Wednesday 23rd July 2025

Worklist:

Cut the perspex for the new pond.

Add electrostatic grass, foliage and the road surface on the Edwards boards extensions.

Extend the pipework to the factory building.

Geoff made an extended template for the new pond using the existing perspex sheet and some card. Masking tape was laid around three edges and the template used to mark the cut-line. Jigsaw blades were tested, a lovely smooth cutter was chosen and the perspex cut to shape.

Geoff then finely polished the perspex surface to take the shine off, then applied paint to the underside to represent the greenery around the edge, quarry sludge at the tipping area and an overall murky grey.

Road extension topping: Stephen practiced laying chinchilla dust on a sample panel. When happy, he applied diluted matt Mod Podge glue, let it dry, applied another layer of the glue and sprinkled the dust over.

Stephen sanded the wooden structure for the new pond area.

Geoff and Stephen laid electrostatic grass on both Edwards boards together with more foliage clumps. The water supply pipes needed to be extended, but the route caused some problems. Two pieces of 5 & 3.2mm brass rod were cut to length and some of the 3D printed flanges located. We anticipated concrete blocks and straps, but the ground rises towards the front edge and the pipes didn't look right running up a slope. Cranks were considered and dropped. Geoff then located some of the 3D printed rainwater downpipes which looked good. Eventually, it was decided to cut a trench in the ground to keep the pipes horizontal and then disappear into the ground. 

Geoff will print smaller versions of the RWP's and next week we'll see if it's still a good idea.

Wednesday 16th July 2025

Grass and foliage again...

From last week, with basic, coarse undergrowth applied. Some previously applied 12mm grass on the mound.

This week, the electrostatic treatment. Geoff applied daubs of Mod podge* onto the existing surfaces, then placed the connector wire/pin into the glue, pressed the button and shook the dispenser over the area.

The effect was brilliant - far better than we've seen previously. Geoff suggested this was down to the electrical supply being upgraded from a 9v battery to a 12v transformer.  It certainly looks better than previous attempts. (6mm grass used here).

Meanwhile, Stephen was attempting to finish the wall extension, but it kept going wrong. A weak filler mix was wiped over the wall for the mortar joints. However, when wiping off the surplus, the acrylic base paint rubbed off in patches. Painting individual bricks was attempted without a satisfactory result. After several attempts, foliage was applied to cover the mess, but this wasn't successful either. Back to the drawing board next week.

*Mod podge is a glue/sealer widely used in crafts. It contains PVA, but has other ingredients. An added benefit for our use is that it is available in matt finish.

Monday 7th July 2025

Another switch of day.

Worklist:

Apply a basecoat on the end wall and paint the road.

Apply electrostatic grass to the ground cover/foliage along the new strips.

Paint extended road into Edwards.

Stephen made-up a pallet of acrylic paints, mixed a matching red brick and applied a basecoat on the wall. A pallet of grey followed for the road, copying details and variations in the existing.

Geoff assembled a mixture of electrostatic grasses. 6 and 12mm almost straw coloured grass appeared to have been used previously and he eventually found some of them all. However, the start was delayed when the electrostatic pot wouldn't work. A faulty connection was repaired and he was back in business. He applied PVA to a test area and with the glued grounded with the lead, 'charged' long grass strands were sprinkled over the area. It was a good match for the existing areas, so he pressed on with more. (Photos to follow)

Stephen moved on to the road into Edwards, again matching colours and deviations. The existing road surface had also received a coating of fine light grey granules. It was eventually established to be chinchilla dust, which we still had a pot of.

Discussions ensued regarding the addition of fences in the extended areas, but no agreement could be reached. And the pipes need to be extended. We'll discuss it all next week.

Finally, a coat of undercoat was applied to the new front fascia's.

Wednesday 2nd July 2025

The wall extension had been a success, so a small batch of dark brown ground cover paint/filler was mixed and applied. 

Stephen moved on to applying foliage to both sides of the sides of the bridge extension.

Meanwhile, Geoff continued to apply foliage and ground cover to the new sidings. The heavy growth on the track will be checked for wheel clearance once the glue has set.

Extension? What extension?

Wednesday 25th June 2025

Worklist:

Infill roadway and adjacent ground.

Progress wall extension.

Add scenic materials to new sidings.

Upgrade electrostatic grass dispenser.

Stephen mixed a batch of plaster filler and brown paint powder, and applied it to the the road and grass bank extension. The wall extension panel he'd been working on was checked for size and alignment before being glued in place. A triangular wood core was made for the large brick coping and also glued in place. The plasticard brickwork will be added in due course...

Meanwhile, Geoff made a start on the grass/foliage for the new boards. Exactly matching landscaping materials were available in small quantities, so a mixture of old and new were used. 

Geoff has a specific look in mind for the siding, bordering on 'un-passable', but he knows what is passable, so it is realistic. The 'fresh' ballast will also be covered in a wash of 'dirty thinners'.

Geoff also found the electrostatic grass applicator and upgraded it from a battery to transformer power supply. Additional scenic material will be obtained before the next session.

