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themagicspanner
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Cheers Tim.

 

I notice that you're using modelling inspiration from just down the road. I'll have to try to catch up with that soon.

 

Seeing your very nice interlaced timbers and having seen them on Burntisland (with which I'm starting to get involved) I do wish I had gone for the prototypical arrangement. Lack of experience meant I wanted something that I knew I could build, so I went for the Exactoscale kits.

 

 

By way of progress I've really just been pottering around - rolling out DAS for the third and final wall of the granary and a section of cobbles and adding brickwork to the base of the second shed.

 

I've also started experimenting with the windows for the granary.

 

2015-01-22230131_zps6b7157fe.jpg

 

Doing a bricked in window is so much more straight forward than doing all of the frames with micro strip.

 

 

Mike

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Anyone who followed the building of Tarbhit will know just how much I loved scribing cobbles. I loved it so much that I just had to have some for this layout...

 

This time around I decided to use DAS clay as I was pretty happy with the way things are working out on the granary. Last time round I used Polycell Onefill which I found to be easy to scribe but probably a little on the soft side for getting the kind of detail I'm looking for.

 

2015-01-23211400_zps5887bd99.jpg

 

2015-01-23211409_zps3d296853.jpg

 

The 'ruled' lines are at 2mm centres although only every other one is actually done with a ruler. The others are freehand so that it doesn't look too uniform.

 

 

Now if only that other wall of the granary would dry out fully.

 

 

Mike

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I think I've got a hole in the end of my finger from holding the scriber for most of the day...

 

2015-01-25193918_zps9186686b.jpg

 

2015-01-25193925_zpsc61084ce.jpg

 

Cobbles (or sets) are almost done around 2 sides of the granary and I'm pretty pleased with how they look prior to painting,

 

 

Also turned the layout back the right way round to see what I think of the piles of junk around the sheds. Jury's out on some of it and I'm not sure the trees between the tracks are going to stay.

 

2015-01-25222531_zps18808ec5.jpg

 

2015-01-25222639_zps15db5920.jpg

 

2015-01-25222853_zps84745eb0.jpg

 

 

Mike

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Thanks guys.

 

I think my bother with the junk is that it's all sitting on the ground. None of it is embedded in the mud. Luckily that's fairly easy to fix - DAS to the rescue.

 

 

The trees are going to go... Not sure about bushes though. I think I'll just rip them out.

 

 

Mike

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Another hour or so last night let me finish off the section of cobbles I started at the weekend. Obviously they still need to be painted but I think I'm pretty happy with the way they look.

 

2015-01-26230348_zps7aea4348.jpg

 

2015-01-26230359_zps6aa28d7b.jpg

 

2015-01-26230404_zps6d7603ed.jpg

 

This small section of cobbles took a very long time - probably about 6 to 8 hours of scribing work on top of the prep of the clay.

 

When I did the concrete a while back I was annoyed that the clay didn't crack when I flattened it out. The clay shrinks and curls the card as it dries - usually something you want to avoid.

 

This time I was hoping that it wouldn't crack but as I didn't weight it down and I had added a fairly thick layer of DAS there was no way I could get it flat without a few major fractures. As it is, they gave me the basis to add some interesting features and hopefully I've managed to make it look like the cobbles have been there, neglected, for a very long time.

 

As well as scribing I also shaved the top of a few of the cobbles around the cracks to make them look as though they are leaning into the gap.

 

 

Back to the last wall for the granary tonight and then I'll hang up my scriber for a while... Amazing how much modelling you can do with a couple off packs of DAS. Good for when funds are low.

 

 

Mike

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Looks great mate and you've certanly got patience!! I'm wondering whether to use das for the road/path at the back of the warehouse? Won't be cobbled though ;)

 

Looking forward to more mate.

 

Cheers, Paul

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Superb and painstaking work Mike - it is going to look fantastic when weathered! I wonder if DAS would be a good medium to use to emulate the floor on the model of Hurlford shed I'm currently drawing up, the flooring material (which I haven't researched yet and can't remember even though I walked on it often enough!) extends several feet out from the front openings. I presume if it does crack, they can be filled and sanded? Perhaps experimenting with rolling the clay out out on a non - stick baking tray or sheet might minimise the cracking and I assume one could stick several sheets together using the clay as cement? I was thinking of rolling it right up to the track edges on the inspection pits, though I might have to fill in any shrinkage. It is a very large area so some serious experimentation will be necessary but I would appreciate your comments. Apologies for troubling you with all these questions,

Kind regards,

Jock.

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Cheers guys.

 

DAS is a great medium for a whole bunch of things as its easy to carve and scribe and takes colour well.

 

One of the reasons that cracking is such a problem (or a blessing) with the way I did things was that I had the clay on a flexible card backing that is stiff in compression, which, as the clay shrinks, confines the movement in the plane of the clay but not out of plane. Weighting the clay stops this but everything takes much longer to dry.

 

If the clay is applied to a very rigid surface - directly to the baseboard, for example, the out of plane movement is constrained and you only have to worry about the in plane movement and the cracking that causes. This can be dealt with by only laying small amounts of DAS at a time or by letting cracks form and then gouge them out and patch them with more clay.

 

Once the clay is dry, you can sand it smooth very easily and scribe or cut to your heart's content.

 

Rolling the clay onto non stick sheets as you suggest would work well I think as long as you weight it down.

 

There's an interesting technique in this thread on the Scalefour Forum, if you have access. This is a method of making a cast of a plasticard sheet and then using that to create relief on the DAS. I might try it myself for the overbridge. Much better than using plasticard as it's easier to cover the joints - one of my pet-peeves!

 

To stick the sheets together I've been using thick superglue with a bevel that can be filled with clay after everything has set. Because the clay is porous it makes a very strong joint.

 

 

I hope this helps. I look forward to you getting this layout started.

 

 

Mike

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You are an artist with DAS!!!

From the beginning where you set the track into it, to this scribing for the buildings and the sets, just wonderful.

 

I agree about the trees, they would be dug up if they got to the size of your trunks, as the roots could lift the sleepers if they got big enough.

 

Totally wonderful, I enjoy catching up with your thread.

 

Jinty ;-)

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Just a quick update.

 

Not much to report over the last week or so but I have managed to paint the cobbles. Here are a couple of close-ups:

 

2015-02-02192535_zpsd6d7f701.jpg

 

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Here's one with the granary plonked on top:

 

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And a couple in context:

 

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There's still loads of work to do to tie everything in but I'll leave that until I've finished the granary.

 

Might start work on the loading dock and overbridge for the headshunt end of the layout.

 

 

Mike

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  • 2 weeks later...

Micro-project for the night to get me in the mood for starting work on the DE2.

 

Bill Bedford sprung W-irons.

 

 

Carriers with bearings glued in place and the springing wire clamped between the fingers.

 

2015-02-13220043_zps8de109c8.jpg

 

 

The W-irons bent into shape ready to take the Carriers.

 

2015-02-13220439_zpse95ff7d5.jpg

 

 

The carriers in place on the W-iron. Note the little bend in the springing wire to prevent them falling out when there are no axles to keep them in place.

 

2015-02-13221810_zpsc442e841.jpg

 

 

Two finished units with P4 wheels.

 

2015-02-13221050_zps7af1ff08.jpg

 

 

It's a pity these were the wrong type for the SPA wagons I'm converting. An incorrectly labelled package to blame. Only noticed after I had cut the first one off the etch. Pretty sure I'll find something to strap them to!

 

 

Mike

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