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lapford34102

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Everything posted by lapford34102

  1. Hi, Thanks Kev. Any help appreciate and yes it will take 2 min longer to learn than St J. :-) Stu
  2. Hi, Got the Broadstairs show over the weekend. Unfortunately my help for Saturday has gone down with galloping horribles' so if anyones is around during the day who would like a spell on the layout I'd be very grateful. Even if it's only for the odd 10 mins or so here and there. Thanks Stu
  3. HI, I took about 30 wagons to Braunstone which was probably three times too many so have been reviewing what I have and thinking about what I might take to future shows. I know weathering stock is a matter of personal preference but I like it though perhaps not so much the factory stuff. I’m a bit baffled though that there a plenty of loco’s but not much stock because to mind a weathered loco on clean stock looks odd. If you have a look at “good†layouts you’ll notice that they tend to be consistent across everything in how they do things. For example I find weathered stock alongside shiny road vehicles rather incongruous but then that might just be me. Anyhow a few examples below that were quite simply weathered with an dark coloured wash over the body and roof varying amounts of which are taken off with a flattie brush dipped in thinners and then partly dried off. The frame is airbrushed with dirt and finally a fine mist of gunge, a mix of black and dark earth, over the whole thing. Now it’s quite feasible to this with a hairy stick and there are plenty of examples to prove that but an airbrush is probably easier. They don’t need to cost a fortune either, so if you’re considering having a dabble then have a look at http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/product/details/pro-air-brush-kit-cab2p/path/spray-guns-spraying-equipment-air-brushes or https://airbrushes.com/index.php?cPath=1_11_146&osCsid=eda2b2c82f0fd7a61ea9338d1e820bfe The pics, a mix of Bachmann and Dapol rtr and Parkside kits. Most shows their fair share of small layouts though I do get the impression that with the bigger shows it tends to be a token presence. Now I’m sure this topic has already been argued to a standstill somewhere but I was interested to learn that someone was considering putting on a “Micro†show. A small event based on this idea was held earlier this year and seems to have been a success so a larger event is apparently being considered. Quite what counts as a micro/small/mini layout is undoubtedly debatable but as an idea I think it has merit. After all we have plenty of other niche shows so why not one for this sector. Cheers Stu
  4. Hi, Apologies to Jamie who asked the question back in March and Tangmere from yesterday. Hopefully the sky shot is as good as a trackplan. Dimensions are 5' by 1'. Length was determined by space in back of car. If you ever saw my miserable attempts at baseboards joins you'd know why I stick to one board efforts. It will have a small fold out extension to what passes for the fiddle yard but more for ease of use than any operational reason. The headshunt was designed to take a 76XXX standard and as you say it doesn't look out of place, neither does 33 or ED. Oddly enough a 4MT tank does look "wrong" for some reason but then it would probably be overweight for the line anyhow. Does mean you can have a bit of variation traction wise. Thanks for the responses Gents. Stu
  5. Hi, Well the layout had it's first outing over the weekend and despite a couple of issues I was really pleased with how it operated and also the comments made about it. A couple of pics Main problem was the wire loop couplings on the 08's were a little too lightweight and that coupled with the inherent variation in the wagons coupling heights, and it's quite a bit even from same firms RTR stuff, leading to a bit of buffer locking and the odd left behind train. Also need to illuminate the shunters pole. So a bit of tweaking required before the next show in 3 weeks time in Broadstairs. Got some more invites including one quite unexpected one but more about that in the new year. Cheers Stu
  6. Hi, Many thanks for that Gents. It looks as if the AEC will cover the time period for its initial outings. Stu
  7. LHS has some of these but not had a chance to have a close look but will do so. To lorrys. I think it's oldest on the left and newest on the right. No idea of what they except the RH which I think is a Bedford - which looks a bit underscale to me. As for period, again from L to R 40's, 50's, 70's, 60's Any advice/info gratefully received, Stu
