Burchill Edge Sidings - BR Blue Carriage/NPCCS Sidings, with a nod to Manchester Red Bank & Bristol Malago Vale

[61656]

4 hours ago, 9C85 said:

I won't show you my wiring 

We’re all friends together in this. So long as the trains work then the wiring is perfect. 

[9C85]

Another question... are Peter's Spares PS34 the correct wheels to replace the originals on Lima GUVs and CCTs?

 

And by 'per pair', I am assuming it means pair of axles. So, for a GUV and two CCTs I will need four pairs in total?

 

Sorry to be so dim - it's still early in the morning for me.

 

https://www.petersspares.com/peters-spares-ps34-lima-replacement-115mm-wagon-coach-wheels-x1-pair.ir

[cheesysmith]

IIRC Lima used their 12mm wheels under both, but they used coach wheels at 3"6`, so need 14mm wheels. And just to be difficult, they put the holes for the axles to run in lower in the axle box of the CCT to make up for the smaller wheels.

 

I do wonder if LIMA stood for Little Inaccurate, Mostly Authentic. The more you look at their models they made, the more minor errors you find. They look like what they are supposed to be, and even for their age have good tooling on the moulds. Most of the errors you can get away with, but some there is better newer alternatives out there.

[9C85]

Talking of Lima....

 

The latest addition to the fleet.

 

I am just going to add Kadees and new wheels to this one (hence the earlier question).

 

Oh, and weather it  a bit when my brass monkey stops checking the weather forecast. 

[Enterprisingwestern]

 

Re the cork problem.

Use one of these and drill a hole in it and put a threaded screw in it to clamp onto the wire.

 

Mike.

[9C85]

2 hours ago, Enterprisingwestern said:

 

Re the cork problem.

Use one of these and drill a hole in it and put a threaded screw in it to clamp onto the wire.

 

Mike.

 

Thanks Mike, was there supposed to be a picture attached or do you mean my original corks?

[Enterprisingwestern]

12 hours ago, 9C85 said:

 

Thanks Mike, was there supposed to be a picture attached or do you mean my original corks?

 

Ooops, sorry.

 

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000793221148.html?cv=612519_All+products&aff_fsk=Y7bAZbY&af=324389&aff_platform=aaf&sk=Y7bAZbY&aff_trace_key=3d60a7c7b4b747a4a180269048fefbbd-1612941640710-03448-Y7bAZbY&cn=15716&dp=612519%3A%3A324389%3A%3AEAIaIQobChMIzKzP2ePe7gIV-xoGAB32tg0mEAQYCSABEgIFB.D.BwE%3A%3A%3A%3A1612941640&terminal_id=dbc3eab37acc40578bd25457fa4f3655

 

Mike.

[9C85]

 

At the end of my last running session, I realised that I had a train in the yard reception road (nearest the retaining wall), but had no free siding on which to put it. 

My stock purchases have obviously caught up on me.

I realise that it's a nice problem to have. 

I have just had an enjoyable ( but very cold) half an hour in the garage shunting and dispatching a few trains. 

Now I have the opposite problem - My 3 road storage yard is full, but at least I have 2 free sidings in the yard.

I see a pattern forming. 

[61656]

14 hours ago, 9C85 said:

 

At the end of my last running session, I realised that I had a train in the yard reception road (nearest the retaining wall), but had no free siding on which to put it. 

My stock purchases have obviously caught up on me.

I realise that it's a nice problem to have. 

I have just had an enjoyable ( but very cold) half an hour in the garage shunting and dispatching a few trains. 

Now I have the opposite problem - My 3 road storage yard is full, but at least I have 2 free sidings in the yard.

I see a pattern forming. 

I do really like your retaining wall. It gives the layout such an authentic feel to it. If I scroll back through 19 pages do I get the information on how you did it?

 

In terms of stock I deliberately planned for more track than I thought I would fill based on one of the standard equations of railway modelling that you will always buy more stock than you need. I think once you get to the point of saturation is when you need to introduce a schedule for your running sessions. 

[Enterprisingwestern]

15 hours ago, 9C85 said:

I see a pattern forming. 

 

I see a bigger layout forming!

 

Mike.

[9C85]

11 minutes ago, 61656 said:

I do really like your retaining wall. It gives the layout such an authentic feel to it. If I scroll back through 19 pages do I get the information on how you did it?

 

In terms of stock I deliberately planned for more track than I thought I would fill based on one of the standard equations of railway modelling that you will always buy more stock than you need. I think once you get to the point of saturation is when you need to introduce a schedule for your running sessions. 

 

Thanks.  The retaining wall work starts about halfway down page 6. It's made from pre-cast plaster moulds which are supplied pre painted in a flat brick colour.  I used a weathering method I found on the internet employing enamel paints and adapted it for plaster (as opposed to plasticard) by using wire wool rather than kitchen roll to lift off patches of wet paint.  The whole process is all covered in my ramblings I think. I was really pleased with how it came out and enjoyed doing it. I added some lime streaks by simply powdering school chalk and streaking it down with a brush or finger. 

