mac1960

Well a quick further update of walling which is ongoing a pace helped by the unseasonable weather which gas delayed the 1to1 real drystone walling that Richard is doing when not doing N gauge walling.

I was at Uni in Sheffield late 70,s and witnessed occasional 50,s on trains heading up to NE and Scotland, presumably when something had gone wrong at loco change in Birmingham. I probably witnessed 2 or 3 per year, so not common, and they were always north bound in my experience but still in Blue all over livery. Cheers

Well a brief apology for lack of progress photos recently. Down to two reasons work in my case, and working on 1to1 scale for Richard ie his house. Anyway we are back to it, and as you can see we are still playing with the Drystone walls, and the various scales, and trying to get the look right. It would have been ideal if we could have some 3mm wall, but alas not yet available so back to cork ! The critical thing is getting it right to the eye, and in particular the walls running towards the viewer. We think this may have been solved now, though I have ordered another pack of 00 walling from Osbourne's, which should allow us to complete all the walling. The Barns have still to be detailed as you can see, and trees added, but I think you can start to see the plan of the walling taking place. The thing to remember is the fields are very large up there, so they form a major part of the landscape, hence us trying to make sure we do this right. So for structures there are still 3 barns to build, and 1 nr slew bridge and a loading dock, then a lot of grass to apply, but moving along again. I think we will be looking at spring for completion due to other commitment's for both of us, but will keep posting updates as we go, and would be glad to hear any comments good or bad on what you see.

Some further updates. Currently trying to get coloration and textures correct according to Richard as you can see from photos below. The moraine and barn wall samples look very good and leaving it with him to decide re stone work on the barn as to which to go for. I will post more when further progress evident but all looks good so far and we are both very pleased how its shaping up.

As you can see from the attached Barn or rather its shell its footings are being planted into the ground, which is as buildings are in reality (I work in construction so it is one of the things I need to see on a model). This barn caused Richard to swear little he tells me, as it sits across the slope and the structure it is planted on is curved bowed board (deliberate ) underneath. Under that is the fiddle yard so the barn had to have a base to mimic the curved land form which caused some issues apparently ! The two other barns on this slope are far easier as are smaller, and built in a North South profile if you see this one as being West to East as you view this model from a Westerly perspective. So left to build, are 3 barns and one slew bridge then Richard has a lot of walling to plant, and quite a bit of Grass and hedging, though he tells me once the buildings and bridge are completed the hard part is over !! I am not sure, as I am not sure any part of this build is easy as we have set ourselves some challenges, and real world issues have intervened to some degree, but maybe he is right, fingers crossed.

Just had these sent to me. As we discussed we are moving the HO tree further up slope as discussed previously and it really works rather well we think. We ae going to move it out of the Limestone Moraine as you would not get trees of that size growing in that environment but we have definitely found where we want to use it 👍

Well I have some more photos of Horton progress for you. Basically we have been playing with the positioning of barns and trees and scales thereof, and it is critical that we get this right to pull the whole thing off. You can see from some of the photos the idea behind what we are about, and also the picture looking down the line shows how wrong the scale is but the model will never be viewed from that side. You will be constrained to look into the model by the staging, which will make it look like you are viewing a stage or maybe peering through a letter box so to speak. Also w have extended the cattle dock by a further section which was a little drama in itself and worth a bit of a chat about. Also I should point out that the camera does lie as the trees as are not as big in reality as they appear on the screen below, and also we will be cutting down the size of the lateral moraine in the foreground. We all know that N Gauge detailing on locomotives and stock is getting ever more detailed and life like, so why are some of the buildings, (and this cattle dock is a case in point) becoming chunkier and less life like. The original cattle docks I purchased had copper railings as you can see, and look reasonably life like. These have been substituted for some heavy gauge plastic none fencing in current models and is undoubtedly a step backwards. The result was a frantic e-bay trawl for one of the earlier types which thankfully I managed to find. We are building up a stock of surplus buildings as there is a farm, and cattle dock in N Gauge and also a barn in 00 now !! Anyway I am away again so it will be after the coronation before there will be any further updates, so enjoy the Bank Holidays you lucky devils.

Well after a interesting weekend its back to work. Anyway on the plus side the walls have arrived, and Richard has those, as well as picking up some stuff from the York show when I was there on Monday helping out with Staly Vegas. As many of you may not have seen this model I have attached some photos below taken yesterday. Horton is basically Staly Vegas on steroids, or at least we hope so !!

