To see the origins and the detailed construction of the various parts of the buildings and their canopy, please refer to this link -

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/56603-platform-canopy-services-for-netherley/

This blog entry will cover recent (?) progress which took place around the construction of the subway balustrade.

The buildings were in the main complete - just waiting final detailing.

The canopy was a different matter. The main transverse trusses were identical - each one consisting of about 40 individual parts - and there are 8 of them. The longditudinal beams were in groups of three - 21 off, and each group was a different length, with between 30 & 40 individual parts dependent on the length. I went through a heck of a lot of 'Evergreen' code 291 angle - around £60 worth over the 14 months that the project has taken so far... And at 10.55pm on 19 August, the final piece of styrene was added!

As the pile of parts accumulated, a start was made on their assembly, concentrating on the sections that would cover the buildings, as the rest would cantilever off these :-

In gentlemanly fashion, I built the 'Ladies' first...

Gradually, over the last couple of weeks the canopy came together...

until by 2.30am last Tuesday morning (!) the major canopy assemblies were in place -

Bearing in mind that the trussing will be covered, the next step was to airbrush it whilst it was still 'naked'

'Aztech' airbrush and 'Valejo' 'Tan Earth' to the fore, later that morning I undertook the task... The paint was from the model color range and is quite thick. Various experiments regarding dilution were made - most resulting in the brush clogging within about 30 seconds... Finally I arrived at a dilution of about 5:1, which worked well, needing about three passes to achieve an acceptable result -

Yesterday & today were spent at the Club, where the layout was getting it's final 'makeover' before the exhibition including a 'dress rehearsal' of the sequence.... I concentrated on the final detailing of the buildings, hopefully bringing them alive -

Now having the buildings in position and a template of the location, the final final assembly of the trusses got under way.

With the buildings now awaiting their roofing,

at 3pm today, they finally got their 'hat', and I breathed a HUGE sigh of relief that it appeared to fit well!

Also much to the relief of the station painter who thought that all his hard work might have been in vain!

(actually he's a cover for my faux pas - somehow the 'Ladies' widow frames are in 'Light Stone/Dark Stone' whilst the Main Waiting room is in dark stone/white (both valid GW schemes BUT.. He's now in the process of painting the Main Waiting Room to match the 'Ladies'!

So the trusses - and the start of the 'board & batten' roof are now in place, and the whole project will be finished by 12 September - just two days before the exhibition.

Oh yes - the subway has it's first passenger.... Mrs SMITH (a 'Netherley' Resident for 'more years than she cares to remember) said how pleased she was that the subway was finally open - 'Such a changed from that rickety old footbridge'...

So if you are in the area. don't forget to visit the REC's Exhibition at Woking Liesure Centre on Sat 14- Sun 15th September. Drop by the layout & say 'Hello' - and don't forget to visit 'Gresley Beat' and 'Mostyn' as well as the other 25 layouts on show!