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| 66029 with the railhead treatment train at Hoddesdon Station |
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| 5972 in its shed in Hyde Park |
Wednesday, 14 December 2011
DIY is the curse of modelers!
Just over a week till Christmas and I find myself on a week off. So did I decide to do a load of railway work or visit a few places of interest? No! I decided to paint the kitchen and dining room, I must be mad.
As part of this work my display cabinet with my steam locos in it has been taken down to be replaced by a large picture of an F1 Ferrari as the wife wants to make a 'Pit Stop Kitchen' with lots of motorsport details in it. I love my motorsport so there will be no arguments from me but now I have to find a new home for my cabinet.
As part of the buildup to the Festive Season the family took a trip into London to visit the Hyde Park Winter Wonderland. We took the train into Liverpool Street however on the way we had to change trains as the one we were on was running late. This allowed me to take the picture of the class 66. We visited Harrods and Knightsbridge including a drool over the McLaren MP4-12C at the Mclaren shop at Hyde Park Corner. This led us into Hyde Park where another loco was waiting for me. This was the ex-GWR Hall Class no.5972 'Olton Hall' which starred in the Harry Potter films as 'Hogwarts Castle thereby becoming a Hall that thinks its a Castle!
Friday, 25 November 2011
Tidy up for Christmas
After much moaning by the Household Authority I have tidied away my modeling equipment until the New Year. I can't do very much at the moment as I need my new airbrush to continue and we need the room in the kitchen corner that was the home of my tool boxes, spare pc etc which now live in the tin shed.
Plans for the New Year, apart from finishing the Kestrel, Baby Deltic and Metrovic, include building a workshop and getting the second phase of the layout started.
Building a spray booth is alos high on the list, I just need a fan, will have a look in the DIY stores to see if there are any seconds on cooker hoods going cheap, failing that a few 12v computer fans should do the job.
Plans for the New Year, apart from finishing the Kestrel, Baby Deltic and Metrovic, include building a workshop and getting the second phase of the layout started.
Building a spray booth is alos high on the list, I just need a fan, will have a look in the DIY stores to see if there are any seconds on cooker hoods going cheap, failing that a few 12v computer fans should do the job.
Tuesday, 22 November 2011
Prototype Deltic Finished
Sunday, 20 November 2011
Warley Model Railway Exhibition
Another Warley has come and gone and I must say it was a good un.
There seemed to be more room around the stalls and layouts although chairs and tables were rather scarce, a few more in the large space between the eating areas and the exhibition would not have caused any safety or access problems.
The range and variety of layouts was excellent as was the standard of modeling. The range of trade and club stands was also good with every type of model railway accessory available and at some very good prices.
The show-you-how area was very large with craftsmen and women showing you how DCC works, how to paint and line models, soldering, kit building, scenery creation and more. Really worth going for 2 days just to spend some time in this area.
For me Warley has become a good place to buy myself some Christmas presents, after all I really don't want DVD's and socks when I can buy stock and tools for use on the railway. This year I got a compressor and airbrush plus a turntable. I had thought of buying a spray booth but I have plenty of wood in the garage and cooker hood filters and PC fans are cheap so a home made one will soon appear.
I also got a brand new Bachmann class 24 diesel, the latest model with lighting etc for only £40 as a returned 'sold as seen' model. I took it to the Model Railway Club stand where they were offering to try out your purchased models and it ran beautifully. Two more Silver Fox models were also purchased, a Lion and a DP2. Paint for the Baby Deltic and Metrovick plus flush glaze for the prototype Deltic were other purchases which are not Christmas presents.
I will get pictures of the new toys after Christmas along with my views on the airbrush and compressor.
There seemed to be more room around the stalls and layouts although chairs and tables were rather scarce, a few more in the large space between the eating areas and the exhibition would not have caused any safety or access problems.
For me Warley has become a good place to buy myself some Christmas presents, after all I really don't want DVD's and socks when I can buy stock and tools for use on the railway. This year I got a compressor and airbrush plus a turntable. I had thought of buying a spray booth but I have plenty of wood in the garage and cooker hood filters and PC fans are cheap so a home made one will soon appear.
