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The Longmorn station kit, at least an interpretation of it. The kit has some compromises and I added some more but to my untrained eye it looks GNSR'ish... I did it more or less straight from the kit but removed the top layer of ply from the windows and added strapping and sills to give some degree of relief. As it looked a bit lost on its own I made up a base for it to sit on. It could be further improved but I called a halt to it before I got tempted in this direction and Iain has more stuff coming through that I am going to have a go at.

A before and after and with the Longmorn shunter paying a call...

 

Lonmorn_kit_2.jpg.480ce42d82f41bdb658b69207276233d.jpgLongmorn_kit.jpg.ec6efca0e0816ec8fd39feb8355e92ff.jpgIMG_1459.JPG.fc4b33ad7a5597f09a51659ce9220c2e.JPG20200611_175506.jpg.983e92e398e938d641f0e9c1743709bb.jpg20200611_180812.jpg.6056efea2dd9eef474e3f99b6cf08935.jpg

 

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Wow!  A lovely looking model, the diorama base looks good as well !   The flashing and fascia boards do a lot to disguise the  roof edges, love the guttering really sets the model off.  Splitting the ply  works well having done it on the N goods shed and water tower.

 

A new two option engine shed in 4mm looks very good and hopefully the N version will appear.   I also spotted a platform system had been added which looks very neatly thought out.   I think the POP up  gang are being kept busy by Iain.   

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DM , Yes a single road shed has been asked for , I am planning to build one as is for fun, a roofless one as it needs to be done and cut up a third to make a single, this should ensure if my other modelling any thing else to go by a single shed from Iain - now choice time a stone Thurso style or a Wooden Dornoch style?  ...

 

Also for fun a couple of phots of work yesterday.modelling__25062020_003.jpg.752b893dac776328bd1f769c25701340.jpgmodelling__25062020_008.jpg.d269703d01220bb50ff27fa968dc0241.jpg 

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couple more pics 

On the other post the GS has had lead flashings and roll top added to roof , need to find where I put the chminey! Cottage has had a coat of a cement textured paint - first coat shown to try and do a lime render second coat today and a lot better. 

The other cottage has had a dark grey slate roof base and a quick waft of primer on walls so blocks can be picked out.   The water tank has progressed with a dark grey "water" base layer and blocks picked out in colours- but many more to do. White stripe is where I wanted to model the cap stones. 

 

Hopefully more work today

Robert 

modelling__25062020_005.jpg.9ad70efb3d30f4d18d8446f32850f6bf.jpgmodelling__25062020_011.jpg.c3a369790c79f1da306da2f980329e49.jpg

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They look really impressive Robert.

other than ‘dry’  slotting the basic Goods shed together I havent done any work on my kit yet.

As my layout plans are based loosely on Thurso I would like to see the stone engine shed but as I never thought I would see any Highland buildings in N I’m happy just to see the range grow!

mark

 

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DM , 

One thing I found with the GS , the two internal roof supports are lower than the entrance doorways .  A post build action with a razor saw and pliers saw about 4mm taken off with out a problem.  I am also going to raise the building by 3mm to simulate the wall the timber frame sits on  to be clad as stone and will in time be hidden by under growth. In my haste the long trackside wall is not quite vertical so when gluing I would pin a restrainer piece across the door ways.  

 

I think that having seen the CAD for the engine shed then cutting to form the single road shed is possible. it will need a new smaller circular end vent so typical recreating.  

Yes It is good to HR buildings  It might be fun to see how the ES can be adapted to give a train shed. Two kits ans spllcing roof sections with a new end might well be possible..

 

Robert     

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2 hours ago, definate maybe said:

They look really impressive Robert.

other than ‘dry’  slotting the basic Goods shed together I havent done any work on my kit yet.

As my layout plans are based loosely on Thurso I would like to see the stone engine shed but as I never thought I would see any Highland buildings in N I’m happy just to see the range grow!

mark

 

 

I have spoken to Iain about a single road shed and he is prepared to do one on laser cut providing there is the potential for several sales, to make it worth Pop Up's time on input, so if anyone is interested in this please shout out. Alternatively, as a one off he could do a 3D model and is willing to do it on a specific subject, such as Thurso, if wanted and prepared to pay for the cost of printing.

