Calidore

All lovely scenes @Gopher. The post office and the industrial units shown in the post following are wonderful. I said similar before, but managing to keep an eye on the details like the overgrown greenery and enamel signs on the retaining wall on a layout of this size is really impressive. Looking forward to some more photos. Adam

Survived one or two minor disasters to come out the other side as the Bournemouth example often found pottering down to Hamworthy Goods, Poole Quay and the like. As a public service announcement, the plastic on these frosts like glazing if exposed to superglue fumes. Discovered in the usual way... Adam

The shed and the ‘whatever it is’ are both looking very nice to me — the glazed roof light is excellent! As an aside, thank you very much for sharing the Pillbox Study Group website. I’d never come across it before; many of the pages on there look fascinating simply for general interest but also it’ll be a wonderfully helpful resource for my own current project. Thanks again! Adam

That's a really inventive feature @TechnicArrow, I like it a lot. Would be great to see it in action when you're able. Adam

Should be good seeing those properly done up! Enjoy the extra modelling time and I shall look forward to seeing the results Adam

Mine has just arrived from Kernow as well -- all present and correct, no loose bits or assembly problems to report and runs like a dream straight from the box. Plates are on the way to recast it as 30093 so I'll get on with the cab sides once I can bring myself to. They really are cute as a button... Adam

Wow, Owain -- I'd missed some absolute treasure in the last couple of pages. The weathering on the provender store is sublime, it really is. The combination of the two buildings where it adjoins the goods shed looks just perfect as well but it's the colour which really sells it. The thread gets better and better. Adam

That'll be an enticing little scene once the interior bits are in place. The token machine is a very neat job and one which looks dauntingly fiddly even in 7mm! Adam

Guernsey looks very smart indeed in the lined dark green. This wasn't part of the plan... Adam

A big thank you to TMC, who have continued trading throughout and are still offering excellent service despite the circumstances. I’ve had a few orders from them in the few weeks just gone, have spoken to them on the phone and by email, and everyone has been extremely helpful and positive as well as being efficient in processing orders for everything. It was actually rather nice to hear a cheerful Yorkshire voice on the end of the phone when I called, and remember that the rest of the country still exists! I know they’ve highlighted delays to their customisation work on their website, so that might be a little different for anyone who uses that, but as a supplier (who carry a great range of materials and bits and pieces it must be said) they’ve been on top form. No connection, very happy customer. Adam

You can consider me firmly in the ‘for’ camp, Rob It looks like there’ll be some wonderful hidden views, alleyways and the like already. I love the piecemeal clustering of the buildings. I’m really looking forward to seeing it come to life. Adam

