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REC Farnborough

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  1. REC Farnborough
    Finally - after 4.5 years, the mill is nearly done! I doubt the original took this long!
     
    First job for this session was to complete the last 12 window units in the rear wall. However, before the wall itself could be added, the gable end window had to be built and placed -
     

     
    This really was the LAST window of over 50...
     
    Next job - the mill owners house required a front door. Being (probably) the richest person in the village after the squire the door had to reflect the family's status...
     

     
    Then it was back to the rear roof. I'd forgotten to darken the edges of the front tile strips - a job for a felt-tip - but the strips for the rear roof were treated differently -
     

     
    Take the cut strips,
     

     
    clamp together with small 'bulldog clips' (another essential little tool!) -
     

     
    Using good-quality watercolour paint of a similar shade (darker is okay) - load a flat brush and -
     

     
    paint the edges. The clamps prevent the colour 'bleeding' on to the printed tiles - but ensure that the outer faces (front and back) are the rear face of the tile strips. The roof had previously been 'underfelted' (see last entry) and parallel guidelines drawn on it (the tiles also have a guideline for the overlap) so it was then just a case of laying the strips.... And finally,
     

     
    The roof was complete!
     
    Rear wall and roof added made the back MUCH better -
     

     
    and just to round off, here's the front!
     

     
    The whole building sits on a 'floor' of 2mm 'Depron' and has a good 'overlap all round. This will a) allow the whole model to be 'bedded in', and the Depron can then be scribed for a cobble , brick or slab finish. Next job is the 'boiler-house'. More on that later!
     
    Regs
     
    Ian
  2. REC Farnborough
    Over a year since the last entry... Time to make some progress. The rear wall still requires 12 windows - but to be honest I needed something a little less taxing today, so I decided to tile the roof instead!
     

     
    This will be done using laser-printed tile strips representing a standard clay tile. I usually produce roof & wall finishes on adhesive paper - but tiles need their thickness represented so they were printed on 200 micron (160 gsm) card - about postcard thickness. This was then reduced to individual strips...
     
    In my experience, sticking them to the plasticard under-roof could be a challenge - PVA does not provide a good bond, and solvent-based adhesives ('Mekpak', 'Evostik') could a) affect the printing and b) require a very well ventilated room!
     
    The answer is simple -
     

     
    'felt' the roof with more of the afore-said adhesive paper, then attach the tile strips with thin PVA... Each strip carries a guideline' to assist in the overlap. The lowest tiles are of course a double-thickness layer, offset a half-tile.
     
    So after nine hours work,-
     
    The front roof is about half done! Guess whats on the agenda for tomorrow (and Friday)!
     
    Regards
     
    Ian
  3. REC Farnborough
    Over on my other (scanman) blog, I've detailed why I've not been actively modelling for a few months.
     
    Back to the fold ow, with several projects vieing for my time - so to prioritise...
     
    The GPV is needed for the 'Langley O Gauge' show in October where 'Netherley' is being exhibited.
     
    When I stopped modelling the van was pretty complete - just needed painting all-over black. Then I noticed that the rivetted strips were missing from the roof!
     

     
    Not any more! A fairly short job, using the flame torch and the RSU. Just got to re-prime the roof, then gets the satin black out.
     
    Easy but quick and a morale-booster!
     
    A quick plug - if you're going to the REC exhibition at Woking next weekend, say 'Hello' - I'm the bloke walking round with 'Publicity Officer' on the name-badge!
     
    Regards
     
    Ian
  4. REC Farnborough
    NOW the doors can be blown off...
     
    Assembly of the basic body shell is very straightforward, with the slots & tabs lining up neatly & fitting well.
     
