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Peppa Pig Visits Tonfanau Goods Yard

Peppa Pig and her family are on holiday in Wales.  It is raining, again.

“Daddy, why does it always rain in Wales?” asked Peppa Pig.

“I’m glad you asked me that Peppa because I’m rather an expert on meteorology” said Daddy Pig. “Wales, you see, is close to the Atlantic Ocean and the prevailing South Westerly wind brings in depressions and depressions mean rain, lots of it” explained Daddy Pig. 

“Well I wish it was warm and sunny”  replied Peppa.

“I don’t think we want that sort of weather” said Daddy Pig.

“Why not Daddy?” asked Peppa.

“Because it means barbeques Peppa, and barbeques mean chops and ribs and… sausages”  said Daddy Pig with a grim voice and slightly worried look on his face.

“Oh, I see” said Peppa quietly.  “Well perhaps we can visit the goods yard at Tonfanau Camp?” 

A little later they met Mr Bull at the goods yard offices.

“Mr Bull, what is that big brown metal thing in the road?” asked Peppa  Pig.

“That, Peppa, is a weighbridge. It was made by H Pooley and Son of Liverpool in 1889” Mr Bull proudly explained.

“What does a weighbridge do?” asked Peppa.

“It weighs heavy things like lorries loaded with coal. It can weigh up to 8 tons” replied Mr Bull.

“Does that mean we can weigh Daddy?” asked Peppa.

Daddy Pig made a strange choking noise.

“Come on Daddy Pig” said Mr Bull, “Step on to the weighbridge”.

Daddy Pig carefully stepped on to the weighbridge.

“Daddy Pig weighs  4 hundredweights” announced Mr Bull.

“How much is that in kilogrammes?” asked Peppa. “It sounds like a lot”.

Daddy Pig made another strange choking sound and said “We only use imperial weights and measures here, not that Bonapartist metric nonsense”.
“But Madame Gazelle teaches us kilogrammes at school” said Peppa.

“That may well be so” said Daddy Pig “but a pound of sausages sounds so much more appetising than 0.45359237 kilogrammes of knockwurst”.

“Oh” said Peppa, even more quietly this time. “I do hope you mean Quorn knockwurst.”

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Peppa Pig Visits Tonfanau Goods Yard

Peppa Pig and her family are on holiday in Wales.  It is raining, again.

“Daddy, why does it always rain in Wales?” asked Peppa Pig.

“I’m glad you asked me that Peppa because I’m rather an expert on meteorology” said Daddy Pig. “Wales, you see, is close to the Atlantic Ocean and the prevailing South Westerly wind brings in depressions and depressions mean rain, lots of it” explained Daddy Pig. 

“Well I wish it was warm and sunny”  replied Peppa.

“I don’t think we want that sort of weather” said Daddy Pig.

“Why not Daddy?” asked Peppa.

“Because it means barbeques Peppa, and barbeques mean chops and ribs and… sausages”  said Daddy Pig with a grim voice and slightly worried look on his face.

“Oh, I see” said Peppa quietly.  “Well perhaps we can visit the goods yard at Tonfanau Camp?” 

A little later they met Mr Bull at the goods yard offices.

“Mr Bull, what is that big brown metal thing in the road?” asked Peppa  Pig.

“That, Peppa, is a weighbridge. It was made by H Pooley and Son of Liverpool in 1889” Mr Bull proudly explained.

“What does a weighbridge do?” asked Peppa.

“It weighs heavy things like lorries loaded with coal. It can weigh up to 8 tons” replied Mr Bull.

“Does that mean we can weigh Daddy?” asked Peppa.

Daddy Pig made a strange choking noise.

“Come on Daddy Pig” said Mr Bull, “Step on to the weighbridge”.

Daddy Pig carefully stepped on to the weighbridge.

“Daddy Pig weighs  4 hundredweights” announced Mr Bull.

“How much is that in kilogrammes?” asked Peppa. “It sounds like a lot”.

Daddy Pig made another strange choking sound and said “We only use imperial weights and measures here, not that Bonapartist metric nonsense”.

“But Madame Gazelle teaches us kilogrammes at school” said Peppa.

“That may well be so” said Daddy Pig “but a pound of sausages sounds so much more appetising than 0.45359237 kilogrammes of knockwurst”.

“Oh” said Peppa, even more quietly this time. “I do hope you mean Quorn knockwurst.”

 

 

I've selected 'Friendly/Supportive' this time, as there does not seem to be one marked 'Deeply Disturbing'.

