rcf

After the excitement of the SWAG meeting its back to the 'day job'. They do say a picture is worth a thousand words so here goes:

Well just a few words, you may be able to pick out two inspection pits, one in what will be the shed and a second outside. Some of your comments, particularly those of Andy and Don, were very helpful in my decision and made me focus on what I wanted to achieve and made me realise I would always regret not doing the job properly and putting in both pits. Because of the lack of space between the cross beams there will be a compromise on the length of the pits but I can live with that, so on with the build.

Regards Rob

10 hours ago, SouthernRegionSteam said:

Many thanks! I love doing it, even if it does take quite a while when it comes to the editing. I'm grateful that people have responded to the photos so well already - especially as there's obviously plenty more to come...
 

 

Rob, thank you for yet again putting on a fantastic show. Without you (and others of what I consider the core team) it would not have been the huge success it remains to this day. Coming back from such a great show has really made me itch to get on with the new layout, though it might be a few years out before it gets to a presentable state!

 

Likewise - it was great to meet you! It's such a lovely little layout. If you want a download link to the photos, do let me know and I can send a WeTransfer link that will work for 7 days.


OK, so onward! This time it's @rcf's  'Osney Town':

 

 

Another brilliant example of a cameo layout, and in such a small space when considering it's a big scale (7mm)! A wealth of detail and a beautifully balanced scene. Of particular note is the bubbling stream/brook at the front of the layout. Whilst hard to get the camera 'in there', the natural framing of the trees made for some lovely shots. What the layout lacks in operation potential, it certainly makes up for in execution.

 

 

Hi Jamie,  many thanks for taking these amazing photos of Osney Town, although I'm not sure about the one with the old guy trying to operate it but the rest simply wonderful.

6 minutes ago, marc smith said:

Well the SWAG day was definitely worth the trip "down south" once again. As ever, the standard of layouts was as good as the standard of cakes and pasties... and that's saying something indeed. It was so nice to catch up with so many old pals - in fact, they are too numerous to mention, without this post becoming way too long to read :)
 

@rcf- it was great to finally see "Osney Town" in-the-flesh, and it looked just as superb as I knew it would. So nice to see you again Rob - and I still can't recall when & where we met (it must have been Taunton Railex?).

@bcnPete - great to meet up again good sir... but I only "helped out" for about 5 minutes... and most of that was chin-wagging! I even managed to dodge an operating session on @Barry Ten's layout. Perhaps I wasn't asked because I wasn't wearing a waistcoat?

 

Great to chat to all my good friends from this forum. I am already looking forward to next years SWAG day. Many many thanks to @NHY 581 and everyone involved in setting up and running the event. As I've said before, several times - this event is better than many shows I have paid to attend. It's the highlight of the modelling calendar IMHO.

Cheers all
 

Hi Marc, as you say it was good to met up again and have a chat. I have also been trying to recall our previous meeting and I think it may have been at Barnstaple in 2014 !!

Best wishes Rob

3 hours ago, Northroader said:

Thanks for the chat yesterday, I enjoyed seeing the layout up close. I was impressed with the fine scenic detail that had gone into it.

2 hours ago, mullie said:

It was great to see the layout for real to appreciate the quality of the modelling. 

 

Martyn 

Thanks to you both for your comments. It was a great day and a lovely opportunity to chat and generally relax with like minded modellers.

Rob

2 hours ago, bcnPete said:

Nice to meet you and Sharon yesterday Rob and be neighbours for the SWAG event!
 

Very pleased to have seen your layout and it looks absolutely fabulous 🙌🏼
 

Looking forward to see how the current project develops as it will be another cracker!
 

Best wishes, 
Pete

Hi Pete, yes, it was good to meet up after all this time and to have you as a neighbour on the day.  In the rush to pack up and get away I missed the opportunity to say goodbye, so hope you had a good journey home.

best wishes Rob and Sharon

Back home safely, Osney Town packed away and  food eaten, giving us a chance to reflect on the day. We both had a great day, for me putting faces to names and to seeing some layouts I have wanted to see for a long time, and for Sharon just enjoying the day and chatting to everyone. Many thanks to Rob and his team for the organisation , especially the kitchen team. I have to say that my veggie pasty was one of the best I have tasted in a long time. So thanks to all for a brilliant day,

Rob and Sharon

Just a quick reminder that Osney Town will be appearing 'for one day' only at the SWAG meeting at Taunton on Sunday. 

