Model Railway Restoration - Painting the Viaduct and Retaining Walls and Point Mods

[Removed a/c]

This any good? 

 

http://www.hattons.co.uk/13315/Peco_Products_LK_51_Level_Crossing_Barriers_with_fencing_x_2/StockDetail.aspx

 

or this 

 

http://www.expressmodels.co.uk/acatalog/Servo_Operated_Signal_and_Crossing_Barrier_Units.html

 

http://www.expressmodels.co.uk/acatalog/Level__Crossing_Barrier_Warning.html

[phil-b259]

This any good? 

 

http://www.hattons.co.uk/13315/Peco_Products_LK_51_Level_Crossing_Barriers_with_fencing_x_2/StockDetail.aspx

 

or this 

 

http://www.expressmodels.co.uk/acatalog/Servo_Operated_Signal_and_Crossing_Barrier_Units.html

 

http://www.expressmodels.co.uk/acatalog/Level__Crossing_Barrier_Warning.html

 

 

That Peco kit is the same as the Hornby offering - namely representing a Mk1 AHB installation of the 'Penguin' type.

 

(THIS is an example of said 'Penguin' installation http://i4.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article1472341.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/Springs%20Road%20level%20crossing,%20Beech%20Hill,%20Finningley )

 

For a prototypical appearance then this is the sort of barrier pedestal you need - and like I said it can be used on both AHBs or full barrier installations.

 

http://www.spxflow.com/en/spx-rail-systems/pd-mp-rail-barrier/  http://www.ptrail.com.au/uploads/2/5/8/6/25860126/barriers.pdf

 

Some images

 

https://s3-eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/centaur-wp/theengineer/prod/content/uploads/2016/08/17104909/367129_a1cd2745.jpg

http://s0.geograph.org.uk/photos/18/99/189996_0d26e0fa.jpg

http://c8.alamy.com/comp/C7HEPE/gates-opening-for-cars-waiting-at-level-crossing-castlerock-railway-C7HEPE.jpg

http://www.shilcocks.com/Gallery_WRSL.htm

Edited October 18, 2016 by phil-b259

[Chris64B]

Thanks for the links and images all!

 

After a quick search on the web, it is quite apparent there is not a lot out there in kit or ready made form for true 4 barrier LX.  However, I did come across a gem, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8ux7OmFKbw.  Yep, that is in 4mm, with working barrier skirts and lights.  A bit more of a search on the layout name lead me to Dagworth of this parish and his layout Ravensclyffe http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/3288-ravensclyffe/

 

And to top it all off, here are his step by step photos of the barrier construction https://www.flickr.com/photos/dagworth/sets/72157631808497111/.  There was a construction topic in old RMweb, but that appears to have been lost.

 

So, over to you now Chris, working gates and lights ? ;-)

 

I will certainly be bottom drawing a link those photos for future ref. and a project, one day.

 

Great detective work Paul - that does look brilliant! It looks like some of the parts were from a custom 'Extreme Etchings' product - https://www.flickr.com/photos/dagworth/8103979625/in/album-72157631808497111/  - in the main thread Andi/Dagworth says "...with folding skirts. These were from an etch that I asked Brian Hanson of Shawplan to do for me."

 

Will save all those links though - perhaps a project for another day once I've got some of the other basics done first!

[LongRail]

Chris there is a description of assembling the barriers on the DEMU forum

[Zomboid]

For a layout like this I'd question how much the barriers would be raised. On my childhood roundy, the crossing was always closed to the road, so even if it had been raising beams with skirts, they wouldn't have needed to be operational.

Of course there's the satisfaction of building something to consider as well, but I would at least start with non-working skirts.

[LongRail]

I have a set of motorised barriers (without skirts) they are on the approach to a small terminus station and freight yard. So most of time are open. Warning siren can be a bit of a pain so has an off switch. The approach signal displays a red aspect if the barriers are notbsetbforvtrain moves

[RJS1977]

The layout I (and 2nd Reading Boys' Brigade) were restoring has now been returned to the Cholsey & Wallingford Railway. There are still some minor jobs to do on it, like fitting working signals. I have constructed a perspex cover for it (though not yet fitted as I had to wait for the glue to dry), and legs will be added in due course:

 

[Chris64B]

Hi everyone,

 

Short update on another aspect of the layout I've been trying to improve - the platforms....

 

I've decided to stick with the current Hornby platform pieces but with the aim of improving them as much as possible - my thinking being that this approach would be quicker and cheaper than creating something from scratch.

 

First up I glued them together so that I could fill the joins a bit and I've also filled/recreated the block work on the sides to hide the join more effectively:

 

 

Then I gave the platform surface a wash of diluted grey to even up the faded plastic colour - I'm fairly happy with the existing textured surface so I've left that:

 

 

Once the tops were dry I painted and dry brushed some better colours on the sides and painted over the flagstones on the edges - an improvement already:

 

 

I also decided that rather than filling the redundant square holes (from the canopy supports) I'd make a feature of them and stuck in a little etched drain cover which fitted neatly:

 

Then it's on to painting the while line on the edges:

 

 

And a side by side comparison of the original vs the 'enhanced' version - I'm quite pleased with it!

