Wednesday 6 March 2024

Monday 4 March 2024

Further Thinking

It is sunny today, so I might even be tempted to experiment with locations for the 7/8th line. Then again, it is also freezing, so I might not.

I think Gerald Road is coalescing into an unholy mashup of  James's original plan, Porth-y-waen/Nantmawr and that odd little freight terminal at Middleton Towers.  So we end up with a Tanat Valley inspired layout, with a disused halt leading to sidings serving a lime kiln, surviving goods shed and a yet to be decided third user. There is not much of the original concept left, I hear you say, but there will be hints of it, especially in the buildings. Now I really must make the effort to go and collect it, and to start assembling the DGs.

The post removals rebuilds of Rails Round the Rectory and Flemish Quay are next on my list. I'm going to take the opportunity to make major changes to both of them. Key is expanding their footprint whilst reducing their baseboard depth. 

Flemish Quay Mk2 will also benefit from at least one new vessel moored alongside. These come as a set of three from ModelArtMinatures who also do models of the local bottle kilns.

TBH I was expecting kits, so I was was pleasantly surprised they turned up assembled and painted.



Where, I hear you ask, is the third? 

Hmm, well that is the "post war" version which is a little bit disappointing compared to the other two. However, my plan all along was to convert that into a ferry/excursion boat for another possible project.


Wednesday 28 February 2024


Things are beginning to fall into place. Most of my 7/8ths stock is out of storage, which has reminded me that I can be quite a good modeller, at times.

I'm beginning to assemble some stock ready for the arrival of Gerald Road, helped by a visit to Trident Trains who were very good to deal with. Next up is fitting DG couplings to the stock.

The garden has been tidied up a bit. I'm disappointed with the state Teddy is in, so soon after a rebuild. It is something I'm going to have to address.

A bit of good news is that our carpenter thinks a space saver staircase is an option for access to the loft.

My thinking around layouts is still settling down I forsee a short period of building more micro-layouts , if only to display some stock. 

TAoC baseboards are now in the loft, and I still hanker after building it to show it could be done as Roy Link envisaged it. 

Meanwhile I've been out and about in London, which means I travelled from Stoke station for the first time in many years. The last time was after a visit to a client some 28 years ago, when our company booked me into the worst hotel I've ever stayed in.

You could argue that it is a boring station these days, but I still rather like it.






Friday 16 February 2024

Now Breath

 




Or that was the week that was.

And what a week it has been. with the mortgage offer deadline dangerously close we exchanged and completed in two days, during which I had to demolish the entire ELR.

So here we are with a much bigger house, on the fringe of Stoke on Trent, and a much smaller garden.







Then, there is the model railway room in the attic. On the plus side, it is 22ft x 8ft. On the downside, it doesn't have standing headroom, and this is the access.


So, what are my plans?

I've sold two of the wagons from the ELR, and I'm desperate to get rid of the lifted 16mm rail to replace it with a portable line.

There are a lot of options for 7/8ths and 16mm lines in the garden, more than I realised when we viewed. I might even build some small dioramas in the less accessible places.

Indoors I'm torn. I've committed myself to n gauge by buying Gerald Road to reconfigure it as a new Tanat Valley-based line. 

Being so close to the Caldon Canal I'm keen to build an OO industrial line, with a Cromford and High Peak vibe. Also in OO I want to get the East Coast light railway out of my system. 




I still want to build a simple OO9 layout to use my Festiniog/Penhryn locos on, and simple is the keyword.

As predicted Flemish Quay suffered badly during the move, but nothing terminal.

Then there is the big project. What that will be will depend on how I come to terms with access to the loft.


Saturday 23 December 2023

The Future of Flemish Quay

It is many months since I last saw Flemish Quay. I dread to think what state it will be in when I get It out of storage.

It might be a case of starting again. That would not cause me any great problems. 

Or it might be a case of integrating it, in some form, with my other plans. 

Before catching the train to London, I took the chance to wander along the Welland near it's supposed location.

At the back of my mind was a vague idea of capturing images I could stitch into a back scene. Sadly I was in a hurry and also dodging traffic so I didn't apply the rigour that would require.

Having said that, the nature of Flemish Quay, with deliberately limited viewing angles, means I might get away with it. We will see. In the worst case, I can use the photos as a basis for something created from scratch.




The back of the old fire station





You might recognise this from the Hornby Old Forge model...




The remains of the Old Chain Bridge







Thursday 21 December 2023

The Cheques Get Bigger

Life continues to be "interesting" 

With my professional head on I've just returned from an intense trip to London, meeting up with several dear friends but also working on upcoming ISO standards for Ariticifical Intelligence.

It gave me a chance to wander around two of my favourite stations and pay homage to two people I admire and would love to emulate.





Meanwhile, Hattons tempted me with the unplanned purchase of a half-price 7mm scale railcar...




...And I finally got around


to ordering the Guinness loco from Garden Railways. Service from both retailers was as great as I've come to expect.

Meanwhile, my favourite grocery store had an interesting display in their St P. store



It looks vaguely familiar.

Finally I will leave you with a suitable Xmas tree.






Sunday 3 December 2023

Cheque Book Modelling Part 2




I'm supposed to be writing Xmas cards. It is a task Issy loves, and I hate. Not least because so many of my friends live in Wales and have addresses that go on forever.

 Yesterday was enlivened by the arrival of early Christmas presents, even if I bought them all for myself.

Quickly posing the Penhryn and FR locos on the Cadeby micro did make me yearn to return to OO9. And reminded me that focus stacking is easy, and I have no excuse for not using it. As you can see, I didn't use it.




                                    




I've mixed feelings about the OO gauge deliveries.

I really, really like the Rapido W&U coaches. Apart, that is, from the roof. The transverse detail is pretty proud of the roof on the prototype, but the longitudinal detail seems slightly odd. It might be that weathering will sort that out.





As for the Hattons GWR Genesis coaches. Well I know that when I ordered them a long time ago, I thought they would "do" for a stop gap to go with the one or two GWR liveried engines I have until I finished building more appropriate vehicles. But leaving the lack of historical accuracy to one side, there is something that just doesn't look right about the livery. It reminds me of litho printing on tinplate. I'm hoping that will be less obvious at normal viewing distances.