Nantford Spinney

[AndyB]

“Nantford Spinney” was a small, peaceful village. A river flowed gently at the bottom of a steep-sided valley. Trees lined the sides of the valley. The locals had little use for the outside world.

 

Then, one day, the outside world had use for them, albeit as it lay in the path of the railway company’s ambitions.

 

Over time the village acquired its own station and the village prospered and grew. Some felt this was not necessarily a step forwards.

 

“Nantford Spinney” is the second layout to take up residence in my garage. The first layout, “Highworth”, had some fundamental problems, including its size. It had to go!

 

“Nantford Spinney” uses half of the original baseboard and runs along one wall and the end of the garage, in an L-shape. The track plan is a simple squashed circle, with fiddle yard to the rear and station and scenery to the fore. A half-height backscene disguises the fiddle yard, but allows access.

 

The trackplan was kept simple for a number of reasons. Firstly, “Highworth” was complex but unrealistic. I wanted “Nantford Spinney” to be simpler and hopefully more believable. Secondly, I wanted to build a layout that my children could realistically operate without supervision. Who knows where that’d lead, but maybe they’ll take pleasure in running their “Thomas” rolling stock round the layout and perhaps take more of an interest in the hobby. I also wanted to have less emphasis on the railway and more on the scenery it runs through. Lastly, I wanted to have a layout which might be dual-era. I have a reasonable stable of BR blue diesels but quite fancied running a few steam trains.

 

Anyway, enough of the preamble. Here’s a picture of the trackplan.

 

 

 

At the time of writing this first post the track is laid and trains are running. Some scenery is well under way and the first scratch-built building is in situ.

 

As mentioned, the layout is in the garage which in the past has made it less than appealing to work on it in the winter. To keep things going through the winter I’m planning on making the buildings away from the layout in the comfort of my lounge and sinking them into position when complete.

 

The layout is DCC, track is Peco Code 75.

 

I'm hoping to use this thread to chart progress on the layout, including the many errors I'll make along the way.

 

As an appetiser, here's a couple of (retrospective) photos showing the layout when it was in its early stages.

 

First photo shows the layout from the village end.

 

 

...and here's another photo showing the turnaround at the valley end.

 

 

...with how it now looks having spent the summer working away with bandages, plaster and scatter. The M7 is my first steam loco purchase. Although the layout has the run of the garage I don't see it as a reason to run large tender locos. Maybe a A1 terrier next or a Pannier tank?

 

Anyway, hope this has whetted your appetite. More photos to follow as I make progress. Andy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[cromptonnut]

Very nice start, all too often we see loft or garage layous on 15 levels with 12 coach expresses thundering through massive stations with enough pointwork to make Clapham Junction look like a sleepy backwater, it's good to see "trains in the countryside" - a big plus for N gauge - in OO.

[AndyB]

Thanks, Cromptonnut.

In that case, maybe the layout description should be something like "Rural idyll with railway running through it...."

Thanks for your comment. The previous layout was pretty much as you describe. Multi-layers, a Minories-style termius, tight curves, stupid gradients. Weird junctions to get it all to work. I hope that the current layout will show a maturing of tastes, new techniques, better modelling standards maybe.

Andy

[cromptonnut]

If we didn't try new techniques and improve our current ones with each layout we build, I think most of us would have given up a long time ago

 

Look forward to seeing it develop. What are your plans for the bridge?

[treggyman]

Hi

 

Certainly looks an interesting project & shall watch with interest.....Especially blue diesels & Southern stock....

 

The layout plan looks to be very 'thin',ie the curves at either end look very sharp;are you using setrack or similar?

Good luck & have fun as it looks an interesting project

 

Cheers Bill

[AndyB]

If we didn't try new techniques and improve our current ones with each layout we build, I think most of us would have given up a long time ago

 

Look forward to seeing it develop. What are your plans for the bridge?

No fixed plans as yet for the bridge, although the bridge supports may be covered in DAS clay and have brick courses scored in. I do have quite a lot of Knightwing girders that could be used to give an open feel to it It would be nice not to have the bridge dominate the scenery behind. So maybe an open lattice. However, I would like to find a prototype to base it on. So, in no hurry, rather get it "right".

