salmonpastures

Well the first show in very nearly 7 years came and went ,,,,oh,,, so quickly!!! And just to prove it here is a shot of myself and the Mad Hatter,,,, concentrating as hard as we can to keep a straight face. We had a gremlin or 2,,, but no surprise as we hadn't thrown the layout in the back of van for some considerable time. It was discussed while we were there that the main shed would be a much better spectacle if we could have more than one loco moving at any given time,,,, "no problem" say's I,,, perhaps over full of enthusiasm. So on returning to the garage I set about the simple task of converting the main shed from 1 to 2 controllers!!! Who's bloomin idea was that!!!! 2 sleepless nights out of the last 4,,, and I have spent the bulk of the last 4 days daylight "doubled and dutched" under the layout with a torch in one hand and a soldering iron in the other,,,, not a good idea if you are wearing shorts and have lost your favourite modelling glasses,,,,, OUCH!!! Needless to say I picked the hottest week of the year for this sudden spurt of enthusiasm ,,, the garage was a balmy 38 degs on Thursday,,,,, still it makes a change from me complaining about how cold the garage is. But less than a week since we were "on Show" at the M&GNR Society annual exhibition the "operationally improved Salmon Pastures" is now officially complete,,,, and I celebrated with 4 of the nicest pint's of Timothy Taylors Landlord Bitter I have tasted for some time,,,, I do enjoy a good exhibition. Many thanks to,,, Alan for your assistance and the usual high quality photo and to Neville the "Mad Hatter" for just being yourself. I just cannot wait for the next one!! SAD☹️

Am really glad I found this thread. This is a building I have always wanted to model. From my hometown of Sheffield. It was situated in the heart of the steelworks and had odd licensing hours to accomodate the shift workers. I took my wife in there one Sunday lunchtime just for the fun of it. The locals were impressed,,, and every sentence came with an apology. Anyone that has been in a steel mens pub will know exactly what I mean!!! Sadly no longer a pub,,, probably due to the fact that there are very few steel works surrounding it.

That latest "Mr Drake" shot in B&W is an absolute cracker Alan,,, it deserves more than umpteen "thumbs up's" Don't go and lose your mojo again,,, well not before first weekend in Sept!!! Nice one. SAD☹️

Thats a great shame Graeme,,, I sympathise with the rigours of the A17!!! on many trips to see my parents in Sheffield it was a real pain in the posterior,,, and needless to say it has not improved AT ALL since they departed and that was 20+ years ago. However,,, in an attempt to tempt you I did find it much easier if I left early,,,, the problem is September brings out all the tractors and the people who insist on driving at 40mph to look at the Autumnal Shades,, [get a life will yer!!!] Once again we have to say,,, "there will be another time" SAD☹️

Thanks Alan,,, its taken long enough!!! but now it is nearly there I am quite please with the end result. Looking forward to Tuesday,, let's hope we can remember how it all works!!! SAD☹️

The L1 is very nearly finished!!!! Apart from,,, painting the inside of the cab,, weathering,,, and fixing the cab roof permanently [it has been BluTacked for at least the last 5 years!!!] Don't time fly when your having fun!!! But,, where did that 10 years go!!! The next one will be a Fish Engine,,, how appropriate for Salmon Pastures.

Had a few good days getting ready for Sheringham,,, only 7 weeks to go,,, when I was reminded that we are getting very close to J.G.Robinsons birthday,,, on the 30th of July it will be his 167th!!! I doubt if he will be joining us,, so as recognition of his lifetime's work I managed to shunt this little line up together to remind us of his efforts. For me the interesting thing is none of them look the same but you can still see who designed them,,,, unlike some railways I could mention !!!! His C4 Atlantic will also be joining the in the fun,,, at the moment it is in the paintshop,,, having been painted and now awaiting the lining. So come and join us and "have a nice day"

Good news,,, at last. We have been invited to join the M&GNR Society at their exhibition at Sheringham High School Norfolk on Saturday 2nd September 2023,,, let's hope this one isn't cancelled!!! Could be a great day out for anyone who hasn't been to Sheringham,,,, not only the exhibition,, but you can also go on the North Norfolk Railway from the preserved station,,, wander round Sheringham town centre or for those so inclined go for a paddle!!!! As we haven't exhibited at a show since Xmas 2016,,, there's a fair amount to be done,,, to hell with the temperature in the garage,,, I can't wait!!!!

