JRamsden

You may remember that I started to document my scratch build of the Hawkhurst station building in this blog entry. You may also be aware that I never actually completed both the blog posts and the actual building. I thought I'd explain what happened before the final version is completed... hopefully! Despite the prototype having a devilishly simple and cost-effective design, the model version proved to be anything of the sort! I've never been interested in pinpoint accuracy, but believe that I should try and get things as close to real life so long as doing so requires only reasonable effort. Being typical of the sort of railway infrastructure favoured by Colonel Holman Fred Stephens, the building consists of a brick base, corrugated iron clad walls over a brick (or presumably) wooden structure. The roof itself would have also been corrugated iron. What strikes me as most prominent are the windows. I figured the cream/green Southern colour scheme, combined with the corrugated panelling and large sash windows would get across the overall flavour of this building. Luckily, the book The Hawkhurst Branch by Brian Hart, published by Wild Swan Publications, features 3mm plans of this building and others. These can easily be scaled up to 4mm and make this build much easier. I also found that the Wills SS86 pack of windows features elements which are almost perfect in size. Attempt 1 The walls of my building were two-sided; corrugated plasticard on one side, plain plasticard on the other. Some areas would also have an interior so I opted for wood panelling inside the booking hall and waiting rooms. I cut apertures in the wall to accept the Wills windows. As these were designed to be attached to the back of a wall they have a very large surface area. The idea then was to create a frame out of plastic strips, paint separately and glue over the top. Sound theory, but not so good in practice... Not only are the outer frames too thick, the window frames inside them are too thick too. Plus, in this image, the window and door frames collide in an error that would never have passed planning stages! You may also note that the door didn't even need an extra frame as the moulding already has one! What a disaster. The interior is also very clumsy with even more over-thick frames. I also added some Das Clay to the brick foundation to act as a mortar line. I added far too much and decided once it was painted that it was no good. PLUS I painted the window frames with a white enamel using a brush. It didn't set at all like I wanted and looks awful! OK, start again! Attempt 2 I decided to change my approach to the build. Instead of putting a frame over the windows, I would actually build a frame around the window, just as it would be in real life. This was achieved using much thinner but deeper plastic strip. I cut the same Wills windows down and built frames around them. This looked much better and resulted in much finer frames. Unfortunately I also got a little over-confident and my cutting suffered as a result. It was around the same time I had discovered Deluxe Materials' Perfect Plastic Putty and I was under the illusion that there was no mistake that it couldn't solve. This attitude was hazardous. These are actually two of the better windows, but most of them were cut down using the NorthWest Short Line Chopper II, In ideal piece of kit for any scratch builder... until you realise it's not great at cutting straight lines! Maybe it's just my particular version. All windows ended up slightly skewed, not something you'd really notice until all assembled in a line. You can also see quite clearly the amount of filler required around the windows. I also needed to add a strip of plastic to the underside of this wall as I had cut my original sheets poorly and it didn't sit level! Another issue was the fact that I tried to paint the elements all together rather than individually. My personal rule is usually to paint elements of different colours separately and then assemble. You just can't beat the finish that method provides. Even with lots of masking tape I just couldn't get the crisp lines I wanted, particularly with so much filler working against me too - it tended to lift right out when the masking tape was removed! The interior looks much better on the second version and is possibly the only part I was actually happy with! This side by side comparison shows the stark difference between the two versions. I just knew I could do better. Luckily I was still at the stage where the exterior walls and some interior was assembled and OK to go. I literally only needed to re-make two walls... again! When I started on this layout I wanted buildings that would look good even in close-up photography. I can't say either of these builds would pass. I have a new process for my third version. It's a mixture of both methods with a big dose of "don't bloody rush" added in! I hope to share some photos of that build once it is completed and I'm finally happy! There's a lesson to be learned here... somewhere. All for now, Jonathan

Another quick post to show my backscenes assembled on the layout. There's still some work to do, not to mention the eventual effect that will (hopefully) be created by some view-blocking buildings and scenery. The corners are held together with plastic L-shaped strip glued around the edges. I may use Velcro strips for those I want to keep removable. I've had to cut some panels as I purposely overestimated when purchasing the panels. Luckily they're incredibly easy to cut. I'm pleased with the effect so far and I hope my experiments may inspire other modellers too. All for now, Jonathan

Honestly, please don't be put off. This kind of effect doesn't take any real suite of skills. My camera is nothing special (although it does have a photo stitching feature which does make it easier when taking the photos) and you could make images like this very easily with any camera. A tripod also helps to keep the image as level as possible, but you could use any stable structure. I've used a fence post before! The photos will stilll require some basic cropping top and bottom when put together. I used this free and simple program to stitch the images together: http://matthewalunbrown.com/autostitch/autostitch.html You could practice with some simple shots of maybe 2 or 3 photos to see how it turns out. A lot of these digital printing companies will also help you out with the design stage too, for an added fee I'm sure!

