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Kirkallanmuir


Caley Jim
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I would suggest the 'Austere architecture' is in the eye of the beholder.  Glasgow has been described as having the best Victorian architecture in Britain.  Take this view of High Street from its junction with Duke Street (to the right) and George Street (to the left).

 

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Note the differing designs in the pediments above the windows, the gables and details at roof line and the carved panels.  Robin Ward in his book 'Some City Glasgow' says that one thing Glasgow architects knew how to do well was turning corners, which is well illustrated here.   Another fine example is in this view from North Street at Charing Cross looking at the Junction of Woodlands road (left) and St Georges Road (right)

 

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Of course buildings in smaller towns can be much plainer unless they are 'making a statement'.

 

Jim

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Little blocks of scrap 40thou have been fitted on the back around the windows and doors to help locate the etches.  On the end walls I wanted to create the appearance of a 'wet cast' finish.  After a bit of experementing I found the best appearance was given by painting the wall grey, then dusting it with talcum powder and knocking off the excess.  A dust over with grey powder paint evened out the colour leaving a very slightly textured surface, the quoins having been marked out as before so as to avoid painting them. I then built up the chimney heads and fixed the front, ends and intermediate walls to the base.  A strip of 5 thou masks the joints on the ends between them and the front and they, the quoins and chimney heads were painted with a matching mix of stone colour.

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I feel the stone colour is a wee bit light this time, though.  I might try and darken it slightly with a dust of brown powder colour.  At least if that makes a mess of it it can be washed off and something else tried.  Making the sandstone on the station building lighter might also help to have less of a contrast.

 

The pavement will have to be cut away at the pend close to create an entrance from the road.

 

Jim

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Mixed a little burnt umber powder colour into some grey I had and dry brushed it over with that.  Much happier with how it looks now, although the left hand section could do with a tad more, especially between the door and the LH window.   There is, of course, another chimney head to go in just in line with the LH wall of the pend close.  That is made up and will sit on the 'ceiling', which will also incorporate the gutters.

 

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I'll leave it at that meantime and see how it looks once I get the etches back and paint the panels and sandstone parts of the station building a slightly lighter colour.

 

Jim

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The 20thou 'ceilings', with the gutters scrawked along their edges, have been fitted along with a strip along the back which will not only support the rear part of the roofs, but also gives the 'ceiling's more rigidity at the back.  The other chimney head has also been fitted, located in a 'socket' created from so scrap 60thou.

 

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I can now fit the sections of the rear roofs, but I can only fit the front section to the LH house as the others will need openings in them for the dormers and I'll have to wait until the etches come back to make these up and get the openings accurate.

 

Jim

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I had to cut all the roof sections in order to ensure that they would fit correctly at the ridges, but before fitting the rear ones I used a leather punch to punch a series of holes in the upper floor ceilings so that there would be no solvent trapped in the roof space once all the sections were in place.  The front section of the left hand house has been fixed, but the other two front sections are just sitting in place, held by some strips of Sellotape.

 

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it's starting to look the part now.   The holes are where the dormers will slot in and sit on the ceilings.

 

My thoughts had turned to the chimney pts, but searching on line didn't turn up any that were close to the tall octagonal and round ones which are on the old (Coronation Day 1911) photograph I have, so I've had another go at 3D CAD and managed to produce three patters suitable for this and some other buildings I'll need.  I have approached someone to see if he can print them for me and await his response.

 

Jim

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Thanks for the kind comments and reactions.  I hope I'm not boring too many folk with all the updates, but I hope it might give some ideas.  As I've often said before, buildings are not my favourite subject.

 

The LH house has now been slated, the slates painted and the ridging added.  The chimney heads have all been drilled for the pots, which @Yorkshire Square has kindly agreed to print for me.

 

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On the rear of the roof I've just laid strips of paper without bothering to cut between individual slates as that area will only be seen at a very oblique angle, if at all.

 

I've also started on the front portico, making the step and turning a pillar from plastic rod in my minidrill using craft knives as 'tools'.  Both are just sitting in place here.  I know the pillar is not straight and it's too tall at the moment!  The challenge is now to make an identical one for the other side and then they will both be cut to the correct length.

 

Jim

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Much to my surprise I managed to make an almost (well, close enough) matching one at the first attempt!:dancing:

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I left the pillars a little long at the top.  The small squares were marked out on 10thou, but before cutting them out holes were drilled in the centre off each one with a small dental burr and these opened out until the pillars just fitted.  The pediment was made from 2 layers of 40thou, with 10 and 20 thou layers on top, and had two blind holes drilled in the underside to fit the pillars.  With the squares threaded onto their tops the pillars were inserted in the holes and then the whole thing was clamped between the jaws of a Vernier calliper gauge which was set to the correct height from the bottom of the pillars to the top of the pediment.  The squares were then pushed to the top, the pillars adjusted to be vertical and some solvent applied around their tops.  This ensured that both pillars were exactly the same height and held them square to the pediment while the joints solidified.

