Scratch-built card and styrene structures (based on real buildings around London Bridge)

[grahame]

It looks a bit green to me, the colour on the underside of the road deck upright looks closer, to me. Whether it's the screen or me I can't say.

 

It's all the same - underneath, on the supports and outside edges. I mixed a pot of it - white, ochre brown and black (no green in it or yellow and blue which mix to make green) - and slapped it all over (still got some left) but the far side underneath does look a little greenish in the pic (on screen). Fortunately in real life is very much a light fawny grey.

 

G 

[Siberian Snooper]

I have now looked at it on my laptop and it looks a lot better, so it must be the tablet screen, putting a greenish hue on some of it.

 

Great work, by the way.

[grahame]

I've got a bit of weathering on, but it's a damn tricky structure to photograph so that that it doesn't accentuate all the out of true verticals and horizontals (due to my poor modelling) or make it look like there are inherent defects in it. For example the pic below looks like the semi circular curved road section doesn't flow and is very abrupt, but the second snap from above shows it's not quite that bad but makes the parapet walls look like thay are falling off . . . .  .

 

 

 

I think I'll put it to one side now, and concentrate on something else.

 

G.

[Siberian Snooper]

Anything with angles and bends is a pain.

[Jim Martin]

It's all the same - underneath, on the supports and outside edges. I mixed a pot of it - white, ochre brown and black (no green in it or yellow and blue which mix to make green) - and slapped it all over (still got some left) but the far side underneath does look a little greenish in the pic (on screen). Fortunately in real life is very much a light fawny grey.

 

G 

 

Mixing black and yellow paint will give you a sort of khaki green, so if you used a yellowy-brown like ochre it wouldn't surprise me if you got a greenish shade: it certainly looks like that to me in your earlier photograph. However it started out, though, the weathered colour in your most recent photos looks like a pretty good approximation of dirty concrete.

 

Jim

[grahame]

Mixing black and yellow paint will give you a sort of khaki green, so if you used a yellowy-brown like ochre it wouldn't surprise me if you got a greenish shade: 

 

Nope, no greenish shade at all. It's a fawny grey in real life. Hopefully close to concrete colour, although that does vary quite considerably.

 

G. 

[grahame]

I thought I'd tackle the other side of Stainer Street and the start of the viaduct and trainshed wall along St Thomas Street, as here:

 

 

Note the round blue plaque (left hand edge of pic) is a memorial for the people killed (68) and injured (175) in WW2 (1941) when a German bomb fell on Stainer Street arch where they were sheltering. I hope that it hasn't disappeared in the Shard and station modernisation. Also the ramp parapet wall facing brickwork has been peeled off (perhaps the start of demolition) but I have modelled it in place on the ramp structure. 

 

I've already made moulds to produce, in resin, the lower three arch viaduct sections and the upper train shed wall sections:

 

 

However, the first two sections/bays of the lower viaduct wall is not a three arch section - the first being a plain wall and the second having just one large arch/entrance (as can be seen in the first pic). So I thought I'd make those as a bespoke section and to line up with where the ramp leads in. The upper train shed wall section can be added as cast resin ones (when I get around to making sufficient of them). The lower wall needs to be designed wide enough to sit the casting on.

 

My plan is to make the basic structure from mountboard and then cover in brick plasticard and add plasticard details to that (as was done for the cast masters). The pic below shows the start I've made with one of the lower three arch cast resin sections placed in line next to it to show how the viaduct will continue:

 

 

G

 

 

[Lecorbusier]

Graham,

 

Do you have a trackplan which describes at all the extent of what you intend modelling?

 

Tim

[grahame]

 

Do you have a trackplan which describes at all the extent of what you intend modelling?

 

 

No specific track plan but it will hopefully cover the line from Borough High Street to at least Shand Street and therefore include the through and terminus stations. I'll fit the plan dependent on the room available - rather like the real railway when they rationalise junctions and need to keep the new track layout within the railway boundary.