  8. Hi, Thanks for the comments Gents. It'll be a bit a shock to have to cope with points after St Jude. I've tried to do something that will hopefully look equally comfortable with an open cab pannier with "BRITISH RAILWAYS" on the tanks to blue pre-tops diesels. Changing rolling stock to suit is obviously not a problem but getting the road vehicles right is another matter and something I need to get some learned advice on but more of that anon. It's a bit of a cop-out but avoids any problems with perspective, etc. My own view is that I'd rather have no backscene rather than an unconvincing one. Having no artistic skill I'm not going down the DIY road and am still in two minds about photographic ones though they seem to be getting a lot better. Cheers Stu Thanks for the responses. Stu
  9. Hi, Just a quick update. The Lane has got it's own scratchbuilt goods shed now - my first effort. Nothing extensive or fancy but perhaps a bit more in keeping with it's possible location(s) ! The debut show is small but is a charity event held in fairly unique venue in a church at Braunstone in Leicester on the 6th Nov. Not exactly down the road for me but have family very close and I helped out at it last year. Some info here - http://www.stpetersbraunstone.org.uk/?p=407 Other shows are at Broadstairs - usual venue but apparently larger - 27th/28th Nov and Tonbridge on 19th Feb - http://tonbridgemrc.co.uk/exhibition.aspx Hopefully a couple more in the pipeline as well. Cheers Stu
  10. Hi, The TC's were delivered in plain Rail Blue with aluminium arrows and white numbers etc. The numbers were quite a bit smaller than those used on the Blue/Grey livery and placed in the conventional position on the right hand end of the coach. This meant it was under the arrow on the driving trailer. Not a good shot but if you look closely you make out the number under the arrow. Perhaps someone's got a better shot or even colour ones. Cheers Stu
  11. Hi, Digging through some old railway docs looking for something completely different got sidetracked by this dating from the second half of 1966 when the TC's arrived but none of the fitted Cromptons. And yes, the extension hoses are mentioned on page 2. Cheers Stu
  12. Hi, No faffing about on these and with the emphasis on stock. First a Bachmann OBA And a tarted up Hornby "Collett" compo Stu
  13. Hi, Thanks for mentioning that My memory wasn't playing tricks after all. Now this might be total twaddle but weren't a couple of compartments in the brake of the 3TC's temporarily marked as First Class for a time with paper labels ? Not particularly good but this shot of a TC and Crompton at Weymouth was taken just after the full service commenced IIRC. The shots from the rest of the roll must be somewhere. Cheers Stu
  14. Hi, No offence taken. I'd actually forgotten about the bit about effects but my defence is that it is 20 odd pages ago. The only reason I picked that background was the lighting seemed to match that of the model so I simply cut round the unit image and plonked it in the background. There's actually a 747 hidden behind it. I'm no great photographer but the one thing that to me seems to be important is getting the lighting looking natural. Anyhow glad you liked it. Cheers Stu
  15. Hi, You're right, well certainly for the time I remember. There was an unofficial layup point on 4 that meant the Crompton didn't have too far to run back but gave a bit of leeway if the REP/TC came in a bit hot. The lead TC usually had the buckeye down so raising that was the first job of the shunter - wasn't there a lady shunter at Bomo for a time? - Crompton waved back on, ETH jumper then up for the 27 way and brake pipes. Brake test, check the Loudaphone and ready to go. Stu
  16. Hi, Some very impressive shots on here but to lower the tone for a moment here's my effort at a bit of basic Photoshopping. Cheers Stu
  17. Hi, Just to belatedly add to the comprehensive info about TC's etc already put on here. The Bomo electrification was done on a very tight budget that had to cover track, signalling, power supply as well as stock hence a lot of recycling. They also successfully argued that with electrification they could have very high utilisation of stock. At the start they had 15 REP's and it became quickly apparent that the theory didn't quite match the reality hence in VEP's destined for the Central Div got hijacked and became the 8 VAB. In theory it should have been able to handle a 4TC as well but I never saw it. It tended to be limited to London -Bomo peak services. It's right the 3TC were included so that an 11 car TC and loco could fit into Waterloo. What's often overlooked is that at the beginning not all trains were intended to be REP powered. Travelling on the line a lot 67-69 you were never quite sure what awaited you at Waterloo, or Bomo for that matter in the early days. It wasn't unusual to have to detrain at Bomo when London bound, walk up the platform and get on a REP/TC formation - stunning acceleration. Other trains - Two ED's pushing an 11 set - Fun, One TC Crompton and a 3TC+4TC - OK, 11 car TC with an ED in the middle, Aug 67 - never had that one explained as you could sit anywhere. Incidentally a Summer Sat train to Swanage was timetabled for a 4VEP/4TC/TC Crompton. VEP came off at Bomo. Reason - limited paths out of Waterloo. We even had a big ED (74) at Weymouth on a parcels. Only ever got pushed by a big ED once, pity. In '73 they got 4 more REP's,finally upped the 3TC's to 4 coaches and by then had more VEP's than the 20 they started with, things finally settled down. However for anyone interested in the summer/autumn of 67 Bomo saw HAP's, EPB's, and CEP's. I think there was a regular HAP turn but the others were one off's. I seem to recall some limits as the line was 750v from Brookwood (?)when the rest of the network was 650v. Cheers Stu