 

Once firm the assembly was laid on the building, with the latter on its back, and manoeuvred into position over the doorway with the pillars sitting on the step (which is just wedged into the doorway) and scraps of 10thou spacers between the base of the pillars and the wall.  A spot of solvent was then applied to the base of the pillars and the whole thing left to harden overnight.

 

It can now be removed for painting.

 

Jim

 

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The portico and step have now been painted and fitted.

 

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Again, I had to cut away a wee bit of the card forming the pavement to let the step sit in.  I've also marked out where an opening will have to be made in the pavement at the pend close.   There are some other adjustments need to it, but I'll have to bring the board into my study to do that as it's a wee bit chilly to work in the garage at the moment!

 

Jim

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43 minutes ago, Yorkshire Square said:

 

There's also a wee bag coming your way from south of the border. In the post today... :D

Thanks, Tony.  that will drive me 'potty'!

 

Jim

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As well as the doors and windows, the sheet of etches also included the panels with the company name and monogram on them.  These were given a spray of rattle can grey primer before being glued in position.  I then gave them, their surrounds and all the quoins etc a thin coat of a lighter stone shade.  This has made them not only contrast more with the grey stonework, but also taken them nearer the colour of the other buildings.

 

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The portico on the next building was also given a thin wash of the same colour and now blends in there better.

 

I've also given the inside walls of the parcels office a coat of brown and cream, though I'm not sure how much will be able to be seen once the door and windows are fitted.

 

The windows and doors have been assembled and the first coats of paint on them are currently drying.

 

The observant will note from the second photo that the road has been surfaced in this area, but the pavement won't be done until the buildings are ready to bed in.

 

Jim

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On 04/12/2020 at 15:27, Yorkshire Square said:

 

There's also a wee bag coming your way from south of the border. In the post today... :D

Said bag has just arrived!

 

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There are enough to keep me supplied with chimney pots for the foreseeable future!

 

Thanks, Tony!

 

Jim

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With the windows and doors fitted, along with windowsills and door facings, the station building is now complete!  :dancing:

 

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It has still to be bedded in by applying the surface to the pavement, but the new batch of thinned down DAS is not quite fully soft yet, so that job will have to wait a day or two..

 

Next up are the windows and door for the next door house.

 

Jim

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4 hours ago, Ian Morgan said:

No chimney? Did the CR not waste money on warming up their passengers in the waiting room?

This is a very much truncated/low relief model and the chimney for the parcels office/booking clerks will be painted on the backscene.  The right hand section is merely an entrance with a booking window and leads through (in theory) to the footbridge crossing the down line onto the island platform, where all the passenger facilities are located.  this was the arrangement at Stra'ven, on which the building is (loosely) based.

 

Jim

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7 hours ago, Ian Morgan said:

No chimney? Did the CR not waste money on warming up their passengers in the waiting room?

 


Indeed they did not. The CR general appendix instructs that “Fires are not to be made larger than absolutely necessary, and they must be made up in such a way as to last as long as possible. The ashes from all fires in offices, waiting rooms, &c., are to be carefully riddled and used again the next day. Inspectors have instructions to examine the ash heaps when visiting stations to see that this is done efficiently. Riddles with meshes more than 3/8” in size are not to be used. Stations having riddles with larger meshes must order new ones, on receipt of which the old ones must be returned to Stores Department.”

 

I expect Jim will be etching up a fine scale riddle or two when he gets time, to the approved mesh size ...

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On 08/12/2020 at 15:02, Ian Morgan said:

No chimney? Did the CR not waste money on warming up their passengers in the waiting room?

This is a very much truncated/low relief model and the chimney for the parcels office/booking clerks will be painted on the backscene.  The right hand section is merely an entrance with a booking window and leads through (in theory) to the footbridge crossing the down line onto the island platform, where all the passenger facilities are located.  this was the arrangement at Stra'ven, on which the building is (loosely) based.

 

Jim

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The next block progresses. the older house at the left hand end has now had it's door and windows fitted.424977832_1LHfinished.JPG.366c8d2f2139d322494c5b66e90ce98f.JPG

 

Looking a bit more like a house now!  I've temporarily fitted a piece of card on the back to stop it being 'see-through'.  Rather than paint that black, I'm going to see how it looks leaving it in it's natural buff colour.

 

The doors and windows for the next section are at an advanced stage of preparation.

 

Jim

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