    Solebars next - a fold and detail job - but here the detailing grows a little questionable in the instructions. Things like the 'spring stops' (part 14) once folded to shape are ''fixed to the solebar - see livery details for position". The 'livery details' are of course the 'in house' drawings contained in the kit. I suppose it is possible to accurately locate them - but I actually jumped ahead in the instructions, built the underframe & positioned it -
     

     
    and used the axle-centres to position the stops. (I'll deal with the underfame construction later).
     
    It was then that a more serious omission came to light...
     
    "form brake ratchet (15) and locate and fix to solebar - see livery details for position". The brake ratchet is actually formed from a fairly complicated series of bends - and these are not well-detailed in the drawings. A sketch a completed ratchet is on the instructions - on the underframe page, not the page showing the solebars - so in an attempt to clarify the situation I've detailed the steps I took in the following images - and an excellent view can be seen in fig 89 in Russells 'G.W. Freight Wagons & Loads'
     

     
    The ratchets separated from the sheet.
     

     
    The ratchet folded up
     

     
    First bend at the bottom of the ratchet. Note that the brass is relieved for a curve - but is actually started with a 90 deg bend.
     

     
    NOW the bend (use a 1.6mm drill-shank) is made to bring the outside frame parallel with the ratchet.
     

     
    The 'return' toward the body - another curved bend (I used a 1.6mm drill shank)
     

     
    A Reversed bend (etched fold on the OUTSIDE) this time to bring the shank for the sole-bar fixing back to the ratchet frame. I subsequently re-inforced this with solder as reversed folds are inherently weak).
     

     
    Another 90 deg bend to bring the shank vertical
     

     
    Final bend - the tab that locates below the solebar
     

     
    The unit in place (note also the spring-stop previously located - I protected this with a 'bobby-clip' heatsink whilst soldering the ratchet in place with the blow-torch).
     
    Well, that's it for tonight - next installment will cover the underframe (as mentioned already part-built), compensation etc.
  5. REC Farnborough
    Taking advantage of a working session at Didcot today, I checked out their 'Cone' (GW code name for GPV's) -
     
    http://www.didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk/wagons/105781/105781.html
     
    and took my own image -
     

     
    She's obviously in a sorrier state now!
     
    First thing to note - this is a 'Z4' - purpose-built for the job in 1939. It has square rather than rounded corners - but also has door-latches (missing in the kit)
     

     
    so I then trotted off to the carriage shed where 'Iron Mink 11152 (http://www.didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk/wagons/11152/11152.html)
    is undergoing restoration.
     

     
    Note this is not a GPV variant (although the Z1's were based on this model) - BUT she also has door latches -
     

     
    Ahah!! The car journey home was filled with thoughts on how to make four identical latches... After several near-misses I arrived home and ran a quick check on the kit. Definitely no door-latches. THEN I checked the image of 11136 in Russell' Wagons Apendix' and guess what? The full-page, works photo in stunning detail showed - NO DOOR LATCHES!
     
    Moral of this entry - don't jump to conclusions and always check your sources! Comparing the kit to the Russell image - I can see where the design came from - and I don't have to worry about making those latches...
  6. REC Farnborough
    With apologies to Michael Caine...
     
    Before they can be blown off, hey have to be made!
    The doors are basically two flat sheets which require the ends folding down to represent the door thickness and the associated hinge-points. The rest consists of a lot of small detail which I feel in certain cases could actually best be made as part of the etching. For example, the door hinges -
     

     
    provided as 12 small etchings - each of which is twice the length required (I suspect that they were copied from another kit in the range). Instructions state to fix them in position and then file the extraneous half away... Easier if they'd been included as etched detail on the main door plate? Why do kit manufacturers make life so complicated? To make us think we are getting 'value for money'??
     
    The rest of the detailing went together quite well - and I must say, with the small exception noted above, I'm very happy - so far.
     

