Cholsey & Moulsford (Change for Wallingford)

[Nick Gough]

Meanwhile, the chimney now has its stringer course and the base fitted:

Edited May 1, 2022 by Nick Gough

[St Enodoc]

5 hours ago, Nick Gough said:

a small lakeside lodge

 Am I the only one who thought "that shed would make a good railway room"?

[Nick Gough]

9 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

 Am I the only one who thought "that shed would make a good railway room"?

No.

I automatically start to assess the potential when I first walk into any small building or large space.

 

Mind you, it's a a bit far from home to say, "I'm just popping out to the railway room dear!"

 

 

[Nick Gough]

It's called 'The Old Telephone Exchange', though I think that refers more to the history of the site rather than the building itself.

 

https://www.holidaycottages.co.uk/cottage/45430-old-telephone-exchange

 

A very nice place to spend a week and far more peaceful than many other holiday destinations seem to be this summer.

[Nick Gough]

One morning, outside the lodge, I found that my car was being attacked by a young vandal:

.

.

.

 

 

Nothing like a good scratch:

 

What?

 

Fortunately just a turned door mirror:

Edited May 1, 2022 by Nick Gough

[Nick Gough]

Chimney glued in place to the roof with a quick paint of tank grey on the top two courses of the base:

 

Then a fiddly job. Four small, triangular fillets of plasticard glued to the bottom corners of each of the bargeboards:

 

To replicate this:

 

I did try cutting more coffee stirrers for these but, because of the small size, they kept splitting apart.

Edited May 1, 2022 by Nick Gough

[Nick Gough]

One half of the roof has been covered with a layer of 10 thou plasticard:

 

To give the necessary overhangs prior to putting slates on.

 

My Silhouette Cutter was supplied with a roll of self-adhesive vinyl:

 

I am planning to try using the Silhouette to create strips of slates from this as, I believe, others have done.

Edited May 1, 2022 by Nick Gough

[Mikkel]

On 25/08/2021 at 15:04, Nick Gough said:

One morning, outside the lodge, I found that my car was being attacked by a young vandal:

.

.

.

 

 

Nothing like a good scratch:

 

What?

 

Fortunately just a turned door mirror:

 

I wish the vandals around here were that pleasant!

 

27 minutes ago, Nick Gough said:

I am planning to try using the Silhouette to create strips of slates from this as, I believe, others have done.

 

I've been very happy with that solution, it's my preferred approach now after having tried various other options. I look forward to seeing the results.

 

[ChrisN]

Intrestinger and interestinger.  I have obviously forgotten that Mikkel used the self adhesive vinyl method.  I shall watch with interest as my station is 400mm long and has 100mm at least up the the apex and down the other side.  I had thought of drawing onto paper and cutting out each strip then cutting between each slate............  (My wife said, 'Can you do something quickly?' Sigh.)  Also, all my other buildings will have slate roofs, unless I see anything different when I am in Wales next.  ('What are you doing?' 'Looking at what the roofs are made of.' 'YEs, but will you keep your eyes on the road while driving!'  Sigh.)

 

So questions.

What is your thickness of plasticard, and I assume that it has to be near the thickness of the slates?

 

Does the vinyl stick to cardboard,  or even cardboard painted in Shellac?

 

Where do you buy the vinyl?

 

What is the width of the sheet?

 

What are your cutter settings, both for cutting and scoring?

 

Will this drive me less mad than sticking individual tiles on the roof using Pritt Stick?

 

Thank you in anticipation.

 

[Nick Gough]

18 hours ago, Mikkel said:

 

I've been very happy with that solution, it's my preferred approach now after having tried various other options. I look forward to seeing the results.

 

Thanks Mikkel, that's good to know.

[Nick Gough]

18 hours ago, ChrisN said:

Intrestinger and interestinger.  I have obviously forgotten that Mikkel used the self adhesive vinyl method.  I shall watch with interest as my station is 400mm long and has 100mm at least up the the apex and down the other side.  I had thought of drawing onto paper and cutting out each strip then cutting between each slate............  (My wife said, 'Can you do something quickly?' Sigh.)  Also, all my other buildings will have slate roofs, unless I see anything different when I am in Wales next.  ('What are you doing?' 'Looking at what the roofs are made of.' 'YEs, but will you keep your eyes on the road while driving!'  Sigh.)