 

 

 

Just gotta do the rest now! You'll have noticed I've drilled some holes in the centre circles too - this is for the platform lamps I've bought, more on those later.

 

The other thing I've done one evening is started construction of two platform subway card kits from Scalescenes - http://scalescenes.com/product/r006-platform-subway/ - These are excellent, really well designed and easy to construct - recommended! I've chopped them around a little bit to suit my needs and make them slightly narrower as the Hornby platforms are quite narrow.

 

 

 

Had to cut a big hole in the baseboard for them!

 

 

Cheers,

Chris

 

 

 

Edited October 25, 2023 by Chris64B
Edited to repair broken images

[Jaggzuk]

Wow what an improvement, yet so simple Chris. They will certainly be rock solid once installed. The painted top and stone flag edging look great. What did you use to fill the original edging gaps?

 

The etch drain covers look perfect, maybe you could add a buff strip down the middle to represent the old style concrete drainage channels. Where did you get the etch from?

 

I think the addition of the subway will add a nice feature and bit different from a footbridge.

 

Nice work, and has got me thinking about the broken (clips) ones I have, so will not bin them now, but I need curved platforms so will have to stick to Metcalfe kit.

[Removed a/c]

What a difference, looks great ! and you just used Humbrol enamels? May have to give this a try myself. 

[fishytrains]

I am impressed with your creativity. Certainly a good way to save money for other modelling things!

 

Mike

[Removed a/c]

Have you seen these for your level crossing? 

 

http://www.kernowmodelrailcentre.com/p/55443/SSM318-Wills-Modern-Level-Crossing-Kit

[vulcan product fan]

love the etch drain cover and great improvement on hornbys platform top work pal.  

[Chris64B]

Thanks all!

 

Wow what an improvement, yet so simple Chris. They will certainly be rock solid once installed. The painted top and stone flag edging look great. What did you use to fill the original edging gaps?

The etch drain covers look perfect, maybe you could add a buff strip down the middle to represent the old style concrete drainage channels. Where did you get the etch from?

I think the addition of the subway will add a nice feature and bit different from a footbridge.

Nice work, and has got me thinking about the broken (clips) ones I have, so will not bin them now, but I need curved platforms so will have to stick to Metcalfe kit.

 

Thanks mate! I just used Humbrol model filler from the tube, quick to dry and easy to sand. The etch is a Jim Smith-Wright one, £10 from Modellers Mecca here - http://www.modellers-mecca.co.uk/accessories/13175-jsw01-drains-manhole-covers-and-general-ironwork.html

 

Has a good number of each type and a large variety for a reasonable cost. Only thing to note is there aren't any circular ones, they're all rectangular or square.

 

Yeah, went for the subway as they take up a lot less space than a bridge on the relatively short and narrow platforms I'm limited to.

 

 

What a difference, looks great ! and you just used Humbrol enamels? May have to give this a try myself. 

 

Thanks! Yes it was pretty easy - thought about breaking out the airbrush but didn't seem to be worth it and I'm more experienced with enamels and a brush! For the surface I used a pretty dilute (white spirit) mix of matt grey 140 with a little bit of matt black 33 and tried not to make it too uniform when brushed on. For the sides it was an undiluted mix of matt 28, matt 140 and some white and black dry brushed for calcite marks and streaking/staining. Trail and error really, it probably doesn't matter about the exact colours.

 

Have you seen these for your level crossing? 

 

http://www.kernowmodelrailcentre.com/p/55443/SSM318-Wills-Modern-Level-Crossing-Kit

 

Oohh that looks quite promising, thanks. Hadn't seen that before.

 

Cheers, Chris

Edited November 1, 2016 by Chris64B

[Revolution Mike B]

I'm getting a bit annoyed here Chris.......I'm supposed to be the ONE that's making RTR stuff look real!!!             

 

You've done another good job there if you ask me mate, I think it's brilliant!

 

Mike

[Removed a/c]

Thanks for the info Chris

 

I wasn't aware of the crossing either, just received a notification from Kernow today.

 

 

 

 

Regards 
Scott 

[LongRail]

Chris

Looking back at the construction of your level crossing I have just found the ORR document which refer to the cattle/tresspass guards, extract below.

It recommends them being 2.6m long which is 34mm at 00 scale I think the 20mm you have used looks better

 

Additional measures to protect against trespass

 

Cattle--trespass guards and fencing protection will normally be required to discourage trespass by pedestrians and, where relevant, animals straying onto the railway.

 

Cattle--trespass guards

 

Guards should be provided where there is movement of animals over the crossing, or where there is a significant risk of trespass by pedestrians.

