Hamley Circuit

Been laid low with allergies for a while, thought it was the new puppy, but tests have shown it is dust and/or dust mites that I am off the scale allergic to.
But with a bit of careful management (spending work time out of the house and improving house cleaning) normal service is resuming.
I have found a new way for me to work with the foam. The small router, otherwise known as a laminate trimmer worked very well without creating too much mess. This allowed me to recess these two items so they sit well. What we have here is a garden scene with greenhouses that my son chose at the local club market day of second hand stuff, and the base of a Thomas and Friends lighthouse, which I am trying to make look less like a plastic toy.

Cheers
Tony

 

Some more progress, has been a bit glacial of late, been away for work and other things a lot this year. Tonight got the grass down roughly, trying a Heki grass mat for this one. Also doing some experiments with gluing down glitter.

I notice the little bottles each have a foil seal under the lids. Glitter is serious stuff!
On a trip away last weekend to the NSW country town of Cowra, I found a large cheap shop set up in the old Target store in town. they had quite a craft and fairy garden section. I found these little laser cut buildings for $2.25 each, the cut is very good, everything lines up very well. Not the most realistic building, but for my purpose these will be perfect once painted up.

Cheers
Tony

 

Almost there, just a few more bits to go and i can call this layout done. Have now got the basic layout done. Really just need to finish off the plants, flowers, trees and people.

Also have had some fun modifying some cheap tipper trucks. I picked these up in the discount store in Cowra too, they are close enough to the right size, but looked a bit cheap (they were), and of course they needed a load. Luckily they were held together with screws, not rivets, so were really easy to pull apart and modify. I wasn't much inspired in what colour to make them, so i went for the Aussie green and gold, picked out a few details in silver and added a lump of air-drying clay in the body, with a coating of glitter.

I have also been painting lots of little figures as fairies, so lots of pink used. Do have some workers too, they are dressed in red with orange hard-hats. All figures have teal blue shoes. I am working on the idea that the factory with the waterwheel makes teal blue shoes, something like that anyway!
Cheers
Tony

 

It gets a run in about a week and a half, at the August markets here in berowra. I will also use this to promote the exhibition in Thornleigh the week after, where I will be taking a different layout.
It's going to be a big couple of weekends.
Tonight I was having a play with my new phone, and photographed some of the fairies waiting for a train.

Cheers
Tony

 

Got progress really happening now, serviced all locos, checked out the new (to me) Thomas wagons. And packed just about all of them into this cutlery box. Just one old Lima van that needs some attention due to derailing, then I'm done with this layout for prep

Cheers
Tony

 

Big day tomorrow, actually big month as I'm exhibiting another layout all next weekend too.
Got it down to the hall tonight and set up most of it. Usually do it all in the morning of the markets for this layout, but have a puppy now and it needs walking in the morning.

Hopefully lots of kids get to enjoy it tomorrow.
Cheers
Tony

 

Well, at the end of the day, I have survived and the layout has survived, although Annie and Clarabelle did take a trip to the floor at high speed. One crunched Bachmann tension lock coupler and two popped wheels appear to be the only casualty.

I added a QR code to the banner, had at least one person scanning it to look up the forum

The day started off slowly, it's getting near football final time for kids' sports here, but later in the morning we ended up very busy until the 2pm close.
It's funny which locos appeal most to the kids and which locos end up playing up on the day despite the care taken beforehand, and vice-versa.
I took James along for the first time, I have avoided tender steam locos so far, thinking they would be trouble, but it ran all day without a hiccup and was a firm favourite amongst the kids. Thomas and Duck, despite the extensive wheel and pickup cleaning went well for a couple of hours and then trailed off a bit. Had lots of requests for the old Class 37 EE loco this time, and it was performing better than usual after a motor bogie rebuild, better than i can say for the railcar, which was having pickup issues. An oddball favourite of the kids is an old Lima attempt at a Class 17, think it's a French loco in BR green, with no window glass and a 4 wheel chassis, it always gets requested.
The troublesome trucks lived up to their names too.

I don't know when the next outing for this layout will be, i am hoping my son will take up cricket again this season, so I won't have a free saturday morning until April next year if that happens.
Lots of positive comments from parents and grandparents is always nice. Heard a lot of stories today about 2in gauge clockwork units of the storytellers' pasts, not just one person, amazing to hear their stories too
Now on to prepare another layout, Peate, for its exhibition debut next week.
Cheers
Tony

 

Thanks, yes, a low perspex wall is on the cards for this< i even have the pieces and have cut them to length for the project, just need to drill holes and make a cut-out.
Just another thing on my very long list of things to do, and not really near the top unfortunately.
Cheers
Tony