wiggoforgold

The station would have been about 500 feet lower than the airfield, despite their proximity. The railway line can be seen in the bottom right of the first photo, running from South to North, with the Princetown branch curving off to the east, which allows you to see the position of the station. The line goes in to a tunnel which passes beneath the road just west of the roundabout. The church is more or less over the tunnel, and the spire was hit by a plane from RAF Harrowbeer during the war. Alex

I rather like the Centurion, but told the local club I was resisting it and waiting for a Churchill.

The Armortek kits are impressive. I have a friend who has just done a Tamiya RC Abrams with sound. Sounds like a demented hoover. Good to see so many people commenting with enthusiasm on what can be learned from Military modelling. Alex

Thanks Rob. I'm lucky enough to live in the area, so I've modelled what I see. I've also spent a lot of time on country walks taking photos of things like bushes and worn road surfaces on my phone. Alex

Railway modellers can be an insular bunch in my experience. Techniques like dry brushing and washes were around in the military modelling world for years before railway modellers cottoned on to them Alex

The octagonal building on the up platform is more or less finished. The station is in it's final years. It hasn't been painted since before the war, and is starting to look a bit shabby, but there's still life in the place. I use the lamp shade and glass from the Ratio set, mounted on a piece of brass wire. The paintwork at this end of the station is quite worn. I used Mig acrylics, over a coat of grey primer. The building was coated with various shades of grey , before being covered with chipping fluid. The top coat was then applied, before being largely removed, to give the impression of bare wood through peeling paint. Finally, a view of the lane behind the station Alex

This is all very Upwell. Looking forward to seeing it for real at SWAG. Alex

Work progresses on the 44xx. Sorry the pics are in a funny order: i posted them on my phone and couldn't get them in chronological order. I reworked the detail on the tank tops - replacing the tank vents and changing the top feed pipes. On the 45xx they drop through holes in the tanks, but on the 44xx they appear to run back to the cab The model was primed with Mig acrylic primer, and rusty areas were patch painted. The body was then spayed with various mixes of matt black, some areas with a little earth or old rust added in. Before the black was painted on, some of the rusty areas were given a coat of Mig chipping effects. Once the black was dry this was treated with water and scratched with a cocktail stick leaving patches of rust showing through. Further weathering was done with weathering powders. The body still needs coal and a crew, then it's on to the chassis, which needs a motion bracket and sandboxes adding, and the front pony truck needs to be moved back a little. Alex

I wanted to make a model of the mixed train that ran to Princetown for the Yelverton layout. In reality, by the time of the model, the Princetown line and the 44xx class had gone, but I wanted to build the train in model form. A while ago I got a Perseverance chassis from gwrob of this parish which provided the chassis for the model. I also got a K’s body from him, thinking that a repaint in black would be a quick change, but the more I learned about the class, the more I realised that using the K’a body as a basis of a 44xx in it’s final form was not a simple job, so I am modifying a Bachmann body. Alex

Hi Marcus. I haven't seen a colour photo. The yellow brick is on the basis that the other railway buildings were yellow brick and in b&w photos they seem to be the same shade, and the window frames and louvres are green because in the photos they look too dark to be cream. Alex

The Edington show has been rearranged for 23-24 July, and Yelverton will be in attendance. The postponement has given more time to work on the layout, so there will be a bit more to see! Hope to meet some of you there. Alex

The metal frame over the path leading to the station has been installed and painted. I made the ivy from a length of cotton, painted, sprayed with hairspray and dipped in green scatter. Once dry it was wound round the frame and secured with pva. A bit more scatter was added while the glue was wet.

The main work on the new engine shed for Diddington is now complete. It needs a bit of detailing added, in the form of gutters and lamps, and fitting in place on the layout. I tried some new techniques in the construction, using ideas picked up while working on Upwell Drove and Yelverton. It was my first attempt at a laser cut kit. I wanted something that would consistently cut out the shapes of the windows and window frames, and laser cutting provided that. I’m also pleased with the appearance of the bricks. For many years I used the embossed and moulded plastic sheets produced by Slaters and Wills. The problem with these is that the production method leaves the edges of the bricks slightly rounded, which looks most unlike machine cut bricks. The most effective method to my mind is the Pendon method of scribing and painting individual bricks. This method produces some wonderful results, but I can’t come up with the consistency of line and steadiness of hand to pull this off. I prefer printed papers, such as Scalescenes, which give a consistent appearance, without the rounded corners of plastic sheet. Laser cutting provides a smooth face to the bricks, with no rounding, and gives a greatly improved appearance. I tried a new method for the windows. The glazing was fixed in place behind the window apertures. The window frames were then dropped in to the apertures and are retained in place by the glazing. This method required little adhesive in the frames (I used glue’n’glaze where necessary) and in many cased the frames were a gentle force fit, and didn’t need any adhesive to retain them. I used laser cut slates for the roof. Again, industrial and railway buildings used machine cut slates, and laser cutting provides consistency of appearance. I used weathered roof slates (LX410-00) from from Scale Model Scenery, applied in strips to the laser cut roof from the kit, using the engraved lines of slates on the roof as a guide. The louvres on the prototype looked a bit less substantial than those in the kit, so the kit parts were thinned down, and part of the end cut away , leaving just the roof supports. Overall, I’m pleased with the result, and the redevelopment of the shed area has taken a step forward. The white patches visible inside the shed are the glue'n'glaze used to fit the glazing. It dries clear, but was still wet when I took the photos

Yes Please. PM me Richard. Alex

The brickwork on the engine shed is more or less done. I gave the laser cut shell a coat of sealer, followed by a spray of primer. The brickwork was then given spray coats of various shades of yellow/brown paint. I used Mig “New wood” and “Ochre earth”. All the articles I found on the net about painting laser cut buildings used enamels at this stage, but the paints I had to hand in suitable colours were acrylic, so I used them without difficulty. When dry, I went over the brickwork with various shades of weathering powder, mainly “concrete” and “smoke”, used both wet and dry. I was careful when using wet mixes to keep as little moisture on the surface of the model, to avoid the risk of it soaking in and distorting the laser cut parts. In places, some of the powder was wiped off with a damp paper towel. I’ve painted the window frames ready for installation, and have made a start on tiling the roof. Alex

Thanks. I've left room on the trolley for a crate of empty milk bottles and a cool box for ice cream when I can find something suitable Alex

With the boards currently dismantled for work on the individual sections, the opportunity arose for this picture of the up platform building from a different angle. Alex

Thanks Kevin. Much what I did with mine, but yours looks very neat. Alex

Looks like you've moved the shield behind the top bunker lamp bracket from the moulded coal to the back of the bunker. How did you do it? (I've got 4588 btw) Alex

A closer view of the gate Alex

More work on the path to the up platform. The frame needs painting and I’m going to add some ivy. There should be 4 hoops, but I’m temporarily out of suitable rod. Alex

I used ply as backing for the photographic bits on Yelverton. Other materials found useful were wall paper .ing paper (works out very cheap indeed) and artists mounting board. Alex

Basic structure of the new engine and is now complete. Essentially is an L-cut small engine shed with an extra sue panel, new ends and the roof modified so it sits between the ends rather than overhangs them. Painting is now underway. Alex

Thanks Graham. Yes they are Modelu figures. The cup on the drinking figure is hollow! Alex

A group of platelayers by the trolley shed discuss the coming days work. Alex