jamest

Hi all, Bit more progress on the wire fence. I ran a black sharpee pen over the plastic thread a couple of times to tone the white/clear clean nature of it. I cut two lengths so I could loop it through the end ‘stick’. The top two wires being one piece and the bottom two another. I glued them to the stick so I could lightly pull the wire through and tension it later. The stick tapped into its hole, I took the time with drilling to get a nice tight fit so it sits firm but is removable. Then it is careful threading work with the tweezers! The bottom line is the worst as it is partly buried and amongst the grass. I have drilled and put a stick at the other end by the wing wall too….this will be covered/obscured by undergrowth. All threaded with the stick tapped down further. I need to re-apply some paint. I have covered the walls with block paper. The larger wall is not fixed yet as I need to weather it. I will put another concrete post in at the end of the wall to finish the join. Overall view, really pleased with it….ignore the bush that has fallen on the track! You can see the bulldog clips weighing down the wire ends. I will apply glue to secure and tie off the ends against the final stick. A decent weekends progress. Cheers, James

Hi all, Bit more progress to report. I have installed the gate and made some progress around it. I have decided to have a wall coming off the gate and angling away to the track. The wire fencing can then start behind the corner and go along the road. First I cut a foundation in the existing terrain. I like the fact there will be grass and earth at the base of the scenic side of the wall. The wall is a 2mm card sandwich and will be covered by Scalescenes block wall sheets. I have also drilled the holes for the posts. I plan to use a piece of wooden kebab stick as the first post behind the wall. It will enable me to drill a deep hole for it and tension against it when I pull the wire through. I know in the real world it would have a 45 degree bracing post, but this is a better solution for the model world and will be mostly hidden by the wall. See the left hand post below, a nice tight fit in the baseboard so I can remove and replace it later. It is double this length to get a decent resistance to leaning later. Posts in and drying… Regards James

What a great idea, basically a picture, or scene, with a moving element to it. Really good, and the station structure is interesting and suits the layout well. Thanks for sharing it. Regards James

Hi, To be honest I always take a few attempts to get it right..ish. I use Atwood aggregates fine road stone, then paint it, then apply sieved wood burner ash over glue or paint. I think the best result, for the yard, is ash on wet humbrol gloss 40. Then add glue and sprinkle more later. The roads are neat Atwood aggregates road stone. It always requires going back and adding more and mucking about with. I was very pleasantly surprised with the match I got on the new bit behind the gate on the second board versus what I did a few years ago around the signal box. I will add more powders and clumps of static grass and weeds. Thanks for all the kind comments. James

Hi, Welcome to the forum……loads of inspiration here. There is a place on the forum dedicated to layout planning……Skills and knowledge centre…. layout and track design It may be best to ask there as there are several very helpful people keeping an eye out. I would advise browsing for a while as well….but you might well have already done that! If you are anything like me it might take a few attempts to get to what you want. Good luck. James

Hi, Yes I bought a few kits and I’m really impressed so far. i have painted the gates and added the strapping and hinges. Bit of weathering to do before planting. I mentioned the kit for the utility building and here is the rough shell approximately placed. I need to paint the ledges, add guttering and alarm, etc. A back view only the operator will see in case anyone needs to see the back. I have also bought some concrete posted single and double bar metal fencing for around the yard. Decided on the double version. The posts are painted with Tamiya deck tan. Not finished but you get the idea. Undergrowth will take over as the fencing reaches the grass. Cheers James

Hi again, I’ve made up the Scale Model Scenery gate for the yard/signal box area. I don’t believe it is necessarily a western region example but I like it and have decided to apply rule 1! The hinge bars are temporarily in place to drill the post holes….i need to paint it and add the hinge/plate detail. It’s a really nice kit and goes together very well. Regards James

Hi Graham, Thanks. I have made some trees on other layouts (see Niwbwrch in my sig), but these are pieces of seamoss sprayed brown and covered in scatter. I think they look good for “full” trees but the actual trunk looks relatively thin and is best hidden. Regards James

