Defford

On 30/01/2021 at 00:14, Railtunes said:

Yet another Kyle fan, here in California, USA - and in N gauge as well.

Hi Paul. I've just replied to your PM re. the buildings. Yes, I recognise the track plan. Interchangeable scenery is a novel idea!

On 12/02/2021 at 01:31, Railtunes said:

A couple of photos, both from the Am Baile website, to support the use of the 2-6-4T tank engines on the line during the reconstruction of the turntable at Kyle in 1946.

Yes, I'd come across those before. Farish do a model of a Fairburn 2-6-4T which I think is the prototype shown here, so adding one of those to the fleet is a possibility.

On 12/02/2021 at 01:31, Railtunes said:

These would be for the short coal truck spur and show that it was in place at least by mid-1946, as there was no prior track in that orientation.

There's a bit of discussion about that somewhere on the thread. I haven't decided whether to modify my layout to add it yet.

Your replies have reminded me that I should post an update on here soon - I haven't done for ages but the layout is progressing.

On 09/09/2020 at 21:39, David Bell said:

That is looking brilliant. Sunday was the first time I had been in Kyle since 1979.

I used to work on SRPS railtours  and during the summers then I was there every other week or so, alternating with Mallaig. That is almost a lifetime ago.

Keep up the gòod work

Cheers

David

Thanks David. Must have been interesting to visit Kyle after that length of time. I'm sure it was hard work, but alternating trips to Kyle and Mallaig sounds like it could have its rewards. Not sure if you were ever at Kyle while freight operations were still going on but I got sent this link the other day - the last 45 seconds shows some rail to ship transfers going on:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1773455772921291/permalink/2432299610370234/

Building a model crane is on the to-do list for the layout. A working model would be a challenge!

On 06/09/2020 at 17:02, David Bell said:

Coincidentally I was  Kyle today.

It is not the station it was but still has something about it.

Cheers

David

Thanks for that David. Yes, Kyle station is a shadow of its former self in some ways but at least it's still there. Your timing is spot on as I've been meaning to post an update.

I bought 'Rails to Kyle of Lochalsh' by David McConnell recently and it seems a few different writers thought the station building 'commodious' when the line first opened (there's a word you don't see any more!) My slightly less commodious version of it is nearly done - some tidying up to do and details to add but the structure it more or less complete:

Chimneys, flashing, signage and posters to add next.

Meanwhile, some trees have sprung up near the loch:

These are a mix of Woodland Scenics 'Ready Made Value Pack' trees and some pricier birches from themodeltreeshop.co.uk. The WS trees looked a bit naff straight out of the box but work quite well when you group several together. Need to add some pines for a more Scottish look I think.

Adrian.

Thanks all for helping me out. Sounds like it's most probably D282 and certainly one of the shorter Gresley brake vans.

10 hours ago, robertcwp said:

GWR and SR designs at Kyle in this image.

Great picture, thanks. There's more variety on the Kyle line than I had thought. I suppose the general pool of BR vehicles spread over the country as time went on.

10 minutes ago, chrisf said:

It is a BG of LNER parentage, clearly designed under Gresley.

 

Chris

Aha, thanks Chris. I'm not familiar with LNER designs. Kyle line photos from this era tend to feature ex-LMS or BR stock. Seems like it might be the luggage brake van described on this page: https://www.steve-banks.org/prototype-and-traffic/279-lner-npcs-61-6-thompson-deal-bg

Hi all,

I've just purchased the print below, probably taken in the early 1960s. It's evidently a type 2 at Kyle of Lochalsh with a mixed parcel/passenger train but does anyone know what type of vehicle is coupled directly behind the loco?

Adrian.

Thanks again for the positive comments.

The station building is taking shape. This is to be a half relief model against the back scene. Same technique as the engine shed - drawing up sections of wall (in FreeCAD), 3D printing them, painting, cladding in plastikard (will be 2mm planking in this case) and assembling as a kit of parts.

Here's a screenshot of one of the wall sections in FreeCAD:

It's roughly to scale - about 450mm long in all. I've now printed all 8 sections and glued plasticard internal walls/roof supports:

Still the roof, canopy, doors and other details to do and I'm also wondering what colour scheme to paint it in. It seems to have been two-tone green and cream/brown in the past but I'm not sure of dates. Favouring cream/brown at the moment to match the signal box.

Adrian.

2 hours ago, bcnPete said:

Looking fab again.

 

BTW, nothing bad about those ‘wrong era’ locos...they look perfect to me 

Thanks Pete. The more I think about it the more I like the idea of a sort of 'Kyle through time' concept. (i shan't be demolishing the engine shed though!)

Hi all,

It's been a long time since I last posted but progress on the layout has been slow lately. Still, I have just finished the side office for the engine shed which is now complete except for smoke vents.

