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Les1952
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What a difference a grass patch makes...

 

the last couple of days has been spent sorting out the new backscene at the shed end and putting down the first layer of the field at the front.

 

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Looking towards the screens, the grass at the front has made a real difference to the overall look of the layout.  There is still a substantial amount to do, but at last No Place looks as if it is getting there....

 

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Looking the other way, the new backscene is a Gaugemaster set cut at the horizon and pasted onto the sky, which is of a different make.  The join in the sky will have a tree in front of it when I find the other one of the pair I had on a layout years ago- the twin is at the screens end of the layout, again hiding a backscene nasty.  

 

The grass is a mat of hairy stuff I bought a couple of years ago at the N-Gauge show, sprayed with green (BR green) to give a dark base, then sprayed again with photo mount and scatter of various hues sprinkled onto the top.  It will meed another go with the scatter, particularly at the joins between the pieces.

 

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The area at the back to the right of the houses is being developed as allotments/garden.  In front of this the wall is still waiting for its bigger stones to arrive.  The walling to the rear is Jarvis as used by wargamers, with the joins disguised by growth.  There will be more stuff climbing up the wall and peeking over it before it is done.  The stonework also needs some weathering.  There is a collection of assorted plants waiting to go in.  Again the wall standing clear of the backscene helps add depth to the overall scene - he says hopefully.

 

Time for bed

 

Les

 

 

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A little more ground cover

 

No. 42 arrives with empty hoppers from the exchange sidings at Handen Hold Colliery.  This loco is the standard Taff Vale kit built by David Temple for his own collection.  It will have to run bunker first as it doesn't like the first point out from the fiddle yard running loco first.  Not an issue- it will spend most of its time in the shed, only really surfacing to work the passenger service as it has no coupling hooks.  I'll fit the passenger coach with hooks at both ends.

 

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The real No.42 was a bigger engine by Stephensons, identical to No5 on the NYMR, a real bruiser of an engine.  This one won't be rebuilt into a looky-likey, it is too nice as it is.  All of the 21 tonners now have magnets on their coupler droppers, though the last four still need a coat of epoxy round the magnets to make sure they stay put.

 

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Meanwhile I've ballasted the gap between the field edge and the track, and planted a tree.  No silver shovel just some strong language when I couldn't get a hole made in the field matting.  At this point I'd not got all the polystryene from the packaging off the beech tree.  The stone barn isn't planted yet as it still needs a little more work doing on it, and I need to work out exactly what angle it looks best at- a triumph of art over ability (as ever).

 

More to do.

Les

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I've just opened the pack of small animals I ordered- it arrived this morning.

 

They are unpainted, and include, as well as the inevitable rabbits, hedgehogs, owls, woodpeckers, other perching birds, grass snakes, frogs, butterflies and fish, plus some other tiny creatures I've not yet identified.

 

If not already totally barmy I certainly will be by the time I've painted ten butterflies........

 

Les

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  • 2 weeks later...

Still planting and painting animals..

 

The garden area is further on than this, but I keep forgetting to take the camera out with me.

 

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Also mostly done is recolouring the walls and roof of the end house to be a better match for the others.  Nearly done.  The chicken fence at the back of the planted garden has also been made and installed, and chickens put in place, apart from one that escaped to the floor and has since been retrieved.

 

A pack of dogs and cats arrived this morning.  I think the N-gauge pack are actually better than the HO, but of course they're only useful for Hawthorn Dene and croft Spa when it gets started. 

 

Apart from that I've been chipping locos (mostly N-gauge ones) and adding some more rust to the screening house.

 

Still plenty to get on with.

 

Les

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Some Redutex has arrived...

 

Cobbles for the lane and two sheets of stone walling.  The walling will need to be re-ordered as it is correct but there isn't enough of it.

 

Some piccies...

 

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The back of the repainted house and the vegetable garden.  Still work to do on the house but an improvement on what it was.  A gate needs sourcing and installing, and a tub putting under that climbing shrub.

 

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Looking the other way along the garden.  There are stil a few plants to put in but most of the planting is done.  Sunflowers, sprouts, beetroot, lettuce, cauliflowers, fennel and broccoli.  More greenery to add behind the wall when the glue has set.  The chicken fence is four lengths of Auhagen N-gauge stuff, bought for "son of Furtwangen" which may or may not be built. 

