James Hilton

Great back story, and a pleasure to work on him for you. He is looking very much at home on the layout too!

Thank you Matt, and good luck with your own project!

Today is the last chance to vote in the British Railway Modelling awards, I was humbled to be nominated in modeller of the year and would appreciate it if you’d consider voting for me (on the last page) if you haven’t done already: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfVprB4ALfO-BPO2zBXLSPI5UiSDDmfxfHLtR8rqfbj7DokOg/viewform In 1985 the first Class 37/4 rolled out of Crewe Works after rebuilding. The work to these locomotives, already 25 years old, included replacing the generator with an alternator and extensive rewiring… These 31 locomotives, also fitted with electric train heating, were allocated to Scotland and Wales and provided the backbone of regional long distance travel in these areas for another 10 years until displaced by the Sprinter (Today, the type still sees regular service on the mainline on charter, spot hire and occasional infrastructure trains - even freight with timber on the Cambrian from Aberystwyth, not bad for 64 year olds!). In Scotland two distinct fleets were maintained at Glasgow Eastfield for the West Highland to Oban, Fort William and Mallaig (seeing both passenger and freight service) and at Inverness (for the Far North and Kyle lines). In my parallel universe the Inverness based machines also served Lochdubh… Above, we see 37418, a recent rebuild having arrived at the gateway to the isles with the 8:55 departure from Inverness. Visible behind, 37035, ousted from passenger service lays over having worked a Speedlink service earlier that morning. It would follow 418 with the return freight working to Inverness before a second run down the branch with the alumina train to the smelter at Strathbane. Here, as 418 has run around its train we get a clearer shot of the aging 37/0, this example was destined to never be rebuilt, running as built until 1996 and cut up in 2000, having served the railway well for over 35 years. Of course, Lochdubh is my N gauge cameo and these models are re-worked Graham Farish examples. You can read more about them here on the blog. Until next time though, more soon…

gosh yes, I hadn’t clicked on the link! North if £100! I think I’ll stick to my usual. I can see the potential and benefits of the glass front though for some, displaying a layout in the living home.

It seems to have been a few years since I’ve updated the post here! I am very much still trading, busier than ever. I am still writing on my blog daily (https://paxton-road.blogspot.com) and have a fledgling presence on YouTube these days too (https://www.youtube.com/@JamesHiltonCustomModelRailways). I’ve started sharing my own layout projects again on RMweb, where I pull the relevant blog material together in one place - you can find those in the Micro section. Of course I’m also one half of Planet Industrials, and now an author of two books! I was humbled to be nominated in the Modeller of the year category in this years ‘British Railway Modelling’ awards… It will be interesting to see what this year brings. Thank you.

That is a great box, I can imagine a layout to fit in there, especially in N!

Thank you, not only is that very kind, but also, I feel like through your words that you’ve really understood what I was trying to get across with both projects… Third book? I’m not sure yet if there is more to say, time will tell.

Thank you, they worked out quite well in the end. Thanks Kevin, I’m glad they have an inspirational effect, turning that into energy for your own creations is why railway modelling is more than just craft, but am art.

To wrap things up, for now, here is my usual video describing and showcasing the project…