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13 hours ago, Ben Alder said:

 

I have spoken to Iain about a single road shed and he is prepared to do one on laser cut providing there is the potential for several sales, to make it worth Pop Up's time on input, so if anyone is interested in this please shout out. Alternatively, as a one off he could do a 3D model and is willing to do it on a specific subject, such as Thurso, if wanted and prepared to pay for the cost of printing.

Yes please for a Thurso ! 

I have just mocked up an engine shed into a Train shed - two sheds look to be able to make a train shed 1.5 engine shed length to allow for extra wall and roof and width , might have too many roof joints  to work but might be worth playing with later.  I copied the CAD from the pop up website which was  handy..

Robert  

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Well Highland  Villa and an engine shed kit arrived a couple of days ago  and now basic form done, with infill with scrape ply to close the roof apex.  both easy and a pleasure to build.  I am certain with a little work the vills would form the basis of a two story building as seen at stations on the Kyle line. 

 

The engine shed is great a class 26 fits nicely and nothing too fiddly - the inter door pillar is thin and yes I broke it and fitted a reinforcing bit from scrap.  The major modification is how the doors are "hung" Ian has used a stone block fixed to the door that slots into holes in door way - this cut off and glued in place so no doors on this one - The doors being in 3mm ply are great as a tourist model but a bit thick - 18" scale in N so choice is to delaminate and build a frame behind or scratch one in plasticard.   

 

Internally during build I "whitewashed" walls with a rail grey and dark grey in the roof and it looks quite happy  for it - need to sort some internal bits - doors and notice boards but some etches to hand. 

The next one will be modelled as a roof less one so need to look at trusses- some good picks of roofless metal trusses at kyle - but  guess metal after fire damage?

Robert   

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I’ve just noticed that Pop Up Designs are now showing Ballachulish station building. 1st reaction is aarrrgh! - I’m halfway through trying to scratchbuild a representation of it but will now have to re-think!

 

It looks very nice and available as full L shaped building or without the side building. 
 

Now for the Signalbox, goods shed and engine shed !!

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I have run that by him! Model of the station sitting in my pile to be tackled soon but am finishing off some deferred projects before I get distracted yet again but it looks an interesting challenge. As my knowledge of matters CR is minimal can anyone advise if there are any decent close ups of the building in its railway days - did a quick trawl around but not a lot turned up...

 

Also just realised I hadn't posted any pics of the engine shed here. It's currently being plonked on a base as a set piece but here it is on the bench all but finished last week.

 

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On 06/08/2020 at 21:46, Ben Alder said:

I have run that by him! Model of the station sitting in my pile to be tackled soon but am finishing off some deferred projects before I get distracted yet again but it looks an interesting challenge. As my knowledge of matters CR is minimal can anyone advise if there are any decent close ups of the building in its railway days - did a quick trawl around but not a lot turned up...

 

Also just realised I hadn't posted any pics of the engine shed here. It's currently being plonked on a base as a set piece but here it is on the bench all but finished last week.

 

20200729_010847.jpg

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20200729_010854.jpg

That looks amazing, could you describe how you’ve finished the stonework please, is it ‘simply painted in layers over the kit’ and I don’t mean that in a derogatory way or have you done something with the surface to raise the texture? 

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Thanks - the stone work is an embossed wallpaper type finish I found on ebay after a long look at various types. I have toned it down slightly with a rub of Mig weathering powder but it gives a rather nice effect.

 

Here is a link -IMO a reasonable price if you like building things!.

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10-SHEETS-bumpy-EMBOSSED-BRICK-stone-wall-paper-21x28cm-HO-1-87/392313695374

 

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20 hours ago, Ben Alder said:

Thanks - the stone work is an embossed wallpaper type finish I found on ebay after a long look at various types. I have toned it down slightly with a rub of Mig weathering powder but it gives a rather nice effect.

 

Here is a link -IMO a reasonable price if you like building things!.

