pirouets
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Posts posted by pirouets
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A busy moment at Norton Rd. In truth nothing much has had much of a run recently so over the last couple of days I have given everything a good run. I've also been looking at whether I have any stock I don't need so considering what to do with a couple of locos and a rake of presflo wagons. In the case of the presflo's they just don't suit the era I am modelling and looking at the cyber-heritage website Devon has pictures of PCA wagons.
I also found a Class 31 I bought very cheaply some time back and after a good 18 months in the draw it now seems to run pretty well so it obviously just needed some time alone in a dark draw. (How I feel sometimes when models don't turn out the rights way)
One of my presents was a Petite Properties kit which is good timing given the article by Phil Parker in the latest BRM. In truth the idea behind getting this is to help work out how to improve my detailing in the future. Not sure whether I will go back and amend the shops recently built but I will be modifying the design in the future to create more detailed layers that I can add from thing card.
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Engineering works underway. I decided that I don't like ducking under every time I enter the shed so hinges fitted and we have a lift out section. In particular when raining I can get in out out far quicker.
It needs a couple of new pieces of track at the edges so for now the layout is out of action, or at least the ability to run in circles. If I have one goal to get done over the Christmas break it will be to get this finished.
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9 hours ago, 5BarVT said:
Somewhere on RMWeb I’ve seen descriptions of ‘home made’ downpipes that looked really good.
You're right and it was just after I put that in the search box, RMweb seemed to have a bit of a strop. Hmm, coincidence - you be the judge (given I should have been working
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Loaded up a bunch of content to watch on my tablet and knuckled down to the roofing for the shops. As you can see, we going need to have to place another order for their tiles. I think these have worked well though as rather than simply add each layer lined up by eye, I marked up the roof to create a row so got a much better overall alignment.
I do need to look at drain pipes and gutters. I tried some on the house backs (ratio or peco I think) but wasn't overly impressed so need to spend a bit of time with google as the shops will need a good long run.
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Platform canopies knocked up. I was going to go for a corrugated roof but I wasn't sure I could get the join in the corner to work so this station is lucky and still has its decent canopy roof. This shot does show one of the conundrums to solve - What do i put in the station building to rather than it just ending on the card back piece of the building?
I still need to think about whether I am going to add anything in to the buildings before I put the roof on.
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The signal box is now in place and the gravel path laid. This shot does make me wonder whether I should add point rodding or whether it will look Ok once the dirt and weeds are added. Just need to make the top of the chimney and a pot for it
Another building needing chimney pots but as I had the glue out I put the path in place. My thinking is that these are well kept cottages so small grass area's will be used to fill in between the path and the building.
I've mentioned I have been trying to come up with a timetable and in truth been struggling. The headache was trying to keep track in the fiddle yard of directiosn and what needed reversing. However had hopefully a light bulb moment so the time table is now designed on when the passenger trains will run and insert freight slots in to the timetable. I may have over done it on the amount of traffic in a day but easy to cut this down or adapt to create Saturday and Sunday workings.
Freight trains will then be run based on a dice system where:
Throw 1 - number that comes up represents the Fiddle yard slot to select the train. If the FY selected is empty because the train is out on the layout, then that train returns to the Fiddle yard.
Throw 2 - selects the destination where
1- Run through Norton Rd
2 - Run to Norton rd loops
3 - Run to Norton rd and shunt to sidings
4 - Run to Dinfield and shunt to sidings
5 - Run to Dinfield and send down branch line
6 - Roll again as don't have a destination
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Not sure how much will get done in the next couple of weeks. Just signed up to a 3 months of exact editions access to the Railway Modeller archive and currently reading my way through the 1950s.
I have been out to the shed and the last 3 shops have been added. Now for the fun part (aka the bit I hate) of detailing each of these. My thinking is I add a floor which will also help hold the card for the windows in place, add the fittings and then a back with some kind of image printed on it. The back of the shop will be the simplest as there are plenty of results from google searches.
UI thought it time I went back to Norton Rd and the signal box. I've added the fireplace and chimney. by sheer fluke I glued it in place exactly where the Metcalfe roof needs it to be but the plan is to make a better roof out of Scale Model Scenery weather roof tiles with plenty of bird poop.
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Consider it toned down. Again, the sketching pens were used. Step 1 was use one of the cool grey pens in the set and leave for around 30 seconds. After that, simply wipe over with some kitchen towel. The only piece I will have trouble with is by the loading edge of the platform and you can still see the original colour but I am thinking weeds can run along that edge to cover it.
Now, do I actually start finishing a building or build the next 3 shop fronts? I think actually finish the run and get the roof tiles in place is next along with think about the road/pavement surface for station walk.
