Taigatrommel

I went to a gig last night at Wellington Town Hall. There were three stage invasions, a high-octane cover of Black Sabbath's Paranoid as an encore, and the ending was a crescendo of feedback. Yes, this is what you get from a Jarvis Cocker concert. Absolutely the best gig I've been to in years, the man is an total pro and gave it everything in spite of jetlag. And he's such a star, women will even jump on stage to kiss his arse. Some of the men in the audience were even desperate to touch him:blink:. He can actually rock pretty hard, it's just a shame that the shoegazers making up the audience didn't know how to mosh. The support, Phoenix Foundation, were very enjoyable, reminiscent of 1990s British indie in the vein of The Weddding Present, or at times James. There must have been something else as well, because today I had a massive urge to play Get over you by the Undertones. I felt like a teenager again. Gigs aside, I carried on with a bit of wiring on Steinrücken yesterday. I have chosen to try Atlas points in the hidden sidings, as for the same price locally as Peco, you get the point itself with a motor ready fitted, a switch and a small roll of five wire ribbon. I wouldn't use these points on scenic areas, as aside from the sharp radius, they're frankly quite ugly, especially with the motor fitted. However, in the hidden areas, they're a good economic proposition. The switches make up into the nice little bank pictured above, with one input providing power to the whole row. They're not the nicest switches to use, but as an interim control method before I decide on a signalling control system for the layout, they'll do the job fine.

Bad Horn is only meant to be a time killing project, to be worked upon while I'm waiting for materials for my larger H0 layout, Steinrücken. I'm too stingy to pay for express delivery from Europe, so I never quite know when things are going to show up. As such, having multiple projects makes me feel able to better use my free time- I'm bound to have something I can work on. Yet somehow, when a parcel containing points for Steinrücken was delivered earlier this week, I felt as if I was being distracted from more important work. Never one to do things by half, I decided that if I'll be having trains running on it soon, I'd give everything a spring clean and fit the alignment dowels I've had waiting in the wings for a while. This meant dismantling the layouts, and suddenly my playroom seems large again. The two H0 layouts, broken down, take up a small proportion of the floor space. Not pictured are the two helices, out of sight about where I stood to take the picture. And this is what it's all about. These little fellows. Thanks to Andi Dell (Dagworth) for advice on fitting them. I'm fitting the male dowels first, and securing with generous quantities of araldite. My drilling isn't very precise, so there is a bit of slop in some holes. Doesn't help that I had the drill running the wrong way for a few. I thought the bit was just getting blunt... Anyway, once I'm happy that they're set (I'm giving them three days), I will bolt the low level boards together and clamp the upper level as tight as I can get it- according to Andi, this should give me a good pilot hole to drill the hole for the female receptacle. I know these basic "bullet" dowels are not as good as the C&L ones, but I had them to hand and fitting is straightforward- a Good Thing, given my poor joinery skills. I'd like some input from the readers if that is OK- should I include Steinrücken in this blog, as it too is set "somewhere in Germany", or leave it out to make things easier to follow? If the consensus is that I should include it, I will make the next post a description of the layout's backstory, and work so far.

I can't claim to know the location, but it looks very atmospheric with a natural scenic break. Highly attractive.

Meant to say thanks for the film links- good idea!

You're determined to drag me into the world of Privat and Kleinbahns aren't you! You know I'm a magpie, and if you show me enough shiny things I'll start wanting them to line my nest... I'll tell Diane what you're doing to me!

Nah, my buttons were being pushed by the NEG (former NVAG), which have a railcar similar to OeBB 5047s, and also had a 628 previously. There are also somtimes loco hauled trains, and there are even Plandampfs. Roco should be releasing their 650 soon, although I doubt I'll be getting one- too modern, and I simply don't like them!

