Heaton Lodge Junction

[HeatonLodge40]

Well into replacing the four sections of track that span boards and over time have become mis aligned.

It’s not great digging out ballast and pulling up track so soon but things have to run smoothly.

In every case I’ve replaced the track sections with a scale 60’ track panel with concrete sleepers.

In the photo I’m going to super detail this particular panel as if the PW chaps have just installed it.

Therefore the Peco concrete sleepers have been painted with Precision paints concrete. After which talc is sieved onto the wet paint to give the rough appearance.

I’ll then tone the colours down with weathering powders once dry, add dummy fishplates, paint the rail sides and ballast it. Might even pick out the odd pandrol clip in yellow which I’ve noticed occasionally on the prototype..

[26power]

10 hours ago, HeatonLodge40 said:

Well into replacing the four sections of track that span boards and over time have become mis aligned.

It’s not great digging out ballast and pulling up track so soon but things have to run smoothly.

In every case I’ve replaced the track sections with a scale 60’ track panel with concrete sleepers.

In the photo I’m going to super detail this particular panel as if the PW chaps have just installed it.

Therefore the Peco concrete sleepers have been painted with Precision paints concrete. After which talc is sieved onto the wet paint to give the rough appearance.

I’ll then tone the colours down with weathering powders once dry, add dummy fishplates, paint the rail sides and ballast it. Might even pick out the odd pandrol clip in yellow which I’ve noticed occasionally on the prototype..

 

Might be going a bit too far, but Pandrol clip colours have a meaning, both in type of fixing and to distinguish the rarely used/needed left handed type from the normal right handed type.  Type used also depends on type of sleeper.  Current guidance seems to be this document:

http://www.pandroluserguide.co.uk/library/Downloads/Pandrol_User_Guide_Edition_8_v7.1.pdf

 

Obviously this is current guidance so might have also been different in era of your model as well.
 

My knowledge pretty limited and only from occasional track work volunteering on a preserved railway, so had to do a wee bit of searching to find above document.  
 

Anyway, hope of some interest or help, perhaps in not applying what seen on today’s railway to a previous time period.

[blueeighties]

Heljan press release regarding Simon George's Heaton Lodge Junction. Some good news in these dreary days!

Click the link....

 

https://sway.office.com/oWManff66IphY3aR?ref=Link

Edited March 30, 2020 by blueeighties

[Crepello]

i think Simon is referring to odd clips that have been sprayed yellow by p.w. staff to either highlight a problem or instruct repair teams to replace. i've only noticed the various coloured clips in fairly recent years.

[HeatonLodge40]

Thankfully I’ve now finished replacing 10 joints between frames. Done this by cutting out enough track to insert some pre cut track panels. When they are dry I’ll tone them down a bit and 

make them into a feature with nearby PW men etc.

The photo taken near the gas bottle compound shows a short panel where I’ve touched in the pandrol clips yellow  

 

So I’m back on the next frame now which includes the dive under tunnel. Pics show the real thing obviously & the beginning of the model.

Next to the tracks above I’ll add a metal platform for the relay boxes which are located near a colour light signal. This board will be challenging but much more enjoyable ..

[Geoff Endacott]

This could be the ideal coronavirus exhibition layout. There would be no problem making people stand two metres apart as they watch.

 

Geoff Endacott

[HeatonLodge40]

4 hours ago, Geoff Endacott said:

This could be the ideal coronavirus exhibition layout. There would be no problem making people stand two metres apart as they watch.

 

Geoff Endacott

That’s actually a very good point!

 

A few hours on and the track is down.. 

 

Both the wooden and concrete sleepers have been spaced and superelevated.

I’ve departed from the norm in using hot glue to secure the track here just at the ends of the sleepers.

I’ll ballast all this tomorrow and add a banner repeater at the tunnel entrance.

 

 

[jamie92208]

I remember that diveunder so well from when I was at Poly at Huddersfield in 72/73.  Trans Pennine DMU's and the 37 hauled coal trains to and from the Clayton West Branch.

 

It's looking great.

 

Jamie

[HeatonLodge40]

Had a diversion today and started weathering the first of 80 MGR wagons.

