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APA Park - N Gauge in an Ikea Box


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  • 2 weeks later...
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I have lights! Also from ikea is Ledberg, a 3 section led striplight. 3 sections are too long so i have used 2. Glued along the top bar of the box at 45 degrees it illuminates the box fully. Now for the new platforms!

 

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New light bars fitted to Apa Park by Steve Purves, on Flickr

 

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New light bars fitted to Apa Park by Steve Purves, on Flickr

 

Also for the first time since going back to model railways, number 1 son has shown an interest. A quick crash course on DCC and he spent a happy half hour shuffling stock around. Later that evening he spent another hour on the roundy test track with the 153!

 

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Lewis masters DCC. by Steve Purves, on Flickr

 

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lew in control by Steve Purves, on Flickr

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Really good lighting idea, especially for a box layout; shame they don't do them in 11' lengths as I could use some for Prestatyn!!

 

Great to see your son getting into it - DCC is probably second nature to him; I still don't fully understand DC! :scratchhead:

 

 

David

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Here we go, Having been up pre 6am with number 2 son I decided it would be time to get the box out and clean and check the track now all is set. A few problems with the points initially but pleased to report that all went well. I'm on holiday tomorrow for a week down on the (hopefully) sunny English Riviera so this will be the last update for a week or so. On my return the next job will be to weather the track and then bed the structures in (including the platform surfaces).

Here are some pictures for your perusal

 

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looks good with a bit of ballast by Steve Purves, on Flickr

 

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bone on the blocks by Steve Purves, on Flickr

Edited by stevepurves
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Oh yes, very good; layouts always look better for some 'texture' IMO! 

 

I like what you're doing with the station area too; looking forward to more progress reports...

 

Enjoy the English Pre-Summer; hoping the fog lifts and you need the sunblock!

 

 

 

 

David

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A week in the west country was nice but now back to business. I have decided to try and get the layout finished for the NGS AGM on June 7th so I can enter the layout competition... no pressure! I will see how far I get by deadline day and make a decision about entering or not! Our holiday yielded a few goodies, a NR van and a bargain of a 156 DMU. I paid a visit to the excellent Paignton Model shop and I aquired chips for the DMU. I have decided to run a stub road down the front of the layout. This will be seperated from the yard by some pallisade fencing. I have also finished the platform surfaces using scalescenes roads which I think looks good...

Still need to weather the track and plant the buildings...

Comments as usual are more than welcome!

 

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Apa Park platforms and roads by Steve Purves, on Flickr

 

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Apa Parks new DMU by Steve Purves, on Flickr

 

Regards

Steve

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I don’t know if this has been done before but I thought I would share anyway.

 

I was fitting point motors last night to Apa, and whilst holding the motors central with a piece of mounting card (vice a clothes peg) couldn’t find anything to centralise the point blades. This is the result, I chopped some offcuts of layout wire (standard size) and put either side of the blades. The thickness was just enough to offer a little retention when the layout was upturned.

Now I just need to find a suitable power supply free or very cheap!!!

 

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Points by Steve Purves, on Flickr

 

Happy Days

Steve

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Bit the bullet last night and made a start on the station building and the problem of how to fence the platforms.

Using plasticard, remember that medium, used a lot before scalescenes was discovered, I knocked together some corrugated walling just over a scale 8 foot high. I think this would be about right. The corrugated work will be painted in 90s brown shades.

Work remaining includes walling for the other plaform, framework on the glass fronted entrance hall, fascias and guttering around the roof and finally paint.

 

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Apa Park Station by Steve Purves, on Flickr

 

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Apa Park Station by Steve Purves, on Flickr

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Done a fair bit today. Replaced the placeholder Apa Park building with the final edition.

 

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Apa Park building and station concourse by Steve Purves, on Flickr

 

Also done some more work on the concourse. This is now to a stage that I am happy with.

 

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Apa Park building and station concourse by Steve Purves, on Flickr

 

wanting something a little different from the peco bufferstops and whilst I had my scratchbuilding head on I decided to have a go at some modern style bufferstops

 

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Apa Park building and station concourse by Steve Purves, on Flickr

 

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Apa Park building and station concourse by Steve Purves, on Flickr

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Thats it... Done... I have entered Apa Park into the N gauge Society Annual Model Making Competition, To be held at the AGM/exhibition on the 7th of June...

Come and see Apa Park at its public debut, come and have a play

 

See linky... http://www.ngaugesociety.com/index.php?page=AGM

 

That gives me 2 weeks and a few days to 'furnish' the whole layout with people, clutter, signage, fencing, lamposts, benches, bushes and weathering <gulp> Easy...

(that requires mail ordering all of the above, including an airbrush/compressor)

 

Happy Days!

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Thats it... Done... I have entered Apa Park into the N gauge Society Annual Model Making Competition, To be held at the AGM/exhibition on the 7th of June...

Come and see Apa Park at its public debut, come and have a play

 

See linky... http://www.ngaugesociety.com/index.php?page=AGM

 

That gives me 2 weeks and a few days to 'furnish' the whole layout with people, clutter, signage, fencing, lamposts, benches, bushes and weathering <gulp> Easy...

(that requires mail ordering all of the above, including an airbrush/compressor)

 

Happy Days!

 

I'll be in Oxford that day but I really hope it goes well and they recognise the skills displayed here...

 

One thing I would do, and it may well be on your to-do list, but I would pass a brush of something dirty over the platform edges/buffer stops/sleepers in the station area as it looks far too clean against the rest of the layout!

 

 

David

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I'll be in Oxford that day but I really hope it goes well and they recognise the skills displayed here...

 

One thing I would do, and it may well be on your to-do list, but I would pass a brush of something dirty over the platform edges/buffer stops/sleepers in the station area as it looks far too clean against the rest of the layout!

 

 

David

 

 

Thanks for the encouragement... I am waiting on the arrival of an airbrush to paint the whole of the station building/platform area. Then it will all be dirtied up a little (not too much because its a new build)

 

Steve

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Bit of a micro update...

 

Having picked up an airbrush (gravity fed, 0.3mm needle) and a compressor (with tank and trap) for a reasonable £45 I set to toneing down the ballast. This week will be hopefully chock full of progress now...

 

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Untitled by Steve Purves, on Flickr

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9 days to go...

 

A package turned up yesterday from N Brass Locos, containing the pallisade fencing and gates for the low level and posterboards for the station area. I have been waiting for these to arrive so I can start laying scrub/bushes around their base and finish of the scenics for the low level. The fences are not cheap but are a requirement of the modern railway. A quick coat of primer and they were 'planted' they will be given a top coat of a slightly lighter shade of grey now they are in situ (excuse the finger marks)

 

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Untitled by Steve Purves, on Flickr

 

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Untitled by Steve Purves, on Flickr

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Yes. But litter isn,t. Try some windblown paper and plastic stuck to that nice fence.

 

Mike

 

some news paper ad a lemon zester I think... maybe a bif of cling film (pallet wrap) lying in the gutter and against the fence.

Great idea, thanks!

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