Leaderboard

In 1884 the GWR centralized the provision of provender, so that every stable block on the system received a regular supply by rail from the provender store at Didcot, typically every 1-2 weeks. The supplies consisted of hay, chaff, straw bedding and sacks of feed. The feed included oats, beans and maize, either pre-mixed or separate. The sizeable stable block at Farthing obviously needs a regular supply of feed and bedding, so two provender wagons have been made. I began with a diagram Q1, using the Coopercraft kit. The GWR only made a total of 12 dedicated provender wagons, in two slightly different lots of six. The Q1 kit represents the later batch, built in 1903 with diagonal bracing. They were very camera shy, the (cropped) image below is the only one I have seen so far. As usual, the build involved modifications. The Vee hanger on these wagons was significantly off-center, towards the right. The instructions don’t mention this. So both vees were cut off. The solebars need shortening, and the end brackets must therefore also come off. Here is the original solebar (top), and a modified one (below). Then, sides and ends. The locating pips for the floor were removed. They make the floor sit too low, and the solebars in turn end up beneath the headstocks. As provided, the brake gear does not take the off-center Vee into account, as this trial fit shows. So the brake gear was modified to suit. Looks a bit odd, but that's what the drawing and text in Atkins et al shows. The DC1 brake gear was made using parts from the Bill Bedford etch (recently withdrawn). The buffers are from Lanarkshire Models. The built-up wagon in GWR wagon red, as it would have been painted when built in 1903. Apart from 12 purpose-built provender wagons, most of the GWR's provender was carried in numerous standard open wagons of all sorts. Several photos show them loaded improbably high. I decided to have a go at replicating this. This close crop, from a much larger shot from Vastern Rd yard at Reading, illustrates what I was aiming for. I set to work on some plumber’s hemp, cut fine and built up in layers on a foamboard box, using diluted PVA. Not the 9 o’clock news! Then sheets (a.k.a. tarps) were made, using my usual method. Ian’s superb sheets were re-numbered and printed on regular paper, then laminated with thin foil and varnished multiple times, before weathering. The result is a shell that can be easily shaped and supports it’s own weight (see this post). I designed the load to fit my 4-plankers. My initial plan was to have the entire load and sheeting detachable, in line with my normal approach. In this shot, the tarp and load are separate, but magnets hold them together and allow easy removal. However, with a high load like this I felt that the lack of roping looked odd. So I decided to see how it would feel to have permanent loads and sheets. I recruited one of my 4-plankers and added roping and side-cords, using painted sewing thread. Indents were made in the sheeting by pressing the edge of a ruler into the paper/foil shell, in order to emulate the ropes pulling down the sheet. This is what I ended up with. Don’t look to closely at how the cords are tied at the ends. Photos of provender trains don’t show clearly whether and how they were used in a situation like this. Sometimes, the GWR used two sheets laid sideways instead, as illustrated in this cropped detail of a train of hay bales. I decided to do the same on my high-sided Q1 wagon. Here is the usual foil shell, this time composed of two sheets. For the roping and cords, I loosely followed the cropped image above. I also tried to fold the sheets at the ends as per that photo, but gave up: Try as I might, it just looked weird in 4mm scale. Another time maybe. The wagons together. The charm of everyday solutions versus boxy functional design. Here are a few photos of the wagons in action on the (unfinished) new layout. A Buffalo class arrives with the weekly delivery of provender. Conveniently, the stable block at Farthing happens to have a siding alongside. Meanwhile, Betty is having a drink in preparation for the morning round. Proper care of railway horses was a serious matter, though hardly for ethical reasons. Horses were a company asset and an important part of operations, so obviously needed good maintenance. The loco has left, and the wagons are sat in the sidings. The camera has exaggerated the sheen. A close-up, warts and all. The mind struggles to accept that the hay wasn't completely covered over. There is room for improvement with the roping and cords, several lessons learnt there. I'd like to experiment more with the shaping of the sheets. Here I have made slight rounded indents along the bottom to avoid a straight line. Period photos show that, although sheets were pulled as taut as possible, there were still lots of wrinkles etc. Despite these experiments, I’m still undecided about permanent loads and sheeting. To illustrate my doubt: It's the next day and the Buffalo class is back to pick up the provender wagons. But wait, what’s this? They are still full and sheeted! More thinking needed. It never ends.

Current progress with my 7mm representation of Ryde Pier Head Signal Box. Inside parts from Springside models. Hopefully the photos are in the right order.

I wanted to embed some of the narrow gauge rails in cobbles, but unusually for the internet i couldn't find a method which seemed to provide an effective end-result. The most common ways are either to use embossed sheet or modelling clay to fill between the sleepers. As far as i could see neither method provides a clean edge to the gap that the wheel flanges run in and often leave the sleepers visible, which breaks the illusion of a buried rail. Therefore, i wanted to add an additional rail next to the running rails to simulate the tram-like look and give a clean edge. Testing showed this to be impossible as the chairs block any close contact between the rails, so the gap is back and the sleepers are visible. I therefore tried the following.. Detached some sleepers and filed off the chairs Glued them to the board upside down to have a flat surface Super glued rail to them, using the normal sleepers as spacers to keep the gauge Destructively remove the normal sleepers to leave the rail glued to a flat sleeper Added a second rail in contact with the running rails Without a doubt this was the most patience testing modelling I've done, but the end results exceeded my expectations, visually recreating those tram-like rails. My only problem is to find the enthusiasm again to do the rest Final thought - Super Glue is the devils invention.