You're very kind, however my photography "skills" are novice at best. I was simply determined not to use a stock image backscene for this layout, particularly when my camera software makes it so easy to create panoramic shots. I was initially sceptical about using Foamex for a backscene. But now I have gone through the process and received the finished product, I'd highly recommend it for anyone. It seems especially good value for smaller layouts and keeps things nice and light too.

I didn't want to put the actual manufacturer in the main post otherwise it would just be "look at this cool product from so-an-so!" But since you asked... they came from this website: PremierPrint I have no affiliation with the company, just a very happy customer There are loads of places online that offer the same service so I spent a while looking at prices. Prices vary from somewhere in the £30 region for my biggest panel(!) right down to closer to £10 for one panel. PremierPrint appeared to be the cheapest site from my brief research. Can't say it affected the quality or service one bit. I ordered 5 panels in total, one being just plain sky which I didn't bother to photograph. The biggest panel was 119cm by 36cm. The total order including delivery was just under £40. A bargain, I'd say! The best part is you can enter your sizes and options on most of these sites and get a price quote before ordering, so you'll know straight away how much it would cost.

Thanks, I'm really plaesed. Hoping to get them attached to the board today I will be clear though, the print does not go around the edge of the Foamex. What they contacted me about was the photo not fitting exactly to the top surface because I had made a miscalculation. Edge printing would have been amazing, however I don't think it would be possible with this material.

A quick post to say I have just taken delivery of these beautiful panels for Addleford Green's backscene. They are 3mm Foamex with the images printed on the surface and treated with a matt protective layer. I bought them online from one of many suppliers of this kind of material. I ordered them Monday and they arrived this morning, Thursday! The process was uncomplicated, completed entirely online and they even contacted me when they thought some white would show at the edges. Probably cheaper overall than having images printed separately and less stress than gluing them nice and straight to something myself! The photos feature the Kent landscape not far from my house, taken with a reasonably expensive (10 years ago!) non-SLR camera and stitched together on the computer. Hopefully I made the right measurements and they line up nicely once on the board. I'll post some more photos once they're up. There will be some square joins - something of a divisive subject, indeed all areas of backscenes seem to draw some controversy from what I have seen! - but the board is only small and to include curves was to lose just too much vital space. All joins are going to be disguised with tactically placed scenery. Some image manipulation was required to the photos I originally took before sending for printing. Most of the scenes didn't include enough sky so I had to extend that area. My digital photo editing skills are zero, so everything done was crude and would likely make a true photographer cry. For two panels this involved removing the sky entirely and replacing it with a block of closely colour-matched blue/grey. I thought this might look odd, but apparently that's exactly how the real sky looks round here. For the biggest panel I simply mimicked the sky that existed and flipped a copy of it upwards, like a mirror. Again I thought this might look odd but it's blended in quite nicely. Judge for yourselves! All for now, Jonathan

Just a quick post to show the result of a couple of days of painting. Hope I did them justice! Can't wait to get them 'planted' and actually have something scenic on the layout. The oast still needs its steps assembling and glazing fitting, but that may not happen before Christmas. All for now, Jonathan

Not at all; I think your oast looks fab. Don't be put off using it on your layout because it is unique and that's really important. If you see enough model railways you start to see the same buildings time and time again. You can make a game out of it! So nice to see someone else who is modelling a hop farm on their layout too. How did you make your hops? That'll be a future head-scratcher for me. Are you modelling a particular area or just putting in whatever inspires you? I'd love to have included hopper's huts like you, but sadly my scenic section is limited, having filled the rest up with the railway infrastructure. You're very kind, Mikkel. Thanks I was so scared of making this thing that I put it off for ages. Glad it's out of the way so I can forge ahead and ruin it with paints instead! there's no limit to the clumsiness of fingers.