 

So questions.

What is your thickness of plasticard, and I assume that it has to be near the thickness of the slates?

 

Does the vinyl stick to cardboard,  or even cardboard painted in Shellac?

 

Where do you buy the vinyl?

 

What is the width of the sheet?

 

What are your cutter settings, both for cutting and scoring?

 

Will this drive me less mad than sticking individual tiles on the roof using Pritt Stick?

 

Thank you in anticipation.

 

Hi Chris

I haven't started yet, so can't really answer at the moment - maybe Mikkel could help?

I will update the thread with my progress.

 

The vinyl that came with my silhouette is called 'Plotter Vinyl ' and has the website www.gmcrafts.co.uk on the label. It's on a roll 205mm wide.

 

From previous experience I would say that, if you are going to make a roof from plasticard, it needs to be fairly thick.

 

I had two goes at making a signal box roof, both times using 20 thou for the sloping surfaces.

 

The first attempt I cut out and glued individual plasticard slates to this with solvent. This warped quite severely, particularly at the edges.

 

The second time I used strips of thin card instead and pritt sticked to the plasticard. This gave a better result but over time the roof has sagged slightly between the triangular supports beneath.

 

That's why I've gone for an MDF base for this roof.

 

If I was to use plasticard again I would use at least 40 thou and probably 60 thou.

[Nick Gough]

The second piece of plasticard glued to the roof:

 

The dirty mark towards the bottom left is where I removed the price label - 35p - how old is that?

 

On the prototype there are wooden mouldings along the top edge of each of the barge boards:

 

I have made a rough representation of these by filing and laminating thin strips of plasticard:

Edited May 1, 2022 by Nick Gough

[Tallpaul69]

Superb model Nick, a lesson for all of us in what can be achieved!

[Nick Gough]

Thank you Paul.

That's very good of you to say that.

[Nick Gough]

A fireplace for the goods office:

 

Edited May 1, 2022 by Nick Gough

[Nick Gough]

Seen through the doorway, in its intended position:

Edited May 1, 2022 by Nick Gough

[ChrisN]

5 hours ago, Nick Gough said:

Hi Chris

I haven't started yet, so can't really answer at the moment - maybe Mikkel could help?

I will update the thread with my progress.

 

The vinyl that came with my silhouette is called 'Plotter Vinyl ' and has the website www.gmcrafts.co.uk on the label. It's on a roll 205mm wide.

 

From previous experience I would say that, if you are going to make a roof from plasticard, it needs to be fairly thick.

 

I had two goes at making a signal box roof, both times using 20 thou for the sloping surfaces.

 

The first attempt I cut out and glued individual plasticard slates to this with solvent. This warped quite severely, particularly at the edges.

 

The second time I used strips of thin card instead and pritt sticked to the plasticard. This gave a better result but over time the roof has sagged slightly between the triangular supports beneath.

 

That's why I've gone for an MDF base for this roof.

 

If I was to use plasticard again I would use at least 40 thou and probably 60 thou.

 

Nick,

Thank you.

 

Plasticard slates on plasticard is bound to warp, you need an odd number of layers, no, it hardly makes sense to me either but it is true.  There are stories of people making slate loads and it ending up like a banana.  

 

My thought was cardboard, but do I go for strength, which means thick card, or thin card which is more prototypical.  I could coat it in shellac first which would harden it off before applying vthe slates.  I had intended for my cottage when it finally reaches roof height to use plasticard and stick on slates from York modelling.

 

At 205mm wide that is a bit tight to get a roof line from two strips, so will have to think carefully about how I do it.  The other interesting feature is that where the row ends in a whole tile, the line above in 1895 would not start with a half tile but  a 1 1/2 tile so you have to get the ends right.  I will have to go back and look at the tile sizes.  @Donw knows all about them and somewhere has listed them.  I shall have to make sure my overhangs at the ends make the roof and exact length for whatever tiles I choose.

 

I do like how you have done the barge boards and the detail.  It looks very good.