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Another week and a bit more done on the shops with signs and windows added. I've taken delivery of roof tiles from Scale Model Scenery and need to have a think about the best way to apply them to a long stretch of buildings. Whilst waiting for things to dry on the buildings I have fixed the station wall in place.
The 2nd piece of cobblestone is down as well for the yard area and I have to say I do like these Cooch products. I have some offcuts where I will see whether I can tone the colour down, but if not I can live with that. I will add weeds and tyre marks whatever though.
Might also be time for some dusting looking at the roof of the Class 128.
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2 minutes ago, martin_wynne said:
That link exists only if you have actually bookmarked some posts.
Ah ha - will give that a go & thanks.
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5 minutes ago, AY Mod said:
Click on Profile from that drop-down and then play I-Spy.
Hmmm, something beginning with B. Your gonna have to give me a clue.
Looked at that and can't see it. What I can see is Your Achievements, Activity/Blogs, warning points, followers, about pirouets, profile info, recent profile visitors, edit profile, cover photo, See my activity plus the main menu bar.
Thing is if I inspect the code for the page I can see the link (and it works as I clicked it), but if I do a text search on the page as loaded for bookmark it only finds it in the content of this thread which is in the activity section so its not as if you hid it in white text on a white background.
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27 minutes ago, AY Mod said:
If you go to your profile there's a tab towards for 'My Bookmarks'.
Now its quite possible I am being a wally and have mis-understood something in earlier posts but I don't see this from my profile and it looks like this.
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So it turns out the app for the HM6000 is fine and its user aka - me is just a complete muppet. One of the things that annoyed me was if the phone went to sleep it would cut power to the track, until I found the setting that disabled that so now I can sit there modelling with something running in circles. Why is it so many men hate reading manuals?
As a result I spent a happy hour running trains for the 1st time in a while and was amazed when everything ran. The only unit that stalled was the class 108 which takes a bit of running in if left for a while. Still runs great for a 2nd hand purchase.
The shops are coming on though and I am definitely going to have to come up with interiors.
Given I can't possibly finish 1 thing before starting another the next block of 4 has been started. I won't join that on until each part is finished as there needs to be another 3 shops to the right to complete the run. I've also started fixing in the station wall which I said would wait till the main building was finished as I am happy I have all the measurements correct. Once the wall is in I can think about the road/pavement surface for the shop area.
I also need to make my mind up whether I am going to add working lighting to the layout. Still not sure I am that bothered if truth be told but we shall see. it might be I just don't fancy crawling under the boards.
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My arty son has some fabulous sketching marker pens which I have used to colour in the shop fronts rather than create some kind of paper design that I would then have to affix. My only concern is did I cut the windows to high so I don't have much room for the shop sign. We shall see as I need around 8mm for a 2ft high sign.
Also need to have a think about interiors for these but that's for another day.
In other news I am going to have a look at rigging my gaugemaster controller so I can use that when I decide I don't want to use the Hornby bluetooth controller. Sometimes I do find the phone interface just a bit unresponsive though that could be my 5 year old phone being a bit sluggish.
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2 hours ago, Captain Kernow said:
just dumbfounded
Sums up my thoughts when I saw your use of cling film. Such a simple idea and one I should have used before I stuck down some cobblestones up against a building that is far from finished.
Anyway, family off to bed so can watch the programme on catch up and then i'll have a vague idea about what everyone is talking about.
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2 hours ago, Captain Kernow said:
However, I have never, ever heard of anyone else taking a blow torch to model railway scenery!
Are you just jealous because you hadn't thought of it as a technique or had reason to? Anything on Callow Lane need a big of a singe effect?
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I really should focus finishing 1 building before starting another, but that's no fun so here we have the start of the shops that will form station walk. After taking this picture I wondered whether the shop fronts were to uniform so.......
... I flipped one of the doors around and created a centre door front. beauty of this is I can make 3 or 4 fronts and inter change them as I build. One of my kids has a set of colouring pens where you can blend the pens to make other colours so I am going to see whether that comes out better than creating a paper wrap for the shop fronts.
The next is nothing other than one to show the overall scene I m trying to create
Over in the station yard I have a sheet of Chooch cobblestones. its not glued down yet but I will get a 2nd sheet to complete the yard. I can then leave it like that or add a colour wash to dull it down. I should have some off cuts that i can experiment on for that. Just waiting for Hampshire Models in Basingstoke to get a new order in.
I wasn't planning to go there but had a morning off to play golf and ended up walking of the course after 7 holes as just wasn't enjoying it (might be the end for me & golf after some 38 years but that's another story). Instead spent the rest of the morning in the shed starting on the buildings in this post.
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Two new like options are needed
- Gulps in astonishment
- That's it. I quit
Also, is your local celebrity, Lady Scoggins prepared to grace such an establishment with her presence or is it still to down market?
