wiggoforgold

I like all railways. My interest is more by period, starting with the 1960's, the decade I grew up in. Interest starts to taper off after 1968, though the blue diesels and blue/grey coaches of the 1970's and 80's bring back memories. No interest in anything post-privatisation. Although my current layout and it's predecessor are ex-GWR, I still see myself as an LNER modeller.

The entrance to Whitehill Tunbel can just be seen below the woods as the line leaves Lydbrook Dean. In the foreground are the quarry sidinges

I have found that getting the structurea done at an early stage is very helpful to the design process. Alex

Is the lorry an old Dublo Dinky model?

A few huts round the yard at Lydbrook Dean: A GWR lamp hut succumbing to the undergrowth. Model is a 3D print from Dartmoor Model Services. The office for the quarry loading siding started as a Ratio kit. An old garage in the woods at the back of the yard. The model is scratch built from plastic card. I used Slaters planked sheet for the sides and Wills clear corrugated glazing for the roof. I prefer the clear because it gives a slightly thinner section.

1623 shunting a brake van into Lydbrook Dean station.

Lydbrook Dean station was closed to passengers many years ago, but occasionally a rail tour ventures up the line. Here is 6400 with such a train.

The disused passenger station at Lydbrook Dean.

I feel a railtour coming on :)

One of the modelling mantras (presumably for GWR modellers) is “when in doubt, add a pannier”. A very useful idea. I like pannier tanks. They look like a proper engine, solid and dependable. Frankly, Thomas the Tank engine should have been one. The motive power on Lydbrook Dean is entirely panniers. In the period I am modelling, the early 1960’s, they were the principal motive power in the Forest of Dean, and I am making models of all the types on view. The Bachmann model provides an excellent starting point for the original 57xx and later 8750 classes. Bachmann make both types. Not a lot of work is required to either type, but I have made a few modifications to add some missing detail. and add a bit of individuality to what would otherwise be a plain black (or green if you are modelling pre-nationalisation) 0-6-0 tank engine. Dealing first with the omissions, perhaps the most glaring are the missing grab rails on the footplate above the front steps. I have added these from Alan Gibson handrail knobs and 0.33 brass wire. The Gibson knobs emphasise the chunkiness of the Bachmann knobs. These could be replaced by finer items, but so far I have left these alone. To my mind the improvement in appearance would be lost unless I could make the basic alignment of the knobs and handrails as good as what is already there. I don’t think a finescale “improvement” is appropriate if the end result isn’t as good as what was already there, and instead detracts from rather than enhances the model. The other omission is the sandbox operating rods on the front footplate. An etched fret for these is available from RT models. These were made up and secured to lengths of wire inserted through holes drilled in the footplate. The etched rods are slightly short and the moulded sandbox filler caps on the footplate are not quite in the right place, so a bit of fiddling is required to line everything up. For the fastidious, better whistles and shield can be added from Modelu. On the earlier version, 8701, I changed some of the injector pipework running round the edge of the footplate with brass wire. Stem heat pipes and vacuum pipes are made up from more brass wire. Fine copper wire is wrapped round the brass wire to give the impression of the flexible hose. The cab roof shutter was opened out, and a new shutter made from 10 thou plastic sheet, which was fitted in the open position. Things like this add character, and help give the impression of a cab made from sheet metal rather that thick chunks of plastic. I am modelling the early 1960’s, when the locos were painted plain black. This is an easy livery to apply, and means I can use any model as a donor, notwithstanding the livery. After a basic coat of matt black ( I have has good results with a spray can of Games Workshop “chaos black”), areas such as the cab roof and footplate are picked out in variegated blacks, made by mixing a little dark earth and dark grey into the black. This can be applied by brush or spray. Using a spray will give a softer transition between the different shades. Transfers for crests and weight/power class are from Fox or Railtech. Numberplates and shed plates are 3d transfers from Railtech, which I find easier to use than etched plates, and equal in appearance. The 3d transfers are applied by soaking them off the backing sheet like a normal waterslide transfer. They are then put on to a piece of kitchen towel to dry out. The plates are stuck in place on the model. I use a drop of Rocket “super phatic” glue, applied to the spot where the plate will go. The plate is then put in place with a pair of tweezers. The glue allows a short time for adjustment before drying. I have also had good results using Clearfix. They are given a fine coat of matt acrylic varnish for protection. The locomotives are weathered. I am trying to achieve a balance between a clean loco and a completely filthy one. I want them to look grubby, but in good working order. I have tried to create a patchy appearance between areas that have been cleaned (round numberplates and crests for example) and areas where dirt has built up. Reference to photographs which show the build up of dirt are helpful here. After the basic painting is done, I gently spray the “cleaned” areas with Aquagloss varnish. A card mask is then held over the areas which are to look clean while the model is given a spray of Humbrol matt acrylic varnish, which leaves a contrast between matt and gloss areas. Further weathering is carried out with airbrushed coats of acrylic paints – various mixes of dark earth, matt black and dark grey. This is followed by the application of weathering powders, mainly smoke and dark earth. Gunmetal powder is used on areas where the paint had worn off – such as hand rails, the edges of steps and the edges of cab apertures where the crew have worn the paint away while leaning out. Wet patches round tank fillers are gloss varnish and oily areas such a wheel centres and parts of the back head are Mig engine oil. Individuality is created by coal in the bunker, crew, fire irons and lamps. As well as the Bachmann versions, there is a Rapido 16xx, which has been finished using the same methods.

