C&WR

A great read, thanks Adrian.  I wouldn't have seen it in it's current glory back in University days, then.  If I hadn't been rushing back to School for TSC's parents' evening I might have got off and had a shufti!

On the subject of TSC he only went and won a cup for the Viking Village:

He was nominated by staff and chosen by the Headmaster, so he is very pleased!  His Form Tutor said we should be very proud about how he stood up in front of the rest of the Prep School at assembly and told them how we he had made it!  Allegedly there was a collective intake of breath and a "WOW!" from his peers when it was revealed

Thanks, Jules!

Just passed through Birmingham Moor Street for the first time, despite having lived up here for five years in the early '90s. Can't believe there is what appears to be a preserved GWR station there!

Can't believe I haven't laid hands on a railway model (except to move things that are on the shelf for dusting purposes, to admire some things I have in the cupboard & to attempt to mend Dad's 14xx) in the best part of three months!  One excuse was a rather big one, the wedding, and the rest as as I said visitors & the RWC.

There was of course the matter of the Vikings and their village.  As mentioned above the History Mistress knew I am into modelling and asked if TSC & I fancied building one for the class.  Off we set:

A fairly basic base design & build.  I mean being me I wasn't just going to give the School a plain sheet of green cardboard with a fence & some houses on!  I had decided fairly early on, having researched the size of Viking houses that it wasn't going to be practical to use the Zvezda 1:72 figures, and went for 1:180 as this was the size of the most suitable model longship.

So here we go, finished off.  It is a little crude as I did let TSC have a lot of chances to build:

On bringing it in to the History Mistress this morning we were immediately conveyed to the Headmaster's office and for a change there was no need for a phone directory down the back of the trousers.  TSC blithely said he had made it and "my Daddy helped".  He was immediately rewarded with five merits (a sort of personal house point, normally only dished out in ones or twos) and told he must show it at achievement assembly.  

Rather pleased for him, he's been having a bit of a tough time at School lately.  This, together with wearing his Great-Grandfather's WWII medals for the two minute's silence & me being invited to run an assembly about Remembrance & sticking my gongs on has given him renewed kudos with the other boys.

I had also done these little chaps even though they were overscale.  I had to admit I was the prime mover on them, but they are safely in the History Mistress's pigeon hole for use in a lesson eventually:

It's not until they are at this magnification that it becomes evident the satin protective varnish is so very shiny.  It's also revealed that some of the figures have nose pieces which should have been painted as metal.  Still, I like these with them on the base before the builders got there:

Good to see you back! Another nice build,with some interesting touches like the bollards to the right of the photo.

Also impressed with the foliage. Presume they are roses? Am considering window boxes for my scratchbuilt row of cottages, but something like those would also look great.

Lovely bit of work there!  That parade of shops, together with the other little building, fit so very well.  I like your road surfaces too, really good patched up tarmac

Well I managed to fit the gear with no traumas.  Problem is my power supply is at Wallington so couldn't track test.  Hope I get a bash in the next few weeks!

Jules, that was your hint to say I'll come round for lunch & sort it for you!

Well here goes.  Half term starts today, and while I will still be at work I don;t need to iron & the day is shorter, so back to some railway modelling as well as finishing off the Vikings & their visit.

Have just ordered a replacement axle gear for the 14xx.  Wish me luck taking the locomotive to bits & then reassembling, I'm going to need it!

Have been away far too long.  Obviously we did this:

Since getting back I've been on 12 hour days, & when not working there's been the Rugby World Cup & The Small Controller's games too. I was also challenged by his History Mistress (who knew I was a bit into modelling) to build some stuff for this term's focus on Vikings.  A quick internet search found these little chaps which I've had bags of fun painting:

Perhaps they could go on the railway as reenactors or something...

Loco numbering looks fine to me, Al.  When I did my (slightly botched) Peak conversion I used strips of masking tape to try and get the number straight and it still went awry!

Thanks also for the requartering advice.  I need to replace the plastic gear on my father's 14xx & have been dreading doing it, it's a little more clear now...

Thanks all for kind words and likes.  It was a wonderful day, but back to earth with a bump at work today!

Hiring a train not feasible. I therefore went for next best...

It's likely to go a bit quiet from this callsign for a while.  I spent last evening tidying the modelling stuff away from where it had been strewn hither and yon across the house.

One reason is the forthcoming Rugby World Cup which is going to keep us occupied, both going to matches (thanks to a generous benefactor buying tickets) and watching on TV.  The other is an influx of visitors from NZ.

Why the visitors?  The Long Haired Controller and I are to be married a week Saturday.  It was time to make an honest woman of her, and the RWC was one way to make sure her brothers came over to see the deed done!

Well there are bridges at Cholsey, but it would take a degree of willing suspension of disbelief to bring "Silly Bridge" & the Conker Bridge close enough for scenic breaks...

I know virtually nothing of the Network Rail stuff, RJS, so tanks for that!