 

Hi

 

Certainly looks an interesting project & shall watch with interest.....Especially blue diesels & Southern stock....

 

The layout plan looks to be very 'thin',ie the curves at either end look very sharp;are you using setrack or similar?

Good luck & have fun as it looks an interesting project

 

Cheers Bill

Thanks for your comment, Bill.

Interesting challenge to get two different eras working. Basically I couldn't bring myself to get rid of all my blue era diesels as many had been presents and I'm a bit sentimental about such things. So I'm thinking going to try and keep the fixed structures time "neutral" and swap other items around, such as vehicles.

The curves are ok and I used Peco flexitrack. Most of them are hidden so there is only the occasional sight of buffers swinging wide of the track. The plan is to use view blockers wherever this is too noticeable.

I've tested my Class 37 - probably my largest loco - and it works fine.

All the best, Andy

[cromptonnut]

No fixed plans as yet for the bridge, although the bridge supports may be covered in DAS clay and have brick courses scored in. I do have quite a lot of Knightwing girders that could be used to give an open feel to it It would be nice not to have the bridge dominate the scenery behind. So maybe an open lattice. However, I would like to find a prototype to base it on. So, in no hurry, rather get it "right".

 

I've always fancied Cannington Viaduct on the old Lyme Regis branch - http://www.forgottenrelics.co.uk/bridges/gallery/cannington.html but never had the space to do it justice.

[AndyB]

I've always fancied Cannington Viaduct on the old Lyme Regis branch - http://www.forgotten...cannington.html but never had the space to do it justice.

 

Nice idea. Is that what Peco (?) based their viaduct product on?

 

Or how about this one at Colne? http://www.flickr.com/photos/kitmasterbloke/4524200672/

 

Andy

[AndyB]

For completeness I've added a photo of how I got from the bare base-board to the partially complete photo I posted above (last couple of shots in post #1).

 

Nothing revolutionary, I'm afraid. I bought lots of cheap bandages, cut them up into 4" strips and soaked each in plaster. Shredded documents were scrunched up into balls to form the shape of the hills. Cardboard formers helped keep the scrunched up paperwork in place.

 

Couple of things I learnt along the way.

1. Don't assume that "more is better". As I worked my way around the baseboard I found that scrunching up the shredded paper into small balls worked better and made for a subtler contour.

2. Bandage is cheaper than ModRoc, but on a layout this size you soon empty your local pharmacist shelves, Kitchen towel worked better and was cheaper.

 

 

I'd fancied having a mill nestling at the bottom of the valley. Hence the Craftsman kit template placed where I'd hoped it would go.

As the valley was formed it became apparent that this wasn't going to work. Firstly to get a natural slope to the valley it encroached further into the valley floor than I'd imagined. Second, I wanted to get the river to meander, not go arrow-straight from the front of the baseboard to the rear. The consequence was that there wasn't enough straight river run for the water wheel and its channel. So, my plan for a water mill will have to wait for a subsequent layout.

 

 

The alternative to all this would have been to raise the whole of the valley floor and have shallower slopes to the hills. Hindsight is brilliant, isn't it?

 

As it stands there is a nice scene to be completed of a valley with some pasture next to the river accessed by a ford. Takes me back to scout camps of my youth....ahhh, now how about that for inspiration.

 

The last photo shows the valley scene, river and ford. I need to adjust (ok, re-do!) the colour of the river at some point. Trees may well be on my Christmas list. Lots of trees.

 

[treggyman]

Hi

 

Instead of Modroc,bandages or similar I use strips of Tesco Value 'J' cloth cut into strips & soaked in PVA glue.

The end result is a very strong hard but flexible surface that can be painted/plastered or what ever.

 

Another method I've used is to form your base scenery with chicken wire mesh & then cover with plasterers joint tape(a self adhesive fibre mesh available in DIY stores). This is then given a coat of plaster/filler & then painted etc as required.Again a strong solid base.

I think you're past this stage but it may be of use to someone else reading this.

