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For those who don't know what a J17 is, here is a picture. They were a James Holden designed locomotive built for the GER between 1900 and 1903, a sort of half-way house between the lighter J15 and heavier J20. As I hinted the J17 kit from PDK is also quite 'old school' by today's standards. The frames just had simple holes for the bearings, not even a half etched line as a nod that some people might spring or compensate their locomotives. Progress today has been quite swift, partly because I was working with such nice components and probably partly because I vaguely knew what I was doing with them! The High Level horn-blocks soldered in place easily, jigged into place by the coupling rods. I then added the spring carrier etches to the rear of the horn-blocks, using the 'space saver' design on the rear axle to give more clearance for the gearbox. Having fitted these I then widened the holes I'd drilled in the frames for the CSB (continuous springy beam) carriers. Following various recommendations these are made from Markits WD handrail knobs. Being parallel these can be fitted through from the outside of the frames and spaced from the frame so that the spring wire is the right distance from the frames to match the horn-block spring carriers. I fed a length of spring steel wire through them while soldering them to fit. The result was that the horn-blocks look to ride at an appropriate height and seem to be at the same level and 'sprung' the same amount - thanks due to the famous CLAG spreadsheet tool. One of the extra bits which had been etched was the springs, these solder to the bottom of the bearings and ride up and down with them. The result is that the wheels can easily be removed from the chassis simply by pulling out the sprung wire 'beam) Now I think I'll spend a few days procrastinating before I attempt to do anything with the wheels. David

Some recent low-stress modelling on Stourpayne Marshall: This Bachmann Jinty was renumbered to a Bath example and then weathered. It came with "British Railways" lettering which I was reluctant to remove, even though I don't have any evidence that this particular loco carried that scheme. A number of S&D locos did, though, right through until 1953 or so, so it's not obviously out of place. It runs smoothly, and incredibly quietly, but I can''t get it to start and stop at as low a speed setting as I'd like with the decoder - some tweaking is called for as I suspect it's down to motor feedback variables and so on. In this picture the Jinty has just arrived with the branch goods, coming in off the junction to the south of the station. This branch has really added to the play-value of the layout, I've found. It gives a reason for shunting the goods yard and enables stock to be swapped between sessions, adding to the variety. With the run-round facilities at the station, the typical train is just six wagons and a brake. Longer trains can be run-round, but it becomes a bit of a faff as the engine has to use the junction itself, rather than remaining within the station area. What happens after the yard has been shunted is that an up goods will then arrive on the main and do some picking up and dropping off of its own. Down goods can also collect or drop off wagons from the yard, Last week I added a couple more uncoupling magnets which now means that - in theory - it can be all be done hands-off. And 90% of the time, the Spratt & Winkles play ball. Now and then there's a sticky coupling or an unwanted uncoupling incident, but the reliability is good enough to be satisfying to me. Onto the goods shed: As mentioned in an earlier post, I wasn't all that enamoured of the Bachmann model out of the box. I felt that the doors were clumsy, and there was something wonky about the windows on the front, especially the one on the left. It's not also clear to me what the building is based on, as I've yet to see drawings or photos of the Shillingstone shed, and it's certainly not extant now. Someone suggested that it looked very like the Midsomer Norton building. Whatever, it doesn't really matter as the layout isn't meant to be Shillingstone, so as long as it can be made to look semi-plausible in its setting, it'll be fine. In any case the doors and their associated sliding fixtures were removed and disposed of, and new ones made up from plastic card, as seen above. They're much less chunky than the originals and the slidey-bits are also a little finer. I also made sure that the slides were level, as that wasn't the case with the original. However, I do need to add a strip along the base of the doors that cover the railed entrances, as there's a bit too much of a gap at the bottom. I made the mistake of taking the measurements off the originals. I also addressed the windows, which didn't turn out to be too hard. The more wonky of the two was the one on the left, which had a distinct lean to the right. After removing the window, I could see that the plastic glass hadn't been trimmed back neatly to the etched frame, so that it couldn't sit straight even if it wanted to. That took care of some of the lean, and the rest of it was addressed by gently grinding away some of the resin around the window recess, creating just enough room to let it sit vertically. This results in a slight gap between the stonework and the window, but it's barely worth the trouble of filling in, so I'll likely not bother. The right window was addressed similarly, but needed less correction. The stonework on the recessed portions still has a bit of a slope to it, for some reason, but it draws the eye much less than the wonky windows. All in all, I was very happy with how easy it was to fix this most glaring fault with the model. In earlier shots of the goods yard, there's sometimes been a Provender store tucked next to the shed. As much as I liked the store, and it did seem to sit quite well in that position, I've now decided to leave it out. Not only did it block the road access to the shed, but I think the yard needs to be given as much room to breathe as possible. It's a shame as I'd really like to include the store somewhere, but perhaps something will eventuate in the future. With the shorter main siding of the layout in this configuration, the more space the better. I quite like this sleepy, not-much-happening view of the yard. Although the wagon capacity is down compared to King's Hintock, there's still plenty of space for some interesting shunting sessions. The last two views, above, show developments on the down platform. I'd cheated a bit with the valencing on the shelter, using "horizontal" valencing on the sloping sides, but that's now been corrected and although it's a small touch, I think it helps with the model. The other structures seen here are all very much open to being removed or reworked. The gents toilet is the Wills kit cut down, and with a tin roof added, but I don't think it really works in this context. Presumably the passengers would have been expected to make use of the facilities attached to the main building on the up platform, rather than the gents having a urinal all to themselves. What do you think? I've also added some lamp huts, since I had a pack of Wills ones going spare. These are GWR pattern ones I believe, but the Southern used reasonably similar looking structures (as in corrugated sides and a curved roof) so I feel they'll do the job for the time being, especially once they've been properly painted and weathered. I found a photo of an example at Ropley which was painted overall green rather than cream and green, so that's what I've gone for. I think what will happen eventually is that the toilet will go, and the greenhouse and cold frames (see above, next to the Jinty) will end up more or less in the same position as the urinal, on this side of the fencing rather than beyond it. Lots to think about anyway, but all good fun in the end. Thanks for reading!