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10-SHEETS-bumpy-EMBOSSED-BRICK-stone-wall-paper-21x28cm-HO-1-87/392313695374

 

Thanks for the info and the link, looks very nice what you have achieved.

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On 06/08/2020 at 21:46, Ben Alder said:

As my knowledge of matters CR is minimal can anyone advise if there are any decent close ups of the building in its railway days - did a quick trawl around but not a lot turned up...

One here for sale on the HMRS site: 

https://hmrs.org.uk/photographs/ballachulish-station-building-behind-bufferstops-at-platform-ends.html

You can hover over it to enlarge it - or buy it. 

There are one or two bits and bobs here: 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/irishswissernie/albums/72157688374962505/page4

And one here: 

https://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/01/05/the-ballachulish-railway-line-part-3/

One for sale here: 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/252310967523

 

I bought the kit of Ballachulish a couple of weeks ago, but to be honest I'm umming and ahhing about whether to send it back. There are two major problems with it: the first is the way the the locating "pegs" intrude into surfaces which have detail scribed on them such as tiles, bricks or even doors; the intrusive pegs, and the gaps around them, negate the whole point of the scribed detail. This is not a problem on the roof as I would cover it with separate tiles anyway, and I suppose you could say that the doors are better replaced with plastic ones anyway, and your (Ben Alder's) idea of using embossed paper would ...well... paper over the cracks on the walls. But then the kit becomes just a scratchbuilding aid, which is fine, but at £60 it's not priced as such. 

The other problem is a bigger one: the windows are cut as part of the main body, which means the glazing bars are 3 or 4mm thick, which sets the glazing back a long way, giving the kit the look of something from the very low end of the market; however, it's priced at the higher, quality end: £60 is something like the price mark for Bachmann buildings, but the visible and intrusive location pegs and the poor windows make this kit look something like the Metcalfe end of the market. 

 

As I say, umming and ahhing. There's a solution to the pegs, but the only solution to the windows seems to be scratchbuilding them - in which case, I'm not sure what I paid £60 for....  

 

 

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On 06/08/2020 at 21:46, Ben Alder said:

can anyone advise if there are any decent close ups of the building in its railway days - did a quick trawl around but not a lot turned up

I don't know if the Scottish Line Societies photo archive has anything. Ask that nice Mr Fenwick to sign you up and then have a search. You may be gone some time. 

Alan 

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12 hours ago, Daddyman said:

bought the kit of Ballachulish a couple of weeks ago, but to be honest I'm umming and ahhing about whether to send it bac

Thanks for the links - I had looked at Ernie and the blog but the colour pic is new to me.

Andy is the first to admit that his kits are not at the upper end of scale - the rest of his products are aimed at a general gift market - and he is amazed at some of the results folk have achieved with them. Pricey? Depends how you measure these things - £ 60 won't get you three Bachmann vans , and all the research and planning is done for you. As someone who scratch built all the buildings on my layout, I know how time consuming and sometimes difficult it is to obtain decent images and information to tackle something from the ground up. The pegs are a bit of a nuisance, but are part of his manufacturing process and it is not worth his while to change that for what is a very small niche market, but they can be incorporated into the structure with a bit of work and the roof markings actually make a more than passable finish with a lick of paint. I agree that the windows are probably the weakest part of the design, but can be disguised - the ply delaminates with the help of a sharp chisel blade and I did this on the Longmorn station. It is a tedious process but it gave a far better effect with some relief to the surface. Still thick, but once painted and on a layout it won't be noticeable. An alternative is to either make your own or get some made - I went for this option with the engine shed, getting York Modelmaking to do replacements, which can be obtained from them if anyone wants to use them on it.

I am still mulling over what to do with my Ballachulish and probably will use the supplied walls as a base and add cladding and window surrounds on top  to recess the existing windows and perhaps thin them from behind where any roughness won't be seen - that first photo is going to be very useful in deciding a course of action with it. Unlike much of my work, which is thought about as it unfolds, I find that these kits need a complete work plan settled on beforehand to avoid hiccups. I did suggest using thin MDF as a medium, as per the Peco Helmsdale kit, but he does not want to work with that material for health reasons, which is understandable.