[RJS1977]

BBMF Spitfire over the Wallingford canopy this afternoon:

 

[Mikkel]

On 29/08/2021 at 16:40, Nick Gough said:

Hi Chris

I haven't started yet, so can't really answer at the moment - maybe Mikkel could help?

 

On 28/08/2021 at 21:21, ChrisN said:

What is your thickness of plasticard, and I assume that it has to be near the thickness of the slates?

 

For roofs I tend to use 20-25 thou, well supported. I say 25 because I have sometimes used Slaters sheets which my calipers say are 0.6 mm. But I've also found that different brands have different density and rigidity, so it sort of depends...

 

On 28/08/2021 at 21:21, ChrisN said:

Where do you buy the vinyl?

 

I initially used A4 vinyl sheets from Greenstar Graphics - but I think they have gone out of business. Then I misplaced it, and instead bought a no-name product on a roll from a a (Danish) craft shop who advertised it for Silhouette cutters. I think Nick's will be fine. A search for "Self Adhesive Black Matt Vinyl silhouette" should give you various options. The two I've tried were quite similar and both worked well.

 

On 29/08/2021 at 16:40, Nick Gough said:

What is the width of the sheet?

 

That will depend on the product I suppose, but about A4 width. Here it is on the Silhouette mat. If you're into detail, the ends of each row should be done in a certain way - which eludes me right now as I haven't done it myself.

 

 

On 29/08/2021 at 16:40, Nick Gough said:

What are your cutter settings, both for cutting and scoring?

 

I didn't score them, only cut. From the above design (drawn up in Inkscape) you get strips than can then be peeled off and placed overlapping each other. I can't remember cutter settings, but probably just max depth (10). I use the Silhouette premium blades.

 

On 29/08/2021 at 16:40, Nick Gough said:

Will this drive me less mad than sticking individual tiles on the roof using Pritt Stick?

 

Definitely. If a strip goes on wrong you can carefully peel it back off. 

 

 

 

It takes paint fairly well too. Returning to you question about width, below you can make out how I had to join strips near the middle to make a full length roof. I tried to make the join staggered so it wasn't too noticeable.

 

 

PS: I think Lee was the first to do this, see his blog here: https://lnrmodels.blogspot.com/2015/03/dover-priory-network-rail-depot-2.html

 

 

Edited August 31, 2021 by Mikkel

[Nick Gough]

On 29/08/2021 at 21:15, ChrisN said:

 The other interesting feature is that where the row ends in a whole tile, the line above in 1895 would not start with a half tile but  a 1 1/2 tile so you have to get the ends right.  I will have to go back and look at the tile sizes.  @Donw knows all about them and somewhere has listed them.  I shall have to make sure my overhangs at the ends make the roof and exact length for whatever tiles I choose.

 

I must admit I didn't realise about 1 1/2 end slates until you mentioned it. I then noticed a few roofs like that, around our village, whilst walking the dog yesterday. I need to check my photos.

 

Several of the GWR building drawings specify 'Countess' slates. According to the internet these are 20" X 10" .

[Nick Gough]

13 hours ago, RJS1977 said:

BBMF Spitfire over the Wallingford canopy this afternoon:

 

 

Was it a scheduled visit or a lucky coincidence?

 

We live a couple of miles from Sywell airfield where a two-seat Mark IX is based, and regularly flies over. They offer experience flights, so I have that in mind for the future.

Edited August 31, 2021 by Nick Gough

[Nick Gough]

1 hour ago, Mikkel said:

 

 

For roofs I tend to use 20-25 thou, well supported. I say 25 because I have sometimes used Slaters sheets which my calipers say are 0.6 mm. But I've also found that different brands have different density and rigidity, so it sort of depends...

 

 

I initially used A4 vinyl sheets from Greenstar Graphics - but I think they have gone out of business. Then I misplaced it, and instead bought a no-name product on a roll from a a (Danish) craft shop who advertised it for Silhouette cutters. I think Nick's will be fine. A search for "Self Adhesive Black Matt Vinyl silhouette" should give you various options. The two I've tried were quite similar and both worked well.

 

 

That will depend on the product I suppose, but about A4 width. Here it is on the Silhouette mat. If you're into detail, the ends of each row should be done in a certain way - which eludes me right now as I haven't done it myself.

