North Welsh Coast Railway - Welsh Dragon Rail

[RodneyV]

Hi Anthony,

 

Thanks for looking after Derek When he was in Sydney.

You need to put a countdown in days before retirement. It must be less than 50 to go!

 

Regards

 

RodneyV

 

LAYOUT DEVELOPMENTS NOV 17

 

Dear All,

 

I am still alive but very very few trips home this year with a frantic pace of work in Sydney. I finally got a week end at home with a tiny bit of progress on the layout involving the viaduct. I have many piers still to go and much cladding to add. Photos are below of some progress.

 

Stone work on the lower section of the pier with brick work to follow.

 

 

 

  IMG_0549V2.jpg

 

IMG_0551V2.jpg

 

Only a few months left in Sydney with Christmas in between so modelling will take off in a few more months.

 

Regards,

 

Anthony Ashley

[scottystitch]

Thanks for the update and pictures, Anthony, always a pleasure seeing your progress. Looking forward to seeing the viaduct in all its splendour.

[Anthony Ashley]

Rodney and Scotty,

 

Thanks for the posts. Only have to mid Feb for work and then permanently home. Not enough posts this year, but once home expect at least 3 per week.

 

Regards,

 

Anthony 

Edited November 25, 2017 by Anthony Ashley

[St Enodoc]

Rodney and Scotty,

 

Thanks for the posts. Only have to mid Feb for work and then permanently home. Not enough posts this year, but once home expect at least 3 per week.

 

Regards,

 

Anthony 

Will you make it to any more Sydney BRMA meetings?

[Anthony Ashley]

John,

 

Thanks for your reply. I have been so busy this year that attendance at most meetings has not been possible. Given the last meeting I am in Sydney is in a location I have visited before I shall probably not make another meeting. I expect my wife will be down some part of the month I am in Sydney next year as well. I look forward to catching up at one of the annual conventions. All the best with you layout. I would like to have seen your progress to date before I leave but I do not think you are on in Feb.

 

Regards,

 

Anthony   

[St Enodoc]

John,

 

Thanks for your reply. I have been so busy this year that attendance at most meetings has not been possible. Given the last meeting I am in Sydney is in a location I have visited before I shall probably not make another meeting. I expect my wife will be down some part of the month I am in Sydney next year as well. I look forward to catching up at one of the annual conventions. All the best with you layout. I would like to have seen your progress to date before I leave but I do not think you are on in Feb.

 

Regards,

 

Anthony   

Fair enough. Send me an email privately so we can try to arrange a visit.

[Anthony Ashley]

John,

 

I am back on 22 Jan to Sydney and will email you then. I have been home for a couple of weeks but summer heat in Brisbane has been fierce. I have spent about 3 days in the shed, working out the line for the road above the road viaduct near Penmaenmawr. It is known as Telford's rd. I used a cardboard template of 60 mm width and about 12 feet length to get the right design. I then used the cardboard template to cut the supporting ply. Lengths of pine have been used to get the correct elevation for the rd from Google earth. Photos to follow.

 

The entire end section of the road has been cut. I have also planned the design for the rail and road sections in this area, as some are open but others through mountains. All planned on a single line showing horizontal distances involved. Again from Google earth. 

 

Next job is to secure a few of the road supports and then plaster from the top of the mountain 

 

Regards,

 

Anthony

[Anthony Ashley]

Dear All,

 

I have been working on the road above Pen-y-clip road viaduct. It is called Telford's rd. I have cut the top section in ply and need to staple the netting to the road section. Photos of progress are below.

 

The top road is shown below. On the bottom level will be the rail viaduct, above that the road viaduct and then telford road above that. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Regards,

 

Anthony Ashley

[Simond]

epic...

[Anthony Ashley]

UPDATE

 

Simon,

 

Thanks for the encouragement, as ir is really appreciated. I am usually working alone on the layout and any comments tend to steel my resolve to keep going.

I have been focussing on the mountain, and in particular the right side of it, although the left has seen some attention. As this is the first substantial mountain I have ever done it is all a little experimental, although as with all other aspects of the layout it has been slow and steady. I have secured Telford rd to a number of vertical supports, cut the track support around to the scenic divider and filled in a number of scenic sections with foam board. The wire forming the base of the mountain has been secured to the right side of Telford rd and then stretched down to the base of the layout, creating a more mountainous shaped effect. A staple gun was used to secure the wire to the layout base boards.

 

  Photos below.

