Marly51

Langley Models canal figures and accessories arrived in the first mail of the new year! Oops one of my canal boat ladies has only half an arm - planning to remodel one of the carthorses to place them on the steep cobbled wynd. Might be a bit fiddly, but will give it a go. Starting on the main model this week....

I have a large shed/workshop which was custom built for my craftwork and modelmaking, but has inadvertently become a household ‘extension’ to the attic (ie a dumping ground)! It is my resolution to clear it out with ultimatums to family to sort, recycle and/or discard! I have two benches (made from recycled doors) - one at desk height and the second at a comfortable standing height for modelmaking. I have three second-hand wardrobes fitted with shelves for use as cupboards, free standing shelf units and now fixing more wall shelving for handbooks, journals, etc. I want to build a small woodwork bench for miniature work, which will include a lathe, band saw, bench clamp and vertical drill. I would be interested to hear about any hints and tips from forum members for a good modelling workspace. Wishing everyone a Happy ‘Modelling’ Year!

Peter Thomas’s OO Gauge 16.5mm finescale Layout ‘Eaton Gomery’ is probably one of my favourites. It’s length enables the running of realistic long trains. His love of constructing buildings and scenery and accuracy in the detailing means that there is a lot of visual interest whether a train is running through or not. I am also very impressed with numerous micro layouts which really challenge the ability to create a microcosm of a railway period and still achieve some good operating potential. My favourites here include Brant Hickman’s ‘Rorgyle’ and ‘Littleton Curve’.

Hi Ray,It is a while since I had the conversation with my friend in Wales - will check this out. Our new roof was built with the regular large slates and another feature of the Scottish house subjected to high winds is that the overhang at the eaves is minimal, just enough to throw rainwater into the gutter. We have skewed gables which is the other main feature that prevents wind and water lifting the slates. I have a great little reference book in my collection, which has useful information when scratchbuilding traditional Scottish Buildings. Published in 1975 by Famedram - the odd copy may be still available second hand.

My husband bought one of these lamps and finds it an excellent general work light, but as he does most of his work on computer nowadays, only uses the magnifying lense occasionally. Like you, our eyesight is not what it was! Hope you find a good option which suits your way of working? Marlyn

I loved model railways from the minute my cousin set up his immaculate Hornby clockwork trainset on my granny’s kitchen floor, then my dad took my brother and I to our first model railway exhibition in a small hall off the Royal Mile in Edinburgh in the early 1960s, where we were fascinated by a ‘rabbit warren’ continental layout winding and twisting through snow covered mountains. My cousin’s Meccano Magazines had little diorama settings for the latest Dinky Toy vehicles, so when the Triang trainset arrived one Christmas, with the obligatory 6ft x 4ft Sundeala baseboard, we knew we wanted to create a miniature landscape to bring it to life. I appreciate the skills of the miniature engineer, the planning and running of layouts from the simplest ‘inglenook’ to the more ambitious and complex. But for me, I mostly love a layout which tells a story, either accurate historical/contemporary or imaginative representation. Whether the modelmaker is a beginner or an expert the joy is in the making and we, the observers can enjoy the results. Marlyn

I have an original Anglepoise heavy duty magnifying lamp with the ‘ring’ fluorescent tube and it has a superb glass lens. The stand and mountings for wall or desk are all metal and adjustable. I find it quite frustrating that many modern lamps are not fit for purpose, often made with too thin supports. This magnifying lamp was purchased second hand in the 1980s and proved an essential piece of equipment throughout my graphic design career, so I am used to working with it. I sometimes use my husband’s headband magnifier (a recent purchase), but it does get quite warm and I can only use it for short spells - usually while cleaning up and painting miniature plastic figures. Marlyn

This collaboration is great! My illustrator daughter may collaborate with me on some small dioramas, but ours will possibly be more rural. Good to see artistic backdrops which can often be more flexible in interpretation. Marlyn

Well what do you know - join a forum and find out there is a Hobbycraft not too far away. Thanks Liam. We lost our only art supply shop last year, but there’s still a very good model shop in Dingwall. Marlyn

Interesting to read everyone’s take on the challenge. Look forward to seeing your model develop. Inverness Lakeland didn’t have the cake box and we are in the back of beyond, so ordered one online. I know we don’t have to necessarily supply the model in a cake box, but would be good if it needed transporting. Just holding off getting started on the baseboard and scenery until it arrives.

