JimRhodo

Cars more than trains but it’s quite short compared with some of my previous.

Crossing the Border It’s 1937, Scotland, between the wars. Scotland is seceding from Great Britain and will be known as the Republic of Alba. With world war imminent, Unionists are trying to slow or stop separation. The Stone of Scone has become more than a symbol and is now the sign of Scottish rule. Unionists steal it as it makes its way to Edinburgh. When a Scottish general intercepts them they make a deal that the winner of a contest will take the stone. General Lamorale is set to win but a Unionist sabotages his car. The Unionists win but only by theft and cheating. The moral victory is Alba’s. This does not reflect my politics by the way. The music is Egmont by Beethoven. Egmont aka General Lamoral was a Dutch Lord when Spain ruled Holland in the 16th century. He was loyal to Spain but protested against introducing the Inquisition to Dutch religion when anti Spanish iconoclasm developed. He believed the justice of his cause would prevail but he was killed by the authorities. His noble death inspired in part the eighty years war against Spanish rule. Ironically Alba is the duke who the King of Spain sent to quell the Dutch Revolt.

Cheers. I’ve been looking over the layout and it is a bit raw and bare.

Just messing about.

That’s the end of the series. Now just to finish fences, puddles, clear up and decide what to do with the hill left of the chapel hill. Maybe get some ducks for the pond and farm animals or domestic bits. My mum thinks it’s all a bit masculine and needs some softening.

$75? No. Not with caramel. Thanks for the link. I like to keep up to date with the latest madness. Now for something completely different.

Just a short film.

Here’s the latest. An end is getting in sight.

Frustration. Ive more or less got the Flying Scotsman running okay but the wee Highland Rambler is chugging along in fits and starts. Clockwise it comes off the track by the points at full speed with wagons and anticlockwise the engine is a bit intermittent and unreliable. Do you think it’s just glue ballast and hairspray? I’ve been cleaning the track forever.

Footbridge. I went for the brown. Darker than intended but I’m really pleased with the steps. I was wondering how on Earth to do steps but in the end balsa wood and superglue did it. Not up to the fantastic craftsmanship I’ve seen on forum but a lot better than I hoped for. Did some scatter grass. Looks like bog grass in places and waiting for later attempts to dry.

The building continues to evolve. The border post cabin is now a coffee kiosk and the single span footbridge is now two separate bridges. The red waiting room stroke shack is beginning to grate so I looked up 1930s LNER livery. Brown footbridge? Not too sure. Cream and green buildings: wife liked it I’ve had great fun with some 1930 cars.: see below for racing Bentley and Austin Seven.

Part three is taking a while. Here’s an interim update. I’ve given up on the quarry. Started a farm. Built a castle ruin. Started a pond which at the moment is just a flooded gravel pit.

I’ve committed myself to the island and the white polystyrene is glued to the base. Video out in the next few days. I’ve started carving a path up to the chapel and I’m happy with the scale of the chapel but I had a go at building a farmhouse. It’s 170mm wide and 90mm high. Does it seem a bit big? I was looking at Hornby buildings and the terrace is ionly 40mm wide.

Part two is ready. Now I’m planning to build a second hill. Loosely based on St Ives in Cornwall. The chapel is St Nicholas on the Island. The waiting room is based on a few photos of 1930 she’d buildings. It’s only garishly coloured as the layout looked so grey (granite). k