With the LED now fixed in the lamp, the leads got fed down the post. I half expected them to get caught up on the rod providing the pivot for the counter balance, but all went swimmingly. Twisting them together may have helped. The camera's really struggling close-ups today, wrong phase of the moon or something. And then the lamp was glued on, making sure it lines up with the spectacle lens holes. Followed by the track circuit plaque. I placed this as per the instructions, but I feel it's a bit low. Maybe another GWR/BR)WR) thing. I've concluded it can stay there as it's not 'wrong' as such. So to the lampman's platform. I've made my signal 19ft tall so I 'have to' have one - though to be honest I'd have one whatever the height because they look nice. I got a bit puzzled here (not that that is all that difficult) as the platform comes with a couple legs sticking out that are to be shaped round the post, but not long enough to meet at the front. A nice cuppa perusing Google, and the picture on the front of the instructions, seems to imply the platform sits on some sort of frame (part of the platform) that's fixed to the post with a strap going round it. After some consideration I cut the legs off and made up a strap with legs for the platform to sit on. It looks the part anyway. (Yes, it needed a tweak in the right hand photo). And then soldered to the post in the prescribed position. (A bit of an optical illusion here) Followed by the ladder. Next is the handrail round the platform. This looked awfully scary and fragile, but it all went just fine. The ladder has a strap securing it to the post somewhere around halfway up. The kit provides some material for this, but it's not long enough to do it in one piece. A rummage around in the etch off cuts box provided a strip of brass long enough to make it in on one piece. Add the finial and there it is done. The blind that goes behind the lamp I'll fit after painting the arm, same for the spectacle lenses. The operating rods go on last of all (because they get in the way of painting). Some searching has revealed the other kit I keep referring to that I built the other signal from is from Scale Signal Supply (via Invertrain). This one, MSE, is identified as being a GWR tubular post signal, whereas the SSS one is identified as being a GWR/BR(WR) tubular post affair. I guess that explains the differences, such as they are. Which is 'best'? Neither, really. Both make a very nice signal, just the MSE one seems a bit more GWR and presumably earlyish BR, whereas the SSS one is definitely BR, so take your pick. The MSE one has a few more options, and the instructions are well written but you'd need to get up to speed on terminology a bit, and be able to work without diagrams in the most part. The SSS one is simpler in terms of making a stop or distant in one style only, no calling on arm (3ft) option as far as I remember but with pretty pictures in the instructions ; sketches, really. The MSE one comes with an etch for the handrail round the lampman's platform, whereas the SSS one you have to make it with wire and position the uprights as you see fit (the plastic center from a till roll makes a good former) - hardly arduous though. I have no requirement for any more signals, but if I did I'd go with SSS - simply because it's more 1980. I mentioned at the beginning that the instructions for this build recommends using three different temperature solders, but I built it only using low-melt with the iron on full tilt. Don't try this if you are not confident with a soldering iron. You could easily build it with glue if soldering is scary.

This weekend was a chance to finish off painting the asphalt and to make a start on getting all the road lining and decals down. Ferry terminals seem to be covered with white yellow and red lining of different sorts so out with the acrylic pens and bendy ruler to start marking it all on. (marking on the top road lines first using the bendy ruler for the corners.) (I then marked out a chevron where the two routes split before marking the lines down the ramp.) The ramp road crosses the railway at the bottom. Due to the dockside industrial nature I decided to make this an open crossing with give way decals rather than full barriers. The first thing to do was to mark on the box junction. I decided to go with a hybrid design using the diamond pattern courtesy of my daughters set square but spread over the whole box as when vehicles are running they use both lanes in one direction on the ramp. Not quite to DfT diagram standard but as this is a private road I didn't think that mattered. (box junction marked on) I really like these acrylic pens. They make line painting really easy. I then lined the rest of the junction Having completed this it was out with the scale model scenery self-adhesive decals again to put the finishing touches to the road markings. The tiny writing proved quite tricky to get off the sheet, but everything else came off and onto the layout relatively painlessly. (arrows where the traffic flows meet) (decals applied to Junction) Having completed the approach roads I turned my attention to the dockside. Having looked at images of Dover the mooring points are marked with red paint and a yellow border whilst on the train ferry Dock there were numbers marked on the dockside I assume as a count down for the ships crew to know when they were about to butt up to the Linkspan. I wanted to mark out the area of the tramway in a similar way to how it was done at Weymouth with a single 45 degree line and dashed outer edge. Unfortunately my yellow pen started running out when I got to that part. Here is the state of play when I finished this evening. (marking the mooring points) (additional parking bays marked in with yellow lining progressed. Lots of no parking paint slapped down) (scaled count down to Linkspan in metres along Dock edge) I need to order a new yellow pen to finish off the yellow lining. Thanks for reading