Bored now!

I've decided that instead of the way St Ruth was originally going to connect to the rest of the forthcoming layout (point round the back) I'm going to do away with the round and round circuit and make St Ruth a proper terminus. Of course it will still form an end on junction with the branch to the lighthouse but that will come straight into the new bay platform.

I've made a plan of how things will be. The cheese factory will re locate to past the end of the loop and there will be access to the goods yard from this end too, otherwise you would have to shunt all goods trains up the branch and back them in. It will result in a longer platform loop too so I will be able to run my larger rolling stock and have slightly longer trains.

It will mean that I won't be able to take St Ruth to anymore exhibitions but to be honest it has been quite traumatic doing so. I will design Port Lucy to be removable and add a fiddle yard... one thing at a time though.

Small, green and rusty

The little Ruston is finished. I went for green in the end and then added a considerable quantity of weathering. In the flesh the little chap looks great, in the photos slightly less good. The whole loco is smaller than an FR 2 ton slate wagon so blown up in a picture covering a whole PC screen is a little cruel to my workmanship.

The only thing I will change is that the KATO wheels are very bright, this really shows up with a more ground level picture.

It also shows that the wheelbase is ever so slightly too long. I'll add some dark paint to the centers and hopefully that will improve matters.

Sitting next to Syd the Ruston looks tiny.

Finally some progress

Having been mad busy at work and then asleep on the sofa I hadn't done any modelling for ages but today I had a day off and so I shut myself in the shed with radio 4 and a selection of half finished/started projects.

The main progress has been getting my little diesel finished.

The upside to buggering up the intended chassis is that by using the Portram chassis instead it allows there to be nothing in the cab so I have filed a lump of sprue to resemble some transmission type things and there will be ample room for a driver too. It runs nicely and can haul as many wagons as I might hope so all in all I'm very happy with it. The front and rear ballast weights were a real bugger to solder as I don't have any solder paste but I got there in the end and only the tips of my fingers are raw. Sadly the next phase is the painting so its down hill all the way; rusty green I think.

I've also re assembled the new Fleischmann 0-6-0 and tarted up the painting and added vacuum pipes.

It is a funny looking thing, all tall and thin but I like the look of it. 

Moving on I've nailed the track onto my test track... did I mention this? Well I bought a small folding table for £10 the other week with the idea of making a simple test track circuit on it, only now I've added a siding and am having small layout ideas.

Crikey, that is small!

I spent most of yesterday burning my finger tips on the smallest loco I have ever made, and the first all soldered construction. I have been used to soldering audio leads all my life so the iron holds no terror for me but for some reason I've never taken the plunge and soldered a kit before. It is a Brian Madge Ruston LB and  would recommend the kit to anyone with reasonable eyesight and soldering skills. http://www.madge00n3.co.uk/rustonlb.htm

I've basically finished the body except for the ballast weights which go at the front and rear, Brian recommends solder paste for these and I don't have any so they will have to wait. (weight....? No...? anyway) I've made a bit of a dogs breakfast of the chassis which should have been the simple bit to make as it is part built when you get it. I have made it run, just about but have decided that a KATO Portram chassis will fit nicely underneath and allow a completely empty cab. I've put as much weight as I can inside the bonnet and a test assembly suggests that it will make a cracking little loco.

No pictures yet because I left the camera at work again but watch this space.

Painted carriage and van

I've finished painting one of the new bogie coaches and the mess van and I'm quite pleased with both of them. The colour I found for the passenger carriages is another Games workshop acrylic called Dark Angels Green, it has gone on pretty well.

The other two are nearly done and I think the rake will look smart when they are all done.

The mess van needs a good weathering to make it look a bit more used but the basic idea is there and will make a nice rear vehicle on a works train. I haven't put a coupling on the balcony end because they look so lumpy, I may find I need to add this in time.

Looks a bit Heywood in brown and with the roof cut outs.

Moody night time picture

Carriages and a mess van

I've been completing my new rake of coaches this week but got a bit bored and so had a rummage in the unmade kits drawer and found a Parkside Dundas 4 wheel freelance coach... never being one to build a kit as the manufacturer intended I decided to add a balcony at one end and make a mess van for the Isle of Stoner track gang. Inside I've put a stove, a work bench and some seating and storage. The roof has been extended over the balcony and I've filed a semi circular cut out in the roof so the gangers don't bang their heads as they climb aboard.

Both passenger saloons are finished and the brake composite is nearly there, all four  new vehicles have entered the spoiling by painting stage. Pictures to follow when much remedial work has been done. I haven't decided on a final colour for the new rake, I did consider snot green and cream but it looks a bit too FR. Might be a paint buying visit to Porthmadog Models tomorrow lunch time assuming the rain has stopped by then; they have a very good range of paints including the games workshop acrylics which I have been using recently.