Well a quick update as just had these sent to me on progress as still away. As you can see first Slew Bridge in position, and the first tree and a bit of wall making an appearance. I hope to be back in UK this weekend so maybe able to get some more photos, though Richard is tinkering with Stalyvegas as it is at the York Show this coming weekend, as indeed am I on the Monday giving him a hand, so dont expect much more progress. So if you are there you can ask me on Monday or Richard about this project or indeed Stalyvegas.

There has been a glitch in wall delv as it had not arrived from Osborne’s as they had not got enough in for my order. They have sent it but unfortunately I have left for the Middle East so that part of the build will be on hold pending my return in early April.

A bit more progress on Land forms this week. Just got some indicative bridge profile in for slew bridges. The walling has not yet arrived from Osbourne's but could have been disrupted with the snow we had up here on Friday. The HO Sycamore is ordered with Treemendouse, and looking to have that in early April all being well. We have identified a suitable barn and enclosure to model for the hillside to build in HO, the existing 00 one was just to prove the concept and will not be on the layout as it is just a tad too large. Anyway all going the right way.

I believe I said on here from people I know on the project, that it will either go to Manchester or Euston, but will not go to both. This project is a runaway train, and nobody was aware how to put the brakes on or showed the slightest sign earlier of even trying to find switches or leaver. This is a forced response from treasury and other parties. I will be surprised if it reaches Manchester in my lifetime. This may turn about to be a new GC if prices for tickets are not the same or cheaper than alternative existing routes which I don’t suspect they will be.

Orders placed with Osborne’s for walling and gates etc. I have to say nice people to do business with and our wind-blasted Sycamore is ordered with Treemendous another supplier I would strongly recommend from the work they did on the N gauge trees 18 months ago.

I am not sure HS2 will get any further than Crew at best. Indeed the cost overruns are of such a magnitude that they may even have to can that, even if works started already, a bit like M60 for those living in the NW. The fall in passenger traffic being marked. I went to London last week from Wakefield at a cost of £485 open return in 1st class. I pay nothing like that in Germany for a similar journey.

A little more progress this week. Decision time on how we exit the scenic area was agreed. So we are going for two slew bridges. I know in reality you would probably not get a slew bridge built for an occupation bridge, but there are some slew road bridges on the S&C , and its far better than a hole in the sky. We did look at the possibility of an Aqueduct, but thought a slew bridge would be better, and the symmetry would be quite pleasing to the eye. We are moving rapidly away from the original idea of a model of Horton in Ribblesdale, but it will have the feel of the place, and the S&C in general we hope. The hill side to the right on the first picture will have a lot of drystone walling and a Barn, the later being in 3mm probably with a sheep enclosure and Sycamore tree with a slight lean to it maybe. The drystone walling in this location will be in 00 scale, the rest in N Gauge. So a large order for Osbournes / Laser cut on Tuesday ! Cheers Mac

Laser cut Drystone wall arrived today in 00 and N Gauge for trial works. I have to say they look really well, but a bit daunting as to how many meters will be required as basically the models main ingredients are Grass, Drystone walling, Barns, and Victorian Gothic Railway Architecture and some Sycamore trees as every Yorkshire Farm house has one ! Cheers Mac

After a break for house decorating, Horton is back underway as you can see. The hill side has been constructed, and the setting out of some buildings has been tentatively agreed. As you can see we have had to come away from the original scheme of building Horton in reality, as there just is not the depth available in the room into which it will finally live. The cattle dock will move further to the left away from the signal box and the barns will move around the hill side a little yet, until we are happy with them. However the Station buildings, Station Masters House, Railway cottages and Goods shed will be in these positions as shown on the photos. The next big test is dry stone walling. I have some samples on the way from Osbourne in 2mm and 4mm. The reason for the two scales is to give perspective. The Barn in the foreground is OO and we are experimenting with this currently. It maybe we will have to build on in HO scale as OO maybe a tad big but we will see. Anyway just glad to have work underway as this model has been in the planning stage for around 14 years, HS2 was quicker !!! Cheers Mac

I think the sidings were a small hump yard for sorting East bound coal traffic. There were similar sidings at Mytholmroyd on Calder valley route doing the same job, and shut about the same time. Noyt sure when the route up to Hepworth iron works shut but I think that was a private line with a link closer to Hazelhead. My Grandfather used to occasionally take steam trains over there pre electrification and always claimed in bad snow it was the "Devils own job " to see the distant signal in that location , why I do not know, and sadly never will.

