O gauge Tunny and Grampus kit builds

With the layout packed up for Xmas I have made a little progress on finishing off some wagon builds. The couple I have been working on are two engineering wagons, being a Grampus and Tunny. The Grampus wagon is the standard Peco (Parkside) kit, built as per the instructions, which I finished off a few weeks ago. This is a simple kit to build - the parts go together cleanly and the end result really looks the part.

The Grampus wagon - now waiting for a good clean before heading into the paint boxes.

The second kit to finish building was a GWR Tunny wagon. This is a 3D printed kit from Skog. Compared to the Parkside kit, there was a lot of cleaning up to do of the printed parts, not least trying to remove the print lines, particularly from the exterior of the wagon. The wagon was built with a lot of spare parts from other kits; the brake levers are the spare set from the Grampus build and the axle boxes are Slaters spares. However, overall it is has built up into a good representation of the prototype and I am sure will look great once painted. The kit will need a thorough scrub when it gets cleaned later today before heading into the paint boxes.

The Tunny wagon.

The sides took a lot of filing down to get rid of the 3D printed lines.

The close ups are probably a little bit cruel when it comes to the Tunny wagon. However, with a good wash later today and a decent paint job I am certain it will look the part. Whilst the Tunny kit was a bit more basic than the Grampus waggon, it was also under half its price. It therefore represents excellent value for money - although I would definitely recommend having a cache of spares available to help detail the kit.

With Xmas fast approaching I am limited to a bit of modelling on the kitchen table alongside doing a bit of painting. The next wagon build has already been started - a Slaters SR BY wagon, again to be finished in BR engineers olive green. I also have severeal buildings to finish off for the layout, alongside completing the painting of severeal wagon. So there is plenty to keep me busy over the next few weeks, whilst the layout is packed away.

O Gauge Layout - Backscenes trial and error!

So the next part of layout detailing was fitting in the backscenes. I think this is one of the most important parts of the layout; a good backscene will transform the whole view of the layout, whilst a poor backscene really detracts from the overall picture, no matter how good the modelling on the baseboard. I had been putting off doing the backscene, as I was not sure how to proceed. I had already glued the foamex boards down onto the layout, so I had to fix the backscenes in-situ.

I had purchased the self adhesive ID photographic backscenes and the quality of the product is excellent. However, I did not think I could use the self  adhesive of the backscene, as the backscene was awkwardly placed in certain parts of the layout, meaning I could not slide the backscene into position. So I opted to use some double sided tape and lightly fix the backscene into place. A lot of cutting and measuring ensued to fit the backscene and it was semi successful, although there were a couple of bad joins between sheets. I left it for a week and over the week the backscenes settled a little (I think they might have swelled a little) and the wrinkles seemingly became more noticeable. In the end I decided I could not live with it, so I had a second attempt.

The first attempt - I was pleased with the overall effect, although there were some wrinkles!

As the backscene had been effectively unrolled, cut to size and tacked into position. I decided to remove the double sided tape and use the self adhesive backing. I removed the protective film from one end of the backscene and smoothed this onto the foamex board to act as an anchor. From there, I slowly removed the rest of the double sided tape and the peeled off the self adhesive protective wrap a few cm at a time, fixing the backscene down as I went. The end result was so much better and wrinkle free. There are a few blemishes here and there but these will be disguised by the addition of the buildings and further scenery.

The second attempt was much better!

So lessons have been learnt. On future layouts, I will stick the backscene to the foamex boards first and then glue these into place. However, the end result for this in-situ fixing is entirely acceptable and I am very pleased with it. I only managed to finish three of the baseboards in this way, so there is a further one to go today before it is all done. However, there are no excuses now, it is time to get those buildings glued down onto the layout and the really fun bit can start, adding in all the small details and cameos. The layout as a whole has now been put away until after xmas, although I can bring down individual boards and work on these in the evenings. So hopefully more progress to report soon!

O gauge layout - quay front and fiddle yard progress

Recently, I have had the layout set up in the lounge, which has allowed me to progress some key elements of the layout. The next really big task to undertake was the water at the quay front. I started off attempting to achieve the water affect using the AK interactive Atlantic water gel. I applied a couple of coats of this using a small trowel and a paintbrush. I had not used this product before or really attempted to model water, so I was keen to see what I could achieve. The first finish using the Atlantic water gel would have been fantastic for a warship diorama but the effect was too glossy and the blue too rich for the quay front. The glossy nature of the finish contrasted too sharply with the matt finish of the quay front stonework.