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So taking a break from the station building i've made up the sections for the station wall. These are not fixed in place yet and won't be until the station building is finished and in but it achieves the effect I was looking for. I need to have a thing about the capping for this next. Not sure whether to cap with a row of vertical bricks or capping stone but I suspect it will be the latter.
I've also got a new toy to play with. Up till now I have used one of the tea strainer models for electric grass which has it limitations so getting a bit older meant I asked my wife for a larger one. Dug up a test piece I still have in the shed and will try things out on their 1st such as, weeds in the stone work, between the rails and a general grassy area.
Also if you look at the area by the station building, part of me wonders if a cobble stone yard area might be an option. Question is could I do it without covering the buildings and platform.
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8 minutes ago, AY Mod said:
No charge
Andy. Are you sure your not missing something here. Surely there is a whole variety of charging options you could have around moderation. Just look at what your average wheel clamper can get away with.
Forget getting the coat. I'm off to sit on the naughty step.
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I have to agree with Mr Muddy above. The layout has that sense of space about it which I think comes from having the scenic run either side of the station along with your idea of slightly raising the line from the countryside it is sitting in.
I don't know whether you ever saw a layout called Tapley in the modelling press but this has that same peaceful feel.
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1 hour ago, PhilJ W said:
When it comes to VAT almost everything includes VAT including food as the transport of foodstuffs to retail outlets which is still liable for the full VAT of 20%
Not all of it is. My reading of this says it depends on the point of supply. If supply is outside of UK, then its 0. What I can't find is a consistent view on how much we import though it seems to be around 35%. Agree there is VAT in transport but its part of the cost of the bread getting to the shelves. What can't be done though is then slap another 5 or 20% VAT depending on the category such as the chocolate pudding I had which had 20% VAT
Also if you have a look at this one, a huge amount of food is 0 rated. Though I can't figure out what VAT would be on a tin of biscuits if it contains partly covered in chocolate (zero vat) and fully covered (standard rate). Is it the %age of biscuits covered in chocolate? I had the Jaffa cake case explained to me some years ago by the QC who argued it. One of the things they did was make a huge Jaffa cake to show it decayed in the same way all cakes do and not like a biscuit.
Looked at our last Tesco receipt and only 9 items had VAT, which came to about £20 in total means £3.33 on the whole shop. I was surprised to find the Jacobs mini chedders being 0 rated but I guess they are a potato snack then.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/catering-takeaway-food-and-vat-notice-7091
1 hour ago, PhilJ W said:There are other benefits such as free bus passes and discounted railcards. Not everyone had the assets or money to afford a care home so its down to the local authority to pay for their care. Care for the elderly is second only to education on local authority budgets in spending. These costs are not included in the government figures neither are other social costs such as transporting elderly people to and from hospital.
Agree with all of that and been nosing around it got me nosing around to see what is in the local council budget. Do you have a link to a min wage person paying a nominal 48% when you look at all their costs. If you have a link would love to read it and see what I am missing.
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12 minutes ago, hayfield said:
You somehow edited a quote and somehow attributed someone else's quote to me. Please do not do spread untruths
My apologies and have edited the post to the correct poster and state the reason for the edit.
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4 hours ago, PhilJ W said:
Do you know where 90% of the welfare budget goes?
Can I ask where you got that figure from? I looked at the office for budget responsibility 2019 welfare report and it has £92bn of £223bn as pensions. I know pensioners do qualify for things like PIP (£24) & Housing benefit (£19bn) as well but they only make up about 1/3rd of the claimants based on working op v retired pop, but they don't get child benefit £12bn, tax credits £23bn. According to a 2016 OBR report the lions share of housing benefit goes to working age people £19bn.
PhiljW said - It has been calculated that someone working full time on minimum wage now pays 48% of their income in taxes
Do you have a link for that as I would be interested to read it? If i work out someone on minimum wage, they get £18720 a year and pay £1228 in income tax plus £1098 in NIC which works out to a 12.42% rate against the full £18720 (Source - Money supermarket tax calculator) If they can afford to pay in to their pension it gets lower nut a different question if a 20yr old doing their 1st job and a single parent with 2 kids. I know what they spend on can have VAT but if the have rent or mortgage, that is likely to be the biggest bill and 0 rated with utilities at 5%. Food will have VAT though not all of it, Staples such as bread, veg and cakes do not incur VAT.
Edit - my apologies to Hayfield for incorrectly attributing the quote to him.
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New Years modelling resolutions 2022
in Modelling musings & miscellany
Posted
Spend more time in the shed than at the gym. (Another who has a pandemic belly to work on)
Main aim though really is work on detailing and finishing things off rather than ripping it up and starting again.