  18. Hi, That's very good, at first glance you'd be forgiven for thinking it was 4mm. any chance of you sharing how you've done the weathering ? Stu
  19. Hi, Today the sky went a strange colour - if my memory's not playing tricks I think it's called blue. This is in complete contrast to yesterday when I spent a soggy morning trekking through the Kentish rainforest ! Anyhow when I got back I had another look at the 350 and decided it was looking a bit too bland and that the photo's I'd taken barely rated a "poor". So out with the pastel chalks - if prefer these to the AFV weathering powders which I find too strong - and a bit of dry brushing to get a few highlights to relieve the black. So here's a few more which I hope show it more accurately. Stu
  20. Hi, A new loco for Drewry lane has been on the workbench for a few weeks now but six weeks of seemingly unrelenting hand to hand fighting with our new IT system (BSF Managed Service in case anyone else on here is in the same business) had left little time or inclination to get any modelling done. But it's settled down a bit and a chance to get on with this. When I sprayed the thing black it dawned on me that weathering it wasn't going to be that easy. For one thing contemporary colour photo's of black 350hp's seem almost non existent. In black black liveried shunters din't seem to get much coverage at all though I find them quite appealing and 13263 will probably be joined by a similarly liveried Drewy 204hp in time. In the event the loco was sprayed gloss black and then logo'd and numbered. It was then given a coat of semi-matt varnish. Weathering was a foul and varied concoction of matt black, dark earth and matt red plus some matt black for the exhaust and bodyside grills with some glossier mixes to represent the oily wobbly bits. I'm not sure my photography does it justice but there could be a little more tonal variation on the body but I'll wait till the weathering has really hardened off before I try any tweaks. 350's have some quite distinct weathering unique to this class which I don't think factory weathering can get close to. The latest Bachmann 350 looks, in some pictures at least, like it served at El Alamein! The layout now has two firm invitations for late this year and early next year so that will give me the incentive to get all the stock sorted out, the lighting installed and maybe even a couple of trestles to stand it on. Stu
  21. Hi, Thanks for putting that photo up BV. Shouldn't be any more confusion now The photo though - a westbound at Basing in '67 ? Stu
  22. Hi, That's quite correct Chris, they did exist. If you can get a copy of "The Power of the 33's" then have a look at Plate 39. Where the Heljan model is compromised is that there are two small panels under the rad grills which shouldn't be there and the roof clips which don't seem to appear before full ellow end versions. Stu Edit - the loco in the picture is D6583 in plain green so Heljan have done their homework. No-one seems quite sure how many were like this but certainly 83-85 seem certain.
  23. Hi, Just a few more shots of the layout. 4562 rolls in with a Plate wagon 3737 shunts vans with a couple of ill-starred Pallett vans waiting to be moved to the Goos Shed road 7782 with a single coal wagon arrives. Watch this space. Stu
  24. Thanks Gents. I was considering an EM project before I got tied up with this. Hardly unique as a project but I am pleased with how it's come together, especially as it's nearly all recycled or unused materials so it's been cheap and given me chance to try to put into practice lessons learned from earlier efforts. St Jude is at Chatham in June and I suspect this one's first outing will be Broadstairs unless there's an unexpected rush! Stu
  25. Hi, Progress since my last post has been largely sporadic due to work, family and of course Christmas. Did manage to get the odd bit done here and there. That was until this week. What's been a serious problem for many has fortuitously given me a chunk of extra modelling time so things have moved on at frenetic pace. I know no layout is never really finished but now Drury lane has reached the stage where it could be seen in polite society. Just a few pics to show where it's got to. A couple of shots showing the layout without stock to give an overview of where it's got to. There's still a deal of tweaking to do here and there and then there's the stock to get up to par but it's now largely sorted. Comments welcome even if they're not complimentary - I might learn something Stu
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