TONFANAU CAMP - IT AIN'T HALF WET MUM

[81A Oldoak]

Hello Chris, will you be creating this scene with one of Easybuild's Class 101 DMU kits ? fantastic picture this.

 

Craig.

Craig,

I have an Easybuild Class 108 kit on the shelves and they were used on the Cambrian coast line. I am tempted to build a set of BR Blue stock for Tonfanau Camp, but I do need to get some track down and wired before I am lured down other paths of temptation.

 

Chris

[81A Oldoak]

Confession time. Here is the nissen hut master in the mould box ready and waiting to receive the liquid silicone rubber that will create the mould. However, all is not as it seems. My first attempt to create the mould was a disaster. I laid the master in the box and carefully poured in the liquid rubber.  Now, try not to laugh. Having filled the box, the liquid rubber was drawn by the inexorable and inevitable force of gravity under the master pushing it up because it wasn't fixed to the base of the box. My instinctive reaction was to push the master back down thus triggering Archimedes's iron principle of displacement. Needless to say, sticky uncured silicone rubber oozed over the top and created a large pool on the work bench. I have had to wait three days for the mess to cure so that I can peel it away. I am now waiting for a resupply of fresh silicone to be delivered. And I have glued the master to the base of the old box.

[Simond]

I imagine your first words were not "Eureka, let me tell the King!"

 

Frustratingly messy stuff, isn't it? Never mind, we've all been there!

 

Best

Simon

[81A Oldoak]

I imagine your first words were not "Eureka, let me tell the King!"

 

Frustratingly messy stuff, isn't it? Never mind, we've all been there!

 

Best

Simon

The truly frustating thing is that it all worked so well for the retaining walls on Cwm Bach.

[Simond]

Some you win...

 

Cwm Bach shows what can be done, and it "fits" so well with the scene.

 

Question, why did you use resin casting for the retaining wall? Why not just use the embossed plastic all the way across?

 

Best

Simon

[81A Oldoak]

Some you win...

 

Cwm Bach shows what can be done, and it "fits" so well with the scene.

 

Question, why did you use resin casting for the retaining wall? Why not just use the embossed plastic all the way across?

 

Best

Simon

I cast the retaining wall to save the time spent cutting and splicing the Wills stone sheets. I needed at least six panels and also cast some spares.

[Osgood]

While we wait for the silicone delivery, I thought you might enjoy a few words penned during the war by a USAAF airman at 94th BG, Rougham, Bury St. Edmunds:

 

As I lie in my Nissen hut

I get this wondrous feeling - 

How much of this is walls?

Or is the whole thing ceiling?

Edited August 18, 2016 by Osgood

[81A Oldoak]

At last, success with the nissen hut casting. The photos show the sequence of events including the master trying to emerge from the mould like a scene from Alien. For those wondering why the mould is pale blue on the bottom and pink elsewhere, I ran out of the pink silicone as I was filling the mould box, but still had some blue silicone left that I very hurriedly mixed and poured over the pink. Both have blended perfectly.  The mould needed some minor trimming.  I was surprised at the amount of heat generated as the resin mix cured. Later today I will cast another three and give them an undercoat of Halfords grey primer.

 

Stand easy.

 

Chris

 

PS I loved the US airman's doggerel about nissen huts. Truly, one of the great First World philosophical questions of the age.

[Barnaby]

Nice work Chris but....................

Why are you going to the trouble of building one to make a mould? How many are you going to need.

You may have said how many, if so sorry I missed it.

[81A Oldoak]

Nice work Chris but....................

Why are you going to the trouble of building one to make a mould? How many are you going to need.

You may have said how many, if so sorry I missed it.

I may need as many as eight or ten so it is worth the effort. I have cast four today for the north end of the layout and they have been sprayed with grey primer.

 

C

[Barnaby]

Oh! that will create a definite military air to the proceedings

 

Cheers

[81A Oldoak]

The first four nissen huts in primer ready for painting to start tomorrow.

[81A Oldoak]

First of the nissen huts to emerge from the paint shop.