     
    I'll finish on a personal note. Bending the door sides meant using small clamps - and I'm lucky to have a couple of my late dad's old tools -
     

     
    They are of course pipe clamps - nothing remarkable really, except those on the left were made by my late dad one lunch-time as a little lesson to some apprentices. The tool is made from only two pieces of steel, one of which is the spring-steel clip on top... Look at the construction and count the number of processes required. The other is an 'issue' clamp provided by 'the govmint'. Dad's is better - and I wish I had half the skills he had....
     
    Regs
     
    Ian
  7. REC Farnborough
    Putting the rivetting tool away, I've now made a start on the body-work. The wagon is basically an 'Iron Mink' - rounded corners, and ribs down the outside of the body.
     
    First step - roll the corners. This was easily achieved as the corners have a series of etched lines on the inside., so the corners were formed by rolling them round a 5mm dia length of 'Evergreen' styrene.
     
    Next came the ribs. They are located using the 'tab & slot' technique - and the body sections provide a pretty massive heat-sink in 7mm! I therefore tried a new (to me) technique, using solder-cream and a chefs blowtorch.
     

     
    The basic ingredients (I'll mention the 'bobby-clip in a minute!).
     
    The ribs located very easily and the blow-torch made short work of the soldering!
     
    Next in the instructions were the draw-plates on the buffer-beam. Same process, no sweat. Well, you know what I mean!
     
    Next items were the plates that carry the load-clips, and the clips themselves. Somewhat concerned about holding the plates in place, I resorted to a ladies hairclip - a so-called 'bobby-clip'.
     

     
    These are an intrinsic part of my tool-box and come in various shapes. Very useful - just don't let SWMBO catch you re-locating them!
     
    Two hours later - the two 'side-end' units are basically complete -
     

     
    I'm now toying with the problems of the buffers. The kit contains a whitemetal set of buffer-heads and shanks of the correct type. They can be sprung using thin wire which activates the draw-gear. Whitemetal?? Hmmm.... At the weekend at the REC show I did purchase a very nice set of turned brass shanks/steel bufferheads made by 'Markit'. Problem is, the shank bases are the wrong shape. So the issue is - correct but fragile whitemetal, or incorrect but sturdy buffing gear. Currently I'm leaning toward the latter as I always feel that rolling-stock on exhibition layouts should be built for maximum reliability and the rigours of show conditions.
     
    What do you think?
  8. REC Farnborough
    This will be an 'occasional' blog - mainly to prove that I can build the 'roundy-roundy stuff' - when pushed, and when the moment takes me! One basis for the blog is the unfortunate habit that club members have of passing to the 'great model-room in the sky' - and this means that sometimes unbuilt kits become available. Without being ghoulish, this can actually be a way of honouring an old friend and at the same time helping to provide direct financial support to their loved ones. Right, that's enough of that save to say that I have a 'Small Prairie and a 'B Set' plus various wagons in the 'Wundy Box'...
     
    However, the subject of this build was actually a proprietary purchase. 'Netherley' provides the main line link for 'Lord Loft's Quarry' and his stone wagons ad a 'workmans train' appear at irregular intervals in the sequence. Quarrying stone sometimes needs 'gunpowder' (or it's early 20th-century equivalent). The need at present is served by a converted 'Midland Railway' van, but I felt that a 'pukka' GWR van was needed as a change. Hence the purchase of the WEP Models etched brass kit at Telford.
     
    The kit makes up a 'Z1' variant of the standard GWR 'Iron Mink' and many were converted in batches prior to both World Wars. The front page of the instruction sheet gives running number details & livery etc.
     
    Whats in the box (or rather, bag)?
     

     
    A single sheet of (I think) 0.015 thou brass, neatly etched, with the rivets half-etched, 5 pages of instructions including separate exploded views of body & chassis, and a small bag containing whitemetal castings for axleboxes and buffers (they'll be replaced...). The chassis allows for compensation via 'inside bearings' and the requisite brass bearings are in the pack.
     

     
    A closer view of the main item!
     
