Jordan
Mid-Western Thunderer
Except that's an Alco.
still nice scenes though. 
Stuff the GWR BLT - stay on this Diversion a bit longer..!!
G.W.R. BLT: Almost there.
- Thread starter jonte
- Start date
still nice scenes though. Stuff the GWR BLT - stay on this Diversion a bit longer..!!
jonte
Western Thunderer
Fulton County, from memory, Brian.
I did a search recently which wasn’t particularly successful; not for these images anyway.
From memory, I think it was a short line in the proximity of Rochester; I even recall a YouTube video of this very loco and it’s train of hoppers being filled, but for some reason recent searches are proving fruitless.
Hey, Ho.
Jon
jonte
Western Thunderer
‘Tis indeed, Jordan.Except that's an Alco.
Stuff the GWR BLT - stay on this Diversion a bit longer..!!
I recall being unable to find an example of the type (GP 9?) so decided to do a similar paint job and appearance to the 38 on my ‘made-up’ branch which was something else that never materialised.
I did get as far as building the baseboards however:
………a skeleton tree:
………and this beat-up sign made of brass off cuts:
I think I said at the beginning of this build that the main reason for all this abandonment is getting too easily distracted, and so I’m determined not to go down that road again……..although I still have three unused code 70 Microengineering switches and a small baseboard hanging around………………
Jon
John57sharp
Western Thunderer
Oo I do like that 315… tempt me not!
Yorkshire Dave
Western Thunderer
I think I said at the beginning of this build that the main reason for all this abandonment is getting too easily distracted, and so I’m determined not to go down that road again……..although I still have three unused code 70 Microengineering switches and a small baseboard hanging around………………
I always find a diversion is good for refreshing the grey matter before returning to the project in hand.
jonte
Western Thunderer
Whilst waiting for the last of the ash surface to dry (once again the board had to be brought inside to hasten the drying time) I made a start on the ballasting, a task I was performing for the first time.
Using a fine mix of 6 (beach sand): 1 (fine ballast) so as not to overwhelm Peco’s under scale sleepers, I sprinkled the ballast between each sleeper using a medicine spoon, seen earlier in photographs, being careful not to drown the track in the process as I wasn’t sure whether I’d spend even more time cleaning it all up again if it all went pear shaped (I chose an eighteen inch length of track for starters as I didn’t wish to run before walking; a siding being selected as I thought it wiser to practise on a section of track that didn’t matter if standards were lowered).
As this section of track was going to have most of the sleepers and ballast covered by ash as most sidings in rural branches seemed to be, I loaded the gaps to sleeper height starting with the centre of the track - working say six inches at a time - before tamping down the ballast with a finger, which not only served to compact it but also, fortuitously, removing any stray grains from the sleeper tops. A small paint brush was then used to remove any of the sand that had clung to either chairs, web of rail or both, before tamping down any disturbed ballast once again.
I then continued the process for the outsides of the sleepers, a protracted process in total that took a good forty five minutes or so to complete.
Once satisfied, I drenched the lot with an atomiser containing water and a drop of washing up liquid, before fixing in the time honoured way with a 50:50 mix of Pva:water, (again with a couple of drops of washing up liquid added for good measure), applied with a dropper.
Photo taken just after finishing at about 8.30 pm last night, with glue still wet:
Feels dry to the touch this morning:
As mentioned, this will all have a slurry of plaster applied to the top of the ballast, and/or tops of the sleepers to leave just rail and chairs showing in the main.
The main line on entry - and that adjacent to the platform - will have a smaller quantity of ballast applied, again so as not to overwhelm the sleepers and to mix up the appearance so as not to make it all appear ‘samey’.
That’s the idea anyway.
I hope this helps somebody, if only as mentioned, it serves them to steer well clear!
I’ll come back when the task is completed and ready to paint.
jonte
Using a fine mix of 6 (beach sand): 1 (fine ballast) so as not to overwhelm Peco’s under scale sleepers, I sprinkled the ballast between each sleeper using a medicine spoon, seen earlier in photographs, being careful not to drown the track in the process as I wasn’t sure whether I’d spend even more time cleaning it all up again if it all went pear shaped (I chose an eighteen inch length of track for starters as I didn’t wish to run before walking; a siding being selected as I thought it wiser to practise on a section of track that didn’t matter if standards were lowered).
As this section of track was going to have most of the sleepers and ballast covered by ash as most sidings in rural branches seemed to be, I loaded the gaps to sleeper height starting with the centre of the track - working say six inches at a time - before tamping down the ballast with a finger, which not only served to compact it but also, fortuitously, removing any stray grains from the sleeper tops. A small paint brush was then used to remove any of the sand that had clung to either chairs, web of rail or both, before tamping down any disturbed ballast once again.
I then continued the process for the outsides of the sleepers, a protracted process in total that took a good forty five minutes or so to complete.