Rob

Just a quick thanks for the comments so far, all very valid and thought provoking. Andy's comments are very relevant and follow my own thought process but brings me no nearer to a decision 😉

regards Rob

Over the years I have made most of the buildings on my various layouts from scratch but, as mentioned in an earlier post, I was  greatly taken by an engine shed kit from Intentio. As the shed would play a central role in the new diorama I decided that the kit would probably be better than my own efforts, so to cut a long story short the kit has arrived accompanied by a couple of lamp huts and some assorted windows and doors. I must say this is my first foray into laser cut kits and I am extremely impressed with what has arrived and hopefully I can do justice to the kit with its construction and painting.

The kit does raise an issue with the diorama itself. Included as part of the kit is an inspection pit for inside the shed. The kit is based on Shipton on Stour which did not have an external pit but I was intending to construct one outside as well, as was the case with Wallingford where the idea for this layout came from. However, the pit is larger than I anticipated and will not fit between the cross members on the base board so will have to be reduced in length, even if used as proposed in the shed. Now my question is do I bother with the pit in the shed which actually will hardly be seen from the viewing angle and just use a cut down version outside or do I bite the bullet and construct two pits which would probably be more accurate in terms of the real thing, but one of which would be largely unseen. Decisions decisions. I think I am likely to give some thought to this and test various alternatives before anything is actually cut, especially as I need to ensure everything is ready with Osney Town which is scheduled to appear at the SWAG meeting in Taunton on the 28th. Any ideas and comments, especially regarding the need for two pits, or one and if so which, inside or outside, are wecome.

Rob

Following on from my last post I have made a start by building the industrial units for the backscene. In the end I opted for foamboard for the main structures. They now need painting and the addition of small details such as guttering and down pipes. In the course of construction I made a couple of adjustments to the overall scene, the first was the 'bit' of station building which was designed to screen the access points to the fiddle yard, which I decided was too long and obscured to much of the picture, so a couple of inches removed, easily done on a card mock-up and why I find it so useful to test the 'picture' before building. The second was a slight re-positioning of the water column which was too central and also, I think, awkwardly placed for locos to take on coal and water at the same time.

I'm pleased with the build  so far and anxious to get on but am held up slightly waiting for delivery of an online order. I was advised there would be a delay so no complaints, but I just want to get on 😁, Rob

It's about a week since I finished the mock-ups for the latest diorama and I have been doing my usual thing of leaving everything alone and having a long look at it every day and I must say that I am still very happy with the overall concept. I have attached my 'universal' fiddle yard to it to check that that will work, if needed. so everything is good to go. I have ordered a few things online, which unfortunately will be a little delayed on delivery but there is plenty I can do in the meantime. I just need to decide on the construction method for the new buildings, in the past I used ply sheeting over a pine strip frame but then moved to foamboard for the last two builds which worked well but for some reason I am being pulled back to ply construction! As this is only a diorama the buildings are going to be the key to bringing it all together so I need to get it right but in all honesty I don't really think it matters what framing I use, I just need to make a decision 😁

Rob

11 hours ago, SteveyDee68 said:

Many thanks, Rob, for taking the time to restore your photographs to your thread, as I have just re-read it in its entirety whilst laid up in bed - the photos of your modelling are inspiring, to say the least. I remember looking at your original quayside layout several years ago and saving the photos on my computer in my folder of inspiring ideas! 

 

Elsewhere (on one of my many threads) I have mentioned about creating an O gauge layout in homage to my late father, using the buildings and stock he made before dementia stopped his modelling. I’ve even put up an idea for a plan, using the station building and goods shed etc. However, looking at your dioramas has got my grey cells buzzing, to create something simple using his smaller buildings (weighbridge, coal states, office, provender’s store etc).

 

Thank you for creating such inspiring, evocative and atmosphere filled layouts - I’ve made sure to “follow” to keep up with developments here!

 

Steve S

 

 

 

Hi Steve, many thanks for your comments. You say that you are laid up in bed , hopefully this is not too serious and you will be up and about soon. When I logged in just now I couldn't believe the number of notifications showing, you have certainly been busy. It is difficult to know how to respond to your kind words, other than to say thank you. We are all in this hobby for our own enjoyment but it is always good to hear that your work is appreciated by others and when I started this thread, many years ago now, I never thought that it would still be going so many years later and would be followed by other modelers for so long. There have been many ups and downs along the way but I still get great pleasure out of my modelling, so, as they say, onward and upward.

kind regards Rob

10 hours ago, 51235 said:

Hi Rob

If you are looking to add a photo or painted backscene, could you create a card backscene at described earlier and then add a separate photo backscene or painted scene on paper - fixing the paper to the backscene using Photomount or similar. This should eliminate the wetting of the pva and causing the glued bonds to unstick. I have no experinece of the above but others might have.