    Okay, on with the build. This means RIVETS - hundreds of them... I'm not a 'rivet-counter' by any means, but I thought I'd try. Lost count after the first hundred or so!. It's just a case of flog on until they're done. Being impatient to put heat to metal I was ALMOST tempted to do them piece by piece, but common sense prevailed and I rivetted all the parts in one sitting. Took about two hours with my trusty 'drop-hammer' type rivetter. There's some distortion of the sheet, but I reckon it will come out. Some rivets lie very close to slots and edges - after dropping the first couple I made a point of angling the head away from the edge and this seems to have worked.
     

     
    Right, off to bed to recover my sanity and prepare for day two at the REC Exhibition in Woking. Obviously the GPV will NOT be there!
     
    Regards
     
    Ian
  9. REC Farnborough
    The exhibition is getting CLOSE!
     
    The ridge was then added from 'curly masking tape' from 'Halfords. Designed to follow curves it dealt with the ridgeline quite well, and its 'wrinkled' effect represents canvas/tarpaulin very well when sprayed with a 'sea grey'.
     
     
    The next step was to fit the valancing. Faced with the choice of making my own - thousands of 'v'-shaped cuts, thousands of 1mm holes - or using Brian Lewis's 'Timbertracks' product, I bottled it! The laser-cut valancing comes with sufficient parts to build just about any variant of 'two-hole' valancing that existed - it was just a case of trimming them to length and assembling with a fast-grab PVA.
     

     
    When dry, they were painted with 'Precision' 'Light Stone', with the first coat well-diluted with white spirit to act as a primer.
     
    The ends were a little different. They are designed (and are 'handed') to provide the ends of a single-platform valance. So a slight 'mod' was required. Each end used the ends from one pack each - and to match the width, inserts had to be added -
     

     
    When dry, the ends were again painted in 'Light Stone' but the bargeboard was picked out in Dark Stone.
     
    On to the glazing - and despite good advice I went with my first choice - 'Copydex' (diluted about 1:1). Each pane was cut to size, dilute adhesive run round the frame with a cocktail stick and the glazing laid in place.
     

     
    The glazing units were then added to the canopy from beneath.
     

     
    One week down - so far - so good. Only 10 years to go....
     
    The roof was then 'dirtied' with multiple applications of oil pastel in various shades to take away the 'newness'. A ladies 'blusher' brush is the ideal tool - just make sure she's out when you do it!
     
    Last job was to make the support columns. They are commercially-available and I went for the 'John Piper' variant. Which at 52mm high were too small.... With the deadline on top of me, I had no choice but to 'mod' those as well, cutting them in half and inserting the ends into 'Evergreen' tubing. I'm not happy with the result and after the exhibition I'll make some that will look better both in appearance & fit...
     
    However, today was the 'moment of truth' and it was off to the club with the end result...
     

     

     

     
    - and Mrs Smith is very grateful as she is now able to reach the Ladies Waiting Room' despite the worst efforts of South-westerly gales!
     
    So is it finished? In a word, 'No'. Apart from the columns there are other details to be added - guttering between the two main roof elements & their associated down-pipes on the buildings. The various 'facilities' still have to be signed, and the obligatory Company & commercial adverts are still needed. So I guess after the exhibition, I'll get it back for a while. Better not fill the workshop too much!
     
    If you are coming to the Show this weekend (Woking Liesure Centre - 10.30-5.00pm Sat, 10.00-5pm SUn,) drop by the layout & say hello. Im one of the two 'beardy blokes' - and if you choose Laurie he'll soon disabuse you! I'll also be wandering round the show in my other guise as the Club Publicity Officer complete with a name badge to suit - so say 'Hello' as well!
     
    Regards
     
    Ian
  10. REC Farnborough
    I decided that the quickest (and prototypically correct) finish for the canopy was to represent 'board & batten' - where the roof (or wall) is covered by timber boards of a fixed width, butt-jointed together. The weather-proofing comes from the 'batten' - again timber of a fixed width - that is fixed over the board joints (sorry if this is 'suck eggs' time, but there MIGHT be modellers out there that don't know!).
     

