RMweb Premium Steve Purves Posted December 27, 2014 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 27, 2014 January the 13th ay Pete, is that when you start a new N gauge project then? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 27, 2014 Share Posted December 27, 2014 January the 13th ay Pete, is that when you start a new N gauge project then? Not even close, mate... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold roundhouse Posted December 27, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 27, 2014 Is that when decorating recommences then?? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 27, 2014 Share Posted December 27, 2014 Is that when decorating recommences then?? If I've had some time off from that, I wish someone had told me. I'm sure I painted a ceiling on Christmas Eve... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold colin penfold Posted December 27, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 27, 2014 Soooooo, Pete........ why the 13th of Jan mate, you know you want to tell us.... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d winpenny Posted December 28, 2014 Share Posted December 28, 2014 More great pictures David 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 28, 2014 Share Posted December 28, 2014 Soooooo, Pete........ why the 13th of Jan mate, you know you want to tell us.... Nothing remotely mysterious or even slightly exciting, Colin! I just won't be able to spend a great deal of time on North Street from Jan. 14th... Having only started it back in September and got this far, I don't want it to stall or simply go on the back-burner when 90% complete. Hence the self-imposed deadline. From the 14th, I'll be lucky to get 10 minutes a week dribbling PVA over it. We'll have plumbers and sparkies crawling over the top two floors in a final push to get the house on the market. When we do move, now you know why I wanted to make sure North Street was a snug fit in the back of my little van! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 A quick question about PVA curing time, folks... I've raided the Lego box again to make up a short section of crib retaining wall and have painted and weathered it. I know it's overscale and not quite "right" but this is a quick fix. I'll make up a more prototypically correct and "to scale" section at a later date - I just need to crack on. To fill the voids in the wall, I've used a syringe and filled the gaps with undiluted PVA. Onto this I've just sprinkled some old granite ballast. When this is all dry, I'll hide it by adding some more PVA and then a final scenic layer of fine ballast, earth and the odd plant clump. I've filled the voids with PVA to a depth of about 4mm and after 2 days, I poked it with a cocktail stick to find that although a skin has formed, the PVA is still quite liquid underneath. Obviously I can't place the retaining wall right way up or I risk all the glue "slumping". Does anyone have any idea how long this depth of PVA will take to cure? It's quality PVA and not pound shop lumpy rubbish. Worst case scenario, a 4mm depth of PVA is too much and it will never cure, in which case, I'll need a Plan B. If anyone has any ideas on how to speed things up, I'd be grateful! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold colin penfold Posted December 29, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 29, 2014 you know what Pete, that reminds me of the quite intimidating bit of cutting just outside East Croydon with Fairfield Halls car park - feels quite claustrophobic. Good job mate! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cromptonnut Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 If you have 4mm depth you may find that you need some sort of 'packing' behind the earth - maybe some coffee stirrers or something - and possibly need to drill some holes in the back to let excess seep out. Personally I'd use a layer of something like UHU and sprinkle some sand in to it to make it just back from the level you want, allow that to dry, then use a thinner layer of "front" material and diluted PVA on that to stick it solid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 you know what Pete, that reminds me of the quite intimidating bit of cutting just outside East Croydon with Fairfield Halls car park - feels quite claustrophobic. Good job mate! Funny you should say that... The tall filthy concrete block retaining wall that runs to the right of the layout after the fiddle yard exit was inspired by the approaches to East Croydon! 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 If you have 4mm depth you may find that you need some sort of 'packing' behind the earth - maybe some coffee stirrers or something - and possibly need to drill some holes in the back to let excess seep out. Personally I'd use a layer of something like UHU and sprinkle some sand in to it to make it just back from the level you want, allow that to dry, then use a thinner layer of "front" material and diluted PVA on that to stick it solid. I think you may be right... I could even have used decorator's caulk... I just wanted to halve the depth before being able to add some earth and weeds. Cursed by the fact that I just happened to have PVA lying around (who doesn't?)... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold roundhouse Posted December 29, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 29, 2014 A fairly thick mix of diluted PVA with just a drop of washing up liquid will normally dry overnight if it's not too cold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 (edited) A fairly thick mix of diluted PVA with just a drop of washing up liquid will normally dry overnight if it's not too cold. Ah. Good point. No electric or heating on the top floor and the temperature up there is an uncomfortable "bleedin' freezing". I've just weathered the concrete hardstanding and ballasted the remainder of the track right up to the hardstanding. That will no doubt take a bit more than just "overnight" to go off, so I reckon I have a couple of days before I need to panic that the PVA in the crib wall section hasn't cured! So... I think I'll do nothing until Wednesday(ish). Edit: For "nothing", read "decorating"... <sigh>... Edited December 29, 2014 by Pete 75C 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CourthsVeil Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 (edited) Pete, apart from the temperature issue – what is at the back behind the PVA? Usually this glue cures when the water content goes into the wood/card etc. If, however, you have a backing impermeable for water, curing time will increase rapidly (guess how I know … foamboard to plastic: needed weeks! Eventually it DID stick, sigh). Me