the get em running first so I’m chewing over whether to drop what I’m currently doing and crack on with the next board or keep on the course I had set myself. Fire away with your thoughts. Cheers.

Carved some rocks out of foam, badly! So after a few coats of paint I thought where I’d got over enthusiastic with the knife some of it wanted filling in. There is scrub and bushes to add yet but it’s a start. Next from BGmans bits and pieces at Swag the other Sunday raising money for Bristol & Weston hospitals charity. If your not on RMweb you won’t have a clue, suffice to say BGman = Grahame Hitchen was taken suddenly and his grateful family sought to sell off his railway modelling items to raise some valuable funds. I picked up a fair bit and the first bit I have used is some of his hanging basket liner. I have filled in some of the crevices I thought not realistic. Getting there I feel. Then put back the viaduct timber work after the tracsetta realignment. Cheers

I went for an open space around the sidings with a stream/pond. Photos of that once I have done a bit more and it’s worth posting. In the meantime rain today on a little break to the coast so always a chance to do a little modelling, the brushes came out. The cheap acrylic paint has to go though. Serious lack of coverage! Tamiya I think is where it’s at. Though heard good things of mig and Vallejo is it? Laser cut kit of Chelfam on the Lynton and Barnstaple, has its issues but I think it might turn out half decent.

Messing about trying to get the rock face somewhere handy. But thoughts turned to the quayside siding. Toying with a removable hillock with sidings underneath. An loading warehouse or engine shed with through roads. Or keeping it open. Not sure which way to go. Plonked some buildings and a couple of dogfish on for some idea of scale. I’m liking the warehouse engine shed idea less so. just needs a hillock or something I feel and another idea on the sidings layout. Cheers.

I didn’t like that tight curve and the front bogie wheel on the West County was derailing. Funny as testing it with the tracked pinned it was ok but with track glued down hopeless. It had to come out. Also been to tight to invest in some tracksetta templates and used fixed radius curves as a guide for the flex track. Anyway saw some cheap mdf ones on Model Rail and ordered a 15” and 18” not very long but do the job. so Im looking at easing the bend to 15” as it was (but I had it a bit tighter three parts the way round!) then easing out to 18” at that point. Yet more that later came out but included for completeness But stripping that out has given better access to the cliff I’m doing just behind it, so I laid in some foam. Pic’s tomorrow hopefully. Cheeers

Trying a few things to workout the L&B narrow gauge exit from the backscene. Fancied an over bridge over a stream as the timber I fixed for the embankment lent its self to it. But now track laid and tested the coach overhang is rather unprotypical but with space constraints tight curves are par for the course. It works that’s the main thing on a 3 coach West Country hauled train. Wrong coaches for the NCL but what I had to hand. Again this came out later but included for completeness. Probably ballast next . Cheers.

A while since the last post but construction has been going on quietly. I was not sure whether to post this or not as you’ll see I’m not sure what the word is it’s a little, contrived far fetched? But following on from the Lellizzick board is the viaduct board. I was planning a Taw river curved viaduct as Barnstaple was. I couldn’t get it to fit without major tearing up of the Meldon board. But as I had already built the opposite board to drop as a viaduct crossing, I chose to keep steaming in that direction. So as below we have Torrington viaduct meets Chelfam viaduct! This all came out and was replaced later but for completeness I’ll include here. Below this little extension of the board I had to make removable in case I need to remove from the room one day. The viaduct board to the left will swing on wheels to give access to the centre well area. I could not resist a little posing of loco’s, So forgive my indulgence I’ll be back to the main subject soon. Cheers Ade

Here we go one of many posts to get up to date! Battled the lift out over the tunnel! Dremel cut the 009 track where it left the lift out board to exit behind backscene. Oh dear! Failed to note how wide the disc was. Cue track removal rewire etc etc copper clad purchased and relaid track and test and remove to much solder until trains ran! Tunnel lining was glued in and seams of lining paper disguised. Below lift out section foam boarded on bottom for more sound deadening and power push connector installed. Now done train room major tidy up next and get the boards back and all lined up. cheers for looking in.Now done train room major tidy up next and get the boards back and all lined up. cheers for looking in.