 

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Hens!

 

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Walling along the lane can now be done as the surfacing for it has arrived.  The cobbles are laid and the balsa in place and clamped up.  Hindsight says I shouldn't have glued the Kernow shed in place, but as I have I'll just have to work round it.  There is a dodgy bit on the backscene to hide where I cut the slope too shallow.  I'm still thinking of what to do here.

 

Still a lot of bits to do, but I need to let glue dry.......

 

Les

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Another day , another bit of wall.

 

I've got the walling surfaced round behind the shed and done the first bit of weathering on it.  Also done is the bit of backscene where I'd cut the background to a different slope to the road in front of it.  Some more pictures showing progress.

 

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First the newly re-done corner, with the first section of bigger stone along the back wall.  Once this has set properly the capping can be lined up and stuck so it doesn't move- I HAD noticed the two tiles that had lifted yet again....

 

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Looking over the roof of the wagon repair shop the capping on the new wall is a lot more effective than the other- I've been over the edges with chalks.   Wavy verticals are a result of the sub-surface not being as flat as I thought it was, but that can be hidden with suitable vegetation.  The cobbles on the lane have had a brushing with dirty thinners to darken them a little.  Next is to grass the centre- it is clearly a single track lane so there would be plenty of grass growing up the middle.  Lastly I'll weather the cobbles that can be seen once again, and add mud etc.

 

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Looking at the front of the repainted house, and showing the cobbled street in front of it. Again more work to do here, but I want to get this bit finished before I reach the wall in front of it.  That way the capping can be finalised without the need to disturb it again.  

 

I've added more rust to the screening house, but that iusn't yet fit to photograph.  Maybe in a few days, though it is G&S Festival in the next two weeks so not a lot will get done.

 

Les

 

 

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Last set of pics for a couple of weeks.

 

I've been working on the right-hand end and using up the two sheets of O-scale Redutex walling.  There was enough walling for three panels, but not enough for the buttresses between them.  I've let these as ashlar for now, and if I'll order some more Redutex as soon as I get back from the G&S Festival.

 

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The Beattie draws wagons out of the screens past the new walling.  Hopefully in the autumn while Hawthorn Dene is erected I'll be able to weather these wagons on the workbench, and add details to No Place (which will also be on the workbench).  I'll start weathering these three panels later this month.

 

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Along the end the lane now has grass along much of the centre.  Next stage with this bit is to get an appropriate colour wash to run in between the cobbles- plenty of dark mud and grot with the stone colour appearing at the top.  The vegetation growing behind the shed will spread a little and hide the wobbles in the stonework.  I'm probably going to put a coal stage where the wooden block is- exactly the most useless place for it, but tank engines would back up to it.  If I have a better idea I'll substitute that.

 

Plenty to do but now a fortnight off.

 

Les

Edited by Les1952
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  • 3 weeks later...

Quick update

 

with pics of the new locos and progress on the area behind the shed.

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Note 71515 has acquired a driver.  So has 36 but he is over on the other side of the cab talking to the bloke in 71515......

and progresss on the layout (which shows some dodgy bits on the wall not noticed, but which will get looked at tomorrow---

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The Land Rover has been subtly muddied and rusted, though it might just be a little TOO subtle at the moment.

 

Added in Internet Explorer which doesn't allow formatting under Win10 for some obscure reason.  That has meant I've had to log out and back in again to format it in Chrome.  Wonders of modern technology.

Les

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Les

Coming along nicely.

Mike Edge does an etch for adding steps, the end stanchions (for handrails) and door operating handles for the 21tonners. It makes a big difference.

Baz

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Les

Coming along nicely.

Mike Edge does an etch for adding steps, the end stanchions (for handrails) and door operating handles for the 21tonners. It makes a big difference.

Baz

Thanks for that- something to add to the "to do" list.

 

No Place is going onto the workbench later on in the week so I can get Furtwangen ready for Loughborough at the start of Sept. Hopefully Furtwangen will then be off to a new home shortly after that, but Hawthorn Dene needs to be erected early for Newcastle in November as I've a cataract op in the meantime....