Northmoor Sorry I was typing on my phone while at an airport, and easy to miss some typos. I live in West Yorkshire when in the UK, and Munich is where my company is based, and where I also live, though main house is in West Yorkshire. My only rail journey on a regular basis is from Wakefield to London. The drive from my house to Wakefield can take an hour depending on time of day. The nearest railway station is in Slaithwaite about 2 miles away, but it is quicker to drive to Wakefield to catch London trains. I could catch the Great Central train from Brighouse which is about 7 miles away, but parking is not very secure, and infrequent service. All of our friends and associates who do similar journey's from up here, all drive to Wakefield or indeed Leeds for London trains and I am not aware of anybody using a train from that group to go anywhere else by rail in the UK. I am well aware of how world cities work as I have lived in a number including central London, and my comment is really based on the full journey time, not just the bit on the train. Also if HS2 follows the effect that Lyon had when TGV opened you, will find a number of regional offices shutting as they moved to Paris and in this case it would be London. As for Ports the fact that Felixstowe, Thamesport, Medway ports, and Southampton are all roughly in the SE and this puts more strain on infrastructure. Using Rotterdam , Bremen or Hamburg is not really an issue but routing containers on a world wide basis is just a factor of routing them differently. Most countries in Scandinavia do not have direct access to Transatlantic or Far East trade and it does not appear to substantially cause them issues. As you say a 40ft box ex Shanghai to Southampton was £4k and leapt to spot market £18k but now back to nearly normal. I am not sure half of the UK population lives within 90min of central London either, as 90 min by what train , car , truck, definitely by plane, but by other forms of transport and given congestion I am not sure ?

I think one of the points missed in this whole thing is that very few people who commute say to London, from where ever, do not live in the cities from where they travel with the probable exception of London / Greater London out to the province's. On my trips to London depending on the time of day it can take me an hour just to get to the start of my journey. As for the comments of using high speed rail into Europe from anywhere North of London dream on. London is part of the problem in its geographical position within the UK, and the way it sucks resources both human and material towards it. The building of the new Thames Gateway port in the same area appears to me an act of lunacy, as we have put more container and road traffic into an area of the country already under pressures on both road and rail.

I have a friend working on HS2 on the commercial side and they think the line may get to Euston it if it does it will not be going to Manchester as the costs are too high. Also there is apparently a “book” going on what the final cost will be and nobody on the building team except it to be remotely close to latest figures, they are just wishful thinking. It will get completed at some stage and at some cost. However if it is anything other than a glorified extension to the Metropolitan line is open to conjecture. As for travelling into Europe I am based in Yorkshire working for a Munich based company, and use flights on a regular basis to Europe and further afield but train use in UK is strictly to London, and savings of 20 min would make no difference to me.

We have had to make some changes due to space constraints so Horton will not be able to be Horton as originally planned. The track plane will be Horton, and it will be on a valley side but we are unable to get the depth required to run the houses down the street away from the station and into the valley bottom, so will have to change this and will be introducing a road bridge on the northern side, and an occupation green lane bridge to the south. But the room into which it is going is not deep enough, so compromises have to be made as always with railway modeling it seems. However on the plus the landforms are laid out and progress being made. We are looking to build a run down barn in 3mm closer to the viewing area to perspective as well. I will get some photos next time I am buy the layout so you can see progress hopefully. Incidentally the gentleman doing the scenic modelling is Richard Stott who has done a lot of work on the Mills Bridge N / 2mm gauge layout with Huddersfield Railway Modelers, but also did Staly Vegas which was featured in the N Gauge magazine, and will be at York this year. I will be there on Monday at York to help him with this as well, so may see some of you there. Another thing is that we will have to come up with a new project name, as it will not be like Horton. Richard said we could have called it Horton but Not if it was GWR ! so suggestions welcome ! Cheers Mac

Well another update in the same year which is a recent record ! Horton is now re-erected and scenic work due to begin in the next week or so !!! I will post photos when there is something tangible to show, Cheers Mac

Well another year, and more excuses for lack of progress, all work related which is good in away, as the health issues I had have been successfully resolved, and all in all I have had one of the best years of my life in many perspectives, however Horton has not been one of these successes unfortunately. However the layout is now re erected and scenic work will be commencing in the New Year, so we maybe able to show something in the summer, but we will have to see, but all buildings, trees and walls are ready and bridge nearly completed. All stock has been weathered, and I just await the arrival of a Firth of Clyde Brit to complete locos. I did think about doing the Conder freight although the Metrovicks, had gone by my period, and the train was running with double headed CL24 but I baulked at the north of £500 for 27 wagons !! Anyway watch this space as they say !! Happy New Year to you all. Cheers Mac