TimberSurf

I have updated the Lumsdonia website and now have three quarters of the links page populated

The vast majority of tarps where black, just two exceptions of yellow and light blue for china clay. The point of the three samples in first post, was to demonstrate that I can achieve any design and colour. My main reference is Goods & Not So Goods If you go to the webpage Lumsdonia pdf download shop page, and click on any tarp, you can see/download the actual pdf's

You are correct, they probably were not blue! Those 3 are are just experiments, to demonstrate what is possible. I might change Lumsdonia ones to mauve! lol. I do not know what GWR looked like or if they ever existed, I think they were just GW as seen here

The concept It was mentioned on another forum about making Tarps available, that may not be in the range of the current commercially available, like "Roger Smiths Tarps" The request was aimed at those that have some skills in desktop publishing, assuming that a graphics or visio type software would be able to reproduce the image and print to a pdf, for distribution to the masses. I considered that it would involve some work for that individual to create each design as a one off and would require similar effort to produce a second design and so on. It struck me (being that Excel is my strongpoint) that this could not only be created in a spread sheet just as easily, but could also be programmed to create all the variables that could be specified and automatically update size, proportions, colour, shape, font, etc ,etc by simply typing in instructions This means that one Excel spreadsheet could be made, that any individual could use to make any variety of different tarps at will. Having the skills and a website that it could be downloaded from and a need for some special "Lumsdonia" sheets, it seemed obvious that I would have to have a go! The design Initial population of repeating text was easy. Then a bit of research was needed to learn how to programmatically change the variables with VBA. Most were straight forward and the basic shape and manipulation were done. The biggest problem was to make the 'North' (top) bunch of text to be "upside down". There are sites that can do it as a one off, but I needed it entirely in the spreadsheet. There is no way to do it Excel and no font available either. More by fluke than anything else, as my research on google basically said it was not possible, I remembered a clever trick I had used before (a long time ago when making xmas place cards for the dinner table) and managed to get it to work. The Basic version The program now works, it is only basic, but can alter all dimensions, text content, font type, font size and overall colour. Excel is quite querky when it comes to printing and as such is not good at printing to real scale dimensions, it's designed more easily to fit to a page by scaling. Plotters are equiped with scale correction so that acurate plots can be made at 1:1, but printers usually don't have that feature. This means that although I have set up the spread sheet to be configured in millimeters, the actual print tends not to come out at the same size. To compensate for this issue and the fact that every printer has different attributes, I have put in a width and height factor in,so that if prints are measured, the error in size can be adjusted by tweaking the factors. The Result So obviously it works..... and having printed a few off, duly scrunched and fitted, they look remarkably good! (far better than I had hoped for) I obviously have a good printer, because even the black (although a bit soggy) has full coverage with no lines like you used to get on printers years ago. Conclusion The VB is a little unstable, so I have decided not to release the excel file, its probably beyond most to manipulate it anyway, so I am simply creating tarps as pdf's and releasing those to my website. Its a small range at the momment and still needs a lot of development, as I have little info to go on and the the correct sizes and fonts are unknown. Please please give me feedback, if like them, think they are rubbish or just plain wrong (in which case let me know why so I can fix them. Lumsdonia pdf download shop page Or am I just wasting my time? Does anyone want them/find use?

Never thanked you about your comment on the website before, but have now and if you revisit, there's even more to read through! I was loathe to posts pics nearly 3 years ago, as the layout had been ripped up and there was little to photograph, now there is 2ft x 12ft's worth, it seems appropriate to post. Larger set are on my site gallery, but here are a few:-

Web page is now live for some sample tarpaulins Shop

10 months have passed and the two boards are more or less finished (see Gallery). I have run out of space, so I am developing some idea's about animation (see Video) and making dioramas that can be placed on the layout once built. I have also updated the Lumsdonia website and now have a links page and several Tips pages. I have created a program to automate the creation of wagon load tarpaulins, once designed, they can printed as a pdf. I will add a new Shop webpage in the next few weeks were they can be downloaded. You can see the samples here

