Lets move up top!

Moving up top the amphibious tank I have started the various superstructure parts. It is beginning to take shape!

Doing it again!

Doing it again is what it feels like building the second Panzer Ferry Amphibious tank. It is basically the same kit as the first with a few differences in the superstructure and no pontoon. Whilst build a second near identical kit may seem boring it does have its advantages in that the process is a repeat so it becomes easier second time. Therefore whilst I took about a week to get the wheels and suspension components complete first time around it had only taken three days this time working about the same times as the first time - if all that makes sense?

Anyway here is where this kit has got to.

I need to add some hoops and the propeller then the hull is more or less done and it will then be time to do it again with the superstructure!

Snap!

Learn to operate the drag line excavator was a suggestion made to me and that was one I liked! So todays visit to the Rocks by Rail Museum saw some of my usual vegetational butchery in the morning and then a working lunch learning how to operate the machine.

This is the luxurious seat you operate from and the three leavers in front and the two brake pedals on the floor are the basic controls that allow the cab to slew and the bucket to lift and be hauled in. 

Sounds simple but it takes a clear mind to know which way to use the levers and brakes in coordination. After a while I felt I was getting the hang of it and Rob my tutor seemed happy. Then......SNAP! You can see the frayed cable hanging off the jib about one third the way down. It was obviously rusty to begin with and therefore weak - that is my excuse anyway!

The cable could have snapped at any time but it had to be when I was in the operating seat!

Not only did it have to snap but it has wrapped itself around the drum in such a way that it has jammed itself! 

Even with Rob's skills it looks like it will take a lot of work to repair it! So at the moment it looks like this with the bucket lying away from the boom!

Will it get repaired? Will I drive it again? Will I be allowed to drive it again? Who knows at the moment but I will find out!

Small and big projects!

A day of sheltering from the continued rain and what better place then the Man Cave! Of course I had already done some jobs on Mrs. Woody's never ending list just in case she is reading this! 

I took the opportunity to finish off a few small projects and then commence a large one!

Small projects were related to my 00 gauge layout and consisted of painting the cross beam on the buffer stop and then weathering it and the lamp hut and accessories. My usual washes of dilute black and brown were applied which gives that well worn look.

Once dry the washes had done there job well.

 Once on the layout these small items stood out in a good way! There is something very satisfying in building these small kits.

Big project time is the other amphibious tank to go on the other side of the Panzer Ferry.

Initial work is the tedious making of all the wheels and suspension components. It has to be done but progress looks slow!

However having the hull out I took the opportunity to pose it with the almost complete other tank and pontoon.

When finished it is going to be a big model - especially if I pose a suitable vehicle on the pontoon!

Right on track and even left on track!

Well the Panzer Ferry now has had its tracks dismounted from the hull. Knowing I had to do this I had glued the front drive and rear idler wheels on with some UHU glue which enabled them to be taken off fairly easily - thinking ahead for once!

They were the airbrushed with a custom mix of Vallejo Flat Earth, Rust and a few drops of black! Once allowed to dry they were dry brushed with Vallejo Aluminum over the areas where contact with the wheels or ground would in effect polish the surfaces keeping them free of rust. This is an area where I am making some guesses as to what would happen with an amphibious vehicle where the tracks would be immersed in water for much of their time. 

Getting the wheels and tracks back on was somewhat easier than I had envisaged!

Whilst I had been dry brushing aluminum paint I got the exhausts off the hull (not glued yet) and dry brushed them to give that impression of a relatively new part starting to rust.

With that done and the tracks back on, both left and right sides, the kit is looking like this.

With the rust paint in the airbrush various rust requiring parts were given a quick blast. These included the anchor for the Panzer Ferry, the buffer stop from my 00 gauge layout as well as the relay cabinets and some oil drums that will probably end up being 'dumped' somewhere.

The buffer stop looks a bit more at home on the layout although I still need to paint th actual cross bar white and red as in real life.

Better track off now and make Mrs. Woody some dinner!

Back on track!

After a couple of weeks working on my 00 gauge layout it was time to get back on track with some of my many, many outstanding projects! So the Panzer ferry has returned to the bench where the second track has now been assembled and added.

Assembly required the individual links to be glued together and then before they had set fed over the various drive and idler wheels. 

To make sure that the tracks have the necessary sag that they would have in real life between the top idler wheels, pieces of cardboard were added. The tracks should set in the right shape and stay that way when the cardboard is removed!

I also need to get back on track with some of Mrs. Woody's job list too!

A trio of Sentinels!

An operating day at the Rocks By Rail Museum today with a theme of the closure of the Oxford Ironstone Quarries. This is where the Museum's three Sentinel locomotives from that company were coupled together to commemorate the closure. It was an impressive site to see them running!

There is a short YouTube video here...

There were also steam brake van rides - always popular!

And in charge of the train today was Clova who has driven steam engines for years. Who said trains are big boys toys?

This is something you don't see too often - the detail of coupling between the engine and brake van.

You may recall a few days ago I posted about some Christmas decorations that the Museum was going to get rid of including this. I will be seeing a lot of this at Christmas because a lady from near to where I live has bought it to decorate the neighbourhoods Christmas tree!

Much as I enjoy the site of Christmas decorations it might be better if it were a trio of Sentinels!

Up against the stops and YouTube time!

Not much time for any model making but despite being up against the stops I did manage to make something involving just three parts!

This PECO buffer stop has two sides and a cross piece and that is it!

I do need a buffer stop on the siding of the removable baseboard of my 00 gauge layout and once painted it will be just the job. Even in its raw state it still looks good. Certainly any rolling stock using that siding will be up against the stops!

My videoing yesterday now graces YouTube and can be found here....

Its Friday - Relax with a train!

It has been a long and tiring week here at WMD so what better way to relax and play trains! So here are a few photos of todays runners.

Here is Tornado with an excursion train

I had great fun and videoed it so there will be another video out soon on YouTube! 

More greenification.

Some more progress on greenification of the removable baseboard of my 00 gauge Last Great Project layout. I have added some static grass which has added some more texture to the green areas. The Gaugemaster puffer bottle proved the ideal tool for the application of the grass given the small areas involved.

I have also started to build the other Wills Lamp Hut kit left over after building the other for Chalkdon my 009 narrow gauge layout. It just adds a bit of interest to what at the moment is a relatively flat scene and uses up a kit!

There will be some more shrubs, small trees and structures to add further relief and those will be added as and when I have the time and I am in the right mood to do it! However looking at where I am now makes me feel good!