Time to build a railway...but where?

[bazzer42]

Tidy work there mr B. Are you a frustrated carpenter as well?

I wish I had become a chippy and not a money person. Cut a little door in that and a nice hidey hole for the pup! Hope she settles in ok.

[Peter Butler]

Tidy work there mr B. Are you a frustrated carpenter as well?

Never a carpenter by trade but always handy with woodworking tools. A picture framer for most of my career, along with Museum exhibition displays, so plenty of opportunity to use creative skills and imagination.

[Peter Butler]

Peter,
From the RHS site:
Mind-your-own-business or baby's tears, Soleirolia soleirolii (syn. Helxine soleirolii) is a creeping perennial with tiny rounded leaves.
PM me your aadress and I'll happily post you some.

Thank you Philipy, your soggy package arrived safely this morning and Paul the Post is now convinced I am growing weed! That should attract some new visitors I think.
As the weather seems to be mild I will put 'Soleirolia Philipii' straight into the ground instead of the greenhouse, it should get established before the frosts begin.
I can transfer some to the new areas when I have had time to think about location and see how the plants grow for best effect.

[jim@NAL]

mind your own business is a good plant/weed I have it on my line it looks great but spreads everywhere

[Peter Butler]

There are some general enquires about Plastikard (HIP) on other threads and I can show you some of the uses I have for the material during the construction of another structure to go in my village.
As yet I am undecided as to whether it will eventually become the village pub or just a private dwelling. This is an example of the way I work... things evolve.
My inspiration came from a video posted on the Forum of a visit to LLechfan, where a lovely building by Peter Jones caught my eye. It is a traditional style, red brick framed, flint panelled house and very individual. Probably not typical of the landscape my railway is set in, but who cares?
Firstly a 2mm thick HIP box was made to form the shape. The windows having been pre-cut, along with the doors. This stage is so boring I didn't take pictures, but the next stage is where the brickwork is fitted... this had to be raised so that enough space is left for the thickness of flint (chicken grit) can be set in the panels. So the bricks are cut from 1mm sheet and stuck to 2mm backing to create the gap. Also, the bricks overlap the backing so that when the waterproof adhesive is added it will bond underneath the 1mm thick card and ensure everything is firmly attached....







To show the effect I am trying to achieve I had a 'dry run' with the grit
in one of the panels...





All of the bricks are cut to scale.... 9" x 3.5" and individually laid.... don't ask how many, I'm not a rivet (brick) counter!

[LNR]

"don't ask how many, I'm not a rivet (brick) counter!"
Ha!! still laughing Peter.
You must be the fastest builder of structures I've come across, I'd have severe eye strain cutting and laying all those bricks. Still there is no substitute for individual items like bricks, timber etc. Trouble is you do things so neatly that unless you see them up close, it could well be machine made. Top job.
Grant.

[philipy]

Peter,
Not being critical, but as one born and brought up in 'brick & flint land' ( The Chilterns) I'd say your chicken grit looks rather too pink in colour. I know there is such a thing as coloured flint so maybe I'm being too picky, but just thought I'd mention it in case you have any options on your chicken grit source.

Having said all that, the building looks fantastic.

[Crackingjob]

As ever better and better...must visit again soon....like the plastic are but I note in the States a lot use clear Perspex and scribe onto it leaving Windows clear then clad on to it, saves fitting Windows and if UV stabilised lasts longer.....must try some buildings...keep going...that field on a slope must be a huge town by now![/i]

[Peter Butler]

Peter,
Not being critical, but as one born and brought up in 'brick & flint land' ( The Chilterns) I'd say your chicken grit looks rather too pink in colour.

I think you are right there when looking at the grit against a stark white background, however, when the red bricks are prominent it will surely tone it down. I have used the grit as ground cover on the railway and it does go more grey with wet weather conditions.
If not I can apply some paint!

[philipy]

Piotr,
Your caulk idea sounds fine for a stucco effect, but Peter is attempting to reproduce a very specific English building type, known as 'brick & flint' which is found in the chalk hills of southern England, and his chicken grit infill is a pretty close approximation ( apart from my quibble about the colour). See this example of what he is aiming at:
 http://fscomps.fotosearch.com/compc/UNS ... 860527.jpg

[ge_rik]

Great idea for the under-layout storage, Peter. Will pinch that sometime soon - I'm running out of space for storage.

Really like the look of the latest structure. As others have said, I marvel at the speed with which you turn out your buildings particularly when considering the quality of their finish.