I also got a brand new Bachmann class 24 diesel, the latest model with lighting etc for only £40 as a returned 'sold as seen' model. I took it to the Model Railway Club stand where they were offering to try out your purchased models and it ran beautifully. Two more Silver Fox models were also purchased, a Lion and a DP2. Paint for the Baby Deltic and Metrovick plus flush glaze for the prototype Deltic were other purchases which are not Christmas presents.
I will get pictures of the new toys after Christmas along with my views on the airbrush and compressor.
Tuesday, 15 November 2011
3 days to go...
till the Warley show and I have almost finished the Deltic which was one of the kits that I bought at last years show!
The transfers are on both nose ends and one side. Decided to leave the other side transfer till the one applied has completely dried so there is less chance of damaging it. Hopefully will get that done tomorrow evening.
Still need to get some weight in the loco so hoping to pick up some Artificial Gravity from Deluxe Materials at the show.
Kestrel is also nearing completion and only needs a few tweeks to the paintwork, a coat of gloss varnish and then her transfers can be applied.
Did a little work in the garden, planted lots of bulbs in pots and in the beds, hopefully I will get to work on more beds around the railway in the spring as well as getting on with the extension and building a new shed as a train storage and workshop area.
The transfers are on both nose ends and one side. Decided to leave the other side transfer till the one applied has completely dried so there is less chance of damaging it. Hopefully will get that done tomorrow evening.
Still need to get some weight in the loco so hoping to pick up some Artificial Gravity from Deluxe Materials at the show.
Kestrel is also nearing completion and only needs a few tweeks to the paintwork, a coat of gloss varnish and then her transfers can be applied.
Did a little work in the garden, planted lots of bulbs in pots and in the beds, hopefully I will get to work on more beds around the railway in the spring as well as getting on with the extension and building a new shed as a train storage and workshop area.
Friday, 11 November 2011
1 week to go
Just 1 week till the Warley Model Railway Exhibition in Hall 5 of the NEC in Birmingham. There will be a huge number of models and traders to look at and spend my money at.
This year I will be looking at airbrushes and if I see one at the right price I will get one. Otherwise a few more Silver Fox models will be the aim along with some rolling stock.
Looking forward to seeing the new models and perhaps a few famous faces in the crowd.
The camera will be used to the full and pictures will be posted as soon as I get home. Cannot wait.
This year I will be looking at airbrushes and if I see one at the right price I will get one. Otherwise a few more Silver Fox models will be the aim along with some rolling stock.
Looking forward to seeing the new models and perhaps a few famous faces in the crowd.
The camera will be used to the full and pictures will be posted as soon as I get home. Cannot wait.
Tuesday, 1 November 2011
Halloween
Had a very quiet Halloween, we don't tend to get many kids knocking on the door as we are at the end of a terrace and there is no way through at the end of our path. Instead I masked up the Kestrel and applied the first coat of brown to the lower bodyside. Hopefully I will get the loco finished very soon.
The Deltic will get a coat of the correct colour blue but I will have to do a lot of masking before this happens.
Nothing else has been done and the wetaher and a lack of time has prevented the hoped for running session. Oh well, perhaps later in the month.
The Deltic will get a coat of the correct colour blue but I will have to do a lot of masking before this happens.
Nothing else has been done and the wetaher and a lack of time has prevented the hoped for running session. Oh well, perhaps later in the month.
Saturday, 22 October 2011
New arrivals
On Friday I had a nice little present or two. Three parcels hit my door mat as the transfers for Kestrel arrived as did the correct paint for the loco plus I got a free sample of Baileys liquor from their Facebook page. A good day all in all.
The paints will allow me to make a better finish over which I will spray some gloss varnish, apply the decals then spray semi-matt varnish to seal it all up.
I have next weekend off and, apart from some car maintenance
, I should have time to run the railway and hope to have Kestrel running.
Saturday, 8 October 2011
Autumn is here at last
After a weekend when it was too hot to operate the layout because of standing in the direct sun we now have completely the opposite with wind, rain and cold temperatures.
The good thing about this time of year is the Warley Model Railway Exhibition at the N.E.C. in Birmingham which means saving to make sure I have plenty of spending money plus I get Christmas money from family which gets added to the pot then whatever I buy gets wrapped up for Christmas. Its a bit of a strange way of doing it but it does ensure I get what I want.
