Glyn Valley Bridge

The July BRM has a second article from me - the build of the Dapol kit for the narrow gauge girder bridge. This is based on the design used on the Glyn Valley Tramway, three of which took the railway across the Ceiriog river, and at least a couple of them still stand today.

The kit uses laser-cut card in the same way as the loco shed which I featured in the April BRM. Careful neat assembly paying close attention to the instructions results in a nice structure. I think the planked deck works particularly well, with gaps between the planking. After painting, it's hard to recognise that this is made of card. 

I was also rather pleased with the river, which I modelled on the Ceiriog at Dolywern where one of the original bridges is just visible from the road bridge. It uses the same heavy gloss acrylic medium I used to add waves to the stream on Hexworthy, with the waves formed using the airbrush. 

Of course, you don't need to model the Glyn Valley Tramway to make use of this kit!

It's great to see the trade supporting 009 with suitable structures.

Whittingly in print

The July Railway Modeller, which features the new Rapido Manning Wardle on the cover, also includes an article on Whittingly Hospital. The magazine has been following up the Rail200 competition by featuring some of the finalists which were at the National Festival of Railway Modelling at the NEC.

Whittingly is presented in the Micro Marvels feature over four pages, and makes excellent use of the photos that the editor, Craig Tilley, took at the NEC and which show the model really well. I was glad I'd taken some stock along to pose on the layout, as the Peckett and the few wagons do add life to the scene. The lights were still working at that point too, although the batteries expired later that Sunday!

It's great to see the layout in print, but it does remind me of my plan to turn it into a working layout!

Quite by coincidence, the July BRM includes a piece I wrote on building an industrial warehouse using Wills materials. Look familiar?

It was actually quite a simple build and so made a good scratch-building example. Using the Wills industrial windows and brick sheets with the openings ready takes care of the more daunting aspects of modelling buildings. It also shows how scratch-building is the best solution to filling a specific gap.

Of course, if I extend the layout, this low-relief structure will need to be extended!

The Red Lion - A BRM project

Another of my projects features in the May BRM - and is even shown on the cover.

The project uses the Hornby Rose and Crown pub. You might think that a ready-to-plant building leaves little scope for modelling, but there's a lot that can be done to make a model more individual and realistic. I touched up the finish, re-branded signage as the Red Lion, and set it in surroundings including a beer garden, playground, and car park. 

For a simple project, it was a lot of fun, and shows how a little work can really enhance a ready made building. 

Glyn Valley Tramway Loco Shed.

April's BRM magazine shows another of my projects as a step-by-step guide. This one is is a Dapol laser-cut card kit for a narrow gauge engine shed. 

The prototype for the model was the Glyn Valley Tramway engine shed at Glyn Ceiriog, and still stands and can be seen on google streetview. 

It's a fine kit that makes a nice model. A first for me was using colouring pencils on the brickwork, which has worked really well. I modified assembly to allow the roof to be removed, and sat it on some card to lift it so my Glyn Valley Tram loco fitted through the door. I suspect the prototype was measured from current ground level, which might be equivalent to what was once rail height! 

It's nice to have a building kit that is intended for narrow gauge models. It will hold 3 009 locos, and would suit layouts in many different settings.

Garden diorama in 7mm scale

The October BRM magazine contains another of my "Getting Practical" contributions. This issue has been out a few weeks now, but I was a bit busy last month and forgot to post about it!

This garden diorama in 7mm scale is the subject of my longest step-by-step article yet, which covers the garden buildings, scenic setting, and a range of details. 

The three Dapol laser-cut kits for the greenhouse, shed, and chicken coop, along with the ready-made tomato plants and runner bean plants, were the basis of the project. Coming up with the setting in which to use them, and selecting the detailing parts to finish the scene, was a lot of fun. 

The details include chickens, chicken wire fencing, plant pots, a bench, a potting table (in the greenhouse), wheelbarrow and garden tools. 

It was also fun to experiment with new scenic treatments such as card paving slabs and real soil.

Check out the magazine for the full details!

Festival of British Railway Modelling Doncaster

Last weekend I took Loctern Quay all the way to Doncaster for the Festival of British Railway Modelling exhibition. While it was a long trek it was good to be at a big show, and despite its small size the layout attracted a lot of positive comment. Many asked about the buildings, and I could point out the nearby Petite Properties stand!

Here's my friend Tim Sanderson showing how not to operate the layout by standing right in front of it, though to be fair this was a quiet moment and Tim was learning how it works. Tim had brought his own small 009 layout The Old Quarry - we fit the two layouts and three of us in one car

The Old Quarry is an attractive scenic layout with a simple track plan, and some ferociously tight curves!

A big show such as this can host large layouts, but I am always drawn to the small layouts, such as Ladmanlow Sidings, which is modelled on the Cromford & High Peak railway. This shows that a simple layout with simple but effective scenery can ooze atmosphere. 

Leysdown, an EM gauge layout by Adrian Colenut, is another layout that has a simple concept beautifully executed. 

Some of my favourite layouts in the show were in smaller scales. Blueball Summit in N-gauge shows an incredible level of detail for such a small scale, with consistency and effective composition, and well-modelled trains too. 

Sandy Bay was another remarkable N-gauge layout, this time set at the seaside with a harbour and fishing village as a backdrop to the viaduct. This end-view gives a different perspective to the attractive scene. 

Heybridge Wharf makes effective use of the unusual scale of 3mm:ft in a harbour scene, with fine modelling of a sailing barge as well as the buildings, and of course the trains themselves. 

So the long journey was worth it for a good show, it was nice to see and speak to lots of visitors, and good to see Phil Parker and Colin Peake. 

Thakeham in BRM

Thakeham features in December's British Railway Modelling magazine

They've done a good job of presenting the layout feature, with some large photos. I'm rather pleased that my photography was up to full-page prints!

It's an excellent issue for Narrow Gauge and Industrial enthusiasts, with a feature on Chris Donoghue's Compass Point in 009, an Emmet-style GN15 layout, and Six Quarters - a cracking little industrial layout in OO by Oly Turner.

Awngate in BRM

Awngate is featured in this month's (well, September) edition of British Railway Modelling. It's always nice to see my work in print, in this case 6 pages featuring some fine photos taken by Phil Parker.