James Hilton

The new South Wales coal micro layout has been progressing alongside Mollington Road over the Easter weekend and has provided a welcome and positive distraction... The first stage after basic construction was to add some lighting - this layout sits in a dark spot above my bench, and so integral lighting is essential if it's to be used. I invested in 5m of LED flexible strip for East Works, and impressed by it's colour intensity on that layout I decided it would work here too, my only concern being whether a single strip would give adequate lighting without backscene shadows. On East Works I used a strip along the front, and towards the back, to eliminate the shadows from trees - the narrow and low height of the scene here won't allow that. A quick mock up showed it worked well, so the strip was cut and glued to the front inside edge, allowing it to bounce off the rear and roof to provide a good spread of light. Whilst not cheap, these natural white LEDs are much better than others I've seen - the distance and spacing of them suits model railways, and doesn't leave too much glare on rail heads. The next thing that needed solving was point control. As there is no 'underside' to the baseboard, this all needed to be on the surface and as it was only an 'experiment' I didn't want to install expensive servo or slow motion surface mounts - not that it would have been easy anyway - so I adopted a two pronged attack. The uniforms were wired to momentary toggle switches - this means if I'm running longer wheel base or compensated locos I don't need to use them, but with the short 0-4-0s (Hornby and Hattons) as well as the DJM Austerity I can flick and hold the switch to ensure a smooth transition over the frog. In order to operate them I originally planned just a finger or a little stub on the end of my uncoupler bar for the tie-bar but figured this might end up damaging things, so instead built a very simple wire in tube. This is 0.9mm brass wire in styrene tube - now covered where exposed by card and paper before I do the scenery proper. They're dead dead simple, but on a small layout very effective. What have I learnt already? That these Bull-head points, whilst visually lovely, have a couple of annoying traits... they're more flimsy, and despite being laid on a totally flat board I think there is a little flex in them so they're not totally flat. The blades aren't totally flat eigher a the toe, so that locos jump a little as they drive on to them. They also definitely need frog wiring - the dead frog area is large, and even though the Bachmann Pannier's I've tried have no problems pretty much everything shorter than that does... for the price I'd have expected more - and these days why a small mechanical frog switching mechanism could easily be included in the box to be mounted alongside or underneath. Since then I've done some testing, whilst waiting on the backscne and some suitable materials for the stone overbridge and undergrowth. I had some 'views' in mind when I placed the structures and track plan and it's nice to see what these look like, even with just mock up structures. Behind the shed a small road will cross the branch, giving views of the engine as it shunts the sidings... There should also be a view from the over bridge of the mouth of the yard, allowing shots of locos like this as if viewed in person. The beauty of the layout being above the bench is it's viewing height is very natural - these views are easily achieved without any bending or contorting. The shed area will lend itself to any industrial setting - I suspect Pride of Gwent will be a regular on the board - it's lovely smooth runner and negotiates the dead uni frogs most of the time. I've got cars suiting both the 1960s, 70s and here 80s to allow a ring of the changes. I plan to begin on the shed structure today too... Finally, a shot of the bridge, this will be done in Will's Coarse stone as I like it's relief, and will use the Peco girder shortened to fit. Here my Golden Valley / Oxford Rail Janus, another smooth runner that occasionally hesitates on the uni-frogs, is in action. Despite being fitted with Kadees (as the large holes in the buffer beams don't come with blanking plates I fitted Kadees before I'd settled on 3 links on everything else) I managed some shunting by using the wagon couplings on the hook on the chassis. So it's been a productive few days, and will look forward to more when I add the backscene next. Until then, more soon...

