Great Chesterford Junction Part Two

Yes Chris,
I`m sure it has done more than it`s share, so we`ll try and do it justice in it`s twilight years.....

And here`s the latest video from GCJ



Gormo

 

G`day Folks,
Fitted some fences this evening, but used up what I`ve made so far, so more to make.
This lot was sprayed with Brown paint from a rattle can and before they were fitted, I rubbed some Grey Pastel on for the weathered look.





The fence goes into and up through the trees to the other side of the tunnels, therefore blocking any access to the top of the tunnels.
The short fence coming across the picture heading towards the lower right,shows that Pete`s suggestion worked really well. The join where the removable scenery meets the fixed scenery now can`t be seen easily. ...........it`s behind the fence.








More as it happens
Gormo

 

Thanks Pete and thanks again for the suggestion.....
Gormo

 

G`day Paul and thanks,
Yes things are moving along at a good rate once again.....that`s one serious catch up you`ve done there.....
Today I`ve knocked up some more fencing and got that installed.
The last two panels on the right hand side were fitted ......it looked unfinished stopping before the edge of the baseboard





Then fitted the sections in behind the trees leading down the hill to the far side of the tunnels.
The tunnels I found in my research had fencing above them set back from the tops of the tunnels in a " U " shape, I guess to keep sheep and cattle from wandering down the hill and falling onto the tracks. Most barriers will not keep human beings out if they are determined to be on the wrong side of the fence though.





And then down towards where the signal box ( yet to be built ) will be.





And finally the overall shot with fences.




That`s the hard part done.

More as it happens
Gormo

 

Thanks Sol,
It`s not necessarily easy, it just takes time and you`ve got to keep at it, but it`s nice to sit back and look at it once it`s done.
Gormo

 

Thanks Paul......
Gormo

 

I made another tree last night, and placed it to the far right of the hill on Bamford. The idea being to completely obscure the hole in the wall where the track enters the room.





This is the view from the end of the Bamford baseboard.





And a view over the wall about half way along the baseboard, and still no hole showing, so job done




Today is another day and I wonder what will eventuate by the end of play.......
Gormo

 

For the sake of completeness, I have started work on the last pieces in the major works puzzle for GCJ
For many years now, the last piece of scenery near the end of GCJ platforms, under Warwick Castle, has been left unfinished, because I had not made up my mind about the transition from the main layout to Bamford. Now with the tunnels taking care of the scenic transition, it`s time to pull the old finger out and have a go.
Access to the area is best from behind the station building, so I removed the lift out town section and started work on it today.
This is the space I have available behind the station. There`s just enough room to get in there from under the baseboards.





And this is what I`ve added to the area. A couple of layers of carved polystyrene as a scenery base. I have left a narrow gap between the polystyrene and the back of the platform so that I can slip a strip of card in there to protect the platform when I start to add plaster.





You may notice matches poking out of the polystyrene here and there. I push them through the layers at an angle to secure the layers until the PVA dries.









A view you normally don`t see taken from the access hole.




The scenic job didn`t take very long, so I then moved onto finishing the ballast for GCJ
This is the last section of ballast required and is probably the hardest to reach, so I was dreading this day, but nothing ventured nothing gained.
This is all loose fill at this stage. It takes a good while but you must check the point blades are still working, check for ballast between the wing rails and in the frogs.
It pays to go very carefully when approaching the working parts of the points.





Then it was time to get out the mist sprayer and the diluted PVA and eye dropper.
All done and now we wait for the whole lot to dry. After that will be a clean up and check that the points are OK and then move onto weathering the whole lot.




More as it happens
Gormo

 

G`day Toto,
Thanks for your comments and yes, you are right.....after this lot there is just Bamford to work on, well for major works anyway.
The railway will never be finished 100% because there will always be those little details to add and possibly refurbishments, because some of the scenery is coming up to 10 years old.......and I`ve learnt a lot in that time.
Anyhow....enjoy your read
Gormo

 

G`day Folks,
The new hill got a coat of plaster today.
Also, yesterday I`ve added two extra lights in the room to even out the light distribution, so the pics below may look a little brighter than in previous posts as this is one of the corners that has had the light treatment









So this new hill will be treated with static grass and trees etc...being careful not to block out the castle in the background, and of course I will need some platform fencing to keep nature away from passengers and the railway.
There will be a signal box in the gap between the platform and the greenery on the right.
More as it happens
Gormo

 

I think I`ll have to get a 1/76th scale ride on mower........









Gormo