 

No Place will next get run in late November as it will then be the next one in the queue to go out to a show. At least I can get on and finish scenery while the layout is on the workbench.

 

Les

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  • 3 weeks later...

Progress is slow

 

... but generally forward.

 

Last weekend off for Loughborough Show with Furtwangen Ost, and this week I've largely been getting on with preparing Furtwangen for its journey to its new owner, not helped by relaying a point then having the new point disintegrate immediately forcing me to clean up the old one and put it back.....

 

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Trio of front line locos- 71515, 36 and 30586.   Since then 68023 and Hunslet 3891 have arrived, and the yellow peril made a brief visit to the shed but is awaiting return before being placed on No Place's tracks.  I've also investigated getting one or more of the WD saddletanks sound fitted, which is a viable option.

 

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A foggy morning in the garden, taken against the light using the cameraphone.

 

More to follow.  the fence separating the front field from the railway is proceeding, and the walling at the back has larger stones at the shed end.  I'm in two minds about replacing the rest.  It might depend on whether DCC Supplies bring their O-scale Redutex to TINGs this weekend, and whether they have the chips to do a couple of locos that need DZ721Ns fitting (or rather more than a couple...)

 

Much to do.  The sun might allow some photography tomorrow.

 

Les

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More Pics.

 

Productive day in the workshop today, and since it was persisting down with rain there wasn't too much light from the wrong direction to get some decent photos.

 

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Starting with the fencing- I've been working my way along the back edge of the field, and have now got to six inches or so from the far end- and run out!  The in-field boundary I've done with Ratio stuff, but I'm in two minds whether to just bush and scrub the missing bit of field to yard fencing or whether to buy a Peco pack for the sake of one and a bit lengths.  

 

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The bare corner now has a bespoke tree, made for me at Loughborough show by Jackie Mogford of Derby Trees and Scenics, who just happened to be on the stand next to Furtwangen.  That saved me traipsing the length of the show looking for her, and I got progress reports and in-build modifications.

 

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Also at Loughborough show I found a suitable chassis for the passenger coach.  The body is an ex- London, Chatham and Dover 3-axle type, but the chassis was best described politely as "cream crackered".  The replacement chassis is from a.Wrenn Fruit D.  Now it is runnable I'll get on and make it look like the sort of ex-derelict early preservation societirs inflicted on their passengers.

 

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That in turn led to "what do I do with a Fruit D body?".  Obvious answer is to ground the body as a shed, so one coat of brown paint later it sits temporarilybeside the Kernow shed, partly as a view blocker.  It won't be stuck down until I'm happy it is grotty enough. It also needs a sub-base, even if that is largely foliage.

 

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Meanwhile the third Austerity saddletank has arrived,and passed its function test.  Pictured with 71515 it needs running in and chipping.  I now have a queue of six locos waiting DZ721N chips.  I'll have to see if DCC Supplies have any at Leamington tomorrow.

 

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Finally it may not have train brakes, but neither does the coach.......

 

More on Monday perhaps.

 

Lse

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  • 2 weeks later...

It may be on the bench rather than the trestles, but things are still happening, if rather slowly at the moment.

 

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I think I might have overdone the grass growing at the foot of the new fencing, but I'll see what it looks like when I've got the whole way along.  It will give plenty of ground cover for frogs and grass snakes....

 

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The delivery van has gone from the street at the back- it was just a little too big.  However a post box and a Hillman Imp have gone in the space.  There will be a couple of people there eventually.  The delivery van will be parked up behind the wagon repair shop, and I've got a character that looks like Arkwright who can stand there with a guy in overalls talking.

 

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On the loco front 68023 has now got its new crests, and once they've dried I'll give it a light moderate weathering.  In the meantime 71515 has gone off to Digitrains for sound fitting.

 

Les

 

EDIT - I forgot the pic of the delivery van hadn't been posted......

 

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As you can see, it is a little too big for the space.

Edited by Les1952
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Progress this week

 

I've now finished applying the O-scale Redutex along the back wall and I'm getting a bit further on with weathering it.  The Yellow Peril takes a turn shunting the screens.