 

As for stock, I need just a few items to get the consists I was aiming for at the start of the project, and one more loco.  It is difficult to decide whether go for another class of loco ( 31 or a 33 would be nice) or whether to 'double up' on one of my existing fleet. In the real world, classes would be based in a region or a certain depot, and you would naturally see more of those than other locos (eg 37s in South Wales). I suppose another 47 would be a safe choice as they were everywhere. Whatever my next loco is, I am going to make sure it has sound fitted.

 

I will employ a rough timetable, but all my moves are prototypical in that ECS stock being handled by the station pilot is either followed on or off scene by the light engine which was/will be in charge of the train. If that makes sense?

[9C85]

12 minutes ago, Enterprisingwestern said:

 

I see a bigger layout forming!

 

Mike.

I have toyed with the idea of curving one of the storage yard roads around the end garage wall and having a separate, but connected, MPD or (even better) parcels depot. 

[61656]

33 minutes ago, 9C85 said:

I have toyed with the idea of curving one of the storage yard roads around the end garage wall and having a separate, but connected, MPD or (even better) parcels depot. 

Wouldn’t a small carriage repair shop add to operating potential? You could shunt coaches in and out of the rakes to take for repair - and add to the task by making the carriage shop siding face the opposite way to the main sidings, so you need a run round or a second shunter (03 and match truck). You can then justify almost any piece of rolling stock appear for specialist repair, either alone or as a rake. 

[61656]

41 minutes ago, 9C85 said:

 

As for stock, I need just a few items to get the consists I was aiming for at the start of the project, and one more loco.  It is difficult to decide whether go for another class of loco ( 31 or a 33 would be nice) or whether to 'double up' on one of my existing fleet. In the real world, classes would be based in a region or a certain depot, and you would naturally see more of those than other locos (eg 37s in South Wales). I suppose another 47 would be a safe choice as they were everywhere. Whatever my next loco is, I am going to make sure it has sound fitted.

My 2021 plan / rule is to finish fitting everything I currently have with sound, then only buy from local traders in person (hopefully). My core fleet now has enough variety that I’ll be happy with whatever I find next. I am looking for suggestions for good shops near good pubs. Chester Model Shop is absolutely premier league based on these criteria! My base requirement for a cheerful and friendly owner seems to rule out a surprising number of shops where being cheerful and friendly would appear to be the best sales tactic...

[9C85]

I have WD Models a few miles away in Chesterfield, and the giant that is Rails of Sheffield about half an hour away.  Got my track from Rails. 

Good pubs near both the aforementioned - I might adopt your purchasing technique.

[Rich Papper]

On 09/02/2021 at 09:16, 9C85 said:

Another question... are Peter's Spares PS34 the correct wheels to replace the originals on Lima GUVs and CCTs?

 

And by 'per pair', I am assuming it means pair of axles. So, for a GUV and two CCTs I will need four pairs in total?

 

Sorry to be so dim - it's still early in the morning for me.

 

https://www.petersspares.com/peters-spares-ps34-lima-replacement-115mm-wagon-coach-wheels-x1-pair.ir

 

I'll vouch for the Peters Spares wheels to replace Lima - very good quality, and I use them for power pickup too. They're a good fit for the old Lima DMUs, I'd guess the coaching stock too, but they're probably closer in size to those for a B4 bogie, others should be larger (but probably weren't!). By 'per pair' he means 2 axles, so 2 packs for a bogie coach.

 

Really enjoying this layout so far. The gentle curve to the sidings makes a big difference to the overall atmosphere.

Thanks for sharing.

Rich

[9C85]

6 hours ago, Rich Papper said:

 

I'll vouch for the Peters Spares wheels to replace Lima - very good quality, and I use them for power pickup too. They're a good fit for the old Lima DMUs, I'd guess the coaching stock too, but they're probably closer in size to those for a B4 bogie, others should be larger (but probably weren't!). By 'per pair' he means 2 axles, so 2 packs for a bogie coach.

 

Really enjoying this layout so far. The gentle curve to the sidings makes a big difference to the overall atmosphere.

Thanks for sharing.

Rich

 

Thank you so much for the advice and kind words. I have some PS34s on order. 

 

I am really pleased that I managed to get the curves I wanted in the sidings. I think that after I have got my latest GUV up and running, I will return to adding more scenic detail to the layout. There's still plenty of work to do but at least I can have a running session if I don't feel like doing much.

 

I need to make a plan for the fuel point end of the layout.  I am contemplating trying to use several layers of printed backscenes to create a forced perspective of an edge of town scene (eg tower blocks at various scales etc). I have got access to decent software, so there's no excuse really. 

 

Thanks again. 

[9C85]

 

Just had an unplanned, but very productive, hour in the garage. 

 

I got my new axles from Peter's Spares and replaced the ones on my two CCTs and my newest GUV (pictured). I also replaced the Kadees on my Newspapers BG conversion ( also pictured) with the longer shanked version.  Now it couples and uncouples a lot better. 

