Bridport Town - Carrying On

[KeithHC]

What about a discarded bicycle sticking out of the water.

 

Keith

 

ps great model already

 

 

 

[MrWolf]

9 hours ago, DLT said:

 

The grass in these photos HAS been replaced!

 

Yep, realised that after I posted! Bit of Lysdexiea going on there sorry! Meant to say replacing the grass has enhanced things! 

I'd leave the straggly bits of bush after the brambles I've had to deal with lately!

[DLT]

This is some of the "old" grass, faded and threadbare:

 

I've completely re-turfed the bank behind the platform, ready for colouring.

[DLT]

Probably the worst area for threadbare grass is the odd-shaped corner board with the river on it.  This section gets a lot of handling as I've never worked out a good method transporting or storing it.  Additionally the edges were getting "rounded-off". 

 

The damaged corner, (partly made of polystyrene) was cut away, and a stronger insert made from offcuts of plywood.

 

 

When suitably strong enough, the embankment was built up again with bits of insulation board, and then "flocked over".

 

 

Now I need to have a go at disguising the three-way join with vegetation.

[MrWolf]

Perhaps a bed of nettles as they spring up faster than other vegetation that the railway company might regularly hack down and reeds for the last few feet going into the river? 

 

Only my $0.02 worth but it wouldn't want anything too expansive or too tall dominating the area and drawing attention to it, rather the opposite.

[Dunsignalling]

Hi Dave,

 

Your transport/storage issues with the vulnerable corner baseboard might be solvable using the method Taunton MRG devised for protecting and handling the two biggest boards on Bath Green Park.

 

These are deep plywood covers, more in the nature of inverted boxes. They fit snugly over the top, protecting the board edges and everything within, and are secured by roofing/gutter bolts into the captive nuts used in joining the boards to their neighbours. Handles are fitted to make things even easier, and their bolts have washers welded into the slots to avoid the need for a spanner.

 

The covers are only removed after the boards are secured to their supporting frames, and are re-fitted before detaching them, minimising any risk of damage during set-up/take-down. 

 

If your board has plain holes, you could just push bolts through the board and cover, securing them with wing-nuts. You could probably omit the industrial-grade castors, though! 🙂

 

John  

Edited May 1, 2023 by Dunsignalling

[PaulRhB]

3 hours ago, Dunsignalling said:

They fit snugly over the top, protecting the board edges and everything within, and are secured by roofing/gutter bolts into the captive nuts used in joining the boards to their neighbours. Handles are fitted to make things even easier, and their bolts have washers welded into the slots to avoid the need for a spanner.

Watch Dave load it in the car. There’s not much room for a bit of card let alone a protective box 😉

 

 

[Dunsignalling]

1 hour ago, PaulRhB said:

Watch Dave load it in the car. There’s not much room for a bit of card let alone a protective box 😉

 

 

Ah. A different world from the tail-lift Mercedes box van end of things...😉

[DLT]

Joint done, does it work?  Bushes a bit too neat and tidy?  Think I'll add some more general undergrowth.

 

Edited May 3, 2023 by DLT

[PaulRhB]

9 minutes ago, DLT said:

does it work? 
 

Yes,

 

9 minutes ago, DLT said:

Bushes a bit too neat and tidy? 
 

No but I’m sure you’ll find a way that looks even better 😉

 

9 minutes ago, DLT said:

Think I'll add some more general undergrowth.

Yep, there it is 😆

 

I think It’s pure context, you can always add more scrubby weeds and bushes and make it look more unkempt, just depends how regularly Jim the Porter gets his scythe out I guess. 

[Jon Gwinnett]

Agree with Paul, looks splendid as is, and while some additional growth may improve it, it’s nicely restrained so far, and very effective.

[DLT]

Thanks for all the comments guys.

Bridport has a local outing shortly, to The Exeter Gauge 0 Group's show (my own club) in Whimple on June 17th.

Full details here:  ExeGOG Show

[DLT]

Just to put all this in context, here are a couple of photos of the River Brit flowing through the older parts of Bridport (although some of this area is semi-derelict)  It gives something of the image I'm trying to capture.

 

[Donw]

It has echoes of the Kennet in Reading to me although the river is somewhat wider. I have memories of fishing out the back of the Corn Merchants.  I say river but the distinction between river and canal is rather blurred. I suspect that is why people think your model is a canal.. The river bank in Bridoport looks as though it has been straightened and contained.  Having seen that picture it  shows what a good job you made of capturing the feel of it.

