JCL

Thanks very much Lee And - oh no, that's a shame!

Here's the plan for the coach. I suppose I should have lengthened the chassis, but again, this is my first time, so instead the vehicle length was reduced from 125mm to 120mm. To do this, instead of making everything a bit thinner I was able to take out one panel that was 5mm wide. I don't think it detracts too much from the look of things. This is a rough mock up to show you what I'm thinking of. From this I'll put together the cutting drawing. The left end has windows, which will be interesting, as will the duckets! If I can manage it this will be the test for painting teak, if it looks rubbish, then it will be the start of a weedkiller train - the Skegness line is very fertile and needs a good dose of weedkiller from time to time!

My mum warned me about this - sitting too close to the tv as a kid mind you, I then spent the last 20 years staring at a computer screen. Eye shop today, my squinting is starting to give me a headache. Enjoying the trees!

Not madness, and good luck to them, but I am pleased that they included that last word in the title http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/vintage-model-train-with-carriages-soap-unused-/261216903892?pt=UK_HeathBeauty_BathShowCons_RL&hash=item3cd1bda2d4

Hi Will Sounds like a plan, as long as the glue isn't too sticky! As far as I can see the mat is mostly to keep the small pieces together that have been cut out so they don't get in the way, or lost. I'd like to say that I've just been on your thread, you do some great work! Are you thinking about using the cutter for buildings or to help with the fleet of locos that you are building? Oh, and I wish I'd remembered the word bodging, I'd have used it in my previous post!

Before I go on, does anyone have a recommendation for a decoder for a Bachmann B1? There's not a lot of space in there and I'm about to make an order from the UK so it'd be good to include one as well! --- So the last couple of builds were pretty major for me and I thought I'd have a bit of light relief and make use of an old Hornby insulated 6 wheel milk van that I've had knocking around since I was a kid. I've really only been at this lark for a year now, with about 6 months of actual work, and I'm still gaining skills. I haven't built any rolling stock in my life other than a couple of kits (and you'll remember the lowmac diagram above) so I thought I'd have a go at kitbashing some sort of 6 wheel coach. I'd have to adjust it to the size of the wheelbase, and the thing would hardly be authentic, but I'd like it to be as GNR as possible and just enjoy treating it as a learning exercise, carrying on with working out the capacity of the cutter for accurate cuts and all without spending a lot of money. Hopefully this will work; if not then at least I'll have learned something. I'm thinking about something similar to the ones here: http://www.thegoodsyard.co.uk/archive.html or this http://www.flickr.com/photos/david_christie/10348015623/ . I've splashed out on a couple of LNER carriage design books so will make a proper start then. If this works then I've some old Hornby Gresley coaches I can cut up. Part of my inspiration was finding Coachman's epic thread. He's amazing! Until then I've got some touching up to do on the site of the new footbridge, pavememtns to lay, and finally put the stone caps on the edge of the goods yard ramp ready for the footbridge.

