Galgorm Hall

[PaulC]

So, following my introduction I thought I'd open up a thread for my current loft layout project. I've slotted it in to the Irish Layouts thread but it maybe doesn't suit it perfectly as firstly it's a fictitious location but based on the track plan in Ballymena and secondly it will have predominantly BR themed stock running on it. Should the moderators feel the need to move it across to the BR outline layouts I completely understand.

 

Anyhow, my intitial layout proved to be more problematic than it was worth and after three years building I lifted the lot to begin again. I was more than happy with some of the building work I had done on it but the track work left a lot to be desired. Here are a couple of pictures showing what I had achieved.

 

With the track up it was time to come up with a new plan. Following a number of failed attempts I realised the best solution was a mere two miles from home - Ballymena Station. Having viewed a number of OS maps from different eras I opted for a representation of the track plan from the 1960's.

 

Rather than the single line extending north to Ballymoney and south to Antrim I have elected to make it a double mainline. As many of you will know, Ballymena had quite a large Narrow Gauge operation serving Larne in particular but also the Antrim Glens. 009 is something I have no experience of and am not quite ready for that learning curve so this narrow gauge line will instead be represented by a branchline serving similar outlining country stations, one of which will be modelled on the opposite side of the layout.

 

At this point I should say that the layout stretches the length of the loft in between the V's of the joists on both sides on 2 foot wide boards to a length of 14 feet and connected by foot wide boards to a length of 6 feet.

 

The intention is to model the original Berkeley Dean Wise station building that was replaced by the current monstrosity in 1980, the signal box and the old engine shed. Research keeps bringing me to dead ends in the quest for reasonable photos of the station platform side. Ideally, I would like to source original architectural drawings but this is probably pie in the sky.

 

So, where am I at? The baseboard construction is well on its way to provide the relevant elevations to allow for the embankments extending out of the station crossing Galgorm Road.While this is ongoing I'm continuing my pursuit for more information on the buildings surrounding the station in the hope of unearthing more nuggets. Hopefully board work will be finished in the next few weeks and I can begin track laying.

 

More to follow.

 

Paul

[Dhu Varren]

Have many fond memories of the original Ballymena station. My mother's family lived in Ballymena, and we spent Christmas there every year when growing up. It is such a shame they had to knock down such a marvellous building and replace it with such a monstrosity. At least the beautiful subway with the long sloping ramps is still there.

[Kirley]

Lots of evidence of good modelling on your old layout Paul.

[jhb171achill]

So, following my introduction I thought I'd open up a thread for my current loft layout project. I've slotted it in to the Irish Layouts thread but it maybe doesn't suit it perfectly as firstly it's a fictitious location but based on the track plan in Ballymena and secondly it will have predominantly BR themed stock running on it. Should the moderators feel the need to move it across to the BR outline layouts I completely understand.

 

Anyhow, my intitial layout proved to be more problematic than it was worth and after three years building I lifted the lot to begin again. I was more than happy with some of the building work I had done on it but the track work left a lot to be desired. Here are a couple of pictures showing what I had achieved. [ATTACH=CONFIG]27846[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]27847[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]27848[/ATTACH]

 

With the track up it was time to come up with a new plan. Following a number of failed attempts I realised the best solution was a mere two miles from home - Ballymena Station. Having viewed a number of OS maps from different eras I opted for a representation of the track plan from the 1960's. [ATTACH=CONFIG]27849[/ATTACH]

 

Rather than the single line extending north to Ballymoney and south to Antrim I have elected to make it a double mainline. As many of you will know, Ballymena had quite a large Narrow Gauge operation serving Larne in particular but also the Antrim Glens. 009 is something I have no experience of and am not quite ready for that learning curve so this narrow gauge line will instead be represented by a branchline serving similar outlining country stations, one of which will be modelled on the opposite side of the layout.

 

At this point I should say that the layout stretches the length of the loft in between the V's of the joists on both sides on 2 foot wide boards to a length of 14 feet and connected by foot wide boards to a length of 6 feet.

 

The intention is to model the original Berkeley Dean Wise station building that was replaced by the current monstrosity in 1980, the signal box and the old engine shed. Research keeps bringing me to dead ends in the quest for reasonable photos of the station platform side. Ideally, I would like to source original architectural drawings but this is probably pie in the sky.

 

So, where am I at? The baseboard construction is well on its way to provide the relevant elevations to allow for the embankments extending out of the station crossing Galgorm Road.[ATTACH=CONFIG]27852[/ATTACH]While this is ongoing I'm continuing my pursuit for more information on the buildings surrounding the station in the hope of unearthing more nuggets. Hopefully board work will be finished in the next few weeks and I can begin track laying.

 

More to follow.

 

Paul

 

 

 

00n3 would be better as its closer to 3ft gauge. 009 better for scale 2ft gauge and wouldn't look right.

[Andy Cundick]

Point of order Mr Chairman 00n3 is exactly right for 3foot gauge.Andy.