I haven't had as much time to dedicate to modelling lately. The colder weather has made spending time in the shed even less desirable too! However I have been making slow progress on my farm buildings. The latest project is the half-relief oast house. Despite square kilns actually being older, there are far more round kilns dotted around Kent and Sussex and I prefer the look of them. I must see dozens of different examples every day in my travels. They are a firm fixture of this area and their design is nothing short of iconic. Of course I needed one on Addleford Green! I'm not a fan of pre-made resin buildings (not for a quality reason, simply because I enjoy building my own) but Hornby's own Scaledale version of an Oast is particularly garish! I'd be curious to know how much research they actually did for their model because it has a distinctly European look about it, rather than anything I've ever seen. See below: For anyone looking to build their own oast, I'd highly recommend this website: http://oastandhopkilnhistory.com/ which is chock full of great information and reference. It didn't take long before it was clear that making only half of a round building would be harder than it sounds! This one was tricky and took a lot of trial and error, not to mention plenty of glue and clamping! Deluxe Materials Roket Card Glue was a godsend here, bonding card and plastic very quickly and very firmly. The cowl was the hardest part. I must have been through 7-8 versions before the final. It was all down to the angle. I couldn't get it just right. It's one thing to design a flat template using measurements, but it just didn't behave the same way when curled to shape! I wish I could describe what I did to achieve this, but ultimately it, once again, comes down to trial and error. It's mostly constructed from plastic strip/rod with a layered card exterior. The interior was built pretty much as an actual cowl would have been because the interior would possibly be seen so there was even less room to hide. Painted version coming soon, hopefully! All for now, Jonathan

I'm flattered you think this is 3D printed. It is, in fact, simply built from Slater's Plasticard and an assortment of styrene strip. Some of the door frames and the "hatch" up top are made from coffee stirrers cut to size. The tiles are strips of card cut to simulate broken tiles with a biro pen used to create the dip between individual tiles. The hinges and bolts are all etched brass from a fret containing an assortment of building details. I forget where that originally came from.

I haven't been able to spend a huge amount of time on the layout recently. As a result I have started many things but haven't completed much. Some projects have been started, scrapped, restarted and stalled! Some simply require more time to complete. I prefer to post when I have something significant to show. So in order to get away from the nightmare building project, I tackled something easier and altogether more enjoyable. Some low-relief buildings for my farm and a small stable block. I gathered lots of pictures from the internet and integrated my favourite features to bring these rather dilapidated and totally generic farm buildings to life! All for now, Jonathan

There's a really well-stocked model shop in Sandown called Upstairs Downstairs. Maybe the guy there will be able to help you out? Web link: https://www.trainshop.co.uk/

Thanks for the suggestions, appreciated. A curved point may have been a good idea at the time, but having done all the 'lectrics underneath and painfully sorted out point motor alignment, I'm not keen to revisit that aspect of the project! So relaying points will not be an option. I've actually cut the curved piece of settrack beyond the signal box before it finishes it's curve. From here I can attach a straight piece direct to the end of the board. Seems to have worked well so far. I have a plan for a cassette style fiddle yard which will tack onto the end of the board. I'm doing some experimenting at the moment and hope to post my progress as soon as I get time to work on it. This is also why the track can't run right to the edge of the board at the back, despite this being the most obvious solution.

I recently realised that I hadn't really detailed my plans for Addleford Green on this blog, despite having a reasonably clear idea of what I am hoping to achieve. So here's a shot of the layout so far complete with annotations for each major area: I outlined in my very first blog entry what I wanted to achieve with Addleford Green and I believe I've managed it here - in plan form at the very least - despite the small board size. Every major element of the original Hawkhurst terminus is represented in some form. The track running diagonal to the board edge was deliberate. Reason one was simply so I could cram more of the station in a small space! Reason two was to avoid having main running lines parallel with the board edge which seemed like a hallmark of a "train set". I wanted to create a natural look and have scenic areas that wouldn't be square and angular. The fiddle yard will be a small single-track extension which hinges up when not in use. I successfully created a prototype on the previous version of this layout but have decided to extend it by two inches. I hope to make it long enough to hold at least one loco and two 60ft carriages without them being seen through the hole in the backscene! Having examined the somewhat awkward angle of the track as it enters the fiddle yard and testing a few locos over it, I may make some changes. I should be able to straighten it out a bit so the bogies of carriages aren't pulled around too much. I'd hoped I was finally done with the track and wiring stage, but there's always something more! All for now, Jonathan

Hi Charlie, Welcome to the blog! Your comments are very welcome. I hope you find something useful or at least entertaining on here Best wishes, Jonathan