It's been a productive weekend of modelling, I've managed to have a holiday from commission work and focus purely on my own projects and it's been a real tonic. It's also been nice to exchange a few messages with good modelling friends, a welcome distraction from the situation in the real world... Mollington Road, my small micro OO layout, has made visible progress - the track is ballasted and the weathering process has started and I've finally made some ground on the buildings. These were built a month or so ago, but they're the least favourite part of model making for me... so I struggle a bit to get on with them. However, they're beginning to show real progress - I'm particular pleased with the surgery building, which passes as any sort of industrial structure in this setting. This has a real charm and character that you can't get with using kits or ready to plant structures. The shed in the background, the old Transit in the foreground with it's wheels set on an angle, I'm getting excited about finishing this in the coming months - it should prove a great back drop for photos, but equally, I've had a very pleasant time operating - it's so simple but shuttling wagons back and forth and switching their order or position is good fun. The gatehouse, seen here, is supposed to be a sliding window, I will add some slight interior and a sign in the window - I need to work out the road surfaces, what will be tarmac what will be concrete, as well as some sort of gate! The view along the line makes it look longer than it is - the idea will be this will be more overgrown than the works spur, but still in good nick. I'm taking inspiration from Trafford Park with this layout, so that's the aim - if it evokes a little of that, mixed in with Devonport I'll be happy! More soon...

The line has been quiet due to the global recession, slate demand has massively reduced and output at the quarry has temporarily halted. Maintenance of the tramway, already reduced, is pretty much non-existent but a rock fall on the line needed clearing, so the Simplex took one of the old slate wagons up to the site to aid in clearance... The photographer managed a moment to take a few photos of the stock involved, a rare chance to see the inspection 'saloon' (if so grand a term is deserved) in use, as the manager wanted to see for himself, as well as an excuse for a ride on the line, always a favourite of his... Back at the wharf the stone was unloaded, and can be used for shoring up some of the walls and retaining banks along the line, if or when the quarry reopens. More soon...

I absolutely love the Hunslet Dave, glad the weather has meant you've been able to enjoy the layout again.

The B4 suits the British Steel markings well Andrew!

The NCB style cab (although of course used on Industrials in all types of service) is now available in the Narrow Planet marketplace: https://shop.narrowplanet.co.uk/collections/planet-industrials/products/pil-002b Why not pair it with a set of our yellow NCB markings, PIC-005, also available here: https://shop.narrowplanet.co.uk/collections/planet-industrials/products/pic-005 (Note: our prototype shown displays custom transfers depicting Bowes no.22, not available on sheet PIC-005)

I think it's a great idea, although perhaps ambitious in your space. Ratio GWR 4 wheel coach kits might be a cheap start for your carriages though. I could help with layout planning, but that would cost I'm afraid. Otherwise, try digging out some of the Peco plan books to get a feel for what will fit in 6x4, perhaps shed scene on a corner, station on one of the curves, yard in the middle on one side with some trees and hill as a scenic divide?

2112 square centimetres, it sounds a lot, but it's actually tiny - and that is the area of the shelf under neath East Works but above my workbench... I've pondered what to do with this area for some time, and have mulled over small plans for OO and 009 layouts to fill the space. In the end, seeing my friends Tom Dauben and Steve Fulljames make starts on similar small projects bumped this one into reality and I settled on what had become favourite... a scene based upon photographs and video of NCB steam in South Wales in the late 1960s early 1970s. So here we have Pont-y-dulais (or Dulais bridge). Yes, it is almost 'Pontarddulais' but not quite, with also some elements of Mountain Ash thrown in, really it's just an excuse to try out a pair of Peco bull-head points, fill a space on the workshop and have a small OO gauge layout that is out all the time for running. It nearly fills the area above my workbench, and hopefully it's compact size will make it a good fun little project whilst ticking the boxes for somewhere to 'play' with my growing collection of coal related industrials. The period is deeply evocative and I find photos and videos of the run-down and worn out systems to be massively inspiring - and I want to see if I can capture some of that atmosphere with this project. Work started by marking out a piece of ply, printing some templates from Peco for the bull-head points and combined with a few yards of bull-head track testing out what might be possible in such a small space. I had the idea that it would be pretty limited operation, but putting the engine shed on a kick back giving a little more running length, and two sidings to swap wagons between, appearing to go further up the line under a road bridge. The plan was then curved a little, so that it was more visually interesting, I often find that doing this makes a big difference to how a layout feels. Some basic structures were mocked up in cardboard, this process allows you to visualise a scene a little better and although I had a good idea from the sketches, they proved the concept was worth pursuing further... ...especially seeing this view, the DJ Models Austerity and some Accurascale hoppers under the bridge. The girder is a Peco example re-used for the third time from a childhood layout - this featured on the first layout my Dad built for me when we lived in London, and then survived a move to Chester, where it was re-used on a bridge on a much larger layout. I kept it for posterity and it's nice to re-use things, I'll chop it down to fit. The ply base (9mm) was cut to shape, and two ends 18cm tall made up. The back was added in 6mm MDF, and then a front fascia with small wings and the land form for the bridge included was glued on. Nothing rocket science, in face nothing clever at all - this is largely a working diorama so won't need any fancy wiring or point control. I'm relying on the integral back and ends to provide the box structure strength you'd normally aim to get from the under the board box structure in a conventional cameo layout, but since we're severely lacking in headroom this will suffice. Finally, shown here in place above my bench, but below East Works. The next stage is to add a small top and see if LED lighting overpowers at such a low height, if so, I'll need to look at dimming them or adding a diffuser, I want to make the lid integral for added strength. Anyhow, the points are on order and should be due in the next few days, I'll push on between commission work with this, alongside Mollington Road, which is also progressing - this weekend I've added the missing structures, so I'll post about this separately. Until then, more soon...

