Cambrian Shed (nearly Aberystwyth shed). Now with Cambrian Mainline diorama

[ChrisN]

I assume it is off by now, but you could slip a coffee stirrer up between your thumb and the smokebox.

 

Wave if you do not have one and I will send one round.  🙂

[RJS1977]

1 hour ago, SteamingWales said:

After a successful day at work I have had my doodus moment for the day. Painted the stationary boiler smokebox on my thumb. Now it's wet and I can't get it off without making a mess 🤣

 

 

I remember doing something similar once painting a whitemetal smokestack chimney which had a 'sprue' beneath it which I was holding it by. I'd just finished painting it when the postman knocked on the front door and I realised I had nowhere to put it down!

 

[SteamingWales]

Thumb is free. Not a tight fit so was able to get a cocktail stick inside to lift it off, though I had to find one in the kitchen first 🙄

[Graham T]

Cocktail sticks and coffee stirrers - the modeller's secret weapons!

[SteamingWales]

Using my new found freedom I thought it was about time to add the late crests to the tender of my Clan

 

 

Recent update on the nameplates too has delivery in about 3 weeks 

[SteamingWales]

I've been doing the rounds today as part of this visited Frizinghall Models and Railways.

 

I have been wanting to go for a while just for a bit of a nosy around mainly but also to pick up some odds and sods. Haul below 👇

 

 

Because I'm impatient and haven't got enough projects on the go I started on the Parkside kits. The kits have been bought to hack up to sit in the siding adjacent to the coal stage simulating wagons with open doors for ash to be shoveled directly into.

 

After an hour or so this is the result...

 

 

Time for a bit of paint!

[SteamingWales]

Just a short update for the weekend as I have been busy with other things.

 

I have added the small lean to structure to the eastern end of the workshop. The purpose to the lean to doesn't seem too clear as studying photos it doesn't have a door like a porch, it is simply an open building. My only thought looking in the D. J. Lowe The Cambrian Mainline which shows the workshop with Std. 2 78003 next it is that it simply existed so anyone exiting the workshop would walk directly onto the tracks into an oncoming loco

 

 

With this done it was time for primer and the first base coat of brick colour

 

[SteamingWales]

Just a bit more painting whilst watching Bake Off 🎂🎂

 

Just another couple of the blank panels plus the little insert for the main end wall. A couple more coats needed though

 

 

 

 

[SteamingWales]

A little bit more painting again.

 

This time the spotlight on the end walls. Much better than the original silver paint 

 

[SteamingWales]

Today has felt like one of those "milestone" days where the shed is actually starting to look like Aberystwyth. I think we must all have these once in a while when we finish a building or a part of a project?

 

The painting earlier this week has built upto this moment to have the windows above the shed lines and central support in place.

 

First thing to do was to jump into CAD and draw up the windows. These are designed such that they can fit snuggly into the available space and can be attached securely to the shed. The below photo was using some "test prints" that I accidently left in the Isoproyl alcohol for too long and they went all bendy hence the unlevelness

 

 

Next job was into spray booth to get a nice even finish on the pair of windows (doing both at the same time despite the other end being less advanced, batch construction I guess🤷‍♂️)

 

 

Once dry it was time for a trial fit 

 

 

With this done it was too tempting not to get a couple of locos out have a bit of a photo op

 

 

Still plenty off work to do but the shed is starting to actually look like Aberystwyth!

 

 

[RJS1977]

Just out of interest, where did you get the spotlights from?

[SteamingWales]

38 minutes ago, RJS1977 said:

Just out of interest, where did you get the spotlights from?

 

https://www.smallscalelights.co.uk/product/oo_gauge_adjustable_spotlight

 

These are the specific ones. The threads however I cut down to fit the building. If you need to do that it's quite easy to remove the lamps from the base and cut down if needed 

[SteamingWales]

No modelling tonight but Cambrian Shed has just received a freshly overhaul loco from Swindon, all shiny and like new!

 

 

In reality I have been sitting patiently and trawling through eBay and well known 2nd hand retails waiting for another Dapol 7310 to pop up to add another 63xx to the roster and finally got one off eBay!

 

The previous owner had listed as DISPLAYED ONLY so in theory it is brand new, I'm not an expert in telling if something has been run etc. but given by the amount of dust on the model I can believe the "brand new" statement.

 

A quick out the box test and it all works though the front buffers had fallen off, just like my other version bought new new in 2020. I guess top mark for consistency by Dapol 😅😅

 

Given it's DCC fitted I was expecting to pay a lot more than I did and got it for a couple of quid less than the retailer prices for a DCC ready version so pretty please.