     
    The hole ('light') in the canopy allows three things - 1, as in the prototype, allows light to fall on the platform. 2, allows the operators to 'see through' the roof to the stock below, and 3, allows the roof detail to be seen! (seems a shame to waste all those hours...)
     
    The 'Board & Batten' effect can clearly be seen - merely strips of 20 thou plastic laid at regular intervals.
     

     
    The 'lights' were slightly more detailed. A rectangle of 20 thou plasticard is cut 'oversize' for the aperture, then framed in yet more of 'Evergreens' code 291 'L' angle.
     
    The 'light' is then divided into equal sections which are then framed with yet more '291' - this time using two pieces 'back to back' to form a 'tee' cross-section to represent the glazing-bars -
     

     
    The panels are then removed -
     

     
    and subsequent to the unit being painted (black of course), it will be glazed with panes of 10 thou clear resting on the 'tee' sections. Therein lies a problem... Solvent & styrene glazing.... I'm actually tempted to use a form of 'putty' - in this case double-sided cellotape, applied to the frames, trimmed back & then the backing removed. Problems re longetivity come to mind... Copydex (which dries clear and is not solvent-based) is also a contender. Watch this space!
     
    Only two weeks to the show... (Woking Lieisure Centre, 14-15 Sep). Better crack on then!
  11. REC Farnborough
    The last entry showed the 'test cut' done by Jonathan. Everything looked good so an order was placed for an 'A4' sheet of 0.5mm MDF - this would give more than enough for the club's needs.
     
    A couple of weeks later a package arrived...
     

     
    this shows the requirements for the subway balustrade.
     
    The gap between the bottom of the railing was set by using a jig from 30 thou platiskard -
     

     
    and using this the fencing sections were soon emplaced. -
     

     
    On to the corner pillars. A little lateral thinking was required here. The square/rectangular rails would need to be made from plastikard strip. A quick test showed that the relevant sections could be made from 'Evergreen' strip - part no's 8102 & 8202 fitted the bill. This however caused a problem as 'Butanone', 'Mekpack' and superglue wouldn't hack it! Finally I used a 'fast-grab' thick PVA and I am relying on the fact there are no tensional stresses involved....
     
    The corner bars are longer, and set into the base whilst the middle rods only extend between the lower & middle frames. So another plastikard jig was made -
     

     
    One of the frames was also used as a jig to drill holes for the corner rods -
     

     
    Once those had been made, assembly of the corner pillars proceeded slowly but steadily, being a bit of a fiddly process even in 7mm!.
     

     
    Once the pillars were assembled, the caps were made from three rectangles of 10 thou plastikard, and fixed to the top of the pillars, which were then finally assembled to the base.
     

     
    All that's left now is to paint the assembly - and here there is a problem. The common paint-scheme would be 'Light & Dark Stone'... However, 'Chocolate Maroon' and black are also contenders. Any definitive answer would be gratefully received.
     
    Finally - I've got some packets left over - anyone who is building Bristol Temple Meads - or wants some decorative balustrading - can contact me by PM for a price!
  12. REC Farnborough
    Following a recent exhibition where the layout was operated in relatively stygian gloom 'The Management' decided that it was time we invested in a lighting unit.. My initial suggestion of individual 'Petzl' head torches was pointedly ignored... Instead I 'won' the contract to create the new units...
     
    Okay, good practice for my own layout (should I get round to it!). A morning at one of our routine 'up' sessions oat the clubhouse saw a quick trial re 'light intensity' from the proposed lighting units (successful) so a scale(-ish) drawing produced -
     

     
    presuming the use of 25mm aluminium tubing and 50mm aluminium angle, supporting 'under cabinet' LED lighting strips (and hope wifey doesn't notice their disappearance ('b---y hell, the fuses must have blown' would hopefully cover it...)
     
