A return to Nantford Spinney

[AndyB]

I've been lucky enough to add a couple of locos to the Nantford rolling stock.

 

Obviously as a branchline there'll be plenty of people who would rightly argue for a "one loco in steam" approach.

 

But let's be honest if we all ran our BLTs layouts protoypically there'd would be little incentive for manufacturers to offer anything at all! 

 

One acquisition, the long-awaited N Gauge Society's Hunslet, was originally intended for a previous layout, and my idea was to repurpose it to be a MoD shunter. If it appears on the current layout then I may occasionally need to re-imagine the whole thing spun forward two or three decades as a Heritage Line.  

 

 

With Christmas being such a busy time of year I've not had any time to explore the loco's features beyond checking that it runs OK. Initial impressions are that its a lovely model. If anyone is interested I can post more about it another time, but I reckon there will be plenty of DCCofficianados who will be playing around with CV settings long before I do! For now my focus is on building the layout. 

 

The second item ties in more closely with the intended era and location of the layout; a Sonic Models 56xx. Out of the box there was occassional binding when run bunker forward. I suspect once run-in this will sought itself out. Again it's a lovely model with bags of character. And it will make a nice change from constant panniers. 

 

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB

[AndyB]

Time for a last update from Nantford Spinney for 2021. 

 

A while back I posted a picture of my scratchbuilt coalyard in the "Show us yours - Realistic modelling" thread and was thrilled to be asked by the BRM team if they could use it in their "Through the lens" magazine feature.

 

I was delighted to see it in the February edition which hit the shelves this morning. So a big thank you to @Andy Y and the BRM team for including my photo. 

 

Since sending in the image I've added a few details to that scene, weathering some coal wagons, adding figures, scales and a whitemetal lorry from P&D Marsh. 

 

 

There's still a few days of the holiday left so plenty of time to crack on with some more modelling projects. 

 

In the meantime I'd like to wish you all a peaceful, prosperous and healthy 2022.  

 

All the best. Andy

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB

[Keith Addenbrooke]

24 minutes ago, AndyB said:

Time for a last update from Nantford Spinney for 2021. 

 

A while back I posted a picture of my scratchbuilt coalyard in the "Show us yours - Realistic modelling" thread and was thrilled to be asked by the BRM team if they could use it in their "Through the lens" magazine feature.

 

I was delighted to see it in the February edition which hit the shelves this morning. So a big thank you to @Andy Y and the BRM team for including my photo. 

 

Since sending in the image I've added a few details to that scene, weathering some coal wagons, adding figures, scales and a whitemetal lorry from P&D Marsh. 

 

 

 

There's still a few days of the holiday left so plenty of time to crack on with some more modelling projects. 

 

In the meantime I'd like to wish you all a peaceful, prosperous and healthy 2022.  

 

All the best. Andy

Well done, Andy.  As someone who hasn’t model in N for forty years, I do keep forgetting just how tiny everything is: I was in my local model shop yesterday and that reminded me (helpfully their display was in the same cabinet as the 009 range so I could make the comparison).  Really emphasises just how good this all is.  Looking forwards to more in the new year, Keith.

[Andrew P]

Well done on the pic in the Mag mate, awesome. 

[AndyB]

20 hours ago, Keith Addenbrooke said:

Well done, Andy.  As someone who hasn’t model in N for forty years, I do keep forgetting just how tiny everything is: I was in my local model shop yesterday and that reminded me (helpfully their display was in the same cabinet as the 009 range so I could make the comparison).  Really emphasises just how good this all is.  Looking forwards to more in the new year, Keith.

 

16 hours ago, Andrew P said:

Well done on the pic in the Mag mate, awesome. 

 

Thank you both for your kind comments.

Wishing you both every success in 2022 for your respective endeavours.

[AndyB]

So, a New Year and my attention is turning to the station building. I want to get this bit done to allow a sense of completeness to the station itself before working any further on the front of the layout.

 

Lacking the confidence - and a prototype - to go down the scratchbuilding route I spent some time last year looking at various kits. This turned out to be a bit of a Goldilocks quest, with the options being either too big, too small, too widely used, too imposing etc. 

 

And then I happened on a kit of Abbotsbury station, a small rural terminus in Dorset produced by Arch Laser. 

 

First impressions are that the kit offers nicely crafted details, including a bag full of neatly cut quoins and delicate window frames. The building's walls have relief too to pick out the mortar courses and bricks.

 

 

Thinking back just a few years this level of refinement was thought unnecessary, justified because "at N scale you can't see it". Perhaps that used to be the case when viewing was at a distance.

 

But now with so much of our modelling work shown online, close ups of models actually do show these details. Or lack of.  For me this kit seems to hit the spot both in terms of level of detail and it's proportions in relation to the rest of the layout. 

 

First job will be to paint the stonework  components; to tie it in with other buildings on the layout I'm going for a grey colour. 

