lash

Scrap items found under a pile of tarpaulins adjacent to the berth of a disreputable tug owned by Nunky Pertwee’s sometime uncle. Pertwee AWOL with matelot fuzz in persuit but no doubt he will end up smelling of roses without a stain on his character. All back in place now and tried some running with a pre tops western feel. All fine on half the layout but two of four sections dead so some investigations to be done. Electrics on MQ so what could possibly go wrong…always something.

You got it. One signal surplus scrap for the use of. Cash sale of course ten bob a hundredweight in old money.

Oh heck not a clue why it’s sideways but you get the idea

With the arrival of my other layout Milton Quay I will after a bit of tidying have a working and near complete layout to play trains on. With mojo renewed I’m determined to progress Melville Street after a long time out. First up is a new version of the starter signal gantry, a mash up of various southern signals from the 50s and 60s made from bits and kits and styrene sheet and mouldings.

It’s been a quiet two years at Milton Quay and the layout is in its new home. There are a few things to sort and fix but the engineers are in evidence and possibly wondering where the locals have stashed the canopy and signal, presumably before delivery to the local scrap merchants.

Well summer has passed and even if it wasn’t brilliant it was good enough to be outside and leaving the ropes with the new boat. I managed to pull a bicep getting the anchor up a couple of weeks ago so I’m off games and that has taken me back to Melville Street. Fortunately the baseboards are light as I can’t lift much at the moment so I have been able to work on the fiddle yard exit. The idea is to complete the track level scenics and move on to the next section using the how to eat an elephant theory to complete the layout. (How do you eat an elephant? ….. A bit at a time.)

Um gilding the lily .... hate predictive text.

Ballast looks good to me so avoid guiding the lily. Like the look of this a lot so keep it up. All the best with your mojo. Think I’ve found mine this week.

No post for two months reflecting the arrival of our boat ( a very pretty Cornish Shrimper 22 we bought last October but lockdown preventing her arrival) but mainly a loss of modelling mojo probably not helped by lockdown fatigue! However things are better this week and I have picked up some projects, cable hangers and cables on the arches heading for the fiddle yard and a colour light starter signal. Cable hangers are from Scale Model Scenery and very fiddly. They make some with cables attached but I wanted the rather unstructured look with 1mm wire. I’m quite pleased with the result. The signal is part scratch built from plasticard with butchered bits from a Knightwing kit. It’s based on 1960s photos of various Southern Region signals and totally freelance. Disc ground signals will be added and if I can face the prospect handrails too.

Modelling has taken third place to work and selling our boat over the last three weeks. Work is still demanding on time and effort but the boat is gone, good news as it’s replacement arrives in a couple of weeks. However I have found time to work on the exit end of the layout and it’s retaining arches and over bridge. I do like mock ups as they help me develop the look and feel I am after, so here is my latest with a bit of greenery for a change, my 2hil. A bit of a bargain and worth looking for as an economical emu for this sort of layout. I'm pleased but the mock up has shown me the bridge needs a bit more weathering to complement the brickwork of the arches not to mention the station buildings at the other end of the layout. Think it’ll be more smoke and grime orientated than rust.

Mock up of station. I want to add a lift from the station building to the platform, a wall adjacent to the station building with a bike rack behind, signage and odds and ends. I will work on these but am moving to the fiddle yard exit now.

Adam I think I know the one. from memory Guildford was still cream and green when it was rebuilt in the 80s. thanks for the comment and encouragement

Happier with this look. on reflection I wouldn’t use a wash and just stick to the powders as more controllable.

On reflection and checking out some photos last night the look is closer to dereliction rather than soot and grot of ages but in use so I’m toning things down .... or up depending on how you look at it. The great thing about weathering powder is a bit of water with detergent and gentle persuasion and it’s off. More pics to come.

Lovely urban modelling great inspiration. Oh a child congratulations to all involved. Just remember the first 25 years are the worst, and after that you should have a bit of time and spare cash for modelling.

Last for today the canopy with the same treatment.

And now with the platform shelter. All done with a wash of matt and weathered black acrylic and then Humbrol soot weathering powder applied dry with a brush. When I’m happy with the result I’ll finish with matt acrylic varnish spray from a can. I think the contrast with some clean enamel platform signage will be rather striking.

So getting on with the work first action was weathering the station station. I was very pleased with the paint job on the stairs but just too chocolate box and preserved line for my purposes so now we have the last days of the old Guildford look. Check out the David Heys site for the inspiration.

David Hey website is back up so thank you so much to his family for keeping this going. Its been a fallow couple of weeks for modelling a mixture of work stepping up a gear, cold ( very cold even in the Isle of Wight we may be south but Bembridge is on the eastern most point and with a north easterly the wind chill is quite something) and a bout of tendinitis slowing me down. I don’t usually set my self targets but this thread started on 16 April last year and so I am aiming to get the layout scenically and operationally “complete” in a year. Should be achievable main jobs are: Weathering and installing the station completing the arches at the back of the layout exit over bridge starter signal footbridge ballasting and ground treatment detailing backscene So I better get going as that is less than 8 weeks. What could possibly go wrong.........

The David Hey archive seems to have expired. Looks like this happened a couple of years ago too after David died. It is a wonderful and inspirational site that is my main source of inspiration for the sootier grubier side of the Southern Region. Hope it can be saved.

It seems to have expired again. it is a wonderful site hope we can save/access it

Have a look at my Melville Street thread using essentially the Oldham St/Haymarket plan in OO, it’s 2200 mm by 220mm including fiddle yard and a maximum train length of 550mm. Hope that helps.

Nice progress with the platform. Weathering to be done and the surface isn’t everything I would want but pretty pleasing. Mock up of things to come..

I decided the brickwork under the station building really could do with some weeping lime streaks . So here you are, just dry brushing with matt acrylic white and a bit of streaking with fingers.

Platform is structurally complete as intended. Next job filling sanding and general fettling. I have checked the fit on the layout and clearances all look fine.