Annie's Virtual Pre-Grouping, Grouping and BR Layouts & Workbench

[Annie]

Our Summer weather is back with making me excessively sleepy again which is a pain, but I found some time once the sun went down to play about with rebuilt 700 class No.695.  Shifting limestone away from Somerville Quarry was the job in hand and No.695 was coping very well with that.

 

 

 

 

 

A classic steam locomotive and ship at the wharf snapshot, 

A good many years ago now a NZ Trainz enthusiast made a model of the NZ Union Steam Ship Co's TEV 'Rangatira'.  With there not being that many ship models available for Trainz at the time the 'Rangatira' model ended up being reskinned into all manner of other ships and in this case it's pretending to be a ship owned by one of the big 4 railway companies.  With Milbourne James SR having been originally created back in TS2004 days I wasn't that surprised to see the old 'Rangatira' tied up at the wharf and while I'm going to change out some of the other TS2004 era ship models for better ones I think I'll keep this one where it is for old times sake.

 

[MikeOxon]

On 23/12/2022 at 09:50, Compound2632 said:

at the Museum of English Rural Life just the other day.

A superb place in Reading to learn about farm wagons and how they varied between different parts of England.  Also with café and enclosed garden, with play area for kids.  A bit tucked away but worth finding.

[Metropolitan H]

On 19/12/2022 at 16:13, Annie said:

All very well racing around the countryside driving big 'what-if' post-grouping engines, but I decided to start having a closer look at my old Trainz Model Railway Minories layout now that it's been properly moved over into TANE.

 

A Metropolitan Peckett I found in my TS2012 digital trainset box.

 

 

I decided that my clockwork Metro tank engine should be allowed to play on Minories.  One of my more successful sound file experiments was creating a clockwork locomotive sound file for my faux clockwork engines.

 

And speaking of clockwork.  This long suffering NSR 'L' Class engine has suffered being disguised as other engines on several occasions and here it's pretending to be a clockwork MET engine.  I've specially modified the wheelsets on this model so it can go around trainset type curves, - and yes it's got a clockwork sound file just like the Metro tank has.

 

 

And here's a quick snap of the return loop.  In theory it should be possible to move this over to the other side of the room without it falling apart or going wonky.

 

I modified the textures on the 'Bluebell' short MET coaches which I think looks a little better.  Their texturing is very 'litho' like with the panelling represented in a fairly simple way.  I own an 'O' gauge kitset built wooden coach from the late 1920s/early 1930s that has its panelling represented in the same way so to my mind they fit in very nicely.

 

It's a bit cheeky but I placed Ed Heaps's magnificent MET Class 'E' at the head of the coaches just so I could take a snap of it.

I can't do you a picture of a Met "E" Class at Minories, but here is the real Met. No1 at Moorgate - nearly ten years ago. Actually 02.57hrs on 10th January 2013!

 

 

Enjoy your Met trains at Minories - I am impressed.

 

Happy Christmas all.

 

Chris H

[Annie]

4 hours ago, Metropolitan H said:

Enjoy your Met trains at Minories - I am impressed.

 

Happy Christmas all.

 

Chris H

Thank you very much Chris.

 

Merry Christmas.

[Hroth]

Looking forward to a Festive Cheer Up Pic!

 

Merry Christmas!

 

[Annie]

9 hours ago, Hroth said:

Looking forward to a Festive Cheer Up Pic!

 

Merry Christmas!

 

Emergency Christmas Cheer Up Picture:   Great Western Railway 4–2–2 Locomotive 'Lord of the Isles'  by M.de Bintkowski 1907

 

 

Picture credit:  https://www.scienceandsociety.co.uk/

[Annie]

Puffin Books, 'Farm Crops in Britain'.  Looks like a good guide to making a backscene for your trainset to me.

 

[Northroader]

The artist is S.R.Badmin, he did any number of useful scenes. Happy Christmas.

[Annie]

On 25/12/2022 at 23:23, Northroader said:

The artist is S.R.Badmin, he did any number of useful scenes. Happy Christmas.

Wishing you a Happy Christmas and all the best for 2023 Mr Northroader.