    I decided on 50mm as the 'pelmet' to the front will hopefully prevent glare from impinging on the paying public. The operators can wear sun-glasses!
     
    Armed with the drawing, a major metal supplier was sent an request and the relevant monies (quite a lot of it...) paid. Aluminum isn't cheap any more... However, the supplies were delivered the next day, as were the lighting units courtesy of 'A...n'
     
    No excuses now - out to the work area. The 'chop saw' made short work of cutting the relevant materials to size (I'd allowed for 70cm 'head heights' above the layout and 1m long light runs, with two lines of lights in each).
     

     
    The upper frame was held together with M6 bolts, and wing-nuts, as the unit has to break down for transport.
     

     
    The upper frame is located to the vertical supports using 'hard plastic' right-angle units -
     

     
    to finish the main metal-work.
     

     
    (Reality check - because of material costs, we are only lighting two boards at present - where shunting etc occurs. However I have a 'cunning plan')
     
    Next job - attach the lighting units to the hood. The makers kindly supply strips of double-sided tape for fixing purposes. I only wish it was strong enough adhesive to support the units effectively! However, they also supply dinky little plastic clips which can be screwed in to the hoods. A job for tomorrow probably.
     

     
    The legs have to be attached to the boards by (inelegant) wooden spacer blocks as the baseboard frames are recessed by 50mm from the base-board edge (they didn't used to be, but various scenic additions were added after construction). The aluminium tubes are held to the blocks by more M6 bolts running into 'T-nuts' which are flush with the back of the blocks. The blocks themselves will be affixed to the baseboard frames with 'Gorilla Glue', as I am not sure that simple screws through the 9mm ply board will resist the 'turning moment' of the frame.
     
    So having cobbled a light unit into place with a temporary fix involving G-clamps (and prayer), the unit was switched on...
     

     
    The subsequent pool of light LOOKS a little insubstantial, and the next lighting unit will be two boards away (remember the finances..) However, my 'cunning plan' is to bolt another length of 50mm aluminium angle between the two existing frames which will light the main part of the layout. If we get further invitations to exhibitions we will probably lash out and light the rest. Otherwise its back to 'Petzls' for the fiddleyard crew!
  13. REC Farnborough
    Last year I was one of the participants in the '2012' RMWeb Challenge, as I was tasked to create the station buildings for the Club's new 7mm layout. The initial phases of the build can be seen here :-
     
    http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/56603-platform-canopy-services-for-netherley/
     
    and in the ensuing vote I was privileged to be placed 6th and I would like to express my thanks to all those who voted for me..
     
    For those that did not follow the competition, a short resume is in order.
     
    'Netherley' is a terminus station at the end of a 'red' graded GWR branch 'somewhere in the west country'. With thoughts of greatness, the station was designed as a through station with an island platform - however, the line now terminates in a goods yard just beyond an overbridge. As such, the station buildings were there merely to provide basic services to passengers and staff - access to the platform is via a subway from the (off-stage) ticket office.
     
    My brief was to design the platform facilities, with a GWR prototype in mind. The facilities would include a 'Waiting Room' with a separate room for the ladies, 'conveniences' for both sexes, the 'platform end' of the subway and a canopy covering all.
     
    I looked at various prototypes for the buildings, but 'Tilehurst' has always been a favourite.
     

     
    It's two buildings in a warm red 'English Bond' brick, on the island platform would provide the requisite passenger facilities. Rather more grand were the canopy and the subway structures, which are based on those on platform 13-15 at Bristol Temple Meads.
     

     

     
    Both buildings are in much the same state as shown in the thread - renovating the house and making a good start on the canopy has taken most of my time in recent months! Both units are built in the main from plastikard (in the case of the canopy - lots of it!). However, the balustrading round the subway was always at the back of my mind. Mainly my thoughts ran to plastikard, built on a template per the canopy...
     

     
    but what a fiddly job it was going to be!
     
