HAPPY NEW YEAR!

At a time when we've just gone back in lockdown I think we all need things to look forward to so I’m making my latest project public on here in the hope that it might interest, entertain or even amuse a few people.

To put it in a nutshell I’m building a 2mm finescale exhibition layout of York Station which will make its first public appearance at York Show Easter 2022 2023 - see post 30/12/21.

Regular attenders at exhibitions over the last 15 years or so may well have come across my previous layouts:

Blea Moor – transition era Settle & Carlisle in finescale OO:

and, up until about a year ago and back at exhibitions again soon,

Laramie Engine Terminal – 1950s Union Pacific in American O scale:

The new layout (provisionally named ‘This is York’ - the name occurred to me before I discovered there's a BTC film of the same name) will take design elements from both these layouts to present the view from the INSIDE of the overall roof of York Station during the LNER days of the 1930s:

The view is the one you get when standing on the platform by the entrance to the station. The roof will be 'peeled open' (as seen in the photo) to allow this view. The open air parts of the platforms will be visible through the ends of the roof which will be modelled uncompressed.

The current position is that a full sized mock up has been built (photo above), the fiddle yard is built and working, some stock is built and much more is part built.

So there is MUCH to do!

More will follow……...

.........................For several years I have been working on building a model of part of the Hunslet Engine works in Leeds. 

This is to include the interior of the Erecting shop were I did my apprenticeship as a locomotive fitter. That was a long time ago. 

One of my main goals was to produce working cranes and over the Christmas holidays I finished the second one which enabled me to try the double lift on a short section of the main structure that I built some time ago. 

I have videoed some of these first lifts and put them on our club Whatapp groups and it was suggested I should share them. 

Please see you tube link below - I have also included some stills. 

This is attempt number 3 at simulating wheeling - it did work but I needs a lot more practice and I need to see what I can do with the clearances. I have to say I am amazed it worked at all.

The frame for one of the Snowdon Mountain Railway Diesel locomotives on a single beam lift.

Nearly everything in the picture is scratch built apart from the brass shackles. 

I normally have this as part of my demonstration / display at exhibitions and hopefully I will be able to again in the second half of the year.