Lydbrook Dean is alive! All the turnout motors have been installed and tested. The sections have all been wired up and apart from one small area, are operational. The biggest problem was the mystery short circuit that occurred when I first switched everything on. Extensive work with a circuit tester tracked it down to the centre and right hand roads of the 3 way point. A rewire of that area looms, but nothing that will stop progress with the scenery on the station board. Here's a picture of the unsuspecting 3 way point awaiting it's rewire.

Looking forward to seeing this at Wells at the weekend, Alex

Hi Chris The ballast is a mixture of Woodland scenics grey and brown ballasted. Mixed dry 50/50 and shaken together in a box. It is applied dry and soaked with Woodland scenics scenic cement Cheers, Alex

All the turnout motors have been installed. I’ve tested them with a 9v battery attached the the terminals. The Peco points make a satisfying “clunk” as the blades go across, the effect of the over-centre spring in the tie bar. I’ve made up a switch panel and installed the switches. The wiring is installed and the next step is to connect it to the switches.

I’m on holiday for the next two weeks (and it’s my birthday today) so I’ve set myself a target of finishing the installation of the turnout motors on Lydbrook Dean. 6 of 7 are in place so far, all working. Next I need to fit the last motor and start wiring up the switches. I’m using Cobalt motors rather than my usual Tortoise as they are about 10mm shorter. One of the design criteria for the layout was that the folded layout should not project above the car seat backs. Shorter point motors means shallower layout frames which allows less height in the folded layout. In the picture I’ve put the plugs for the power supplies in place to show where they go.

Loving the dust covers. Didn’t think I would be spending the first part of Saturday morning thinking about dust covers, but there you go. Alex

It's a great little film isn't it? I referred to it a lot, pausing as necessary, when I did the interior of the signal box. There is also a film called "A brief journey" about a sailor's run ashore from Plymouth in 1954 which is on You Tube and has some nice scenes on the branch. Alex

I wanted a couple of brake vans for Lydbrook Dean. I decided upon an ex GW “Toad” and a BR standard 20 ton van For the Toad, I ordered a Rapido AA20, this duly arrived, and is a fine model. Somewhat controversially, it has a full interior, not much of which can be seen when the roof is on. To give access to the interior, the roof is held in place by tiny magnets, and this gives rise to another issue – because the roof is not secured in place, there is a visible gap between the top of the sides and the roof, which many find detracts from the model. So far this hasn’t been a problem for me, and I will leave it loose at least until a guard is fitted. I haven’t done much in the way of alterations. The couplings have been replaced with Sprat and Winkle couplings and the allocation name was carefully removed from the black patch A replacement allocation was applied, using a bespoke transfer from Railtech. Weathering was done using the methods described by NHY581 in his thread. First, the glazing was masked off with Mig masking putty. Then the underframe and lower body were given a light spray of a mixture of dark grey and earth acrylic paints. Buffer heads and shanks were picked out with Mig “Old Rust”. The whole model was then sprayed with acrylic matt varnish. Powders were then applied. Patches of rust on the Ironwork were represented with iron oxide and earth powders applied with a small brush. The body sides were given an overall coat of Humbrol “smoke”. This was then removed from the individual planks with a 2mm glass fibre brush. Earth coloured powder was introduced to give the impression of peeling paint and old wood. Fading was introduced to the paint work by brushing with matt white powder. I worked on a section at a time, completing one section before moving on to the next. The roof was pre-shaded with matt black around the rain strips, the chimney and at the base of the roof. The whole roof was then given a coat of a mixture of smoke and dark earth powders. The chimney was picked out in red oxide and dark earth. Where paint was worn off grab rails by handling, a small amount of gunmetal powder was applied. The finished model was given a further light coat of matt varnish to seal the powders. In the past I had not done a final sealing coat as I was worried that a vanish coat would obscure the contrast between the colours, but I have found that if the powders are left unsealed for a few month, they can take on a slightly sticky, glossy appearance, which is far worse than any slight loss of contrast. The BR van is the Airfix model, which holds up well compared to more modern offerings, particularly remarkable for a tool 60 years old. (I’m not sure how old the kit I used was, probable about 45 years.) This one has a new roof from Plasticard replacing the over thick one in the kit. The new roof addresses the unfortunate error in the kit where the positions of the chimney and ventilators are a mirror image of where they should be. This one is fitted with MJT W-irons, Hornby wheels, sprung buffers (not sure of the source) and Lanarkshire models vac pipes. The moulded hand rails have been replaced with wire. It still awaits the horizontal hand rail, and I’m going to add a guard and lamps to both vans.

