gismorail

Evening Clive, Already got one The real one as it was 'back in the day' and in model form Have you scratch built yours ... looks very nice The one on Northgate shed is a Wadsworth etch brass kit which is also available in 7mm. Took my a while to get mine together but am happy with the result.

Hi Ray, Thank you for you kind comments about the shed build it's certainly created a lot of interest and I do hope that it will give others the confidence to have a go at building their own 'man cave' . I have over the years seen so many fellow railway modellers being disappointed with sectional sheds, which at the end of the day are just garden sheds for keeping lawn mowers and tools in but not up to the demands required for our hobby. Would be nice to meet up with you next time your over this way, probably with better weather one hopes. Like you thread about the stepper motor for your turn table very cleaver project Sir. The turn table on Northgate shed has a GC stepper motor fitted but cost a lot more than your's .....if only I'd known Keep in touch cheers

One thing that I have realised with this new shed is that because I made the decision to build the work shop separate from the main layout area there is a lot of backwards and forwards between the two for tools and bits and pieces. It did go through my mind whilst I was building the shed and I considered putting an internal door between the two areas, but I was wanting a clear run around the room for the layout. I have been searching around the internet for a portable work bench for a couple of weeks now and have seen some rather useful items which would do the job but at a price and I'm talking not having much change out of a grand. So the other day I starting thinking about making my own custom built workbench and today I have be a busy bee and am glad to report it's completed and ready for action Well its probably not as swish and designer as some of the ones that I saw on the internet but is strong, will fit underneath the layout and do the job required but big plus it cost the massive sum of £12 and that was for some bolts to fix the wheel castors on which I did not have in stock. The main frame is made of 4x2 timber off cuts from the shed build , the top is an off cut from a kitchen I build years ago, and the rest came from my pile of ' I might need that one day' (come on we've all got one)

Oh Oh Oh Oh ........' 'Father of West Shed'... :scared: WARNING WARNING the web might crash if we get a whole family

The latest scenic work is really looking good Andy you do have a talent sir. Putting that Pill Box in the corner of the embankment is a real master stroke

Thanks Andy. Its part of the' Bigger' picture as it were and it does make a good test track mainly because it gives me some idea of how a particular loco is going to operate on SMP track and hand built point work and as to if my modelling ability is up to building a large layout

Thanks for your kind comments John I do like the grim and run down parts of the railway in the late fifties / early sixties, unloved and uncared for but still functioning ......

Make sure you take a bus for the bridge

Morning Jason funny you should suddenly revive the Bacup thread with a picture update as I was doing my yearly magazine clear out yesterday which involves cutting out articles of special interest to me for future reference and filed the your Bacup write up under the inspiration section.

Finally having completed the new 'man cave' and sorted out the workshop I am finally able to turn my attentions to some modelling after nearly three years of frustration that a move to a new home can involve. The Northgate loco shed layout has come out of storage from the lounge and once I had unpacked it from it's protective 'coffin' and set it up I was faced with the task of trying to remember which part of the wiring I had completed and what was still to be completed. It's surprising even though I had made wiring notes how one forgets over time what wire goes where. Once that had been sorted I was faced with the job of remembering which of my locomotives I had converted to DCC and and which ones were still DC operation, at least I did remember that I had not set individual loco numbers for the DCC converted ones which were all still on factory settings. I must make a log of each loco when this has been completed. As I have mentioned earlier on in this thread the construction of this shed layout was just as a test bed for what was to come and I wasn't sure if I should spend any more time with the completion of this project as I was going to re-use to buildings on the Northgate layout and had designed the baseboards to be re-used for an 0 gauge shunting layout in the future. Now I had put the layout up after all this time I feel that It's worth keeping as it will make a good test track for the locomotives as I detail and weather them as well as the stock. So here's a few pictures from this weeks running sessions. N5 Locomotive on its home shed C13 N5 on shed while the 84000 tank waits to be turned. N5 over one of the Ash pits dropping it's fire A Birkenhead 9F dropping it's fire prior to urgent attention in the shed. Some of you might have noticed a slight flicker of light beneath the loco's over the ash pit which is some of the effects that I intend to put into the layout. It was an idea that crossed my mind while I was building the canopy over the main Ash Pit which was constructed during the world years so that the glowing ashes could not be seen by German aircraft . One job that I will have to completed is the fiddle yard for this layout which is only a small job due to the fact that it's mainly only light engine movements that will take place apart from the flow of traffic into small Northgate Brewery which I have added just as a scenic break for the end of the layout ... well it's different and it's better than a bridge Steam & Beer what an excellent combination. Another shot of the 9F but this time you can see the firebox flicker function beneath the canopy.