 

Like my original 7310, which has 6378 cabside numbers but not smokebox, she will be renumbered. Choices are to:

 

89C 6371

89C 6392

89C 6395 or

89A 6342 (Oswestry's only GWR Mogul weirdly?)

 

Top choices so far are either 6392 or 6342, or track down another and do both 

 

A small note too that I am genuinely considering Hornby TT as well 👀

 

 

Edited October 10, 2022 by SteamingWales

[GWJ]

22 hours ago, SteamingWales said:

 

A quick out the box test and it all works though the front buffers had fallen off, just like my other version bought new new in 2020. I guess top mark for consistency by Dapol 😅😅

 

Same thing happened with my Mogul which was bought brand new from one of the larger box shifters.  Loco carefully removed from the packaging but the buffers had come off and were loose in the box.  A small point to some perhaps (and easy to fix) but to me it highlights poor quality control by Dapol and a lack of care in the shop as this should have been spotted when the loco was being tested.

 

A nice model nontheless and I am sure it will look at home in the engine shed! 

[SteamingWales]

15 hours ago, GWJ said:

Same thing happened with my Mogul which was bought brand new from one of the larger box shifters.  Loco carefully removed from the packaging but the buffers had come off and were loose in the box.  A small point to some perhaps (and easy to fix) but to me it highlights poor quality control by Dapol and a lack of care in the shop as this should have been spotted when the loco was being tested.

 

A nice model nontheless and I am sure it will look at home in the engine shed! 

 

It was whole in the eBay listing. I assume just the handling in the postal system had made them come loose

[SteamingWales]

I received an email today that my custom name plates were on the way so thought it about time to put words into action and paint the footplate and top of the tender tank.

 

So it was out with the masking tape and airbrush to get the loco ready to receive the new nameplates

 

 

I'm scared now to take the masking tape off 😅

[SteamingWales]

Built up the confidence to take the masking tape off the Clan to reveal the new paint job and I'm pretty happy. A couple of areas need touching up but a job well done me thinks!

 

 

I promise normal Cambrian Shed updates will resume over the weekend 😅

 

[SteamingWales]

I know I promised actual modelling would resume but the Clan nameplates arrived yesterday so I couldn't wait to get them fitted. So..

 

Introducing to the fleet BR Standard 6MT "Clan" Class No. 72027 "SEAFARER"

 

 

A Standard 6 on the Cambrian network, but how? 

 

I appreciate at this point not everyone has the time to read my whole thought process, so hopefully this executive summary should cover most points briefly.

 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

 

• I wanted a 6MT on the layout properly, not just a "nice to have"
• I didn't want to simply invoke rule 1 or play the railtour card
• So what if?

1. The international steel shortage wasn't a thing
2. The BR Modernisation Plan was different/delayed
3. The next Lot of Clans were built and then some
4. The wooden bridges on the Cambrian mainline (not to Pwllheli) were replaced increasing route axle load
5. The 6MTs were trialled successfully and negated the need for double heading express trains

 

All the above is expanded on below in much more detail, though quite lengthy. Any comments, questions or blind range due to me trashing history are all welcome!

 

N.B. This does not open the floodgates to all sorts of other classes to appear. The above what ifs apply to get a Clan AND ONLY A CLAN onto the layout 

 

 

CONTEXT

 

Personally I have always liked the look of the BR Clan. They are very well proportioned pacific, not as bulky as the "Brits" or a power house like a Duchess, just a nice looking engine. Not too big, not too small.

 

Before the idea for Cambrian Shed came into being and my general increased interest in Cambrian network as a whole, I had a pre-order for a Clan from Hattons, but as with their form with pre-orders this was cancelled. By this point a price rise and first ideas of Cambrian Shed bouncing round I decided not to seek one elsewhere. 

 

However, roll on April 2022 and Kernow had them on sale, the temptation was too great and I got one and so here we are with a Clan completely out of place amongst GWR machines.

 

At this point I could just invoke rule 1 and have 72004 just out of place, or play the railtour card and have an occasional visit. I wanted her on the layout properly so have decided to retcon a Clan onto the Cambrian network

 

WHAT IF...

 

1. The steel shortage wasn't a thing and the next Lot of Clans (72010-72024) had been built, along with more Class 7MT (see notes on 72010 history page)

 

2. Following improvements, the 6MT had been more of a success and an effective locomotive resulting in another batch of locomotives being ordered

 

3. The Modernisation Plan hadn't halted the construction of Pacific locomotives

 

4. The GWR and Western region of BR had continued improvements on the Cambrian Mainline with the wooden bridges replaced along the route to Aberystwyth which increased the maximum axle load of locomotives allowed on the line

 

THE HISTORY OF 72027 "SEAFARER"

 

Built at Crewe BR Standard 6MT "Clan" locomotive 72027 emerged from the works in November 1953 named "SEAFARER".

