BR (LMR) Swanbroke (Goods)

[Vaughan45]

Quick update to show that the planning of the buildings along the rear of the layout has progressed.

The older part of the 'works' are towards the left of the layout and has been designed around a couple of Petite Properties kits, although the window & door arrangement will be modified on both. The newer building is designed to represent a recently constructed goods in / goods out facility with three loading bays and utilises a much modified Walther's kit.

The loading bays will have an 'over track' style of canopy with support columns on the opposite side of the siding. It is hoped by using a range of Redutex embossed finishes across the layout, the differences between card, wood and plastic construction will be minimised. Once the rear building arrangement has been finalised the rear facia board can be cut and fitted.

We appear to have been photobombed by an ex LNWR interloper???

 

[Vaughan45]

The rear facia has been added to the layout, but will rarely be seen in the layouts home location. Rather than cut it in one piece, the separate buildings have each had their backs painted black to allow for possible adjustment or repositioning. The large loading bay building will have a back added once additional strengthening and interior detailing has been installed.

A shingles vaccination yesterday has left me feeling a bit 'meh' today, so I will restore the layout to its usual position tomorrow.



Current view out from a loading bay!

 

[Vaughan45]

Limited progress recently due to decorating and gardening duties. However there has been progress on the warehouse building including the fitting of the remaining windows and installation of the first two door sets. These are supposed to represent those flexible concertina doors often found on premises involved in food production / distribution or dairies.

A rake of Oxford Rail LNER 6 Plank open wagons was acquired for £5 each. They have been fitted with 3 link couplings and two have had their running numbers amended. They still require interior detailing, weathering and loads or appropriate tarpaulins fitted.

 

[Vaughan45]

Further progress this afternoon. The warehouse building is now structurally complete, just needing a variety of details to be added. The loading platform has been positioned and clearance testing has been completed. Work has started on an Oxford Rail LNER Banana van, correcting the brake lever on one side and fitting screw couplings. The heavy weathering applied to the sides/ends of the van by the previous owner has been toned down, but the repainted roof needs weathering and a last digit added to the running numbers on each side side.



The second photo shows the beginning of the three bay over-track canopy which is being cobbled together from Wills parts and items lurking in the scrap box.

 

[Vaughan45]

Quick update photo showing the almost complete, but unpainted warehouse canopy. The upper floor of the building on the right of the photo will represent toilet facilities with obscure glazing and a range of pipe work running at an angle on the outside to a vertical soil pipe.

 

[Vaughan45]

The goods yard platform has had the surface loose fitted for clearance testing. It still requires painting and surface treatment. A small goods shed is being 'bashed' from a Wills kit.



The platform has 'normal' edging on the goods shed rail side, but other edging is to be a representation of stone block, enabling end or side loading from one or three plank wagons (or something more exotic?). The left end of the platform may be occupied by further sheds or a low relief Nissen hut, presumably installed during or after WW1.

 

[Vaughan45]

Quick update. The loading platform has been surfaced and further work done on the goods store, just needs ridge tiles, a little weathering and bedding in. We also appear to have a visitor from the future!

 

[Vaughan45]

The rain in Norfolk has curtained outside activities, so further layout progress has occurred. The goods shed has been fitted with ridge tiles and also further surface texturing, plus testing of building and pavement placing. It intended that there will be a coal office and fencing / gates separating the coal yard from the road, where the surface changes.

 

[Vaughan45]

Some progress on the right hand side of the layout with surfaces laid and building development starting with walls being clad. Roof trusses and windows will be next. Plus a photo showing we definitely know where we are.

 

[Vaughan45]

Small amount of buildings progress. It looks as though the office area of the small engineering business has gained a set of those new fangled Crittall metal framed doors - I now need to research suitable old furniture that may have been passed down to a small 1930s office.

 

[Vaughan45]

Weekly update showing further progress on various buildings including the placing of a coal office. Two etched drains have been added to the lower road along with an inspection (manhole) cover. The only building not yet started is the Nissen hut for the left end of the goods platform.