For clarification, the 'Aldershot' exhibition is organised by the Farnham & District MRC at the Alderwood Leisure Centre, Aldershot, on Saturday 11th and Sunday 12th October 2025. 

(Link to club website)

Wednesday 18th June 2025

Worklist:

Review Geoff's work on the new ground surfaces and paint them.

Adapt the workshop storage frame to the new board depth.

Geoff had completed the paper mache covering to the new scenic areas. It was now hard, allowing us to trim and sand the edges. He then painted the areas with brown powder paint mixed with diluted PVA. Grass and foliage will be added next week.

Meanwhile, Stephen worked on the extension to the wall at the end of the station. The new base panel was sanded to the correct thickness and a piece of 'English garden wall bond' plasticard cut to size. Contact adhesive was used to glue them together. A brick coping and oversailing brick course will be attempted next week.

We then moved on to the storage rack in the workshop. The extended boards now stuck out proud of the frame and prevented the cover screen keeping the dust out. The frame was moved off the wall and timber panels added to enclose the sides and shelves. 

Wednesday 11th June 2025

Worklist:

Set up all of the boards ready for a visit from Chris and Ted, the additional exhibition operating team, who were travelling down to see the progress.

Chris and Ted had only seen the work carried out since the NEC show on the blog, so after a brief description by Geoff, they were let loose on the controls. They seemed impressed with overall progress and everything went well, until they found a dead section on the mainline into the station. One short rail section at the frog was still fed by the point switch and so was ineffective when the point was switched to the siding. A great spot lads! A rail break was later cut and a jumper wire will be fitted in due course.

Ted and Chris getting to know the 'new bits'.

Chris had brought along his latest loco - a mainly 3D-printed 0-4-0. (More details at the bottom of the page). The test run was a success for the chassis and the Kadee couplings.

We then retired to a lovely riverside pub for lunch.

Geoff and Stephen later discussed Geoff's proposal to move the vertical display case forward, in more detail. It would keep the front of the layout flush and simplify reorganising the front drapes. We will look at it in detail in due course, but it seems like a good idea.

Monday 2nd June 2025

Worklist:

Review extension framework for Edwards boards.

Infill voids with foam.

Check ballast from last week.

Design, make and install scenic point equipment for new points.

Geoff had been busy making the extension frame for Edwards as previously described.

While Geoff worked on the previously laid ballast to remove stray 'stones', Stephen started infilling the Edwards framework voids with insulation foam blocks.

The new quarry water panel and how it will fit into the enlarged hole was discussed. A sheet of Perspex was found which would be perfect for the base.

Geoff moved on to the scenic point operation equipment and assessed the options and available fittings. Finally, a manual throw lever was agreed and found for the point in the sidings. However, it was a chunky white metal unit rather than a smaller/neater plastic unit, so Geoff filed away the visually surplus material. Components left over from the station lever frame were found and assembled into a 3 lever frame for the mainline point into the sidings. (1 lever for the frame lock, 1 for the tie-bar and one for the point lock). The latter caused Geoff the biggest problem, as it operates at 90 deg to the tie-bar and required cranks to achieve it. A choice of cranks were discussed and made. The tie-bar lock itself was made from plasticard and fitted in place.

 

Wednesday 28th May 2025

Worklist: Scenery, track ballasting and the Edwards board extensions.

Stephen started work on the scenery, applying plaster coloured with brown powder paint laid on a coat of PVA. He then moved on to the station road extension, infilling voids with foam and making a panel to extend the wall. 

Meanwhile, Geoff sourced wood to make the front extensions for Edwards Yard. Instead of 9mm ply, some offcuts of 9mm MDF came to hand. As another change, rather than a full ladder, the attachments to the existing boards would be bespoke wooden brackets. The shape of the extended 'pond' was also agreed so that the edge profile could be cut out.

When the plaster had dried, we both started laying proprietary ballast. Isopropyl alcohol was sprayed over the ballast which then had diluted PVA dribbled over it. Extra care was taken around the critical areas of the pointwork.

Wednesday 21st May 2025

Worklist:  

Continue with electrics - test all track sections and servos.

Update diagram on control panel.

Track sections were generally ok, and it became a useful exercise to a reinforce our knowledge of the wiring system and track breaks. This was especially true of the area around the signals and the switching for the 'no-mans-land' between the station and Edwards yard. However, the servo test failed 'unusually'. Investigation found that power to the two station-board servos had been taken off the station platform lighting rather than a common supply. Having to turn these lights on before operating the magnets would have been a talking point, but ultimately a 'right nuisance'. This was easily corrected. 

Testing of the uncouplers and sections by 'playing trains' took place, which went well and gave us a good idea of future running operations. Markers for the three magnets will be a priority.

Stephen still had some of the vinyl from previous panel work and made the required additions. At the same time, alterations were made to the existing mainline section to more accurately reflect the section positions. Hopefully, it will all make sense to all operators.

A rewarding days work. What became evident was that Geoff's original assertion that the station needed a siding that could take a whole train of quarry wagons without clogging-up the station area, works well. It does change the overall appearance of the station, hopefully, for the better.