In relation to the Addleford Green project I owe an awful lot to the book The Hawkhurst Branch, written by Brian Hart and published by Wild Swan Publications. Not least for the incredibly detailed plans drawn to 3mm scale by Ken Garrett. This book is not only a fascinating look at a piece of long-lost railway history, but also a personal record of the author's connection to said line. It's also an unparalleled resource for modellers, the plans and photos contained within having made this whole project possible since so little of the actual line remains. My thanks go out to anyone who had the mind to document the Hawkhurst branch while it still existed. I'm sure it's final fate could never have entered their heads during the times of its heyday. So it is that I turn my attention to the station building. Rather typical of the station infrastructure designed and built by Holman Fred Stephens, this line's station buildings were cheaply constructed from corrugated iron and was very much a function over form kind of affair. Indeed, many of the lines Stephens built for were specifically designed to be cheaply built and run. I covered a lot of my scratch building techniques in the posts for the Stationmaster's house, so I won't get too detailed here. For such a simple structure the model has required more forethought than I initially expected. I decided to model a portion of the interior for this build. To make my life easier I try to take the path of least resistance; this basically means doing things in an order that rules out having to paint at awkward angles later on! To some, my process may seem a little barmy but it makes sense in my head at least! First I start with plan printed on regular paper. I up-scaled the ones in the book and simplified them for ease of cutting. I settled on using windows from Wills pack SS86. They aren't amazingly detailed but they were the right size and design. The window appertures above are big enough to accommodate the whole window over which I would create my own frame. I used Slater's embossed plasticard corrugated iron sheets. Care has to be taken to ensure these sheets are square before cutting individual elements. Due to the direction of the corrugations I had to cut two smaller pieces and join them at the middle which was a shame. I made sure the join was over the door so the amount of actual plastic joined was minimal. I then relied on a sheet on the reverse to strengthen the join, which would also form the interior wall. I used wooden slatted embossed plasticard here. Unfortunately I didn't double check the direction of the slats and got this wrong; they should be vertical! The rest of the walls were strengthened with plain black plasticard as the interior would not be modelled in those sections. There is little to no pictorial evidence of the interiors of any of the Hawkhurst branch's buildings, making the interior sections tricky to gauge. I took inspiration from the various surviving Southern-themed preserved railways. I'm lucky to have access to the Kent and East Sussex Railway, another designed by Colonel Stephens, whose station buildings are very similar. I solved the internal slat problem by adding another layer in the correct orientation over the top. This actually thickened the walls to a pleasing level and allowed me to add window frames inside and cap off the walls around the door frame, making the whole thing look much neater. I started making interior walls. This would be the wall featuring the ticket window. Next I added the brick layer which the building sits upon. This was thickened by one extra layer of plasticard behind the brickwork. Just a quick test fit of pieces... I added some detail to the inside of the men's toilet. The urinals wouldn't be seen but the sides of two stalls would be visible. I made this sink out of an old piece of white metal casting and a drainpipe! I made the slope of mortar above the brick courses from some Das Clay. I have a tendency to use too much for this and it can looks clumsy. I hope, after the painting is done, it won't look too bad! Everything is primed for painting... I made this simple template from card so I could create the 11 window frames required for the building. Each was constructed from thin strips of plasticard and a 2mm square rod for the windowsill. I made these separately as I wanted to paint them before adding to the model, something that made life much harder! This was a very fiddly job. All 11 window frames complete! I started on the cream colour for the main building. I chose to do this now so the window frames could be assembled while I could still hold the walls flat. I figured it'd be much harder to do a neat job once the building was assembled. The toilet is coming along nicely... While everything was drying I turned my attention to some interior details. I made this double-sided chimney breast from bits and pieces I had lying around. It will just be visible through windows and the open booking hall doors. I have no idea if this is how such a feature would look, but the floor plans suggest a fireplace here and the chimneys definitely confirm it. I could have made a neater join on the brickwork... amazing what you spot in close-up photography! Being an interior detail I'm not too fussy about small mess-ups like this. Lots of painting to do next... All for now, Jonathan

Thanks for your kind comment. I've started the station building and will have an entry up as soon as I've made some significant progress. I'm excitied to start something new; feels like I've been working on this house for ever!