This year I hope to get a few more Silver Fox kits probably of Lion and DP2 and also either the Brown-Boveri Gas Turbine or one of the Electric Loco's from their range.
As far as the kits I already have are concerned Kestrel will soon be getting the Brown lower body colour which will then let me detail the body before applying transfers to the body and glazing it. Hopefully we will get some reasonable weather so that I can get to run it. The Prototype Deltic is ready for its transfers as well. Pictures will be added to the projects page for each loco.
This means that the Baby Deltic will soon enter the erecting shop and will hopefully be followed by the Co-Bo before Christmas, we will wait and see.
The good thing about this time of year is the Warley Model Railway Exhibition at the N.E.C. in Birmingham which means saving to make sure I have plenty of spending money plus I get Christmas money from family which gets added to the pot then whatever I buy gets wrapped up for Christmas. Its a bit of a strange way of doing it but it does ensure I get what I want.
This year I hope to get a few more Silver Fox kits probably of Lion and DP2 and also either the Brown-Boveri Gas Turbine or one of the Electric Loco's from their range.
As far as the kits I already have are concerned Kestrel will soon be getting the Brown lower body colour which will then let me detail the body before applying transfers to the body and glazing it. Hopefully we will get some reasonable weather so that I can get to run it. The Prototype Deltic is ready for its transfers as well. Pictures will be added to the projects page for each loco.
This means that the Baby Deltic will soon enter the erecting shop and will hopefully be followed by the Co-Bo before Christmas, we will wait and see.
Monday, 3 October 2011
End of a lovely weekend
For once I have been lucky and had brilliant weather on my long weekend off. Unfortunately it has prevented me from running the railway as the sun was shining right on it and it was just too damn hot!
Sat in the shade on my pation and did some modeling, as the previous post described, and the same again today with Kestrel getting a second coat of yellow and the chassis getting a coat of black. The body will need one more coat and the chassis may need touching up so hopefully tomorrow after work I will be able to complete them.
Once that is done the body will be masked up and the lower brown area painted and then it will be time for some transfers, once I buy them. Oh well, off to Google again.
Sat in the shade on my pation and did some modeling, as the previous post described, and the same again today with Kestrel getting a second coat of yellow and the chassis getting a coat of black. The body will need one more coat and the chassis may need touching up so hopefully tomorrow after work I will be able to complete them.
Once that is done the body will be masked up and the lower brown area painted and then it will be time for some transfers, once I buy them. Oh well, off to Google again.
Saturday, 1 October 2011
Wonderful Day for Outdoor Modeling
The sun has shone and my decorating chores were complete so an afternoon of fettling locos, building kits and painting bodies was on.
First up was the Deltic. When tried on the main railway it refused to go far but on my test circle of track, after a sticky start, it ran perfectly although the motor is running the wrong way so a slight change to the wiring is in order.
Next it was the turn of my Triang Princess. I have been given this model of an older loco that has had a less than perfect re-paint. I decided to remove the motor and repair my Princess. This was done and now she runs perfectly. Hopefully she and my Dad's old coaches will finally get a run in the garden tomorrow.
The model of Kestrel was next with its grey roof area being masked off ready for the upper colour of its bodyside being applied. I am not sure that the colour is exactly right but it is close enough for me. More pics of it will appear in the projects page.
Lastly I built a Dapol footbridge kit that I purchased from the Loco Shed Shop at Gaugemaster's factory during my holiday. Once the new station platforms are fitted then it will be installed. It will be painted green and the platforms widened to take it.
First up was the Deltic. When tried on the main railway it refused to go far but on my test circle of track, after a sticky start, it ran perfectly although the motor is running the wrong way so a slight change to the wiring is in order.
Next it was the turn of my Triang Princess. I have been given this model of an older loco that has had a less than perfect re-paint. I decided to remove the motor and repair my Princess. This was done and now she runs perfectly. Hopefully she and my Dad's old coaches will finally get a run in the garden tomorrow.
