dseagull

Hi

As some of you may be aware, I am secretary of a Non League football club. The following was forwarded to me by our league. Apologies if I'm teaching anyone to suck eggs here, but thought it was worth sharing as it will apply to non-sporting organisations/groups as well;

Quote

The SCFL said; "

I am conscious that during the current period where premises may be unoccupied as a result of coronavirus and the curtailment of sport,  there is a duty to ensure that the risk of exposure to users by Legionella is properly assessed and controlled.   I am particularly thinking of pavilions, club-houses, toilets, changing room facilities and groundsmans' stores/work areas.   If you have responsibility for Club premises where there is a water supply then the following information and advice is extremely important.

Legionnaires' Disease is a pneumonia like illness caused by the Legionella bacteria and can be fatal. The infection is caused by breathing in small droplets of water contaminated by the bacteria. The disease cannot be passed from one person to another.

Legionella bacteria are found in the natural environment and may contaminate and grow in water systems, including domestic hot and cold water systems. They survive low temperatures and thrive at temperatures between 20 - 45°C if the conditions are right. They are killed by high temperatures at 60°C or above.

The risk from Legionella may increase if the property is unoccupied even for a short period. It is important that water is not left to stand in the hot or cold water systems. As a general rule, all outlets on hot and cold water systems should be used at least once a week for at least 2 minutes to maintain a degree of water flow and minimise the chances of stagnation. For long periods consider draining the system. Make sure that the system is flushed through when it is re-occupied by running all outlets for at least 2 minutes.

I would suggest that you arrange for these precautions to be carried out at least once a week until the various systems are in full use again."

Looking forward to this. 

Sounds the sort of place (and era!) that is calling out for a colonial war-type name; Atbara Square, or Sevastopol Road, something like that.

Very nice indeed CK. Is the wall a commercial product, or some very nifty DAS sculpting?

Makes a huge difference.

I know this one is a static model, but I wonder if it would be worth replacing the tender wheels? The huge flanges (stop sniggering) jump out a bit!

5 hours ago, Harlequin said:

Front, definitely.

Your rear is already sufficiently padded.

 

Many a truth set in jest  

Cheers all. I think the favourite approach is clear...

Now all we need to do is get this house move through so that I can get cracking.

Fnar Fnar.

If you had the potential for an extra 2" on the width, would you put it at the front to increase depth, or the rear to er... increase depth(!) and potentially turn the part relief buildings into bigger ones?

Due to the General Election, the date of the 3rd Hailsham Model Railway Show has had to be changed at short notice to Saturday 30th November at the Hailsham Community Hall; https://www.facebook.com/events/342552136441201/ 

This has resulted in some unavoidable pullouts and as a result, the organisers are seeking additional layouts and trade at the event.

I should add I am not one of the organisers, but Hailsham Town FC are doing some advertising of the event for Philip Ford and his crew. If anyone fancies a short notice day out in Sussex, please contact 

healthylivingclubcommittee@btinternet.com 

6 hours ago, brylonscamel said:

 

Hi Markus.. here are some photos of me using a short length of dowel as a rolling pin and a couple of strips of 1mm card as a guide.

 

 

That's ingenious, have used DAS to cover before, but never thought about rolling it out between guides to ensure a consistent thickness.

Some lovely modelling here 

Question which I didn't know where else to put!

How many wagons (of the same diagram) would a works turn out in a year?

Bit of background; My new layout will be set in the late winter/early spring of 1914. So far, I have built three Cambrian LBSC opens. The diagram they were based on was introduced in 1912, being built until 1926, with wagon numbers starting (according to the instructions) at 3449 and finishing at 6000.

I wanted to avoid sequential numbering, so these first three are 3461, 3486 and 3502 respectively. How high could I realistically go?

Good point Eric! - Obviously rotated the wrong way when copied across from a previous file.

With a slight adjustment, a signal box fits as well near the level crossing.

12 hours ago, webbcompound said:

If you put an S bend into the road on the right side, so it leaves the scene closer to the railway, and put the church on a bit of a slant you could probably get at least the whole side of the building in, if not the whole building.

 

Thanks - I have slightly adjusted the road layout as suggested to have more of the church modelled, but wanted to keep the same orientation as now. Introducing a bend into the road is a great shout, and certainly lets me fit more of the church in.

