Salmon Pastures

[salmonpastures]

After a couple more productive sessions in the garage I now have tanks fitted to the left and right side of the L1.

 

It is starting to come together now and taking on that much sought after "ugliness".

 

 

 

Next job is for extensive running on the layout to ensure we haven't built in some hidden gremlins/shorts.

Then a serious clean up and I can start the very time consuming detailing.

 

SAD

Edited January 6, 2020 by salmonpastures
duplication of image

[westerner]

By 'ell it is a big b***er. See you tomorrow SAD round mine.

[salmonpastures]

Just a quick update,,,, am pleased to advise we have now been invited to the Aylsham Show on 3rd October this year.

If you have never been to Aylsham it is well worth a visit,,, the superb Bure Valley Railway and an excellent model shop on the station.

The L1 build will continue,,, but as we now have another show in 8 months time I had better start making sure everything works on the layout first!!!!

 

 

sad

[westerner]

Can't wait!

[salmonpastures]

Now temperatures are getting back to bearable I have been able to get more done to the tram/railway

 

The overheads now run down the complete length of the engine shed,, round the recently improved

"suicide corner" and up the hill.

 

What an interesting little project sticking the overheads in has been,,, I have never done it before and it's a bit like 3 dimensional chess,, what you think won't work surprisingly does,,, and vice versa.

 

I know the purists expect the overhead to work on straight lines as per prototype,,, mmm,,, I did try but have resorted to putting a few curved overheads in as well especially on "suicide corner."

Whatever,,,It works and for me that is the most important thing.

 

I quickly discovered the shortest route between 2 points is a straight line,,, seems obvious I know but overheads present some interesting angles for a trolley pole pulley that is less than 2mm in diameter.

 

A couple of pictures of the work so far around suicide corner and the final  shot of the turnaround arrangement at the cinema end of the line.

 

I had a flash of inspiration with the turnaround and decided to build it on a test board first before putting on the layout,,,,, right move,,, as trying to get it all to gel together whilst working between the roof sections of the cottages would have been a nightmare,,,, progress so far is I can get it to go 1 way and am sure I have the solution for why it will not go the other way.

 

Watch this space,,, but I have to say I have thoroughly enjoyed doing it,,, fiddly in the extreme,,, and have also spent hours just watching the trolley pole gently  following the tram,,,, I remember watching the real ones as a kid and that wonderful "Swish" noise that came from the trolley running along the lines.

 

Unfortunately I have "reluctantly" self isolated to the garage [and am quite enjoying myself at the moment,,, please don't tell Helen!!!].

 

Thanks for watching all you followers and please "take care".

 

Oh HAPPY DAYS. SAD

 

 

 

[westerner]

Good to see the progress SAD.

[salmonpastures]

Still a long way to go Alan but I have to say most enjoyable.

As it is all "new ground" it makes it even more interesting.

The turn round triange is meaning I have to dust of some rarely used expletives,, but more on that elsewhere.

I just hope all this effort isn't rewarded with cancelled shows!!

Hopefully not and at least it has got me to pull my finger out.

For the first time today I spent over an hour in the garage and didn't have the heater on.

Balmy,, or should that be Barmy!!!

 

SAD

[salmonpastures]

For anybody that may be interested can I suggest you go to:

 

https://salmonpastures.blogspot.com/

 

Where you will find an MP4 video of the working overheads on todays post.

Perhaps now I can get back to being a railway modeller,,,, but the overheads have been a  thoroughly enjoyable excercise.

 

SAD

 

 

[westerner]

I'm glad you had the patience SAD, I'm not sure, in fact I know I wouldn't have, to make that turning Y work. Brilliant stuff!!!!!!!!!!!!

[salmonpastures]

Thanks for that Alan,,,, 

Have to say it was a "challenge",,, and if I'd known the minute size of the trolley wheel before I had purchased one I would probably have decided I had better things to do with my time,,, they really are tiny.  

There are all sorts of variables with tram modelling which you just don't encounter with railways,,,, and as mentioned it was fun because I hadn't done it before.

 

The first time I got it to go through the triangle correctly I hit the roof,,, & frightened the life out of the cat!!!

 

The next major challenge with the tram will be to paint it properly in the correct livery,,,, it has been in undercoat since 2006,,,, naughty naughty!!!

 

SAD

[salmonpastures]

Had another good day,,, tin bashing the J3 and Q7,,,, talking of tram livery's,,,, this is what it should look like!!!!!

 

I will be delighted if it ends up anything like this!!!!

 

SAD

[salmonpastures]

Have recently started to do things in batches,,, with the hope I may get things finished off more quickly,,,and here is a shot of the next 3 loco's I want to finally complete!!!!