 

On the subject of Kadees, I reckon if someone went into business providing ready-assembled No 5 units, they would make a fortune.  No matter how much I try, I always end up wrecking something (usually the brass spring) and so I have to order another packet and get an uneven number of components to work with.

 

I have tried using Hornby NEM pockets and NEM Kadees but the plastic from which the pockets are manufactured doesn't seem to glue very well to coach floors or plasticard with either polystyrene cement or super glue.

[9C85]

On 13/02/2021 at 15:57, 9C85 said:

 

I need to make a plan for the fuel point end of the layout.  I am contemplating trying to use several layers of printed backscenes to create a forced perspective of an edge of town scene (eg tower blocks at various scales etc). I have got access to decent software, so there's no excuse really. 

 

I have started to play around in Photoshop with a few images. The 'base/background' layer is cropped from one of those iconic photos of Red Bank in its heyday .

 

The middle and foreground layers so far are just images of anything that I think might fit in (just a couple of tower blocks thus far). I am playing around with the scale and colour/saturation settings, trying to lighten the 'further away' layers.

 

It will probably look OK as a single flat artwork but I am tempted to print out each layer and mount it onto card to create a 3D "découpage" type thingy.

 

Very rough work in progress attached...

 

Edited February 17, 2021 by 9C85
Yopt

[Joner]

1 hour ago, 9C85 said:

 

I have started to play around in Photoshop with a few images. The 'base/background' layer is cropped from one of those iconic photos of Red Bank in its heyday .

 

The middle and foreground layers so far are just images of anything that I think might fit in (just a couple of tower blocks thus far). I am playing around with the scale and colour/saturation settings, trying to lighten the 'further away' layers.

 

It will probably look OK as a single flat artwork but I am tempted to print out each layer and mount it onto card to create a 3D "découpage" type thingy.

 

Very rough work in progress attached...

 

I like your idea but won't that create shadows in the sky ? Depends I suppose on your lighting and how far away you plan on mounting the fore pictures. 

I like how you lightened the background the further away you go. Good work 

 

Paul

[9C85]

3 hours ago, Joner said:

I like your idea but won't that create shadows in the sky ? Depends I suppose on your lighting and how far away you plan on mounting the fore pictures. 

I like how you lightened the background the further away you go. Good work 

 

Paul

 

Thanks. Hadn't thought of the shadows but I eventually plan to install a lighting pelmet, similar to proper exhibition layouts. Ideally I will use dimmable LEDs and combine that with yard tower floodlights to have night time running  (which is after all when 'papers and parcels trains were most active).

I am probably going to have the layers spaced only about 5 to 10mm apart - see how it looks.

Cheers

[9C85]

Latest progress on the decoupage backscene... slight change of plan

 

 

I did a bit of reading and was reminded of my O level Art (I got a grade U) and the principle of vanishing points. 

I have played with the tower blocks on the right and removed the flat cityscape background as it was the wrong perspective. 

I have found another tower block this evening , duplicated it, shrunk it and desaturated it a bit and plonked both of them on the left hand side.  I will tidy them up tomorrow. 

Not sure how this is going to end up but it is a learning exercise which has cost nothing but a bit of time thus far 

 

[Northmoor]

3 minutes ago, 9C85 said:

Latest progress on the decoupage backscene... slight change of plan

 

 

I did a bit of reading and was reminded of my O level Art (I got a grade U) and the principle of vanishing points. 

I have played with the tower blocks on the right and removed the flat cityscape background as it was the wrong perspective. 

I have found another tower block this evening , duplicated it, shrunk it and desaturated it a bit and plonked both of them on the left hand side.  I will tidy them up tomorrow. 

Not sure how this is going to end up but it is a learning exercise which has cost nothing but a bit of time thus far 

 

That is really good, the desaturation works well.  Groups of similar tower blocks are common anyway, but if you wanted to be clever in Photoshop you could always remove a couple of floors from one if you wanted.

[9C85]

12 minutes ago, Northmoor said:

That is really good, the desaturation works well.  Groups of similar tower blocks are common anyway, but if you wanted to be clever in Photoshop you could always remove a couple of floors from one if you wanted.

 

Thanks.  I think I am at the 'less is more' stage and I should tidy up the two new blocks on the left and perhaps just have something low running across the front of the image eg trees, the backs of terraced houses etc.

I will probably have the top of a 'real' retaining wall in front of it in any case. 

[9C85]

 

This is what I have come up with. 

 

To be honest, when I printed it out, it was a bit like the Spinal Tap 'Stonehenge' moment - I think I have designed it to be printed on A3 paper but now I am working from home I only have access to an A4 printer, which is unreliable at the best of times. 

It was printed over two sheets of A4 Landscape paper and I cut them out and matched up the buildings to give the finished article. 

I wedged an old peco point packet behind it to take a test photo. In a reversal of the usual outcome, the photo looks a lot better than the view to the naked eye - judicious cropping.