Derwent Spa

[lezz01]

It's coming on very well Jonathan.

Regards Lez.

[chuffinghell]

Looking great!

 

Chris

[Rowsley17D]

A frustrating time was spent during this week's short break at our own home. A relay driver board was causing problems, but I had to eliminate the servos drivers, servos and relay boards. The offending board is now on its way back for a replacement.

 

What I did manage to do was relay the long siding in the top goods yard. This was done to provide a line to the goods shed. In reality the shed was located on the top siding but I wanted the scenic part of the shed (the road loading bay) to be on view. Some Will's setts were trimmed and laid out. I'm not sure how much of the yard to cover with setts. My old cattle dock was put in position but the loading ramp is now on the wrong side. It will go on the "free to a good home" section and a new one bought. The parallel sidings received their buffer stops.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 17, 2018 by Rowsley17D

[lezz01]

Hi Jonathan. It looks very good mate but would it not be better to truncate the long siding that is the good shed road at the end of the office and extend the one behind and move the good shed back onto the extended rear siding. It would give you more room in front of the shed for road vehicles. As it is there is very little room and lorries would have to back in and load from the side or drive in load and back out. Just a thought you understand not a criticism.

Regards Lez.     

[Rowsley17D]

Hi Lez, thanks for your comments and suggestion. There's quite a bit of room in front of the shed loading bay and given the shed would have been built in the days of horses and carts space would not have been a problem. As to turning there's plenty of room further into the yard to do that. If the shed was further back its shadow would be on the back scene which I don't like. I'll give your suggestion a go when we next "go home" and see what it looks like.

[Rowsley17D]

Here is a mock-up of the suggestion by Lez. I must admit it does look better.

 

 

 

 

 

[Tortuga]

Have to agree with Lez as well; moving it back opens up the yard and I’m not sure the shadow of the shed will be on the backscene (looking at your second and third photo).

[Regularity]

Prototypically you can probably go for either option: I think your choice falls down to which of the two you like most.

[Rowsley17D]

I've gone with Lez's suggestion. The Siding to where the shed was has been shortened and a new piece of cork laid where the track was. Plain track has been sprayed last night ready to lay sometime today once chores for SWMBO have been done.

[lezz01]

I did think it was looking a bit cramped the way you had it Jonathan. A teamster would have had trouble turning a team of 2 and a cart the way you had it. I thought it would look better opened up a bit. Sometimes you just need a fresh pair of eyes.

Regards Lez.

[Rowsley17D]

A couple of hours spent in the railway room this afternoon saw the sidings relayed whch completes track-laying in the goods yard. The Wills' setts sheets are just plonked in place to see how much of the ground area would suit this covering.

 

 

 

 

 

I also got the plain track to the main platform laid too. This was unusual in that it had two faces and originates from when the station was first opened. It's only partially ballasted as the platform walls need to go in place first.

 

 

 

Looking at the setts in the photos it doesn't look right. I may go for printed textures sheets.

Edited November 24, 2018 by Rowsley17D

[Rowsley17D]

With reference to post 103, the Ratio Cattle Dock is on its way to a new home and I have sent off to Poppys Woodtech ( http://www.poppyswoodtech.co.uk/ ) for their cattle dock kits. Not cheap, but they look the part.

[Rowsley17D]

I decided to use downloadable paper textures to cover the goods yard. First a layer of 0.5mm grey card was laid. To get some sort of a camber strips of card were laid first roughly where the middle of the roadway should be.

 

 

A two-sett wide strip was laid as edging.

 

 

Then whole sheets were laid next. The printing of the sheets gave a glossy finish so the area was given a light coat spray of matt varnish.

 

 

To me, this looks more convincing than Wills' sheets. The ballast now needs topping up to the edge of the setts.

Edited December 7, 2018 by Rowsley17D

[chuffinghell]

I’m liking that, looks really good

[Mrkirtley800]

That looks excellent. What glue did you use to stick the paper down?

Derek

[Rowsley17D]

That looks excellent. What glue did you use to stick the paper down?

Derek

 

Hi Derek to stick the card to the cork I use vinyl carpet glue from B&Q which can be diluted with water. To stick the paper textures to the card I use cheap versions of Pritt stick glue like Hobby Craft stuff or that sold in pound shops.

[Mrkirtley800]

Thank you for that info. When I stick paper onto a flat surface I can never get rid of wrinkles. Never thought of Pritt stick

Derek

[Rowsley17D]

Thank you for that info. When I stick paper onto a flat surface I can never get rid of wrinkles. Never thought of Pritt stick

Derek

 

It's the method of John Wiffen from Scalescenes. I also use a rubber ink printing roller too.

[Rowsley17D]

Most of the yard has received its covering of setts. Its still shiny despite a coat of Precision spray matt varnish which promptly bloomed even after being sprayed in a warm room and much shaking of the can. 

 

 

 

 

Work was started on the platform between the bay (platform 1) and platform 2. While holding a thin pencil (I think it came from a diary) against the end of a coach, a line was drawn on the cork track-bed. For the straight sections pieces of 5 mm foam board were cut 3mm narrower than the width between the pencil lines. A curved piece was very roughly cut. To get the right height 3 pieces of foam board were needed. the edges of the foam board were covered in 0.5mm card which were in turn covered in Scalescenes' stone paper. 1mm card will be used to the platform tops.

 

 

 

 

[Regularity]

If you don’t mind the observation before it is possibly too late to change, those platforms look a touch high. Can you reduce the height by a couple of millimetres?

 

Have a look at the photos on the disused stations website: you will also notice that some tracks seem to be laid on more ballast than others, as a variety of heights (compared to the stock) are displayed despite what looks to be a fairly level platform surface.

 

http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/b/buxton/index.shtml

[Rowsley17D]

Simon

The platform height above rail level is 12mm which I understand is correct in 4mm scale. The top card layer shown in the last 2 photos is not stuck down so is higher than it will be when it is. 

[Regularity]

Thanks - it’ll be the top layer of card.

 

Btw, there is no “correct” height for 4mm scale, just a convention. Platforms started off at ground level, and got higher over the years. As you can see from the disused stations website, this led to quite a variety of heights, even at the same place.

 

Frank Dwyer used 10mm above rail height on his Borchester layouts, and felt that things looked better for it - for one thing, they look slightly bigger than they are, as the eye (well, actually the brain!) compares the surface area tothe height when making a comparison.

 

Anyway. Just an observation: your train set, after all.

[Rowsley17D]

 

After some experimenting I went with thinner card, about 0.5mm thick, which was covered in Scalescenes' random ashlar "texture".

 

The surface was covered in their paving and edging from the same set.

 

 

The platform is about 1mm below the coaches' step-boards.

 

 

 

A view along the platform

 

 

My old main station building was added for a bit of fun but would not allow a pitched overall roof, so in time it will be replaced.

 

 

 

[Rowsley17D]

Managed part of an afternoon in the railway room and got the platform 3 track and the adjacent carriage siding laid and mostly ballasted.

 

 

 

A couple of fun shots to round off the day. 2P 693 awaits all stations departure for Manchester Central, while 3F provides the steam heat and power for the through carriage to St Pancras which will be attached at Millers Dale.

 

 

Edited December 28, 2018 by Rowsley17D

[Rowsley17D]

The remaining plaform is just about finished save for its surfacing "texture".