Hi Will Thankyou very much! The cutter is different to a plotter because with a plotter the pen is up or down, with a cutter you get to decide how much force the blade comes down with. You don't need as much force for paper for example as you do for .020" styrene or even the very thin plywood they sell (I kid you not!). Also, I don't believe the plotter was designed specifically to cut styrene. This is because all of the marketing that the company (Silhouette America) does is aimed at the craft market, which is huge over here in N. America as you probably know. Consequently, there is very little information on the internet about using the cutter for model making. That said, there are a couple of threads that stood out for me: http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/archive/index.php/t-361584.html http://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=23354.0 - referenced in the first link, this shows a lot of trial and error, and is great to read through from end to end. I always use a mat underneath the styrene because: - I don't want the cutter wheels to mark the sheet - I don't want the shiny surface sliding around. After having a couple of sheets of styrene spinning around because they had come unglued from the backing sheet I now tape the sheet down to the mat every time. I did use Scotch tape, but this tears easily and leaves bits on the mat that you have to scrape off. Now I use a surgical tape that I found in the medicine cabinet. It has a pretty strong glue, but it comes off in one piece and doesn't damage the cutting mat. My work order is as follows: Use the styrene settings that I mentioned above (thickness 33, speed 1, knife 10 (this is a physical thing, you move the knife around within its barrel), cutting mat and double cut = yes) If there is any residue on the cutting mat I scrape it off with a very thin sharp ruler Smooth the card down on the mat feeling for bumps from residue you might have missed. I tape the styrene down 1" in from the left hand side (make sure you take this into account when laying out the design in the software). This means that the rollers won't go over it. 2x 2" pieces of tape along the top, then 2" (ish) tape pieces down the side. Cut Cut again if neccesary Carefully push the pieces from the mat. If they don't look like they are going to come out, run a scalpel blade around them and remember to adjust the settings next time. The first cut might look bad with the card indented. Even on .010" thick card the knife won't necessarily go through the card the first time (though it can surprise you and do just this, it doesn't seem to be an exact science). If it looks like it hasn't I then either cut again or change the settings to only do a single second cut. I haven't done .015" card, but I'm told the Cameo will cut through that but nothing thicker. If you have .020" styrene then it's score and bend. If you are sending the styrene through a second time, don't press the eject button on the machine. By leaving the card in there you will ensure that the second series of cuts will exactly go over the first series of cuts. This image has been on the thread before, but it gives you an idea of what you get when the cutting is done. If you got the cutting right you could be able to just push the pieces out. I'm still a bit out on this. The sheet is full of cuts, and I ran a pencil over some to get them to show up. One other thing, if you are doing something that is cut intensive (is this even English?), then pause the machine every now and then and fish out any pieces that have come away from the card so that they don't get in the way. I also open the blade end of the blade cartridge and blow out the white paper or styrene dust that builds up. If you don't do this the cuts become less accurate as the blade has difficulty moving around. It seems like a lot of work, but it really isn't. It's just a case of getting into a process. One other thing, in the same price range is something called a Cricut. I'm not really up on that one, but reading around it doesn't seem suitable for this type of work as it uses predetermined and expensive templates/cartridges that you must buy from them. I've a feeling they don't have one for a Wainfleet footbridge! I got the cutter for my birthday, and because living a fair way from anywhere, I have to fabricate more parts than I necessarily would have to if I lived next to a large town or city. I get to the model shop about 3-4 times per year, and I'd rather try to make something myself than wait for the couple of weeks for the items to come in the post! The Dollar Store is also my friend for repurposing bits and pieces, as is the Canadian Tire; who would have thought to put together a shop that you can buy plumbing and electrical items, tools and cookware in while getting your Winter tyres put on? It's a long and slightly rambling answer, but there really isn't a lot on the internet, so hopefully it will help other people who happen by here as well.

So I made a cuppa, grabbed my DVDs, wandered into the tv room, and ... the electricity went off for the night! Back on now (as you can tell) hopefully tomorrow then.

I might be wrong, but if it was coal I think there would be a lid on it to keep it dry - unless being under the steps does the job. Jason

Wow, now that's a great portrait. I love the light across it.

Thanks Adrian. That certainly is an interesting surface. The sort of thing you'd find in a goods yard maybe.

I'm afraid my brain shuts down when I see lots and lots of wires connected to plastic bits. I love what was done to your Osprey though, and your B17. How did you do the wheel lining?

Thanks everyone. Yeah, I'm not excited about the weathering! I've just got in from shovelling the drive, so there'll be no airbrushing today. I do have the DVDs to watch though, so I'll be getting on with that. So, thinking further about what to do next, I've pretty much just concentrated on buildings up until now - pinfold, corrugated hut, footbridge, goods shed, waiting room and platforms, and I only have the station building, gates and coal merchant shed left to do. I say only, those gates will be interesting! So I thought I'd have a complete change and not do a building - watch this space.

Thanks everyone. As promised I got the primer on, it's lighter than Al's, but unfortunately the only spray primer and, I want to say overcoat, but that's not it, is in gloss, made to look like stone or a hammerite finish, which is probably going oto be overkill. I did try taking some photos under the roof overhang to avoid the snow, but unfortunately they came out worse than these as the clouds are pretty thick today! Anyway, here you go, this is the footbridge with primer on it. As an aside, I had an accident yesterday with the pro weld and knocked it over my iPhone as I was putting the top back on (how come this is made to be so difficult? The Testers is even harder when you need to get it back on quickly!). Luckily I noticed straight away and whipped it out the way. Unluckily the home button (the only button on the front) was tacky as some of the glue got between it and the case. On the other hand, everything else was ok (phew). Well I've taken the phone apart before (the camera died) so I was able to do it this time. I always like to have a diagram handy when doing these things. Yesterday's example was a Dapol Lowmac. Actually I covered this in double sided tape and as each screw came out of the phone it was laid onto the tape into the same position. This meant that a) they wouldn't go missing, and B) I'd know where I got each screw from. After that it was just a case of removing the gunge from around the button. Lucky in a way it was the Pro Weld and not superglue! The phone made a full recovery and is currently in Puss in Boots at the Embassy Centre, Skegness.

