Not getting on with things…

James very kindly suggested I might write something for Layout Club. I was, of course, thrown into doubt (not to say a blind panic) because I've spent the last few months not getting on with things. While reading about things that haven't been attended to might sound rather counter-productive, it will at least shame me into action. So here goes. 

The first thing I've not done, and it really is fundamental, is sort out the alignment between the scenic 'board' and the fiddleyard 'board' of my cameo layout, Brookfield. I put 'board' in quotes, because the whole thing was constructed with foam board, which is hardly board at all. I had my reasons, chiefly that when I started my partner, Lisa, and I were living in a flat and had no access to outdoor spaces. Woodwork in the front room - in any room, tbh - was frowned upon, but cutting foam board on the dining table (carefully, with a too small cutting board) was just about acceptable. 

Only when we had got into our house and when we had finally had the cellar tanked and when I had negotiated that I might use the cellar because I cared nothing for sunlight, could the two boards be placed on Ikea shelf units (no prizes for who gave me that idea) and be joined. The challenge was that they needed to be separated to allow the pump in the cellar floor to be serviced once a year and that although the floor was reasonably level there ended up being a little bit of inaccuracy. As the picture below shows, the rails don't meet accurately with simply bolting the boards together - that was wishful thinking on my behalf! 

Foam board is great, but it relies on nothing being unduly 'stressed' because it is inherently flexible, and flex is not what we want. My solution will be to try to fit a pair of those locating bolts (is that the term?), in the picture below. I'm going to try to include some thin pieces of wood behind the edge of both boards and hope that when glued in place they will be stable enough to take the screws that are holding the locating bolts in place (that's definitely not the right term). 

Wish me luck! 

What's next? Oh yes, the bowing station roof. The station building is scratch built, based loosely on a prototype in South Wales but made even smaller. To be honest, I am unduly pleased with it because it was my first scratch-built building and it took me ages but with the exception of the window frames, the posters, the door plates and the front valances, everything was made by me - including the side valences, which because of the angle of the roof had to be handmade. They are a bit of a mess, but they are my mess! The roof, which lifts off, has developed an annoying bow which is increasingly visible. I don't quite know how I'm going to correct this, but corrected it needs to be! 

Next on the list is to weather my Dean Goods. I'm aware it has all sorts of inaccuracies, but life is short, so I'm going to start by general weathering, painting the handrails, fitting lamps and adding real coal. There's nothing inherently difficult about this, other than I don't (currently) have an airbrush so I'll have to use other techniques for creating low-level grime. On the plus side, the locomotive is second hand, so if I do mess it up, a.) I can start again, perhaps, and b.) I didn't pay £200+ for it!

As my layout is so small - and my cellar is already full of bookshelves - I limit my purchasing of locomotives. This is partly due to funds, but also wanting every locomotive to fit into my general geographical and era limits - the West Midlands/Mid-Wales, 1910 - 1923, ish. For complicated reasons, although brought up in Didcot (and so a GWR boy), I very much like selected locomotives from other companies, and especially the LNWR Coal Tanks. They rubbed buffers with the GWR in many places, so it is not incredible to become the proud owner of a Coal Tank. I've purchased one - second hand of course - but need to add DCC and Sound, see below. 

This I have not done before, but James nudged me in the direction of the right kit (Lok Sound, etc.) and I'm going to allocate a Sunday afternoon to getting my head round what I need to do. And then they'll be the weathering as well, and some crew to buy and paint and lamps and so on. I have bought some  LNWR passenger stock from Rapido, so I have something for it to haul (I understand it wasn't just coal wagons, despite the name). Which reminds me, that I really do need to weather those Rapido coaches (I've got some GWR ones too), which means I really do need to get an airbrush... and to learn how to use it. 

Next on the list - which is already feeling like too many things - is a complete leap into the dark. I allowed myself to be seduced by the recent Rapido 009 stock provided by Light Railway Stores. Here they are in my display cabinet.

In my defence, they are in GWR livery, they don't take up much space and I'd had a trip on the Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway and they are damned cute (Lisa agrees). Being so small, I'm thinking I can manage some kind of roundy-roundy layout, perhaps with no points (al la Corrish by George Williamson). This is as far as I've got, which was really just to get the loco run-in. 

On my cameo I run to a timetable (well a sequence, really) which means a lot of shunting but actually mostly looking at an empty station waiting for the next train (I like waiting), but it would be fun to see a little locomotive and a few wagons trundling into view and back out again and ten minutes later the absolute same. I'm thinking of it coming through the trees as is the case on the Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway, but being heard approaching for many minutes beforehand and then heard heading away for an equal number of minutes. 

They eagle-eyed will see a pack of 009 track joiners (I'm currently using 00 track joiners, which create a bit of a bump) so these need to be put to good use even on this temporary circuit. 

Of course, I need to figure out where on earth this layout can live, given that it will need some height for effective lighting. The track plan might even end up smaller. I'm occupying considerable thinking time trying to imagine how the very few options in the cellar might work, or if I could persuade Lisa that a layout in the living room would be greatly to be desired... Oh, and the loco and wagons need weathering and I want to fit Greenwich couplings (even if I don't have any points, so can't do any shunting) and I'll need crew and lamps, etc. and I'd like to try building some 009 kits too.

Blimey, I'm exhausted even just writing about this lot. But at least I've got a list (not exhaustive, but the major things) and now I've mentioned it to those reading this blog, I shall have to be getting on with things. Thank you for enduring what has turned out to be a rather long post.