A successful couple of days in the garage,,, especially now the temperature's have gone up. The Scot is getting very close,,, just a few lamp irons, handrails and lubricators to go,,, the nameplates will be added after painting. The Jersey Lilly now has stone guards, not the aforementioned boulder guards as highlighted in previous pictures and it looks so much better. Both are going out this evening for their annual Xmas thrash and if no running problems arise we can then start the preparation for paint. Merry Xmas to one and all. ☹️ SAD

Definite progress made with the Scot over the last couple of days. Got the brakes fitted to the loco chassis with just the link bars to add. Dome, chimney and cab roof fitted permanently and the deflectors "blue tacked" just to see what it looks like. Had it on David Ortons Epsom & Ewell layout last night and it was cruising round with 8 coaches,,, RESULT.

Having managed to successfully destroy the plate for the L1 roof I decided to have a quick look at yet another "on going" project,,, bought from the same source as the D21,,, where the price was definitely much more important than the quality!!! Good old Ebay,,, this LMS Scot wasn't as rough as the Worsdell offering but it came a close second. As it stands it is an early Wills body and basic white metal chassis block with a set of Comet valve gear. Apparently the valve gear is designed to go with the later etched chassis not the original white metal lump like mine so there was a fair amount of blacksmithing required to get them to fit but it is coming together,,, and needs a lot of realigning of various bits & brackets that hold all the moving bits together. It also gave me a good excuse to have a play with the close up features on the recent camera,,, much better than the old one. SAD☹️

Thanks for that Alan,,,, I thought I would get in front of the almost certain reprimand for not updating on any progress,,,, but to be honest how can you report on progress if there hasn't been any?? Whatever,, the caravan is now safely stored for the winter and I am preparing myself for another productive winter in the garage!!! Oh what fun we have. SAD

Well as the caravan season is now behind us it is back to the garage,,, spent a fair amount of time fighting through the cobwebs and have started wrestling with the L1 cab roof. As you can see some way to go,,, the first task will be to try and smooth out the uneveness of the basic plate. I thought about one of those miniature rolling devices,, but at £100 + vat I'll have a go with some judicious [look the other way] backstreet tin bashing first. SAD☹️

Was looking for something else and found this,,,, I never realised the tram could go that quickly. SAD☹️

Nice one Alan,,,, a Bedford RL,,, how the memory's come flooding back. I took my RAF Germany driving test in one of those a long time ago. Although the RAF one's were all 4 wheel drive. A strange driving position,,, where your bum felt as though it was lower than your feet,,, and the gear lever came at you from behind your shoulder,,,, not to mention the fumes from the petrol engine just 2" from your knee cap. But in all fairness there was full air-conditioning to get rid of the fume's,,, you could wind the front screen open to let a bit of fresh air in. As ever,,, Happy Day's!!! C U Soon SAD

IF ANYBODY WANTS TO LOOK AT ANY PHOTO'S THAT HAVE GONE WALKABOUT THEN SEND ME A PM AND I WILL SEE WHAT I CAN FIND. HAVE A NICE DAY!!! SAD🙁

Getting ready for another night roster.