 

View from nearly track level. the brown board in the foreground is the track support leading to the scenic divider and Bangor. Telford road is visible from below

 

 

View from a higher angle. The left side of Telford rd is nor secured. The road viaduct which has yet to be built will sit just above the vertical supports in front of Telford rd, but slightly higher. Neither the roads nor the rail go through any tunnels on the right side, but I need to swing them back to the scenic so into the tunnel they shall disappear. I have put a tunnel mouth in to shew the approx location.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I shall be attempting some plastering next. I am unsure what is the best substance. I intend to use an old sheet dipped in plaster. Some have recommended

plaster of paris and others cornice cement. I am after recommendations please if anyone can help. It is a huge area being at least 20 feet long and 8 feet high. All comments are welcome.

 

Regards,

 

Anthony Ashley

[Simond]

Hi Anthony,

 

Your plaster area is huge. My thoughts are very much NOT based in experience with doing what you’re doing, so please treat as such. Plaster, even soaked into crepe bandage, old sheets, yards of denim or whatever, is brittle, and likely to crack. The more so given your climate. So some suggestions, probably needing research...

 

Colour the plaster before mixing it with the water. Poster paint powder?

Plasticisers - I know they exist, I don’t know how effective they are.

Build in expansion gaps. I’ve driven the Telford road many times, but honestly can’t remember if there are walls running across the mountain which might act a scenic means of hiding deliberate breaks in the plaster - in the way of a ha-ha, perhaps.

Don’t use plaster, use fibreglass. Horrid stuff to work with, and surely more expensive, but could be much lighter, will surely be stiffer, and is definitely tougher. A couple of layers of glass tissue over strategically place chunks of chopped-strand mat, (reinforce where it lies over a hard support) would lie on your chicken wire very well. Resin is much cheaper in bulk.

 

There was an article in MRJ, some time back, a guy had built a Settle & Carlisle model, very much “trains in the scenery” and he had a huge expanse of moorland over his fiddle yard. Can’t remember how he did it, but perhaps it was simply dyed cloth. Maybe somebody can point you in its direction.

 

Food for thought I hope.

Keep up the story, it really is fabulous. (I didn’t want to say “epic” again for fear of sounding like a very annoying tv advert over here!)

Best

Simon

[St Enodoc]

UPDATE

 

Simon,

 

Thanks for the encouragement, as ir is really appreciated. I am usually working alone on the layout and any comments tend to steel my resolve to keep going.

I have been focussing on the mountain, and in particular the right side of it, although the left has seen some attention. As this is the first substantial mountain I have ever done it is all a little experimental, although as with all other aspects of the layout it has been slow and steady. I have secured Telford rd to a number of vertical supports, cut the track support around to the scenic divider and filled in a number of scenic sections with foam board. The wire forming the base of the mountain has been secured to the right side of Telford rd and then stretched down to the base of the layout, creating a more mountainous shaped effect. A staple gun was used to secure the wire to the layout base boards.

 

  Photos below.

 

View from nearly track level. the brown board in the foreground is the track support leading to the scenic divider and Bangor. Telford road is visible from below

 

IMG_0572V2.jpg

 

View from a higher angle. The left side of Telford rd is nor secured. The road viaduct which has yet to be built will sit just above the vertical supports in front of Telford rd, but slightly higher. Neither the roads nor the rail go through any tunnels on the right side, but I need to swing them back to the scenic so into the tunnel they shall disappear. I have put a tunnel mouth in to shew the approx location.

 

IMG_0573V2.jpg

 

IMG_0574V2.jpg

 

IMG_0576V2.jpg

 

IMG_0575V2.jpg

 

I shall be attempting some plastering next. I am unsure what is the best substance. I intend to use an old sheet dipped in plaster. Some have recommended

plaster of paris and others cornice cement. I am after recommendations please if anyone can help. It is a huge area being at least 20 feet long and 8 feet high. All comments are welcome.

 

Regards,

 

Anthony Ashley

Anthony, I think that it is safe to say that this is probably the first substantial mountain that ANYBODY's ever done.

 

Simon's suggestions on ground covering are sound. If you want to use a plaster-type material I'd suggest something like Artex, which retains some flexibility. The chap who used dyed cloth was Peter Kirmond, on his model of Blea Moor on the Settle and Carlisle. Teddy bear fur would also work although the fibres might be a bit long for N gauge.

 

Good luck!

[Anthony Ashley]

Mountain Scenicing

 

Simon and John thanks for the thoughts.