The 16xx is a new addition to the motive power for Lydbrook Dean. It’s a Rapido model, fitted with Sprat and Winkle coupling loops, Modelu crew, Railtech number plates and weathered with powders. I sprayed different areas of the body with gloss and Matt varnishes, to try and give a contrast between areas which had been given a bit of a clean, and those left dirty.

Behind the goods yard at Lydbrook Dean will be a stand of large trees, which merge into surrounding forest. Because these trees are quite large, they are higher than the space between to folded boards. To address this, I have made what I call “demountable” trees. These come apart in the middle of the trunk so that the top of the tree can be removed for transportation. This allows the base of the tree to be blended in to the ground. There are many ways of making realistic trees. I use an armature of twisted florists wire of various sizes. I start with a length of wire about twice the height of the finished tree, This is doubled over, and the open end held in pliers while the looped end is turned to twist the wires together. I work from the outer ends of the branches, as this gives greater control over the height and shape of the finished tree. Some thought to the basic shape at this stage allows for different species to be modelled. The twisted wire branches are built up round a central core of telescopic brass tube, which allows the trunk to be jointed in the middle. The tube for the upper section fits into the tube for the lower section. A short length of the tube for the lower section is glued to the top of the tube for the upper section to prevent the top section from slipping down into the trunk. The wire branches are secured to the lower tube with masking tape, and on the top section I leave a “tail” which fits inside the brass tube. The wire armature is given several coats of a bark mix. The texture of the mix will depend upon the species of tree being modelled. You can make your own bark mix form plaster, pva and sawdust, but I am currently using Treemendus bark powder. Once this is dry, the basic trunk can be painted: water colours are fine for this, or you can use well thinned acrylics. I start with a brownish-grey colour, and add mixes of slightly different shades. The is no need to wait for coats to dry, as we want them to blend together. Lydbrook Dean is set in the autumn. I think autumn trees are harder to model than summer trees, as they have a much more open appearance, particularly as the season moves towards winter and the finer branches become visible as the leaves fall. I spent some time studying trees in the outside world before embarking on the models. I am fortunate to have a group of trees at the bottom of my drive, and I took photos of these every week or so as Autumn drew on, so I could see how the appearance changed over the weeks. The finer outer branches are added from acrylic fibre or theatrical hair. If necessary, this can be painted before application – a browny-grey colour sprayed from an airbrush od spray can. I use what is to hand, currently Halfords camouflage matt brown. The fibres are stuck to the ends of the wire branches, either with pva, or gel superglue. The super dries a lot faster and I have a spray of superglue accelerator to hand to speed things up further. When the glue is dry, the fibre branches are teased out some more so that they stick out from the wire branches, and any loops are trimmed off. Leaves are made from scatter, fixed with hairspray. I work a section at a time. The branches are given a squirt of hair spray, and scatter is sprinkled on. I start with Treemendus fine autumn orange scatter. Various shades can be added, and I add some darker green under the branches to help impart shadows. Be sparing with the scatter, so as not to lose the open appearance. With the scatter in place, the tree is given a shake in order to rove any loose bits, and the whole can then be given a mist of scenic cement to hold everything in place. The scenic cent dries matt, but when it goes on the entire tree will take on a whitish appearance until it dries. Don’t panic, it will go away. Alex

Morning Rob. It was fine working with the powders. I used them dry this time, resisting all temptation to add any wet stuff, and following the process In your “how to”. I did a small area at a time, and found myself using a lot of Matt white to tone down the wood. Powders used were mainly Humbrol, with a couple of Mig. Alex

Very pleased with my Rapido toad. Not sure if I needed the full interior but it doesn’t detract from the model. I’ve changed the couplings to Sprat and Winkle with a new depot allocation from Railtech. Weathered with powders.

While we are waiting for an update on the J70 I thought I should post a photo of my Rapido Toad, weathered following Rob’s “how to” a few pages back. All done with dry powder.

This weekend I’m working on fitting couplings, so rather than a photo of bits of brass, here’s a pannier shunting what I’ve done so far in Whitehill quarry.

A pannier shunts outside the entrance to Whitehill Tunnel. The trees are a mixture of Seafoam and my own using wire armatures and acrylic fibre sprinkled with orange scatter. The brambles are teased out acrylic fibre, sprayed brown and laid in place before being given a coat of hair spray to hold it in place, followed by a sprinkling of scatter. The whole is given a spray of scenic cement to hold everything in place.