As per the main body of the shed, I've used a 3D-printed 'kit of parts' approach:

These pieces get clad in embossed plastikard with etched brass windows sandwiched between layers plus some filler around inevitable gaps. The stonework then gets painted with acrylics before assembly and addition of roof and chimneys. Here's the end result:

I have also added limited clearance warning signs (which applies to the model as much as the real thing!) and soot marks above the door openings.

A wider angle shot with a Black 5 on shed:

It's a long-winded method but it works. Planning to do the station building in a similar way.

Meanwhile I have reworked the hills on a section of back scene - an improvement but think I need to tone down the greens a bit:

I couldn't resist buying another 'wrong era' loco that came up on ebay . This time a Farish class 24 in blue. It's a good runner and looks the part.

Finally here's an experiment with evening light with a type 2 shunting on the pier:

Hope you enjoy,

Adrian.

On 11/05/2020 at 19:00, bcnPete said:

Oooh luvvly stuff - keep em coming like that

 

Got a couple of those coaches myself and just waiting for the observation car to be released.
 

Would be great to see the whole layout with a fleet of large logo 37’s 

Cheers Pete. The Farish 37 is a very nice model so it is tempting, if financially ruinous, to imagine a 'multi-era' layout! Not out of the question though...

I've noticed the observation car on the Farish website too - a bit pricey but I suppose it's something of a niche. I'd actually like to find or build a model of the 'Devon Belle' vehicle that was used on the line in the 50/60s but not sure where to start with that idea.

Hi all, hope you're keeping well.

Progress has slowed recently (busy home-working, for the time being at least), but have been painting hills on the back scene:

You will note the surprising appearance of a class 37 that appears to have travelled back in time to 1960. Of course it's the wrong era for this layout, but a 'Highlander' Farish set came up on eBay at the end of last year and I couldn't resist the chance to buy something specific to the Kyle Line (even if the box refers to it as the 'Far North Line'  ). Will probably run occasionally for variety.

The Loco and coaches are very nicely done and the supplied DCC decoder seems to be high quality. I'm liking the high intensity headlight - photographed below with side-lighting for a sunset effect(!):

Also, just a note about the cassette system I have in case it's of interest. I'm using various lengths of aluminum angle with some 3D printed brackets I devised. These space the inner edges of the angle at 9mm and make for a kind of 'cradle' to carry the rakes in. This one's 500mm long:

Longest one I have is 1 metre and uses 4 brackets - lifting that and turning it around is a dubious undertaking - but generally it works well. The bracket is sized so that the height of the 'rail head' matches that of Peco code 80 when placed on the same level.

The cassette board has a couple of guides and some sprung clips to provide electrical contact:

All the best,

Adrian.

19 hours ago, danstercivicman said:

Speechless!

 

Truly truly stunning!  

7 hours ago, bcnPete said:

That is looking great Adrian! The sea especially so.

You're too kind! Thanks again. I am pleased with the water effect and have a couple of sailing boats on order to complete the scene.

7 hours ago, bcnPete said:

Did you ever consider swapping the rapido’s for DG couplings? It makes such a difference especially the front of the locos...

I hadn't but they look smart, if fiddly. It would be good to have some hands-free shunting on the pier. How much re-engineering does it take to convert a standard Peco wagon for instance?

Hi all. Thanks for the further comments and information. I hope you're having a reasonable Good Friday in the circumstances.

On 07/04/2020 at 10:57, AJCT said:

 

I like this a lot, and will be following your progress with interest.  As well as having had late-1960s family holidays in the area, I was part of the team dismantling the 60' turntable in 1977 for removal to Aviemore on the Strathspey Railway.

I think I read an article in a back number of Railway Magazine which mentioned the use of LMS Class 4 2-6-4T locos on Kyle Line services while the turntable was being replaced.

Tiny tip... yellow snowploughs didn't appear until well into the "Rail blue period", circa 1972 from personal recollection: prior to that they were black/grey/dirt - see the colour pic of the green Type 2 in Portchullin Tatty's post above.

 

Alasdair

Cheers Alasdair. I'm modelling out of historical interest rather than memory and in fact only came to know the Kyle line in the early 2000s so these anecdotes and details are welcome. I guess the shed had been demolished by '77. Did you ever get a ride in an observation coach?

Noted re. the snow ploughs. I may paint them, then again I quite like the yellow!

On 07/04/2020 at 19:55, Portchullin Tatty said:

If Defford is not aware of this book; it is worth it:

[Rails to Kyle of Lochalsh

Thanks, I'll look it up. Looking at your blog again, I've just realised your father wrote 'The Dingwall and Skye Railway' - my compliments on a good read.

Now a quick update. I've spent a bit of time this week tackling some scenic work on the lochside board.