I see these projects as practice, a practice of art, of curating a scene driven by the feelings of a memory, or a day dream, inspired by a photo and underlined by personal connection… That cold sting of the wind. Scarf and hat fail to protect the delicate flesh. Cheeks burning. A dull dead light, the lifeless, leafless trees provide scant break from the damp air turning crisp first snow to slush and thoughts to home. Is it time? This layout isn’t a personal story. It’s a blend of memories and second hand emotions, of physical feelings and a lifetime love of model railways. That passage above is how I feel about the scene created. I wanted the story to be evident to those who viewed the final piece. How successful I’ll leave to you to decide. Looking now at these photos, the first thing I notice is that colour temperature is so difficult to photograph and a few of these appear more yellow then they do in reality! The closest are the first and last. So, back to the model. Last time the basic scene was together and the natural elements had all been placed but one, perhaps the key element, was missing. The platform. This is a key part of that story, I want the observer to imagine waiting for a train alongside the river in cold winter. It was my friend James who observed that placing the platform at the front of the scene, between the viewer and the track helps us imagine standing, waiting for the train to arrive. A word on construction for those interested - 40thou styrene for the deck, scribed lightly to suggest planking. Support legs from 1.5mm square, railings from 1mm square, drilled for 0.35mm brass rod with a top from 0.75 x 1.25mm. Primed then painted in Humbrol 98. I was keen for the winter feeling to go beyond the bare trees, brown tinged grass and cool light temperature. How to suggest just the lightest of snow on the platform? A dusting of white primer I thought… which certainly added a nice tint to the trees and just a hint on grass. Foot prints would suggest that driver, guard and a solitary passenger have already moved about on this cold morning - added using Humbrol 31 and 98, stippled on with a ‘shoe’ made from styrene rod. Whilst the result wasn’t bad, it didn’t feel like snow. Too ‘matt’, too dead perhaps? I masked the track and grass and lightly sprayed on some gloss lacquer. Result, just a gentle sheen, it suddenly felt like I was looking at, feeling like making footsteps through light snow, turning to slush, trying not to slip on the wooden surface… A project like this started as a chance to practice skill and try out new ideas. Adding the story however has created a much more rewarding experience. Our hobby has the potential to transport not only us but those that share our hobby. Friends, family, strangers… in my home my partner has commented on the success of this little scene and imagining waiting for a train on that cold wintry day, engaging with my love of trains beyond my own experience, but through a personal connection herself. So where does this leave Traeth Hafren? Traditionally complete for sure, and yes, finished too… emotionally I am done. It has been a short but rewarding journey. I love model railways. Until next time, more soon…

Last year I enjoyed exploring the possibilities of using an IKEA Mosslanda shelf in my Wrecsam project. The options these pre-formed wall shelves give you allow for a scenic area about 9cm deep and 55cm long, perfect for a HiFi micro… The wind never lets up and it is truly miserable. You’re here to feel alive. It was in many ways inevitable that with my meandering thoughts of an art installation, blended with the curiousity I harbour for single line branch terminus that it became a format I revisited. Let me introduce my latest HiFi micro, ‘A winters day, Traeth Hafren’. Heavily inspired by the Severn Beach landscape, in this small study I was keen to experiment with portraying a cold, bleak winters day. The scheme, as suggested above, called for a small halt and some vestige of former industry but I felt that in the space available I would focus on just the natural elements. The two key things to make this scene work were fidelity in the winter trees and a cooler light temperature. The usual box was constructed from a mixture of 6mm MDF and 3mm hardboard just glued together. The base in this instance saw the track bed raised from the base for two reasons. It would allow me to create a laminated spine for the fiddle stick, and the contrast in the height of the land with the railway would better tell the story of an estuary location. Basic landform was mocked in with some off cuts of balsa for speed and blended in with sculptamould before painting in an earth shade if emulsion. The track was laid, painted, weathered and ballasted. The grass, choosing largely short wintry shades was added, all within 24 hours. The journey of creating some believable winter trees was documented in a seperate post. These 12 specimen were formed with an improving understanding of nature and the method using some fine copper filaments and their fine form, when intertwined on the layout has been a huge success. Small holes in the sculptamold allowed them to be planted with a dab of PVA, deliberately overlapped and the branches woven together to create that mess of tangled branches I was keen to represent. We’ve all stood beside the sea, or on a bleak estuary. Imagine being back there now in the depths of winter. Little shelter to speak of the cold air seems to carry a sadistic quantity of moisture, almost invisible but whose purpose is to soak you through and force you back inside. The wind never lets up and it is truly miserable. You’re here to feel alive, and to feel the benefit of getting on that train, in that car or into the warm lounge bar of the local pub. This is the feeling I wanted to imbue in the piece. The back scene started out as a slice of overcast sky on a ID paper backscene that felt suitable wintry. Added to this was a slice of the Severn estuary faded and subdued, carefully cut and stuck with Prit-stik to the bottom edge. This has just a hint of the river along its base and has worked even better than imagined. N scale is often about a balance of fidelity and neatness, I decided the distinctive post and wire fence could be represented using a combination of 1mm styrene for the concrete posts and wire for the metal strips, and this has worked very well indeed. Providing a man made vertical order to the natural environment and giving a boundary to the railway. The lighting however was still too warm. I used my usual natural white LED strip, I wondered if I could tint a number of the LEDs in the strip to alter the temperature. Adding some blue Sharpie pen proved the concept and by altering how many I coloured in, and where in the strip, modulated the cooler look I was after. Mistakes could be adjusted with a brush dipped in IPA. Sadly the Sharpie appeared to burn off and fade after half an our if the lighting being on, so a more permanent solution was sought in the form of Tamiya clear blue. This worked a treat, as we will see in part 2 next time. This project has been a great deal of fun and produced tangible results in a short period of time. It may not have huge operational interest, but for me, it is driven by an artistic interpretation of the prototype rather than running trains. In addition, it’s an opportunity to practice or hone new skills away from my other projects and customer work, this ‘sharpening the saw’ has been a real discovery in recent years and I thoroughly enjoy creating these smaller works, test pieces but conceived in a manner that they can be traditionally ‘complete’ in relatively short order. Until next time, more soon…