 

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB

[AndyB]

Morning all,

I made a bit of progress with the station building over the weekend. And before heading to "the office" I thought it might be worth sharing how it's starting look. 

 

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB

[Lacathedrale]

It looks good - but can I see a bow in the canopy? It might be worth clamping and glueing some brass angle or something along the front edge maybe?

 

[AndyB]

26 minutes ago, Lacathedrale said:

It looks good - but can I see a bow in the canopy? It might be worth clamping and glueing some brass angle or something along the front edge maybe?

 

 

Well spotted. And yes there is a slight bow at the moment. At this stage the canopy is only loose fitted.

 

Once glued in place permanently it'll have a ply beam along the front to strengthen it which gets disguised by a light card valence. There's also 6 x "cast iron" brackets to keep it straight along the back. 

 

 

I've got the rather fiddly quoins to do first though; swmbo has asked if I'd consider a larger gauge for my next layout. 

[AndyB]

Modelling work has had to take a back seat over recent weeks.  But I wanted to get back into it by progressing the station building.

 

The brackets shown in my previous post turned out to be incredibly fragile. So I've had to do a bit of running repairs when a couple of them crumbled. And there is a slight bow to the canopy which I'll try to correct. There's still small fiddly bits to fit and the roof to paint before I fix it in place.

 

But overall it's coming along and not too bad, I think.

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB

[AndyB]

From a distance my build of this kit doesn't look too bad.

 

But up close I can see a number of issues that will need putting right. For instance the front canopy valence is a bit wonky.

 

I'd also assumed that the chimney on the LHS would be the correct height when fitted flush onto the adjoining flat roof. Not so. There's a sizeable gap at the apex of the roof which will need filling. My fault in part - I'd assumed it would be the right size rather than checking and cutting back.

 

I've added a couple of "Tiny Signs" to give a bit of colour to an otherwise rather dead building. 

 

Overall the size of the building is pretty much what I was after. Nothing too imposing that would make the rest of the layout look small. But I think the build quality suffered from me taking a prolonged break part way through. 

 

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB

[AndyB]

I thought to share a couple of bits of progress this weekend.

 

First off was to tidy up the station building. I think it's nearly ready to fix in place. 

 

But having put that much work in to it, there was a dusty & messy job to do adjacent to it. And that was to raise the ground behind the platform.

 

And as is the way with these things it sort of morphed into a more widescale job sorting out dips, lumps and bumps across the whole of the Station board. Basically anywhere I'm expecting to put roads, buildings or areas where people might walk. And there were a lot of them. My rule of thumb is to run a vehicle over the surface and if it feels rough then it's unlikely to look realistic. 

 

So out with the air drying clay, a pot of Polyfilla, scrapers and some fine sand paper!

 

Once that was done I gave everything a coat of stone grey terrain pain and mixed up some grey paint for the road.

 

So nothing terribly exciting about this but it does bring the model that bit closer to being finished.  

 

 

Now to start making buildings! I think that goods shed should be first on the list to finish! 

 

Thanks for reading. 

Andy

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB

[AndyB]

If a week is a long time in politics then 24 hours is enough to make some progress on the Nantford Quay station.

 

The evening stopping service consisting of a B set hauled by a 56xx drifts in giving the passengers enough time to admire the newly installed fencing.

 

 

After much lobbying by passengers a post box has been installed by the Royal Mail. 

 

The Stationmaster's garden is coming along although he'll have to build a wall between his lawn and the neighbouring field. And some more plants wouldn't go amiss.

 

 

Which just leaves the question of what to put next to the Stationmaster's house?

 

Answers on a postcard if you have any ideas!

 

 

N.B. the rather down-market "Soapy Suds" laundrette is definitely due for demolition following a petition from the Nantford Society; cross them at your peril! 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB

[stivesnick]

Hi Andy 

 

Would the Kestrel Corner Shop fit on that site? Would be the same style as the Stationmasters house and would give you a building both on the main road and the station approach. Might also allow scope for a bit of a backyard with some clutter.

 

Regards 

 

Nick

 

 

[AndyB]

On 14/02/2022 at 21:55, stivesnick said:

Hi Andy 

 

Would the Kestrel Corner Shop fit on that site? Would be the same style as the Stationmasters house and would give you a building both on the main road and the station approach. Might also allow scope for a bit of a backyard with some clutter.

 

Regards 

 

Nick

 

 

 

Possibly...

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB

[AndyB]

Last week I commented that I should get the goods shed kit finished as my next major job. I'm now finished the build apart from putting on the drain pipes and am part way through painting the shed.

 

I'd previously had a go at this and it wasn't looming very good. So once assembled  I decided to give the whole model a coat of grey primer. I'll now pick out the stonework in other hues of grey. And tidy up the rest of tge paintwork where there's been a bit of run / smudging.

