Port Erth; Progress, Workbench and General Photos

[Bufferstop]

Hi Ben, re stopping the train in the fiddle yard.
My solution was sub-miniature micro switches with a long operating arm (about 2" long). I got them from Modelex at an exhibition, but they are a bog standard industry item, so you should be able to find them other places. I cut one rail in each siding and wired from either side of the gap to the common and normally closed contacts of the switch. The switches were mounted on home made angle brackets and positioned at coupler height at the end of each siding. It didn't matter where the loco or power bogies were in a train it would continue along until it pressed on the switch. I could have wired a push button across each switch to release the trains, but it was only the DMU and autotrain that didn't need me to do anything whilst they were in the fiddle yard. When I lifted the loco from one end to the other I just pushed the train forward so that it released the switch. My son suggested a refinement which I never got around to, that was to mount the switches in pairs and use the second switch to control a line clear/occupied lamp so that I didn't try to send a second train into an occupied road.

[littlenobby]

Dieselisation! The 108 has been weathered and the Regional Railways rake of coaches expanded...

3205 arriving in the platform

And on the workbench, 3205 and 90733... more on the latter soon...!

[siquelme]

Great photos as normal

No City of Truro this time

[kennyGWSR]

i love 3205, i have one in GWR/BR at the moment, but i think i might get the new bachmann collett with ROD tender, change the crest on the tender to a BR one and also modify the current tender on my mainline 3205 so i can hitch it up to the newer version, so then i can change the tender whenever i want!

[Alexander Court]

loving the look of the layout, nice selection of stock too

[littlenobby]

Right, think its time for a long-overdue update.
More stock has been acquired recently, this includes various items of Rolling Stock and a couple of locos, namely another Bachmann pannier and a Hornby West country.

As can be seen from the picture, platform 2 has been installed at long last, need a wee bit of tidying up before I'm happy with it, but it will suffice for now.

The pannier sits in the new platform, transfers and plates have been ordered to make her 3650 in GWR shirtbutton livery.

Finally an overall view of the layout, showing the shape of the new platform built to accommodate the quay branch bay road. The bag of static grass is there for the grass verge I'm currently putting behind platform 1.

still alot of work to do....

[35011 GSN]

looking very good, you re name/number the west country?

[50035 Ark Royal]

And finally 47768 has been weathered.
I shall post pictures of the layout when more progress is evident, only ballasting has taken place, and until its all done, it doesn't look that interesting![/quote]
Love the weathering on the Big Joe and the tractor.
But a question for you as in Cornwall will you be getting a 50? and will you be weathering those kettles.

[trainsandco]

But a question for you how come all the kettles are pristine and imacculate and the diesels all grimey and weathered as it is a preserved line?

They've got their priorities right

[50035 Ark Royal]

But a question for you how come all the kettles are pristine and imacculate and the diesels all grimey and weathered as it is a preserved line?

They've got their priorities right

Ben, i think you should weather some of your kettles.Weathered locos always look better i think more realistic and more charachter, you can not beat a bit of a grime.

[littlenobby]

looking very good, you re name/number the west country?

Yes I certainly will become 34101 Hartland, a WC that often gets overlooked in the preservation era, but it wont be done in the near future, attempting to concentrate on scenery as opposed to stock, which isn't really going to plan lol. Anyways 34027 has run as 34036 recently, there's my precedent for now!
this morning I've started on my 3rd pannier, 3650 is starting to take shape, I shall wait until I've varnished the tanks before i get a pic of them as the old lettering has left a scar which needs touching up!

Love the weathering on the Big Joe and the tractor.
But a question for you as in Cornwall will you be getting a 50? and will you be weathering those kettles.

Thanks for the comments '35, the Diesels are weathered as I've modelled them as Ex-service, bought straight from BR and put into use prior to cosmetic restoration. I plan to get a small stable of diesels, a class 33 being next on the list (at the right price), I'm cobbling together a rake of Blue and Grey Mk1/2s for them to pull (The RR ones having a long term plan for the eventual low level extension).
A class 50 hasn't been overlooked, I'd like one in NSE Livery, have any ran in preservation restored pristine in this guise?

Oh, and as for Dirty kettles...

Not my model, but weathered to the brink by myself for a friend, who'd bought it with a rather amateur paint job to its name, so he let me do my worst, it's not yet finished, I would like to replicate limescale from the safety valves, and perhaps ash on the running plate, it's great fun experimenting!
My fleet will remain pristine, the Railway has a good gang of cleaners, although underframes and smokeboxes have been given that workworn finish that accumulates on preserved engines, mainly done from photo (or personal; i.e. I've fired the thing!) references of the real thing...

[Twitcherboo45]

Evening Tom,

I'm liking the weathering job on the dub dee, who's is it btw? You'll have to organise a get togethor around your place again in a few weeks for a running night now that youve done some more work on the layout.

[Durseytu]

I have to say that the platform is coming along nicely. Now all you need is to get round the tricky part of filling in the gaps. I must say that the ballasting looks great; it looks really grimy!

Cheers,

Stuart

[kennyGWSR]

i like the weathered WD! very effective! 3650 will look good when its done as will hartland, thats one west country that i do like the name of, shame its one of the lesser known of the lot. another lesser known one is 34039 boscastle, nice loco, should be back in action soon. hartland should be in action next year and 34092 city of wells is currently nearly the end of an entensive overhaul. so should have a few west countrys to go see!

[littlenobby]

who's is it btw? You'll have to organise a get togethor around your place again in a few weeks for a running night now that youve done some more work on the layout.

The Dubdee is John Howlett's, and yes, a get-together is long overdue, I want to get the bay platform wired-up beforehand though.
Quick update, the varnish is drying on 3650...