32 minutes ago, phil_sutters said:

For a tour of the Cuckmere valley may I recommend the Cuckmere Rambler bus, which runs a circular route from Seaford Library (or Morrisons) both within a few minutes walk of Seaford station, down to Exceat, alight for the Seven Sisters Country Park visitors' centre, on via Litlington, Lullington, and Wilmington to Berwick railway station and then back to Seaford via Alfriston & High & Over. The scenery is delightful and there are some beautiful old Downland churches along the route. The service resumes after its winter break on 30th March. It runs hourly on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. The buses are driven by volunteers, but it is a public service bus - route 47, so OAP passes are accepted - should you have one. https://www.cuckmerebuses.org.uk/47.htm 

 

By the way, place no reliance on the  South Downs National Park for bus information. E.g. they show the 13X Brighton to Eastbourne as hourly, 9 times a day, daily. During the summer from June to early-September is is daily but with only three buses each way at three & a half or four hour intervals. Out of season it runs on Sundays and Bank holidays only, at the same intervals, except for the Easter weekend when it does run hourly. Given that they are supposed to be promoting the use of public transport to and though the Park, I find their reluctance to update their travel information very disappointing. I have had several run-ins with them on the subject.

Sorry to mention buses but unfortunately the LBSCR never made it down the Cuckmere valley, although it crossed the river a bit to the east of Berwick station.

Thanks Phil, I see the Cuckmere buses regularly (in fact one of the Hailsham Town Buses goes past my front door a few times a week), however at 34, I think an OAP pass might be pushing it  

Funny you should mention churches...

Nearholmer's sketch and valued information about the likelihood of more than one entrance to the yard got me thinking. I also had been pondering adding a water crane, something which would most probably have been needed given the gradients, and a tower would be a nice focal point at the front of the layout. 

So;

Amendments from previous plans

• Station building replaced from dimensions of L-Cut LC4 to Peco Wooden Station building
• Water Tower added. Platform water crane represented by purple circle.
• House removed from main road and added to lane (part relief but with space for a bit of a cottage garden)
• End of school replaced by end of Church. It is noticeable from Google Streetview that the end of church is close to the road, and old postcards appear to confirm that this has been the case for many years. The actual entrance to the church would be just offscene down the small lane next to post office
• Placeholder cattle dock removed and replaced with more realistically sized drawing. Lighter grey represents a ramp up to the pens. 
• I really quite fancy a row of blackthorn in full 'Blackthorn Winter (second photo down)' blossom, so have added these at the top of the plan.

I think, almost entirely thanks to the very kind assistance I have received, we are finally getting somewhere. Certainly a lot happier with the plan from the original earlier in the week but still very much welcoming comment!

Tonight's proposal...

The goods yard is now single ended, accessible for trains from the Seaford direction (thanks Simon!). Anything which needs to come in from the other direction would work into Seaford (or Newhaven) and then out again on the next train. I was struggling to fit the pointwork for a second siding (for the cattle dock) in, and then chanced upon Pentreath, on the LNWR's Red Wharf Bay branch in Anglesey. This old OS Map shows a very similar arrangement - single line, with a headshunt including a three way turnout. To give an idea of the platform length, that's a 4MT 2-6-4T tank with three Ratio Midland length coaches. 

Not entirely convinced by the right hand side scenically yet, I think it needs 'something' to balance the structures on the left, and the river has gone, but the station yard is bigger, allowing for carts to turn, and the dock has been retained which is a big bonus. 

Thanks Nick, those are useful. 

I think with any layout based on something which may have been planned but didn't happen (and I must agree, probably for the best given the view!), there has to be compromise and suspension of disbelief. My version of Litlington would perhaps be a little bigger/more important than reality, but I'm prepared to live with that. 

I'll have another look at the track plan this evening - the dock opposite the platform is by no means a must have. I did want to get as much of a feeling of space as I could within the limitations - I am a big fan of layouts like Sherton Abbas (Wenlock of this parish), Geoff Forster's Llangunllo and the aforementioned Catcott Burtle, and whilst I have no intention of simply copying someone else, if I could get something close to the atmosphere of any of those three I would be delighted.