Hi, I have now continued to blend in the track with powders and sealed it with Matt varnish from a rattle can. It blends ok with the original board and hints at locos spending time around the signal box running around. I have also painted the new fascia panels and reinstalled the lighting above. Here are some pictures of this progress with better lighting. I am pleased with how the trees sit at the back and hide the back scene join (not between boards, but the seam on the back scene paper just after it). I received a package from scale model scenery today with some gates, fencing and a possible different utilitarian building for the hard standing on the new board. No pictures of this yet but I hope to make some bits up this weekend. Cheers for now, James

Hi all, Happy new year. Got a bit more progress to report. I’ve ballasted the track with some fine grey ballast. I have also started to weather the track with a brown wash. It will need blending with the track on the other board. I have also started to blend the bridge with the rest of the scenery. The back blends to the back scene and is partly obscured by the fascia so you can’t look directly into the fake end of the road. The front looks strange as the brick turns from the column to the road bend but this will be disguised by shrubs. The back hedge is dry and I have added another tree. I pleased with how the back scene blends and how the seam is disguised. I need to procure a yard gate and then I plan a wire fence on the near side of the road. Regards James

Hi all, Hope you are all set for a great Christmas. I have re fixed a new column on the bridge and weathered the plate girders with powders. I now need to weather the brickwork with a bit of grime too….and add the brick pillars on the backside. I have also added more layers of grass and some scatter on the roadside. I have added some trees on the back-scene sheet boundary to hide the hill mismatch shown earlier. The basic hedge is added - it is horsehair teased out, sprayed with the camo brown paint I use for the track, and covered in scatter. I was going to use brown painted stirring sticks to plant the hedge on but it didn’t work very well so I have usd them to skewer down the hedge with the pva dries. Merry Christmas to all, hope to get some more done in the break from work. James

Hi all, Bit more progress to report. I have plaster bandaged the terrain and painted it brown. The track got a lot of plaster residue on it so I will need to go over it dry brushing some more sleeper grime. There will be a gate and parking area on the flat section of the second board. Here is the basic grass laid alongside the hardstanding. The hard standing was Atwood aggregates road stone to get texture. It is then painted with humbrol gloss 40 and sieved wood ash is dusted over it when wet. I am really happy with the initial blend with the existing surface around the signal box. The bridge needed a repair to one pillar, so it is getting a new brick surface. regards, James

Hi Liam, Don't know how far you are from Barnstaple - but there is a shop called Small world in Bear Street. He is a decent chap who can offer advice and his prices are really good - he always has second hand stuff too. Regards, James

Hi, Quick update and shout out to a fellow RMwebber. I purchased a signal box sign from Phil, aka Harlequin, to go over the Blue Anchor one. He supplied it but I found it did not completely cover the existing sign. My fault in that I had not told Phil a length or where it was going…., and in the fact I picked a new name that was not long enough! Anyway I got back to Phil and he very kindly adjusted the sign to match my length requirement…..so here it is. The ‘as bought’ version and Phil’s version stuck and covered in Matt cote. You can see the difference in the text and quality even in 4mm. Very pleased and shout out to Phil for his help and patience! Regards, James

Hi, Can I ask who makes/supplies that lorry? I'd like one of those. Regards, James

View Advert BR Standard Class 3MT Tank 31-976A For sale 3MT tank engine. Loco run in only, in perfect condition, with detail pack unopened. DDC ready, NOT fitted. Box slightly worn from storage. Bank transfer only please. UK postage only. Free recorded delivery, I can only post Wednesdays and Fridays from my village post office. Can arrange pickup or drop off if you are nearby in Devon. Advertiser jamest Date 05/12/23 Price £95 Category OO / 4mm scale  