Rik

[Peter Butler]

Thank you for your comments Piotr, I can see you are getting much satisfaction from your railway. There can be no perfect weather conditions for outdoor modelling no matter where you live. I can put up with the wet here and enjoy the dry all the more when (occasionally) I get the chance. I would not be happy with hot and humid locations, nor would dry arid conditions suit me, I am pleased with my piece of Wales and wouldn't change it.
Now, for those who think I have been idling for the past few days, here is the result of my labour....



This is the warehouse building which was previously shown in grey primer. It has now had three colours added to individual stonework, possibly running into thousands of stones? The frames of the windows and doors represent cut blocks of local stone and the doors, rainwater goods and window frames are picked out in green ( bought as a job-lot by the railway company?).



Now it can be sited in its permanent position on the quayside, although window glazing and exterior hoist would make it complete...... sorry about that but I have been busy doing other things!

[Peter Butler]

Piotr,  apologies if my description was ambiguous, I'm not clever enough to paint three colours simultaneously, I paint one colour at a time on random stones followed by a second and then a third.
However, at school, I was able to write 'lines' with three pens taped together whilst serving my, all too frequent, detention!
Hope this helps?
Forgot to add.... there is usually 'clutter' on my layout and I am always adding more as I discover useful items, however it has been put away for the winter season so looks a little bare at the moment.

[Peter Butler]

Hi Piotr,
in answer to your question about painting individual stones, I can only say that I must lead a sad and lonely life, spending hours on end sitting with a paintbrush and paints and a bottle of red wine!
The stones are made from embossed plastic and are quite well defined. Once the primer is painted and the mortar lines show it is just a matter of patience (or boredom) to paint the stones one at a time. I must admit to getting some satisfaction for a job well done as if I cut corners for quick results it just annoys me and I end up doing it all over again..... not worth it!
Also, I hate it when friends pick out faults because they know I can do better, that's just the way I am, and the way my 'friends' are too!

[Peter Butler]

Despite the terrible forecast and the storms which have hit further east from me, the weather has been very pleasant here today giving an opportunity to remove the various non-permanent railway structures into their new storage.  Luckily I still have some spare capacity but doubt that will last very long!
Meanwhile I have been finishing off new builds so they can join the others and give me some much needed work space....
The warehouse has now got glazed windows and its hoist fitted and the
market hall is complete with the tiles painted and weathered...





The brick and flint pub has been painted to represent red bricks, again in three colours to give some variation.  







By this evening I have managed to infill the panels on one face with my chicken grit held with SBR.  This must now be kept flat for at least 24hrs. so it can bond to the plasticard.  No pics. today but we will see tomorrow if it dries sufficiently?
I am well pleased with the colour of the grit against the red of the bricks, certainly it has taken the pink hue away, at least while it is wet with the SBR.

[philipy]

Peter,
I think I'd vote the market hall as your best so far, and that is a very high bar to reach.
How did you do the diamond leaded lights in the 1st floor windows?

[Peter Butler]

Piotr, thank you for the feedback, I'm glad your wife likes my work too.
All of my structures are made from my own imagination, but based on genuine architectural styles and with regard to structural practicalities. I am neither engineer nor architect but I like to think that I have made enough observation of the way things are put together to make them look convincing. None of my buildings are ever drawn or planned in detail. I take a piece of plastic sheet and draw lines on it to represent windows, doors and roof line, then cut....... too late now to change so I just modify as I go along. No doubt someone qualified in either discipline could tear them apart but I am happy with my items which are built quickly, cheaply and work well together.
Although I spend time concentrating on tiny detailing which shows up on photographs of individual buildings, when they are placed in a street scene, for example, all that work disappears!
I hope this answers your question.

[Peter Butler]

Peter,

How did you do the diamond leaded lights in the 1st floor windows?

The diamond effect is made from placing clear acrylic sheet (at 45 degrees) on graph paper and running a Stanley knife blade along every line in both directions. This side is then placed on the inner of the window reveal and backed with black plasticard to give a mirror like finish.
Well done for spotting it..... my work was not in vain!

[LNR]

As Philip has said, you do raise the bar very high indeed. Superb buildings from every angle. I am interested in the layout of the market hall, what would its use/purpose be. (excuse my ignorance)
Grant.

[Peter Butler]

Grant, the market hall was once a familiar site in many towns in the UK from as early as 16th century. They were built to house both indoor and outdoor traders selling goods. Upstairs in the covered market, often wool and other more valuable commodities were traded, also assizes and religious meetings could have taken place there.
This is one still standing at Llanidloes, mid Wales, several others are preserved in the centre of towns but are invariably in the middle of busy roadways....