 

Don

[Tortuga]

I’m in agreement with @Donw. The only difference between your River Brid and the prototype I can see is ripples: could you add some using the method @Graham T has just used on his Chuffnell Regis layout?

[DLT]

On 09/05/2023 at 06:48, Tortuga said:

I’m in agreement with @Donw. The only difference between your River Brid and the prototype I can see is ripples: could you add some using the method @Graham T has just used on his Chuffnell Regis layout?

Just been catching up with Chuffnell Regis, beautiful!

Thanks very much.

[DLT]

On 09/05/2023 at 04:31, Donw said:

The river bank in Bridoport looks as though it has been straightened and contained.  Having seen that picture it  shows what a good job you made of capturing the feel of it.

Thanks Don.

Yes indeed, three small rivers meet in Bridport, the Asker, the Brit and the Simene.   They have been contained by walls, and channeled into various millstreams as the town grew around (and occasionally above) them.  Having a river through the middle was one of the principal aims of the layout, but it meant that when designing and building, I had to start with the river bridge and work outwards in either direction.

Cheers, Dave.

[Stubby47]

The real Bridport seems to be much more overgrown than your version (which always looks / looked, quite perfectly chocolate box). 

 

[melmoth]

20 minutes ago, Stubby47 said:

The real Bridport seems to be much more overgrown than your version (which always looks / looked, quite perfectly chocolate box). 

 

 

As a Bridport resident, I tend to think of the place as 'unboxed, but still in working order'. 'Unhinged', occasionally.

[DLT]

Hi Stu,

 

Not TOO chocolate box I hope!  Its supposed to be fairly workaday.

When I originally took the photos, some areas were semi-derelict, and so a lot more overgrown than when in full use.  So I've tried to strike a balance.

The buildings we see today could be 100 years older than the period we are modelling, and could have been new then.

 

I once put a building in a competition and the judge marked it down saying "it couldn't possibly be that clean".  I pointed out that it was meant to be brand new!

 

All the best,

Dave.

[melmoth]

1 minute ago, DLT said:

Hi Stu,

 

Not TOO chocolate box I hope!  Its supposed to be fairly workaday.

When I originally took the photos, some areas were semi-derelict, and so a lot more overgrown than when in full use.  So I've tried to strike a balance.

The buildings we see today could be 100 years older than the period we are modelling, and could have been new then.

 

I once put a building in a competition and the judge marked it down saying "it couldn't possibly be that clean".  I pointed out that it was meant to be brand new!

 

All the best,

Dave.

 

The thing that always confuses me about your model is that I recognise all of the buildings, but none of them are where I expect them to be. That is not in any way a criticism.

[PaulRhB]

6 minutes ago, DLT said:

 

I once put a building in a competition and the judge marked it down saying "it couldn't possibly be that clean".  I pointed out that it was meant to be brand new!

If you look at such areas they tended to be much better managed for vegetation in the past. They would walk the river cutting the weed each year to keep it flowing and prevent flooding. So I think there’s quite a difference between town water courses then and now. They only tend to get managed once there’s a problem. 
Also in a country town you didn’t get so much soot staining so buildings weathered differently ;) 

Edited May 10, 2023 by PaulRhB

[DLT]

2 hours ago, melmoth said:

 

The thing that always confuses me about your model is that I recognise all of the buildings, but none of them are where I expect them to be. That is not in any way a criticism.

Err yes, this is where I bring the great Eric Morecombe into play:

"I'm using all the RIGHT buildings, just not necessarily in the right order...."

[DLT]

21 hours ago, melmoth said:

As a Bridport resident, I tend to think of the place as 'unboxed, but still in working order'. 'Unhinged', occasionally.

 

21 hours ago, melmoth said:

The thing that always confuses me about your model is that I recognise all of the buildings, but none of them are where I expect them to be. That is not in any way a criticism.

 

Hi Mr Melmoth,

I'm bringing Bridport Town to the Bridport Show on July 29th, subject to confirmation from the Club.

Cheers, Dave.

[john new]

4 minutes ago, DLT said:

 

 

Hi Mr Melmoth,

I'm bringing Bridport Town to the Bridport Show on July 29th, subject to confirmation from the Club.

Cheers, Dave.

Hope to see you there, I am demoing at this one.