 

Nu-Cast Q7,, started in about 1996,,, like the rest it hit a plateau and has been gathering dust ever since.  The last sessions in the garage have meant we have finished the cab off,,, buffers,,, lamp irons & the ride heights have eventually been sorted out,,,  I know they never got to South Yorkshire but what prompted me to buy one way back when was watching the preserved one on the North Yorks Moors during a summer holiday,,, what a beast and when West Coast Kit Centre [remember them!!] had one on offer I thought,,, why not.

 

 

Nu-Cast D2

Bought about the same time as the Q7 and this one I really can justify,,, yet again it has been nearly finished for far too long and has also been dusted off for completion.

I have cleaned the motor and wheels and run it quite a bit around the layout,,, it has settled down nicely and all it needs for completion is handrails,,, cab doors, and a paint job.

I do like GNR loco's and this is a very handsome/stylish 4-4-0. I also quite like the fact that Mr Ivatt seemed to design one tender and everything ran with it,,, early days of standardisation I suppose.

 

 

K's J3

This one is a little different as it has actually done a few exhibitions,,, but never ran very well,, it was your archetypal coffee grinder!!

I disposed of the K's glued together motor and put an early can motor and gearbox into it,, the paintwork was very poor so I stripped it and hope the next attempt will be much better. 

Again I have been running it quite a lot and whilst it is still not silent it is a darn sight quieter than it was before, it looks quite at home sitting next to the D2

 

I am quite enjoying this self isolation!!!

 

SAD

 

[salmonpastures]

As it is over 3 weeks since I offered an update I thought I would show what some serious self isolation has produced.

 

 

The D2 now has handrails, cab doors, driving wheel balance weights and even a whistle,,, next stop will be a good clean up with Cilit Bang and it can join the Q7 in the paint shop queue,,, have to say the D2 was a pretty little engine,, very nice,, I can see this one becoming a bit of a favourite on the layout,,, as ever it has taken far too long to get it finished off!!!

 

 

The Q7 is now sporting handrails and the cab has been finished off,,, whilst looking at this photo I realised it didn't have any driving wheel balance weights so they will be fitted tomorrow before it also gets a good soaking in the Cilit Bang and then off to the paint shop.

 

 

As I have had a concerted "clean up" phase I thought I'd better get a bin lorry sorted out as well,,, I got a bit bored with locomotives so put a John Day kit for the Fordson 7V together,,, after some judicial cleaning up of the castings it has gone together very nicely,,, an ugly little devil the 7V,,, just how I like my models,,, it's driver and mate are already in the paint shop so they will be joining it shortly,,, before they all get weathered!!!.

 

 

After doing umpteen shows in undercoat I have eventually got round to painting the tram,,, it certainly looks better than it did and it will look even better after I have sourced some suitable transfers to bring it alive,

 

Let's hope we are all over the worst and can get back to normal pretty soon,,, having said that the self isolation has worked wonders for finishing some long standing projects off,,, the workbench is absolutely full of dust!!!

 

SAD 

 

[Red Devil]

These any help?

http://www.kwtrams.co.uk/product-category/oo-transfers

[manna]

G'Day Folks

 

Whole heartedly agree about the D2, lovely looking engine.

 

manna

[salmonpastures]

7 hours ago, Red Devil said:

These any help?

http://www.kwtrams.co.uk/product-category/oo-transfers

 

Hi Mark,

Is there no end to your trivial trammy knowledge????

I'll have to have another  look at the KW range and do a bulk order,,, sending a cheque for £1 seems such a waste.

 

Yet again,,, many thanks for your help!!

SAD 

[salmonpastures]

7 hours ago, manna said:

G'Day Folks

 

Whole heartedly agree about the D2, lovely looking engine.

 

manna

Good morning Australia,,,,

Not sure if the D2 qualify's as "Edwardian" but for me some of the designs that came out in the early 1900's just ooze style, grace, you name it,,, Robinsons D9, or Immingham, Atlantic, plus of course Ivatt's Atlantic and the  LNWR Claughtons, LSWR T9 and a host of the Caledonian motive power seem to have it in shed fulls.

 

Looking at modern traction,,, they seem to be missing something, although for sure I wouldn't fancy scratch building a modern Hitachi or Siemens version of an engine. 

 

I spend far too long just looking at B+W photo's of pre grouping loco's and they had something special,, and then we could move on to the architecture of the same period,,, fascinating.

 

SAD

[manna]

4 hours ago, salmonpastures said:

Good morning Australia,,,,

Not sure if the D2 qualify's as "Edwardian" but for me some of the designs that came out in the early 1900's just ooze style, grace, you name it,,, Robinsons D9, or Immingham, Atlantic, plus of course Ivatt's Atlantic and the  LNWR Claughtons, LSWR T9 and a host of the Caledonian motive power seem to have it in shed fulls.

