Tetleys Mills 3

[d winpenny]

Looking great

 

David

[tetleys]

Not much chance of indoor modelling this weekend, low and behold the sun is shining, there's no wind so I'm dusting the cobwebs from my bike since the docs have cleared me for some 'easy' riding. Yesterday was another one of those Ancaster weekend days when I was in and out of the house as The Battle Of Britain Squadron were doing circuits with the Dakota and a Spitfire was performing aerobatics over Barkston Heath aerodrome, forget A4 chime whistles lovely though they are is there any sound on this planet so lovely as a V12 Rolls Royce Merlin at full chat, you simply cannot ignore it?

 

Next week will see me attacking the first of a pair of tunnel portals and the approach scenery especially if Squires can deliver my Mod Roc early and I can buy some chicken wire, the portals will be of DAS scribed and moulded stone with an arch of concentric blue bricks, that is the theory anyway, such a relatively small surface area should receive the detail it deserves if those jolly old chaps from RAF Coningsby don't buzz the house next week. Anybody witnessing the 70th D.Day celebrations will not be disappointed, a pity I cannot get down to Pompey or Gosport.

 

Wingco of Ancaster (Yes it is spelt correctly!)

[Andrew P]

Morning Dave, My wife and I were on the Sea Front at Southsea for the 50th celebrations, we managed to get a front row position as The Queen and Phillip, followed by Charlie and Princess Diana pulled up in front of us on there way in, (they obviously knew there place, as they waved and acknowledged us) we also saw Bill Clinton, Coronal Gadaffi, and a whole host of dignitaries from around the world, Oh and also Margaret Thatcher of course.

 

The Fly past was sensational and as you say the sound of Spitfires, Hurricanes, Lancasters, Dacota, and then I think it was the Harrier's came over in a 50 formation to which the Fleet in the Solent all sounded the hooters. Overall a day we will never forget.

 

The strange thing is that we were going to watch it on Telly but at about 8am decided to go down, (only 20 mins from home), parked really easily took a couple of fold up chairs and had a ring side seat.

 

Go if you can young man, you will enjoy it.

[Mike Bellamy]

The Battle Of Britain Squadron were doing circuits with the Dakota and a Spitfire was performing aerobatics over Barkston Heath aerodrome, forget A4 chime whistles lovely though they are is there any sound on this planet so lovely as a V12 Rolls Royce Merlin at full chat, you simply cannot ignore it?

Mum was telling me the other day that the Dakota and a Spitfire flew a couple of circuits over Grantham last weekend in support of a D-Day display at the Museum and then flew straight over their house heading (presumably) back to base. She said the Spitfire didn't sound right (and at the age of 85, she's old enough to remember when there were few more in the sky!)

 

I found this brief video of the flypast last week

Grantham Journal report http://www.granthamjournal.co.uk/news/features/nostalgia/slideshow-history-brought-to-life-at-grantham-s-d-day-commemoration-event-1-6084019

Details here http://www.southkesteven.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=6866

 

Mention of Barkston Heath brings back memories of Kings School cadet force drill on the runway and night exercises - and as a Scout I was a regular visitor to the campsite across the road - and the hangers nearby where I learnt to drive - all about 45 years ago . . .

 

 

 

 

.

[tetleys]

I've spent a couple of afternoons making the first tunnel portal and doing the hard landscaping of the surrounding terrain, I have ordered another 5kg of casting plaster so I can soon cast a few more retaining walls which I can saw into useable sections for the tunnel approach side retaining walls. I have not yet taken any photographs but I'm quite pleased at how the tunnel portal has turned out, the stonework uses DAS that I have fashioned into cut stone similar to the 7mm Slaters stone sheet, I'm afraid having recently seen some published results of bridges / portals purporting to use DAS I feel a need to offer some advice/ suggestions if that is not too pretentious.

[Sasquatch]

The Lancaster, Spitfire, Hurricane trio flew over the factory in Brighton one afternoon. All the blokes threw done their tools and ran out side to cheer and wave!  Great. 

[westerner]

Same thing happened a few years ago at Regatta I was at. The noise of 6 Merlins emptied the bar.