Next up: glazing. I had originally decided on using Deluxe Sceneics' Glue N Glaze but after using it for the bay windows and not being overly impressed by the results, I figured I'd go back to doing it the old fashioned way. Applying a piece of clear plastic to the reverse also had the added effect of holding the windows in place without the need for glue around the frames which could have damaged the paintwork. I hadn't intended for a modelled interior, so it was important that no one would be able to see in, especially for areas that would later be lit. I tend to employ a lot of net curtains. These are cut from an old LCD screen wipe which has dried out. I stumbled on this by accident and I enjoy the effect. For the upper windows I simply made some curtains in Microsoft Word, scaled them down and printed. With the dormer windows fully prepared to be encased I started on the roof pieces. I worked out the angles by test cutting a spare piece of plasticard until I was happy with the fit and overhang, then made 5 identical copies. I glued them together at the ridge and used a piece of mdf to help form them. An angled piece of plasticard formed the bargeboards and helped to keep the shape. Some smaller pieces of plastic rod were attached underneath to give the impression of projecting beams. These needed test fitting and trimming to make sure they didn't foul the walls and impede the fit. The roofs were painted underneath and given a coat of SR cream to the bargeboards. Next, the roof tiles. I printed this framework out from Microsoft Excel; the larger squares would form the visible tiles, the smaller ones were for the overlap. I scored the vertical lines with a biro to give some relief to each tile without the need for cutting. Then each strip was applied to the roof in lines. This took some time, particularly around the dormer windows, and required a fair amount of patience! Every now and then I cut a small diagonal off a tile to simulate broken tiles. Once complete, the whole roof area was masked and an overall coat of black paint was applied. This is where the hard work starts to pay off. I wasn't entirely sure how effective the biro lines would be. Starting with darker colours and working up to lighter ones seems to work well for painting roofs. After that, a dry brush of a dark grey... Finally, a light coat of a light grey for some colour variation... The terracotta capping was completed in the same fashion. I also added some lead flashing around the base of the chimney stacks. This was achieved with pieces of paper cut to size and sprayed with grey primer. All was painted before being applied to the model in this case. The fencing at the rear was achieved by cutting down some simple picket fencing I had lying around and gluing it to some 2mm square rod. I added some rust marks to the corrugated iron roof above the utility room. In reality I don't know what type of roofing material was employed here, but this feels right. Finally I added the guttering. I hate this part because it's always fiddly getting the elements to attach cleanly and there's always glue over-spill, plus I know it won't look right until it's all done! I painted the guttering first and then touched them up afterwards where the glue affected the paint. The actual configuration of the guttering and associated pipework isn't quite accurate, but I think I have the overall feel of it down. The long diagonal pipes either side of the building were essential and I'm pleased with how they look. The complex pipework falling down the scullery isn't 100% clear in photos but it's certainly similar to what I have here - seems unnecessarily complex to me! Finally the Stationmaster's house is complete! It could do with some more detailed weathering, certainly to the roof. But for now I am happy and more than ready to move on to a new build. Final photos of the finished (for now) build below. Next up: The station building itself! All for now, Jonathan

Thanks Mikkel. That's what struck me about the original building; pretty plain for the time but still quite impressive. It practically dominates the platform.

I made the small sentry box seen on the Cranbrook station out of plastcard and embossed planking sheet. Using some card held against the roof angle and a good straight edge, I made a template for the walls of the dormer windows. This is where I introduce you to my best friend... The Chopper! By NorthWest Short Line, an American company. This device (pricey in the UK but worth every penny) is the scratch builder's best friend. The sharp blade cuts through most plastic with ease and accuracy, including 2mm square rod. The included attachments also help with cutting to uniform lengths and angles. It made creating 6 identical triangle pieces a doddle and they all fit perfectly! I added some more of that 2mm rod to support the roofs that will be added later. I wanted to avoid having to paint certain elements when they were already assembled on the building. I just don't believe in my ability to paint in such fine detail. So I elected to paint the windows separately and fit them when the walls had been painted too. The problem with this approach was that the extra layers of paint would thicken the walls and risk making the fit of the windows much less accurate. I started by masking the outside and giving the inside of the building a spray of matt black from a Halford rattle can. This is to help with light leakage when I add lights later on. Next is my favourite part: applying the undercoat. This makes everything a uniform colour which is very gratifying after using so many different parts, colours and textures. It also shows up any inconsistencies or gaps in the exterior which may require filling. It also allows acrylic paint to adhere to shiny plastic. Halfords own brand grey primer is perfect; cheap, good quality and readily available. I don't paint anything now without giving a coat of Halfords grey! Here's a shot of the building in position on the platform. Next up is the mortar for the brickwork. I always do this first. I've used a variety of different colours in the past but I've always felt they've been too yellow/cream. There's a big difference between what colour an object is in real life and what it appears as from a distance. How often do we view our models as close as a scale figure would? I have a big interest in the use of colour on model railways and some of my favourite examples have been those that use a carefully considered palette of subtle colours. So I made my own mortar by mixing small amounts of cream into the remainder of a pot of Humbrol white. I like to mark the lid so I know what the colour will really set like. This colour is then watered down ever so slightly. This helps it to seep into the brickwork. I ultimately want it between the brick, not on top. Some people would gently wipe away the paint from the surface but I don't always see this as necessary, particularly when working with acrylics. Once dry, I dry brush on a light brown - usually Humbrol 186 Brown - making sure it's only a light coat. I have a very tiny amount of paint on the brush at this stage, most having been wiped away on a piece of paper towel. Brushing gently at a diagonal angle helps to keep the paint on the surface and away from the recesses filled with "mortar." After that, a coat of Humbrol 70 Brick Red in the same fashion as before, adding a little bit more than previously as this is the majority colour. Patience is important here; it's easy to rush and ruin the subtle colouration. Then I create a small amount of No. 70 darkened with a drop of black to add another layer of colour. I've attempted the method of picking out individual bricks in the past but have never been able to make it work for me. I find that making sure the whole surface has variations in colour gives a good effect. My homemade mortar was then used for the rendering on the front and also the windowsills. Since I'm building a range of Southern Railway era buildings I needed some paint that was accurate to the colours used at the time. I've been using Phoenix Precision Paints SR Middle Chrome Green and SR Buildings Cream. They're enamel paints which I ultimately dislike using - I prefer the flexibility of acrylics, particularly the ability to easily layer colours - but they do have their uses. The SR was well known for giving their buildings a nice new coat of paint shortly before closing that line down. Even so, these paints don't look realistic straight from the can and will need toning down. I have experimented by dry brushing a lightened version of the green over the top of the front door. The last stage of the brickwork was to tone down those colours a bit. The mortar was just a little too pale, the bricks just a bit too brown and the colours between just a bit too distinct from one another. I mixed a colour which approximated Phoenix's own Sleeper Grime, from some browns and greys. I watered it down enough so that it flowed but also allowed some colour to stick without overpowering the existing colours, something that takes a bit of testing! Then I simply brushed it over the brickwork, allowing it to seep into every nook and cranny. When dry it gave a pleasing appearance to the once-too-bright brickwork. Finally, a test fit for the windows and a coat of paint for the sentry box. Almost there. Hopefully one final blog entry will do the trick... All for now, Jonathan