 

A little progress on the latest project with adding details:

 

 

G

[grahame]

With a bit of grey primer on it is starting to look a it more like it should and also matching up and fitting in with the cast resin arches section. Unfortunately I can't find the upper train shed wall section that I cast but there was only one and I ought to cast some more - although I need to order some more casting chemicals first. Consequently the end column looks a little lonely (and even a bit like a chimney) but the wall section will butt up against it when in place. Also I made it a little over the required height so that it could be trimmed back to exactly match the cast wall section height:

 

 

G

[grahame]

Damn, . . . damn, damn, damn.

 

I found some resin casting chemicals last night and was hoping to cast a few wall sections this morning, but now I can't find the RTV mould. I've got the one for the lower three arch viaduct wall and a number of the resin castings made from it but can't find the one casting (or the mould) I made of the upper wall section. Luckily I've got the master and frame (pictured below) to make another RTV mould but it means having to order some of those RTV chemicals now.   

 

 

G.

[grahame]

I've been struggling to recall or find any pics of how the terminus train shed end wall on the southern side was and what covered the southern end of Stainer Street which was little more than a narrow one way tunnel:

 

 

The sketch/drawing of how Southwark Towers was to be demolished gave a little clue but of course was only a stylised artists impression and Guys hospital was partly in the way:

 

 

Fortunately I came across a photo that I'd taken of the start of construction of the Shard that I'd forgotten I had. It shows the train shed end after demolition of Southwark Towers and although not comprehensive give some good clues: 

 

 

Bearing in mind the layout won't be a drop dead accurate rendition (due to compression and simplification) it'll have to do along with some modelling license on my behalf. And, if anyone is interested, I've ordered the RTV silicone rubber and resin casting chemicals. So until that arrives progress is stymied and research is the order of the day. 

 

G

 

 

 

 

 

 

[svitapeneela]

I've been struggling to recall or find any pics of how the terminus train shed end wall on the southern side was and what covered the southern end of Stainer Street which was little more than a narrow one way tunnel:

 

Stainer Street.jpg

 

The sketch/drawing of how Southwark Towers was to be demolished gave a little clue but of course was only a stylised artists impression and Guys hospital was partly in the way:

 

Bringing-down-Southwark-Tow.gif

 

Fortunately I came across a photo that I'd taken of the start of construction of the Shard that I'd forgotten I had. It shows the train shed end after demolition of Southwark Towers and although not comprehensive give some good clues: 

 

LB b06.JPG

 

Bearing in mind the layout won't be a drop dead accurate rendition (due to compression and simplification) it'll have to do along with some modelling license on my behalf. And, if anyone is interested, I've ordered the RTV silicone rubber and resin casting chemicals. So until that arrives progress is stymied and research is the order of the day. 

 

G

 

Street view has a distant view, if you go back to 2008. Apologies if you've already thought of that

[grahame]

Street view.jpg

 

Street view has a distant view, if you go back to 2008. Apologies if you've already thought of that

 

Thanks, although that is Joiner Street (rather than Stainer Street) for which I've got this similar view:

 

 

I do use Google/Bing maps and streetview but don't know how to go back in time or how to save an on-screen view as a pic file. The Bing maps tend to be older but quite low-res and poorer quality.

 

Anyway, I've stared at the pics and diagrams that I do have and think I've decided on how it looks, or rather how I'll model it bearing in mind the constraints. I've knocked up a very rough test mock up from gash card and it seems to work. Apologies for the very poor quality photo (but the subject is quite rough anyway):

 

 

G.

[Lecorbusier]

Any Help?

 

[grahame]

Any Help?

 

Untitled 2.jpgUntitled 3.jpgUntitled.jpgUntitled4.jpg

 

Excellent - thanks.

 

I don't know why, but I thought the windows on the cantilevered flat roofed modern section were double panes high rather than singles and they look very much tinted and reflective (which is good as it means avoiding any internal modelling). Snag is that it is going to have to be very much foreshortened (curse this necessary compression).

