HSB goes indoors

Some progress in the last few days, the low relief buildings are just about complete (show window displays to make). You can see them in the photos below, they are not in their proper location, just propped up for the photographs. They form part of the backscene and will only be used if I exhibit the layout, but I’ve had to make them now as part of the scenery has to be built round them.

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I also had a friend round yesterday and once I had cleared all the modelling materials off the tracks, we actually had a train running. It did reveal though that my 2-10-2T couldn’t get in one siding as the bunker hit a brick wall, not sure yet wheather to ban the big loco from that siding or remove part of the wall. I’ll have to try running all my stock to see if anything else has a problem.

I also had a bit of a scare when everything stopped working. This was eventually traced to a tin foil tray being put on a section of track shorting everything out. Once this had been removed, still nothing would run. I began to think that perhaps the short had destroyed my original MTS system. However, after 10 monutes or so it started working again. Phew.

There is unlikely to be any progress on the layout for several months now, I’ve been invited to take my OO layout to a big exhibition in June, so I need to use my modelling time to get it ready. I’ll still be logging into G scale central though.
 
It’s over a year since I touched the G scale layout. Work stopped to let me concentrate on getting my 00 layout ready for the exhibition at the Great Central Railway in June last year. All the preperation paid off as the layout ran faultlessly for all three days. Since then, work, life and a bout of flu prevented any progress. However, being a part time bus & coach driver I’ve been told to expect no work while the virus is around. So I’ve stocked up on scenic supplies and plan to use the time to try and finish the G scale layout.

The first job is to complete this area.

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Before I start I’m hoping someone can help me. I think the markers in the photo below show how far trains can go without fouling points, but where exactly do they go? Between converging tracks? One on each line? Which side of the track, right or left?

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Cheers.
 
ColinK said:
It’s over a year since I touched the G scale layout. Work stopped to let me concentrate on getting my 00 layout ready for the exhibition at the Great Central Railway in June last year. All the preperation paid off as the layout ran faultlessly for all three days. Since then, work, life and a bout of flu prevented any progress. However, being a part time bus & coach driver I’ve been told to expect no work while the virus is around. So I’ve stocked up on scenic supplies and plan to use the time to try and finish the G scale layout.

The first job is to complete this area.

View attachment 263073

Before I start I’m hoping someone can help me. I think the markers in the photo below show how far trains can go without fouling points, but where exactly do they go? Between converging tracks? One on each line? Which side of the track, right or left?

View attachment 263074

Cheers.
Click to expand...
They go exactly where a train would sideswipe another at a point. This is the link to my thread on the ones I built. Even the odd prototype pic of one in Germany, same principle applies in Switzerland.

www.gscalecentral.net

Fouling Point Indicators

You know what it is like, you have parked that Train in the Siding and not been to careful about how you parked it. You then go along and run another Train past the one in the Siding. CRUNCH! You have hit the parked Train and done a bit of damage to boot. The first Picture shows the scenario all...
www.gscalecentral.net www.gscalecentral.net
 
Fouling Point Markers, that’s the name I couldn’t remember. Thanks for your reply, I actually prefer the ones you made, brilliant use of left overs.

I was looking forward to making progress, much to my surprise I got a call from work, ‘can you come in tomorrow? We’ll probably need you all week.’
 
No work today, so I’m having a rare ‘me’ day and working on the G scale layout. Today’s task is to use square section plastic to form outlines inside which the buildings fit. That way I can remove them if I ever exhibit the layout. The actual plastic sections will vanish under the landscape, which I’m planning to do on my next free day.

5945CB9A-484C-416C-9C1B-B755AA1DCE3A.jpeg

One question I would appreciate your thoughts on is the ground round the servicing pit. Should I board it (more coffee stirrers)? Just general earth with coal crushed in? Can’t be chequerplate as I haven’t got any.

My time won’t all be available for the G scale layout though, yesterday while driving a bus a gent flagged me down and gave me a loco he wants painting. Plus today my wife has been put on furough so she is at home with no work to do.
 
ColinK said:
No work today, so I’m having a rare ‘me’ day and working on the G scale layout. Today’s task is to use square section plastic to form outlines inside which the buildings fit. That way I can remove them if I ever exhibit the layout. The actual plastic sections will vanish under the landscape, which I’m planning to do on my next free day.

View attachment 263511

One question I would appreciate your thoughts on is the ground round the servicing pit. Should I board it (more coffee stirrers)? Just general earth with coal crushed in? Can’t be chequerplate as I haven’t got any.