 

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The weathered end of the wall.  I've been a little concerned that one or two of the locos take the wrong road coming into the platform road, so I'm trying out a checkrail.  If this works I'll paint it rusty.  

 

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68023 has now got its late crest and is now waiting for some weathering.  Seen here having a turn on the passenger train.  Another loco with the same amount of continuous braking power as the coach, ie. none.

 

Les

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The first pic in post #114 looks along the new wall and shows up something I'd not spotted- it waves a little from true horizontal.

 

Not an issue, indeed it may be an advantage as it is a mining area.  The effects of subsidence.  This might also explain the section of "odd" lane wall behind the houses when I get it installed- the old wall fell down.

 

Les

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A couple of other distractions this week so far, but the next pack of Heki grass arrived and is shorter than the first.  As a result I've rearranged the grass around the fencing.  Three pics which almost explain themselves, except to say that I've misfiled two sprues of uprights so the fence isn't all finished, and the peg hoes holes will be disguised- eventually...

 

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All for now

Les

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  • 2 weeks later...

Another odd purchase- at least for a NE colliery...

 

Gee Dee Models had an Oxford Radial in their secondhand cabinet, priced very reasonably.   It will now become another denizen of the preservation shed.   At least it has train brakes....

 

At the weekend I also got some vacuum brake pipes for the coach and one of the locos from Stephenson Carriages.

 

Les (looking for a darkened room)

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As promised, the Radial shunting.

 

post-13358-0-00049400-1476564942_thumb.jpg

 

Maybe not quite as daft as it might seem given that there was one on the Catterick Camp Railway, and the Pelaw main Railway had a Metropolitan 4-4-0T.   Pic is slightly out of focus- the camera decided it needed the flash but it didn't go off...

 

Note the green grot spreading along the wall behind.   Still mainly working on Hawthorn Dene, but only really getting one or two days in the shed at the moment.  I'll get on with No Place after Newcastle show, at least for a couple of weeks until the cataract op.

 

Les

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Another show, another purchase- this time a Class 05 diesel.  I'm not safe to be let out.  Excuse is that NCB Durham Areas and Consett Iron Co all bought them new, and a few got into NCB hands in other areas after sale by BR.

 

Pic to follow once chipped and run in.

 

I've just noticed how much the pic in post 118 above shows up the NCB-standard track.......

 

Les.

 

Who also bought a few detailing bits for the layouts (mostly for Hawthorn Dene admittedly).

Edited by Les1952
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Guest royal signals

Les, 

love the L-CUT engine shed, i have recently bought the same , but Jacub at L-CUT organised the extra bits to make it 50% longer, needless to say, you know how long they take to build  i am still building it . Please can you let me know how you painted it, as I am worried about filling in the mortar gaps,and what colour did you use?

 

Tony 

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  • 1 month later...

Sorry it has taken so long to reply.  With No Place at a standstill while I sorted out Hawthorn Dene I've just not looked at the thread.

 

The short answer on painting the L-Cut shed was "badly".

 

If doing it again I would paint both sides of each piece to the correct colour before building it.  That would stop a lot of the problems I've had with twisting - the causes of which have been the moisture from the paint only being on one face of the wood at the same time.  Jacub has looked at some of the mistakes I made and I think some of the pitfalls are now engineered out of the instruction sheet

 

The colour was one of the brick colours from the Tamiya acrylic range, with one of the greys for the roof and inside.  

 

Having now taken delivery of the boards and trestles for Croft Spa, No Place is now sitting happily and safely on two of these.  I've had to ann add a couple of inches to the single leg under the fiddle yard, and will need to put a locating block or two on the underside of the layout to stop it sliding forward, but the layout can go out on these.  Just as well as the earlier pair of trestles are now in Swindon supporting Furtwangen Ost with its new owner.

 

Three WD saddletanks are now fitted with sound, 71515, 65 and the Peckfield one, and 68023 is with Digitrains.  I've been working on track improvements by getting rid of odd glue bits, and I've got one of the point motors throwing both ways quite happily.  The point at the front will need a bit more work on it.

 

Time for bed.....