Thanks to all for the support and comments so far, it really is most encouraging.

V2 plan; Added an extra inch to the depth.

Here's a Goods lockup I scratchbuilt for a previous incarnation (which didn't get very far). Something like this more suitable?

Thanks, that is very useful. The geography/geology would certainly be challenging. The original source (accepting that my edited map was way out!) for the Seaford-Willingdon (Should have been Wilmington, am getting my W's muddled!) line was http://www.semgonline.com/RlyMag/FromLewesToNewhavenAndSeaford.pdf (Last sentence on Page 4)

I still like the idea of running through trains loaded with shingle - the narrow gauge line which gave me the idea only ran from the beach to the main road at Exceat (see https://maps.nls.uk/view/95752663#zoom=5&lat=6717&lon=3118&layers=BT ) but perhaps I should cut my ambitions back to a 'twig' to Alfriston? (where the money run out when someone looked at a map and realised how much effort for little return an extension to Seaford would be) - Originally, the 'grand plan' was to adapt the Iain Rice plan for 'Clun' (Finescale in Small Spaces) for Alfriston as the next layout in the series, but short of a lottery win I can't see us having the space for two for many years!

Thanks all for the interesting and useful comments. 

A few things; Firstly, the goods shed, if built, would be a wooden one - using the Metcalfe one on the plan was just a placeholder to ensure there was enough space. Same for the signal box, which wouldn't be a Wills farmhouse! 

With regard to the geography, the planned route is actually available to view at The Keep, the local archives office - http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/eec9d0c1-7734-4afd-98fb-9cea8bc9603d . Perhaps I should get myself down there to see exactly where the line was intended to go!

I do like the idea of a 'Dyke-esq' station building. Certainly don't want anything too big. Another possibility is building the layout as a former independent/light railway which has recently been taken over/absorbed?

My reasons for the 1912-14 time period were relating to availability of stock. I have spent a few happy evenings of late building a couple of Cambrian LBSC opens (one with sheet rail, one without), as well as a SECR Van (which is about 5 years too late unfortunately!). Motive power wise, this would allow for the E4, Terrier, H1/H2 and E1, which are either available or planned within the next couple of years. It would also (hence adding the word 'early' to 1914) allow for a couple of 'one day' locos in a Gladstone or the very elegant G Class single (last one withdrawn May 1914), both of which are available as kits for when I have the money/time/ability (delete as applicable) to make a decent stab at them. Coaches are a little more challenging, but the Ratio Midland coaches can be adapted and I also have some old Railway Modellers with instructions on converting Triang Clerestory stock. If I went down the 'adopted light' route then the repainted Ratio 4 wheelers are a cliché which I am willing to put up with, at least short term (I also have two of these, with three links and aftermarket buffers built a few years back and painted in what can best be described as 'Municipal lamppost green' from a previous layout). 

I intend to go down the 'cameo' route, so am limited on size. Width could perhaps be increased a little, however, as the Screwfix brackets I have my eye on come out 500mm , but I am conscious I will need to be able to safely maneuver the layout up and down stairs, as well as perhaps in and out of the car should things go as well as I hope. I did originally consider it as a P4 test piece, but I'm not sure a single slip is within the capabilities of someone who took the best part of an hour to solder two feeds to track not that long ago! 

After approximately five years in the dreaming, armchair modelling and false starts, I am now finally in a position where I can begin work on a new layout. Baby Hannah has been evicted (to share with her sister ), leaving a cot sized gap against the wall. I plan to install brackets for storage, and build a portable layout which can be brought downstairs to work on, so we are looking at a foamboard baseboard, inspired by Chris Nevard's superb Catcott Burtle . This is already in stock - Hobbycraft selling 4 A1 size sheets for a tenner certainly helped!

The layout is set in the 1912-Spring 1914 period, on a twice proposed but never built scheme in the beautiful Cuckmere Valley in East Sussex. In real life, the branch from Lewes to Seaford was mooted to be extended, joining what is now the East Coastway (Eastbourne-London) line at Willingdon, near Polegate, however this would never take place. There was though a Narrow Gauge line relating to shingle extraction , albeit later than my planned period. In my reality, this was standard gauge, with the resulting shingle used for, amongst other things, ballast across the LBSC network (again, a slight alteration of reality - that came from the Crumbles in nearby Eastbourne). 