First attempt at the quay front water.

So I experimented with the AK Atlantic water gel, by diluting it a little with water and adding some lighter blue paint mixed into the gel. The outcome from this was the most lurid toothpaste colour blue! So further coats of the Atlantic water gel were applied, to get rid of this light blue and I was then back to square one! I then opted to pour a lot of Woodland scenic water over the top of the AK water gel. The end result, whilst not perfect, is one that I can live with for now. There is a little bit too much variation in the colour of the water and the blue could be toned down a little. However, I think I have got my head around how to use the Scenic water and blend this with a better base coat. For now, I am going to move onto the backscenes and revisit the water effects in the new year.

The impact of pouring the Woodland Scenic water over the top of the AK Atlantic water gel. The reflection of the stonework is great, although the water displays quite a lot of variation in its colour at present.

The end result, whilst not perfect, I can certainly live with for the time being.

Another task that was finished off last weekend was the testing of the fiddle yard. A quick bit of soldering was required to allow the powerbus from the layout to connect to the fiddle yard. It was great to have the layout set up and give it a short test run. The fiddle yard worked really well and is a full 360 degree turntable. I need to add in some guard rails to protect the rolling stock, but this should be a quite a quick job. For now at least it is operational, which means I can finally use the layout at home.

Fiddle yard set up with the powerbus attached.

The fiddle yard has 3 roads for the layout operation.

Fiddle yard exit onto the layout.

So this weekend, the big task is to attack the backscenes. This is another job I have been putting off for a while, as I am not sure quite how to fix the backscenes in place. I have some Deluxe Models View Glue ready to use or I can try to use the self adhesive on the back of the ID backscenes photosheets. An alternative I have been pondering is using some double sided tape. Tonight I will get the backscenes out and have a proper think about it, before giving it a go tomorrow. The foamex sheets for the backscenes to be adhered to are firmly glued in place onto the layout, so this is an in-situ installation which will add a little to the complexity (cursing!) of getting this bit right! In my opinion the backscene is one of those things that makes or break a model railway - so fingers crossed I can get this bit done correctly!

A class 25 spotted from the quay front.

A class 25 doing a bit of shunting around the platform.

The class 25 heading towards Barnstaple with a short engineers train.

Other than that, it was great to run a few trains on the layout and test the track a little. Some of the curves are pretty tight, although it is all just about manageable. I am looking forward to getting these backscenes installed, so I can start the final leg of the layout detailing. 

O Gauge layout scenery Kimington Quay Phase 2

The detailing of the some of the basic scenic elements for the layout have continued over the last week, focusing on the diary and platform end boards. The scenic detailing tasks were to add some static grass to the areas surrounding the track bed, platform, dairy platform and sidings, blending this into the modelling already undertaken on the curved board. A very enjoyable Saturday and Sunday were spent applying  these scenic details, dabbing down glue and layering in some basic grass and bushes.

View looking down the layout, past the platform and towards the diary siding.

I am no expert in undertaking layout scenery but one of the things I wanted to avoid was large blocks of homogenous grass colour, especially as the detailing approached the the quay masters cottage and runs along the edge of the platform. The area between the platform and the quay wall was an attempt to model some ground that has been reclaimed by nature, as part of the run down of the railway network in the 1970s. There are some more brambles and shrubs to add, but these extra bits can wait until the water at the front of the layout is finished and the backscene has been fixed in place.

The area in the front of the platform is an attempt to model some ground reclaimed by nature.

The variation in the ground cover after the quay wall is just about visible in this photo.

In the fictional world of my model railway the diary is still in business throughout the 1970s, although the siding for the short diary platform is somewhat rundown and overgrown. I used a different colour grass for the siding, trying to replicate newer growth.

The diary platform and area surrounding the quay masters cottage.

I really like this view of the layout - looking back towards the platform from the quay masters cottage. It has the feel of the openness of the railway, whilst looking very down at the heel, befitting the 1970s.