The next task was to tackle the bay window at the rear of the Stationmaster's house. I used smaller windows here, as I believe is accurate for the prototype. It's possible the window next to the bay windows was also smaller than those of the front, but one thing I had to concede in this project was possible errors due to lack of detailed plans. I made a paper template to ensure the windows would fit and so I knew how it would fold and fit. Then I cut a piece of plasticard to the right size and shape, removed the windows and dropped it into a mug of hot water. This made the plastic more supple and I was able to carefully bend the plastic over a steel rule. Care must still be taken as the plastic is liable to snap. The windows were then fitted to the inside. As the bay window would be a closed unit and I wanted to have some blinds inside, it necessitated painting and glazing early, as I wouldn't be able to access this area later. Plastic tabs were added to the walls to allow fixture of the decorative brickwork strips. Window sills were also added from strips of plasticard across the whole model. The surrounding areas were masked, the window frames sprayed with a white primer and painted with while acrylics. I made a bit of a mess here and thought the primer alone would be enough, leading to me over spraying and leaving a dis-satisfactory finish. I had to remove much of the paint and start again. None of this should show on the final product. Once the paint was fully dry I used some Deluxe Materials Glue N Glaze to add the glazing. I like the slightly distorted effect it gives when dry, as if the window is transparent but you can't fully make out what's beyond. It'll be good for buildings with no modelled interior. I also added a piece of yellow paper to simulate a blind behind the glass! Then came the magical moment when all the walls are assembled! I like to cut away a thin slice of the backing so one of the walls butts directly against the brickwork of the next. When working with card it's easy to cut this away later as needed. Plastic glued to plastic is much harder to separate! In future I'll need to accommodate this process earlier on. I reinforced the joins with strips of 2mm square rod. I'm going to make my own tiles from card for the main structure, but settled for a spare piece of Wills tile sheet for the top of the scullery. This helped add some rigidity to the whole thing at this early stage too. Slated strips of plasticard were added to the dormer windows at the top. I have to be really careful not to knock these off. I can be very clumsy! The two chimneys were constructed in a similar fashion to the rest of the building and extended further down than needed for the sake of rigidity. Everything I did from this point forward was mostly for that reason as much of it wouldn't have been seen. The chimneys were subject to some extreme guesswork and I'm certain they're a little short. Adding the stepped brickwork around the top I was able to add a little more height. The stems of spent cotton buds made great chimney pots! Some Das Clay spread between the pots and allowed to air dry makes for some good-looking mortar too. I applied a thin layer of PVA first to help it adhere. Plasticard sheets were cut to form the roof, supported by the beams made earlier. As stated before, I will be adding my own roof tiles so they will be glued direct to the plain roof. It's a nice change from having only a few roofing sheets which have to be cut to a perfect fit; my own tiles can be cut to cover any gaps. As it happens I actually did a reasonable job on the roof for a change! Some Deluxe Materials perfect plastic putty was used to fill some of the more egregious gaps, the effect of which will be most visible once the primer coat goes on. I'm pleased with how it has turned out so far. Get ready for part 3! All for now, Jonathan