    Then, at ExpoEM I met Jon Buckie (who deservedly won the competition with his tamping machine) demonstrating the merits of laser cutting. It was only a couple of days later that the lightbulb went off. Unfortunately by that time I was on holiday in Oz, sans computer! On my return, the relevant e-mails were sent, plastikard put aside and 'TurboCAD' initiated..
     
    Two days later, the drawing (to my untutored eye) - looked okay.
     

     
    The balustrade consists of the lased railings (three per side) and the corner units are built up from plastikard on the square bases (3 per corner unit!).
     
    It's now with Jon, awaiting his eagle eye. (coincidentally, the order will fill an 'A4' sheet - more than enough for my needs and I'm quite prepared to sell the rest)!
     
    So that's the state of play so far. The canopy now has seven of its trusses built
     

     
    (each consists of 44 individually-cut lengths of plastic) and i still have the longditudinals to build (3 per bay...)
     
    All before 15th September - the Clubs 'Diamond Jubilee Exhibition (at Woking Leisure Centre, Surrey). Come along and see it finished !
     
    Regards,
     
    REC-Farnborough
  14. REC Farnborough
    A late decision to exhibit at the REC's 'Woking Show' a couple of weeks ago, was accepted as something of a challenge as our exhibition manager (bless him) couldn't accomodate the full length. We had to lose a mere 15 feet - including the current goods shed! I was landed with the task of making a small 'add-on board' - mainly so that locos could still run round their trains. Additionally it would be useful on running nights in the clubroom were it is not possible to erect the full layout anyway as it blocked the fire exits!
     

     
    The unusual shape of the new board allows the more 'corpulent' group members (including me!) to pass around the end of the layout! the boards are made of 9mm ply, located with the usual arrangement of pattern-makers dowels and M6 bolts. More importantly I realised early-on that we could still have a goods facility on the foreshortened board.
     
    So on with the goods shed itself. The building is based on the goods shed (more correctly a 'goods lock-up) based on the one at 'Burghclere' on the late-lamented DN&SR.
     
    As I'm now the possessor of an 'Emblazer' laser cutter, I thought it would be nice to laser cut the roof-trusses. They wouldn't be seen, but it was a neat exercise (and a bit of 'BS'!).
     

     
    Whilst I was at it I (more usefully) also laser-cut strips of 150GSM card to represent 'Duchess' (2'x1') slates.
     

     
    The finished building actually sits quite well on the layout and provides for much-needed traffic movement on what has become (in this form) a 'terminus to fiddlyard' layout, with the subsequent loss of about half the usual train-moves!
     

     

     
    Lastly a shot of the overall scene, showing how it relates to the main layout.
     

  15. REC Farnborough
    The last entry was in November 2014 and ended 'right, on with the boiler house'...
     
    A little bit of history.... The boiler house is situated adjacent to the mill - as many mills found out, naked flames and flour-dust don't mix! However, neither do wooden roof-beams and stationary boiler chimneys... The result is that one cold night six months ago, the night-watchman (keeping himself warm in the boiler house) woke up to the crackling of flames above his head... He rapidly distanced himself from the flames - to the extent that he was unable to douse the blaze. The building was gutted and the stationary boiler was damaged beyond repair. As were the night watchman's job prospects...
     
    Without the steam supply the mill was virtually at a standstill - although the long-disused water-wheels supplied enough power to ward off bankruptcy. A new engine was rapidly ordered from 'GEM' and arrived as a kit of parts -
     

     
    - which was fortunate as it had to be built inside the (cleaned) remains of the old boilerhouse!
     

     
    The boilerhouse is now in the process of being re-roofed, with new rafters, laths & tiles stacked ready for laying The new engine is, of course safely ensconced inside (but you'll have to take my word for it!)
     