[mervyn]

 Great modelling chris ,you just need a model of a poor squaddie on the roof putting wood down the chimney to try and get some more heat out of the stove on a freezing winter night !!!!......we used to have the stove glowing red but it was still freezing  in that hut under them army blankets! any luck finding an 0 gauge RL yet?

[81A Oldoak]

 Great modelling chris ,you just need a model of a poor squaddie on the roof putting wood down the chimney to try and get some more heat out of the stove on a freezing winter night !!!!......we used to have the stove glowing red but it was still freezing  in that hut under them army blankets! any luck finding an 0 gauge RL yet?

Mervyn,

I still shiver at the memory of freezing inside nissen huts masquerading as officers' messes at among other places Otterburn, Sennybridge, Wretham A, Warcop, Westdown and the magnificently named Knook Camp. I gave up on Army blankets and slept in my nice warm issue sleeping bag aka maggot.

 

Sadly, I have not yet found any suitable 1950s army lorries to the right scale and all I have is the Oxford Models Mark 1 Land Rover in REME markings. A couple of days ago I actually laid the first pieces of track on Tonfanau Camp having procrastinated the task for a few months. More to follow, but not while we are having beach weather.

 

Regards,

 

Chris

[Barnaby]

To the scale of 1:48 but posed discreetly you might find this site useful >>>  https://accurate-armour.com/our-products/148th-products

 

 

Best

[Osgood]

Alternatively - they produce a decent 1/35th RL kit.

 

I wonder if they might be prepared to allow you to 3-D scan a completed model and then 3-D print a batch to 1/43?

 

Is that even feasible?  Mr. Modelu reckons his gear is unsuitable for stuff with lots of straight edges…...

Edited August 24, 2016 by Osgood

[Jintyman]

To the scale of 1:48 but posed discreetly you might find this site useful >>>  https://accurate-armour.com/our-products/148th-products

 

 

Best

 

 

The AEC Matador flatbed almost wants me to try out some military stuff....................................................  must resist, enough on my plate!!!!

 

Jinty

[Osgood]

I'm risking being put on a charge for wandering off-topic on your behalf, Jintyman - but you might like to consider 1/24:

 

http://www.militarymodelling.com/news/article/richard's-matador-in-1-24/13956

 

 

Edited August 24, 2016 by Osgood

[81A Oldoak]

I think I could get away with 1:48 scale, but the Accurate Armour kits are all World War Two or Crab Air.  The 1:35 Bedford RL looks good and brings back memories of double-declutching while wearing Boots DMS with puttees during my time with the Leeds University Officers Training Corps before going to RMA Sandhurst and then the Staffords. 

[North Eastern]

You could also look at this site -

 

http://www.asam.co.uk/index.html

 

Regards

 

Chris

[bbishop]

Chris,

 

The thing that bothers me is how to blend the half relief buildings into the back scene. In the main I use trees on Höchstädt, but my layout is set in a wooded part of Franconia, and not the windy Cambrian coast.

 

Bill

[81A Oldoak]

At last and after a long period of procrastination, I am delighted to report that some track has been laid on Tonfanau Camp. The photos show the northern sector plate representing the line towards Barmouth Junction. Track on the sector table is some ancient Peco bullhead and it is 4'6" long. Track on the visible areas will be C&L. The track is aligned and current supplied through a simple and effective device made from brass rod and tube. Monty, my converted Ixion Fowler War Department centre-cab diesel, can be seen to give an indication of scale.

[60012 Commonwealth of Australia]

Very interesting project, will be good to see how it progresses. 

 

Will be nice to see how the military buildings in the background are done, I hadn't thought of using casts to "mass produce" items. Maybe something to do when I get around to my O scale layout for things like cobblestones etc.

 

Look forward to seeing it advance!

 

Peter

[81A Oldoak]

My conversion of the Ixion Fowler 0-4-0DM, which will be Tonfanau Camp's resident War Department shunter, has been fitted with a full suite of plates and insignia has been named "MONTY". The number plate and works plate are from the Ixion etches. The nameplate and the BR registration plate under the  works plate were made by the estimable Narrow Planet. All that remains now is for some very, very  gentle and judicious weathering as befits an army locomotive that would have been the subject of much spit n' polish.

 

Carry on.

 

Chris