With the station platform in place I turned my attention to the Stationmaster's house. The Hawkhurst branch had several examples of this striking building: Cranbrook, Goudhurst and Horsmonden, each one a little different from the last. Interestingly the example at Horsmonden had absolutely no windows on the rear side of the house, despite that side facing the station! I'm pleased to say that all 3 original buildings still remain and are now private dwellings. To design the model for this project I had to pull together a variety of information from different sources. The incredible book The Hawkhurst Branch by Brian Hart, published by Wild Swan Publications is, in many ways, the definitive source of information on this line. It even has scale drawings of much of the line's infrastructure! Unfortunately, although the station building itself has detailed plans, there is not one for the Stationmaster's house. There is, however, a basic floor plan alongside one for the station building which I can reasonably deduce the scale of. So width and length are secured, what about height? I took a trip to one of the surviving examples of this fine building and took some quick photos, aware that it was ultimately disrespectful to gawp at people's private homes! I scoured google maps and counted bricks too! Eventually I came up with some plans which I felt reflected the dimensions of the real thing, or at least would pass a cursory inspection. I drew these up in Word and printed them out. They're back to front here, there's a good reason for this...! Now I love scratch building. It's not for everyone, I accept, but it's actually one of my favourite modelling past times. There's nothing quite like the feeling of having something on your layout that you know no one else has. Plus, you made it yourself! I'm not very good at it, mind you, so this has been a learning curve for me too. I praised the virtues of artists' mountboard in my last entry and I used to use it as a base for all my scratch building projects. But this particular building showed its downsides better than any other. It's very thick you see, and cutting it is not easy, even with a sharp blade. Windows are a nightmare and you end up with lot of burrs and accidentally bevelled edges. I started this project in this manner and then quickly started again. This time I used plasticard sheet as the backing for the Slaters embossed sheets that form the outer layer. This actually resulted in a much more rigid construction than I could have imagined. For my next trick I decided to stick the templates to the rear of the embossed plasticard, hence the back to front printing. Using PVA glue and allowing it to dry fully meant that I could cut along my template lines. Once done the paper just peeled right off, leaving no paper and no glue residue. I was basing my version on the building at Cranbrook from this original photo: https://archive.dulwichprepcranbrook.org/content/catalogue_item/cranbrook-train-station so I wanted to replicate the rendering found on the upper portion of the facade. This would be replicated with good ol' cereal box card for that unique texture. I cut the windows with a fresh, sharp blade using a cross pattern to ensure the waste came out clean at the corners. The backing was cut from plain white plasticard using the same template method as before. The window portals were cut much wider on these. Some lintels were sourced and the embossed plasticard was cut carefully to accommodate them. I'm not so great with a craft knife at these fiddly jobs so some gaps were inevitable. I would compensate with some modeller's filler later into the process. Then the pieces are assembled on top of the white plasticard backing. My glue of choice was Revell Contacta Professional, mostly because it was to hand and for the fine applicator nozzle. Plus it works a treat! The decorative line of bricks above the ground floor was actually an element from the ever present Wills SS46 Buildings Pack. I have about 15 of these sprues which contain gutters, down pipes, chimney pots etc. I've never had a use for the elements I used here and in truth I don't know what they are! I cut one side away and was left with a fair approximation of the brickwork used on these buildings. It's far from a spot on match but good enough for my eye. All sides assembled: Next, windows! I purchased these delightful frames from LCUT Creative http://www.lcut.co.uk Because the prototype building has very thick walls and the windows are distinctively set back I wanted to simulate this effect without actually building thick walls. Previously I would have relied on the mountboard to carry the required thickness but that was no longer an option if I wanted to up my game. That's when I came up with this convoluted process! 2mm square plasticard rods formed into a square frame around the window, some with plasticard embossed brick stuck to them. This meant that the windows were guaranteed to fit snugly and the brick would continue realistically around the edge of the window recess. It was fiddly but worth it. With these window frames stuck in place on the rear of the walls (you see why I left a larger opening in the plasticard backing now?) the window opening itself could be carefully tidied up with a craft knife, if some of the edges weren't perfectly straight the frame would guide the knife on a truer line. The joins would be tidied later with some very fine sandpaper. Sticking them on the back did require a good eye for whether they were secured level and square; I suspect some of mine are out. I likely won't know until the windows are in properly! Finally, I made some French windows by sticking together some plasticard strips. I noticed, too late, that I had used English Bond brickwork on the rear and regular all-stretcher brickwork on the front and sides! Oops. Looking at the pictures, Slater's Flemish bond might have been a closer match for the prototype. Then again, although I strive for practical realism I am not a rivet counter so this won't bother me too much... he says. Part 2 coming soon! All for now, Jonathan