I’m spending no more than 10 mins per wagon so each gets masked for the familiar two tyre lines before a medium coat of dirty black inside the masking tape. Then the hopper gets a lighter overall coat of the same.

The chassis then gets some frame dirt  and finally some oil stains on the axleboxes. I’ll probably mask off the odd panel to suggest a new one has been welded in.

 

Back to the latest frame and the rail sides were painted today, concrete trunking added and ballasting begins.

[HeatonLodge40]

[Mick Bonwick]

Speed weathering. I like it!

 

[Simond]

I guess there’s more logic to “speed weathering” with block trains which would, perforce, be pretty much the same throughout, with the odd variation.

 

keep well!

Simon (a different one)

[SHMD]

I'm not sure I ever saw MGRs in that yellow and blue striped livery - very smart though!

 

 

Kev.

Edited April 4, 2020 by SHMD

[blueeighties]

Excellent progress as always, cracking on. I have some rotary club 1952 officially certified Pandrol marking paint if you need the exact shade. 

[class27]

Simon

Maybe you should Marshall up the train, and set up the airbrush at the side of the track, then just drive the train past the airbrush ! Drive by weathering. A bit like the real process only speeded up 

Keep up the good work. Will deffo be coming to see this

cheers

[class27]

 

duplicate

Edited April 5, 2020 by class27
duplication

[JSModels]

3 hours ago, class27 said:

Simon

Maybe you should Marshall up the train, and set up the airbrush at the side of the track, then just drive the train past the airbrush ! Drive by weathering. A bit like the real process only speeded up 

Keep up the good work. Will deffo be coming to see this

cheers

 

I'd thought the same! 

[HeatonLodge40]

Not a bad idea!

 

These MGR’s are nowhere near a pro weathering job but they are ok for what I want. Not bad for 10 mins each.

 

In the meantime I‘ve made the retaining wall for the tunnel mouths.

These are MDF with plastic red bricked sheets.
The strengthening pillars are carved styrene rectangular section with some added thin microstrip to hide the joins and create the corbels.

The outflow pipe is actually the reverse end of soldering iron tip.

 

Here it is primed before being painted in blue engineering brick. Still to add lots of detail yet

[HeatonLodge40]

Cracked on today and ten hours later the retaining wall is almost complete and installed as is the landscape below the tunnel mouths.

Turned out ok the retaining wall once weathered and vandalised.

 

Used a lot of clay for infilling and foam board for the base of the stagnant stream that runs down here.

I just carve holes out of the foam board to make a stream bed before covering the whole lot with more clay..

[d winpenny]

Nice work might have to take this time at home to refine my scenic skills it something I’ve never been that good at

 

david

[saxokid]

Very nice layout build here!!

 

 

cheers neil..

[monkeysarefun]

That  Wildstyle graffiti 'typeface' for want of a better term  was 'developed' by US street artists circa 1983 - great to see the  early  '80's Heaton Lodge homies were bang on trend.

Edited April 7, 2020 by monkeysarefun

[LongRail]

Looks like the filter in your spray booth needs changing

[AndrewT]

6 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

That  Wildstyle graffiti 'typeface' for want of a better term  was 'developed' by US street artists circa 1983 - great to see the  early  '80's Heaton Lodge homies were bang on trend.

Never seen a photo, but around 78/79, a certain lad who we sort of knew ( year or two above us at school) sprayed 'WACKER' on that retaining wall in 3' high letters with a white aerosol can. Not sure what the paint was but he'd got it from the local hardware shop in Mirfield (L.D. Smiths). Mustn't have lasted long on there before it weathered off. His surname was 'Walker' - hence his nickname was Wacker. 

 

[St Enodoc]

7 minutes ago, AndrewT said:

Never seen a photo, but around 78/79, a certain lad who we sort of knew ( year or two above us at school) sprayed 'WACKER' on that retaining wall in 3' high letters with a white aerosol can. Not sure what the paint was but he'd got it from the local hardware shop in Mirfield (L.D. Smiths). Mustn't have lasted long on there before it weathered off. His surname was 'Walker' - hence his nickname was Wacker. 

 

Could've been worse...