Veja Megstra - RhB Nm layout

[MrTea]

On 28/03/2021 at 22:10, PaulRhB said:

Could you put one face of the bridge on one board and the road and other face on the other?

I hadn’t thought of it like that but I reckon that could work. 
 

I think it’s a farm track rather than a road based on what I can see from Google Maps?

 

Managed to squeeze in an hour’s modelling before dinner yesterday - it was even nice enough to be outside!

 

 

Tempted to have a stab at the backscene in the next few days if I can pluck up the courage...

Edited March 12 by MrTea
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[PaulRhB]

13 minutes ago, MrTea said:

 

I think it’s a farm track rather than a road based on what I can see from Google Maps?

There are a lot of farm track, private drives to a few houses that seem finished to road standard but only one lane. 

 

 

 

Edited April 3, 2021 by PaulRhB

[Frutigen]

Really nice flow to that landscape, I’m looking forward to seeing it develop. 

[MrTea]

Made a start on building the bridge near Crestas last night:

 

Greyboard structure wrapped in a photographic print similar to previous structures on the Veja Megstra side of the layout. 

 

Wrap applied to the downhill face. 

 

Next steps are adding the main arch liner and the railings and fencing along the sides of the track way. The fencing is quite ‘rustic’ so I think it’s going to require separate styrene strips to replicate the planks.

 

Edited March 12 by MrTea
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[jonhall]

I walked onto that bridge when Martyn and I were in the area last year, but it appears I was so underwhelmed, that I didn't actually take a photo.

 

Jon

[PaulRhB]

2 hours ago, jonhall said:

I walked onto that bridge when Martyn and I were in the area last year, but it appears I was so underwhelmed, that I didn't actually take a photo.

 

Jon

The vista just northeast of it is so nice you tend to point the camera the other way  

[PaulRhB]

Thing is it’s the little structures like this that make it look like the RhB just as much as the classic vistas  

[MrTea]

On 07/04/2021 at 18:34, jonhall said:

I walked onto that bridge when Martyn and I were in the area last year, but it appears I was so underwhelmed, that I didn't actually take a photo.

 

Jon

 

Evening Jon. Small world eh?

 

You don't happen to remember what the bridge is like on the top do you?

 

At the moment I've guessed and used a mirror image of the metal plate on the outside for the inside face. The fence will be installed in a future session once it's had a coat of paint.

 

Edited March 12 by MrTea
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[MrTea]

Here's a view of tonight's progress:

 

 

It's all an approximation in terms of measurements but I think it'll capture the essence of the real structure when it's installed on the layout.

Edited March 12 by MrTea
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[jonhall]

I'm pretty confident the inside face looked like the outside face, if it had been significantly different I think I would have taken a snap or two...

 

Jon

[MrTea]

Quick try out of the bridge on the layout:

 

 

 

 

Edited March 12 by MrTea
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[MrTea]

Added the print to the uphill side of the bridge and I also got impatient and installed the fences and railings!

 

It needs a bit of weathering and blending into the landscape but I’m really rather pleased with how this has turned out. 
 

Thanks to Paul for the suggestion of mounting one face on one board and the rest of the bridge on the other - I think this makes a very effective job of masking the joint!

 

Here’s the other side with Ge 4/4iii 642 on a gauging trial run.

Edited March 13 by MrTea
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[Nutbrook]

Great work on the bridge Ian, where did you get your laser cut railings from ??

[MrTea]

On 16/04/2021 at 11:40, Nutbrook said:

Great work on the bridge Ian, where did you get your laser cut railings from ??

Hi Nutbrook,

 

They’re by Auhagen cat no. 44 643. 
 

They're not the cheapest but they do look the part. 
 

I also used them on a Kibri bridge on the Veja Megstra side of the layout:

 

 

I got mine from KJB models: https://kjbmodels.co.uk

 

Ian

Edited March 13 by MrTea
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[MrTea]

Test fit of the God tunnel north portal:

 

 

This another Google Streetview wrap on a greyboard shell. 

Edited March 13 by MrTea
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[MrTea]

Apologies for the lack of updates recently. There's been a lot of thinking about the layout but not a great deal in the way of work going on. Sometimes work and life get in the way a bit don't they?