I've made a firm decision regarding era and railway company. Circa 2000, DBAG. This allows me to run most of my existing stock with just a few decals applied, giving purpose to a lot of models which would otherwise just sit in their boxes. After much googling for images to make a composite picture for a backscene, I actually found something very nice on CG Textures in the landscapes category. There's some seriously rich pickings on their site, and I have got almost all the signs I need from there alone. The scene is wooded hills, ideal for the Teutoberg Forest or Saxony. I'd still like to try a container port backscene, so tomorrow I plan to head into Wellington and photograph Centreport. Well, like I say, my ink was running out... I thought I'd try a portion though to see how it works out. Viewing the user gallery on CG Textures, I won't be the first to have used their images for a model railway. There's even a convenient rise in the landscape where I'll be wanting the scenic break. Undoubtedly the key to a successful backscene is how effectively it ties in with the modelled foreground. I don't want to have the image meeting the baseboard directly anywhere along its length, so a mixture of raised terrain, structures and vegetation should do the trick. If I go with the wooded backscene there will be an Aldi modelled in very low relief where I had originally proposed a car park, and I might add a few printed building fronts along the length as well. If going with a ferry terminal I won't put much clutter in, instead the scene will be somewhat sparse- after all, it'd just be somewhere people pass through. Think along the lines of Hoek van Holland Haven or Dagebüll Mole. Initial drafts of the backscene are just being printed in low quality on standard paper. Once I've decided on the final image I'll get it professionally printed.

I'm pretty well decided on setting the layout circa 2000, so I can change between ex DB and ex DR stock at will and still have correct signage. The Privatbahn idea, while very tempting, in practise would mean buying more stock, and I have fingers in too many pies already. So, you'll see more of this sort of thing I reckon...

We'll see. I have bought some ink, so tomorrow a bit of experimentation begins- it'll come down to which I feels looks best on the model.

Today I wanted to play with backscene ideas. My first thought was that I'd make a loose draft on some lining paper, but it turned out we haven't got any. Then I decided to make a collage of trees and building images, but the printer was out of ink. Oh, excuses, excuses, but I still felt the urge to do something so noodled around with some of the Kibri fittings. It's not bad, if a little plasticky looking. I'm reasonably satisfied with it as a small part of the larger whole. I'm still on a mission to find some adverts to put in, but my initial searched for DB adverts have been fruitless. I'm more or less decided on making the layout circa 2000, so I'll widen my search a bit and look for non-railway adverts. It's not made easier by the language barrier, and a lack of relavent pop culture knowledge. Or by the fact I was such a frothing, train obsessed ned while I was over that I simply didn't think about taking any infrastructure pictures. The few pictures I can find where adverts are visible, they do all seem to be railway publicity. Unfortunately the model shops round here are not the sort where I'm likely to chance across useful parts (although my last post will testify that it does happen), so I'm stuck with browsing web catalogues until my eyes turn square. If I'm lucky I might find a nice backscene in a local shop, but I won't hold my breath. I'd like to create something myself, working forwards from a wooded hill background up to a few buildings, arranged to fit in with the model, and trees also blending in. I'd best get me some ink tomorrow... I'm trying to do something to the layout every day, but I feel like my resources are being stretched quite thinly.

Oh you evil, evil man. When you up this way next?

It's difficult not having a firm vision in my mind, as I really want to get on with things. There are at least two areas I can develope, being the station itself and the hardstanding. The station is fairly easy. There are certain things which need to be there, such as lighting, train information, benches and ticket machines. A recent find in Mack's Track takes care of much of this, although it's not as fine as some more recent models. Yes, it really was $48. Unfortunately the shipping costs from the only shops online I could find selling the Rietze ticket machines was Eur33- rather more than NZ$48. I've already indulged in a bit of kit-bashing. The waiting shelter was a double sided affair for an island platform. I cut the roof in half and removed a set of legs from the supports, and now it seems much more in keeping. It does look quite modern, possibly too modern for the 1980s. That's a push towards Epoch V then! I've already mentioned the main problem, namely that the printing on the sheet of signs and posters is out of register. I'm happy enough with the ticket machines though, so that's an important feature that can be put on the layout soon. I'm not too sure what to do with the area to the left of the station building. There's a wide expanse of platform greater than that really needed for the traffic. My current ideas are trees (if doing Westphalia/Saxony), a car park, the back or side of an industrial or commercial building, or part of a ferry terminal (if doing a Lower Saxony/Schleswig-Holstein secene). A car park would give some purpose to the collection of H0 cars I have been slowly amassing. It's one joy of H0, everyday cars are readily available for most eras. See what you recognise here... there shouldn't be anything particularly exotic. And there's the hardstanding. There are actually a lot of possibilities with this. The Ratio gantry crane was my first thought, as it makes up into an attractive model. This would be good for loading steel wagons onto a waiting flatbed truck. Or, as an even simpler option, a forklift and a curtainsider, with some kind of palleted goods being transferred between modes of transport. Or a grab loader for timber- this would be in keeping with a forest setting. All these ideas come from my present wagon fleet. If looking beyond this, there could be fuel oil for the ferries, beet loading (suggested by mr45144), or a ramp for Autozug (in keeping with a holiday destination). In between typing paragraphs I'm already searching ebay for ideas. I think my next action will be getting some lining paper and sketching backdrop ideas, to try and get a feel for which settings work best. Once I nail this, then perhaps the rest will follow.