 I must confess I am enjoying making these up and adapting them to get a finer finish, but that's the part of the hobby I like the best, and Pop Up's interest in this obscure part of Britain's railways has provided the HR, GNSR and now the CR modeller with the basis for models that seemed but dreams  up till now.

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15 hours ago, Buhar said:

't know if the Scottish Line Societies photo archive has anything. Ask that nice Mr Fenwick to sign you up and then have a search. You may be gone some time

 

Already in there thanks to the HRS, and spent hours already.. several useful shots of Thurso with details for further projects but hadn't thought of it for this. A recce is called for.....

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8 hours ago, Ben Alder said:

Thanks for the links - I had looked at Ernie and the blog but the colour pic is new to me.

Andy is the first to admit that his kits are not at the upper end of scale - the rest of his products are aimed at a general gift market - and he is amazed at some of the results folk have achieved with them. Pricey? Depends how you measure these things - £ 60 won't get you three Bachmann vans , and all the research and planning is done for you. As someone who scratch built all the buildings on my layout, I know how time consuming and sometimes difficult it is to obtain decent images and information to tackle something from the ground up. The pegs are a bit of a nuisance, but are part of his manufacturing process and it is not worth his while to change that for what is a very small niche market, but they can be incorporated into the structure with a bit of work and the roof markings actually make a more than passable finish with a lick of paint. I agree that the windows are probably the weakest part of the design, but can be disguised - the ply delaminates with the help of a sharp chisel blade and I did this on the Longmorn station. It is a tedious process but it gave a far better effect with some relief to the surface. Still thick, but once painted and on a layout it won't be noticeable. An alternative is to either make your own or get some made - I went for this option with the engine shed, getting York Modelmaking to do replacements, which can be obtained from them if anyone wants to use them on it.

I am still mulling over what to do with my Ballachulish and probably will use the supplied walls as a base and add cladding and window surrounds on top  to recess the existing windows and perhaps thin them from behind where any roughness won't be seen - that first photo is going to be very useful in deciding a course of action with it. Unlike much of my work, which is thought about as it unfolds, I find that these kits need a complete work plan settled on beforehand to avoid hiccups. I did suggest using thin MDF as a medium, as per the Peco Helmsdale kit, but he does not want to work with that material for health reasons, which is understandable.

 I must confess I am enjoying making these up and adapting them to get a finer finish, but that's the part of the hobby I like the best, and Pop Up's interest in this obscure part of Britain's railways has provided the HR, GNSR and now the CR modeller with the basis for models that seemed but dreams  up till now.

You're right that the kit does all the research, and that is what makes me hang on to it rather than send it back. Essentially, what you get is the basic shell, such as if modelling with a wooden base to be topped with Das modelling clay. But with the kit you get to that basic shell a lot faster than if cutting everything out for yourself. 

I don't like the de-laminating idea if as you say the frames are still too thick afterwards. But I wonder if the windows could be used as templates to send to York MM, or if the frames are also too thick in the head-on (as well as the side-on) plane. I haven't really examined them that closely. 

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The existing window frames are a bit beefy but not so much as it matters - its the depth that is the problem. What I did was remove the astragals, smooth the surface, measure the max height and width and send a close up pic of an original window and a ruler - before I removed it! - to York and they did the rest, with finer mouldings than the kit design. I settled on .75mm but there are thicker options from them. I allowed a little clearance in the dimensions I quoted , which was used up by the thicker paper I had settled on in the meantime  but they fitted in fine.  I'm going to take some more images of the shed - it is on its base now and is being finished off. As for Ballachulish, it is safely packed away in its box till I finish work in hand that has already been delayed by the shed, so any decision on this kit still has to be made.

 

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Well if you do the same with Ballachulish, let me know and I'll go halves on the cost with YMM as I suspect there'll be a lot of windows to cover.   

If I understand correctly you end up with astragals only, no external frame? Do you then reinstate the external frame before sending the pattern off? 

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