 

The modelling required to complete the mountain is not demanding in terms of vegetation, as most is l rock. For the grass I shall use static grass selectively with bushes. Picture is below.

 

 

 

I am not sue I want to pay for fibre glass, as the weight does not matter and I want an easier substance to work with. I have about 5 kg of cement and mortar colour in black, tan oxide, chocolate oxide buff to make a blend of colours. The colours are shown.

 

 

 

I am inclined to go for cheap plaster of paris, as I do not think cracking matters on a mountain face. All comments are welcome with any further ideas.

 

Regards,

 

Anthony 

 

[kandc_au]

Anthony,

Have a sticky at Jukebox's thread Stockrington.

 

Khris

[Anthony Ashley]

UPDATE

 

Kris thankyou very much for the comment. I had a look at the Stockrington.

 

I have made some tracks across the mountain with the help of my son and his girl friend, as the process required someone above and below the level of the wire. The aim was to get a horizontal band across the wire with nearly vertical surfaces above and below the horizontal section. I used a sharp cornered piece of wood to achive the 90 degree bends. The inclusion of more horizontal sections has improved the slope of the mountain, giving a closer approximation to the real thing I hope. 

 

Photos are below.

 

Two photos of the lower track. I am not sire if you can make out the track so the second has a piece of rail emphasising it. 

 

 

 

Top track but no rail to emphasise it. They will be clearer with colouring differentiation and some vegetation.  

 

 

Next on with the plastering!!!

 

Regards,

 

Anthony

Edited January 20, 2018 by Anthony Ashley

[kandc_au]

Anthony,

Is that ply on rhs also where a track is going?

(Goes from  RHS of where plastic track starts and goes up and curves left)
Just seems rather steep if it is!

Khris

 

 

Edited to clarification!

Edited January 20, 2018 by kandc_au

[Anthony Ashley]

Kris,

 

No there is no rail track in that area. The only rail is on the rail viaduct on the edge of the mountain directly on top of the ocean. The rail viaduct is already in position but not yet complete. See photos in 710. The ply in 715 marks the old Telford rd. It is not as steep as it looks, but in reality is a very significant gradient for use by walkers. If you look at the picture in 713 you can see a grey track or path largely overgrown between the road viaduct and Telford road. The picture is more modern than my 1960 layout and hence the track will be more visible. Thanks for the comment and interest. I appreciate the time taken to reply.

 

Regards,

 

Anthony Ashley

Edited January 20, 2018 by Anthony Ashley

[scottystitch]

Coming on great, Anthony. As always your abilities and ambitions show no bounds, and you're not afraid to tackle what to many of us would e daunting tasks.

 

An inspiration as always, particularly to us fellow n-gaugers. really looking forward to seeing how you get on with the hillside; it will be very imposing once complete.

 

Keep up the good work.

 

Best

 

Scotty

[Anthony Ashley]

UPDATE

 

Ir is Sunday night at 2200 almost and I leave for Sydney at 0600 tomorrow so no more modelling for a month or so. Due to return to Brisbane on start of Mar for good!!! I did not start the plastering. I thought maybe I could have a practice on a more easily accessible area of the layout, perhaps in the Bangor area, as there are many hills in this area, although much lower. The ease of access will allow me to make easy corrections if necessary. I think this is the best plan for now.

 

Back in an month or so.

 

 

Regards,

 

Anthony Ashley   

[GWRPhil]

Any updates on progress?

 

Great layout. Every update makes me wish I had the space you’ve got to be able to build a layout the size and impressiveness of yours.

[Anthony Ashley]

UPDATE

 

Phil thanks for the query and interest.

 

I finally moved back to Brisbane on 1 March. I spent an additional month in Sydney after Christmas break to tidy up loose ends that I had not sorted last year. 

With 3 years living in Sydney apart from the occasional trip back to Brisbane I have spent all of my time since arriving back in Brisbane with administrative issues like a licence renewal, car registration, banking issues etc, etc, etc.

 

I have now unpacked all of my boxes and bits and pieces. I hope to get back to the layout over the next day or so. My next project on the layout is to plaster the mountain. Given this is my first attempt at doing this aspect of train modelling I am going to start on a small section off the mountain section but near Bangor and experiment with the plaster and concrete pigment (Pictures on the last page of the blog). Black, brown and red should be the dominant colours, mixed with a formula recorded to facilitate the same colour down the track.

 

We are about to enter a busy period with a new car, laptop, mobile, 27 " touch screen monitor to control the layout and the TC Gold train program to be purchased. 