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The coal yard is almost completed on Tonfanau Camp requiring, perhaps, a set of scales, a shovel and some sacks to finish the scene. There is not much to say; lumps of DAS clay painted matt black, covered with PVA glue and real coal. The coal is anthracite that was liberated from my late parents' central heating boiler in the 1970s. I sieved the coal to provide two distinctive gardes on the piles. Prototype inspiration is from the late CC Green's photographs of Aberystywth and Machynlleth.

 

The photograph of Aberystwyth yard is interesting. First, the coal is not stored in the typical model railway style staithes, which seem to be the invention of modellers' imaginations. Secondly, although the yard looks cramped and chaotic, there is no loose coal covering the ground. This is, I suppose, to be expected as the merchants would want to sweep up and preserve their valuable stock. Thirdly, the track under the bufferstop looks immaculate with no sign of weeds and the piles of detritus that usually accummulate there. Finally, the shed/motor garage by the bufferstop also appears to be new. My conclusion is that not everything has be mucky and grotty, even in a goods yard, which is why I always use prototype photographs for inspiration and guidance.

 

Regards,

 

Chris

 

 

Interesting detail there, of the support structure under the GWR 'Pagoda' building at the rear of the platform (lower picture).

 

 

Steve

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  • 4 weeks later...

I have been so busy with Minerva 8750 Panniers and preparing the specification for the next Minerva loco that Tonfanau Camp had slipped almost out of sight. Anyway, I have now found some time to build the Down Starter for Tonfanau Camp. Here are a couple of shots of the signal awaiting the paint shop. The signal will be pulled off via a simple crank and hand-operated rod from the edge of the board. It has just been subject to a drive-by shooting with a can of Halfords white primer. I'll post some photos when it is finished.

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Will you motorise that Chris?

 

Paul R

Paul,

There is an angle crank just out of sight under the signal's base to which I will connect a push/pull rod made from a wire coat hanger (I collected a suit from the dry-cleaner on Thursday). It's low-tech, but effective. 

 

Regards,

 

Chris

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I am tempted to try the Peco smart switch servo system when I get round to it. Black Notley only needs about 5 or 6 signals plus some ground signals.

 

Wouldn't mind seeing a pic of your mechanism when you install it though

 

Paul R

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I am tempted to try the Peco smart switch servo system when I get round to it. Black Notley only needs about 5 or 6 signals plus some ground signals.

 

Wouldn't mind seeing a pic of your mechanism when you install it though

 

Paul R

Paul,

I used the PECO servo system for the signals on Cwm Bach. There are photos and domes video of it operating on the Cwm Bach thread on RMWeb.

 

I'll take a photo of the mechanical system when it's installed.

 

CK

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The Tonfanau Camp Down Starter has been through the paint shop. I will apply some judicious weathering and will install it when I have finished the groundwork at the down end of the platform. I hope to report further progress later this week.

 

Regards,

 

CK

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That's a smashing photo in post #457. The heap of coal retained by sacks of coal is interesting along with the general untidiness. Contrasts of wealth are displayed by the old car in the background and the new Austin Westminster not to mention pre-war and wartime Bedford commercial chassis in use by the local coal merchants. I traveled in one of those wartime Bedfords when relocating from Hyde to Oldham in 1947.

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I've had a little time today to do some work on Tonfanau Camp. I have started to work up the area between the mainline and the backscene at the down end of the station platform. The Down Starting signal is only temporarily positioned pending installation of the control rod and bedding in. . The platelayers' hut is scratchbuilt and featured in an earlier post. Needless to say, I have stored the etched "Beware of Trains" notices so well that I can't find them. When this little cameo is finished I shall move onto the security fencing that will surround the Army's nissen huts.

 

Stand by.

 

CK

 

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I am tempted to try the Peco smart switch servo system when I get round to it. Black Notley only needs about 5 or 6 signals plus some ground signals.

 

Wouldn't mind seeing a pic of your mechanism when you install it though

 

Paul R

You might want to look at the Megapoints servo controller as a cheaper and more reliable option!

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  • 1 month later...

You know it's been a while when one has to scrabble around page 4 to find the thread. I have managed to assemble and install the security fence around the low relief nissen huts at the down end of Tonfanau Camp station. The posts are pre-drilled laser-cut plywood produced by the estimable Nikki Wilkes. The barbed wire is from the Army Painter range and is described as razor wire. It is reasonably priced and comes in 3m lengths  https://shop.thearmypainter.com/products.php?ProductGroupId=3 . The mesh is Davids Isopon Aluminium Mesh from the body repair section of Halfords and cost £2 for a sheet 25cm x 20cm, of which about half was used on this section. Three lengths of 0.8mm piano wire were also used. Overall, I am pleased with the finished effort.

 

Regards,

 

Chris

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