Ben's French HO Workbench

Post pictures and information about your own personal model railway layout that is under construction. Keep members up-to-date with what you are doing and discuss problems that you are having.
bunji
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Post by bunji »

Hi guys, long time no see.

I'm going to dodge non-update status by posting cruddy pics. Just a warning. :wink:

A couple of days ago one of these dropped through my mailbox.

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And one of these.

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And finally one of these.

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There's method behind my madness. I'm going to kitbash these into a longish three story mail sorting depot. I want it to be nice and ugly. I guess I should get a plan up. Ah well, nice to see you chaps again. :)

P.S - The Sewer Layout is canned. It's in the loft. No 009 enthusiasm whatsoever at the moment.

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You spin me right round, baby, right round...
thebuisnessman
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Post by thebuisnessman »

That Engine Shed looks suitable for British Outline. Look forward to seeing pictures of build progress.

BTW, when looking at your Devainart (?) page, I noticed your desktop background was one of my photoshop things from ages back!
Bushey Troughs
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Post by Bushey Troughs »

Is that WALLPAPER or what,...... :P
COLIN.
“What experience and history teaches us is that people and governments have never learned anything from history, or acted on principles deduced from it”

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bunji
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Post by bunji »

Thanks, guys!
thebuisnessman wrote:BTW, when looking at your Devainart (?) page, I noticed your desktop background was one of my photoshop things from ages back!
Haha, it was for quite a while! It enjoyed a long life as my desktop until it got attacked by an Ed, Edd n' Eddy picture. :)

As it's half term, I made a start on those kits. I'm about halfway through - still awaiting its final layer, mortaring and weathering. Here's the current plan for the layout:

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The wooden rods show where the retaining walls/cliffs will go (the entire layout is set in a cutting.) The layout is 15" x approx 57", fitting into an area of 6 foot squared. Along the back will be a row of typical French three storey terraced houses set along a cobbled road. The fiddle yard will be either a traverser or a sector plate built into the back of the postal sorting depot. As it can be seen, the plan is very simple and altogether quite small - this is to allow it to fit into my room when I head off to university in a couple of years time!

I'm still waiting on my French diesel now - getting severely annoyed at Hornby International. The original ETA was in July! As a reminder, here it is:

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I had a spelunk around the internet and came across these photos. I love the little cutting in the cab allows for a worker to hang on - it just oozes character!

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redline41190
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three years of french :\

Post by redline41190 »

Salut Bunji!

um, how to say this... le temps long non voit :? :D
Aurez vous une locomotive a vapeur ? :P
l'idee est bon, mais est petit... tan n'est pas grandes locomotives?

ok enough french, i took it for three years and thats all i can manage without my brain exploding :D. The wagons look great and so does the rest of the stuff you've got so far. too bad to hear that the 009 stuff has taken a back seat :(, oh well we all go through stages ( I do OO scale now :P).

cant wait to see more

sincerement (felt like using a fancy word :D)
Jeremy
There are two ways to do things... The Great Western way, and the wrong way.
bunji
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Re: three years of french :\

Post by bunji »

Bonjour et merci!
redline41190 wrote:Aurez vous une locomotive a vapeur ? :P
Ahh, mais oui, bien sur, mais... comment dit-que "The chassis looks and runs like a dog" en francais? Voila:

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J'ai decide a (slipping into Franglais here, starts waving arms around like charades) LEAVE. IT. IN. A. SIDING. ALL. RUSTY. AND. COVERED. IN. BUUSHESS.
redline41190 wrote:tan n'est pas grandes locomotives?
Non, puisque les locomotives petites sont moins cher, et je n'ai pas beaucoup d'argent!
redline41190 wrote:too bad to hear that the 009 stuff has taken a back seat
Ah, who knows, it may well make a re-appearance one day. I've been checking out ExpoNG's plans for next year and they're holding a micro NG layout contest so I may be *ahem* forced to enter. :P

After making that update yesturday, I had a surge of enthusiasm and spent quite a while spelunking accross the internet in search of French locos. What I did find was a kit that can be made up into this:

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At a handsome price of 45 euros, you can expect to see progress of building it very soon on here! (I swear this was going to be a steam only layout a while back - what happened? :o )
bunji
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Post by bunji »

Hey guys. Long time, no update.

The layout's still ticking along as it has been for a while. The main priority for the Christmas holidays is to get the baseboard and hard landscaping done. George has given me a cracking idea with the construction of his exhibition layout that I want to try for myself. That leaves me with a project which I can detail and add to during term time. That's the goal, at least. :P

Some updates concerning the stock: this little chappie is firmly on the Christmas list:

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It's a Fleischmann product available from Gaugemaster for the extremely reasonable price of 45 pounds. Strictly speaking, it's a German prototype, but its green livery and fairly ubiquitous design means it'll look at home on my layout.

In slightly bigger and more mainline news, check this fella out:

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It's an eBay listing at a Buy it Now price of 85 pounds. Again it's a Fleischmann product, and with Christmas coming up I'm sorely tempted to go all out and buy it with my own money. Its size makes it useless for shunting on my layout, but I can just imagine it bringing in a largeish train and resting in the siding while the stock is stored away by the shunter. That's definately how it should be - diesel serving steam! :P

Dear old mum accidently broke one of the two grey vans I bought from Pete a while back. She offered to buy a replacement, and I came accross this beauty whilst scanning the stands at Warley.

