Grahame's N/2mm London Bridge train set

grahame

Western Thunderer
I've made a start on the pavements in front of the viaduct arches in St Thomas Street. They need kerbs adding and detailing as well as modelling the businesses in the arches (although most seem boarded up). Anyway here's a panoramic view of the viaduct arches and just about the entire eastern half of the layout:

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grahame

Western Thunderer
Planning is underway for the trainshed and it's overall roof which is quite a daunting and sizeable project even in it's allocated compromised and compressed space.

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Also to consider and make is the roof of the forecourt canopy, with it's myriad of pyramid shaped skylights, that extends over the concourse, ticket/travel office and bus and taxi stands. The fuzzy aerial pic below gives an idea of the extent of both (trainshed and canopy). I don't think these two modelling projects are going to be a quick job.

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Tim Watson

Western Thunderer
Lovely picture of Guy’s Tower, from which you get the best view of London, because you can’t see how ugly it is.

Those cloches on the forecourt canopy roof would be an ideal candidate for 3DP or, with older technology, one pattern and moulds for polyester casting.

Tim
 

Grahame Hedges

Western Thunderer
The pitched rectangular skylights appear to be made of a corrugated material with the light allowing rectangles not actually being clear. But they're all a different size and subtly different shape. The domed centre section is not actually curved but appears to be a series of flat panels. It seems that it is only the window at the end that has a curved profile. And it has a kink along it length but I'll not bother with that, doubt anyone will notice. Plus I won't need that number of rectangular skylights for my compressed version.

But I'm still thinking about and considering its construction - I don't have 3D design and printing or vac forming facilities so it'll probably have to be traditional model making techniques with card and styrene. Much like the rest of the layout.

For the pyramid skylights on the forecourt canopy I was planning on clear resin casting them. That way I'd only need to make one or two and then cast as many as I need with just painting the frame edges to finish.
 
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grahame

Western Thunderer
I've decided to make the whole trainshed roof as a single piece with a flat sheet underside for strength and for the rectangular skylights and curved central section to sit on. It will make the construction somewhat more straightforward and less fraught.

Having been trying to find detailed on-line pics of the trainshed roof (from above) they unfortunately seem incredibly rare - although there are plenty of the underside of it from the platforms. Those I have, and have seen, seem to indicate that the 'clear' sections on both the rectangular skylights and barrel vaulted central section, that do let a little light through, aren't exactly clean and glass like and hardly look like windows. They appear to be corrugated and just a dirty brown section of the structure they are part of.

Because of that, and that I've also not found any suitable N gauge scale clear corrugated embossed styrene, I'm making the whole roof solid with the 'clear' sections simply painted as an appropriate dirt colour. Besides it was always dark in the terminus part of the station. However, the model will get a little light in from above the side walls (as with the real one), due to the roof being raised a little by truss support beams, although seeing inside will still be difficult.

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Grahame Hedges

Western Thunderer
Yes, it's just one piece that sits in place and is easily portable. I take it indoors to work on it and return it to the shed to test fit and take the snaps.
 

simond

Western Thunderer
Grahame,

have you considered 3DP with transparent resin? You could then wash with suitably dirty colours. I guess it would make the roof more complicated.
 

Grahame Hedges

Western Thunderer
Unfortunately I don't have 3D design and print facilities. To get started now would probably be long winded in the learning process and expensive to buy the equipment (design software, printer, resins, etc.). And it's not essential for light to get through as the overall roof beneath the 'clear' skylight sections is a solid piece for strength and ease of construction. Maybe it's the future for another layout project and another lifetime. . . . :)
 

grahame

Western Thunderer
A little progress today by some cutting and gluing styrene strip and sheet together for the central vaulted barrel roof section, but it's far from complete and looks rather messy and scruffy. Hopefully as it progresses things will take shape and look better. Overall it's a large, complex and fiddly one-piece structure:

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Grahame Hedges

Western Thunderer
One other little thing I've recently done is to make and replace the chunky canopy supports on the through platforms with finer ones. The chunky ones have been used to replace the unpainted ones on the bay platform 7/8. I'll not bother with finer ones on that canopy as they can't be seen behind the trainshed wall.
 

chrisjames

New Member
This is great. I'm writing from my flat on Magdalen Street - which isn't built yet in this time period, but looks like the land might be acquired. If you need any images of the street for references - including the tree on the link road that's been there forever, let me know! I look out the window at it :)
Keep going - would love to see when it's all done!
 
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