Under development:- Static smoke - done PC controlled static lighting - done Servo bracket with two microswitches - done MP3 player local sound - done Frame construction, underlay is EPDM, Code 100 electrofrog trackwork, bus power with block sections for DCC and block detection, servo motor driven points mounted on home designed pro bracket, control by Megapoints, - done Fit led's to 40 buffers - 20 done Buy and fit Heljan turntable - done 7 track road bridge in Linka - begun Two 6ft long platform - not started

Been a while since last post, a lot has happened . Mostly not good news! I have abandoned the grand scheme, temporarily. I have come to the conclusion that my retirement plan to build a huge railway, simply wont happen in my current abode. So pointless continuing to build as designed (as in, to fit a particular room). So I do not know what shape the final room will be (in a house we have yet to buy in the not near future) so cannot commit to a fixed design. In aid of selling the house, the railway room has not been decorated for 20 years, bit overdue and needs to be fresh to enable sale. So I ripped up phase 1 and dumped it at the skip (it had a flaw of steep inclines anyway). Completely refurbished and decorated the room (I know have plush carpet to drop solder on!) Revision 2 of Lumsdonia is theoretically the same, except it will now be re-designed in stages and built in (manageable) disconnect able modules (like an exhibition layout). Thus I have taken the main station and shunting yard as the starter and begun construction of two 6ft 6in x 2ft boards. Years of research and development can now be deployed, Frame construction is deep and lightweight, underlay is EPDM, Code 100 electrofrog trackwork, bus power with block sections for DCC and block detection, servo motor driven points mounted on home designed pro bracket, control by Megapoints, NCE controller, Under development:- Static smoke PC controlled static lighting Servo bracket with two microswitches

SHMD - re:- "maintenance/access", as all experienced layout builders will know, even the most detailed 3D plan, wont actually get built like that! Trial and error during the build will tweak elements that cant be perceived even in the best plans! The hill at the top right may well have a lift out/hinged top and I envisage a hole underneath for my head and hands as a chamfer off the board underneath in the corner, the only concern is the up line from storage at the very bottom (behind the viaduct/bridges) as the storage yard will be in the way to access from underneath. Not worried! I am an Industrial Design Engineer! If needs be, I'll build a trapeze harness and channel crane track overhead and fly over the layout! 8) Steve O - Not getting it, is half the point! I want the viewer (of the top boards) not to understand were the hell all these different trains keep coming from? All action, constant stream of (I'm guessing) about 6 trains running round at a time, but never seem to be the same ones? Phase 1 = Middle board (Body in white built) Phase 2 = All boards and track Phase 3 = Motorising of points on main layout then storage yard points Phase 4 = Block control automation on layout then block control of storage and eventually auto issuing of trains as a sequence from storage deck

I am an Electrical Engineer with a large house and a departed family, heading toward my twilight years, I am re-invoking my long lost hobbies of electronics and model railways. I built my first layout in the 70’s in a shed in the garden, a 6ft x 4ft effort that started the ball rolling while i was at school. The second incarnation was an end to end affair some 15ft long by 18ins wide in my friends loft. The third was a rehash of the seconds boards in my siblings house. There was then a pause for the fairer sex, marriage and a family. Next came the resurgence in the form of a new layout at my current abode, with some influence that it was for “the little ones”, a 16ft long by 30in wide board was erected. The little ones became big, and I was persuaded to relinquish the spare room for teenager “personal space”. Eventually they wanted “personal space” and moved out! The room once again became the train room and soon a new 10ft 6in by 4ft layout was constructed, on the premise it was for the “little one”, a later addition! That was 8 years ago! Work away from home has given me little time to indulge my hobbies at home, but has been a means of giving spare time to buy huge quantities of stock and materials to create a monster layout! Recent events have allowed me time to design phase 2 and I have started documenting it in my website www.lumsdonia.co.uk Happy to field any questions comments good or bad.