Charlie_k

Thanks for the kind comments, I've had a lot of bits for a long time and it's starting to come together now.

Completed most of the hard standings, gaps to be filled and some edges to complete. Cleared up stray ballast and thought about adding a goods platform... Factory at the far end just short of entrance to the fiddle yard (such that it is). The control panel linked to a cobalt ads8. Switches are wired to operate pairs if necessary, 2 or 5 will operate both points Still not sure about the location of the buildings, warehouse windows and retaining walls interfere. Haven't really thought about the back edge yet. Just going to bite the bullet and get on with it. Thanks for looking.

It's been a long time since I posted, the layout has progressed, but is still some way from completion. The track was laid, not without issues and the learning curve has been steep at times. Peco solenoids are controlled from a control panel and NCE powercab. I finally understand how electrofrog points work, the back scene was painted a couple of weeks back and have been placing the hard standings for the buildings. The warehouse has been dropped at the moment and the factory became a practice piece, it's not fixed yet as things change as more is added. The last electrics will probably be a bus for tapping off for leds, not much really but if I don't allow for it now I'll probably regret it in a while. Tomorrow the paving will be finished, I'll extend the led feed along the back scene, and drop the baseboard back down onto the bench, at the moment it's precariously balanced on 2 boxes to allow access underneath and at long last I can attack the rest of the buildings. I might almost know what I'm doing by the time it's finished... Thanks for looking.

Looking at the LEDs I'd collected and opted for some that looked right. Glued one on the back wall that will be out of sight and powered up on a suitable voltage. Will add in a suitable resistor later to allow all lights to run off the same voltage. Put in an electric arc circuit at the other end as a temporary measure and may fix in permanently. Got distracted by some LEDs that could be used as a close replacement for locos without too much hassle, painted one black to block leaks and will clean off the lens later. They look slightly too big, but could be easier than a fibre optic. Thanks for visiting.

Couple of hours in on this, same modifications as the warehouse so far, new window sills, space made for a potential office if I open the door later, scalescenes concrete platform texture used on roof gutters, new corner edging and windows lightly weathered with powders before a matt spray. Seems a good time to add led lighting, so that will be next. This is a well thought out kit. Should have this finished by Wednesday all being well in between other jobs around the house. Thanks for visiting.

It's been busy at work but I've tried to keep up the progress. The warehouse is close to completion after several setbacks including putting the main roof section on wrong way up, so all the tiles were upside down, the air was blue when I spotted that! Built the side loading dock and strengthened the inside. Moved on to the baseboard, which was a 6ft X 18in plywood base on a pine frame built at the end of summer 2 years ago. I want to operate from the front so opted for a sliding fiddle yard at one end. This took some time, Hadid Robinson was the main advisor on this. For some reason I wanted it removable to use on future projects. Aligning the sections was a pain, and much time was spent Aligning them partway through. Should have realised earlier that I'd rotated the yard through 180 degrees at some point. At least I did before continuing with modifications. Been leafing through a stack of magazines for inspiration on a plan, and going to test some out this afternoon, and a metcalfe small factory is now on the bench, Circuits are still under construction, should be beginning to connect soon. Now that the holiday is here, got to balance the layout with decorating. Thanks for visiting.

Still on with this, wasn't happy with how it was going so combined the two and put on a new roof. Looking to use it to disguise entry to the fiddleyard down the left side. Baseboards going into the garage tomorrow, may lay some track and begin wiring. Weathering not complete and some details... Looks like a little extra glue may be needed...

Work got in the way for a while there. Began to convert the second half of the warehouse to provide a (possible) entry/exit point. Removed the pitched roof and reorganised the remaining walls, resized the floors and added a couple of loading bays. Roof took some working out, but I knew those Technical Drawing lessons on true length would come in useful one day.Still some capping and details to go to match the rest. The circuit for lights and sound control has been designed, simulated and tested. It appears to work, at least virtually. Push buttons will begin a series of instructions to control a sequence of lights or the sound. The mask isn't too big. Hoping to get this made this week for soldering over half term. Going to build a small amplifier to provide the 2 speakers from the MP3, will probably buy a kit given the low cost, and the time it would take me isn't worth it. Thanks for visiting. Charlie

Thanks Mikkel. I'm looking for potential operations for this warehouse so I can add a bit more 'life' to it. At the moment it's a bit Heath Robinson but it's getting there I hope.