Excellent progress Andy like to way you 'just ' went into the shed and painted the bridge oh to have to such skill at one finger tips and what a difference it has made to that cutting. Really draws one's eye down the scene and given such great depth of field. I always get a great deal of inspiration following a virtual visit to you 'potting shed'

A belated New Years greetings to all and what a horrid wet start we have all had to put up with. Having said that I have been quite pleased to see such extreme weather conditions as it has given me the opportunity assess the quality of my 'man cave' build. Firstly I am glad to report that no leaks have been encountered despite the gale force winds lashing the shed with gallons of rain water and given my position on a Welsh hillside believe me it has been rough over the last month. It has certainly been worth the extra cost of using plastic coated box section metal roofing sheets rather than a felt or cheaper roofing sheeting. I have also been very pleased with the 'heat retention' qualities of the building which is down to fully insulating all areas including below the flooring space. In fact I was in the shed the other day and was unaware of the very heavy rain storm that was going on outside such is that level of insulation I have two oil filled Delonghi heaters one for each room and although I do not leave them on over-night have found that the whole shed is fairly warm when I first go in the morning and hopefully any layouts will not suffer from any extremes of temperature. I certainly have felt those that have omitted to install insulation in their railway rooms as it cannot be very warm at this time of year and must put off many evenings modelling sessions. Well that's enough of my ramblings about my 'delux man cave' the reason for this post was the promised costings for the build which I know some of you are keen to know so that you can start planning for any building work this coming year. I have broken down the costs to approx figures and generalised them into the following: Planning permission / building consultants fees .......................................................................................£340 Ground / block work/ gravel/ sand and concrete (including base and car parking area .........................£1788 Timber for frame / roof trusses etc...........................................................................................................£1100 Treated Cladding ..................................................................................................................................... .£800 Roofing sheets / fittings..............................................................................................................................£625 Insulation / membrain (King span sheets re-cycled).................................................................................£1000 Interior wall sheeting / chipboard flooring ..................................................................................................£750 Electrics / fittings / guttering / hardware / paint / wood treatment etc. ................................................ .£1000 Approx total £7403 The following figures have been rounded up to the nearest amount on multiple purchased and do not included on going modelling fixtures etc. There is of course no labour costs in the figures as the work has been done by myself and some help where needed from family so anyone costing out a shed build should take this into consideration. It's quite interesting that the final figure for the completed shed is about the same amount that I was quoted for an 8x4 metre shed from a local manufacturer which was just the shell and roof and I had to provide the base and insulation, internal lining and electrics plus I have added a 3x2.5 metre workshop. As you can work out from the above figures the shell and roofing cost me £2525.00 to build and design myself and hopefully to a much higher standard than that of a sectional build. Best of luck if you are planning a new shed build and if you have learnt anything from this thread you can build your own 'Man Cave' so just DO IT

Wow andy you have been busy nice work my man. I've been busy planning my own layout this week so have not kept up with progress but like what I see. Following your layout thread is like watching the 'shifting sands of time' every time I look in it's all changed.......

for the free

I've always found HB very expensive and am not surprised that it;s been taken over as most of the stores have had ;massive clearance' sales on for a while now. To be honest the DIY market is a strange set up in the UK as you have B&Q and Screwfix (same company by the way) often very close to each other in many cases where Screwfix is cheaper. The Travis Perkins group which has the builders merchants yards Wickes and Tool Station is a very strange set up in my mind as I have found that the Wickes DIY centres are in many cases are cheaper than the Trade yards and Tool station has very limited stock levels. Also within the last year Travis Perkins has just opened a massive RDC alongside the M62 at Warrington so they seem to been expanding. I have found up here in the North Wales area we have a builders merchant with a couple of depots in Ruthin and Llandudno and for building materials they are cheaper and one can get good advice and help plus if you spend over £50 free delivery.

I know what your saying in that statement but with a little 'thinking a fibreglass moulded fell would be 'very' strong. I will dig out some photo's of my Alpine mountain to show my thoughts

Morning Jeff. Things move so quickly once you get stuck in and the glacial movement in the bunker has been very active over the last week and it does look impressive. I have been thinking about your 'problem' with 'the gap' and wondered if you have considered making a fibre-glass mould for your removable lift out section. I used this material many years back when I was modelling the Rhb in the Swiss Alps and found it a very good to work with. I first used it to strengthen the board joists and later an add on for a mountain top which was removable and very light and strong Just something for you to consider.

''Too late for culverts. Full-blown fell-related engineering has been taking place to alter the topography. A cutting has been installed - as per KL - and the double track bridge made for KL (originally to carry an aqueduct, then just a farm road) has been installed.'' Like it Jeff...... sounds as though an ice age glacier has gone through the bunker today The results do look good

How about just having a culvet emerging at the base of the embankment and a nice scene of a stream forming a small pond and some tree's / shrubs lining the edges.

out and wriggled

the whole of

Excellent modelling will follow with interest

Excellent photo's especially of the station master's house being 'planted' It's interesting to see the detail that has been put into the landscaping of this as very often buildings get struck into position You will be pleased to know that following the building inspectors visit and the inspection of the footings you may carry on with the construction ........

from down the

Happy New Year from Carrog