Ralf

That's the plan, if I do or not to be honest is a question I do not yet know the answer too. Assume the plastic loops are just some random ones from a popular online auction site or retail site rather than anything specific, I don't think it'll ever be as tidy as yours even though I've got 10 or so wires - total. I need to stock up on small chocolate block connectors, plastic loops and small screws... Got a lot of work on and then hopefully some time away so it'll once again be a few weeks before there's chance of an update. Cheers Ralf

That @Nick C is a damn cunning plan... I'd never have thought of that, thank you very much! Ralf

Blimey two months later and I've some progress worth reporting. All track wired up and tested, all works except I've omitted the insulating rail joiners on the set of points so now I've powered the switched wires on the points it shorts... Yes of course it does, but now it's all glued down how do I insulate the rail joints, discretely?? The point is going to be switched by a wire and polarity switched using an electrical switch - see photo. Seems to work ok, took me ages to get round to finding some brass tube and suitable screws... However it is done and it seems to be done first time too! Generally wiring / mess photo for your indulgence! Cheers Ralf

That’s a simple, easy and effective answer, thanks!! Ralf

Thanks Jonathon, watching through the video, at 17:42 his cleaner sprays grey on his cutting mat, in my world that's traces of grey primer that I've been using. How do I know if it's grey appearance atomised cleaner OR residual grey primer? Thanks Ralf

Ok, I follow that, so do would I wash off Rustin's Cellulose thinners? Assume this mostly applies to o-rings and the like? It's beginning to sound a like a minefield that every YouTube channel promises it isn't... @ColinK it was Vellejo Grey Acrylic Primer - 74.601, so AFAIK it's not self-etching. Rustins Cellulose thinners order for a rinse and brief soak tomorrow... Thanks all for the input so far... Ralf

Ok, first an admission, this is the second time using my H&S Ultra airbrush, it looked and seemed clean after my last use but I had a couple of issues starting this session as the paint wouldn't flow and low paint volumes (kept the air on full), after a cleaner and poking about inside the nozzle things improved. So painting done (well it isn't but I've given up for today, it's cleaning time. No matter how many YouTube videos I use, no matter how much Vallejo Airbrush cleaner I squirt I cannot get rid of this grey primer that keeps on coming out, and honestly I've been cleaning, spraying, reaming, dismantling and watching videos for a hour or more now, then squirt more cleaner and there's more grey paint... So where's it coming from, how do I get rid of it? See (terrible) video attached that does at least illustrate my problem and features some heavy breathing... Thanks Ralf

Well, I'd made a mess of that (above) hadn't I? The shaped bit of infill is supposed to be a sidings width nearer the camera.... So after some hacking about and some soldering of dropper wires etc we got to this: Then I'd thought I'd build some of those kits I recently purchased from Light Railway Stores - I'd got a three pack of the KBModels Hudson Tippler Wagon - https://www.lightrailwaystores.co.uk/collections/kbscale/products/wa090?variant=16393432596546 After some head scratching and some Googling I noticed what I'd not previously noticed, KBModels build kits for 7mm modellers modelling in O14. That'd be why they're bigger than I expected then! Ah well, decided to build them anyway, think the first took around a hour, can always practise on them, try to paint and flog in eBay. If I get back my £24 for 3 wagon kits I'll be satisfied... If not it'll be a lesson to buy kits for the correct scale in the future. So here's the three kits minus the brass scale couplings, bearings and wheels (all supplied)... About a hour later we've got quite an attractive Tippler sat on it's wheels - no bearings yet. Little bit of finishing to do but then it'll be on to the next two... Anyone want 3 x 7mm O14 Tippler wagons? Cheers Ralf

If I owned a dairy that owned a loco it'd be in black & white cow print, with wasp stripes end - because I'm a devil for wasp stripes... Ralf

Oddly enough I've got a pile of his kits for "one day" too!! You can't beat down at heal industrial grot... Cheers Ralf

Superb stuff Karl, the cottages, wall and railway high on a ledge remind me of somewhere... Oh yes - Tanygrisiau in rather challenging weather! Cheers Ralf