 

Guards should be provided at all types of crossings on third rail electrified railways, except at a gated crossing operated by railway staff, where the gates when across the railway completely fence off the road and any footway from the railway.

 

The guards should be adjacent to the footway at the edge of, and level with, the surface of the carriageway. They should extend the full length of the crossing between the boundary fences for a distance of at least 2.6 m in any direction from the edge of the carriageway.

 

The guards may consist of arris rails running parallel with the running rails or some other similarly effective system. Arris rails which are triangular in section with the vertical sides approximately 115 mm high, at approximately 150 mm pitch, and with a clear space between them not exceeding 35 mm are considered to be effective.

 

The main document can be found at the link below and contains some layout drawings from about half way through the document

The diagram numbers refer to standard road signs and marking which can be found on the DfT website

http://orr.gov.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/2158/level_crossings_guidance.pdf

[LongRail]

In the post above where the wording appears as Cattle-######-trespass

 

this has been auto corrected from the text which was on the ORR website

 

the word missing is c u m without any spaces 

[BWsTrains]

Hi, I'm a bit late coming into this topic but your experience with old foam underlay was no surprise. I once had a superb (and expensive) pair of Koss headphones with uncovered foam pads and these just turned to powder after a few years, rendering the phones useless. It's a question of chemistry, polyurethane foam will degrade due to exposure to moisture, oxidation, even microbial action and there was plenty of chance to be exposed once in use. Light is generally accepted not to be a problem (Wikipedia) other than thru causing yellowing. If underlay is a necessity on a project, cork would make much better sense. Personally I'm happy with no underlay.   

[blueovalcraig]

Absolutely love this layout.  Excellent work!

[Chris64B]

Thanks for the info on the crossing Gary - useful stuff!

 

And thanks for the compliment Craig

 

So what have I been up to? Just small steps really, have now completed ballasting around the entire lower level circuits, just a little bit more weathering to do. A few more location cabinets and dummy point motors painted and wired up and I've started to gather some bits and bobs to improve the yard area ahead of ballasting and concrete hard standing there. More on that next time.

 

Other more significant purchases have been some new lights for the platforms and the yard. I'm really pleased with these...

 

I've been hunting for ages for some suitable '1980s' looking platform lights. Most are either old fashioned globe/gas type lamps or too modern LED/high output looking ones. There are expensive ones and cheap and nasty Chinese ones but I finally found these which had just the sort of look I was going for:

 

 

I think they look really like the type of concrete or metal flourescent lights you see in old 70s/80s photos of stations like Doncaster, Finsbury Park, Kings Cross and York.

 

I got them from 'Layouts4U' - Item code 616 three quarters of the way down the page - http://www.layouts4u.net/oolampposts.html

and http://www.layouts4u.net/616.jpg

 

Then next up are my yard lights - again I looked for ages for some suitable looking ones that weren't too old or too new (I sound like Goldilocks) or really cheap and plasticy. Then I found the RMLectronics website and decided to splash out on some lamps from their superb range! I know they are winding down somewhat and only producing to order now but they provided excellent service (including making them slightly shortern than standard for me) and the lamps I received are just fantastic quality.

 

I went for the 'Southern Region' concrete yard lamps as they look a lot like others I've seen in period depot photos from around the country (Frodingham, Shirebrook, etc). I decided on the concrete post type rather than the wooden ones as I felt they were a bit more 'modern' (50s/60s) in appearance and would sit well in a 1980's yard that's dwindling somewhat from its heyday:

 

They came in a satin black finish:

 

And I've painted them up in a suitable weathered concrete colour:

 

Really pleased with them! Just need to get them all wired up and working now!

 

Cheers, Chris

[ess1uk]

good finds on the lamps

look spot on

[Revolution Mike B]

Nice one Chris, those lights are great!

 

I'm glad to see I'm not the only person to add drains in the middle of the tracks :-)

 

Cheers

Mike

[Chris64B]

Hi all and Happy New Year!

 

Apologies for the lack of updates in the last month but it's a familiar story I'm sure, busy Christmas, back to work, etc etc!

 

I have managed a bit of modelling time here and there though, and focus has turned to the yard as I'm getting fed up of looking at bare cork....

 

First up, I've added some ground details here and there before ballasting including drain covers and point levers (from Knightwing):

 

 

 

 

 

I've also been cutting some Wills concrete rendering sheets for concrete hard standing around the shed and future fueling point (also from Knightwing):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Overall I'm pretty pleased with the 'feel' that's starting to be created and looking forward to getting it all ballasted and weathered etc. I also need to get the nice new yard lights actually wired up and working!

 

In 1:1 scale, I came across these two at Swindon while waiting for the train to Bristol a while back.

 

Harry Patch about to leave for London:

 

 

...was joined by this beast - good Lord it's hideous!

 

 

Cheers, Chris

 

 

Edited October 25, 2023 by Chris64B
Edited to repair broken images

[fishytrains]

Yard area is looking rather good so far. Always good to see some progress.

 

Mike