A few little announcements this week with a dockyard theme... The Devonport Barclay cab conversion kit is now available with Devonport lining and marking transfers included, for an additional £15... The Devonport van 58 rolling stock transfers are also now available, designed with reference to Paul Burkhalter's excellent book on the system they're styled for Van 58, which can be built from a Parkside or Ratio GWR Gunpowder van. They can also be used on other items, I've applied them to a 7 plank wagon shown here to good effect, and matching, bar the number, another wagon on the system. Have a good weekend...

There are plans for a different type of chassis, but nothing announced yet. Facebook will be the first place for it to appear, but I'll post it here as well.

Thank you to all who have stopped by and placed an order in the last week. It's lovely to see examples popping up on social media. There are just over twenty four hours left to use the discount code, and lots more news to share in the coming weeks...

I've made a concerted effort to stay focussed for once, and rather than head off down another layout plan, I'm going to finish Mollington Road, as for now, I genuinely can't envisage having space for anything OO that's larger... So with this in mind, and with some inspiration from other modellers I dug it out of the under stairs cupboard and reviewed where things had been left. Last time it was out I'd mocked up where I planned roads and made a start on some structures. The current state is shown here, although I'd not placed the other buildings. I decided I needed to bring the level of the road area up to the rail height if possible. I found a piece of suitable MDF and cut this to fit, glued and sealed the gaps with acrylic filler. Once dry I mixed up some Woodland Scenics 'smooth it' in quite a watery consistency. Sealing the edge with some tape, I then poured it carefully over and between the rails, spreading it gently with a knife and leaving it to dry. Smooth it is basically plaster, and it's nicer to work with than interior filler where you need a smooth road surface, I'd definitely recommend it in this use - although a large area you might be better just buying bog standard plaster of paris. It does dry with a rounded edge, but this is easily smoothed off... The clearance or flanges on the crossing was achieved with some plastic check rails set below the level of the metal rails. The rails in the yard won't have as much train traffic so I made a tool from styrene that runs along the rails and cuts a groove in the 'green' plaster - when it's set but not dry - allowing clearance for rolling stock flanges. This looks neater than an over width check rail. Once dry enough to handle I marked out the roads in pencil and fabricated some curb stones out of wood, before filling behind these with interior filler. I also added styrene tube as a culvert and smoothed the edges of this with more interior filler. This is now all drying, and I've placed some stock and buildings to check the angles - excuse the radiator back-scene! These feature my Dad's old Mainline 03 and a Cambrian Herring I also put together this weekend... Some of these are very effective despite the small scene, and show the advantage of a micro layout. I can't wait to add a proper road surface and begin to add some ground cover. One final shot showing the state of place from a birds eye view, which shows how that despite it being still all the wrong colours, by adding defined road area and curbs, the layout has gone from being some track on a board and the other half seeming really bare, to an overall scene. More soon...