 

 

 

I didn't score them, only cut. From the above design (drawn up in Inkscape) you get strips than can then be peeled off and placed overlapping each other. I can't remember cutter settings, but probably just max depth (10). I use the Silhouette premium blades.

 

 

Definitely. If a strip goes on wrong you can carefully peel it back off. 

 

 

 

It takes paint fairly well too. Returning to you question about width, below you can make out how I had to join strips near the middle to make a full length roof. I tried to make the join staggered so it wasn't too noticeable.

 

 

PS: I think Lee was the first to do this, see his blog here: https://lnrmodels.blogspot.com/2015/03/dover-priory-network-rail-depot-2.html

 

 

 

Thanks Mikkel. That's very useful information.

[RJS1977]

5 minutes ago, Nick Gough said:

 

Was it a scheduled visit or a lucky coincidence?

 

We live a couple of miles from Sywell airfield where a two-seat Mark IX is based, and regularly flies over. They offer experience flights, so I have that in mind for the future.

 

Scheduled visit - it did three passes , and another one did the same on Sunday afternoon.

 

I've arranged BBMF flypasts for the Railway for several years now - I normally just give them a few dates and they see when they're going to be in the area, usually hoping for a couple during the season. In 2019, we were lucky enough to have them on six dates, and got all their different aircraft types (except the Chipmunks) at some point!  

[ChrisN]

3 hours ago, Mikkel said:

 

 

For roofs I tend to use 20-25 thou, well supported. I say 25 because I have sometimes used Slaters sheets which my calipers say are 0.6 mm. But I've also found that different brands have different density and rigidity, so it sort of depends...

 

 

I initially used A4 vinyl sheets from Greenstar Graphics - but I think they have gone out of business. Then I misplaced it, and instead bought a no-name product on a roll from a a (Danish) craft shop who advertised it for Silhouette cutters. I think Nick's will be fine. A search for "Self Adhesive Black Matt Vinyl silhouette" should give you various options. The two I've tried were quite similar and both worked well.

 

 

That will depend on the product I suppose, but about A4 width. Here it is on the Silhouette mat. If you're into detail, the ends of each row should be done in a certain way - which eludes me right now as I haven't done it myself.

 

 

 

 

I didn't score them, only cut. From the above design (drawn up in Inkscape) you get strips than can then be peeled off and placed overlapping each other. I can't remember cutter settings, but probably just max depth (10). I use the Silhouette premium blades.

 

 

Definitely. If a strip goes on wrong you can carefully peel it back off. 

 

 

 

 

It takes paint fairly well too. Returning to you question about width, below you can make out how I had to join strips near the middle to make a full length roof. I tried to make the join staggered so it wasn't too noticeable.

 

 

PS: I think Lee was the first to do this, see his blog here: https://lnrmodels.blogspot.com/2015/03/dover-priory-network-rail-depot-2.html

 

 

 

Mikkel,

Thank you., that is very helpful.  I am likely to use shellaced card as the base of the roof and I assume that it will peel off as easily.  Drawing the tiles will be interesting, ah as I type I have thought of a method.  I am a way off doing this but trying to think ahead so as not to get sidetracked onto something else while waiting for things to arrive.

 

 

1 hour ago, Nick Gough said:

I must admit I didn't realise about 1 1/2 end slates until you mentioned it. I then noticed a few roofs like that, around our village, whilst walking the dog yesterday. I need to check my photos.

 

Several of the GWR building drawings specify 'Countess' slates. According to the internet these are 20" X 10" .

 

Nick,

I know the Victorians did this but eventually it was decided that what we do now, with a half slate at the end was cheaper.  I do not know when that changed, or if it changed all at once or was different for different people slating roofs.

[Nick Gough]

On 31/08/2021 at 10:35, ChrisN said:

Nick,

I know the Victorians did this but eventually it was decided that what we do now, with a half slate at the end was cheaper.  I do not know when that changed, or if it changed all at once or was different for different people slating roofs.

 

I'm having trouble finding a goods shed photo that clarifies how they were slated at the ends. This is about the best I have but it's not that clear:

 

I think it does show some 1/2 slates at the end, but there has clearly been some replacement work on the roof over the years.

Edited May 1, 2022 by Nick Gough