Well I knew it might be a fortnight before I returned, but blimey me not 5 weeks! What have I done? Next-to nothing, I've glued down two sections of cardboard / ply infill and soldered 2 droppers onto 1 piece of track, which is also glued down and has a 4mm / ft copper clad sleeper fitted to the baseboard end - I'm not happy with the gauge / alignment on the copper clad sleeper nor do I have any thing to check it with, some N gauge gauge rollers need ordering I think! (Tips anyone?) Anyway, for what it's worth here's a updated pic. Oh yeah and I've built up the baseboard edge height where the opening is cut in the baseboard wall... Cheers and hopefully more soon now I'm back on the horse... Ralf

No because I don't really know what I'm modelling! Trying to commit and progress to a slightly extended ScaleScenes boxfile kit, but made a mess of glueing the water down - used PVA and it wrinkled, so now going down the paint route. Todays trip to Hobbycraft didn't happen and going away for 10ish days soon, but I will update upon my return, but suspect Olive Green will feature. I've noticed my limited citadel paint collection is mostly grey / browns with only a bright green... Hence the shopping trip! Thanks @Michael Hodgson that's darn interesting regarding the water clearing overnight, I suspect it'll (the layout) end up a bit of a mish mash of Industrial Diesels on a Canal Wharf which is probably not very likely, but hey if I get some modelling done then Rule 1 applies! Thanks Ralf ps Layout thread (stalled due to not going to Hobbycraft and impending holiday (IoM) - is here but don't expect an update until August...

Any news on these James? Thanks Ralf

Super stuff, and right up my street of interest. What happens to the tubs once they're hauled out and unloaded? Keep up the efforts! Ralf

Thanks Phil it's not a large area and to avoid the drama having potential of the resin running away on three sides I was hoping to avoid resin. Wow, amazed how good that looks, didn't think black would pull it off but it does! Did you plant the weeds as the varnish dried? So far Brown, Green or Black... Hmmm I'm not any further forward yet, inspired and impressed and learnt stuff but choosing a colour - no progress! 🤣 Ralf

Hoping someone knows? The stuff pictured is only sections of 18" long (I've not measured but it's about that - it's not 3ft!) Thanks Ralf

Hi all, Looking for some prototype photos - but thought better of putting this in the UK Prototype section! What base paint colour would you use for an industrial canal basin? If you were topping with pva as per Kathy Millatts sea water canal in this video. I'm not modelling sea water, well actually I could... I'm kinda thinking 1960s industrial grot could lead to any colour from orange (kidsgrove) to brown and green blue, but probably quite a constant colour.... Any suggestions or colour prototype pics from back in the day would be much appreciated. Thanks Ralf

Absolutely, what they've all said, superb and creative work. Now are there any plans to exhibit? Thanks Ralf

Yes @37Oban - guilty as charged, I was using it for sticking cork and ply down so just carried on with the pva, thanks Roja, if I go for a re-print I'll go contact adhesive! However I think I'm going to fill the front baseboard markings where it's slotted together and paint then use PVA as Kathy Millat does here - around the 3:40 mark before she adds the ripples I think it looks at it's best for a canal basin. Creating damns out of masking tape and wood and clamping it all like Dartside Scenics that @brossard mentioned looks ace but it's only a canal baisin and there's going to be a boat on a lot of it! Thanks Ralf

Another day and yet more progress - currently stalled awaiting a visit from the postman... Hopefully Hattons and Royal Mail manage to get my point to me tomorrow - but time will tell. So the water didn't dry well, I couldn't roll out the bumps easily when it was wet and figured it might look ok - it doesn't... It'll need looked at. On the railway side, here's the track mocked up with the inlay card, barge and battery loco kit (chasis arrived). Also arrived is the SPDT switches for frog switching the point - which I only ordered this afternoon. Tomorrow could see the track down, point down and wired up and the card infill glued in, or it could see me watch some water videos on YouTube depending on work and the postman... Cheers Ralf