Once satisfied, I drenched the lot with an atomiser containing water and a drop of washing up liquid, before fixing in the time honoured way with a 50:50 mix of Pva:water, (again with a couple of drops of washing up liquid added for good measure), applied with a dropper.
Photo taken just after finishing at about 8.30 pm last night, with glue still wet:
Feels dry to the touch this morning:
As mentioned, this will all have a slurry of plaster applied to the top of the ballast, and/or tops of the sleepers to leave just rail and chairs showing in the main.
The main line on entry - and that adjacent to the platform - will have a smaller quantity of ballast applied, again so as not to overwhelm the sleepers and to mix up the appearance so as not to make it all appear ‘samey’.
That’s the idea anyway.
I hope this helps somebody, if only as mentioned, it serves them to steer well clear!
I’ll come back when the task is completed and ready to paint.
jonte
jonte
Western Thunderer
Apologies for the divergence once more, but the recent sojourn back to American HO had me trawling not only a raft of Short Line vids on YouTube, but also a return to images, old and new, of the downtown streets of LA that once whetted my appetite for the topic.
Indeed, I even occasioned upon this…..
which reminded me of where a I got the inspiration to produce my own version that I posted the other day:
I knew this was a bad idea………..
jonte
Indeed, I even occasioned upon this…..
which reminded me of where a I got the inspiration to produce my own version that I posted the other day:
I knew this was a bad idea………..
jonte
John57sharp
Western Thunderer
I feel your pain Jonte, such an atmospheric photo. Reminds me of a US version of Canada Street, which is probably my favourite layout out there.
John
John
jonte
Western Thunderer
‘Woe, woe ‘n’ thrice………’
And to think that if the Bard was around today, he’d no doubt spend his time conjuring up yet another woeful Cop or Hospital based drama, or even writing scripts from those hard to tell apart soaps that blight our tellys
Am I right in thinking there only seven plots available for story telling: boy meets girl; boy loses girl: boy gets girl again; the end etc. ?
After that, it’s all more of the same I believe.
Yes Canada, John. Wonderful stuff. Reminiscent of our own docks although, if I recall, some of it is borrowed from Bristol?
Cheers,
Jon
Dog Star
Western Thunderer
Or as Thomas Hardy wrote "the poor man and the Lady"... several times with variation.
Roger Pound
Western Thunderer
Got to be the S&D, Jon,
The Dorset he described would be a wonderful setting……for a Branchline
Jon
!Roger
jonte
Western Thunderer
Roger Pound
Western Thunderer
Sorry, Jon, I don't do locos with brass bonnets,
. Spam cans and 7F's are more to my liking, hence S&D 
!Roger
Yorkshire Dave
Western Thunderer
John57sharp
Western Thunderer
7 plots is about right Jon, I always liked the Douglas Adams variation: Boy meets girl under a romantic moon which promptly explodes!‘Woe, woe ‘n’ thrice………’
And to think that if the Bard was around today, he’d no doubt spend his time conjuring up yet another woeful Cop or Hospital based drama, or even writing scripts from those hard to tell apart soaps that blight our tellys
Am I right in thinking there only seven plots available for story telling: boy meets girl; boy loses girl: boy gets girl again; the end etc. ?
After that, it’s all more of the same I believe.
Yes Canada, John. Wonderful stuff. Reminiscent of our own docks although, if I recall, some of it is borrowed from Bristol?
Cheers,
Jon
In our case there’s a similar number, start a layout, change scale, change country, revert to previous, go P4, build a garden railway and so on….
Yes Canada St is an amalgam of locations, but very similar to Merseyside and most atmospheric.
Im currently mulling over how to proceed with my 2mm ballasting… I’m worried that I didn’t take 8f to account the high water content of this when building the baseboard in card
keep on keeping on
John
jonte
Western Thunderer
Got to be the S&D, Jon,
Roger
Phew! Out of breath: Debbie’s had me grappling with some type of triffid that’s been exercising squatter rights for far too long in the back garden: love gardens; not too keen on gardening
Only pulling your leg about Abbotsbury, Roger, knowing of your contempt for all things Swindon
Before the advent of the electronic information Highway of today, and bored of reading RM from front to back, I would occasionally pop into the local library for inspiration. Can’t say I was a rail buff per se, so the photos in the library books were more for trying to familiarise myself with the scenic elements of our hobby more than the protagonists of motion, however, thinking back, most of the more attractive books that came home with me were of the S&D, so there must have been a bias or something towards it, call it what you will.
In fact, I must have popped in more often than I thought because on one occasion whilst waiting to have my books stamped, a librarian approached me at the counter and gifted me her late father’s Railway books, have observed my seemingly penchant for books on the topic
Most kind, madam!With regard to S&D, Roger, there’s time yet as my only DCC fitted steed remains the Hornby 8F. Watch this space
Best,
Jon