Great Chesterford Junction Part Two

G`day Jim,
Basically the mounting method for the drive mechanism did not work
The pic below is the original method. Double sided tape used to hold the wooden block up under the baseboard.
Within 24 hours it had fallen off and ended up on the floor.
Decided to try hot glue instead which bonded beautifully, twice, but then the belt kept coming off when the device was running.




The problem was that one pulley was in the vertical plane and the other was in the horizontal plane and finding the sweet spot to keep the belt in place was becoming increasingly difficult upside down under the base board with difficult access.
The solution was to have both pulleys in the same plane and therefore the mounting had to be redesigned.
Two brackets were added to one end to allow the mechanism to be mounted vertically, the bonus being that it also takes up less space between the point rods etc.





The mechanism is now positioned so that the pulleys line up properly









So Jim, that`s the little sad and frustrating story that comes with DIY.......
Gormo

 

G`day Folks,
Well with the mechanization of gates issues put to bed, it`s time to move on and start adding brick paper to the walls.
They are all only standing unfitted in place at the moment as brick piers and coping need to be added, however it gives a sense of how it will look when finished.












I have a long section of wall under weights at the moment with glue drying.......there are just two short sections to follow and that will be done.
It`s quite a process this model railway building.........
Gormo

 

Thanks Jim
Gormo

 

G`day Paul,
A good suggestion.....thank you..
Gormo

 

G`day Folks,
I`ve been busy with life over the last couple of days and not had much chance to progress much further with the build.
I did find some windows of opportunity though and progress has been made with the walls in the private sidings.
The longest wall beside the Coal Merchant has been completed and installed.
Being made from foam board, I thought it would be difficult to glue into place, however after some experiments with my hot glue gun, I decided that was the way to go.
It worked rather well and was secured rather quickly......it needs weeds and gravel and odd bits of coal fitted along it`s base to finish it off and probably some more grime.





A view in the other direction





This is the next wall under way with brick piers fitted to the yard side only at the moment, but as it`s a short wall, the other side won`t take long.
I should mention that the capping on the walls is secured with hot glue as well




More as it happens
Gormo

 

Thank you gentlemen for your input which I have taken onboard.
Unfortunately the capping on the walls is showing up in my pictures quite a bit lighter than it actually is, however the walls look about right.
I guess the capping is lit from above which may make it look lighter, anyway I think I have a reasonable colouring according to what the naked eye can see.?
The capping is actually quite dirty / grimy looking even though the pics don`t show it that way.?
Anyway, moving along, the short right hand wall that was installed in my last post, has been given it`s capping.





The walls at the other end have also received their brick piers and capping and have been installed





The Timber Merchant building will remain removable, however I may colour the card underneath it to make it look more presentable.





And a view from the other side......the area directly behind the Timber Merchant will be grassed and some gravel plus weeds.
Looking at this image now, I`m thinking I should put another sign on the back of the Timber Merchant wall. It seems to me they would take the opportunity to advertise to potential customers coming and going from Bamford station, or possibly lease the space out to other advertisers.?.......actually the same goes for the walls.?




So I guess the next project on the list will be the chain wire fencing and gates.....

Gormo

 

G`day Folks,
Well the weather defeated me today, I was going to mow all my grass, but as soon as I had finished the back yard, down she came.
Dash and darn......what to do now...???.......off to the shed methinks....
So I decided to have a crack at the chain wire fencing I mentioned in a previous post.
The method I use was developed a little while back and is detailed in the video below if you`re interested.



I cut my self a length of 25mm square mesh, which forms the fence frame, and a length of fly screen mesh cut on the diagonal to the same height as the fence.





The fence frame is secured to the cutting mat with some masking tape and the mesh is then secured at the end of the fence with masking tape.
I do one panel at a time. I use a piece of wire dipped into Super glue to apply a coating to the tops of the rails in the fence panel, and then carefully lay the mesh over the top and hold until the glue sets .





Once the glue has set, the mesh is trimmed where required with a sharp blade





The first piece done was a single panel





Then the two gates were done.....note the gates have diagonal braces added as well.
Then the position for the long length of fence was determined. Post holes were created through the card base.
Please note nothing is fixed in place yet as the fence has to be air brushed.





The long length of fence had it`s mesh added





Then another shorter length was created and set at an angle, just to make things interesting.





And just checking how it will look









My method is not for the purist who would use a much finer mesh, however the fence panels are robust and can take a knock or two, and if bent they can be set right again.
Below is a pic showing the same method when I added a fence to my airfield.




Anyhow......more as it happens
Gormo

 

G`day Folks,
I finished painting the fence with a Silver paint pen last night. It went on rather well actually, and then followed it up with some acrylic to simulate light rust.
This morning the fences and gates were installed.
Everything is fixed in place with Super glue




























I am currently filling in the earth works beside tracks etc. where required, to be followed by static grass and other odds and sods.
Gormo

 

G`day Folks,
The earth works are drying as we speak and will need a couple of days to dry out properly.
In the meantime I have started working on the coal staithes. I have the Peco models which come as rather plain versions without much texture to them......basically flat plastic on some of the surfaces





So I applied an idea I got from Gary. I went over the surfaces with a hack saw blade to give it some grain in the timber walls and give it a knocked about look.
I`ve given it a base coat of Grey which will be followed by a dark wash.








So we`ll see how it goes..??
Gormo

 

A pictorial update folks.
The coal staithes have been filled with coal after some extra colouring was added to the timbers.
Then put down some tarmac and added fine particles to the ground around the buffers on the left.
The gaps next to the rail on the right were also filled with fine ballast.









Bushes were placed behind the coal merchant siding wall





And continued down along behind the timber merchant walls





Grass and bushes were placed behind the chain wire fence.
The edge of the card still has to be dealt with










Then moved on down to the other end of the timber merchant yard.......this area is still a WIP.





The long view showing tarmac





The long view with truck





And a wide view




We`re getting there.......
Gormo