[Noel]

Your old layout looked of a very high standard. Looking forward to watching your new layout progress.

[burnthebox]

Well Paul, what ever you run don't forget its your layout so whatever you run, its lookng good so far, so whether it's BR LMS, CIE IR or IE, enjoy it, just don't ll the conductor....LOL

BTB

[PaulC]

What is it they say about tardiness? Or was it cleanliness? Whatever, I acknowledge my slow responses to Noel and BTB in particular.

 

Noel, thank you for your comments on my workmanship - I hope to replicate and even improve on them in this new incarnation.

 

BTB - that old adage forever rings round my head and keeps me calm when those occasional rivet counters raise their heads.

 

Reporting on layout progress is thus - nothing to see here. The glorious weather has got in the way of woodworking. I did sit for two evenings this week and build a Parkside wagon and then discovered I've run out of red primer when it came to painting so that's halted too.

 

Paul

[PaulC]

Woodwork on the baseboards is now complete. This overly protracted job got tedious and combined with the fine weather made it less than enjoyable to work in but now it's done I feel an element of rejuvenation combined with apprehension on starting the next phase.

 

With some track loosely placed and the shape of the raised trackbeds it's now possible to get a feel of how the layout will look when permanently laid.

The north end of the main station sees the track feed round from the branchline and the main line run. This is where the main pointwork will feature with the two road station shed sat in the upper corner and a goods siding on the lower side. The lower baseboard will have an access road sloping down from the upper board to the main road with the station and its upper level platforms the main feature here as per the prototype.

Moving south out of the station the tracks will run over an embankment with the town featuring on both sides.

The bridge is not as per the prototype but I liked it from the last build so wanted to incorporate it in to this. The low relief buildings may have to be replaced with something else as the dimensions don't quite work at present for what I have in mind.

 

Going back to the north end, the trains loop round the corner with the branch-line at the rear beginning it's decent to the lower level baseboard.

Having swung round the joining board the mainline is on the upper tier with the branchline crossing beneath

The branch enters the outlying station with the mainline sweeping round behind.

The branch then continues under the mainline again and will end in a fiddle yard off the back of the main layout (yet to build).

Enough of this image posting; kids are in bed, Mrs C is watching some rubbish so I'm off to the loft. lol

 

Paul

[Dunluce Castle]

I love how this is coming along and can't wait to see the finished ballymena section.

[jhb171achill]

For the narrow gauge bit, 00n3 would be a better bet than 009, which is scale 2ft gauge.

[Garfield]

00n3 would be better as its closer to 3ft gauge. 009 better for scale 2ft gauge and wouldn't look right.

 

For the narrow gauge bit, 00n3 would be a better bet than 009, which is scale 2ft gauge.

 

There's a great echo in here, JB!

[jhb171achill]

Aaaarrrrrgggghhhhhh

 

I'm suffering from "Too-Many-Birthdays syndrome"!

[PaulC]

It's really time I brought things up to date with the layout. I see, from looking back on this thread, that the demise of photobucket as a free service has meant some of my photos are now lost. Is there any way of editing posts to fix this?

 

For most of the summer I spent time getting the boards finished and track laid.

I've now run out of flexi track but do have a full loop on which to run trains, should the notion take me. On order for the last 6 weeks, I'm still waiting on more track from my local supplier.

 

What to do in the mean time? Start on the signal box of course. As the last remaining remnant of Berkeley Dean Wises architecture in Ballymena, I really want to capture this box as closely as possible.

 

A card skeleton was drawn up, cut and glued together.

 

Using foam board, scribing strips every 2mm and then painting to create the floor. The painting was done by priming first in grey then painting with a combination of sandy and brown enamels to give the wood floor effect.

 

Plain plasticard next for the box sides. Windows are currently being designed by Scale Model Scenery to fit in the apertures.

 

Brick plasticard was then applied to the ground floor level. Detailing was picked out in the form of Wills arches and brick plasticard layers of two course and then one for the upper sections.

 

Tonight, I have started the painting process on this brickwork.

 

That's three months work in a nutshell.

 

Paul

[bantree]

Signal cabin coming along nicely

[GNRi1959]

Signal Cabin looks class!

[PaulC]

Thanks chaps.

 

Just a quick post tonight. The brickwork is painted. Its come out a little darker than hoped and looks darker still in the pictures. Normal process of applying a base coat followed by a top coat of a different colour and then rubbed off. A final coat of acrylic for the grout again rubbed off with paper towel.

I need to check the scraps box for some 1mm square plastruct for the arched windows and door frame.

 

Paul

[banntry]

Brickwork looks just about right to me  Paul. Different shades look realistic.

[Patrick Davey]

Love the cabin - currently building a GNR one myself, this is giving me great inspiration!  Well done Paul.

[PaulC]

Thanks Banntry, I'm growing to like it now, particularily with the arches frames going in. 

 

Patrick, I'd love to see some photos of your box when you get a chance. 

