"The Plank" - Compact DCC with a Spanish flavour.

[Guest]

Looking good Pete.

 

For Spanish buses have a look at Otero Scale Models.

https://oteroscalemodels.com/

 

Available from your favourite shop in Santander amongst others.

https://www.eltallerdelmodelista.com/advanced_search_result.php?search_in_description=1&buscar=otero&osCsid=ftt8bjbctruqonf258u3ij9fg3&escala=-1

 

Thanks Andy. You know me too well... I was indeed looking at the El Taller del Modelista website! I was however looking in completely the wrong section to spot those Otero buses. I thought anything Spanish would have been under "Spanish Vehicles"... duh, obviously not.

They look terrific, the Pegasos in particular, but possibly not contemporary enough - they look very 1970s/80s to me. The Mercedes in Alsa colours is spot-on though.

[McGomez]

I like those Pegasos too Pete.

I´ve got a feeling that they lasted into the 90s atleast.

 

The Noge Titanium would fit well with your layout.

It is one of the typical coaches that ferries punters between Alicante Airport and the coastal resorts.

[Guest]

Just did a little Googling on Barcelona's Pegaso buses, as represented by the Otero model. In a moment of forward thinking immediately after hosting the 1992 Olympics, Barcelona decided to replace them all with newer low-floor designs. They got rid of the first ones in 1993 but the last of them hung on until 2001, some eventually being sold and shipped as far away as Havana and Sarajevo. That does make them too early for me, sadly, but I guess they could have hung on even longer away from the bigger Spanish cities. I think one bus and an airport transfer coach like the Noge would be ample. Add a couple of cars and a van or small truck... job done.

[Guest]

Well, after much pfaffing about, the canopy's finished. It only extends from the station building along to the baseboard join, but I think that's ample. As trains stop only at the higher part of the platform, passengers alighting and boarding will be doing so in the open air, which would appear to be suitably Spanish as it is assumed to be sunny. Many details to add... platform clutter, nameboards etc etc but not in a rush for any of that. Next job, when I get the time, will be to butcher the front edge of the baseboard and extend that roadway a little.

 

[Stubby47]

It's good fun, this scratch building lark.

 

Very impressed with the canopy.  Well, with everything, actually.

[Enterprisingwestern]

Can't wait to have a play.

Get your finger out on the house selling front!

 

Mike.

[paulbb]

Pete

a very nice 'tuning fork' style  here-do you intend to put up overhead  catenary?

[Guest]

It's good fun, this scratch building lark.

 

It is indeed. If my mountain of plasticard offcuts gets any bigger, I shall glue them all together and submit it to the Tate Modern.

 

Get your finger out on the house selling front!

 

A dozen viewings (plus another this afternoon). 3 have even come back for a second viewing = zero offers so far. I told the agent to bugger off with their "open house day" idea. I'm not having people wandering around unaccompanied and poking about in my sock drawer... It'll sell when it sells, although sooner rather than later would be good! I keep dreaming about cheap pints of Estrella Levante in frosty glasses...

Edited May 16, 2017 by Pete 75C

[Guest]

Pete

a very nice 'tuning fork' style  here-do you intend to put up overhead  catenary?

 

I do indeed Paul. Possibly just the masts to begin with and the wires can come later. Spanish masts can be rather distinctive (away from the new High Speed lines), so I need to get the style right. No rush for that.

 

Edit: ...this is the lattice type that I favour.

 

This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

 

...and a much better picture highlighting the shape.

 

This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.

Edited May 16, 2017 by Pete 75C

[Ian Morgan]

Mafen/N-train do some nice spanish posts in N scale http://www.modelismodeltren.com/693-catenaria-mafenn-train but they only seem to make spanish signals in HO.

 

I would recommend EZline for the actual wiring. It is an elastic polymer thread from Berkshire Junction that stretches by up to 700% if you catch it while rail cleaning, etc. Available in a variety of colours and sizes - green is good for weathered copper.

[Guest]

Mafen/N-train do some nice spanish posts in N scale http://www.modelismodeltren.com/693-catenaria-mafenn-train but they only seem to make spanish signals in HO.

 

I would recommend EZline for the actual wiring. It is an elastic polymer thread from Berkshire Junction that stretches by up to 700% if you catch it while rail cleaning, etc. Available in a variety of colours and sizes - green is good for weathered copper.