    Some 'fettling-in' is still required - the building (basically a simple 'box') is made from plasticard, sheathed inside & out with SE Finecasts 4mm 'English' bond, and the inner walls still show traces of soot and smoke-damage (again - trust me!) The 'old' engine will be cast-aside next to the boilerhouse - a warning to future night-watchmen!
  17. REC Farnborough
    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!
  18. REC Farnborough
    Well the balustrade is finally complete & located on the layout.
     

     
    'Valejo' 'Model Air' Hull Maroon appeared to be the closest match - but to make sure I primed the model with their dark brown primer. I'm very impressed with the ease with which the top coat went on - the paint comes ready-thinned for airbrushing (as the name implies) and it went through my 'Aztec' with no issues at all.
     
    I find the other products in the range ('model Color' and the primers in fact need thinning about 4-1 with water before they flow properly - but ev en then the covering is pretty efficient. If only they did a recognisable 'UK Railways' set (saves all that mucking about with colour charts...)
     
    The 'concrete' base was then brushpainted with another suitable colour, then lightly weathered with oil pastel dusts in various shdes applied with a 'blusher' brush. SWIMBO hasn't noticed yet!
     
    Right - next up IS the canopy...
  19. REC Farnborough
    'Emsford' is the REC's 'EM' layout currently under construction. Based on a rural single-track secondary route, the largest building in the village is the mill. - and I was silly enough to volunteer to build it! The early work was subject of this forum entry -
     
    http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/11149-a-mill-for-emsford/
     
    and this blog will continue the process. As you can see, this and the station buildings for 'Netherley' - subject of another blog) do take up a fair proportion of my modelling time!
     
    Anyway, onwards!
     
    Where did I get to? Oh yes...
     

     
    With most of the windows (I've still got twelve on the rear wall to make) completed using my usual 'adhesive paper/layers of card' method,the building slowly came together. The 'Georgian' period dwelling is of course for the miller -
     

     
    who now has a chimney
     

     
    and a slate roof (again printed on adhesive paper) in individual rows, slates cut to 2/3rds their depth and then applied to the plasticard roof - which was covered with plain adhesive paper to ensure the slates stuck!
     
    On then to more external detail (now the Miller is comfortably in residence) -
     

     
    Most (all??) mills have 'lucams' which house the winding gear & Emsford required three of 'em. Excuse the slightly out of focus shot...
     

     
    Again, using a single drawing it was easy to print three identical sets on paper, to ensure they were all even, and
     

     
    the sub roofs were fitted in a similar manner -
     
    Just in time for the building to be shown in place at the Clubs ' Diamond Jubilee' day last Sunday...
     

     
    Next jobs will be to finish those cursed rear windows(!), tile the main roof (another paint-drying job!) then build the boiler house on the other end! At least this one does not have an exhibition deadline....
     
    TTFN
     
    REC-Farnborough
  20. REC Farnborough
    Definite progress on the balustrade for the subway -
     

     
    This is the test cut from the drawing on the earlier blog. A very nice piece of work from Jonathan. I've made a correction to extend the legs slightly to make it easier to fix them into the surround, and of course the balustrading is made of several of these panels.
     
    Much midnight oil was burned fitting out the station buildings with the remaining windows (the 'louvres' on the 'Gents Toilet' are actually 'Evergreen' '80 thou clapboard siding cut to fit the frames) and doors being fitted. The roof to the main building was build as a removable panel to allow interior detailing at a later date. With the exhibition deadline looming both buildings have now been set into the platform -
     

     
    during a work period last week, and at the same meet the first of the main canopy bays (over the 'ladies') was ALMOST completed!
     

     
    Now I've only got 2 more main trusses to build (about 3 evenings work) and about 27 more longditudinal trusses (about 14 evenings work!) then put it all together....
     
    However, I'm going to have a couple of days off - and do some of my own modelling!
     
    TTFN
     
    REC-Farnborough
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