 

Paul

[PaulC]

Fiddly little jobs are on the cards at the minute. The frames for the arched windows are being made using 1mm plastruct. The space available to work in is so limiting making it very difficult to get accuracy in the cut and positioning. The curved sections are also difficult to create requiring a strip of plastruct to be put in place with glue and then leaving for 10 to 15 minutes while glue sets using a pair of self release tweezers to hold the piece in its curved position. 

One side done and I've now run out of strip so more ordered. 

An easier job has been the ground level door. A piece of card with scribed plasticard followed by 1mm plastruct for the frame. The door handle is a 1mm piece of florists wire bent to shape. 
 

Paul

[JasonB]

14 minutes ago, PaulC said:

Fiddly little jobs are on the cards at the minute. The frames for the arched windows are being made using 1mm plastruct. The space available to work in is so limiting making it very difficult to get accuracy in the cut and positioning. The curved sections are also difficult to create requiring a strip of plastruct to be put in place with glue and then leaving for 10 to 15 minutes while glue sets using a pair of self release tweezers to hold the piece in its curved position. 

One side done and I've now run out of strip so more ordered. 

An easier job has been the ground level door. A piece of card with scribed plasticard followed by 1mm plastruct for the frame. The door handle is a 1mm piece of florists wire bent to shape. 
 

Paul

Excellent build.Love the brickwork it looks very realistic

[Patrick Davey]

On 22 October 2017 at 10:11 PM, PaulC said:

Patrick, I'd love to see some photos of your box when you get a chance. 

Yes indeed Paul, I shall share a few pics once it looks vaguely recognisable!!

[John-r]

brickwork is really good , so realistic,. Lovely work. well done.

[PaulC]

Windows are still awaited.  In the meantime I have begun construction on the roof. A card frame with plenty of reinforced struts first

 

 

I fitted an led light at this stage and then applied the remainder of card for the roof and chimney. 

Now it's beginning to look more like the real thing.  Next up was a rather laborious job of cutting plasticard roof tile strips and overlapping each to build up the roof on the four sides. 

i will now work on fitting the lead flashing and brickwork for the chimney. 

Ive also been working on some of the fittings for the box itself from the Ratio interior kit. 

Paul

 

 

 

Edited November 15, 2017 by PaulC

[Weshty]

That is a classy looking labour of love.

[Noel]

1 hour ago, PaulC said:

Ive also been working on some of the fittings for the box itself from the Ratio interior kit. 

Paul

Class job.  Love the colouring and brick work.  Like interior plans.

[PJR]

lovely work well done

[Georgeconna]

nice stuff there, Love the brick work.

This might be a dumb question but for the slopes at each the ends of the Roof is there a Formula on how the exact sized Triangle is cut to shape or is it trial and error?

[Dunluce Castle]

How have I not seen this earlier, the signal cabin looks absolutely amazing, you should be really proud! 

[bantree]

Really looking like a great piece of modelling.

[PaulC]

Thanks for the comments guys. 

20 hours ago, Georgeconna said:

nice stuff there, Love the brick work.

This might be a dumb question but for the slopes at each the ends of the Roof is there a Formula on how the exact sized Triangle is cut to shape or is it trial and error?

George, I'm sure there is but I haven't a clue what it is.  I cut and fitted the two main sides first then measured the farthest points between them for the base line of that end triangle. The centre point was found and a measurements taken at the centre between both main sides to the tip where both sides met. That gave the length of the triangle on the end side.  After that it was just a matter of drawing a line to each base line corner. Worked first time, no trimming required. 

 

Paul

Edited November 16, 2017 by PaulC

[PaulC]

Wok continues on the signal box. Since my last post I have completed work on the roof.  The chimney was clad in plasticard, painted and weathered followed by the ridge tiles using a combination of 1mm florist wire and cheap duct tape from the local pound shop. The roof was then primed, painted and weathered prior to the guttering being added. 

I decided that one lever frame wasn't going to be enough to fill the box so a second Ratio set was bought and the relevant parts assembled. Prior to painting I wanted to see how things might look. 

The windows have also arrived from Scale Model Scenery. To say that Justin has produced something exceptional is an understatement and I can't recommend his services enough. These windows were designed to my own specifications, drawn up, laser cut and offered for a very reasonable £4.99. How can anyone fault that?  Installation has just begun and will keep me busy for the next couple of nights. 

Paul

[Noel]

Looking really well Paul. Wonderful building. How did you do the ridge tiles? 

[PaulC]

6 minutes ago, Noel said:

Looking really well Paul. Wonderful building. How did you do the ridge tiles? 

Thank you Noel.  A piece of 1mm florist wire was cut and glued at the meeting points of the tiles. Once dried, strips of duct tape (Tommy Walsh branded stuff from Poundland) were cut and laid along the florist wire and then rubbed in to the recesses of the tiles to attempt the effect of lead flashing. Everything was then primed before painting and weathering. Hope that helps. 

 

Paul