Upbech St Mary, Upbech Drove and Pott Row a journey through 00 and then into EM and 009.

[mullie]

The questions about DAS clay and paint finished made me track back through the Pott Row section of the thread. I think what I've always aimed for is a homogeneity of finish whether it is stock, building, platform furniture etc so nothing jars visually.Here is a gallery of shots, the layout, like Upbech was set in the autumn so a cold bleak feel was aimed for.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I did like this layout and it will rise again. I had forgotten just how muted the colours could appear. I really like the 4mts, have two of them but they are still awaiting conversion to EM and are a bit big for Upbech. 

 

 

 

 

[NHY 581]

28 minutes ago, mullie said:

The questions about DAS clay and paint finished made me track back through the Pott Row section of the thread. I think what I've always aimed for is a homogeneity of finish whether it is stock, building, platform furniture etc so nothing jars visually.Here is a gallery of shots, the layout, like Upbech was set in the autumn so a cold bleak feel was aimed for.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I did like this layout and it will rise again. I had forgotten just how muted the colours could appear. I really like the 4mts, have two of them but they are still awaiting conversion to EM and are a bit big for Upbech. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hi Martyn, 

 

The consistency of colour is vital if one is to , as you rightly say,  avoid anything jarring. This is something you manage to acheive so very well indeed. I too work with a very limited pallet across the layout itself, buildings as well as stock and locos. I also extend this to the actual signage for the layout itself, as future posts on my own thread will document. It works and is worth the time and effort spent, as your layouts demonstrate. 

 

The Ivatt 4mt is a favourite of mine and in the immediacy after Nationslisation they were frequent performers over the S&DJR though they faded away, along with the Horwich Crabs by the 1950s. 

 

Should I ever revisit the S&D (quite likely.....) then their reign will undoubtedly be extended....

 

 

Rob. 

[boxbrownie]

Landscape colour is often overlooked and tends to end up looking like a ride through a Disney set, real life landscapes are as often as not quite muted, very seldom are there bright primary colours and natural weathering soon takes care of those that slip through and fades them.

 

Doing it correctly risks criticism of it looking dull and grey, but it’s more real.

[mullie]

The type 2 was seen at Upbech today.

 

 

Next year, it is my intention to detail and weather all the 1960s locos and the DMU. I quite like the idea of small yellow warning panels on at least some of the locos. There is a really good photo of  a Derby lightweight at Mundesley in a dirty state with small yellow panel and a lot of the Suffolk type 2s had small yellow panels by about 1963, roughly the year of the layout.

[boxbrownie]

Following with interest, one question I notice your using Kadees as am I, but presently experimenting with different magnet solutions, what do you use there?

[NHY 581]

16 hours ago, mullie said:

The type 2 was seen at Upbech today.

 

 

Next year, it is my intention to detail and weather all the 1960s locos and the DMU. I quite like the idea of small yellow warning panels on at least some of the locos. There is a really good photo of  a Derby lightweight at Mundesley in a dirty state with small yellow panel and a lot of the Suffolk type 2s had small yellow panels by about 1963, roughly the year of the layout.

 

 

Hi Martyn, 

 

As you know, the majority of my locos have small yellow warning panels or wasp stripes. I must say I prefer the look of yellow panels on the green livery  though the 03s look just as nice without. 

 

Certainly my example of the Sulzer Type 2, D5036 was with sywp in 1963. 

 

As it happens, my morsel of the ex G.E  is set in 1965, a good year.................and I too have much to do in the way of weathering. I'm probably working to the same deadline as yourself. 

 

Rob. 

[NHY 581]

4 hours ago, boxbrownie said:

Following with interest, one question I notice your using Kadees as am I, but presently experimenting with different magnet solutions, what do you use there?

 

 

Hi BB, 

 

I'm in the early stages of adopting Kadees myself. Without wishing to take Martyn's thread too far off topic, I 've decided to use Kadee slab magnets for now, having dabbled with small, circular neo magnets. I plan to get used to operating them as is and make any changes on subsequent layouts. 

 

Rob. 

[boxbrownie]

2 hours ago, NHY 581 said:

 

 

Hi BB, 

 

I'm in the early stages of adopting Kadees myself. Without wishing to take Martyn's thread too far off topic, I 've decided to use Kadee slab magnets for now, having dabbled with small, circular neo magnets. I plan to get used to operating them as is and make any changes on subsequent layouts. 

 

Rob. 

Unfortunately the Kadee slab uncoupler magnet is a smidge too high (thick) on the track I use and used under the track bed it is too weak to be reliable, I am using two NEO slab magnets under the track at the throat of my sidings and any areas I need to fit after laying the track I am using eight small rod NEO…..4mm x 8mm in two rows between sleepers, works fine so far.

 

Sorry Martyn.

[mullie]

 

If a discussion about Kadee couplers helps people then post away.

 

Though I have got to a point of pretty good reliability I think some of my wagons are too light, especially the kit built ones so that is a job to get done. They don't have enough drag for the couplers to separate, I believe one weight mentioned is 80 grams, I do have some scales.

 

I did away with the slab magnets because the Gibson and Wizard wagon wheels I mainly use got pulled onto the magnets. With the smaller magnets this is less of an issue especially with a brake made from a small piece of washing up sponge against one of the axles.