The model of Kestrel was next with its grey roof area being masked off ready for the upper colour of its bodyside being applied. I am not sure that the colour is exactly right but it is close enough for me. More pics of it will appear in the projects page.
Friday, 30 September 2011
Summer is finally here
With the constant blue skies and blazing sunshine it does look like summer has finally arrived.
The grass in the garden needs cutting and the railway needs a good run before the winter finally takes hold. I also have the Deltic and Falcon models to complete so my nice long 4 day weekend is ideal. Unfortunately there is some decorating to do but I hope to get that out of the way by tomorrow so that Sunday and perhaps Monday I can play trains.
The grass in the garden needs cutting and the railway needs a good run before the winter finally takes hold. I also have the Deltic and Falcon models to complete so my nice long 4 day weekend is ideal. Unfortunately there is some decorating to do but I hope to get that out of the way by tomorrow so that Sunday and perhaps Monday I can play trains.
Wednesday, 28 September 2011
Photo Albums
I have now caught up with my photo albums. You will notice that they are spread over a couple of different free services, this is because I am far too tight to pay for webspace!
I will continue to add albums so expect another service to be used as I am running out of space on the two I already use.
Next job is to put the videos on and to get cracking on creating some more.
It does look like this weekend will be fine so once decorating chores are out of the way I hope to be able to play trains.
I will continue to add albums so expect another service to be used as I am running out of space on the two I already use.
Next job is to put the videos on and to get cracking on creating some more.
It does look like this weekend will be fine so once decorating chores are out of the way I hope to be able to play trains.
Thursday, 22 September 2011
Mobile site
The Sitton Watchet site is now available in mobile form, if you access it on a mobile phone it will default to the new format. You can view the site in normal desktop mode by clicking on the button towards the bottom of the homepage
Thursday, 15 September 2011
Nothing to report Sir
September has been quiet so far, every day that I have had a rest day it has rained or I have other jobs to do so the railway has not had any use. I hope to get out on Sunday but again the forecast is for rain.
One good thing that has happened recently is that I have been given another Triang Princess with a working motor. A the loco has had a really terrible paint job it will be sacrificed to get my Dad's Princess working again. The one I have been given will have another, hopefully better, repaint and then used as a dead loco just as Dad's one has been.
One other new piece of rolling stock has been added, an open wagon from the Amberley Museum. It hasn't had a run yet but that will happen soon.
Realized that I havn't got any pictures on the home page so here is one of the South Downs Light Railway.
One good thing that has happened recently is that I have been given another Triang Princess with a working motor. A the loco has had a really terrible paint job it will be sacrificed to get my Dad's Princess working again. The one I have been given will have another, hopefully better, repaint and then used as a dead loco just as Dad's one has been.
One other new piece of rolling stock has been added, an open wagon from the Amberley Museum. It hasn't had a run yet but that will happen soon.
Wednesday, 31 August 2011
Is it Winter already?
It has suddenly turned cold, I know its nearly Autumn but the weather is usually better than this, hopefully we will get an Indian Summer.
I have a rest day tomorrow so I hope to get out and start some jobs on the railway. The first is a rebuild of the station which will include better platforms, more buildings and a wider base board for it all to sit on, I may even include a bay platform for the branch line trains.
I have started work on the new stand alone diesel refueling point 'Slug Wash Lane', by building the Knightwing diesel refueling point kit. I hope to get baseboards started within the next few weeks and something running soon after that. Pictures of my progress will follow soon.
Thats all I have to add at the moment, don't miss the pictures of Peters railway which I visited recently, its a wonderful 16mm scale 45mm gauge railway which, apart from a few teething troubles, was great fun to operate.
I have a rest day tomorrow so I hope to get out and start some jobs on the railway. The first is a rebuild of the station which will include better platforms, more buildings and a wider base board for it all to sit on, I may even include a bay platform for the branch line trains.
I have started work on the new stand alone diesel refueling point 'Slug Wash Lane', by building the Knightwing diesel refueling point kit. I hope to get baseboards started within the next few weeks and something running soon after that. Pictures of my progress will follow soon.
Thats all I have to add at the moment, don't miss the pictures of Peters railway which I visited recently, its a wonderful 16mm scale 45mm gauge railway which, apart from a few teething troubles, was great fun to operate.