Sorry, no photos yet. Decided to kitbash the twin and spent a while considering what to do to make an entry/exit to the fiddle yard. Windows are in and removed a few for doors. Door frames are in and I'm working on a dock. Windows that were too low have been bricked up. A major decision to split the front vertically to make a lower-relief facility didn't pay off so well, and I'm worried it simply looks like half the building is missing. I think a change of roof should solve this now though. The bridge has been made, but may end up in the spares pile. Shame as I was happy with the re-made supports. We're working on a hobbies room at the moment, desks and cupboards arrive at the weekend so it's a little slow at the moment. Had an idea for lighting using a programmable controller (PIC). Working on a design with 8 possible outputs with selectable sequences for different times of day. Although I would like DCC sound, it's out of range at the moment. As a get around, I think I could use an MP3 player with a suitable set of sound files and make a stereo amplifier. The speakers of the amp can be connected through relays and operated by the PIC. I can then position one speaker at each end of the layout. By activating the left, then both, then right (or programming any sequence) I should be able to make the sound appear to be moving, or at least coming from different areas. Going to create a circuit board tomorrow. Thanks for visiting. Charlie

Yesterday morning I had a while to sit and get closer to finishing this. Mustn't get too excited, that makes 2 complete kits in 20 years, but I think that all the reading in between has paid off. Dug out some rod and stared at it for a bit before deciding what to do. Forming the supports was a bit touch and go at times. Still got a few tidying up jobs to do with touching in and weathering, a couple of raw edges, some glue spots and a couple of windows to re-glaze. Learnt a lot doing this, made plenty of mistakes. Still looks a little flat on the front (the windows?), but it might work up with some powders. The cross ties keep dropping off, but I think I'll get them sorted eventually. Got to decide on signage as well, but that's for another day! I'm aiming to finish this one tonight, then starting on the other half and bridge. Far more ledges on the twin, got to improve the cutting/folding jig a bit. Thanks to everyone that has visited and responded, it really helped push me on. Second one should be a piece of cake...I wish.

Used some scalescenes sheets for changing the roof details, Added some details based on the previous photos. 5 minutes with plastic strip. Front section looked like it was bowing in so I cut a piece of plastic to fill top and bottom. Cross ties added and a bit of weathering. Had to stop for poor light. Drainpipes tomorrow, will experiment with making some signs, weathering then better start thinking about what to do with the rest of the kit. Thanks for looking.

Took a walk around town for ideas on drainpipes and other features...

The window frames are very white out of the packet, so added a dusting of a grey/green weathering powder before spraying with matt varnish. Put in the first pair before reading the instructions and having to pull them out to add the recess. Didn't like the corner stones in the kit so did a swap for something I thought was a bit more in scale. Continued on a roll and repainted the door frames to match the window frames. Stone door lintels suffer the same alignment issues as the windows, so these were replaced. The folded edge is left uncovered as standard, so will add the same edging to cover it after opening it up to allow fitting. Doors, roof, caping stones, drainpipes to follow.

Welcome to my blog. Hopefully by the time I'm finished there will be something to show for my efforts. Due to work and being a carer for an ill relation, my time is often short and for a long time, nothing I have started has been finished. I've had several loco's for some years (a pannier, 08 and now an 03), and a baseboard 6 feet x 18 inches. I've wandered around York show for many years seeing some great work and felt I couldn't match the work shown there. Several false starts have been made, and this might be another, but hey ho! Does it matter? This year I bought a NCE powercab at the show with the intent of making a start and decided to go for card modelling. It means I can build wherever I'm required to be without bothering about paint on the lounge carpet! Last week I converted a wooden tray to a modelling board that can be carried around the house and located all the tools I've been collecting that may be useful. For good or bad, I began with a a Metcalfe warehouse, and was pleasantly surprised. There are some obvious issues, but work began and progress has continued this week. Job 1: The print gets progressively out of line compared to the cuts across the parts. Made a small jig and remade the sills. All sills were completed, windows next.