Thanks everyone. So a couple of years ago I was at a sale and saw a Badger 150 airbrush. That airbrush has been sat staring at me since then, and I've been too nervous to use it (didn't want to break it you see). Every now and then I'd take it out the box and then put it back in again so that nothing was lost (you wouldn't think I'm 45 would you?). Well I think today is the day I take it out and push some paint through it. I've got Badger paint, and a couple of dvds to read. The footbridge won't be the first thing I paint! I don't want to mess it up at this stage, so I've got some lattice I made as a test and I'll give that ago. In the meantime, 4" of snow, so gardening's definitely out now! Mountains in the snow (or at least, hiding behind the snow)

Thanks Adrian. I've just been going through this thread from the beginning, I can't believe I've got this far. If someone told me I'd be in this position right now I'd laugh! I've undercoated the thing so I'll do some proper photos tomorrow. Hopefully it won't be snowing for a bit so I can take them outside. I'll see how I get on Failing that I'll drive over to Fort Steele with my dog, Austin and go look at the engine that pulled the train in the Shanghai Noon movie. A friend of mine helped build the carriage that was blown apart. It was built like any other set except they had to glue everything together - no nails allowed! It was an eventful day today as well. A different friend had his Chevy truck (by that I mean pickup) stolen from a parking lot two days ago. I found it in a field a couple of miles from where it was stolen. There was still petrol in it and no damage at all! In fact my mate thought they might have even cleaned it up a bit. That's the thing with Fernie joyriders, very considerate. I think the RCMP are wandering over tomorrow. A result nonetheless!

Thank you Adrian. I'll spray some test lattice first then the bridge. I don't want to ruin the thing with undercoat!

Thanks Al, I have to say I had a huge smile on my face when I finished this stage! I intend to put the signal on there and the streetlights that appear to be there, but they won't be done yet! I'm going to check back on your thread to see how you painted yours, I really like the effect you created. I think my next job will be an easier one! I'm thinking of getting that river coloured better and actually do a bit of scenery. On that, my dog, Austin, decided to shred his bed (the first thing he's ever shredded). After the initial shock, I suddenly realised that it could represent blackberries or some other sort of bushes. I have about 1/2 a cubic yard of the stuff if anyone wants some - pickup only!

Thank you P, it's appreciated. I'm not sure which cross piece you mean. do you mean the deck across the tracks? If it is, then the lattice sides were made of three layers. The two outer layers were extended by 2mm. This meant that the shorter inner layer had a lip, and even though the layers were only .010" thick, I was able to use the lip to help position the lattice side on the deck. The deck itself was made of 2x sheets of .040" card. It had a slight bow in it, probably from the gluing, so when I added the lattice sides I clamped some square wooden rod along the top to straighten it out. Adding the "rail" along the top of the lattice helped strengthen the whole thing. The posts at each end of the lattice are made of 2x .040" by .020" strip. These are glued together to form a square section. The bottom is staggered so that it hooks over the deck. Doing this allows the post to be half over the deck. I used a metal ruler to square the thing up. Also, gluing the step handrails to the posts helped keep them square. A lot of the work today was nudging plastic a millimeter this way and a millimeter that way. Considering how much of the Hornby kit(s) I ended up using (the bits that aren't white i.e. the steps and the base of the columns), I think it'd have been just as good to use the steps from the Dapol kit - it would have been cheaper as well!

Phew, I can put the glue away! That's the building part done! It was a bit of a marathon in the end. Putting the handrails on really made a difference to both the strength of the footbridge and the straightness of the railings. I don't really know what else to say. Thanks everyone for your support while I've been doing this. Tomorrow I'm going to spray it with grey undercoat and then put a greenish wash on it, which is how a few members of my family remember it being. One of the amazing (an often overused word but I mean it here) thing about doing this layout is that I can move around it and look at how the station would have been way before I was born. Simple things like being able to imagine views that I don't have photos of. Catch you tomorrow after I've sanded and sprayed on the undercoat.

Those chimneys look great. When I looked at a photo of Bakewell the other day I did think then that they were very substantial. I know it's been said already, but I do like the colour of your walls a lot.

Thankyou Adrian! I should know better but I needed someone to say don't be so daft! You're right of course, it really doesn't work to look at a side view and then click forward while screen printing the photos. I think that what I'm going to do is wait until I go back to England, and stand in a field to take photos myself (my uncle has a few fields handy for this ). That way I will be able to do the 360 and not get the road (the A52) in there. Also, by doing it myself I won't get all the different exposures that I was trying to balance out from Google Streetview. I am so close to finishing the footbridge now I can almost see the whites of its eyes! I'm off out to buy a bottle of wine and then start cutting the last bit of lattice that goes opposite the top of the stairs to the platform, then its some columns under the landings and I'm done. I'll be quite relieved as it means I can clear off the kitchen table. It's been like a battlefield for the last week! (Cath, if you're reading this, it's not true )

Burning the midnight oil? You are on a roll!

It's a long time sine I've read Asterix the Gaul quoted as well!

I agree with Json, the station colouring looks very realistic now. As they say over here, you knocked it out of the park!