thinks, cromptonnut's advice is the best – apart from the possibility to take this Lego-thing into a cosy room downstairs. Armin Edit: foam looks porous, in fact, it isn't (mostly closed cell). Therefore damp has no chance to seep or evaporate. Edited December 29, 2014 by CourthsVeil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 30, 2014 Share Posted December 30, 2014 Pete, apart from the temperature issue – what is at the back behind the PVA? Aha! (again)... Thanks for that, something else I didn't know! I did need to cut something to give the crib wall a backing and I had two choices... thick card or thin plastic sheet. I chose the plastic sheet and stuck the crib wall to it with a thin bead of poly cement. The water content in the PVA does not therefore have anything to soak into... The crib wall section spent the night in the tropical part of the house and although the PVA is still not cured, it's better than yesterday, almost to the point that I don't think it would slump if stood vertically. However, I'll probably use a micro drill to pierce the backing in several places and leave it another day or so. As I said, due to the temperature on the top floor, yesterday's ballasting session will need to be left a bit longer and there are some other jobs I can be doing in the meantime. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Class 74 Posted December 30, 2014 Share Posted December 30, 2014 A fantastic little layout, realistic. My kind of layout! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
class"66" Posted December 30, 2014 Share Posted December 30, 2014 Some more interesting stuff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold russ p Posted December 30, 2014 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 30, 2014 Do you need the static grass applicator yet? My layout is on the top floor but ours is quite warm, for some reason get a few flies up there this time of year By the way got loads of static grass fibres Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 31, 2014 Share Posted December 31, 2014 (edited) Do you need the static grass applicator yet? My layout is on the top floor but ours is quite warm, for some reason get a few flies up there this time of year By the way got loads of static grass fibres Thanks Russ. Not yet, mate. Static grass is on the agenda for whatever I do next (assuming it's not N). I've used Woodland Scenics clump foliage and fine turfs on North Street and I have plenty left, so as North Street is nearly finished, I'd better stick with those for the sake of continuity. I am keen to play around with static grass, as it's not something I've ever used before. I always like to try new things... Going DCC with this layout was a first for me and North Street is also the first layout I've built with "proper" baseboard alignment dowels and track soldered to copperclad at baseboard joints. I don't have the confidence to build my own track yet, so static grass can be the next "new thing" I try! With just a fornight to go before my self-imposed deadline to finish North Street, the freshly ballasted track leading up to the concrete hardstanding should have gone off enough for me to weather the track and fit the remainder of the 3rd rail. Waiting for glue to dry is not exactly exciting, so yesterday was spent building the carriage servicing platform. It's exactly 24 inches long, so ample for a 2EPB with a little room left at either end. The carriage siding platform on the down side at Horsham adjacent to the main platforms was a typical SR concrete build, but the carriage platforms further south along the Arun Valley line featured a resin-bonded gravel anti-slip surface, so that's what I've chosen to replicate. I well remember stabling an 8VEP there at 1am after arriving on the last service from London... the lighting was appalling and the anti-slip surface was welcome, especially in the winter! Using a fine mister to wet the track before adding glue to the ballast, I managed to get some overspray on the concrete hardstanding which, as it dried, made a bit of a mess of the weathering powders I'd used on the concrete, so that needs to be redone too. Edited December 31, 2014 by Pete 75C 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jock67B Posted December 31, 2014 Share Posted December 31, 2014 Pete, Wanted to wish you and all the family a very Happy New Year as the magic hour approaches and Joanna and I hope that 2015 brings you all that you deserve in terms of health and house move! Kind regards, Jock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 Pete, Wanted to wish you and all the family a very Happy New Year as the magic hour approaches and Joanna and I hope that 2015 brings you all that you deserve in terms of health and house move! Kind regards, Jock. Thanks Jock. Happy new year to you and Joanna too. Do me a favour... make damn sure that this year you get that holiday I remember you mentioning some time ago! I raised a glass to you last night. Seems like a good opportunity to wish everyone a happy, healthy and prosperous new year. Me, I'm gluing point handles to plastic sheet on New Year's Day. Nothing ever changes really, does it? 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Guest Posted January 2, 2015 Popular Post Share Posted January 2, 2015 Some gratuitous shots of the garish NSE-liveried 2EPB which is a current favourite, I must admit. I struggle to look at this unit without thinking of a middle-aged man wearing a brightly coloured shell suit... Work progresses on the far right-hand end of the 2nd board. The platform/walkway on the carriage siding still needs steps at either end and the buffer stop needs to be fitted at the end of this siding. I can now begin to mock-up the low relief shed entrance. More clutter needed... always more clutter... It was mentioned earlier about the possibility of "double shadows" when using opposing spotlights and you can clearly see this in the last picture. Shadows in opposite directions on the concrete retaining wall. Clearly, the lighting needs plenty of experimentation and I'm just using the spotlights at the moment to be able to see clearly when working on the layout. 23 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobster Posted January 2, 2015 Share Posted January 2, 2015 Nice work there Pete - A great layout. Cheers, Bob. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shreives Posted January 2, 2015 Share Posted January 2, 2015 Fantastic work there pete . Your layout has given me great ideas for the mk2 version of my plank now including a station and fiddle yard and of course 3rd rail. Keep up the great work Stuart 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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