David's 0 Gauge stuff

[David Holman]

I started building the Wantage tank ((No5), aka Jane, aka Shannon, formerly of the Sandy & Potton Railway, for my Loose End layout. Soon after I started the scratchbuild (one of my first), Model Railway Journal ran a series of articles by Laurie Griffin to build your own - with the option to buy all the castings and a specialist set of wheels, to go with it.

 Serendipity or what?

 Apparently many sets of parts were sold, but (as far as I'm aware), very few got turned into models. Laurie was a former Chatham Club member and his articles were absolutely perfect in terms of me building the model, which runs as well as it looks. 

 Since embracing Irish railways, I've always aimed for a 'Jane Layout' one day, so it's nice to be able to work on it at last.

[David Holman]

 I actually bought a ready to run, 0 gauge engine this week - a rare occurrence for me. indeed, had to look up my journals to see when the last time was. Turns out that was in 2010 & even then it was a couple of Bachmann Brassworks models [08 shunter and Derby Lightweight DMU], which required painting and detailing, so certainly not rtr in the accepted sense. The same year, I also bought a couple of Shays, one a two truck 0n16.5, the other an HO three truck and these were fully finished. Otherwise, have to back to the 1980s and everything else has since been kit or scratch built - a total of 75 locos to date.

 So, you ask, what is it that prompted this extravagance? Well, it's about as small as it gets in 0 gauge: a Heljan Ruston 48 DS and very dinky it is too.

  Needs work, as far too clean for my liking, while also crew and [eventually] AJ couplings. The version I've bought fits in with the aim of there being a dairy on my new project and the Ruston fits the bill nicely as I already have three six wheel milk tanks, one [a Slaters kit] in full Express Dairy livery.

 A bit more work has been done on the layout, with the station master's house now well under way. The 'chassis' is mounting board, covered with Howard Scenics embossed brick paper. Back in the last century, I used to paint all the bricks individually, until sanity prevailed when I realised I could do it far quicker with water colour pencil crayons. Windows will be from York Models.

 

[Galteemore]

Can’t blame you David. Delightful little prototype and will be very suitable !

[Colonel]

 Still me, but as explained in my Workbench thread, have had to re-register - hopefully only temporarily.

 The left hand end of the layout is gradually being filled in & I've been enjoyed getting to grips with a bit a scenic work for a change. 

 The yard-cum-crossing  gate is formerly the one on Arigna Town, while the inside of the loco shed is slowly getting detailed.

 Meanwhile, the station house is pretty much complete and awaiting bedding in. The pigsty cum outside privy is another Arigna refugee, though it will need the walls converting to brick The railbus is scratch built.

 On the other side of the track from the pigsty will be a small cabin for the ground frame controlling the entrance to the private sidings.

 Below are a few more pictures: on the back scene, I've been working on the typical Suffolk barn, with some farm cottages next door, while Shannon/Jane is starting to look quite at home in its new shed.

David Holman

[Mol_PMB]

That's coming together very well!

[Colonel]

Nettles

 When time permits, I'm quite enjoying dabbling with this new layout. Not exactly following the conventional route of doing things like all the ballasting and basic ground cover first, but instead working a small scene at the time up to reasonable completion. So here is a small corner of scenery next to the ground frame cabin.

 It is all fairly conventional stuff, in particular as outlined by gordon Gravett in his book on scenery. The ground cover is the usual polyfilla, covered with PVA and chinchilla dust, after which various passes with the static grass machine & manual puffer bottle add fibres. Various colours of fine crumb add further foliage and flowers, along with Woodlands Scenic fibre matting teased out for dog roses and larger shrubs.

 The final detail is to add nettles. This is a somewhat laborious process where strands of hogs hair brush material are dipped in PVA and then in fine, dark green crumb. Once dry, each strand is then 'planted' in the thicker foliage.

 Only about 10cm square in area, but it makes a nice little scene, I think.

 You'll see a board crossing has been added for the signalman to get to the cabin from his house, while the longer boarding is a simple cheat, to cover the facing point lock mechanism.

 

[Mol_PMB]

15 minutes ago, Colonel said:

Nettles

 When time permits, I'm quite enjoying dabbling with this new layout. Not exactly following the conventional route of doing things like all the ballasting and basic ground cover first, but instead working a small scene at the time up to reasonable completion. So here is a small corner of scenery next to the ground frame cabin.

 It is all fairly conventional stuff, in particular as outlined by gordon Gravett in his book on scenery. The ground cover is the usual polyfilla, covered with PVA and chinchilla dust, after which various passes with the static grass machine & manual puffer bottle add fibres. Various colours of fine crumb add further foliage and flowers, along with Woodlands Scenic fibre matting teased out for dog roses and larger shrubs.

 The final detail is to add nettles. This is a somewhat laborious process where strands of hogs hair brush material are dipped in PVA and then in fine, dark green crumb. Once dry, each strand is then 'planted' in the thicker foliage.

 Only about 10cm square in area, but it makes a nice little scene, I think.

 You'll see a board crossing has been added for the signalman to get to the cabin from his house, while the longer boarding is a simple cheat, to cover the facing point lock mechanism.

 

Very nice indeed. Those nettles seem to be the same species that grow on my own O gauge layout on the banks of the ship canal. 

I haven't yet tried downsizing these to 4mm scale.

 

[Colonel]

It's been a while, but as you know, I've been busy on other stuff. However, with other projects [mostly] out of the way, it seems a good time to get back to my British outline stuff. The layout is the first thing I see when I go into the workshop, so it has never been far from my thoughts & indeed the general rationale has been something I've thought about a lot.

 The middle section was hoped to be next, but with the reprint of Milk on the Rails not due to come out until the autumn, the focus has changed from the dairy to the right hand side & what may, or may not be a gas works.

 Inspiration here comes from the Wantage Tramway, where the line from the town terminus sneaked out past said affair. The furthest building is the retort house, though not sure what the nearer ones are, while the aerial view , below, gives the general picture.

 My concern is, would a dairy be set up quite so close to such a smelly establishment? If not, then  the buildings might just as easily be repurposed as an engineering firm, though I think my time period of late 50s/early 60s might be a bit early for the change from coal to natural gas.

 

The next picture shows the left hand half of the layout, with the one above showing where I'm going on the right side. The retort house, with its low chimney occupies the corner. It is a fairly simple building, made from foam board and card, the only slightly awkward bits being the louvred circular window and louvred roof section. As with the other buildings, Howard Scenics embossed card is used for the brickwork. Not sure what the building next to it was used for, but I rather like the unusual cruciform openings in the walls.

 At the moment, the important thing about these buildings is how they hide the exit to the fiddle yard AND blend into the back scene. I've long had an aversion to flat buildings, that only look good from one angle. Hence, this second building is angled into the back scene to try and hide the left edge. When the dairy gets built, its right end with be hidden by a tree, not the Woodlands specimen shown below, but hopefully you get the idea.

 

 Still not sure about the building on the right yet, but the bus might be an option - either a small, private, bus depot, or a local haulier./garage/whatever. All give the excuse to display some of my road vehicles, so why not? The back scene itself clearly needs work, but this was only crudely blocked in, so that is probably the next step, before I finish the two new buildings.

[Galteemore]

Looking great. Definite Trevor Nunn vibes at left end of layout! Or is it Iain Rice? Either way, a real eastern England look coming out. 

[Colonel]

Add Gordon Gravett and Barry Norman to the list, David.