A bit more progress on the L1,,, all the fiddly bits are now coming together and although very time consuming they do make a difference. A good weekend on it has produced a few front smokebox area steps vac pipes and some lamp irons,,, more to fit tomorrow on the bunker. Have been having problems with the digital brownie which was never good at closeups,,, but this "pre-owned" find is much better,,, all I have to do now is fathom out the best exposure/flash settings,, slowly slowly. When you can get this close you suddenly realise how much more "cleaning/positioning" you have to do!! SAD

Another good day on the L1 and I couldn't resist a quick BluTac special!!! Cab roof, chimney, dome, smokebox door and smokebox side valve access panel all gummed in place,,, my excuse is for the first time I can see the finishing line. YooHoo, SAD

Got a bit more done on the L1 today and have been adding detail to the tank tops and side of the smokebox door. Also got the smokebox door started with the distinctive hinge. SAD

It's been a good day for Mudhole covers and washout plugs,,, the joys of the murky end of the firebox,,, and sticking with the basic plumbing I've made up a couple of U bends for the tanks and the water filler caps. As usual I've still got a whole load of cleaning to do but it is now starting to look the part. Next challenge after fitting the tank filler caps will be the smokebox door area. That should put a smile on it's face if I get it right. Have now got to start thinking about sourcing a suitable chimney and dome,, I can see an old craftsman A5 kit getting pilfered if I can't find anybody who sells any suitable whitemetal bits. I have to say "back in the day" you could walk into quite a few half deceent model shops and they usually had a drawer full of suitable detailing bits,,, Michael at Wakefield Model centre had several drawers which one could rumage through to your hearts content [and I did on many occasions] and some of the bits had been there for years,,, but not any more,,, sourcing some of the even mundane stuff these days is getting to be a problem IMO. Wait for it,,, now I'm getting close somebody will release an all singing all dancing L1/L3,,,, sure as eggs are eggs. SAD

Evening Graeme, I'm glad it isn't only me that struggled with the coal rails,,,, if I had known you had a special tool for the job I might have thought about justifying / organising a trip to North Lincs,,,,, First attempt was to solder a gate arrangement and then bend it to shape,,, ha de ha ha,, far too complex,,, and bending it to shape popped about 25% of the joints,,, it looked pretty straightforward on the drawing!!! In the end I put side runners in first and then fixed the length beams on top of the sides whilst in situ. Which was OK for the first side as you can push and bend to shape but as you mentioned when the first side is in you can't get access to the opposite underside. The good news is I already know which side the photo's will be taken from and I haven't even painted it yet!! Good fun??? not really,, but they look the part and and as you mentioned earlier when it is black, weathered and coaled who is going to worry about it. I took it down to the local club night this evening and it trundled along with about 25 wagons without any fuss at all,,,, had a bit of a problem stopping it though,,,, I thought the bogie brakes was supposed to cure all that!!! Looks like I will be doing washout plugs and a host of decidedly shapely lumps on the firebox tomorrow, oh what fun we have!! It's some time since I had a bout of tingle finger as good as this one,,, I've missed it more than I realised. SAD

Another good day on the Zeppelin putting the coal rails in place. What a Phaff,,,, but after I've cleaned all the excess solder out of the way they should be acceptable. SAD

Problem solve Graeme,, that's at least 2 of us happy with a "Robinson chimney breast" so it looks as though it is there for keeps!!!. I have one picture which shows the locker above the coal hole with very nicely rounded corners on the rear wall. Falling into a sharp 90deg angled locker at speed must have been VERY painful,, typical GC,,, early ergonomics!!! I put a driver in there to see the scale etc and the cab is surprisingly roomy, Had a look at my Craftsman A5 as well and back in the day an enclosed empty square box/hole for a cab was more than acceptable,,, those were the days!!!. SAD

The sun is out,, the iron is hot and I've had quite a good day in the garage!! After far too long work has restarted on the L1 Zeppelin and today I have been adding cab detail. Finding out what it was really like inside an L1 cab has proved difficult so this is "my interpretation" gleaned from what few photo's I have of the ugly so and so!! Now it is soldered in place doubtless somebody will have a detailed photo of what it was really like!!! I look forward to hearing from you!! [ I really do!!] Tomorrow after cleaning a lot of my OTT soldering out of the way I hope to be adding the distinctive bunker coal rails,,, but who knows,,, I might sit down and suddenly decide to do something else,, one of the many joys of retired modelling,,, you can do what you bloomin well like!! SAD