 

Thanks Ian. I had thought for ages that Mafen did the posts in HO, but no! McGomez of this parish recently me gave the nod about Ferro3D

http://www.ferro3d.es/99-catenaria-escala-ho

and they do exactly the posts I'm after at a very reasonable price! Top tip about the wires though.

[Guest]

Baseboard surgery is now complete. As well as adding about 6" of depth to allow for an extended roadway incorporating a bus stop, new fascias had to be cut and also a new backscene end panel had to be cut and painted. It was only when I tried to remove the old MDF fascia panel, did I remember that I'd glued it in place. Duh. Half an hour with a chisel sorted that mess out. The fascias on both baseboards got a coat of black paint which was something I'd been meaning to do for a while. When all that was done, I then realised that I'd need a wider set of baseboard legs, so out came the chopsaw again.

The "addon" does, to my mind, look like a bit of an afterthought, but it will serve a purpose. Part of the existing pavement and roadway has been trimmed back to make ready for the alterations. I  have a bit of a thing for road vehicles, so I'll get a bus and a few extra cars and maybe a truck into the scene, so pleased with that. Perhaps the biggest bonus is that I now have a much bigger "footprint" for the view-blocker apartment building (when it gets built). I had been stressing that I hadn't allowed much room for that!

 

Edited May 19, 2017 by Pete 75C

[Frutigen]

I found this photo on Flickr of an actual urban level crossing on a RENFE Iberian gauge single line. I think you've definitely captured the vibe of such a place.

 

Pas a nivell de la Llagosta by Bernat Borràs, on Flickr

EDIT: Photo now shows without you having to click the link. 

Edited May 26, 2017 by Frutigen

[Guest]

I found this photo on Flickr of an actual urban level crossing on a RENFE Iberian gauge single line. I think you've definitely captured the vibe of such a place.

 

https://flic.kr/p/UPTz65

 

Nice shot - thanks for the link. Yes, that's exactly the kind of thing I was aiming for. I do hope I've had some success at getting the atmosphere right.

 

If I'm brutally honest, on The Plank, the "Paso Nivel" should be a little further back from the barriers and I've used the wrong font! I should also try and replicate the additional road traffic lights (without barrier) and pedestrian warning light. The pedestrian warning light is probably about a scale foot across and simply lights up with the word "Tren" and a silhouette of a figure when activated. I think making that look believable is beyond me, although it may be possible to fabricate a dummy version. As I'm currently extending the roadway, it did briefly occur to me that I could rip up the whole road and do it again, but I think that would be a little harsh. I am pleased with the way it looks, although I'm aware that it's not quite correct. Still to add are the pedestrian guard rails seen in the shots below taken at Benidorm last year. The station at Benidorm is actually the inspiration for the whole thing.

 

[Guest]

A quick photo-less update. New pavement layout, bus stop and road markings all in place. Fills the new extended area quite nicely. A little package from China arrived this morning... a pair of American/Spanish-style grade crossing lights which I don't need but more importantly, the little electronic flasher unit that I do need. Tested and working fine. With the ebay auction ending at £4.19 with free P&P, I think someone's made a loss here. I'll fit the flasher and then I need to plant a few street lights and palm trees. I can then add a few photos. The Plank may then need to go into storage for a while (house-selling hassles).

[shortliner]

This is probably far too late, but I have memories of a Chinese/Japanese/Asiatic/Hongkong layout/diorama with photos of , (I believe) scratch built blocks of flats with shops/small businesses underneath - I've only just seen your thread and I saw this about six months ago so it is probably useless as far as info goes - but it might just trigger someone elses memory off.

[shortliner]

Came across this on ebay - a little under scale at 1:100, but at the price, I wondered if two bashed on top of each other may solve your building viewblock    http://www.ebay.ca/itm/HO-Scale-building-Apartment-Building-1-100-For-HO-Gauge-Model-Train-Layout-B-/201687141818?hash=item2ef57d8dba:g:gooAAOSwzaJX-0kf   or even any of the suggested others across the top of the page. Looking at some others there was this in 1:87 that may be of interest  http://www.ebay.ca/itm/HO-scale-building-Apartment-Building-1-87-for-HO-gauge-model-train-layout-C/172160734460?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20140620091118%26meid%3D0bb7cf39b86945d4847981f270d69659%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D4%26rkt%3D6%26mehot%3Dpp%26sd%3D181941933267    together with several more at reasonable prices like  http://www.ebay.ca/itm/1-87-HO-Scale-White-Building-7-Patterns-HO069/371698600663?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20140620091118%26meid%3Deeaec72545d84585a8f4955faaea41d8%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D2%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D391520755367I

