Steadfast Posted August 15, 2010 Share Posted August 15, 2010 In July I was fortunate enough to go on a trip with some other DEMU members to Laira Depot in Plymouth. The tour was very informative, and on the drive back up the M5 my mind was in overdrive, and wishing I'd taken more photos. I jokingly said it'd make a nice small space layout...and here it is. First up, concept artwork. Please imagine an FGW green or blue 08 with blue and pink mk3s, but it sets the scene And the track plan All trains enter from the left, under the dual carriageway and towards the shed. This will mainly be FGW DMUs, 08s shuffling mk3s and power cars and a 66 bringing the TTAs in with fuel, along with the occasional light loco for fueling. The road labelled oil tanks is where the TTAs run in to for discharging, with the loco using the run round loop to escape back off scene. The rear backscene is the wall of the HST servicing shed. Now some shots of the, err, "professional grade" boards. Nope, your eyes don't decieve you, that's duck/gaffer tape* holding the foamboard together. Quality workmanship * delete as appropriate The boards are nice and light, and having the scenic section as one piece is rather convenient. The fiddle yard will get some kind of traverser/tea tray arrangement. Crude isn't the word here. It's worse than that These show the fiddleyard detached from the main board, and the underside of the scenic board. It is light and solid, and fits in the car a treat A 57/3 in position to give an idea of scale whilst the board undergoes structural load testing. The next stage is a healthy layer of papier maché I am hopeful that the nice simple track plan means that this one has a chance of actually getting to some stage of useability, if not completion Buildings are being planned in my mind at this stage, though it's already apparent that they'll be, err, big! That's all for now, jo 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alcoRS1 Posted August 15, 2010 Share Posted August 15, 2010 are you confident that that foam board/duct tape solution will be strong enough over time, my first layout I used 1x1 and they warped in less than 2 months. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steadfast Posted August 15, 2010 Author Share Posted August 15, 2010 Well, as they say on the telly, "There's only one way to find out!" In all honesty I'm hoping, yeah, it'll hold out. I read on the old forum about making boards from foamboard, with cross bracing and the like, so hopefully my homage to that will work. I did try a wood frame with foam board tops a while back, and that was awful, as the wood warped, and had nothing strong acting against it. The top layer of paper mache should help to add rigidity too. cheers jo Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alcoRS1 Posted August 16, 2010 Share Posted August 16, 2010 Well, as they say on the telly, "There's only one way to find out!" In all honesty I'm hoping, yeah, it'll hold out. I read on the old forum about making boards from foamboard, with cross bracing and the like, so hopefully my homage to that will work. I did try a wood frame with foam board tops a while back, and that was awful, as the wood warped, and had nothing strong acting against it. The top layer of paper mache should help to add rigidity too. cheers jo the paper mache should help, just beware, duct tape glue loosens with hit, and will be subject to shifting. but I am looking forward to see this progress. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steadfast Posted August 16, 2010 Author Share Posted August 16, 2010 I also forgot to say that there's a fair bit of glue gun glue gone on here, with the tape helping to hold it in position whilst it's glued, so hopefully all together it'll hold out jo Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 34008Padstow Posted August 16, 2010 Share Posted August 16, 2010 Greatstart Jo. As soon as i seen embankment road i knew straight away it was laira. will be following this one with great intrest. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steadfast Posted August 16, 2010 Author Share Posted August 16, 2010 Cheers, it's more "insprired by" than a copy, but I hope to get some features into it from Laira jo Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
binesrail Posted August 16, 2010 Share Posted August 16, 2010 looking good so far, will like to see how this one terns out. Chris Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Hilton Posted August 16, 2010 Share Posted August 16, 2010 The first shot is pretty inspiring already - I can see this being a great model I look forward to more progress! Easitrac? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shanks522 Posted August 16, 2010 Share Posted August 16, 2010 looks to be a great little layout jo, cant wait to see your progress. Graham. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
squeaky Posted August 16, 2010 Share Posted August 16, 2010 Looking good, hoping to see this develop Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold bcnPete Posted August 16, 2010 RMweb Gold Share Posted August 16, 2010 Nice project Jo - will be keeping tabs on this one - Pete Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glorious NSE Posted August 16, 2010 Share Posted August 16, 2010 Interesting project Jo, can't wait to see how this looks. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grimleygrid Posted August 16, 2010 Share Posted August 16, 2010 Nice idea Jo, I like the shed and the MK3 up on the lifting jacks. I bet you end up going back in time and having a 50 on shed! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steadfast Posted August 17, 2010 Author Share Posted August 17, 2010 Thanks guys, really appreciate the interest. Tomorrow looks like it may be paper mache day, as the weather looks rather miserable for fotting all day The first shot is pretty inspiring already - I can see this being a great model I look forward to more progress! Easitrac? Hi James, I've got a huge amount of Peco code 55 to use up, so sadly this is what it'll feature, with wire in tube for point operation, and plenty of Peco pits. Minimal spend too at the moment. Future projects may look at Easitrac, though I'm not sure point building and me would mix very well. A bit too much like precision! The shed in that photo is from a planned layout about a year ago, the structure is based on Westbury wagon repair site. More on the buildings for this below Nice idea Jo, I like the shed and the MK3 up on the lifting jacks. I bet you end up going back in time and having a 50 on shed! Mmm, the Bachy lifting jacks did provide a lot inspiration - originally I planned to do something WRD centred with them. Then I visited Laira... Oh, and mind your mouth please Alex, how dare you mention an EE loco not featuring stylish noses. Damn Vacs. There is of course the nature reserve at Laira, which would good to model with a 50 cab poking out of the lake. In all seriousness I'm sure a preserved on (31 or 49 I expect) will get done eventually and might creep onto here. With regard to the buildings for the layout, I'm a little unsure of how to go about the design. Whatever happens, it'll feature the characterstic "wave" style on the roof, that's present on the buildings at Laira http://britishrail19.../p61000709.html In terms of internals, I'm doing the shed on the right, featuring carriage and lighter power car work. However, I think I'm going to do the external as a three road version of the building on the left, as this is more iconic than the other shed, with it's one big "wave" at the front, rather than four or five along the side. Also there is more glass on this one, so it'll be easier to see what's inside. Not that that'll be a problem with my cunning plan... Bye for now, jo Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Vale Posted August 17, 2010 Share Posted August 17, 2010 I think if you've got glue backing the tape it should be fine - I built a small board (and scenic supports on another) with foamboard bonded with PVA, and masking tape to hold it in place while it went off - no problems so far. It's worth doing a Chris Nevard and facing the sides with something harder - he uses ultra-fancy aero ply, I used 3mm MDF. Both protect against knocks and also provide some longitudinal stiffness. How're you joining the boards together? As to the layout, I saw some pictures of Laira for the first time recently, it looks like a great prototype. Look forward to seeing how it turns out! Will Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steadfast Posted August 17, 2010 Author Share Posted August 17, 2010 Hi Will, I was hoping that the paper mache will be thick enough on the edges to give some protection as well as bonding the structure. Time will tell! cheers jo Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparxD428 Posted August 17, 2010 Share Posted August 17, 2010 Hi Jo, I will be watching with interest how your layout develops. I am also an advocate of the "There's only one way to find out" adage. Hope you do decide to let either 31 or 49 sneak in one day Stu. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steadfast Posted October 24, 2010 Author Share Posted October 24, 2010 Indeed there really is only one way to find out...that foamboard and paper mache can warp horribly I've ripped off the recessed part that was to facilitate the pits, currently thinking of a way around the problem. Nay worry though, progress is still occurring with the rolling stock, with a mk3 in pieces and additional holes made in it, and a nice bag of Microtrains couplers awaiting fitting. More on that soon cheers jo Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackrob Posted October 24, 2010 Share Posted October 24, 2010 I'll be following this Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Kris Posted October 24, 2010 RMweb Premium Share Posted October 24, 2010 Indeed there really is only one way to find out...that foamboard and paper mache can warp horribly I have found that paint can do the same. The water in in causes the paper to shrink on one side which causes the warping. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steadfast Posted October 24, 2010 Author Share Posted October 24, 2010 Yeah, paper mache on both sides sorted the main surface out near enough, shrinking both sides together I guess. A replacement piece will be cut from the sheet, and paper mache'd on both sides before mounting on the main board, hopefully preventing the warping this time! If that fails, I don't know what's next... cheers jo Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
vac_basher Posted October 24, 2010 Share Posted October 24, 2010 I've skimpped on baseboard construction in the past and it's always come back to bite me - it always does sooner or later. If i were you, before you get any track down, I'd build some proper baseboards.... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steadfast Posted March 27, 2011 Author Share Posted March 27, 2011 Righto then, despite appearances earlier the board is still in one piece. It was worth persevering with, as its damn light! For example, I've been doing tracklaying and wiring sat on my bedroom floor with the layout on my lap. Much easier with the laptop on, music playing and a brew on the go instead of out the garage in the cold. Transportation should be easier too with the light weight construction. With the trial and error in terms of construction and coating the foam board out of the way, a future build with this material should be quicker and easier. Track is about 85% down, and my simple wiring theory is paying off - so far it actually works! All thats left to lay are the roads into the shed - compared to the track plan the road for the fuel oil delivery has been changed slightly - instead of the run round loops, the tanks will now need to be propelled in, assuming a run round off scene. This has given me an extra road to stable a DMU, barrier coaches or a shunter. I'm still amazed the wiring works... It's more organised than it looks, essentially the controller feeds the tag strip, and each half is wired up with a bus bar made from handrail wire, to give a red end and a black end. Track feeds come from one side, feeds to the switches for the point frogs etc come from the other, keeping it relatively organised Apologies for the poor res pics, they're quick phone snaps. Will get some better ones as work progresses cheers jo 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 This looking good And it's clearly not just another 'look how many trains I've bought' TMD layout! Would you use foamboard for a larger project after your experiences? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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