Tree repairs!

Tree repairs? Before you wonder if I have become some form of arboriculturalist this was a model tree that was repaired! I bought these Woodland Scenic Silver Birch trees some time ago. They were second hand and I paid £20 for the four of them which is well under half the new price. Always worth having a look in the boxes under traders stalls at exhibitions where these less glamourous items are usually kept. The only problem was that one of the trees had a brken stub at the end of the trunk that pushes into the tree base. 

I could have just glued it back in place but I suspected that given the size of the tree it would most likely fail. Therefore, out came some trusty brass wire and my pin vice drill and holes were drilled in both the tree trunk and the stub. The brass wire was then glued into the trunk with some super glue and the stub threaded onto the protruding wire and glued to that and the tree trunk.

Once dry, the excess wire was cut off.

With the tree repaired it was time to place it and its fellow trees on one of the scenic sub-bases. I had temporarily placed these on the base some weeks ago giving me a chance to look and think about their positioning. I was happy with what I had been seeing so it was time to fix the bases down.

I mixed up some filler and used this to bed in the bases.

With that out of the way it was time to resolve the other end of the sub-base where there is supposed to be a tarmac area serving the sidings and goods shed. It was just a white piece of card and to get the required level I  needed to add a second layer. I cut this to size, tested it for fit and then gave it a coat of grey primer from a rattle can.

And this is how the goods shed will look - eventually! Still more to do but hopefully some more progress over the coming days.

Giving some colour to icebergs!

Putting the 09 gauge project to one side for a bit, it is back to My Last Great Project 00 gauge layout. Having constructed the bare bones of the scenic sub-bases towards the end of last year, it was time to make some progress and stop looking at, what look like large icebergs which given the recent weather was probably quite fitting, and get some colour on them. This what they looked like - large icebergs!

The starting point was to be to get some colour on the rock  faces. A light brown was the required colour. Now I could have raided the WMD Stores model paint supplies but given the amount of paint required it made more economical sense to raid a tin of white emulsion from my decorating chores and then mix in some Burnt Umber acrylic paint to get the required shade. A handy empty jar made a good container/mixing pot.

That's the colour that I got too. Paint always dries lighter then it looks when wet.

Just to test out my mix I chose the smallest sub-base first - always best to test before going too far!

You can see the painted two thirds against the remaining third of the plaster finish in the photo below. The paint also seals the plaster for further painting, which there will be to get to the desired finish.

And to get to that desired finish a dilute mix of the Burnt Umber paint was made up in a smaller jar at a ration of about one part paint to five of water. I didn't actually used bottled water, it just happened that the bottle was empty and handy to fill up with tap water. I'm not made of money which appears to be Mrs. Woody's belief!

Starting off with a soft brush, the paint was quite literally just dribbled onto the rock faces and being dilute, the pigment found its way into the crevices giving a nice shadow effect.

The rest of the sub-base was treated to the same process. It took a few applications of paint to get the required tone but it  is beginning to look a lot less like an iceberg!

Keep those wagons rolling!

Keep those wagons rolling! Well, up until now those wagons on my 09 gauge project weren't able to roll as they had no wheels! However, robbing three sets of wheels off some old n gauge wagons let those wagons roll!

The wheel sets fitted in easily into the 3D wagons.

With that done I placed them on the track.

Its not often that you can fit an oval of track on a workbench as small as mine but this did fit. As you can see it is about 12 inches wide....

By about 18 inches long!

Size isn't everything and small can be beautiful as I hope this short video shows!

A long gone era!

Mrs. Woody gave this to me as a Christmas present back in 2023. 

It is a beautifully presented train pack of one of the pioneering locomotives along with some appropriate rolling stock from a long gone era at the start of railways.

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Apart from looking at it, I sadly admit to never having run the train. However, that changed and it was unpacked and although the background of Gailston, my 00 gauge terminus layout is perhaps not quite the right era, it did at least allow me to enjoy seeing the loco and rolling stock on the track and running.

Getting it out of its box, two things strike you. One is how small it all is and secondly just how visually stunning the whole train is. You won't see something like this roll into your local railway station! Even Mrs. W was impressed by its looks!

The engine, Lion, even comes with a driver and fireman dressed in the style of the day. I guess that they really did not like any bad weather with the lack of any cab to protect them.

Meanwhile, in this long gone and different era, if you had the money a First Class ticket would get you the luxury of an enclosed carriage very much on the lines of the old horse drawn stage coaches that at the time were still being used.