Looking at a screenshot from Google Maps (with my edits), I would suggest a line from Seaford through the valley seems to fit what would be the easiest route with the line following the contours of the land, and also allowing for a station at the only real population centre of note (Alfriston). Litlington, with its White Horse carved into the hillside, would have probably not have merited a station in reality, although if the Tea Gardens, which still serve today, were opened earlier than the 1920's then perhaps it could have become a tourist destination for intrepid Edwardians. 

In the below plan, to the left is the line to Seaford, with the 'shingle siding' diverging somewhere beyond the level crossing, whilst to the right, the line heads through to Alfriston before joining the main line. From the left, the simple track plan crosses over the River Cuckmere before running into the station. The single goods siding in the station yard is joined by one opposite, which serves a Cattle (or perhaps more likely in this part of the world, Sheep!) dock, whilst the runaround for the Goods Yard is completed offstage. The road crosses the river and buildings on the level, before slightly rising up, over the Downs towards Seaford, with a small lane crossing over the railway and then rising up to meet it. The village itself is mostly strung out along the road. Aside from the shingle trains which pass through the station on their way to Eastbourne and the north (or running round for Seaford and onwards to Newhaven/Brighton), goods traffic would mostly be agricultural goods out, with inbound coal for the village, handled by a daily pick-up goods. Passenger services would be locals from Seaford-Eastbourne (E4, Terrier), with something bigger for non stopping Eastbourne-Newhaven direct trains. Twice weekly Seaford-Hailsham trains conveying both passengers and animals for the livestock market would also be possible.

For buildings, I have taken inspiration from those which are there in reality - the shop is long gone, however a picture survives; 

Cottage/Shop inspiration; https://www.francisfrith.com/litlington/litlington-the-village-c1960_l480010

Whilst the 1950's built village hall was designed very sympathetically with use of local flint to blend in - Google Maps link which should point to it! , and, in the plan below, becomes a school, inspired by the West Stoke Village Hall in West Sussex, built from similar materials and originally for that purpose. The station building on the plan is the right dimensions for one of the L-Cuts kits (LC-4), but I think will instead be scratchbuilt. 

Would be interested to hear any thoughts, before I start cutting foamboard! My interests are more scenic than operational, so the limited operational scope of the plan is acknowledged!

Morning all

Chilly start but looks like another glorious day in prospect - shame I will spend the best part of it at work! We are, at least, so busy that the days are going quickly!

Managed to finish off another Cambrian LBSC open last night, this one with a sheet rail.

Have a good day all

Sorry to be the one who does this, but has anyone spotted the new MRJ on their travels? Trying to decide if it is worth braving the parking 'experience' that is Lewes on a weekday to go to Smiffs at lunch.

Cheers! 

Morning all

Chilly start this morning after a very bright and spring like day yesterday, but at least it is sunny.

All planned tasks were successfully accomplished yesterday, so off to work shortly to see what Monday brings.

Have a good day all

Morning all

Muggacoffee on the go before I turn furniture removal man - off to Seaford shortly to move a desk for an elderly relative who has recently moved into a care home. After that, we are going to Eastbourne marina for a curry with the in-laws which will be good. 

And so goes another weekend! What is it about these two days of the week that go far quicker than any one of the preceding five?

Morning all

Has been a spectacularly busy couple of days at work, so have been rising very early and going in to try and combat the tide of emails. 

Tasks for today include dismantling Hannah's cot and rebuilding it in the bedroom she will now be sharing with Leah, placing an online shopping order and putting up some hooks, along with whatever else I am instructed! The bedrooms are very nearly done, so soon it will be my turn to put up some brackets for the new layout to live on! 

Now off to catch up with two days worth of posts. Enjoy your Saturday all.

29 minutes ago, New Haven Neil said:

 

Reminds me why I left the NHS (outpatients admin manager) - you might have had a lucky escape!

Been there and done it once before! - I was a Project Support Officer (fancy title for PA/Receptionist/Admin Dogsbody) for 3 years until I took voluntary redundancy when the Primary Care Trusts were axed. A lot of politics there, certainly!