Andy

Hi Andy, thanks for your interest and that suggestion. My preferred backscene is a painted one, just a plain 'sky' colour, and that is what concerned me most. Would the mounting card absorb the paint and warp. From Martyn's experience and my own tests it does look as though my concerns were unfounded, which doesn't really explain why I had a problem on an earlier build. The difference then was the photographic backscene which I hadn't used before so perhaps it was the vinyl on that which caused the problem.  Perhaps I should have used photomount or something similar as you suggest rather than the pva glue. Whatever it was I'm now thinking that I will either paint the card with a simple wash or find a card that has a neutral colour ,as Martyn has done and shown so well on the photos he attached. Decisions, decisions, I must be a sad case as I really enjoy this planning stage 😁

Reading this back tells me that I seem to have made a decision to go for a curved backscene using card rather than using buildings to disguise the corners! So one decision made.

regards Rob

7 minutes ago, mullie said:

Rob

 

I don't paint the mount board, leave it a neutral colour. 

 

I fix with PVA aided by blobs of hot glue to hold it in place while it dries.

 

As my layouts are small with relatively low back scenes I seem to get away with it. 

 

I have painted back scenes in the past but now prefer not to.

 

Martyn 

Many thanks for that information Martyn, it was just what I hoped to hear and my own trial seems to suggest I was probably worrying about nothing. Anyway I think it has pointed the way forward and towards curved corners, really my preferred option!

regards Rob

58 minutes ago, Siberian Snooper said:

Rob,

would a thin coat of PVA, seal the card? You would probably need to preform the card and coat both sides. It might be worth doing a small piece, as an experiment.

 

 

Thanks for that idea, I might try that. I was thinking perhaps of a matt varnish but the sample I did earlier, just painting on the card and gluing it to the board seems to be drying ok, so it's possible that I'm seeing problems that don't exist. Not an unusual situation 😁

On 18/01/2024 at 20:21, mullie said:

The wooden back boards on my layouts are square.  Artists mount board is glued to it and curved just tight enough so it doesn't crease.

 

Martyn 

Hi Martyn, I have been thinking again about the use of mounting card as I have some pieces to hand and I can get quite a tight curve which won't take up too much space. My concern remains as to whether the card can take paint and glue without it soaking in and causing lifting of the card. When you have used it, do you paint on it, if so with what type of paint, and do you seal the card with anything before and after gluing it to the wood backscene?  Your help and advice would be appreciated, in the meantime I have prepared a small test piece using wood glue and emulsion paint, so hopefully that will work ok.

regards Rob

Thanks to everyone for their ideas on curved backscenes. I thought I had made up my mind as to how to proceed but now  I'm not so sure 😀

12 hours ago, mullie said:

The wooden back boards on my layouts are square.  Artists mount board is glued to it and curved just tight enough so it doesn't crease.

 

Martyn 

Hi Martyn, I used mounting card on New Osney, of short lived fame, and discovered that it had come away from the backboard when I dismantled the layout. The problem, I think was that I had glued a photographic back scene to it and the glue from that had soaked into the card and into the glue on the mounting card, result a mess! Should have sealed the card but the experience did put me off somewhat. 

Rob

Hi All,

The baseboard is now nearly complete, only the back board on the left hand end is clamped as I don't want to fix it until I have decided where the exit (s) to the fiddle yard will be located. Having now had time to absorb the size of the board I realized that my normal preference for a curved backscene would eat up valuable space, plus the fact that bendy mdf is in short supply down this way. I know, I could get it online but just another issue to slow things down. An alternative solution and one I used on The Shed quite successfully is to use buildings to screen the corners. That was because space was at a premium as well as now. This idea does need quite big buildings which brings me to the subject of the next build  and an option such as an industrial complex. This would involve some form of shunting, if this is going to be a working diorama, and being based in the far west the china clay industry does spring to mind. However most of their rail related buildings are huge and would not really work in the space available, plus others have used this subject before and I don't think I could add anything new to the subject.

I also thought about using the new board as an extension to one of the existing layouts or as a link between them but decided that either solution would be frustrating as I would not really be able to use it in that way without more space and that it would be better to build something self contained as a stand alone project.