Hi Folks, Before I commit to using some antique SL-400X (see photo - excuse the odd angle I've flipped it so the labelling is clearer) in a new layout build, is there any difference between that and the brand new stuff - which I see is now called SL-400? I dont want to use this old stuff to discover it's now better than it used to be? As an aside does the label design age the track to a likely period? Just curious... Thanks Ralf

So another day and yet more progress - not a lot. Printed out an A3 of the water texture and trimmed it too fit, in the end only used the front half of the sheet, it's not glued down with the wharf foundation cork and ply (went with both) on the top - under a large pile of books. Thanks @brossard for the water link, not sure this will stay but I'm sure I can change / modify / alter it later... Next the track in-lay not done in the box as it's full of wet glue and weights, so onto the desk, here it is chopped up, as I understand it, I remove the bits with track on so then allow me to sink the track below 'ground' level... I haven't tried to read far ahead into the instructions I'll be confused and muddled with all the different part names after two stages... There's a missing bit of card (ply) infill top middle in the shot below because I'm stretching the plan, so just need a 1 inch square of scrap ply to fill the whole. Now I think about it I've not actually got the point, best go and order one... Peco Medium LH Electrofrog - I used the online printable temptate to draw round. Also I've no idea if new Peco 009 track offers any benefits the antique stuff shown below doesn't - I'll go and ask in help! Drying glue has stopped play for tonight. So that's that... Cheers Ralf

Thanks John, looks like some good reading there. 👍 Hopefully you'll get it finished sooner or later! So not a lot achieved but the cork is cut using some leftover 3.2mm cork I'd got and half of the water texture has been slobbered with PVA to see what the effect is, but I'm going to re-print it larger and in one piece anyway (I've got an A3 printer) so it's not the final piece. The instructions say c2mm card / ply and 2mm cork, shall I go for 3.2mm cork solo, or use the ply as well? Trying to work out the consequences of too high or too low but it's pretty marginal - or at least I struggle to see why it'll be critical, card thickness will vary between builders anyway... The track inlay sections have been glued down but there's need to be an inch or so added, and I think I'll add it in the middle between the buildings, so I'll need to cut some of the ply to fill the gap, as I did with the cork. Just have some extra wall / stairs / something... It'll be reet won't it? Cheers Ralf ps Anyone who thinks - ooooh daily updates, don't get used to it but if I can chip away and not loose momentum there's a chance of completion isn't there?

All, Here we begin my efforts to catalogue the painstaking slow and likely disastrous results of trying to model a ScaleScenes Canal Wharf LY02 "Boxfile layout" in a ScaleModelScenery BB010 Diorama large board, with help from ChrisInDen for the laser cut layers... What will happen who knows but I'm going to try and keep you all updated and bring you along for the ride, regardless of what happens! This project is an effort to actually do some modelling having spent the last 15 years or so armchair modelling on and off and occasionally starting a project never to make a lot of progress. Hopefully this is small enough and directed enough that I can triumph (we can dream can't we) So having briefly explored the options and sizes here - below, it seems I'll need to extend the layout by around 1 inch... Which shouldn't be beyond the wit of man - but it may well be I warn you. The Barge has already been done (badly at some point I've messed the stern and the bow about but never mind), and it'll need replacing but I suspect with a narrow boat. Tonight saw the modelling desk cleared and the kits assembled ready for what's next. The track work will be 009, as I've recently realised that NG prototypes excite me more than standard gauge, despite being fan of grotty industrial stuff I'm a bigger fan of grotty industrial NG... What the industry will be who knows, something involving skips I suspect and lots of odd diesel locos... Here's the SMS board and the barge. Desk tidy, all cleared up ready to go... Also shown is a Narrow Minded Railworks OO9 Baguley Drewy electric loco kit, which was a recent impulse buy! Peek-a-boo! - There's a lot of MDF to cut through, but it's done... So next seems to be sticky the water texture down - which is joined, so I suspect I'll bodge it together into 1 larger texture and print on A3 then I can just have one piece of water... So for now I'm off to scratch my head and make a big watery pdf to stretch / enlarge ready for printing tomorrow... Any feedback, comments, thoughts or reaction button clicks very welcome - saves me talking to myself!! Cheers! Ralf