Hey Barnaby, Thanks for your kind comments; I'm thrilled to hear you've been enjoying the blog. Sorry it's been so quiet recently, I'll have a few more entries up over the next few days. Beyond putting down some dirt/grease for where engines stand I've never weathered the track beyond the ballast stage. I may have to look into that when I get to that point. I'm also learning it pays to test certain processes out first! Best wishes, Jonathan

So, it's been a while. I have been working on the layout but because my work is very much in dribs and drabs I wanted to gather up my progress into more coherent blocks. Once the track was down and the wiring complete I turned my attention to the station. It's the biggest part of the layout and felt like a good starting point. When I started this project I simply had Southern region as a theme; I never intended to model a specific location or line. That was until I did some research on Kent stations and came across this picture: https://archive.dulwichprepcranbrook.org/content/catalogue_item/cranbrook-train-station The moment I saw it I knew I wanted to model these exact buildings. The rest is history and contained in my previous entries Interestingly none of the station platforms on the Hawkhurst Branch were built the same. Horsmonden sported a stone-built platform, oddly enough. Goudhurst looks to have been constructed from concrete blocks from what I can tell from photos. Cranbrook station bore the more traditional "stepped" design in brick. Hawkhurst's station platform was sleeper-built. Which one to pick! I see a lot of modellers instantly go straight for brick when modelling steam era platforms and I wanted something that was more reminiscent of this curious little branch. So I went with sleepers for my platform. I started by marking out the station plan in pen on the board itself. The station itself needed to represent true ground level; no steps up to the platform here! So everything beyond the platform needed to be brought up to its level. I figured I'd use balsa wood to do this. Being light, balsa was a great way of padding the area out to a standard height quickly, plus it would give some rigidity when I needed to "plant" items like lamp posts into the platform surface. Having used a hollow skeleton for platforms in the past I know how important this is! I settled for lengths of 450mm which were 12mm thick and 100mm wide. I use artists' mountboard quite a bit which comes to just under 2mm. I figured if I put a layer of mountboard under the balsa and one on top for the surface that would bring me to 16mm in platform height, about the scale equivalent of the real world height. I started to measure and cut. Don't forget to check height and clearance with multiple pieces of rolling stock as you go! The balsa wood edge actually sat further back from the rails than the finished piece would be, as the wooden sleeper facade was to be added separately and would contribute extra thickness. The modeller's favourite - coffee stirrers! - was used here. The joy of these little sticks is that they are cheap to buy in bulk and give a very convincing wood effect due to being made of, well, wood! A piece of mountboard was used as a template and the sticks were cut to fit. Annoyingly they were just over typical scale sleeper width so needed to be trimmed lengthways. Even with a good knife these guys are hard to cut and liable to split along their natural grain. Smaller uprights were added at intervals roughly equating to a sleeper length. Hawkhurst station seemed to use a plank of wood (not another sleeper?) as the platform edge. It's very hard to tell from photos but I'm certain it's not concrete, so I used another thin stirrer as the "coping stone" edge. Loctite 60 second all purpose glue is my go-to for this project. Quite effective, I think! I'm pleased at least. Painting was next. I didn't want to smother natural(?) wood in acrylics so I opted for a wood stain. The darkest one I could find did the trick. The wood soaks it up a treat and actually gives that kind of washed out, dried old wood look that colour photos displayed. A wash of watered black acrylics gave it a better colour and the soaking action of the wood really helped too. The glue I had been a bit liberal with also contributed to some interesting patterns which I think helped the effect. Be careful with glue folks! Careful scouring of colour photos also showed a very faint white line along the platform edge itself which trailed off towards the slope. I attempted to replicate this faded line with some masking tape and a light hand! I initially created a slope at each end of the platform for it descend away as per the prototype. But after some thought regarding my signal box, I decided to go for the design used at Goudhurst where the signal box was mounted at the very end of the platform and some concrete slabs laid in front were used to complete the slope. Although that platform was not sleeper-built, I decided to nick the idea anyway. This required some modification to allow for the signal rods and equipment beneath the platform. The small piece on top forms the wrap-around to cover the balsa edge. The black area will be covered by some slabs and filled with point podding once I get further into the project. The opposite end of the station will slope away as per usual. The platform surface will be the last layer of mountboard. It will extend out beyond the station buildings and the edge will form the pavement curb in the station yard. I intend to build all my buildings first so I know exactly where everything fits before I fully fix the platform surface. So, onto scratch building! All for now, Jonathan