TimberSurf

Game changer for the price dave!

So the Church Diorama is more or less finished, still need to tidy up a few bits, do some weathering, etc It is[12.5in by 24in (320x610mm)]. It is edged with an angled side so, as tapered, it will drop into a flush, mating hole in the layout. The diorama features built in sound, full lighting (four separate circuits:- the lychgate, external flood lighting and two in the church), animated coffin, animated wedding photographers flash, working synchronous multi clocks, super detail stained glass windows, complete compound walling, lychgate, 120 realistic graves, wedding scene, funeral scene, grave diggers shed and a feature I have not seen before, detachable quick removable roofs! I was not happy with the buttresses as supplied, so decided to make my own, using SMS quoins, I made a master, glued a wooden former together and cast it in silicon, so I can now crank out lots of the same in plaster. I also added the spire, as not supplied in the kit and developed my own idea for the stone covering and added the additional quoins. So here is the Church Video

Not posted much recently, but lost mojo for 6 months, so little progress has occurred, but been to quite a few exhibitions and the purchase of some kits have spurred me on and although I have many projects on the go, I have been dying to have a go at a Petite Properties build for a few years and finally bit the bullet and purchased two at the Stafford show. The first is a garage, but mine will be a farmers workshop/store

A day trip to Bala Lake (narrow gauge) Railway and complimentary Model Railway show yielded three things other than a great day out! I came back with a good haul of second hand wagons (mostly Mainline) to top up my block rakes and two video's! Bala Lake Railway ride and Bala Lake Railway Model Railway Show

There are not many suppliers who sell screen printed white window surround/bared acetate sheets, of the few, even less that suite Linka window tiles, and it struck me that not all windows are white! Unfortunately, home PC printers cannot print white, but they can do all other colours. This means that black windows (meaning those with leaded lights) can be done and so too, all the other colours! Given that I have the advantage of manipulating graphics accurately with CAD, it struck me that rather than trying to create each window pattern individually in a graphics package, I could mass produce the design in CAD quite easily. Given that I can make a vast array of designs, that can be downloaded from the net and printed on a home printer, I have opted to share with everyone, like my tarpaulins, on my website. It has taken me much more time and effort to upload and create the web pages, than it did to actually design them all! The first batch (two pages) are for Linka Brick buildings, but could equally be used in other types of buildings or scratch built ones. I intend to add more for Linka stone. At the moment, there is a range of plain, Georgian, Georgian with bulls eyes in, some with a central mullion and a few Jail bars! I will do the same for the stone, but will get around to adding leaded lights for suburban homes and Church Lancet. I will also make some 100% cover sheets for scratch builders and some resized versions for use in other scales. Linka Brick Leaded Linka Brick Coloured Once a pdf is downloaded, a paper print can be made for testing (or used as is with clear acetate over the front) and then an acetate sheet can be printed and used. Feel free to give me feedback and any suggestions for the future

The follow up video to my 100 subs competition is out now, with an insight into LUMSDONIA given by the answers and the winner is named! 100 Youtube Subs Competition Winner

As I now have 100+ followers (Subscribers) on my Youtube channel, I will be sheepishly follow the Youtube trend and have a competition! A rare opportunity to 'hear' me in my 'narrator's' mode, I sound like the old guy from 'The Gadget Show' A small bespoke prize is up for grab's, to celebrate the 100 subscriber milestone. Take a gander, join the fun and take part! You never know, you might win! 100 Youtube Subs Competition announcement

So after cracking the process of transferring the clay to final position using greased proof paper, the build progressed. I still had to do a lot of remedial work to basically hand trowel the corner stones in place later on and re scribe all the mortar lines then add the inner walls, coping stones and road surface. I used a base coat of cream for the mortar and a couple of colours for the dry brushing (probably about 5-6) and voila, worthy of a video! Three Bridge Valley Stone Bridge build Video Watch to the bitter end for the outtakes!

The stayed cable bridge has been fully cabled, the deck is made and prepared for all the cables. Stone bridge has one side completely covered. All 5 steel bridges are made and painted. First, the stone bridge, a look at the brickwork, rolled on with texture roller. Applied when soft to the underside.The corner stones are laid on after and grooved. This is the back (unseen side) that serves as the first go, I have yet to tackle the other side. I am not sure I like the corner sides sticking out proud (it was a quick fix to lay DAS on, after the sides had been applied). I have yet to decide if I can stomach routing out a rebate into the brick after laying the brick, although I could do it by cutting when soft when I lay the bricks on the other side. Yes I know the bricks ain't very even, but this was a test. Obviously rolling the pattern is good on a flat surface, but moving it to the bridge, inevitably allows stretch and misshaping before it lands! I am not sure that rolling on the bridge won't produce an undulating surface !

So just to complicate my life further, to add to the many workbench projects currently on the go, I have now embarked on the third module of my layout. It is not a contiguous module, just a random one, but a highly complex build, so I am doing it now, in anticipation of incorporating it into the grand scheme when I get a room/house big enough to accommodate the final layout! So, first of all, you need to understand my love of bridges, second the layout was always designed to be two levels to allow for as many bridge/tunnels as possible. Having seen many exhibition and Youtube examples of a layout section that is much lower than the main surface, I decided I should have one. It will be incorporated in the final design later (I will MAKE it fit! ) but at present. will be standalone. It will consist of a sandstone cliff on the left, with a canal by its side at minus 300mm level, a road running parallel to it and a river slightly lower defining the bottom of the valley, with the opposite side of the valley being a gentle slope. Over these will be a road stone arched bridge (completely scratch built) at a minus 200mm level, emanating from a tunnel in the cliff, then winding up the slope back up to board level (0mm) on the right. A modified bow steel bridge (half kit half scratch) will cross at board level from the cliff edge to midway and a further two sets of lower arch steel bridges will span the other half to meet the right board. A completely bespoke scratch build 'Cable-stayed' bridge will span the two boards with a small overlap at each end, at a 100mm level and will be 1,200mm long! (yes, 4 feet long!)

A Merry Xmas and a Happy new year to you all

I was watching a video on youtube of a really great layout , when it twigged it was a live broadcast. Being Saturday, it then twigged that it was not far from me and open on Sunday too! So I went! Even better in person, so here is my video, but YOU are too late to go!

I completely forgot that there are two video's to go with the build

Paul The numbers can be anything you want, I just type them in the orange box! Let me know the type you want and the numbers and I will add them P.S. There are already 12 numbers available per type.

I went to the Wrexham Hobbies and Model Railway Show today. I took some video and loaded to Youtube, but as usual, it was a buying session. These days I don't tend to buy much at shows, I have enough rolling stock, so it is usually more the modelling side I pick up. This year I found a few bargains. Some coaches that are for a (secret) scratch build project, at £3 a pop and 120 metal wheels loose in a box for 30p each! Result!!! That means I think I now have enough wheels to electrically light my whole coach stock!