The transition from the quay wall to the platform is staring to get there. I now need to add in a fence or two....

Overall I am really pleased with the scenery so far. The really big messy jobs are now finished. So this weekend, I am going to try to put down the water in the quay and once that is done, I am going to attempt to add the backscene in a couple of weekends time. I have also started to play with the arrangement of a few scenic elements in the area of the quay masters cottage. There will be an information board (not yet built) alongside a telephone booth, post box and street lamp. These elements will need to wait until the backscenes are in, when I can move onto the next stage of detailing.

Some of the details plonked down at the quay masters cottage. These items need to be toned a little and then glued in place.

O gauge platform painting and the start of the scenery - the next jobs!

I have managed to keep the layout set up in the lounge for a few weeks and have very slowly progressed some of the detailing. The next job on the list was to create a bit of tonal variation on the platform. The platform look too dark and too monochrome; repainting it was just one of those moments when I had to  draw a deep breath and just start. I had various colours to hand and started dry brushing using a light grey, rust colour and a very pale yellow.

Once I started I thought what have I done!

The dry brushing provided some variation in the colour of the platform.

After the first couple of dry brushed coats I had one of those  'what have I done moments'! However, I persevered and ending up air brushing over a light final coat to blend it all together.

The finished platform with more colour variation now evident.

The top of the platform, which has some much better contrast now. The platform furniture will help break up the appearance of the surface even further.

So with the platform improved - I have made a start on adding the basic elements of the vegetation. I started from the curved board, which had already received the basic scenic elements. I had stopped short of the board join on the curved board and this allowed me to blend the scenery from the curved board through the platform board.  Various static grass coats were laid down and  I am now in the process of adding bushes and brambles, alongside layering in more grass. In some areas the first grass layers were too thick and did no convey the idea of old made ground that has been reclaimed by nature - so there is some thinning out to do today and a lot of brambles/bushes to add. There is also a fence to add alongside the tack edge, which is currently not finished in the paint boxes.

There is some grass thinning to do today alongside adding in more weeds / brambles. That elderflower tree also looks far too shiny!

It is all definitiely heading in the right direction, although there is plenty more detailing to go on these boards. However, once I complete the basic vegetation on the boards, I can move onto finishing the water in the quay and adding the backscenes - these are the big modelling tasks I am aiming to complete over the next couple of months. Once these jobs are done I will have a largely operational model railway and I can then add lots of the smaller details in over the coming months (or at least that is plan).

O Gauge Buildings Continued

Over the weekend, I managed to get the two end boards for the layout set up in the lounge. These are the two boards that have had minimal scenery applied so far and it is time to make a start on these. The first task was to place the buildings that I have made onto the layout and see how they fit within the overall space. First up I popped the little  shelter onto the platform. It fits really well, although it is potentially a little to wide - some modellers licence will have to be applied. However, the little shelter looks quite empty on the platform - just what I wanted to achieve - it does feel quite big and empty which I was really pleased with. However, the platform does look somewhat monochrome at the moment, despite layering in a lot of colour when I painted it. So a job for the next two weeks will be to attack the platform with some dry brushing - to add a little tonal variation.

The platform shelter - this works quite nicely I think, 

but the platform needs some tonal variation added.

The quay masters cottage was also placed at the edge of the layout to act as a scenic break for for the fiddle stick exit. The positioning of the cottage right against the edge of the baseboard does not look quite right - and it is a tight squeeze to fit the cottage onto the space provided. However, it does create a good scenic break and there is definitely a feeling of the railway running through a small built up area.

The quay masters cottage acting as a scenic break at the edge of the layout.

On the other side of the tracks will be three buildings, which are all part of the dairy platform and offices. I rearranged these severeal times to try to achieve the best fit. The main dairy building has been painted in some somewhat garish colours - but I thought maybe in keeping with some of the hideous 1960's colour schemes that were around! There is still plenty of detailing to go in order to finish this building. The other larger warehouse on the left will be modelled as an abandoned structure from the pre-railway use of the quay side; however it is currently too wide for the layout. This is a consequence of having to place the backscene away from the baseboard edge. So the saw is going to come out again for this building!