 

Looking at modern traction,,, they seem to be missing something, although for sure I wouldn't fancy scratch building a modern Hitachi or Siemens version of an engine. 

 

I spend far too long just looking at B+W photo's of pre grouping loco's and they had something special,, and then we could move on to the architecture of the same period,,, fascinating.

 

SAD

 

G'day Folks

 

first one built 1898, last one 1909, then two more converted after Grouping.  I have a very soft spot for Ivatt's loco's.

 

manna

[salmonpastures]

Whilst rummaging through my "wot to do" shelf yesterday I bumped into a Millholme Models GC Atlantic,, which once again I started many years ago.

 

As the C4 is one of my favourite loco's it is a bit of a mystery how it ended up on the "wot to do" shelf,,, the official excuse is I hadn't spotted it as it was hiding in an unmarked box.

 

So having looked at it for the first time in an age I thought there is not a lot needs doing to finish it off,,, apart from sourcing a chimney and dome,, which I found this morning in a box marked GC Atlantic!!!,, confusion reigns in this house,,, I'll put it down to the recent several moves.

 

On the original build I never did like the cab area or front end as supplied and after checking against a decent C4 drawing I decided to replace them in brass to more accurate dimensions.

 

So after a heavy session with the electric toothbrush it has cleaned up quite nicely,,, I tried running it and,,, quickly found out why it ended up on the dust laden shelf,,, it had more shorts than a Glasgow snug.

So today has been spent tracing and eradicating the shorts,,, most of which were in the tender pickup I installed on the original built.

 

When I actually got it running it was evident the motor was having difficulty dragging all the Millholme white metal around with it,,, back in the day Mr Millholme  certainly didn't go light on the castings,,, this thing weighs a 4mm ton and would have been heavier with the original white metal bits I got rid of.

 

So after a motor swop for one with a "super neo magnet" by tea time it had found a new lease of life and was trundling around quite nicely.

 

There is still quite a lot to do,, but I have decided to push on with it so it can join the others in the paint shop queue,,, I really will have to stop looking at the "wot to do" shelf as it is delaying progress on the Zeppelin.

 

SAD

[richard i]

You are not alone in having a soft spot for a C4. I have one to build in my pile, the thing that delays me is knowing how long the paint job will take.,.....to full GCR passenger livery. I want the lining to look right and I do not think my skills are quite there yet. 
Looking forward to seeing this completed. 
richard 

[salmonpastures]

1 minute ago, richard i said:

You are not alone in having a soft spot for a C4. I have one to build in my pile, the thing that delays me is knowing how long the paint job will take.,.....to full GCR passenger livery. I want the lining to look right and I do not think my skills are quite there yet. 
Looking forward to seeing this completed. 
richard 

Good evening Richard,,

I have been looking forward to seeing it finished since about 1997!!!  [I'm the worlds worst finisher]

This time it will be done,, I have been invited to Immingham exhibition next year and am hell bent on getting the C4 and maybe even the L1 presentable by then.

I do not envy you painting a C4 in full GC livery,,, John's book should make the process a little easier,, mine will end up in the very mundaneLNER black with red lining,, that I can do myself.

Mr Robinson certainly knew how to make things look graceful,,, except of course the L1!!!!

 

SAD

[westerner]

I'd forgotten about Immingham, lets hope the exhibition circuit is open again by then, By the way when is it?

[salmonpastures]

2 minutes ago, westerner said:

I'd forgotten about Immingham, lets hope the exhibition circuit is open again by then, By the way when is it?

Hi Alan,

Was going to be early May 2021 but am hearing they might have to reshuffle as this years show is obviously not going to happen,,, nothing official as yet but it obviously makes sense.

What will be will be,,, I'll keep you informed when I receive any updates.

 

SAD

[richard i]

11 hours ago, salmonpastures said:

Good evening Richard,,

I have been looking forward to seeing it finished since about 1997!!!  [I'm the worlds worst finisher]

This time it will be done,, I have been invited to Immingham exhibition next year and am hell bent on getting the C4 and maybe even the L1 presentable by then.

I do not envy you painting a C4 in full GC livery,,, John's book should make the process a little easier,, mine will end up in the very mundaneLNER black with red lining,, that I can do myself.

Mr Robinson certainly knew how to make things look graceful,,, except of course the L1!!!!

 

SAD

Thanks for your support. 
richard 

[manna]

G'day Folks

 

I have almost finished a B1, the C4's half sister, scratchbuilt body on a modified A3 chassis, it runs quite well. so may very well try my hand at a C4 one day.

 

manna