Well the kids are off school so work has slowed to a snail pace but I have managed to play some trains in the garden as some sort of mental respite, I'm finding the mental stress and strain of the situation quite overwhelming, especially being self employed so these quiet moments lost in a miniature world are a real tonic... The Hudson Hunslet is seen here with a train of gunpowder heading for the quarry one evening... The following day I steamed up the Andrew Barclay, seen here also at the mill, the empty wagons in the foreground are finished slate 'container' wagons as the tramway operated an early form of containerisation... ...seen here later on the way up to the quarry with a pair of empty slab wagons. Later on and a period switch, bringing us up to the noughties with a train of slate waste brought down from the old tips at the quarry for use in the construction industry in bulk bags. Hopefully in time the train will be strengthened to three wagons. I hope everyone is bearing up ok - and that sharing these photos puts a few smiles on daces like it did for me playing trains for a short time. More soon...

In addition to the Narrow Planet marketplace announcement, there are still good stock of our kits and transfers - the discount code runs until the end of the month, enter the code GOINDUSTRIAL at check out.

Despite the world in crisis, the world of Model Railways continues, in some ways oblivious to the situation, and certainly providing some mindful distraction from the worries and stresses of real life... In that mind, I'm pleased to share the latest in the Planet Industrials range, a model I've hinted at for a few weeks, the NCB style post 1951 cab Barclay, a follow up to the initial Devonport style cab release from earlier this year. It will be released early next month, exclusively through the Narrow Planet marketplace, stock is in place for the initial batch, although Covid-19 may interrupt further batches, or our ability to send it to you! These photos show the development prototype finished in the style of No.22 at Bowes, sadly out of boiler ticket. The transfers were designed by me specifically for the model, and set off the otherwise austere black livery quite nicely. The lettering is bespoke, drawn to match the prototypes sign written lettering exactly using photos of the original as a template. Although these are not on general sale, our own range of transfers gives a few lettering styles that would be suitable, expecially using PIC-005 in yellow. The price will be as per the Devonport cab, £25 including UK delivery, or £120 when purchased with a donor Hattons Barclay, of which we still have a limited stock, which post Covid-19 we will replenish. If you'd like to commission me to build you a model, I would appreciate the business at this time, do get in touch either through the forums or Facebook - or you can use the contact form on my website. More soon...

10% off, use code 'GOINDUSTRIAL' at checkout: shop.narrowplanet.co.uk/collections/planet-industrials

Steve and I are excited to announce the second version of our Hibberd Planet kit is now available, featuring the same multimedia approach suited to the modeller new to locomotive kit building. This version includes a shunters front step and a choice of cab style for £83 (kit only) or £123 (supplied with the required Tenshodo chassis) both including free UK delivery. From today we are offering a 10% discount to both new and existing customers on all Planet Industrials products available through the Narrow Planet Marketplace, enter the code 'GOINDUSTRIAL' at check out, available through to the end of March.

When we released the original range of transfers I promised to look into adding some yellow NCB examples, these are available now for £6 including UK delivery...

I've been a member of RMWeb since around 2007, when I rediscovered railway modelling shortly after my daughter was born. I had been an avid modeller as a child and teenager, blessed with a modelling father and a best friend who was obsessed with trains as much as I was, living in such a small village (our school had just 70 odd children) this was amazing luck and we spent many happy hours building, modifying and playing with 009, 00 and G gauge Railways at our family homes. However, of course it couldn't last and with high school distractions and then college meant we lost contact as we both moved away from home. However, after sharing my model making on the forum imagine my surprise and delight when after nearly 10 years out of touch, my childhood friend got back in touch after seeing my posts on RMWeb! Today we don't live close enough to see one another regularly but we both still love Railways and model making. We share ideas and projects and I find the contact continues to inspire and drive my own modelling forwards. So not only is RMWeb part of my re-born modelling interest, it has had another much more powerful impact in my life for without it I may never have rediscovered my childhood best friend. Thanks Andy for setting things up all those years ago, and for all the 'virtual' modellers I've shared experiences and modelling with over the years, some of whom I haven't met yet still consider friends.