 

I have more news as I am only going to be free until May, as I have been offered another Army job for 6 to 10 months. Once this job is finished I will be at retirement age with no further come backs. At least the job is in Brisbane so I can get more work done on the layout even if in full time employment.

 

Hopefully some plastering experimentation tomorrow, particularly in terms of colour matching the mountain outside Penmaenmawr.

 

Thankyou for your continued interest. I hope to post updates every second day or so over the next 2 months.

 

Regards,

Anthony Ashley

Edited March 7, 2018 by Anthony Ashley

[scottystitch]

Anthony,

 

It is always a pleasure to see you have posted. I was all ready to congratulate you at your upcoming free time to devote to your railway, and then I read your comment about a temporary position.

 

It is great news that it is nearer to home and you will still be able to work on NWCR.

 

As always, I shall look forward to further updates and hearing how you get on with the mountain.

[St Enodoc]

UPDATE

 

Phil thanks for the query and interest.

 

I finally moved back to Brisbane on 1 March. I spent an additional month in Sydney after Christmas break to tidy up loose ends that I had not sorted last year. 

With 3 years living in Sydney apart from the occasional trip back to Brisbane I have spent all of my time since arriving back in Brisbane with administrative issues like a licence renewal, car registration, banking issues etc, etc, etc.

 

I have now unpacked all of my boxes and bits and pieces. I hope to get back to the layout over the next day or so. My next project on the layout is to plaster the mountain. Given this is my first attempt at doing this aspect of train modelling I am going to start on a small section off the mountain section but near Bangor and experiment with the plaster and concrete pigment (Pictures on the last page of the blog). Black, brown and red should be the dominant colours, mixed with a formula recorded to facilitate the same colour down the track.

 

We are about to enter a busy period with a new car, laptop, mobile, 27 " touch screen monitor to control the layout and the TC Gold train program to be purchased. 

 

I have more news as I am only going to be free until May, as I have been offered another Army job for 6 to 10 months. Once this job is finished I will be at retirement age with no further come backs. At least the job is in Brisbane so I can get more work done on the layout even if in full time employment.

 

Hopefully some plastering experimentation tomorrow, particularly in terms of colour matching the mountain outside Penmaenmawr.

 

Thankyou for your continued interest. I hope to post updates every second day or so over the next 2 months.

 

Regards,

Anthony Ashley

Sounds good Anthony. Don't forget to come and see us at the Convention in September.

[Anthony Ashley]

UPDATE

 

Scotty, 

 

Thanks for the encouraging comments. I have only had a couple of days in the shed, pulling out the vacuum cleaner and cleaning all track after 3 years, I have decided to work on an area for plastering that is not so difficult as the mountain. While considering the options available to me I decided to look at the area in Bangor where the road runs under the track. I have not really considered how low I would need to drop the scenery to accommodate the area which is lower than the track and station. By using Google earth I have been able to measure the elevation changes. The station and track area are at 34 metres according to google. The road area under the track is at about 28 metres. Scale wise I need to drop the scenery by about 41 mls. In checking the supports in the location under consideration I shall have to save off about 14 ml from a supporting beam to be able to drop the scenery to the correct height. 

 

Next I looked at how far my board edge will extend in the town of Bangor. I used Google earth again to measure out distances from my board edge. I have 653 ml from the edge of the road bridge to the edge of my board. Converting into the scale this equates to 96.6 metres. 

 

The photo below shows my measurements for the area of Bangor I have to work with. The long red line is the extent of my table top.   

 

 

This photo shows my measurement lines for the width of the road under the bridge and the width of the road running parallel to the track. The right angle right lines has enable me to measure and place the bulging vegetation area. What is now a car park used to be a dual track area.

   

 

 

 

The picture below is my scenic plan of the area under consideration.

 

 

 

 

I need to cut into the support shown on the any rail plan. Preparing the base for this scenic area is my next task.  I have also relaid and tidied up the track in Bangor above the area under consideration. More photos to follow.

 

  Regards, 

 

Anthony Ashley 

Edited March 20, 2018 by Anthony Ashley

[dpgibbons]

Anthony - good to meet you at the NGS meet at Kevin's place and looking forward to seeing the layout at some point.

 

If you aren't aware, vintage large scale Ordnance Survey Maps (1:1250) showing railway track plans are available online from the National Library of Scotland (pre WW1) and more recent ones from oldmaps.co.uk.