Passing the Depot at Watford. Southern Cement passing Harrow. Southbound at Harrow. Cabview approaching Harrow on the Down Slow Line. Suburban interlude at Watford. Northbound at Headstone Lane. Latest video of the layout with non-DCC sound at

Having noticed - when going to the kitchen cupboard - that the "Co-op" have gone back to their old logo, I got to thinking that if I could build a Co-op Supermarket - the logo off a tea bag box etc could serve very nicely as a shop sign. A quick rumage through the scrap box later, I came up with a serviceable little low relief of the rear or side of a Co-op. I used no glue in its construction, just good old double-sided tape to construct it (and the foam padded kind to add extra depth between the lower and first floor layers, and a bit more under the signage itself.) I will be looking out for some air-conditioning units, or ducts / vents etc to add the finishing touches. Not bad for a ten minute job though...

Having waited a week for the modelling clay to dry, on closer examination I see my method of squashing and scraping with my thumb a large lump of modelling clay across and into the track has caused the sleepers to move and distort: My how I laughed! Thankfully, this was done for only one-third of the layout. For the right hand sidings (general merchandise) I will make little 'sausages' and cut them off to push down into the sleeper gaps. For the passenger station viaduct, I will be using granite chippings and P.V.A. glue, so the problems will differ, no doubt. 'Let the shipwrecks of others' misfortunes be your lighthouses', or suchlike...

I've been thinking that railway modelling needs a better public image. People seem to think the hobby is a bit weird and nerdy, when really we’re a bunch of smooth adrenaline junkies. Here are some examples from my own awesome life. Firstly, we railway modellers have really cool gear. These DIY tamping and scribing tools were made from coffee stirrers and my wife’s discarded sock knitting needles. Max bling! The top three are for smoothing DAS between sleepers and under rails. I use Latex gloves to help seal glue containers. After years of doing this, I’m now wondering if they are in fact permeable. But never mind, it adds a bit of style. I keep the bottles on the back stairs where our neighbours can admire them. Recycled kitchen sponge, used as a stop block. Works quite well I find. If you’re lucky, there are old bits of food left in there. "So what do you in your spare time?”. Oh, I like to put on latex gloves and scrub things with a toothbrush. The stuff I use for paint stripping is some serious sh*t. Not sure what the proper English term is, it's called "brown soap" in Danish. Used for cleaning floors. Wild, man. At weekends, I really let my hair down. In one recent highlight, I spent an hour painting sewing thread. Then there’s our risk-taking mindset. For example, I recently sorted the kitchen cupboards. This revealed more spices than we’ll never need, so I decided to experiment: Would spices work as weathering powders? For improved adhesion, I mixed in some baby powder. Feeling reckless, I also tried ground ginger. The verdict? Well it works OK in a pinch, but proper weathering powders are better. The layout smells great though. Makes for a good pick-up line. Speaking of pick-up lines, I like to experiment with dung. These are lumps of weathering powder on PVA. I think it could work for horse droppings, though more testing is needed. It also seems to work when brushed into setts. Horse dung would be trampled and distributed pretty much like that, I reckon. Ordinary people don’t reflect on such things. I guess they just lack vision. So there’s railway modelling for you: Living on the edge, every day. Anyway, I‘m off to grab a Red Bull before I tackle those couplings. Hang loose, dudes.