 

I found a good many English landscape scenes in a similar style by S.R.Badmin, Helen Day, Annie Ovenden, Ronald Lampitt, Helen Warlow and others on Pinterest.

Edited December 26, 2022 by Annie
can't spell for toffee

[Annie]

Looks like there's an obstruction on the line ahead and Albert the driver does not look best pleased about it.

 

[Hroth]

It's not a Crump and Pierce lorry "broken down" on a level crossing again?

 

 

[Annie]

27 minutes ago, Hroth said:

It's not a Crump and Pierce lorry "broken down" on a level crossing again?

 

 

I think I overheard something about a plump jolly bearded guy with a sleigh.

[Hroth]

6 minutes ago, Annie said:

I think I overheard something about a plump jolly bearded guy with a sleigh.

 

He'd been overdoing the sherry and mince pies again... 🤪

 

[Annie]

A project I gave myself this afternoon was to install the TS2004 layout 'A Kentish Winter' into TANE.  Some time ago I'd managed to load 'A Kentish Winter' into an early version of TS2019 which was a bit of a challenge, but then somehow I accidentally deleted it  😬

Installing into TANE is a lot easier since the environmental lighting is nothing like so harsh which means that most of the older Winter tree models are fine and won't need changing.  The main issue though is that TS2004 used a landscape model which isn't compatible with TANE and if a layout is directly loaded from TS2004 into TANE you'll see nothing but swirling mist and nothing else.  If a TS2004 layout is loaded into TS2009, - TS2009 will convert it to a compatible standard which TS2012 will accept and once TS2012 has worked its magic a TS2004 can then be loaded into TANE.

It sounds like a lot of fluffing around and it is to be completely honest.  I managed to make a mistake with doing it the first time so I had to do it again, but it's the only way to update these older layouts so I stuck at it until I got it done.

It's certainly very nice to have this older K&ESR in Winter layout back in operation again, - and after a bit of a rummage around I found my small collection of K&ESR locomotives and blew the virtual dust off them.  There is a Summer time version of this layout as well which is very nice, but It's the Winter one that edges into taking the lead as my favourite.

 

 

 

[Annie]

Some snaps of 'Hesperus' at work on my earlier TS2019 version of 'A Kentish Winter'.  The environmental lighting is noticeably harsher than it is in TANE.

 

 

 

[magmouse]

These are very appealing, lighting issues notwithstanding. Actually, the winter scene somehow makes more sense of the sometimes rather odd lighting in the virtual environment - slightly suggestive of the light reflecting off snow. The TANE version is objectively better, but the harshness of the TS2019 views make me feel a little that I am being dazzled by the sun bouncing off the snow, making me want to squint…

 

Nick.

[Metropolitan H]

16 hours ago, Annie said:

Wishing you a Happy Christmas and all the best for 2023 Mr Northroader.

 

I found a good many English landscape scenes in a similar style by S.R.Badmin, Helen Day, Annie Ovenden, Ronald Lampitt, Helen Warlow and other on Pinterest.

Can I also add the following favourites to your list:

- Eric Ravillious

- Edward Bawden

- Rowland Hilder.

 

Another very useful resource is the "Recording Britain" series of watercolours and drawings that were commissioned in winter 1939-40, from various artist by the Pilgrim Trust. From 1943 the 1500+ images were transferred to the V&A Museum. There are numerous published volumes of the pictures - of which my favourite is "Recording Britain" edited by Gill Saunders, V&A Publishing, 2011 - ISBN 978-1-851-77661-0.

 

That lot can keep you entranced for weeks / months / years.

 

Regards

Chris H

[Annie]

4 hours ago, magmouse said:

These are very appealing, lighting issues notwithstanding. Actually, the winter scene somehow makes more sense of the sometimes rather odd lighting in the virtual environment - slightly suggestive of the light reflecting off snow. The TANE version is objectively better, but the harshness of the TS2019 views make me feel a little that I am being dazzled by the sun bouncing off the snow, making me want to squint…

 

Nick.

