Shed on the move

It's been a busy week down in Underhill with the track relaying and the engine shed on the move.

As I've just done a larger area of cobbles I knew what to do paint wise to the new bit in the goods yard and I'm pleased with how it has blended into the area as it was before.

The rest of the area needed to look like a grubby loco preparation area so black was the main colour but I've noticed that where you get oil and water mixed together it produces a whiteish scum so I've tried to emulate that a little.

To cover the point motor I built the free little hut that was stuck on the Railway Modeller the other month. It was too long so I chopped it back to size. It does the job perfectly and looks the part.

Meanwhile, I decided that it was time to solve a little logic problem that had been pointed out at several exhibitions. Namely that the flower pots perched on the side of the florists flat roof must have levitated up there and never get watered. I constructed a wooden (styrene) balcony round the back and added a door to the rear of the upper floor. I liked it so much I even added a couple more flower pots.

With the paint dry it all looked a bit stark so I decided to add some more greenery between the tracks.

Some more planting of bushes and scrub and a top up of coal

Still a little more detail work to do but all in all a much better look than previously and the points now work as they should. I now only have one slightly dodgy point to sort out but after the mess that this 'half hour job' made I'm reluctant to start messing about. Hmm.