We had our croft house roof re-slated a few years ago and was aware of the diminishishing size of courses in traditional Scottish and Welsh buildings . A friend whose work involves conservation of buildings in the Snowdonia National Park confirmed this and I found this link http://www.buildingconservation.com/articles/scottish-slate-roofs/scottish-slate-roofs.htm which mentions that slates of differing size were utilised to maximise efficiency of quarry output.

Thank you Ben - I am familiar with your layouts based on Thurso, Helmsdale and The Mound, which are wonderful. I also met Stuart Holt when he brought part of his Culrain model North a couple of years ago. It’s a steep learning curve for me and rtr locomotives plus kit wagons and coaches will have to suffice initially for my current projects. I have always admired the miniature modelling and engineering skills of the complete scratch builder, and been lucky to meet some very helpful experts over the years. There weren’t many female modellers back in the 1960s/1970s when I first caught the ‘bug’ but one lady did inspire me - Vivien Thompson - and I still have a copy of her book ‘Period Railway Modelling Buildings’ somewhere on my bookshelf! All the best, Marlyn

At the dolls house fair - Miniatura 2015 - modelmaker, David Wright, ran a demonstration workshop for creating stone textures with DAS clay on Petite Properties Kits. I am mainly working on 2mm scale scratchbuilt models just now and finding card models with paper textures are giving a satisfactory result, especially since I am working to a deadline!

Thanks for the welcome Jeff - I am ‘she’ known as Marlyn

I came across Alphagraphix when I was checking out model railway paper kit suppliers. In due course I would like to have a go at scratchbuilding locomotives and rolling stock in card. An American company Clever Models produces amazing downloadable kits for buildings, locomotives etc. I would like to have a go at designing my own Scottish kits at some point, but too many other projects demanding my attention just now. Looking forward to seeing how your models progress. Marlyn

Thank you - already on it Dava! My daughter had all the gear during her ‘Goth’ phase! She is now a professional illustrator and has also offered to assist with layout backscenes, etc so might be taking her up on that.

Another returning oldie who has childhood memories of travelling by steam train. My particular interest is creating scenery and constructing buildings from mainly paper and card, although I have used Plasticard a lot in the past. I plan to focus on small dioramas and micromodel layouts. Hoping to learn more about the history of steam and Scottish railway companies, locomotives, rolling stock, etc along the way.

Just recently returned to constructing buildings out of paper and card. I downloaded Kingsway’s free kit of ‘Rover’s Return’ as a dry run. I use card made by laminating cereal packet card and construct the sides as low relief ‘flats’ before assembly. I changed the rear of the building to a traditional back yard.

I bought John Ahern’s books from Pendon some years ago. The drawings in these older handbooks are beautiful and a lot of information is still relevant for scratch modelling today although we have much improved adhesives. I still find it amazing what it is possible to create using card made from laminating cereal boxes.

These will be a great addition. I’m really enjoying experimenting with some of the downloadable paper kits as well as scratchbuilding my own.

Oops sorry I thought it had uploaded OK! I now see the image on my first post - think I experienced a glitch on the website?

I first saw the Cake Box Challenge on Laurie Calvert’s YouTube video and was inspired to have a go. Like Laurie, I have chosen a slightly fantastical theme and, after borrowing my daughter’s ‘Steampunk Bible’, have drawn up my first idea using the Dapol kit of Stephenson’s Rocket for the railway line section which is on the upper level. I have noticed a few members have the canal theme, but thought this was also an interesting feature for me to model on the lower level with a cobbled wynd leading up to the wooden board crossing over the track. The diorama will evolve as I am always over optimistic about the amount of structures and detail I can squeeze in. However the building features will be in scale vertically, but the footprint will not - a la Rowland Emmet. I have already kitbashed some of the free online Wordsworth kits for a children’s diorama and am using this as a guide for my cake box. Scalescenes excellent canal kit will also be converted. Extra thick corrugated cardboard forms the base for my ‘cake box’ with expanded polystyrene for the landscape and upper trackbed. I am a returning modelmaker but still a railway ‘newbie’ so here goes...