The environmental lighting was a major problem in the early versions of TS2019 and it only seemed to make any sense when combined with a Winter snow layout.  There were a couple of other Winter layouts, - a Wisbech & Upwell in Winter layout and Tristyn & District (GWR) in Winter that were firm favourites of mine around this time.  The lighting issues have improved somewhat in TRS22, but it's still a bit too harsh.

Because the harsh lighting in TS2019 is unkind to the texturing used on older tree models it meant that it was a real struggle to find good Winter trees to use in 'A Kentish Winter' whereas most older Winter tree models are fine in TANE.

 

4 hours ago, Metropolitan H said:

Can I also add the following favourites to your list:

- Eric Ravillious

- Edward Bawden

- Rowland Hilder.

 

Another very useful resource is the "Recording Britain" series of watercolours and drawings that were commissioned in winter 1939-40, from various artist by the Pilgrim Trust. From 1943 the 1500+ images were transferred to the V&A Museum. There are numerous published volumes of the pictures - of which my favourite is "Recording Britain" edited by Gill Saunders, V&A Publishing, 2011 - ISBN 978-1-851-77661-0.

 

That lot can keep you entranced for weeks / months / years.

 

Regards

Chris H

Thanks very much for that Chris.  I shall have to keep my eyes open for these artists as well as for the "Recording Britain" series.

[Annie]

I found a lonely little 'P' Class in the back corners of the Download Station.  It's had little bit of fettling and a tidy up so I think it will do nicely.

 

[Hroth]

13 minutes ago, Annie said:

I found a lonely little 'P' Class in the back corners of the Download Station.  It's had little bit of fettling and a tidy up so I think it will do nicely.

 

 

Brrrrrr......

 

A suitable soundtrack?

 

 

 

[magmouse]

1 hour ago, Annie said:

I found a lonely little 'P' Class in the back corners of the Download Station.  It's had little bit of fettling and a tidy up so I think it will do nicely.

 

 

Is that an ex-SECR van? I do like the vertical framing without diagonals.

 

Perhaps my harbour town of Netherport gets bottled beer from Kent as well as in casks from Burton-on-Trent. Hmmm....

 

Nick.

 

 

 

[rocor]

On 26/12/2022 at 03:55, Annie said:

Looks like there's an obstruction on the line ahead and Albert the driver does not look best pleased about it.

 

 

 

Not another time traveller from the nineteen seventies causing problems?

[Annie]

1 hour ago, magmouse said:

Is that an ex-SECR van? I do like the vertical framing without diagonals.

 

Perhaps my harbour town of Netherport gets bottled beer from Kent as well as in casks from Burton-on-Trent. Hmmm....

 

Nick.

Yes it's an ex-SECR van Nick.  It's one of Cameron Scott's models.  As purchased the texturing was very dark and it took a lot of work to first of all lighten the textures and then weather them.  There's not that many 19th century vans made for Trainz and with the SECR van being such distinctive type with its vertical framing I really wanted to make a decent job of it.

 

1 hour ago, rocor said:

Not another time traveller from the nineteen seventies causing problems?

Yes they can certainly cause some problems with suddenly popping up anywhere without warning.  😄

[Tom Burnham]

10 hours ago, Annie said:

I found a lonely little 'P' Class in the back corners of the Download Station.  It's had little bit of fettling and a tidy up so I think it will do nicely.

 

Very appropriate for a K&ESR inspired layout as 1556 was hired to the old company by the Southern and survives on the preserved line, although it's having a long wait for repairs 

[Annie]

3 hours ago, Tom Burnham said:

Very appropriate for a K&ESR inspired layout as 1556 was hired to the old company by the Southern and survives on the preserved line, although it's having a long wait for repairs 

I was aware of a class 'P' in SECR livery by this maker, but I didn't know that he'd done No.1556 until I stumbled upon it almost by accident while looking for something else.  So definitely the perfect find for this K&ESR layout.

With it having been built for Trainz TS2009 I've need to do a few adjustments and repairs to get it work properly in TANE and so far it's looking like it's going to be very useful little engine.

 

The same maker did SR 949, - Colonel Stephens' 0-8-0T 'White Elephant', - and made a reasonably nice job of it.  I did see an attempt someone made to reskin it into K&ESR livery, but it wasn't very good and it had a lot of unfixable issues.