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The photo doesn't really do it justice. It's a lovely little van made by Lima bought for the pricely sum of 9 quid. It hasn't yet had the detailing parts added yet, but I'm happy with my find.

Concerning the layout and the trackplan, I recently read an excellent article in Continental Modeller. Most micro layouts seem to use sector plates in order to ensure there is enough room to switch stock. The article has given me an idea to replace the bottom right hand point with a turntable, which would allow me to save space and turn the tender loco should I buy it. I normally dislike sector plates in plans as they look odd to me, but I am definately a fan of turntables.

I know this update is pretty rambling and unremarkable, but if I get a couple of SNRMR's I'll be happy. :)
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Spavo
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Post by Spavo »

Wow great wagon Bunji :wink:

Seriously though that big old steamer looks a beauty, £85? That seems like a decent price for such a loco....very nice.

All the best mate,

Gav.
Watford FC For Me Since 1976
redline41190
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Post by redline41190 »

lucky thing my mom doesnt go into my room and touch my trains, or else my precious Manor might've ended its life on the floor!! :lol:

i'd take a bid on that steamer :) looks like a good christmas present ;)
There are two ways to do things... The Great Western way, and the wrong way.
bunji
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Post by bunji »

There comes a time in a man's life when they have to face the music. There comes a time when problems must be tackled, hardships must be suffered and humble pie eaten. It is at this time when the determination and mental strength of a man is tested - his resources stripped away and his independence brought into question. Some consider this time to be the moment when a boy becomes a man; for others this is a simple rite of passage. For me...

Well, I don't know, because I'm not in such a situation at the moment and I never have been. :D

I have however got my new loco. May I present, marking the start of construction: loco 1 of the as of yet still unamed postal sorting layout!

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He's a real beauty. I plan to weather him up to get him a looking a bit more hard-working - nothing too drastic, just a bit of wear and tear. Might try and put some darker colours on the chassis to get it looking a bit more realistic as well. It runs a treat - it makes a lovely whirring clicky noise and can run nice and slowly, just how I like it. Whilst I was out there, what with it being quite a nice day and all, I got some more photos of the new Lima wagon.

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Christmas yielded a lot of things, namely the lovely sum of 150 pounds with which I can get cracking on the layout. On Saturday I cut all the wooden struts to the right size to build the framework, so I can get to track laying soon. Here's to a productive New year!
Infrontcat
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Post by Infrontcat »

Hi Ben

I think that wee engine's a splendid aquisition and will only improve with a bit of tender loving 'knackering' courtesy of your weathering measures!

Did you not bother with the Fleishman engine in the end? I thought it was a rather handsome machine. I also wondered whether you got that curious vehicle that looked like a crane cab welded to a flat waggon ;)

As for the layout, did you bother doing a new plan or have you decided where all the buildings, etc, will go relative to each other...or is it still very much an "all in my head" layout for now? :)

Cheers fella

Tim
"Kashi-mashi, kashi-mashi..."

Moorcroft (St Anthonys)
bunji
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Post by bunji »

Thanks for the comment, Tim! In the end the seller mailed back saying that the coarse flanges meant it wouldn't run on code 75 track, so it's a no-no. The curious little oddity of flat wagon loco will come as soon as the French seller sorts out his website order form to allow customers from the UK to change their country of origin. Concerning the plans, all very much so in my head for now, but I've got everything sorted in terms of positioning and inclusion. Just a case of getting it down on paper really!

For the time being, AS Levels have brought pretty much everything to a stand still. I've been having trouble getting my head around periodicity in Chemistry and I've been forced to do a total re-write of my Biology coursework (I interpreted 'Genetic Engineering can only benefit Humans' as 'Genetic Engineering cannot benefit Animals' rather than the apparently correct 'Genetic Engineering cannot negatively affect Humans'.)

However, last weekend was home to a cracking day for my interests and for the layout. The SNCF Society held a Winter rendez-vous in Gilligham, Kent, on Sunday the 20th, which I toodled along to. As soon as I got in I hit the trade stands, which were surprisingly extensive for such a niche market and such a small exhibition. After a good bit of digging through the old Jouef wagons and rusty bogies, I made the best impulse buy I've ever done.

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It's a Roco Br 93 in all black livery, and it's a true beauty. I had to scarper down to the station to get the cash out of my bank and it was well worth the effort. When I got it home and put it on a piece of test track it ran silky smooth and quietly first time. The valve gear is finely made and looks lovely when all in motion. It needs SNCF plates on both sides by its number but it looks fantastic already. What makes it even more incredible is that I picked it up for just 50 quid! My spelunking around the Internet has yielded no all black 93's and certainly none as cheap as mine. To say I'm as pleased as punch is an understatement!

I took a number of photos and a few videos at the exhibition, so I may upload those soon as well. Also at the exhibition I picked up a number of cheap French model railway mags as well as a VHS video with footage of steam on the SNCF. I doubt we'll see any solid layout progress for a while now, but that's what workbenches are for, right?
tinsleytmd
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Post by tinsleytmd »

viv la france. Someone else modelling french railways i have a few SNCF bits along with some Belgian locos. Their going to be on the pay & play layout at the show.

Simon.
joshing_man
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Post by joshing_man »

That looks a great engine Ben and at 50 quid sounds a bargain as well if it runs smoothly.

Andrew
The Original Smiling Man With Train (SMWT):
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pointstaken
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Post by pointstaken »

Ben,
Nice to see your photos - you definitely have good taste in locos. Look forward to further updates when tima and exams allow.

Dennis
I know nothing, but much I believe
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