I have never had a complaint about purchases from China/Hong Kong - one item was out of stock having been lost overboard in a container in a typhoon whilst awaiting restock - profuse apologies from seller and I was asked immediately if I would prefer refund or wait 3 weeks for further restock - I chose to wait and item was duly received

Edited June 8, 2017 by shortliner

[Ian Morgan]

That would be this one I guess.

[shortliner]

That would be this one I guess.

Yes - I think you are right - well done - my memory is not what it was!    It certainly hadn't occurred to me that it might be on this forum!

Edited June 8, 2017 by shortliner

[Guest]

Thanks guys. All options are still open for the view-blocker apartment block, although scratchbuilding is the likely way forward. Although I've greatly increased the footprint for the building (good), it's still an odd little space with some strange angles (bad), so I think scratchbuilding will actually be easier than kitbashing. Besides, I enjoyed making the first one, so am keen to try and improve on it for the second one! Again, there will be retail on the ground floor with two stories of apartments above. This time there will be a covered walkway with balconies above. The hardest part is actually trying to find suitable windows... large pane windows, sliding doors etc. I haven't been able to find anything ready-made, so will probably use clear plastic overlaid with thin self adhesive paper strip.

I'll try and get a photo or two of the extended area uploaded over the weekend.

[Guest]

As promised, a couple of shots of the extended roadway and bus stop. I bit the bullet and shelled out for the more expensive palm trees, and the extra expense was well worth it... they look so much better. As is usual with me, tall spindly things like lamp posts and palm trees are removable as they will surely get damaged if glued in place. Still some more work to do, but pleased with it so far.

 

 

[shortliner]

The palm trees were well worth shelling out for - a vast improvement - "The plank" is looking better each time you post - looking forward to what you do with the second view-block.

Edited June 9, 2017 by shortliner

[Guest]

Forgot to say - that was the final update to The Plank (I still can't get used to calling it Cap Llevant) for a while. This weekend will be spent boxing up all the layout tools and clutter... plasticard offcuts, glues, paints etc. and putting them into storage for a while at least. We've terminated the agreement with the estate agent that we chose to sell the Victorian pile. Various broken promises and instances of ineptitude etc etc. Long, boring story, so I won't even go there. That, coupled with a rather close personal bereavement, has forced a rethink.

The house will come off the market for a while and be "dressed" properly. Rather than having a selection of empty rooms scattered throughout, the bedrooms (all 6 of them) will actually be dressed as bedrooms. A new agent has been appointed and their expectation of an achievable sale price has been noted. We had a flurry of viewings and even a couple of second viewings, but no offers. The current estate agent then seemed to lose interest, so we've decided to go with a local agent that specialises in period properties rather than a nationwide chain. Hopefully "round two" will produce results.

The plan is still to keep a little investment property in the UK and buy in Spain, but now I also want to put some money into a little Spanish townhouse, probably a renovation project... quirky layout, original Valencian tiled floors, arched and beamed ceilings, roof terrace etc... well, it rocks my boat anyway.

Toy trains are a nice diversion, but sadly I'll need to concentrate on life's more importamt things for a while. With my 50th birthday just around the corner, the kids are convinced I'm having a mid-life crisis and will come home one day with a motorbike and a piercing. Not sure about the piercing, but the motorbike... hmm...

Edited June 10, 2017 by Pete 75C

[colin penfold]

Good luck with it all Pete.

[Alex TM]

Hi Pete,

 

Tonight is the first time I have seen this (saw it on your signature link from another thread).  I know nothing of Spain's railways, but this looks a fantastic piece of modelling; the whole look of it shouts of a warm, balmy, evening somewhere a lot hotter and sunnier than here.  In terms of modelling technique two things have stood out for me, first the willingness to experiment, and the ingenious use of 'lego' for a substructure (an idea I may have to 'borrow').

 

Again, a great layout.

 

Regards,

 

Alex.