[tetleys]

We residents of Lincolnshire enjoy seeing some or all of the Battle of Britain Squadron fly over our homes most summer and autumn weekends and I for one still get out in the garden to watch and hear them, the Red Arrows are no strangers either, the attraction never wavers and a reminder that not all of our income tax is wasted, and we should resist the bean counters.

 

Dave

[Mr Brunel]

Mum was telling me the other day that the Dakota and a Spitfire flew a couple of circuits over Grantham last weekend in support of a D-Day display at the Museum and then flew straight over their house heading (presumably) back to base. She said the Spitfire didn't sound right (and at the age of 85, she's old enough to remember when there were few more in the sky!)

 

I found this brief video of the flypast last week

 

Perhaps the Spitfire didn't sound quite right because that particular one isn't fitted with a Merlin engine - instead, it has a Griffon! Griffon engines have a deeper, throatier sound; quite nice, but I agree with those who've said that nothing beats a good Merlin (or six).

 

If I've derailed the thread, my apologies...

[great northern]

I've spent a couple of afternoons making the first tunnel portal and doing the hard landscaping of the surrounding terrain, I have ordered another 5kg of casting plaster so I can soon cast a few more retaining walls which I can saw into useable sections for the tunnel approach side retaining walls. I have not yet taken any photographs but I'm quite pleased at how the tunnel portal has turned out, the stonework uses DAS that I have fashioned into cut stone similar to the 7mm Slaters stone sheet, I'm afraid having recently seen some published results of bridges / portals purporting to use DAS I feel a need to offer some advice/ suggestions if that is not too pretentious.

Pretentious? Toi?

[tetleys]

I think it was George Orwell writing in an early edition of Railway Modeller who said, "All casting plaster is equal but some are more equal than others."

 

And so I have discovered that despite casting numerous components for my viaducts and sections of retaining walls I am still finding surprises, my previous supplier of casting plaster based in Sutton Bridge Lincolnshire sold me a product that once cast could be extracted from the mould within an hour or so and although damp it maintained it's integrity yet could be carved or scribed whilst still 'green'. I did once buy some seriously strong plaster that went off quickly and once dry appeared stronger than Cobham tank armour and so resisted all manner of tools, I now avoid that but it certainly could have it's uses.

 

My latest purchase from Amazon is different again, it needs to be left in the mould for at least 24 hours and appears to remain soft for much longer than any previous plaster and the fine detail appears not to be  picked out from the mould bearing in mind my viaduct castings reproduce each individual 4mm scale Slaters Plastic card brick and mortar joint. The green casting therefore requires an hour's fettling of the stone joints but it isn't too onerous and it does enhance the original Slaters 7mm stone effect but it is delaying my completing the promised tunnel portal.

 

Images will be posted, I promise.

 

Honest John, car salesman of Ancaster.

 

[tetleys]

Ugh,

 

I discovered yesterday that I had made a mistake with the mixing ratio, I got it right for my third wall section and the castings are now as with my previous material but the down side is that the green casting is not quite so easy to fettle and carve detail into, the two previous ones have more or less dried and so one can fiddle with the mix to achieve different results.

 

Plonker of Ancaster

[tetleys]

I know I cannot post several images and add explanations so I'll hog the web and make several posts with what I hope will be individual images.

This one should show what I know has appeared elsewhere on this thread but it is the latest plaster cast retaining wall. A mold was made of an existing wood and Slaters Plastic card 7mm rough stone wall which cants backwards correctly to resist ground thrust whist the wall above the string course is of Slaters 7mm Cotswold stone, the less than sharp reproduction was fettled whilst the casting was green and the second image which I'll try and add is the reverse side that should be plain plaster but again whilst green I have added some dressed stone detailing since the wall will be visible from two sides.

 

Dave

[tetleys]

This image or two will hopefully show what will be the station approach and where my modest workman's cottages have been overtaken by events since I'm utilising some of the old Tetleys Mills shops and offices. The station approach is actually at a lower level and the segregation height is less than on Tetleys Mills but the station ramp was just too labour intensive to sell. It will be sunk below the baseboard and the station forecourt will be at a slightly higher level than normal so it should work, the retaining wall at the front will not be full height as cast but will be sawn down to an appropriate size. The castings are pretty chunky but they are also reinforced with plastering scrip so if one cracks just glue some reinforcing card behind.