My prototype? I can guess your vote then! Here, I am, trying to regain my focus, and instead I am being pulled towards the Dark Side!

Useful tip! I will also be trying that when I next have to laminate a cosmetic overlay onto structural styrene. Thanks.

On the Nuremberg-Munich RE stock... Did they do something peculiar to the seats on these? I rode it on Oct 31st, in the Bpmbdzf, and found the cushions quite hard compared to the Bvmsz I rode a couple of days earlier. It was verging on being uncomfortable!

Before I went on holiday, my ideas for Bad Horn were pretty firm. It was going to be set in Nordrhein-Westfalen, the terminus of a branch line from Paderborn. A Teutoburg Forest setting would allow a hilly landscape and a tunnel as scenic break, yet close enough to conurbations to have a busy commuter service. There is a real town called Horn in the area, so the slight change to Bad Horn kept the local flavour and implied a tourist destination as well. Plus it's just a little rude, in a Derek and Clive sense. Still, it's not as bad as my Austrian narrow gauge, which is now called F***ing in honour of the grief it has given me, and the fact that I already reffered to it as the "f***ing HOe". I think my discipline began to wane early on the morning of 29th October. Pixie's birthday, fact fans. I was riding IC 2072 "Sylter Strand" from Dresden to Berlin, and idly picked up the timetable leaflet. The cogs of recollection whirred. "IC 2072 / neg 13. NEG? Aren't they the company that haul the through coaches to D????gebull with railcars?" I slipped the leaflet into my bag, to check up on later, and went for breakfast. Egg and sausage and bread, oh my! Well, check up I did, but only after a week or so when I finally unpacked my hand luggage. It didn't honk like my laundry from a week chasing round Germany, so hadn't been a pressing need. And there, a little creased, was the timetable leaftlet, reminding me to check up on a random bit of trivia. It was easy to find on bahnbilder.de and railfaneurope, and indeed it was the line which uses railcars to haul IC coaches- including an IC driving trailer. The formation of a single railcar with two trailers of its own and two further IC coaches has an undeniable appeal. They also use a 628, and I had just bought a 628. Plus plandampfs on summer weekends, and the backdrop of a ferry. All in all, I find the idea very alluring. Of course, I could create my own kleinbahn to allow me to make best use of models I already own- in present day Germany, modelling a kleinbahn, I could even use my Schienenbus. If following this route I'd be tempted to change the scenic style to north German, creating a similar setting to the NEG's line. Then, as seen in my previous post, I plonked some ex-DR stock on the layout. Well crikey, but didn't that look nice too. I've got plenty, and the local service has a choice of 628, Halberstadts and double deck coaches, with 202, 219 and 232 for traction, plus the odd through coach off an IR or IC service. For good measure, here's another image, this time a 202 running round its Halberstadts. I don't just have the temptation to change the era and railway company. For some reason, a windswept seaside locale is growing on me, rather than hills and trees. A good scenic break is more of a problem, but a footbridge might do. Of course, I could create a private railway which serves my original location, something like the "Westf????lische Lokalbahnen AG". Anonymising the signage could allow me to run whatever I liked on it, but I don't think I'd be satisfied with the end result (like I ever am, anyway...). My other temptation is to liberally apply DBAG logos to my Epoch IV DB stock, so that I can model a DBAG station and have the location flexible as Westphalia or Saxony. Trying to give myself some focus, here's a gratuitous shot of a 364 running around its short freight. Yes, there is that poor an alignment on the platform at the baseboard join.