Let me start at the end. I enjoy getting lost in the prototype, especially on a Sunday morning on the sofa with the dog and a good book. In recent years I’ve found focusing this ‘distraction’ into a small ‘HiFi micro’ is a good opportunity to practice not just some new skills but also to hone my artful interpretation of prototype to model. This latest example has a distinctly colder feel, and was inspired by photos of the Severn Beach branch in the late 1970s and 1980s. It is 55cm long, 10cm deep and is self contained with fiddle stick available for (limited) operation. I have written about the project on the blog, so will share those specific posts here now as well…

Yes, just off stage! You can ‘play’ with Paxton Road with a brake van, but you then need to account for that in shorter trains otherwise things snarl up with the magnets.

Thank you - that one sentence sums up why I do it. Bringing you right into the scene, enough of my own story evident to help frame your own.

I’m dyed in the wool enamels… but am intending to try out some of their acrylics to see how they behave. My concern is a wash with water as a solvent won’t work, and IPA for me in the past has left a white haze.

This is a great question, thank you! I love thinking about this sort of thing… I view my models at eye level so the overly thick edges never really bother me actually, but even if they did, I’m not sure I’d bother - I’d rather a thicker consistent edge then a wavy ‘thin’ one. I think as an artist I’m happy with this compromise, but equally accept others who may have a different approach and balance they’re happy with.

Two staples of BR for many years were the humble class 08 shunter and the 16t mineral wagon. Long lived stalwarts, unsung heroes, battered, bruised and full of character… Often we see all sorts of exotic vehicles represented in pre-Speedlink pick up goods, but by far the most numerous should be the humble mineral wagon, representing largely coal traffic across the country, heating peoples homes and fueling our industry. This quartet of N gauge examples are all from the Graham Farish stable, and are lovely models that capture the prototype well. Note two different body styles… some of the MCOs were repaired and re bodied without top flap doors. Less obvious are the different brake arrangements. Out of the box three were pristine, and even the weathered example lacked realism. The usual wash (98/33) applied to the chassis and I thought I’d try it on the body as a first step. Disaster! I’d not thinned it enough and it was a bit thicker than usual. Oh well, I persevered and finished the side and used a brush to carefully remove it rather than the rag I’d normally have used to remove a thinner wash, leaving it just a trace in the edges and crevices. No, this brush removed thicker wash was much heavier and the results looks very pleasing, so much so that I carried on across the batch. The trick is to keep the streaks as vertical as you can, to maintain a plausible result. The rest is observation, years spent absorbing the prototype in photos and reality, letting those memories inform the strokes and flourishes with the brush. Posed here on Paxton Road with the 03 they share a family likeness yes no pair are the same. Another wonderful accident and one I’ll save up for future, we only learn from having a go, so I’d encourage you to try your own hand at your models and breathe some life into them... This post is copied from today’s blog. I update my website daily with a myriad of projects in different scales, gauges and prototypes. If you enjoy this sort of thing then take a look: https://paxton-road.blogspot.com If you’ve not seen it, I’ve added another thread about my more recent HiFi micro layout, Lochdubh, Scottish highlands in the 80s…