Hi Ian, thank you for your comments, sorry I didn't see them until now. I do like the sound of your layout; I've always thought the genuine volume of oil and clay industry in the area makes it such an ideal choice for any number of models depicting small branch line extensions and goods lines. Please do share if you get the layout back out and into a state you're happy with. I hadn't seen Arne Wharf, despite being very familiar with the rest of Chris Nevard's work, but having glanced at the pictures I'll take a closer look later. On the point of geology, I agree it might be rather a huge task, but I suppose the LSWR had its fair share of ludicrous undertakings scattered about on fringe branch lines, joint lines and the like. There's a great Southampton University page with huge amounts of information and photos (I haven't read it all yet) which nicely shows Ballard Down and the evocatively-named Nine Barrow Down behind it, about 1/3 down the page here: http://www.southampton.ac.uk/~imw/Harry-Rocks.htm ------- So an update on the project. From the outset this scheme has suggested two very obvious layouts as part of the same project, namely Studland station itself, and the MOD sidings which I have placed at the very end of the line to the north of the station. I'm still making good planning progress with the station layout (eg having firmly decided on the station building being based on that at Bordon, above) but quite a few unknowns remain re track plan etc. By contrast, I've had a ready-to-roll plan in mind for a layout depicting the MOD sidings, which could eventually be joined together with the station board or operated separately, so I'll be building that first. There are several advantages to this order of proceeding: 1) I already have the track plan, building layout, and scenic treatment almost entirely developed in my head. 2) I have all the track, board, and most of the building materials I'll need to crack on. 3) By virtue of being a bit on the sparse side, it will allow me to go to town on the scenics (heather etc) which I mentioned at the start and which will set the tone for the whole project. It is also much closer to where these elements of flora exist in real life, being right up on the heath / nature reserve on the map above (apologies to the resident birds, who will be minimally disturbed!) So to get things moving, I bit the bullet this morning and sent St Mabyn to the great railway room in the sky, recovering track and buildings as I went. I've seen many people on here talk about projects which they always knew weren't quite 'right' and they were never fully happy with, and ultimately I knew that layout was one of those. However, the great thing about this hobby is that everything is a learning experience, so as I chopped it up I reflected on the things I was unhappy with, as well as the things which had gone well: 1) Fun to shunt, but ultimately I didn't enjoy having to shunt every train on to the scene with the engine at the rear. 2) Parts of the board were too 'flat earth'. 3) All of the visual interest was at the back, I think for fear of 'blocking' the view, but this meant the foreground was boring and plain. 4) Too much grass. I'd been aiming for sidings very much in the middle of a field, but it didn't look right. I also rushed and used a shade of grass I knew I didn't like. The good points: 1) Buildings and weathering were good 2) Upon demolishing it, I found my construction methods were a lot more robust than I had expected. Baseboard, scenics, track and even grass were all set solid and took a lot to shift. This has given me confidence! So with the above three sets of considerations in mind I have made a start on the MOD sidings. To keep myself honest, the criteria for the build are recorded here in public view! -- Operational interest in the track plan -- Visual interest and detail at the front to draw the eye to the foreground -- Proper ground cover -- No flat earth Plan: gravel road running the length of the board front, Nissen huts x2 in front of the track at the left end (fiddle yard), stores building front right in front of the loop headshunt (to create a nice bit of interest as engines disappear behind, and to give a detailed front scene in the foreground of the board), and loading platform rear right accessed across the tracks. In front of the road, the front left corner, and remaining space at the back will be grass, heath, and flowers. A smattering of anti-tank installations etc (maybe even one or two small dragon's teeth?) on the heath areas. Simple, no? Testing out some train lengths -- should be a good plan to shunt warwells and the like around. With newfound impetus I'll be cracking on with the Nissen huts and stores buildings next. Progress! Adam

Fantastic project, I have to say I’ll almost certainly cave to a GNER gold example if/when these become available. Great memories of being obsessed with GNER-liveried electrics as a child (never forget being whisked from KX to Doncaster on a 373 for the works open day in 2003) and when I first found out about this engine I thought it was the best thing since the proverbial sliced bread. A D Class for ‘proper’ modelling and an 89 for the shelf — an odd combination, but cheers Rails! Adam

Looking good as always @turtlebah — the fiddle yard looks robust, far more so than efforts I usually end up with! I can share your excitement in the new researches; there’s a fantastic satisfaction in turning the page and finding new photos of exactly the thing you’re looking for. I sometimes wonder if I enjoy the research more than the modelling, in fact — it fits into short bits of spare time, it’s cheap, and the wiring doesn’t have to work! Adam

Quite right; I didn't want to appear to be picking too many holes all at once in my initial post, but you are correct! The general arrangement of the panels, if not the actual shape, is at least accurate. Why the positioning of lamp brackets remains such a sticking point in a lot of RTR models is beyond me, though. Adam

Thanks @Graham_Muz, should have known you'd be the man to ask! Adam

Has anyone seen any photos of the other three versions? I’d be interested to see how they looked in the end even though it’s too late to purchase now. I must say I slightly regret not ordering one of these; the detail may not be the absolute highest level but they’re such attractively-proportioned engines and a bit of extra detailing work might turn one into a bit of a stunner I would imagine. Adam

