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?