Some of you may notice that I have something of a 'grasshopper' tendency with work on buildings, but I generally like to have all available to get the overall feel before they are completed. The garage and engineering workshop are currently awaiting some interior items, before they can be progressed further.

 

[Vaughan45]

Just to prove that I can almost complete a building, all the coal office needs now are door hinges & a knob, some light weathering and to be cut into the cobblestone surface. The coal yard area still needs a lot of work / dirtying though.

 

[michael mott]

I like the overall look and design. I also noticed that so often when companies added canopies and porches they often forfeited the ability to clean the windows especially when they were non opening types. A clever detail that contributes to the overall sense of reality.
Michael

 

[Lyndhurstman]

I'm here to echo @michael mott . I like the look and design of this too. It has a nice feel to it. One of the things I've set to Watching

Cheers

Jan

 

[Vaughan45]

I also noticed that so often when companies added canopies and porches they often forfeited the ability to clean the windows especially when they were non opening types.

Thanks Michael & Jan. I was employed in the offices of a engineering company, just after I stopped wearing short trousers, where management had built an imposing canopy over the dispatch bay which not only stopped office windows being opened / cleaned but also spoilt the art deco symmetry of the office facade.

 

[Vaughan45]

The base layer of grass is currently being applied to the relevant raised areas. This will be followed by layering / trimming / colouring various areas and the addition of hedging, brambles, weeds and lineside fencing. The base layer always looks a little 'too green' at this first stage.



Work has also started on painting and arranging some of the 3D printed workshop equipment acquired from Mudmagnet Models . A range of items has been purchased to detail both the small engineering and the car repair workshops. Once base layer grassing is complete the next task will be cutting a vehicle inspection pit inside the car shop, by chopping out some of the extruded plastic (Foamex) layout sub-base.

 

[Vaughan45]

A week of tribulations as I have discovered that my Dapol / MR sentinel and some Rapido wagons appeared to be riding up when traversing the switch area of the Peco turnouts. Measuring indicated this was due to gauge narrowing on all three turnouts as the stock rails could bow inwards where they are not in place by inner chairs. I thought I may had caused this, but on checking other forums, it does appear to be a 'thing'.

As I didn't wish to remove the turnouts to cure this by removing a couple of the plastic sleepers, substitute copperclad ones, solder at the correct gauge and fit cosmetic chairs, I therefore drilled through a couple of the chairs on the outside of the rails in the switch area where the narrowing had occurred and epoxied in a short vertical section of thin but rigid nickel silver wire.

Once the epoxy had set I used track gauges to set the correct track gauge and quickly (& carefully) soldered the protruding wire to the rail side, so the rail was no longer free to move inwards. I also superglued the chairs in the area to the rail side.

When everything had set, I used a fine file to reduce slightly the inside of the railhead where the blades touch to provide further 'wiggle' room. So really bit of a performance. The video below shows that the work has resulted in three troublesome items being able to pass through in reasonable fashion, including a Rapido GWR wagon and the new EFE Bloater. Not perfect but a considerable improvement.

 

[Vaughan45]

Couple of photos to show the limited development this week, as other activities reduce the amount of modelling time available.

The first photo shows that the coal yard gate has been installed, along with the grass base layer. It is assumed the gate is one half of double gates, the one that would be nearer the viewer is 'off layout'.



The second photo shows the gate for the private siding temporarily placed in position, the small post for the gates latch end is currently awaiting painting.

 

[Vaughan45]

Heat Stroke Alert!
Attempting to get finer DC speed control on the cheap, setting the controlled output on a Combi controller to around 4v and feeding this through the variable resistance mat in an old (but refurbished) H&M CU1 Circuit Controller. Strangely experiments so far have been successful.

 

[Vaughan45]

The last building for the layout is now installed and is largely complete - the Nissen hut at the end of the loading dock, presumed to have been installed after WW1.

The corrugated sheeting started out as a Redutex product, but I wasn't completely happy with colouring, so it has been repainted using separate grey, black and red oxide washes. Weathering powers will be used to create a little relief, although not too heavy, as in 1934 this building may only have been in place a few years.