The outcrops are lumps of DAS clay shaped by hand then prodded with a blunt blade. I may add some more height to the rock face on this section. I've given them an acrylic wash and some dry brushing. The sea is a mix of acrylics and will be given a few layers of PVA for a calm or gently rippled effect.

I've also begun on the embankment. This is Woodland Scenics 'Talus' (medium and coarse grades) held in place with Deluxe Tacky Glue. The larger rocks are perhaps slightly out of scale but overall the effect works for me. There's actually a big size difference between medium and coarse and it took a bit of sorting to find the smallest of the latter. The stuff also sounds a bit like fingernails on a blackboard when you handle it!

Think I'll sprinkle on some ballast to cover the gaps. Nearer the line will be some fencing and a bit of greenery. The bridge also needs some tubular guard rails...

This is great info. Thank you.

28 minutes ago, Portchullin Tatty said:

This spur and hut were not in situ in the early BR era but were there by the late 1950s.

Interesting. Seems that steam infrastructure was improved just in time for Diesel! I think I'm going to have to add that coaling spur.

34 minutes ago, Portchullin Tatty said:

Make sure you have a nice grounded coach as a mess room.

Yes, they make an interesting feature. Another job (or two) goes on the list.

20 hours ago, F-UnitMad said:

Yeah, right - get away with yer!!

 

 That sky is brilliant, in my book. Don't put yourself down!!

 

19 hours ago, bcnPete said:

Looks great - sky included!

Thanks chaps! No Turner prize yet but I like the way this hobby gets you trying different things...

19 hours ago, Portchullin Tatty said:

Smashing stiff Adrian.  

 

Always pleased to see models of the Dingwall & Skye lone - but then again I would wouldn't i!?!?

 

I  particularly enjoyed the view of the shed looking over from the turntable; a bit like this view from the Society's collection on Am Baile.

 

You can see my slowly moving efforts to capture a number the same features on my blog or on my RMweb thread here.

 

 

Mark

Cheers Mark. I have seen that picture before and my earlier photo was a sort of reconstruction effort. Am Baile is a good resource.

Great blog and layout you've got there. That tandem point looks the business as do the water towers. I will have to have a proper read some time. I was actually pondering making a start on the coaling platform which looks a quite a rickety affair. That got me wondering how locos were actually coaled at Kyle - buckets and shovels or a crane...?

Also, I realised a little while ago that the LMS added a turnout to one of the engine shed roads to give a short coal wagon siding which I haven't included on my version:

Translated to my layout, that would look like this (new bit in orange box):

Hmmm...it would fit and I even have a spare turnout. Disruptive but worth it?

Some limited progress to report. I have made headway on the third and final section of backscene (although none are complete yet). I've used 3mm ply with white undercoat and then a mix of acrylics on top to produce something like a sky. Not being any kind of painter, this was a bit hit and miss. It's perhaps a bit 'busy' in parts but I'm happy with the effect overall:

I will eventually have a stab at painting the distant hills of Wester Ross to complete the scene.

Meanwhile, here's series of images following D5326 that give further impressions of the layout:

Arriving with the morning service from Inverness.

Idling on shed for a time (the shed is still missing its side office :-( )

Heading back out for the late morning departure.

Getting the return leg up to speed through the cutting.

Well on the the way to Plockton.

And for steam fans, here's 45206 approaching Kyle with a rake of Stanier Crimson and Cream:

Hope you are all well.

Adrian.

Thanks all for the kind words and likes. I will certainly keep posting as things progress.

20 hours ago, bcnPete said:

Thank you too Adrian - yes they are etches available from the 2mm Association.

 

http://www.2mm.org.uk/products/shops.php?shop_num=1

 

Staying tuned to see more progress...

Much obliged Pete - I will check that out.

10 hours ago, scottystitch said:

Yes, excellent modelling.  The Kyle shed layout is instantly recognisable and you've captured the loch side embankment perfectly. Unmistakable as the "Skye Railway".

 

I'm re-rereading John Thomas' book on the line just now and am seriously considering modelling Strome Ferry, just supposing it had remained as the line's terminus.

 

Great work, keep us updated.

 

Best

 

Scott.

Thanks Scott. Good to here from another fan of the Kyle Line. I have the John Thomas book and can also recommend 'The Dingwall & Skye Railway' by Peter Tatlow if you don't already have it. A good read with many photos, large scale maps and some scale drawings. The Stromeferry project sounds interesting...you could perhaps include the cement silos that were installed for a short time in the 1970s if that's your scene.

1 hour ago, Kris said:

That looks fantastic. 

Cheers Kris. I'm envious of the trackwork on your Coombe Viaduct layout. I did consider 2FS or N2 on this layout but chickened out in the end! (Plus already plenty of code 80 to hand). Maybe one day.

Thank you Pete. I'm liking your version of Kyle - you've really captured the essence of the place in a very handy size. May I ask where you sourced the buffer stops? They look ten times better than the Peco equivalent.