 

Martyn

[NHY 581]

Thanks Martyn. 

 

I've been advised to add sponge and weight to wagons to assist in coupling/uncoupling. I'm pretty happy with it all now though it took a while. 

 

80gms was also mentioned to me as an appropriate weight to assist. 

 

Rob. 

[mullie]

Started to lay the inset track between the rails. The first part is to lay the 40 thou trip. The photos showing the hi etc approach. SMP track gauges, blu tac and superglue! When used in this way the SMP gauges that are actually their 00 gauge track gauges, can be used to set the gap between track and inlay. Next job is to fill the gap, once the other board is done.

 

This job was done on the dining room table, garage too cold, joy of a small layout.

 

 

 

 

Best part, is that when the layout is at viewing height, pretty much none of this can be seen! The other side has since been done, you definitely won't see that.

[hayfield]

I still use the old SMP gauges now and then as required

 

Thanks for one of the more interesting threads, please keep it up

[mullie]

[Alister_G]

Merry Christmas Martyn, hope you have a great one.

 

Al.

[NHY 581]

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you and the family, Martyn. 

 

Looking forward to finally getting together in April ! 

 

Rob. 

[mullie]

We now have cobbles, this is very much a sketch book approach and I won't use it on the town quay board but as most of this won't be seen I think it works. You can also see how I didn't bother to detail the back wall of the platform, clearances were too tight and it wouldn't be seen anyway.

 

 

Next stage is to finish off the buildings, detail the factory area, infill any gaps and then begin moving forward with the scenic details. Platform detailing next though not a lot to do as the station is not busy!

 

Happy Christmas.

[MrWolf]

Merry Christmas to you and your family and a happy new year.

I look forward to following developments in 2022.

[mullie]

Father Christmas (not Santa - I've always lived in the UK!) brought some inspiration:

 

Like a lot of my books I picked these up secondhand on Ebay, I like to use online bookshops that support charities such as Hospices where possible. The books are like new.

 

 

The book below is one of a series I have been collecting for at least 30 years, I now have most of them. Every so often one comes up I don't have, this one cost a fiver, a bargain, they have some superb photos.

 

 

Happy Christmas everyone.

 

P.S. Some equipment arrived for the project that cannot be named. I was planning to press ahead with it but once Upbech Drove was invited to SWAG in April,  I have to finish the layout and prepare it for exhibition; something I've not done before. The new project will I suspect, be launched after SWAG.

 

[mullie]

I also picked this up cheap recently.

 

 

There is a theme here. The branch lines to Southend book starts at Shenfield. I used to get on trains at Brentwood where I grew up, the next stop towards London and go through Shenfield to Southend regularly. The book also includes the Maldon branch, another family favourite, though this time the line from Woodham Ferrers to Maldon. I suspect eventually I will acquire all the books between London and Southend via both the GE and the LT&SR.

 

When I got married we lived on the Tilbury loop at Grays for ten years before moving to Dorset, I have most available books on the Portland branch too. I also had a lot of family in the Grays area as my Dad was born in a nearby place called Horndon on the Hill.

 

Hope everyone's had a good day.

[sb67]

Those books look good. I got a copy of First Generation Diesels In East Anglia By Ian Butcher, I think it was NHY 581's thread that I see it on. Superb book, highly recommended, it has some fantastic photo's in there. 

[mullie]

7 minutes ago, sb67 said:

Those books look good. I got a copy of First Generation Diesels In East Anglia By Ian Butcher, I think it was NHY 581's thread that I see it on. Superb book, highly recommended, it has some fantastic photo's in there. 

I've had a copy of First Generation Diesels since last summer, it is indeed an excellent book.

 

The M&GN in Colour series of which there are four small volumes has some excellent colour photos of diesels in Cambridgeshire and Norfolk as well as steam photos.

[sb67]

59 minutes ago, mullie said:

I've had a copy of First Generation Diesels since last summer, it is indeed an excellent book.

 

The M&GN in Colour series of which there are four small volumes has some excellent colour photos of diesels in Cambridgeshire and Norfolk as well as steam photos.

 

Thanks for that, I've a soft spot for the M&GN so I will check those books out. 

Edited December 27, 2021 by sb67

[mullie]

Bit of progress over Christmas. The factory for the corner site is finished, these are some very cruel close ups as in reality you can't get near it. The roof lights are Ratio, canopies are Wills oddments from the scrap box whilst brickwork is hand scribed foam board. This area is still to be detailed, I have ordered some sacks from Dart Castings and they will be added once suitably treated and the building bedded in better.

 

 

 

Some barrels await loading in the factory yard, the factory is busy enough to justify staying open until well into the 60s. The end of the siding needs weeding!

 

 

The only passenger optimistically asks when the next train is.

 

 

I know figures can be controversial but as the layout is so small I tend to treat it in the style of a diorama and with so little going on it is helpful to have things to look at.

[wiggoforgold]

Morning Martyn. Happy New Year. Apologies if I've asked this before, but too lazy to look back! Where did you get the valance for the station building?

Alex

[NHY 581]

4 minutes ago, wiggoforgold said:

Morning Martyn. Happy New Year. Apologies if I've asked this before, but too lazy to look back! Where did you get the valance for the station building?

Alex

 

+1. It looks splendid. 

 

Rob.