 

Keep the pics coming

 

Cheers Bill

[AndyB]

Hi

 

Instead of Modroc,bandages or similar I use strips of Tesco Value 'J' cloth cut into strips & soaked in PVA glue.

The end result is a very strong hard but flexible surface that can be painted/plastered or what ever.

 

Another method I've used is to form your base scenery with chicken wire mesh & then cover with plasterers joint tape(a self adhesive fibre mesh available in DIY stores). This is then given a coat of plaster/filler & then painted etc as required.Again a strong solid base.

I think you're past this stage but it may be of use to someone else reading this.

 

Keep the pics coming

 

Cheers Bill

 

Thanks, Bill

 

J cloths and pva sound like a great idea. The disadvantage of plaster and kitchen towel was that several layers were needed to build strength. The paper towels also tear easily so, although cheap as chips, aren't ideal.

 

I guess the downside of using pva is cost? I've yet to find a "value" version that can be used liberally. Any tips anyone?

 

There's still some sections in the middle of the layout yet to done, or maybe reinforced, so would like to give it a go.

 

Spent the afternoon building a well head for the village scene. Pics to follow.

 

Andy

[cromptonnut]

I guess the downside of using pva is cost? I've yet to find a "value" version that can be used liberally. Any tips anyone?

 

£4.99 for a litre any good? http://direct.hobbycraft.co.uk/products-HobbyCraft-1-Litre-Craft-PVA_244196.htm

 

£16.99 for 5 litres? http://www.wickes.co.uk/invt/240707

[AndyB]

First off, thanks to those who have taken a look at my layout. Hope you're getting an idea of what I'm building.

 

The photos are a bit retrospective as I've been working on it since it the previous layout was taken apart last summer. First of all the baseboards were set out in their new format, then the simplified track laid out. That was pretty much how far I got last summer. This year I started the more interesting work on the scenery. I was planning on taking most of the summer to work on the layout but sadly a bereavement in the family put many things on hold and it's only recently that I've had the time or inclination to make progress.

 

The village scene sits above, and disguising, the turnaround in the track at one end of the garage.

 

The buildings are left over from "Highworth" and won't appear in this layout. Here I'm just using them to see how the final scene might look once buildings are in place.

 

 

Ideas at present are for a church/chapel to sit on the right of the village, some shops / pub in the centre and a cottage to the left. At the time of writing the cottage is complete and planted. Bit more about the cottage in due course as it used foam board - a technique new to me. Chubber has given a great write up of the technique here if you're interested.

 

At the station forecourt level I'm thinking of maybe a garage and perhaps a goods yard office.

 

I'll put some photos up tomorrow of the progress I've made in recent days on the village scene.

 

Andy

[AndyB]

A recent trip to the Carding Mill valley near Church Stretton meant a small brook had, somehow, to be introduced into Nantford Spinney village.

 

Ok, there's a lovely stream/river running down through the valley scene on the layout. But what I had in mind was something that would act as a feature to draw the eye through the village scene at the other end of the layout.

 

 

The first problem was that the baseboard that supports the village was a flat piece of MDF. No chance of channelling it out to allow a stream and banks.

 

So the only option was to raise the ground with sheets of expanded polystyrene as a base layer and scrunched paper and plaster for the larger hill to the back of the village scene.

 

What I imagined was that a stream might run alongside the main road going through the village.

 

The logical placed to start was, therefore, to draw the curve out for the road. I formed the sides with some spare cardboard from a Metcalfe platform kit. I didn't want the surface to look too uniform so I decided to avoid a card surface and, instead, filled the gap with small pieces of expanded polystyrene and in-filled with plaster. Larger chunks of flat expanded polystyrene sheet were used as a flat and steady surface onto which building could be added later.

 

 

Next time - if there is one - I'd pour in PVA to glue the polystyrene in place first before pouring in the watery plaster. My excuse was that I'd a lot on my mind and forgot how buoyant the polystyrene would be. I soon twigged as what I'd thought would be a lovely flat road surface became a landscape that looked like strewn popcorn. Glue first, plaster second.