Luggage would go on the roof!

Regardless of the weather, a third class ticket would get you a ride in this!

Little more than a wagon but I guess for those able to afford even the third class ticket it was a luxurious way to travel! I think I will be grateful for the luxury offered even with my second class ticket on todays railway system!

Evolution!

The evolution of a model is something that if you are working on it on a regular basis, (although 'regular' in Woody's World is probably a different interpretation with a much looser meaning to that most others have of the word) then you sometimes miss just how far a model has come on. One of the aims of doing this blog was for me to be able to look back on occasions and just see what I have been up to and what progress I have made on projects. The current 09 gauge project is a case in point as these three phots show.

Back on the 21 December I had this. A loco and three skip wagons in bare plastic looking interesting but needing some life brought to them.

By the start of the New Year the evolution had really started with it having taken on some life with colour added but it was in a pristine colours scheme looking like it had just rolled off the production line.

Going on a week things evolved further with that pristine look having given way to a weathered, battered, uncared for (this could actually be describing me!) and much more realistic look.

It is interesting and in many ways motivating to look back on the evolution of a project as it does show what you have achieved or in some cases not, but take that as a learning experience.

I just need to evolve this project further into a layout which will be another interesting evolution of a project!

Rust!

In my younger days I spent literally days trying to remove rust from things. Cars, bikes, gates, tools, and a host of other steel related products. I was never that successful as it always seemed to return no matter how much removing and painting work I did. Years on and I find myself in the strange situation of actually trying to add rust to things! Somewhat bizarrely, not steel related products but plastic is the material to which I am adding rust! The 09 project rolling stock is the current recipient of my rusting work. The skips and loco have been suitably corroded with a mix of weathering powders as the pictures below show. 

The difference between a rusted and a dirtied skip body shows what a dramatic effect rusting can have on a model and, in my view, making that rusty skip body look as though it really has worked over the years.

Having painted the insides of the skip in a metal colour, the rust powders give that nice contrast of areas of polished steel from what ever is carried in the skip to areas where rust has taken hold.

The loco was not as heavily rusted but it still looks fairly worn!

The interior of the cab also looks like it could do with a clean.

As does the radiator area.

It still needs some more detailing but I think that rust really brings out the character of the model. I just wouyld not like to have to remove the rust from the real life rolling stock!

A bit of dusting!

Much as I have talked about dusting of models and of course other non-model related items if Mrs. woody is reading, this dusting was actually putting dust on models. In this case the dust was weathering powders and the models were the 09 loco and skip wagons.

Starting off with the loco I added some earth and metal powders around the footplate areas and used some acrylic thinner to dampen and fix them in place. 

Next up was some ash coloured powder which was applied to the body panels. It dulls and fades the paint giving it that worn look. I just use a soft paint brush and occasionally a cotton bud.

The roof panel also got some treatment.

Next up were the skips and their running gear. It all looks fairly heavy at this stage but once a coat of matt varnish is applied it will tone down and in fact amy even need further application of powders to get the required look.

With some varnish applied my theory was confirmed that a further dusting would be required but it certainly all looks a little less prestine.

The engine block was coated in some enamel fresh engine oil mix to give it that 'working' look.

I also applied some of that product around the footplate area. Being an enamel product it will need a day to dry enough for further work to be undertaken. That gives me an opportunity to do some of Mrs. W's dusting!

Pizzazz!

 With the Fergie tractor put to one side after having found a minute to finish it off, I turned back to the 09 gauge project I am beginning to make progress on.  Having painted the loco blue and skips blue and added some red to the lower parts of the loco, the skip running gear was painted black and the insides of the skips metal. I think it all works well together as this picture of the wheeless skips and chassisless loco shows. 

As I did highlight previously, there is a need to weather the loco and the skips as they look as though they have just rolled out of the The Railway Locomotive and Rolling Stock Emporiums showroom. Before I can do that I do need to get them all in a matt varnish. The varnish helps to adhere the subsequent application of weathering powders and similar treatments as well as protecting the base paint. That has now been done so I just need to wait until the varnish fully dries and then I can start the dirtying process!

Talking of dirty, I have started to paint the two 3D printed 7mm figures that I have which will be part of this project at some stage! At this early part of the painting process they do look somewhat unkept and dirty but hopefully I can give them some pizzazz once fully painted! I think Mrs. Woody thinks that I should also paint myself in the hope of me gaining some pizzazz!