Main office diary building painted in a somewhat garish colour scheme. There is a lot of detailing still to go for this building.

The small diary siding - other smaller buildings / structures will be squeezed around these buildings once they are finally finished.

The smaller building on the platform is the delivery office for the dairy and this will be positioned between the two larger buildings. Having now placed this building on the layout, part of the roof I painted in a light grey colour now sticks out like a sore thumb. So one future task will be toning this part of the roof down with some dry brushing.

For the next month or so, I have a clear programme of modelling tasks to progress the detailing of the layout. The list is:

a) Dry brush the platform to add a little tonal variation.
b) Dry brush the roof of the small diary office building to add some tonal variation.
c) Finish off the larger dairy building.
d) Narrow the larger diary warehouse so it fits onto the layout.
e) Finish the water at the quay side.
f) Add some basic vegetation to these two baseboards, weeds, grass etc.
g) Add the backscene.

h) Glue these buildings into place and wire the electrics for lighting into some battery boxes with swtiches under the layout.

I aim to work through these tasks over the next few weeks, however as always in life there are plenty of other non-modelling tasks that require my time. If I can finish off adding the backscene and doing the quay water, these are major milestones for completion of the layout and are tasks that I have been been putting off somewhat. It is now time to crack on with them, during the weeks leading up to xmas.

Heljan O Gauge Class 33 DCC fitting and reassembly - part I

I am finally in a position where I can start to put up the layout in the lounge later today. The last of the numerous guests we have had this summer have returned home. It has been brilliant to have had some many visitors this year but it is has also meant that I have not had the time or the space to put up the layout. Anyhow, one task I wanted to complete before a serious bout of layout scenery detailing, was the re-assembling of the Heljan class 33. I purchased this locomotive at a bargain price in BR green and proceeded to completely strip it down. The locomotive had the bogies / fuel tank removed and weathered separately, whilst the body shell had the glazing, handrails and cabs removed before a bath of superstrip. The repaint of the body went a little wrong, courtesy of using the wrong air pressure on a new compressor by mistake; however the final finish is acceptable (for now), although I might revisit it in the future. 

Repainted body shell - it has turned out OK but is by no means perfect.

With the repaint complete I was waiting for a clear day to reassemble the chassis. In common with the overall project, this initially proved to be a real headache, although I did manage to finish it in the end! The first issue was reattaching the sideframes to the bogies. I tried to force these on and ended up damaging one of them. I subsequently realised that the bogie had to be unscrewed from underneath the chassis block, to enable the bogies to be replaced. Typically I knocked some detailing off one of the bogies and whilst this is now glued back on, it will need touching up with some paint later today. I also managed to fit the speaker into the fuel tank - but it was a tight squeeze.

The painting on the bogie sideframes had turned out well I think.

Fuel tank back in place - a largish speaker has been squeezed into the tank.

The wiring up of the DCC chip was also a bit of a headache to start with. The Heljan PCB board made little sense on first inspection; this was primarily due to the polarity of the wires not being marked marked on the PCB board - so for example there are two labels for the track feeds on both sides. What is entirely unclear from the PCB board labelling, is that the wire polarity was reversed on either side of the model. So for bogie A the positive track was feed was black, whilst on bogie B it was red! Luckily, I found a brilliant guide for understanding the wiring (https://www.modernimageogauge.co.uk/crompton.html) and after a few false starts, the rewiring was relatively easy. I then set up the DCC test track and had a little play - fortunately everything was OK and the locomotive started chugging around. The only issue I currently have, is that I cannot independently operate the tail lights from the re-wiring I have done. This is a minor annoyance and I am not sure if there is a solution for this - a little bit of internet searching will be undertaken today to see if anyone else has had the same problem.

The Heljan PCB board...the markings left a lot to be desired.

The DCC chip installed.

The chassis being test run on the micro-layout (not the most exciting video in the world!)

So today is a modelling day. The glazing needs to be re-installed into the body shell, alongside applying the transfers for the headcodes on the front glazing and the handrails  need a light wash of grime, before regluing. The cabs, lighting conduits and driver also need fixing into place. Hopefully, by the end of today I will have another fully working locomotive - well at least that is the plan. Then I will start make a start on setting up the layout, ready for a good running session next weekend.