Finally made it back from a rather rainy Exmouth.  Thankfully we had some clear afternoons, and the final day was glorious so the annual trip on the Star Cross ferry was taken - this time we disembarked at Dawlish so TMSC could have a go on all the rides.

During our stay down there we were sitting about the flat before dinner one evening when The Pt Way Dept heard a familiar whistle - a magnificent steam-hauled service went by in the Exeter direction visible across the estuary.  Disappointingly I wasn't in time to dig out the telescope let alone get the long lens on the camera for a photo.

Then on the way back, as we headed up the M5 we passed another railtour, this time hauled by a pair of DRS Class 20s.  The rolling stock looked a little disreputable, but people were waving happily at the occupants of the cars in the traffic jams!

Finally, on leaving Exmouth I saw a bright yellow HST heading westbound and thought of Mick/newbryford.  Funnily enough, on driving into my parents' village in Oxfordshire about for hours later I saw a bright yellow HST also going westbound.  presume it was the same one and wish I hadn't buried the camera under all the other holiday paraphernalia!

Just had a little walk into town after the clouds parted and rain stopped.  Home moderators don't mind me mentioning Collets Models of Exmouth. Friendly service and all sorts of nice things to be had - some will be sneaked in the car to come home!

No connection, just a satisfied customer...

Most impressive, Al!

Sent from a lovely Devon holiday let with the rain lashing down so hard there is no point even going on a train ride-there would be nothing T see! Wish I'd put the modelling kit in after all...

Bit of a break from modelling as we are on holiday.  We dropped back via Wallington for the night, so as TLHC was going for a beauty treatment I got the railway out.

First of all I found that The Pt Way Dept had been to the Fawley Hill Railway & couldn't resist bringing back a present. The options were boxed for £8 or loose for £5 - he didn;t feel the need for a box, so this has been added to the stock:

I've also been playing about with where the various buildings will go on the branch line:

This is probably most likely, with the station hotel to go down at the far end by the grain store & feed merchant, assisting with perspective & the scenic break:

The hotel may need to be a little lower relief to fit the space available!

Finally I have made another little video:

RJS, if only I had the time (especially now the Rugby season is just upon us & I have 30 little boys to coach) I would be down like a shot to take pics & help sand the thing down ready for use!

I've also had a hankering to use some of these decals which I found in the modelling box:

I was concerned that as these must be at least 30 years old and might not work. I asked for, and was given, some useful advice on here about how to adapt the decals if need be. However a quick test using the actual instructions showed they seemed to work, so I set to on a Fruit.D van bought for the purpose.

Caveat!  There are quite some liberties being taken in the build for practicality reasons...

Decals on the sides.  The van has become merely FRUIT rather than FRUIT.D as the decals are too big for the correct placement on the van.  Similarly PASSENGER should be below FRUIT.D, but again the decal is too big.  Finally wheelbase & tare are guesses and based on what was available on the sheet.  

Overall I am fairly happy with this, but the fact the decals split themselves into individual letters in some cases - the original gum which should have held them in place before water applied has obviously worn away or degraded.  Therefore it isn't hugely straight, but from normal viewing distance doesn't look so wrong:

The constituent parts for the top prepared for gluing. Sadly I really need to adapt my photo technique after the gloomy winter months of shooting under artificial light -the roof shows nothing here and I can't manipulate so it does.  That's lucky as I neglected to put the spigots under the ventilators before painting

The whole ting was given a coat of PlastiKote clear satin varnish which toned down the paint & fixed the decals.  I did a test with a spare decal just in case I damaged the lettering on the side.  I've also added an Alan Gibson vacuum pipe at each end:

Again a copuple of liberties with the underframe.  I have slightly moved the lower footsteps for durability and fixed the brakes direct to the solebar rather than to the floor in line with the wheels for similar reasons.

I painted the underframe the other night but am yet to varnish.  That & photography may have to wait as I have been given a last-minute chance to go to a box at Twickenham for England/France today...

Thanks, John.  The gutters & downpipes are florist's wire with turns of bag-tie wire - luckily I had green paint for the latter which matched the former.  I had been to a lecture at Pendon by one of the leading lights of The Gresley Beat (Gordon Gravett?) who said that for guttering, especially in 4mm, rod rather than half-round fools the eye enough when the top of the rod is painted black, which I did. I take little claim for the tiles - the texture is straight from Scalescenes & the method taken from a model railway site.

Quick update on the halt.  The railings are now painted in natural wood waiting to be muckied up to look creosoted.  I have also been meaning to paint and use a couple figure, so they are now seated in the shelter.  Pity I needed to touch them in which was done this morning, but not yet pictured:

Thanks, chaps.  It is undoubted that without Scalescenes (which strangely enough I discovered via an Army website in a thread about wargaming) I would never have got back into model railways, or certainly not as quickly.  I certainly wouldn't be scratchbuilding as I am now.

What aids the process is an ever-greater variety of kits.  So, wish-away, say I.  

Sorry for my off-topic comment, Edwardian.  I've just become such a fan of scratch building, whether of "real" locations or freelance!

Blast!  Having ordered from them before I should have thought of Scalelink...