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Wednesday, July 2, 2025

BBC - Brakedowns, Brakes and Couplings!

 Sunday was a Quarry day at the Rocks by Rail Museum which meant I was shunting assisted by Dan and with John driving Mr. D. Unfortunately Mr. D decided that it was time to breakdown with a lack of air to release the brakes being the problem. There was an additional problem in that the other quarry train was now trapped behind Mr. D!

Rocks by Rail Museum,

Despite John's best endeavours at sorting the issue eventually we had to call in assistance in the form of Betty! 

Rocks by Rail Museum,

Betty, being the Sentinel loco, driven up by Andy who released Mr. D's brakes and used Betty to shunt both Mr. D and eight wagons out of the way of the quarry train and allow that to escape before hauling Mr. D off to be repaired!

Rocks by Rail Museum,

So that was the brakedown and before that we were actually shunting so it was brakes on and off the wagons - this is the brake off....

Rocks by Rail Museum,

and this is it off!

Rocks by Rail Museum

To release or put on the brakes this wooden bat is used to lever the brake handle.

Rocks by Rail Museum

And finally, the couplings!

Rocks by Rail Museum

So that was the BBC day at the Museum and I did enjot it!


Tuesday, July 1, 2025

Stairway to dirt!

With the Dapol Booking Hall kit now finished it is time to move on with associated station area projects such as the steps that I built to take passengers from the bridge above the platform down onto the platform itself. I did airbrush them blue at the same time as the windows and doors for the Dapol kit. Much as the steps looked OK in the pristine blue....

My Last Great Project

 ...they did look as though they were part of a modern industrial unit in some hi tech industry rather than a uncared for item open to the elements in an urban and industrial area. Given that an airbrushing of earth brown followed by rust weathering powders and it turned the steps into a stairway to dirt, certainly not heaven!



My Last Great Project

Getting in close the digital camera shows the mysterious hair in the paint that I have never noticed!

My Last Great Project

Strange how you see things in photos but not in real life!


Monday, June 30, 2025

The WMD Film Crew have been busy during the build of the Dapol Booking Hall kit and their results are here for your visual entertainment and pleasure!







Sunday, June 29, 2025

Its finished!

Yes, it is finished! Not Mrs. Woody's list of jobs for me to do but the Dapol kit is now done. Final bits were adding the roof and canopy along with the privacy fence for the gents toilet as well as the front doors. Also added were some posters, a clock face and a gentleman inside at the ticket hatch. I think he may have a long wait until he can get his ticket! Anyway, some pictures illustrate the final product far better than my words can but I can say I am pleased with it!

My Last Great Project,

My Last Great Project,

My Last Great Project,

My Last Great Project,

My Last Great Project,

My Last Great Project,

My Last Great Project,


Saturday, June 28, 2025

Its nearly there! The windows and doors are now attached to the Dapol Booking Office and things are looking good!

My Last Great Project,

My Last Great Project,

A few more details to add, then the roof and chimneys and it will be done!

Friday, June 27, 2025

Hush, hush!

I had to be hush, hush at the Rocks b Rail Museum so no noisy mowers or strimmers! The reason? A film crew. Cant say what the programme is but it will be on main stream TV probably the back end of next year or in 2027! However it was great to watch it being made.

Rocks by Rail Museum,

Mr. D in his brand new paint job is a major part of the programme and John and Thomas have made a fantastic job in less than a week.

Rocks by Rail Museum,

John  ain the cab awaiting his time to drive.

Rocks by Rail Museum,

Meanwhile things did carry on away from the filming with work on steam loco Barrington involving taking off the non-original coal bunker and replacing it with a normal cab back.

Rocks by Rail Museum,

A view into the cab that you would not normally get!

Rocks by Rail Museum,

Outside work on 1931 carries on with the boiler being washed out ready for inspection.

Rocks by Rail Museum,

Richard was under the loco with a hose pipe.

Rocks by Rail Museum,

Whilst Hazel was at the side pulling the debris that had washed out through the drain hole.

Rocks by Rail Museum,

A great job to do on a hot day!


Thursday, June 26, 2025

Chimney pots.

Just a small amount of work on the Dapol Booking Hall kit but it does make a difference. The Chimney pots are moulded as a solid part. By drilling through the chimney pot part and opening it up it does make it look a lot more realistic - it will be enhanced once painted and fitted to the roof!

My Last Great Project,

I do enjoy these small jobs - if only the jobs on Mrs. Woody's list for me to do where this small!

Wednesday, June 25, 2025

What a pain to do the panes!

 What a pain to do the panes! Well actually it was not too bad a job to glaze the windows for the Dapol building. I could have used the clear plastic sheet provided but choose to use DeLuxe Materials Glue n Glaze to give a better finish and to fill in the all to deep window bars in the window frames.

My Last Great Project,

Basically all I had to do was get the Glue n Glaze into the apertures and let it set.

What a pain to do the panes!

It looks a bit of a mess but you need to have patience!

What a pain to do the panes!

After a few hours it all turns good and clear!
What a pain to do the panes!

And closer in you can see the end result.

What a pain to do the panes!

Just need to add them to the main building now! Hopefully that won't be too much of a pain!

Tuesday, June 24, 2025

A night on the tiles!

Well I did spend some of the night painting the tiles on the Dapol kit and very soothing it was! As with the brickwork blogged about a few days ago, I picked out random tiles in a slightly lighted colour to the main colour used. I also used the same Rust colour trhat IU had for the brickwork on the ridge tiles and it contrasts nicely.

My Last Great Project,

Of course it all looked too clean so a wash of dilute black paint was applied. You can see the effect in the half and half photo below.

My Last Great Project,

With the entire roof 'washed', it was set to one side to dry.

My Last Great Project,

With the roof temporarily on the building it all begins to take shape!

My Last Great Project,

Monday, June 23, 2025

Its not easy to be random!

 It is not easy to be random despite what Mrs. Woody may think about my actions! What I am talking about here is being random in picking out individual bricks in a wall such as on the Dapol model I am building at the moment. Looking at a real building you notice that there a subtle and on occasions not so subtle variations in the colour of individual bricks. I replicated this to some degree on my model by taking the Rust coloured paint that I had painted the brickwork in and adding either the Sand or Leather Brown colour as used in previous painting of the model, in small amounts on a plastic bag to make up slightly darker and lighter colour variations on the original Rust colour. Individual bricks were then painted and an interesting effect starts to build up.

My Last Great Project

This is also the point at which being random becomes difficult - well for me anyway - as I always seem to start developing a symmetrical pattern in painting individual bricks! I really have to think hard about randomness! Just hope Mrs. Woody doesn't read this or I could face some difficult questions!

With the brick work painted, randomly, it was time to add some mortar to the joints and generally tone and weather the colour down. That was done with a very dilute cat of grey paint which was just applied to the surface and allowed to find its own way inti the brick joints.

My Last Great Project

Finally, all the brickwork had been treated and it looks a lot more lifelike.

My Last Great Project

I will need to do a similar treatment on the slate roof but I still need to get the windows and doors finished before I can think of adding the roof! You cant just make a model in a random fashion!