Thursday, 25 August 2011
Holiday's End (almost!)
Oh well, back from Sussex with lots of memories and pictures plus some goodies for the railway.
We visited the Amberley Museum which is situated in an old chalk pit with the lime kilns surrounded by recreations of working industries, many of which are still producing goods. There is a bus garage with a small collection of Southdown vehicles, a wood turners village where articles are turned using foot lathes as well as more modern electric ones. My favorite however was the telecommunications display with a working Strowger telephone exchange of the sort I worked on with British Telecom.
I purchased an open wagon with the Pepper company branding which has now been added to the lines freight fleet.
Trips on the Bluebell railway and a couple of miniature lines also gave me more photos, some of which will appear on this blog in due course, as well as satisfying my need for steam.
The main thing however that has helped me to continue with projects for the railway was 2 visits to the Gaugemaster shop where a new single panel mount controller plus a twin tap transformer have bought the project to build a new control panel along a few paces. I also bought some platform edging to start the replacement of the current station, plus I got a Knightwing diesel refueling point to allow a small standalone layout to be built called 'Slugwash Lane' after a road sign we saw whilst driving around.
We visited the Amberley Museum which is situated in an old chalk pit with the lime kilns surrounded by recreations of working industries, many of which are still producing goods. There is a bus garage with a small collection of Southdown vehicles, a wood turners village where articles are turned using foot lathes as well as more modern electric ones. My favorite however was the telecommunications display with a working Strowger telephone exchange of the sort I worked on with British Telecom.
I purchased an open wagon with the Pepper company branding which has now been added to the lines freight fleet.
Trips on the Bluebell railway and a couple of miniature lines also gave me more photos, some of which will appear on this blog in due course, as well as satisfying my need for steam.
The main thing however that has helped me to continue with projects for the railway was 2 visits to the Gaugemaster shop where a new single panel mount controller plus a twin tap transformer have bought the project to build a new control panel along a few paces. I also bought some platform edging to start the replacement of the current station, plus I got a Knightwing diesel refueling point to allow a small standalone layout to be built called 'Slugwash Lane' after a road sign we saw whilst driving around.
Saturday, 13 August 2011
Holiday Time
My holiday has started and it will include some railway stuff as well as a visit to motor museums and castles with perhaps a bit of geocaching and bird watching thrown in. My personal blog at ian-eggy-thomas.blogspot.com will have details of the non-railway stuff.
I will probably not have time to run the railway however I am hoping to visit somebody elses 45mm narrow gauge garden railway for a bit of a play over the bank holiday weekend.
I will probably not have time to run the railway however I am hoping to visit somebody elses 45mm narrow gauge garden railway for a bit of a play over the bank holiday weekend.
Thursday, 4 August 2011
Rain Rain go away
Well that is typical, my day off and it rains all day!
I had hoped to get some more work done on the railway but now it looks like I will have to wait till next week before I will be able to do so.
I have done some more work on my loco kits, a blog will be added about them and how they are coming along.
Visited a new model railway shop at the Maltings in Sawbridgeworth. He is on the end of the building past the royal mail depot. A nice shop the name of which I totaly forgot to note!
I had hoped to get some more work done on the railway but now it looks like I will have to wait till next week before I will be able to do so.
I have done some more work on my loco kits, a blog will be added about them and how they are coming along.
Visited a new model railway shop at the Maltings in Sawbridgeworth. He is on the end of the building past the royal mail depot. A nice shop the name of which I totaly forgot to note!
Wednesday, 3 August 2011
Welcome
Hello there and welcome to my new Sitton Watchet Garden Railway blog.
The old website will soon be replaced with something new so make sure you bookmark this new site.
The railway is moving on nicely with all the joints now electrically bonded and the pointwork wiring sorted, the next step is to build the new control panel and start on the branch extension.
Pictures will appear on this new site soon so keep visiting.
The old website will soon be replaced with something new so make sure you bookmark this new site.
The railway is moving on nicely with all the joints now electrically bonded and the pointwork wiring sorted, the next step is to build the new control panel and start on the branch extension.
Pictures will appear on this new site soon so keep visiting.
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