 

Initially allocated to Crewe the locomotive operated along the WCML hauling trains to Glasgow and Manchester. This only lasted briefly with the loco allocated to Western region arriving at Shrewsbury in early 1954 with 2 other 6MTs. During this period the class proved themselves on the Welsh Marches hauling expresses from Crewe and Shrewsbury to Cardiff. After a spell at Shrewsbury she was allocated to Tyseley in Sep 1956 before returning to Shrewsbury in Feb 1958 following overhaul were she received BR Late Crest and nameplates with red background.

 

By this time the infrastructure improvements on the Cambrian had been completed allowing for heavier locomotives to use the network. Given the success of the Scottish engines on the Dumfries to Stranraer working and Southern engines on the Somerset and Dorset the decision was taken to trial the locomotives on the Cambrian mainline during April 1958. This proved to be a success with the Clans being able to handle the heavy express trains over Talerddig single handily, eliminating the need for double heading of such trains and the Shrewsbury Clans started work on the Cambrian of May that year and could been seen alongside the Manors hauling the CCE and other expresses to Manchester and Birkenhead.

 

Although never officially allocated to Machynlleth shed on the Cambrian the locos found themselves often on shed at Aberystwyth for working the CCE. Here the crews took a shine to the locomotives and being the top express engines were kept in immaculate cosmetic condition like the Manors, a real juxtaposition to the torrid cosmetic state of other Clans.

 

72027 remained at Shrewsbury shed until Nov 1964 when she was allocated to Carlisle Kingmoor joining classmates 72005-09 working trains over the S&C. She was withdrawn from service on 4th December 1965 with classmate 72007.

 

(The soppy bit, it's my personal engine so its being preserved) Owing to her good mechanical condition, in part thanks to the efforts of crews at Aberystwyth, 72027 was privately preserved following withdrawal and was overhauled at Crewe. She initially worked railtours before settling onto the heritage rail network with her home base at the Severn Valley Railway, not far from her old stomping ground, whilst also working occasional railtours on the national network.

 

SUMMARY

 

Entered Service Nov 1953

 

Allocations

Crewe Nov 1953

Shrewsbury Feb 1954

Tyseley Sep 1956

Shrewsbury Feb 1958

Carlisle Kingmoor Nov 1964

Withdrawn Dec 1965

PRESERVED

 

WHY THE NAME AND NUMBER?

 

NUMBER

 

I'll start with the easy one first. I did think initially about just having the next Lot built in my alternative reality and have one of the southern locos reallocated due to surplus requirement given the number of Bullied Pacifics, but scrapped this as they would have had BR 2(?) tenders and the original Scottish engines proved themselves so why take engines from the 2nd batch. So I went for the hypothetical 3rd batch and 72027 has a nice symmetry to it

 

NAMING

 

This was a lot, and I mean a lot, more difficult than choosing a number, though I have tried to stick to the BR naming principles. See here (and sorry to cite Wikipedia)

 

First thought was given to historic figures of Welsh origin. The Welsh didn't really have houses or Clans at best there were a bunch of semi-Kingdoms. I did think about HYWEL DDA/HYWEL THE GOOD, a 10th Century king who united much of Wales, but I am only aware of HYWEL thanks to Bernard Cornwell's Saxon Stories (The Last Kingdom on BBC/Netflix) so scrapped that idea.

 

The next idea was OFFA or OFFA OF MERCIA, again a historical figure and more well known thanks to Offa's Dyke and similar context with Hengist, Horsa and Canute. I did settle on OFFA for a while as it satisfies a geographical rule and historic figure rule but looking for weathering reference at "Brits" the little piddly names like Ariel just look silly. OFFA was on borrowed time!

 

Next, a brief thought was given to birds and being an ecologist and ornithologist this seemed personal to me. RED KITE? Typically a Welsh bird in my mind, though increasingly less so, and fits the layout theme but is straying into A4 naming territory. So that idea was binned.

 

A few months ago I was watching the Ffestiniog Moving Pictures on YT where an update on the overhaul of Taliesin was being given. TALIESIN isn't a bad name. Already proven on a locomotive, a Welsh poet and ticks some boxes from the naming criteria.

 

Then came the epiphany moment linked with Taliesin. I'd recently finished a book called "The Seafarers", a cracking read btw, which explores British sea birds and pulls its name from a similarly title 10th Century poem "The Seafarer" LINK. The important link being the gannets mentioned in these lines....

 

I took to myself as pleasure,

the gannet's noise

and the voice of the curlew

instead of the laughter of men,

 

The Seafarer also appears in my current read material "Curlew Moon" with the obvious curlew link. I might add the "Exeter Book" in which The Seafarer appears also has some other decent names for steam locos like WANDERER or VAINGLORY

 

So take out THE and you get SEAFARER. It's personal to me with the wording/bird link, historical, rolls of the tongue and has the double maritime meaning.