My time won’t all be available for the G scale layout though, yesterday while driving a bus a gent flagged me down and gave me a loco he wants painting. Plus today my wife has been put on furough so she is at home with no work to do.
Click to expand...
A look at some pictures of servicing areas will show that the Ash option is what you need with odd lumps if coal. If you have a log burner (or know someone who has) that ash would do nicely. Also some damp area done with a splash ir two of varnish would fit the bill.
 
Thanks, I spent an evening looking at my books and decided that for the little coaling/stabling siding I’m building, the ground around the pit should be grot - as Dunnyrail suggested, basically ash and coal, together with a bit of oil and grease trampled into the ground. I think flat baseboards don’t look right so I’ve built up the ground using what I had available. Good progress but it does look a mess at this stage. The white area top left is ready mixed filler, the red bits are terracotta coloured DAS (white would have been easier but I didn’t have any) and the rest of the white is Sculptamould. You probably can’t see it on the photo but I’ve pushed some ‘coal’ into the DAS around the pit. More will be added later. It can dry over the weekend as I’ve been called into work tomorrow. Hopefully I’ll be able to start painting it next week.

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No work today and the plaster/DAS/Sculptamold had finally dried, so a couple of hours painting the ground. Starting to look better.
 
Easter Monday I unexpectedly had no work, which gave me time to plant the grass on the section of layout I'm trying to get finished. I was aiming for an unkempt look. It went on OK, but would the glue hold it in place? Day off today, so I ran the hoover over the new grass, yes, it was well stuck down. This is what it looks like now ....
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ColinK said:
Easter Monday I unexpectedly had no work, which gave me time to plant the grass on the section of layout I'm trying to get finished. I was aiming for an unkempt look. It went on OK, but would the glue hold it in place? Day off today, so I ran the hoover over the new grass, yes, it was well stuck down. This is what it looks like now ....
View attachment 264466
Click to expand...
Did you use Static Grass?
 
Morning. First I painted the ground with tester pots in various colours, although you can’t see the paint now. I glued some Woodland Scenics bushes and ground cover along the baseboard edge, although it probably wasn’t necessary. I then applied several layers of static grass in different shades obtained from WWS as was the glue and applicator. A video on their website shows how to get the unkempt look; basically apply two layers then before the glue dries rough it up into clumps with your fingers. It looks at mess at this stage, but apply more layers of grass and it looks fine. Once done a sprayed some more glue over it to help it stay fixed down. Unlike the garden, there is no need to mow!
 
Quite inspirational for an indoor railway. Would it be possible to see some pictures that show the overall layout or perhaps a sketch of the track plan? It would help me to visualize how the photos of the various areas fit together. Thank, Ken
 
Evening Ken, many thanks for your kind words. Apologies for being late in replying, I’ve been at work today.

The layout is really just a oval of LGB track, with a passing loop and station on one of the short sides and in the other corners a loco spur and goods shed. I’ll try and sketch something out later in the week. Hopefully by then I’ll have completed another section so I should have more photos to post.
 
Hi, as promised, here is a very rough trackplan. The overall size is roughly 3.5 x 2.5 metres. It is on 8 baseboards. You don't get much indoors in G scale.

G scale trackplan.001.jpeg
 
Laid some more static grass yesterday, but ran out with one board left to do. Hoovered up the excess this morning and one whole section came unstuck and rolled up like a carpet, I’ll be able to use it for tufts. Just as well I ordered some more. Off to work now.
 
Nice day, so I did some more painting on the castle. First I picked our individual stones in slightly different colours, then a grey wash to pick out the mortar courses. I was going to give it a quick gentle waft of dirt to weather it, but I think the grey wash has already achieved that. What do you think?

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Laying grass today. It's important that I credit WWScenics who have videos on their website on how to get a rough look. First step, mask the edge of the area to be covered so the spray glue used later doesn't go in the wrong place.

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Brush on some glue (thinly is important) and lay 2 mm static grass. But before it has dried, scrunch it up with fingers. yes, it looks a mess.

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Cover with spray glue (now you know why I masked it earlier) then add some 4mm long grass.

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The tuft in the foreground is actually grass stuck onto masting tape covering the fouling marker.

Spray more glue on and add some 6 mm static grass.

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Let all the glue dry, remove the masking tape and hoover up and loose bits. The result ....

IMG_4666.jpeg

I think that was a successful day. work tomorrow.
 
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