 

I'm presuming that as it goes over Stainer Street, and as the front section of the train shed wall with the tent shaped skylights on is also missing, that it is the result of war damage when a German bomb pieced the arches where people were sheltering. And that it was built when Southwark Towers was erected and/or during the 1970s station reconstruction. The modern section and patched up Victorian train shed walling is quite a mess and melange of styles - not a lot of integrated artistic and architectural merit in it. Still it's the era I'm trying to model.  

 

G.

[Lecorbusier]

There are a fair few photos of the station concourse itself from the 70s in the studies library (part of this set - see below) ... I could get some copies if they are of any use? I haven't done so to date as they are primarily internal.

 

T

 

[grahame]

There are a fair few photos of the station concourse itself from the 70s in the studies library (part of this set - see below) ... I could get some copies if they are of any use? I haven't done so to date as they are primarily internal.

 

T

 

post-25312-0-81873400-1543598878_thumb.jpgpost-25312-0-65431800-1543598809_thumb.jpg

 

Thanks for the offer. I do have some pics already, some that I took (a sample):

 

 

 

as well as of the platform area:

 

 

 

and others, as well as quite a few of the forecourt area (which is more help for future modelling). Here's some:

 

 

 

 

so hopefully I'm okay for them ATM.

 

G

[grahame]

Anyway, a little more measuring and cutting, huffing and puffing, and trimming and sticking (cardboard engineering) and I've got the start of the basic carcass for covering and detailing:

 

 

It looks rather stumpy and plain but hopefully when I've got some relief covering (brick, siding, etc.,) on and details with it painted it'll look more realistic and like it should.

 

G.

[Siberian Snooper]

To save anything on the screen there's a PRT SCRN button somewhere on the keyboard usually in the area too the right of the main keys or to the right of the F keys. Hit it and then open PAINT and paste, it's recommended to save the image as a .png file.

 

Edit. If you are going to post the image online make sure that you crop the photo to remove any sensitive info.

Edited January 13, 2019 by Siberian Snooper

[grahame]

I'm off shortly to catch a train in to London for the Bachmann/Graham Farish 2019 range trade and press presentation, but just time to take and post a pic of how the latest project is shaping up. This shows just how small and almost insignificant the latest efforts are in the overall scheme of things:

 

 

G.

[Lecorbusier]

Small ... yes .... Insignificant ...hmmmm! Love the picture frame top right.

[grahame]

I've been out and about for a few days so little progress made, although I've added a few bits of cardboard and plasticard. Currently most of the assemblies in the pic below are just resting in place and not glued (to allow easy access to add the tinted windows). Much of the car park is slowly disappearing under the various structures. Tomorrow I'm hoping to add the brick cladding, concrete column supports and some more details. And painting should help tie it all together:

 

 

The casting chemicals arrived today so also tomorrow I'd like to get the RTV silicon rubber cast poured, although it wont be usable for 24 hours so it'll be Friday or the weekend before I can resin cast the train shed wall sections. 

 

G.

Edited January 16, 2019 by grahame

[grahame]

Admittedly it doesn't look like much, but this morning I've cut and added the brick relief cladding where necessary, the concrete plinth (from plasticard) for the cantilevered section, cut and primed the concrete column supports for it, added details like the window sill/ledge and roof patches, and primed everything ready to add the basic blocks of colour:

 

 

G.

[grahame]

I've mixed and poured the pink gunge (RTV silicon rubber), spent ages tapping the mould (with a screwdriver handle in the pic below) to make the bubbles rise and it's now sitting curing. It took most of the chemicals supplied in the kit to mix sufficient to fill the mould so fingers crossed that it comes out okay - there's not enough for another attempt. Damn. It need 24 hours to set so I'll be sweating and worrying 'til tomorrow. Still, there's plenty of two part casting resin chemicals.

 

 

G