Wagon #22 gets buffers in the peg clamp, jigged up.

I had to put away the Tau. I just did not have the patience. The whole operation became very daunting very quickly. Instead, I bought some new Gundam kits to settle with; The larger box is a so-called Master Grade, or MG kit. Excellent levels of detail, well-thought colored molding, & intricate assembly that attempts to affect 'realistic' poses. I favor the kits. Larger scale, too, at 1/100. The other three are so-called High Grades, or HG kits. All three are from a series known as Gundam Build Fighters. Gundam Build Fighters poses the concept that people can scan their kits into a video game & battle them. Loosely based on an older video game series, Custom Robo. I loved Custom Robo... Anyways, the HG kits are much simpler than the MG kits. HG kits are a smaller scale, at 1/144, as well. Detail & flexibility can suffer, though. I built the Hi-Mock first; Quick build, still fun. Not the most posable. I've built worse, to be certain. The Powered Arms Powerder (I'm not joking) came next. Here they are in progress; A lot more tedious. Lots of two-part joints to be assembled first, then combined to form arms. Finally, I built the Gunpla Battle Arm Arms (again, not joking.) I did not take any pictures of this kit separately. I did, though, mount the lot to the Hi-Mock He doesn't stand well on his own at this point. Both arms sets were meant for overloading suits. I think they did the job. I was slightly disappointed the Powered Arms Powerder only accommodated the included weapons. No claws or manipulators. I will probably start the MG kit next week. We'll see.

Due to my unusual platform format, see here: I have had a Kestrel Station Kit waiting in the wings for a while now, waiting to be converted from "long and thin" - as it is sold, to "sort of L-shaped" so it will fit neatly in the corner of the layout. I started by measuring out the area that I have available - a square footprint of just about 10 x 11cm. I then went about removing the various pieces of the kit from their sprues, and basically playing with the pieces - laying them out flat, like the net for a cube. Once I was reasonably pleased with a theoretical design I then went about making a mock up, using my chosen kit parts held together (somewhat precariously) with Blue-tak... After this came the process of committing to the design and actually cutting some of the panels to size. Once again these were Blue-tak'ed together and then glued with poly cement. I also had a couple of issues with window apertures that would now be partially obscured by the roofs of the adjoining buildings. One of these I've hidden by cutting away the brickwork above the window and slotting in a chimney stack. The second window on the top floor of the main building could be similarly hidden, but I think I will just "brick it up." I wasn't overly happy that I'd allowed the building to extend to the very limits of the platform footprint though. So, with some unsentimental cutting, I created a more slimmed down version of my original perception. I'm still awaiting the actual platform section for the building to sit on - but I couldn't resist plonking the station in it's intended spot, just to see how it might look... Obviously the next step will be priming and painting, followed by detailing and weathering. So far though I am pleased with the stations basic design, I particularly like the archway that now forms the way out - I'm a big fan of using suggestion in my designs, the archway faces a wall which leads off to the right - suggesting an exit beyond (and neatly disguises the end of the layout!)

I’m writing this taking a coffee and (home baked) shortbread break while I order up some more wheels, and yet more vans from Shop2. Yesterday I got some progress on brake gear after watching Nick Mitchell’s wonderful video on building the 16T mineral, and following his methods I have succeeded in getting 3 or 4 levers on. I did a stock take and found I had one chassis too many, so I had to buy 2 more van bodies (they come in pairs) so I had to get another chassis too. Good job I like vans! Pictured below is the workbench at close of play last night. If you look carefully, you may see a brake lever stuck to the tip of the soldering iron.... the batteries ran out just at the wrong moment, and my spares have been pressed into Christmas lights duties, so everything stopped while we recharged! I’m pleased to say that the lever survived!

This is Wagon #12 undergoing some remedial work on the under frame. Replaced a few rubbish attempts at etched axle boxes from the 3D printed range. The large nut is a red herring!