Complete, yet far from finished. This wonderful N gauge Class 37 is done. Sat on Lochdubh it feels real, it has presence, it has mass, it has character… In part 1 (above) I talked about both ‘why’ and ‘how’ this model was created, and closed with a tempting photo of her part weathered. The only change from here to there was the airbrush, and the transformation by adding roof and frame dirt and the way this softens and smoothed the transitions in the wash. As an artist we’re telling a story through plastic and paint, informed rather than instructed by the prototype. A word on method, the bible, Welch’s ‘The Art of Weathering’ gives some ideas on how to achieve these results. Read it, absorb it, practice the craft and focus your attention on what and why you’re working on something. In this case I used a mix of Humbrol 31, 133 and 27004 to blend across the nose and roof panels and along the bottom edge of the tumblehome. These photos, which allow incredibly cruel close ups compared to the tiny size of the model I hope show just how right the basic proportions of the Farish model are - yet too, how much the lowering, detail and weathering have transformed the donor from a toy to a ‘work of art. Here is a model that literally oozes character. This isn’t the end of the story, just the beginning. Above, 37035 arrives at Lochdubh with the 11:55 departure from Inverness. We see another new arrival, a Farish Mk1 buffet coach… these models look great and ignite my imagination on this small cameo for now, but the longer term plan for some sort of exhibition layout based on a passing station further up the line continues to fuel the interest in 80s British Rail in the Scottish Highlands. Until next time, more soon…

The English Electric Type 3, The ‘Tractor’, the British Rail Class 37 is a locomotive I have enjoyed owning in miniature for three decades… From my first to my last they’ve spanned two gauges and three manufacturers, barely touching the plethora of available models over the same period. Interesting, well, slightly, is the fact that the first, the first after ‘the teenage gap’ and the most recent (here) all share the same body form, probably my favourite, the plated split headcode. For my ‘Scottish’ day dream I wanted another split headcode 37, in BR blue. It needed to have cut away buffer cowling, plated head codes, non plated boiler, RETB aerial but no headlight. Oh and ploughs! A suitable donor model, one of the recent ‘Dutch’ liveried examples, was acquired before Christmas. This more recent Graham Farish tooling dates from the noughties and appears to be a shrunken version of the OO model of the same period, the one that formed the basis for my last three 1/76 models. This means largely accurate and well captured character of these distinctive prototypes. However, as with the OO model the biggest compromise is ride height, that was jacked up by the designer to allow it to traverse trainset curves with overscale flanges. Whilst I don’t plan to do anything with the latter, I don’t have any of the former so lowering was definitely on the cards here. This post pulls together some photos that have appeared previously to tell the complete story. The model was stripped back to bare plastic in IPA and modifications to the body included removal of the headlight on the noses as well as the access door on the side next to the 3 grills. As the noses are removable they were painted separately (no difficult masking) and Fox decals were used to relieve the slab like blue finish. Lowering (shown above too) is achieved by some minor surgery. The body has some ribs with clips at the bottom, the latter need carving off. The cab interiors are removed. The lighting contact boards at each end of the chassis are notched, increasing the size of this notch allows them to be pushed lower. The fuel tank is lowered. I aim for around 1mm all around, which captures the heft of these brutes much better. It was pleasing to see how close I got with the latest model (below right) against my previous efforts (left). On this model I wanted to add more to the chassis and so some photos I took many years ago came in to use (here and here) for building up the speedo drive on one of the trucks. The last thing is adding the brake chains (!) which looks feasible but I’ve not managed to secure the chain to the lever yet (it’s blackened and doesn’t take to superglue very well). I shall persist. So as things stand today she is sat waiting for weathering, but posed below (and top) on Lochdubh has all the promise of the model I saw in my mind when I started - the feeling of attraction, of warmth to this ugly machine is present, it’s almost like the split headcode is like a face? Anyhow, it’s a long held feeling and one that is wonderful to exercise now in N gauge. When you’re working on a model, in any scale, one intended to become ‘a lead actor’ the choices you make in what to include and what to overlook are very personal. Yes, there are plastic moulded handrails, no car headlight (yet!) and perhaps other details I don’t see - but this isn’t intended to be a scale precision model, it’s a memory machine, an emotional engine to drive our hearts and tell our stories. I love this hobby, this craft. Thanks for reading today, until next time, more soon…