 

You may well recognise the kit as being the Ratio goods shed pictured below. Just a tips if you build this kit yourself. Font fix the doors swung inwards as shown in this picture; you'll have a problem getting wagons and locos though.

 

 

The doors need to face outwards, as shown in this next picture.

 

 

 

I've also made the assumption that the shed will need to be lifted off so I can clean the track. To make sure it slots in to the correct position each time I've put dome air-drying clay around the base and gently pressed the model in to create guidelines. 

 

I also wanted to show a crane inside the shed. Although barely visible I wanted to make sure this detail was in place. 

 

 

 

As mentioned the next jobs are to improve the paint job, weather it and then add fine details to bring it to life a bit.

 

Andy

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB

[AndyB]

Following on from my earlier post I've given the model an almost dry brushing with "GWR freight grey" followed by light grey and black weathering powders.

 

 

 

 

 

Just got to find some "goods" for the goods shed now! 

 

Andy

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB

[AndyB]

I recently changed jobs and my former colleagues very kindly had a collection for me. 

 

I wanted to get something to remember them by so chose this Schools class locomotive. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As you'll appreciate it's not really appropriate for a BLT unless you apply Rule 1, or contrive a reason to have a large loco visiting; I think I mentioned the idea of Sunshine Specials delivering holiday makers before?

 

Rolling stock is obviously the most expensive aspect of our hobby. So if I was ever to start a new layout then populating it all at once wouldn't be feasible. Also you just never know when models are going to be available. 

 

All that apart it's a gorgeous looking model and one to treasure. I'll certainly be thinking of my team whenever it's running. 

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB

[AndyB]

Well, this is proving to be a fiddly kit.

It's the N Brass Locos loco's GWR 6 ton crane. 

TBH I'll be able to get it completed to a standard but nowhere bear what tge designer had in mind. I'll just say my fingers are too big! The jib comes in 2 sections. One section forms 3 sides and you're meant to bend it into a U shape. Don't unbend it again is my advice; one part became 3 and I've spent a lot of my available modelling time trying to glue them back together again.

 

I've still a couple of parts to fit and then rig the pulley up. Bit tired now and if I continue I'll make (more) mistakes rather than complete the model. 

 

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB

[stivesnick]

Hi Andy 

 

The crane looks great. I have one to build for my layout, any other top tips welcome.

 

Nick 

 

 

[AndyB]

1 hour ago, stivesnick said:

Hi Andy 

 

The crane looks great. I have one to build for my layout, any other top tips welcome.

 

Nick 

 

 

Hi Nick.

Well there's some photos of a finished one here: https://www.nbrasslocos.co.uk/xn22800jru.html

 

And there's a write up in the N Gauge Society Journal (4/19).

 

My main tip is to figure out how each part should fit before handling any of the parts. If the jib breaks then trying to fit it back together again is maddening.

 

And not to worry if some of the bits are just too tiny to fit. I think unless you're going to do extreme photo close ups then no-one will know they're missing! 

 

Although my layout is BR era when the crane would hve been painted black I'm going to leave mine grey and pick out details in oil and rust colours; it us by the sea after all. 

 

Good luck!

Edited March 6, 2022 by AndyB
Typo

[AndyB]

The other tip is to have the jib at a more acute, upright angle than I have  (no tittering at the back, please!). To do that don't snip off the two protruding struts at the end of the jib sides.

 

As you can see from my photos below there's no need for the jib to swing through such a distance. In practice it might also topple with heavy loads. 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB
Additional info

[The Stationmaster]

Andy, 

 

the one at our local station was grey right up until its end in c.1965 (and it's still grey in its preserved state.  You also need a circular base for it to be mounted on, ideally concrete with brick edging - if you're going to basingstoke show on Saturday I'll bring along my photo of it in its working position to show you how it was done.

[AndyB]

Thanks Mike @The Stationmaster I'll certainly aim to come along on Saturday. Must be my turn to get the coffees in! 

 

Shouldn't be too hard to make a circular base for it. A stack of 1 or 2p pieces, or the lid off a dried out paint pot may do the trick. Finished off with some brick paper. 

 

@stivesnick there's a thread talking about a 4mm version of this crane here.  One of the drawings shows the hook should be about 18' from the centre of the body of the crane. 

Whereas my attempt is about 24'. 

 

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB
More info added

[AndyB]

I've done as much as I can assembling this kit now.

 

Knowing that the angle of dangle was wrong I couldn't leave it that way. So I broke the jib from the crane body and re-glued it. Just glad the jib didn't break into pieces!

 

Overall its not perfect by a long shot but at normal viewing distances it'll do.

It'll have to! 

 

The wires that drop to the hook will need aligning with gravity in due course. 

 

And as Mike @The Stationmastersays, it'll need a brick base. 

 

It's had a coat of primer and later on I'll add some other paint effects to bring out the detail. 

 

 

Edited April 2, 2022 by AndyB