The Minitrains Decauville, wheels excepted, a lovely 009 (yes, not H0e, it's a scale 1:76 model) of the small 0-6-0 design used by the French military during the first world war, and subsequently in industry across Europe, especially France... My customer supplied a recently repainted model (see below in primer before it was painted green) which had some damage to the paintwork, presumably from nameplates being fitted or something. Despite the customer having painted it in the green he wanted the damage was still clearly visible and would impact the weathered finish, I thought it needed sorting. I rubbed down very gently with 600 wet and dry used wet, and then re-sealed with dull-cote which improved matters greatly. The basic weathering finish is a mix of a simple wash (and subsequent removal to leave streaking, as well as water leaching down the tanks) and airbrushed soot/road dirt. This simple approach brings this small model to life - and she'll be heading home this week. If you've got a model you need repairing/repainting/refinishing and weathering, then get in touch for a personal proposal based upon your exact requirements. More soon... This wonderful hand built model of a Penrhyn brake van has been a true delight to work with over the past few weeks. It arrived pristine with a black chassis, pale grey primed tank and laser cut ply brake van and I've worked with the customer to define the finish and bring it to life... The quality of the model making has rewarded this careful and subtle weathering that blends a variety of techniques. The wooden cab was laser cut ply which had a lovely grain but was too obviously one piece as the grain moves across each laser cut plank as it was done as one sheet. Therefore the weathering had to not only preserve some of the grain, but also disguise it. I selected to use a wash of Humbrol 72 initially, which toned down the garish raw ply look and then once dry used a dry brush and stipple of Humbrol 64 for the faded worn paint. Rust streaking from the nails has been micro painted in place. The tank has some lovely weld detail and I wanted to subtle highlight this in the finish, a mid grey was chosen for the paint work applied using Humbrol enamels as they dry hard and stand up to the weathering steps that follow. The first step was a dirty dark wash all over the tank. On the sides this was mostly removed using a vertical motion to leave some staining and streaking. On the tank top this was more stippled to give the effect of previously pooled and dried water puddles. Once thoroughly dry my more usual shade of wash was applied, and the process repeated, giving it a dusty finish. Once dry a rusty mix was thinned and painted along the welds, and used neat along the bottom edges of the tank for rust patches, before being dry brushed with gun metal to highlight the edges. The chassis was painted a dark grey, before rust effect was hand painted around nut and bolt heads, along some of the seams and streaks of dirt and grease added, before dry brushing gun metal to hi light metal edges, same with the buffer beams that also got a few neat rust patches and scratches from abrasion or chains. The moss around the windows was added using a matt dark green, dribbled along the edge of the glazing and used a little neater along the bottom edge. The photo below also shows the pooling water stain on the tank top, along with the rusty weld. Finally, the model was sprayed with dirt in the airbrush to tie the finish together, concentrating on the two 'dirty' stripes on each end, clearly visible on the prototype, assumed to be road dirt flung up from the wheels of wagons when running at speed in the wet. I'm really pleased with how the finish has pulled the model together and brought it to life from a dull lifeless masterpiece of a model to a miniature reality. If you have a model you'd like me to breathe life into, I can work in any scale or gauge, using the prototype as inspiration to create truly unique models. Contact me via the Facebook page, contact form on the blog or a forum message. More soon... The Model-Rail J70 is a wonderfully conceived model, by Canadian firm Rapido. This commission is the first time I've had a chance to handle one of these in the flesh and I'm really impressed... The first job was to add some of the details, mainly the cow-catchers, cleverly moulded in an Engineering type flexible plastic. I removed the screw link couplings from their hooks so the hook could be fitted despite retaining the tension lock couplings. The end doors were fitted, one closed, one open, based again on photos, secured with a touch of superglue. The etched plates were painted with satin black, once dry this was polished back with fine wet-and-dry paper and they were secured with tiny drops of superglue. My customer asked for a subtle weathering (it's so easy to go over the top, a restrained yet realistic weathering is a lot harder to achieve in my experience). I began with studying a few photos of the prototype to observe where dirt collected and staining occurred before beginning work with a simple wash. Whilst wet this was wiped off with a sponge, vertically to give just the faintest of streaks in the direction of rain water. Once dry, I added a little more wash and staining in vertical streaks from the window sills and door ways. It was important to add the wash to the insides of the cab as well, where possible, to tone down the glossy finish of the cast metal chassis and boiler parts. The next stage was to simulate worn metal edges by dry brushing with gun-metal. The wheels were also treated to a rusty dirty brown colour applied whilst the loco was on the rolling road carefully by brush to avoid the wheel treads. The roof was washed with a blacker wash and again sponged off in a side to side motion to represent rain streaking, and a light dribble of wash applied along the rain strips. Once dry, some small streaks added around the chimney. The final step was the use of the airbrush to tone the various washes and dry brushing together, mixed up to give a dusty but warm tone to the completed model. The customer is looking forward to receiving the model home, and hopefully I can get some photos of it in use for a Friday update some time. I can offer weathering from just £60, the perfect way to transform your ready to run model and bring it to life. Get in touch for a personal proposal. More soon...