 

After much cursing and applying some weights to the top of the road whilst it dried the road was painted with a mix of grey acrylic.

 

 

The stream was then made by painting the bottom of the channel a brownish colour and adding layers of PVA and a number of layers of gloss varnish.On balance the effect is what I hoped for, but having looked at the photos I took of Carding Mill valley it'll be much improved once there are some figures interacting with the water.

 

I'm currently working on a low fence to sit along the side of the road. Hope to put the first section of this on later.

 

Andy

 

[AndyB]

As mentioned earlier in this thread I wanted to try out modelling techniques that are new to me. I'd used quite a lot of Metcalfe kits in the past. Good as these kits are they can look a bit "me too" once you've seen the same kit on the umpteenth layout?

 

Scratch building seemed be the way create unique and - hopefully - pleasing buildings for the layout. I'd not tried this before, however and wasn't looking forward to it particularly. A bit of research on the forum led me to a thread by Chubber who did a "show and tell" on how to put together a building using foam board. I happened to have some in my "bits and bobs" box but hadn't any real idea how to use it. I won't do a blow-by-blow account of my first building as Chubber's thread is really worth a read and you'll see plenty of examples of other peoples' efforts, too.

 

So, without further ado, here's some photos of a stone cottage that sits above the tunnel portal close to Nantford Spinney station.

 

 

One lesson learnt was about how much care is needed in carving the stonework. Inadvertently I'd managed to "line up" some of the brick work giving the impression that bricks were piled on top of each other in columns; something that obviously wouldn't have happened in real life. A lot of work had gone into the building and I didn't want to throw that away. Looking at buildings where creepers have been cut back you often see the vestiges of where the plant has left an impression on the building. Why not show a scene where a dead creeper was being cut back? So, I teased out some light brown/grey wool and glued it to the brickwork. All that the ladder needs now is a figure in the act of tearing vegetation off and we'll be in business!

 

 

So, that is my first scratch-built building. Quite tedious putting the roof tiles on one by one. Overall a lot of fun. Just got to do another half dozen or so buildings for the rest of the village!

 

BTW, the Morris Traveller is obviously at odds with the M7 in the mid-1930s livery shown in earlier posts. I know. But the Morris stays!

 

Andy

[BG John]

One lesson learnt was about how much care is needed in carving the stonework. Inadvertently I'd managed to "line up" some of the brick work giving the impression that bricks were piled on top of each other in columns; something that obviously wouldn't have happened in real life.

Oh yes it sort of does. I've got what appears to be a straight vertical join in the stonework of my house, although the other ends of the stones do overlap. I've only uncovered part of it so far, hence the "appears to be"!

[cromptonnut]

Nice work How long did that building take you?

[AndyB]

Nice work How long did that building take you?

 

The basic structure took a half-morning. But if I'd taken a bit longer the joints would have been a lot tidier. Chubber came up with a great little tool to cut accurate joints which I'll use next time.After that the longest part by far was laying the tiles. I spread that task over a number of days, as much to preserve sanity as anything else. But the result is, IMHO, a lot better than using pre-formed alternatives. I think it was Chris Nevard that blogged the technique? He has a lot to answer for!!

Andy

[AndyB]

The weather is now distinctly autumnal and the temperature in the garage is dropping. So, quite pleased that I've got some projects on the go which can be built indoors and then planted out on the layout.

 

The first one, which was literally an afternoon and a morning's work (yesterday and today), is the village water pump for Nantford Spinney. A quick Google shows you the kind of thing I had in mind. Basically a tiled canopy supported by a wooden frame, sometimes on wooden stilts, sometimes on stone columns.

 

Here's a an example, the village water pump at Leigh in Surrey. and another one at Ockley.

 

Construction was really easy, albeit a bit fiddly.

 

The roof was formed from a rectangular piece of card, folded in half. A second square piece was cut diagonally, to give a pair of folded triangles of card which fitted to the sides of the rectangular piece. When the glue had dried I cut out triangular shapes form the rectangular piece.The photo below explains it a lot more clearly! As you can see, it's not rocket science.