I got back from holiday three weeks ago, but it was to be the launch of the 2010 challenge which was the catalyst for further work. It's not that I could realistically win (there are far too many very talented people on here), it's more that the artificial creation of a deadline might serve to focus me. I set about the obvious tasks. Painting the backscene was a quick and easy job, a couple of coats of poster paint, ably assisted by Anita. I didn't worry about getting the paint mixed perfectly, as I thought a few fainter streaks would suggest clouds. It worked. Number two was finishing the platform surface. It didn't look quite right, so a liberally coated it with diluted burnt sienna poster paint. Once this was dry, or near enough, I mixed up some grey for the platform edge, and got that painted as well. Using the leftover and lots of water, I used this grey to improve the look of the gravel, adding depth to its appearance (or at least I think so). Unfortunately, although poster paint always dries a lighter shade than it appears wet, I had miscalculated and found myself with a very dark edging. Waiting a day for the paint to dry thoroughly, I drybrushed white onto it, which not only lightened the colour but added texture. I did think about doing some further work with browns, but for now I'll leave it as is. Maybe some work with powders later, or a bit when I come to weather the track. The station building is now structurally complete with all glazing, and I painted it to suggest a mix of yellow and blue bricks using artists' acrylics. I still need to add a lot of details and an interior though, some details as basic as guttering! More on the building in another post. I also found a Kibri pack, 8108 "Rund um den Bahnhof" at Mack's Track, while looking for a gantry crane for the hardstanding. It includes details such as a waiting shelter, bike shelter, ticket machines, benches as well as various signs and posters. Unfortunately the sheet of posters etc has the printing out of register, so I'll have to find some images to play around with in Photoshop or GIMP. On the subject of the hardstanding, this is made from parts contained within a Piko kit, 61149 "Brauerei Schultheiss". It's purpose made sheets for inlaid track, and there was masses in the box- probably enough to do over a metre! I cut a diagonal across one sheet to fit in with the track plan. It's easy to use, although the flangeways are a bit on the generous side, even for NEM wheelsets. I like winding up my M????rklin using friends by driving a loco on and saying "Hey! Look what I can do!". As Bad Horn hasn't got a permanent home (hence the boxing shown in my first post), I've put it up for now on a track-free part of my larger layout, Steinr??cken. Some of Steinr??cken's stock got posed on as well. It looks rather good as ex-DDR...

It had started as a sector era Southern Region layout. Inspired by Weymouth, I'd got as far as having laid the track and put platforms in. I was plugging away at building a small fleet of EMUs, and ordered myself some Peco insulator chairs and conductor rail from my local model shop. I think it was two months into the wait for the chairs that something clicked in my mind. Tidying my playroom railway room I was sorting through my German outline models, seperating the mid 1980s (Epoch IV) models from the late 1990s ones (Epoch V), the realisation hit that I had enough of an Epoch IV collection to operate a layout. "Blow it" I thought, and I think I even said words to that effect out loud. For some reason I'd pinned the track down on the layout (I normally glue it), and with the aid of some wire cutters I was soon pulling them out. The copperclad sleepers I used at the baseboard join needed a little chisel work, but it wasn't many minutes before I had myself a new blank canvas. Well, plywood top. 8' x 1' of it. After a little playing with the track (Piko A Track, code 100 but with a narrow rail profile), I found a nice plan. Basically a terminus with a run round and two sidings and a small headshunt. One siding was turned into a bay platform, and the other was just loooooooong. Throwing caution to the wind, I drilled a few holes for the point actuating rods, and secured the track. I even reused most of the original pins- good sturdy Hornby ones! Deciding to get on with things before disillusionment set in (and also making use of some fine weather- I like doing messy jobs outside), I cut some platforms out of 9mm MDF, and cracked straight on with ballasting. I'd never used Scenic Textures ballast before, and I doubt I will again- it smells like cat litter and even with a very thorough wetting still clumped when dilute PVA was applied. Once this had set enough, I made some edging stones for the platform from card- card from Tillig flexi track boxes. As an experiment I tried using fine ballast as a platform surface. It clumped. Once it dried, I chiselled it off and tried a similar technique to applying grass. I painted PVA onto the platform, then sprinkled the ballast on. Success! A smoother surface. I haven't done much scratchbuilding before, so I decided to have a shot with the station building. Not that it's rocket science, I'm just a bit ham fisted at times. So far it looks OK, but I now need to add details such as guttering, which leaves plenty of scope to make a farce of matters. Anyway, here's the early stages out in the garden... There's a representative sample of stock there, showing the layout at its busiest. A 212 works push-pull with Silberlings on a peak time service, while the off-peak provision of a BR798 Schienenbus with 998 trailer is tucked in the bay. A 218 is overprovision for the pick up freight, normally a 360 or similar would handle this. I made the backscenes such that the layout can box up for transport, which will be completed with the addition of plywood ends screwing on into T nuts in the baseboard ends. Hopefully this will be secure for lugging around. And that was the beginnings. Having got this far, I promptly b***ered off on holiday for a month, and came back to find a new, shiny RMWeb...