Thanks chaps - yes both two good options - and top tip on the electricians tape, I'd not heard of that one before. These etched ones seemed useful to me when building my own model - they won't be high cost, but hopefully will offer an alternative to those looking for something like this for their own models.

Whilst building my own OO gauge model of a Hunslet 0-4-0 DH from the excellent Judith Edge kit, I chose to use Romford style wheels due to their ease of use and quartering. However, I was less than happy with the visible axle nut... Originally I planned to just paint it, thinking it would disappear in the general inderframe gloom, but looking at photos of others completed models I wasn't so sure... I then looked at the Markits axle nut covers, which seemed to offer a solution. These would just about fit the small wheels, but had to be locked in place by the crank pin, and I wasn't sure if this was the way I wanted to go. I was also a little worried as I had a feeling the bosses on the Scale-link wheels I was using differed a little from the original Romford design. So I decided to design something myself... originally I planned to include an outer edge to cover the whole of the centre boss, but I was worried about the easy in which the part could be cut from the etch without leaving a dent, as well as the chance that the axle was a tiny bit longer, or proud of the wheel face, meaning a small gap may be visible around the edge. I figured the better compromise was to just cover the nut itself, with a thin but robust etched part. The result seen here, worked well on my Hunslet model, and so Steve and I have decided to add them to the Planet Industrials range - they are in production at the moment, and by the time they're back and packaged up I expect release will be in April. Keep your eyes peeled on the Facebook page for more information on their availability... More soon...

The Hornby W4 Peckett 0-4-0st was the ready to run model that started it all! Hornby taking a punt at an industrial prototype showed others that there was a market in the diminutive and often overlooked. Followed by a Hattons Andrew Barclay, and later the Hornby B2 0-6-0st the original W4 continues to form a strong part of their range and is a well detailed and lovely running model... I have been toying with a Peckett project for a while, and finally bit the bullet. Regular long standing readers may remember I picked up a MSC liveried example in the early days but it didn't fit with plans at the time and was moved on. The latest acquisition is the plain black example with later safety valve bonnet - which best suits a post dating. The W class was nominally a 13", later 14" cylinder with 3' diameter wheels. The number after W denoted the revision, Hornby's is quite an early example with wooden buffer beams and the early style cab. I wanted to replace the buffer beams and cab for starters but wasn't sure how Hornby had engineered their model. I needn't have worried, the buffer beams are pushed and glued onto tabs, the cab also just glued into tabs in the cast floor. That discovered I've run a micrometer over the vitals and knocked up 3D artwork for a replacement cab with brass roof, and two options of front buffer beams. These will all be printed on the Narrow Planet resin Formlabs Form2 we use for the production Andrew Barclay cabs already in the Planet Industrials range. The cab will press into the original slots, although the strengthening tab in the cab lower sides will need removing. The buffer beams will push on the front, and the buffers can be fitted from the original Hornby offering. I will also etch a replacement front tank support, which although will be incorrect in outline, allow you to model one without wings. I'm thinking about options for a shorter chimney and safety valve, along with a cut down cab option, and one with later style windows as well. Until the prototype parts are fitted though, there isn't anything else to be done. Keep an eye out on the Planet Industrials page for more information as things develop... More soon...

Hi Mark, thanks, the Janus has since received name and works plates too, I'm pleased with the pair but their waiting a coal based layout... No progress to report on Mollington Road I'm afraid.

Thanks Mark! Here's a pair I prepared earlier... ...DJ models Austerity and Oxford Janus, both that I've repainted and weathered.