 

 

Strips of balsa were cut to create a simple frame that added detail to the roof structure. This was a bit freelance and probably wouldn't survive if built for real! Most of it is completely hidden unless you point a camera right up close.

 

As with the foam board cottage (above) roof tiles were added; less of a task than the cottage! Triangular tiles were put into the roof gully. Very fiddly.

 

 

Next the balsa wood legs were put on and the whole painted with acrylic. The mix I used was buff and a small amount of burnt umber. Later a wash of yellow and vemillion was added to suggest lichen.

 

Up to this point it could have been a village well or a village pump. I chose a pump, which come in a range of styles including monoliths of stone containing the mechanism and wrought iron columns.

 

Whilst hunting around in the garage I found a scrap piece of plastic which used to be the bottom of a footbridge leg support. Hexagonal at the base, cylinder at the top. This formed the column. The handle was formed by drilling a hole in the side and pushing a piece of florist's wire into the hole and bending to shape. The pump spout also used a piece of florists wire, but this time to act as a shape former for a short piece of heat shrink. Once glued together the pump had a coat of green acrylic. The collecting basin below the spout was a truncated piece of plastic that formally protected a three-pin mains plug. And you thought they just made lineside cabinets!? The pump and basin were glued to a small piece of Slater's (?) pavement sheet with notches cut for the canopy's supporting pillars. A N gauge war memorial was the source of the cross on the top of the canopy.

 

 

The village pump was then glued into position on the village "green". To get this shot the camera position is quite awkward, so trust me - the structure isn't leaning. I'd drilled holes into the ground to accept the posts and allow it to be levelled up.

 

All in all a satisfying little project. Yes, I could have popped down to the local model shop and bought something similar. But that'd wouldn't have been half as much fun!

 

 

That pretty much brings me up to date with progress on the layout and includes stuff I was doing today. So, the pace of posts and updates may slow a little. But any comments or questions are always welcome.

 

Andy

[ginger j]

Nice pics Andy.

[AndyB]

It's been a while since I last posted any pictures. Progress was slow in the spring as, to be honest, the weather put me off spending too much time in the garage. Recently I've been working on the station area and adding some detail to the village that sits beyond. 

 

 

 

 

 

The church and station are both Dapol kits. In the churchyard I'm trying out some 2mm scale tombstones with the idea of forcing the perspective a little. The church is actually quite small - when you place a figure next to the porch, so there may be a role for 2mm figures in the distance also. 

 

The track is laid using Gaugemaster foam ballast. This is a great product but has the disadvantage that it raises the trackbed quite a lot. The knock on is that when you use standard platform kits you either have to build those up from the bottom or the top. I've some way to go in finishing the platform edges as they are quite a mess at the moment. 

 

The other thing I found is that the bay platform is on quite a tight curve. Didn't look bad when the track was laid but when a coach is drawn into the bay platform the passengers may need to leap some distance to alight! Well, you live and learn.

 

All in all progress is picking up and it is enjoyable, which in my book is the main thing.

 

All the best, Andy  

[sammyboy]

Regarding the village church on your layout, please don't put the typical wedding scene outside the church, we have seen it on so many layouts!

[AndyB]

Ok, no wedding (or funeral) scene provided I can somehow get my old family Morris traveller into a layout that's meant to be set in the mid-1930s! 

Andy

[AndyB]

As an addendum (post mortem) to this topic, unfortunately damp got the better of this layout. I spent a fair bit of 2014 putting damp proofing & insulation into the garage, followed by a series of kitchen units down one side (where the layout was). 

 

As of summer 2015 the garage sees the birth of a new layout in comfortable surroundings. This time it is going to be N gauge with hopefully less mistakes than in previous efforts. I'll no doubt start a layout thread about this in due course. 

 

 

The garage also plays host to a small shunting-type layout:

 

 

All the best. Andy

[retiredoperator]

Hi Andy.  I like your idea of a “ small Shunting Layout “ , due to my limited space . But I don’t want to either “stray off topic or steal your thunder “. All your ideas look great. Happy Modelling Kev