I've really fallen for the 1980s Scottish layout day dreams that have been a part of my life since as long as I've known my childhood friend Tim. They come and go, but in N scale I've found the perfect blend of character, modelling and achievable results... For the next part of the story I needed a few extra wagons - the Farish OBA are a pair I picked up at Warley and can be used for timber or fertiliser traffic on my fictitious Highland branchline. In the early 80s British Rail converted a number of under utilised OCA wagons for the blossoming return of timber to rail, coded OTA. However this is a gap in the N gauge RTR range - so rather than hold my breath for a Farish example (well, they do one in OO!) I've assembled a pair of Chivers kits. Painted and weathered, I think you'd struggle to tell the difference in origin so I'm happy with the results and look forward to seeing these on the back of passenger trains in the next chapter. They depict two different era of timber traffic on the Lochdubh branch. The OBA were a general purpose air braked open wagon, without stakes they had a limited pay load for timber, but their use proved the traffic was worthwhile and led to the modification of the under-utilised steel bodied OCA to provide the OTA. These distinctive vehicles continued to handle timber traffic into the early years of this century. On Lochdubh, the OBA will operate with the Class 26 - and as well as timber can be utilised to represent the occasional fertiliser trains that ran in the early 1980s. They are 'out of the box' Farish models with the couplings replaced with DG and a weathering wash to the chassis, body and wagon interior making the most of this characterful tooling. A really useful wagon and a lovely model. The OTA will be used in the later period, when Class 37s took over from the 26. They will be attached to the rear of passenger trains as required, as was the case with the real Kyle of Lochalsh service in the same period. I opted for a light blue, which was specific to one particular customer, but all the OTA I can find photos of in the period in question on the Kyle line were blue. These Chivers kits are built 'as they come' with a number of stakes cut off to match the prototype. Fitted with DG couplings and weathered to represent the sort of hard use they would have encountered in service.

I’m not sure Keith, I suspect not. On the model it doesn’t add to the story as my preferred period is post RETB really anyway…

Good question, and I’ve been picked up on the station signs when attempting to pull off a 70s view previously. Signalling is not something I have considered, no - it’s interesting, as you say, because in this instance they’d be off stage anyway. RETB is certainly a good excuse when running 37s, less so with the 26.

The Time Machine has gone a little haywire, we seem to be back in the 70s…

The branch-line, if you can describe sixty odd glorious miles as such, that traces the shores of Loch Carron for over a quarter of its wonderful journey didn’t see much freight in the 1980s… The Friday morning mixed, which lasted until 1984 and the end of the McRats reign, was carrying just parcels and fuel by the end. The glory days of a bustling rail served harbour long gone, the tracks which extended both sides of the island platform onto the pier rusty and severed from the tentacles of British Rail. However, occasional loads appeared at the Highland Terminus in the mid 80s using ‘modern’ air braked wagons. These trains worked as extras to the working timetable, there were occasional deliveries such as here, where the forestry commission needed large quantities of bagged fertiliser. Other notable freight trains were the timber trials, which despite being well loaded have always come to nothing (though there is rumour again that a new trial for the Norwood plant at Inverness is imminent, perhaps we’ll see WCRC 37s at Lochdubh on something other than rail tours in the coming years). These photos here though, depict 37418 shunting an empty ‘fertilser’ train in 1988. Bulk bags were carried in open air braked wagons, easily removed with a front loader on the old loading dock alongside the run around loop at the station. Whilst 37s were familiar both these freight trains and the type would soon disappear as 156s were introduced following the reopening of the Ness Viaduct in 1990.

“I arrived that morning, across the water. Glimpses first of that infamous pier side location, then sounds as I disembarked the ferry and walked up the slipway, the distinctive idle of an Sulzer diesel discernible above the noise of lapping waves and the cries of seagulls. A short stroll across the road bridge and down the approach ramp and a scene I had lived through photographs in treasured books awoke before me…” Opening prose to the article I penned for BRM. In the meantime, the arrival of 26040 has fulfilled the last of the 'boy hood' dreams of Scottish layouts and I'm resting easy, cosy and content in the feeling that all is well in my little slice of escapism.