 

Today was pretty wild and wet here in Berkshire. So after I'd finished my domestic chores I got a couple of hours to work on the layout this afternoon.

 

I was hoping I might get on to the plaster bandage layer but I spent the time instead finishing off the landforms up the grade from the viaduct over the road:
 

This is where I've compressed the approach to Plaz tunnel, which will be situated on the next board to the left of this shot. The front is meadow whereas behind the track is a steep bank and woodland.

 

Overhead shot. This looks a lot flatter that it is at eye level.

 

Looking up the line towards the viaduct. It doesn't look it but there is a 4% gradient on the track here.

 

I've been continuing to use the IKEA packaging to create the landforms which seems to have been pretty successful. Previously I'd used a fair amount of foam core board (which is nice to work with if you have a sharp blade) and also expanded polystyrene (you can become a lot less popular if you start cutting it up inside the house!). There's something really quite nicely tactile about the thin corrugated card IKEA use and it's easy to create flowing landforms between the profiles I'd cut from the thicker honeycomb packing pieces. Having access to a quick bonding card glue such as Roket Card Glue definitely helped progress as PVA takes a long time to set in comparison. There are also some places where I had to pin pieces in place, mostly into the risers.

 

I had been cutting card infills to cover the polystyrene risers but I used some masking tape around the awkward areas near the viaduct and that seemed to work well so I decided to use it along the trackside to cover the gaps particularly on the outside of the curves. It'll all get hidden under the plaster and paint (and a layer of snow) at some point in the future.

 

Hopefully I'll manage to get some more done before the weekend.

[MrTea]

Had a visit from the maintenance team this afternoon. There are some drainage problems near the mouth of Toua tunnel that the gang needed to attend to:

 

 

[Glorious NSE]

On 07/04/2021 at 18:34, jonhall said:

I walked onto that bridge when Martyn and I were in the area last year, but it appears I was so underwhelmed, that I didn't actually take a photo.

 

Jon

Sorry i'd missed this thread for a bit! 

I took several of that bridge as I thought it looked really modelleable!

 

Here's the top side - it has since been boarded inside the metal, so you can't see what the inside looks/looked like.

Have a dig around on my website here if you want more - they will be about half way down the page: Link to more pics:

[MrTea]

18 hours ago, Glorious NSE said:

I took several of that bridge as I thought it looked really modelleable!

 

Here's the top side - it has since been boarded inside the metal, so you can't see what the inside looks/looked like.

Have a dig around on my website here if you want more - they will be about half way down the page: Link to more pics:

Thanks Martyn. Those photos are just perfect!

 

I can see quite a few on your site that will be useful including some of the arch further up the line before Plaz tunnel. It looks as if you managed to see a lot of different locos and rolling stock while you were there. 

Edited May 18, 2021 by MrTea
Grammar

[Glorious NSE]

Thanks, glad they were useful.

Yes was a great trip! Glad we could squeeze that in to try and catch as much variety as we could.  

[MrTea]

Tonight’s mini project: 

 

Adding photographers to the panorama wagon. 
 

 

 

As delivered the carriage looks very empty. I’ve added a few Preiser 1:160 scale figures for now, which instantly changes the look. I may add a couple of seated figures in the future just to balance things out a bit. 
 

I’ve also acquired a second Gourmino restaurant car having seen a clip on YouTube of them running in pairs. The model comes with standard N gauge couplers so I swapped them for the Kato close couplers and installed the lens for the lighting. 
 

 

 

Ready for service on the line.

[cornish trains jez]

They look nice!

 

[MrTea]

1 hour ago, cornish trains jez said:

They look nice!

 

 

Thanks. TBH I'm actually hoping the rubbish weather continues into the weekend so I have an excuse to set the layout up!

[MrTea]

A parcel of goodies, including these, arrived this morning courtesy of @JimFin

 

 

This is my first foray into the world of 3D printed rolling stock. I’ll be interested to see how they turn out. 
 

The package also contained a set of catenary components. They look really detailed and offer a useful alternative to the Kato masts I’ve used for the Veja Megstra side of the layout. 
 

Time to get out the spray cans and do some priming!

[MrTea]

Made a start on the next stage of the scenery this afternoon:

 

 

It's good to finally see the cardboard being covered up! The tunnel mouth is now fixed in place after a good coat of varnish to seal the photo print.