 

Perhaps?

72025 OFFA/OFFA OF MERCIA

72026 TALIESIN

72027 SEAFARER

72028 WANDERER

72029 VAINGLORY

 

Congratulations if you made it this far. Quite a long read (and thought process for me) but I hope followers of the thread appreciate the choices made, rather than just playing rule 1 and giving the middle finger to any die hard rivet counters.

 

Any feedback, comments or blind rage is welcome!

Edited October 16, 2022 by SteamingWales

[Nick Gough]

Sounds like a plausible scenario to me.

[SteamingWales]

I've not really been in the mood for proper modelling at the moment, not sure why 😕

 

To get back into the mood I have been sat on a load of transfers I ordered from Railtec a few weeks back.

 

So tonight has been a big renumbering with 6 locos on the work bench. In all the Dukedogs and 3MT have just had raised cabside and smokebox number plates, and the Moguls and Prairie have received identify changes

 

 

 

Whilst choosing which Mogul to do for, see post from a few weeks back (BTW I went for 6395), I ended up looking through photos of to earlier 43xx/53xx, mainly as procrastination.

 

If my history is correct the Moguls that worked the Cambrian mainline (not to Barmouth) were mostly the later versions and the early designs were withdrawn quite early. I think one made it to Jan 1958 but for me that is too early. I did stumble across a pair that were at Shrewsbury until winter 1960 so ordered some plates too in readiness for the new version from Dapol. Past me obviously knew what they were doing as I pre-empted the Dapol price rise!

 

[SteamingWales]

Back to some modelling. I think it is about time to start the massive job of painting the shed sections. I can tell I'm going to love doing all the brick highlights on these 😑

 

[Simond]

Hi,

 

I have only just discovered your thread, and am much impressed with your model.  It’s a shame I didn’t know earlier, as in 2015, my wife & I surveyed the shed at Aberystwyth, so I could build a 7mm model.  There are quite a few photos on my Porth Dinllaen thread, linky thingy below, I hope you enjoy!

 

the reason for finding you was Steve Fay’s thread with your 3DP coal tubs and the “drawbridge”.  Steve kindly pointed me in your direction!

 

I’ll drop you a pm, if you’d be kind enough to print a few tubs, and a pair of drawbridges, that would be really helpful!

 

cheers

Simon

[SteamingWales]

21 hours ago, Simond said:

Hi,

 

I have only just discovered your thread, and am much impressed with your model.  It’s a shame I didn’t know earlier, as in 2015, my wife & I surveyed the shed at Aberystwyth, so I could build a 7mm model.  There are quite a few photos on my Porth Dinllaen thread, linky thingy below, I hope you enjoy!

 

the reason for finding you was Steve Fay’s thread with your 3DP coal tubs and the “drawbridge”.  Steve kindly pointed me in your direction!

 

I’ll drop you a pm, if you’d be kind enough to print a few tubs, and a pair of drawbridges, that would be really helpful!

 

cheers

Simon

 

Thanks for the comment. I did pick up the thread asking about drawing by yourself from a couple of years ago but didn't think it ever came to fruition so I will go and have a look!

[SteamingWales]

I've been rather busy of late, mostly poking around (quite literally) on peat bogs in the Trough of Bowland so haven't had any time to model with staying away

 

 

Back home I thought it about time to start painting the shed. Painting individual bricks is VERY tedious. These sections (plus the 3 which are part of the boiler house) form the south side of the shed which I think is going to be my main focus for a while so best to get it painted?

 

 

In other news I might have proper baseboards by next week!

[SteamingWales]

Just another short update. All the brickwork for the south side of the shed has now been painted and awaiting a mortar wash (though I am away atm helping dig a wildlife pond)

 

In the interem time I have been revising the CAD of the coal tubs. After a bit of interest from other RMweb members and a few Facebook group posts later there seemed to be quite a bit of demand, so they are now listed on eBay. Through this it was mentioned about designing a cut down version which were used for tank engines with narrow bunkers. A bit of spliting and creating faces and objects later and there are now 3 different coal tub types. A tender engine version and tank engine version, both L and R. I'd quite like to add these to Cambrian shed myself (as well as offer for sale obviously) so painting these once printed will be a nice change from painting bricks all evening!

 

 

The other good news is the issuing of invoices for the Accurascale Manors. Obviously they are imminent now (but not too imminent based on the Manor thread) but gives a nice target for getting the baseboard sorted as the whole layout idea kind of grew from these models!

Edited November 11, 2022 by SteamingWales