Honestly exceptional — that’s genuinely one of the best individual scenes I’ve ever seen on a model. The originality alone is really something but the execution and the placement of each element sells it so convincingly. I never thought I’d say that something starting life as a scenic programming track would be one of the most interesting and technically accomplished railways on the forum, but I think this one is... Adam

Hi Dave, thank you. You might be exactly right, you know, I'm starting to wonder about that too. I first envisaged this as being very much an extension of Corfe and Swanage in character, but when I think about putting in even a cut-down version of a building from either place it just seems too much. One instructive example elsewhere on the LSWR might be Bordon, especially with the military railway connection. A couple of very inspiring pics I've just come across as I've been thinking about it: By 'Lamberhurst', via Wikipedia, under Creative Commons Share-alike. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bordon_railway_station_(1956).JPG I do like the goods shed behind the platform here, and the fact that the track arrangement and surroundings are very simple but still cultivated enough to say 'station' rather than 'halt'. Also the station building is charming and might be just a perfect fit with the 'light railway' feel you describe whilst still being firmly LSW in provenance. Mike Morant via Disused Stations, http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/b/bordon/bordon(mike_morant1.1965)old4.jpg This is the benefit of taking some time to think about all this whilst getting on with a few other modelling bits in the meantime -- I haven't gone charging in and then changed my mind or regretted it, for a change! Adam

Hi Rob, I'll also be very interested in watching a project along these lines come together. Your Bude Quay was a fantastic and inspirational diorama and I'm sure this 'updated' version will be equally impressive. I can just see a small engine and couple of wagons ambling up and down. Adam

Thanks for the interest folks. Hi Nick, thank you for your helpful thoughts and questions. The loco siding is the one in front of the headshunt, i.e. the water and coal facilities stand between the two lines and face towards the front of the board. This also relates to your question about the MOD sidings -- they are imagined to be slightly further up the line beyond the station, so off scene to the right on my track plan. In that way, if I decided to add a fiddle stick to the right hand end I could shunt trains up towards the sidings and the loco facilities would be the visual block for that exit. You raise a useful point about the main fiddle yard -- the plan is a three-road sector plate at the moment. I've seen this done on a few layouts on here and elsewhere with three exits onto the scenic board, but this might be easier to plan on the physical board. I'll see what happens regarding the goods shed again when I'm at the stage of physical mock-ups; I'm trying to avoid a bridge mostly on account of wanting the front left of the board to have a gently rolling slope down towards the board edge, where the heath scenery will go. Likewise the sidings -- if I have two, the area around them will be left as open as possible, but you might be wise to suggest reducing to one. The plan also has everything shifted very far forwards though in order to leave space behind the platform for buildings -- in reality I might not need as much space there, so I might be able to bring some of that space to the front instead. Still mulling over building options whilst working on bits of other projects at the moment. I'm pondering the possibility of reducing the building to a shelter affair, although that might make the goods shed and lockup buildings look overkill. Any thoughts welcome. Adam

Hi @LCUT_creative, I hope you’re well. Just a quick suggestion which came to mind while I was placing an order yesterday — have you ever thought about making a sheet of correctly scaled window templates to print out, a la Peco point templates? I realise there’d be a bit of work involved in producing them but it’d be helpful for planning buildings which either use non-rectangular windows, or where the end user wanted to cut down the windows to make smaller ones. Just a thought! Adam

That really looks the part @Gopher, very nice indeed. Liking the colour variations on the roof as well. Adam

Hello @Geep7, just a brief hello to say I've been enjoying this thread on and off for a while and thought I should drop in and say so! Also reminding myself to catch up from the beginning when I have a few moments. The substation build has a really impressive level of detail, and I do like the look of your ground cover between the ballasted areas as well. Will look forward to seeing some more of that point rodding. Adam

Really starting to look the business now, @Booking Hall! The low-level shot of the AB and vans under the bridge is super, as is the detailing in the final photo. All in all a very impressive scene. Adam