 

Les

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Had a running session today in the little time I got to myself.  Problems identified-

 

  • There is still a need for more checkrails around the colliery area. 
  • The two electric points both throw at the motor end but don't always throw the blade.  This might need surgery and new point motors below the baseboards to cure the problem. Hopefully getting them flat and parallel to the tracks will actually be achievable.
  • I'm going to need to make a clip-on shelf to go beyond the screens as it is too easy to propel wagons straight onto the floor.

 

Plenty of time.  First job though is to get the proscenium in place before my cataract op next week.  Other things won't involve lifting or straining.

Les

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Forgot to take the camera out with me today but-

 

the proscenium is now fixed in place.  I've still got the left hand end to fix but the pros is rigidly attached at both ends (and certainly stonger at the completed end).   The electric screwdriver/small drill ran out of juice at lunchtime which is why I didn't get the left end on.  The piece of ply is cut and the hole positions marked ready to go so it will take less than half an hour to finish.

 

The obvious thing to do tomorrow would be to put the lights  onto it.  I am going to use an LED strip that we got for Rise Park.  There are two contenders, the leftover end of a warm white strip or a complete yellow strip that we took off as the wrong colour.  However, since I managed to forget to bring them back from the clubroom on Tuesday (blame Mr Simon - I was too busy getting Gresby into the car) I'll have to bring them back tomorrow night and fit them on Saturday or possibly Monday.

 

At the moment adding the proscenium has put the layout into shadow as the shed lights are right above the pros......   Hence the need to get the LED lights done next.

 

Les

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Not at Warley today....

 

.....but I AM going tomorrow- to get there in time to hand an envelope to Paul Jones before 9am.

 

Today's work has been to get the lights installed on the proscenuim arch.  In the end I've gone for a single row of yellow, partly as that was the colour I had available and partly because it seemed not to need turning back on itself as the lights are closer to the action than on Hawthorn Dene (2.5 rows) or Furtwangen (3.5 rows and wanted bright).  There may be a little shadow but that isn't bad and in any case the layout faces more or less South.

 

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Looking from the East, and also showing the fiddle yard.  

 

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A view from the other direction.  I have still to paint the proscenium.

 

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The extended fiddle yard leg.  This is the only detachable part when transporting the layout, which travels as one piece plus leg, trestles and stool plus operators and stock in a single car.

 

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The new check rails now stop almost all derailments- the problem child being the Y-point to the left of the diesel.   Note the steps are sitting on the cab roof at the moment - this Heljan diesel has a lot of semi-detatchable parts.  the yellow cast does show up in photos but isn't that noticeable in reality.

 

Les

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Post-Cataract shed day

 

The op went well.  They had Smooth Radio on in the operating theatre and the total time from arriving to being wheeled out again was less than two records and the chat in between.....  Before going in they had said "Keep the eye patch and gauze on overnight then you can take it off.  After that wear the eye patch when you go to sleep to stop you rubbing your eye." -  WHAT gauze?  I could see through the transparent eye patch in focus as I was being wheeled back from the theatre to the rest area.

 

First days in shed again were yesterday and today, though I've not done anything energetic.  Geoff is giving me a lift to Railway Club tomorrow morning as I'm not allowed to drive for another week.  Similarly Jim is taking me to Digitrains Open Day on Weds.

 

I've spent much of the time painting the grass snakes, squirrels, rabbits and rats in the minibeast pack from Preiser, and filling in little holes in the ballast layer.  I've also grotted the repair shed roof a bit more and put grass and weeds along the front edge to bed it in a little.

 

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Looking along the shed the wavy roof line is quite prototypical, and the green is starting to show through on the roof, though it will need at least one more treatment.  I'm not sure whether to add some paint to the doors.    At the moment they are fairly distressed and one has come off.  If it turns up I'll distress it a little further and lean it against the shed wall- it still looks a little too pristine.

 

post-13358-0-27739600-1480978002_thumb.jpg

 

More clumps need to be added to the yard and the field before the grass snakes and rats are added.  I've also got to see if I can mix up a hedgehog grey in the acrylics, and am wondering about my sanity as I've been looking at pictures of butterflies.....

 

Les

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