 

Another advantage of casting the walls apart from the eye watering cost of a sheet of plastic card these days is that the stone detail can be carved around two adjacent surfaces, the high definition of 7 mm stone all but makes it impossible to disguise.

 

Simples.

 

Dave

[tetleys]

OK as promised the tunnel portal which is not quite finished I need to add some green algae and a dusting of my weathering black powder paint and talcum powder.

The portal face is card stuck to 9mm MDF and the opening is the same as The Peco plastic portal so loved by us all, I'm not sure I could have drawn a decent ellipse, the brick banding is fro South Eastern Finecast 4mm English Bond arch sheet with the arch cut and shut into manageable segments. DAS has been used to match the stonework of the approach walls which are sections cut from my ubiquitous plaster castings  and the end vertical pillars are yet more sections of castings.  I have glued the whole lot into place using builders pink construction glue ' but it's white' a really useful and cheap adhesive which being water soluble can be brushed into place and the joints all but disappear.  Just don't use it as decorators caulking which I suspect it is identical to, we bought a rental property from a woman who must have spent her life hanging pictures of family then changing her mind only to fill the holes with this decorators caulking / filler, IT IS NOT POSSIBLE TO SAND IT SMOOTH unlike Polyfiller.

 

I will try and post some more images of the landscaped ground around the tunnel portal but I'm suffering from a lack of energy recently so I'm not sure when that work will be started.

 

Idle of Ancaster

[Sasquatch]

Cracking job on the tunnel mouth Dave, am watching with interest as two such structures are needed for Queensbury.

 

regards Shaun

[tetleys]

Shaun,

 

Sorry mate you may have to think again about Queensbury!

 

My new layout is a re-write of history when the GNR the L&Y and Midland actually talked to each other and my 'New Direct Line' giving better access to Halifax by the L&Y so they didn't bother with the expensive Queensbury route.

 

Kill Joy of Ancaster

[Guest bri.s]

As always great modelling .

 

Brian

[Alister_G]

Shaun,

 

Sorry mate you may have to think again about Queensbury!

 

My new layout is a re-write of history when the GNR the L&Y and Midland actually talked to each other and my 'New Direct Line' giving better access to Halifax by the L&Y so they didn't bother with the expensive Queensbury route.

 

Kill Joy of Ancaster

 

No fair fighting! :nono:

 

Whatever happened to the Queensbury Rules??

 

 

Al.

[Sasquatch]

Shaun,

 

Sorry mate you may have to think again about Queensbury!

 

My new layout is a re-write of history when the GNR the L&Y and Midland actually talked to each other and my 'New Direct Line' giving better access to Halifax by the L&Y so they didn't bother with the expensive Queensbury route.

 

Kill Joy of Ancaster

Does this mean I have to scrap the scratch built signal box and station building, and return all the track to the dealer.

 

Squatch.

[tetleys]

Squatch,

 

More worrying is what you will do with the magnificent mill complex so OK carry on.

 

Dave

[d winpenny]

Really coming along nicely

 

David

[tetleys]

Modelling on hold a while, somebody let the sunshine out.

 

Dave

[tetleys]

Lack of building materials and energy have forced me upstairs so I have actually resumed modelling, I will try and do some more before / after daily hospital visits so watch this space for my usual rubbish images. It's not all bad news though Great Northern's Peterborough North is actually on my route home if I choose to brave Nottingham City Centre so I did call in for a cuppa and a modelling 'fix' last Friday.

 

Kodak of Ancaster 

[tetleys]

I hope that two images of the second and certainly the last tunnel portal on this layout have appeared from somewhere and are on this post.

 

Not much to look at, very similar to the other portal but slightly higher tunnel face that will be fine scribed and the stonework fettled to match the two wing walls cast from Plaster of Paris as long walls and cut to size the off cuts are always used somewhere. Capping stones will also be added from 1.5mm mounting card and the tunnel opening extended with the addition of a Kingspan insulation liner, dead easy to cut but rigid.

 

I hope to add extra images as work progresses on how to turn a silk purse into a sow's ear.

 

Dave