Which brings me to the present state of play. The other user of a limited space is one I have done before, the shed! But how big a shed, single road or double road. Initially I had looked at double roads and came up with some possibilities but eventually decided that a double would be too dominant, even if you only used the front part of the shed. As you will be aware my purpose with all my builds has been to produce a balanced 'picture' that works as a railway scene, so after extensive research a photograph in a book triggered that magic moment. The subject was Wallingford, the end of a branch line In Berkshire (?). The station had a single road shed opposite the platform and the photo in question was of this immediate area. I know there are other stations with a similar arrangement but this one just shouted out to be built as a diorama, at least it did in my head.

So looking at the practical aspects and how to adapt the subject to my board there will obviously be a need to site the station next to some industrial buildings to screen the corners and to move the station building slightly to help screen the exit to the fiddle yard. This is beginning to look a lot like The Shed Mk II and nothing like Wallingford but then that was only the spark to get me going. I have been testing the idea with the use of some buildings from The Shed and some card mock-ups of the main buildings and the photos attached illustrate the current position.

While my enjoyment of this hobby has always been the scenic work and constructing the buildings myself I have been somewhat seduced by the Intentio web site and some of their lovely laser cut engine shed kits. I have resisted so far but I can feel myself weakening. So there it is, any thoughts always welcome,

regards Rob

Progress, of a sort,

At the moment the backscene is only clamped on, it still needs to be cut to size, similarly with the end panels. It is actually straight, it's just the angle of the photo that makes it look slightly drunk. It does give an appreciation of the space that is available to me which is helpful. After a lot of thought since my last post an idea has begun to swirl around in the little grey cells but more thought is still needed before committing myself to public inspection, as it may not be particularly new. I will leave it at that for the moment!

regards Rob

2 hours ago, Siberian Snooper said:

Could you put the new board between the other two Osney boards to make one layout? Just an idea.

 

 

1 hour ago, mullie said:

Linked dioramas,  could be a good idea?

 

Lots of pondering time over Christmas.  Have a good one. 

 

Martyn 

Have you both been talking to my wife as she has this dream of linking all the boards in one long layout. Trouble is there is no where at home that I could set it up, maybe in an exhibition setting but sadly I could not get it in the car and I believe I am too ancient to hire a van. But the new board could be linked, possibly, with one of the other shorter boards to give a variation on a theme . Thoughts for the Christmas period. Actually, this is what I enjoy, all the planning for a new layout, the ideas and then discarding them before settling on an idea.

This is probably a good opportunity to wish all those who follow this saga a good Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

Regards to everyone Rob

In my last post I mentioned that plans were afoot and guess what has recently arrived, 

Yes, that's right it is a new baseboard but what to do with it as it is on the small side. As I have said before, I build small cameo layouts because of a lack of space and looking around my railway room I already have the two layouts, Osney Town Wharf and Osney Town, which doesn't leave a lot of space for much else. Both layouts are new and I am happy with both, so they definitely stay, no moving one to the garage!

Looking around the railway room I have identified a corner which could accommodate a small board. However, with all my recent boards I have standardised on a size, 2ft 6in x 1ft 6in. This is a size, which with my increasing years, I can manage on my own and get through doors and down stairs and load the car, so I do not have to depend on help. Looking at the space that is available one board that size would fit well, but even I can't think what I can do with that little space in O gauge. So, with a bit of juggling, and leaving a small working area I have decided that one board of 3ftx 1ft 6in could be built. This takes me into the world of dioramas, but a working diorama, by using the existing fiddle yard when required. 

So that's the state of play. I have an idea as to what I could do with it but the first thing to do is to get the board made up so that I can better assess what the space looks like. This will not now happen, probably until after Christmas, as we are off for a pre-Christmas break and then with the usual festivities after that I can't see much being done before then, so it's a situation of watch this space.

Rob

7 hours ago, mullie said:

Just seen that Osney will be at SWAG next April,  will be great to see it, something I've wanted to do for a long time.

 

Always a great day so that should help the MOJO.

 

Martyn 

Hi Martyn, yes indeed, I have just had a look at Rob's announcement of Swag 24 and there is certainly plenty there to appreciate including several layouts I have wanted to see for a long time. It has the makings of a great day out. The mojo is definitely returning and plans are afoot!  When I have a moment I will do an update but I have had a busy weekend dealing with life's little problems. Yesterday the washing machine packed up and the other half was panicking that she would be unable to do any washing until after Christmas, but after swift action a new washing machine has been delivered this afternoon and installed and the first wash has been completed to her great satisfaction. Not bad service bearing in mind it is the weekend.

Rob