Hi all, A week on and some more progress to report. I imagine a lot of people experience the same thing but I find it good to have different projects on the go as my mojo for each one ebbs and flows. I have been lucky enough to be left to my own devices for a few days which meant extended sessions in the shed. I have added some celotex in and around the road. I will cover it in plaster bandage and I could have possibly used card formers and newspaper underneath….but I like to have the insulation underneath for a solid base for trees and posts. I think I will add road access to the signal box via a gate. This will mean the hut will have to move, or rotate, to allow access between it and the track by foot. I have also had the benefit of one of mudmagnets prototype ramshackle hut. I must use this instead to indicate a general decline in the facilities. Not sure yet. I’ve also made a start on the bridge structure. I have recycled some of the plate girder from the previous road bridge. I have plenty of scalescenes brick sheet in stock and decided to go with dark red brick for the abutments. I still need to repaint and weather the metalwork and weather the brickwork. It is sealed with Matt varnish to protect for when I start slinging plaster bandage around! regards James

Hi all, Bit of an update. I’ve been busy with the O gauge layout but like to take a break every now and then and find this layout as a nice distraction. I recently obtained some nice timber from an old bed a neighbour was ditching. I was not happy with the fiddle yard, which was more of a temporary frame for the cassettes. So I thought about rejigging the fiddle yard and also changing the 2 foot extension on the scenic part. The bridges and canal were ok but I decided to redo it and make it disappear under a bridge instead….building up the terrain around it. I planned to combine the 2 foot scenic and 3 foot fiddle in one 5 foot piece….using my free new timber. I think, to be honest,I like tinkering with the layout so that’s why I changed it! Here is the extension as was….a 2 foot board on it’s own. And here is the start of the new second board. 5 and a bit foot of which 2 foot is scenic. initially the track was going to be straight as before. But I decided to curve it slightly and angle the cassette in the FY. I have had to compromise a bit on the back scene as I did not have a perfectly matching back scene. I will hide this join with a tree. The sky is a decent match. The road will rise and cross the track. I have redone some of the fascia on the top of the first board as it got whacked and bent! I want to incorporate a building representing a telephone exchange, or random utility building to ‘bridge’ the gap from the road to the provender store. The celotex gives me the height slightly below the road to break things up. It won’t be that big an area and will slope away to the track and main board. I know this might be described as change for changes sake….but I do enjoy building, and the fiddle yard is better integrated. Cheers James

Hi, It does look great - really looking forward to seeing it at the show. Good luck with the transport and set up. Regards, James

Experiment embedding Utube…. Sorry, I know it’s not layout progress, but wanted to share the Paul Chetter/Zimo sound for reference.

Hi all, Not a great deal of progress recently as I’ve been on holiday. Had a great time in Anglesey, but one of the highlights was meeting up with David aka Jintyman on the way back to pick up my Hymek. He has added sound, numbers, some yellow panels and weathering and done a fantastic job. So here are some photos of his work, not mine! Regards James

Hi Dave, I didn't realise that - We didn't chat, but I would have if I'd seen you. I wasn't there that long. We did speak at the RMweb day in Taunton in 2022 as I asked about your buildings on Bridport. Thanks for the advice on the signal box - I'd accepted the other one and you never question it until someone points it out. It is brave to point it out - I understand you have to be careful with advice on forums. Hopefully we will bump into one another in the future again. Regards, James

Hi, Stupid question - because it looks pretty clear that you have painted two - but you plan to have a driver both ends? Its something I've thought about when I put people in my 122 - a driver both ends seems better than none to me. Regards, James

Hi all, I have completed the signal box and added some of the peco detail set. I also decided to use the door from the peco kit as it was a little better detailed. I also added some modelu guttering. This box sits much better in its surroundings, so thanks for the advice and suggestions for changing it. I also picked up some detail bits from my mate mudmagnet at the Exeter show. Some luggage and trucks, pallets, and tools/barrow. Started to paint them up. Cheers for now, James

Hi all, Ordered the box Friday, arrived Monday. It is a really lovely kit with lots of detail (self adhesive tile strips) and nice touches. Put the shell together tonight to offer up and check my measurements.... Think it is going to fit just right.... It has tape around it while it dries. Regards James