ScR steam in the 50's

Love the station on that sweeping curve, even before it's completed the depth to the whole thing looks great, can't wait to see it all greened up.

Cheers Mike.

Agree.

I will watch this thread with great interest as Kylesku and The Mound has been one of my favorite layouts. Keep the pictures coming!

Thomas

Work has been continuing on the layout with construction of two similar goods sheds for the two stations, and they have reached the stage of getting a coat of primer, with the bulk of the work on them now done. I am still pondering the roof covering- slates- and am thinking of using a new range of pre-coloured paper ones as I cant face the thought of cutting individual strips of paper. I'll keep progress on this posted.

I am also doing the signal boxes and the platform one is now ready for its roof, but I have placed it into position for a photo shoot today, in which can be seen a messshed and the other water tank nowbuilt and primed. Once the next cabin is finished it will be time to start settling these into place and getting greenery growing- Winter is almost passed here …….


Anyway, some proof of progress-

I haven't managed much modelling recently, but some work has been done on the second signal cabin, and here is a trial fitting in its eventual home- still needs a lot done on it, but its getting there.

Nice buildings, Richard.  :thumbs

Is it going to be a snow scene?

Don't worry- summer will come- I want to get all the buildings done in a batch before I move onto scenics as I can get sidetracked all too easily, and I have more or less laid out a plan of action for this build, aware of the fact that I don't have the luxury of decades to fritter away anymore.

It's looking very good Ben.

I like the way you've made your banks sort of "lumpy".  All too often, you seen bowling green smooth cuttings etc. that just don't look realistic.  Nature is seldom flat or straight ………………..:roll::roll:

That backscene improves every time I see it. :thumbs

I do like the backscene, and I went for the 15" version to get maximum impact. I used the smaller one on the last layout, which worked as far as the eye went but  photography showed up its limitations and I had to resort to using the cloning and smudge brushes to extend skyscapes to an effective level. Hopefully this will not be needed so much this time round.

I also decided to work from the backscene forward this time ,rather than as an afterthought and then wonder why it didn't fit in properly:sad:, and I think this approach is  the right way for me. The two signal cabins are now all but finished, and are seen plonked in place on the layout, Just about ready to move back to the layout and start the scenic side, and am itching to get going- one more station building to do at the terminus and then we're off!……

Here are the two cabins.







And I have taken steps to deal with the "snow" problem- this arrived at Helmsdale today-

What's that Ben ? :shock::shock:

It looks like an intriguing snowplough - plus the topping on the tender …………..is it your own design or did they actually exist ?

p.s. Love the signal boxes :thumbs

It did indeed exist, and is based on the LMS 4F that was the Fort William snowplough latterly, although they also ran on the Highland line as well. The tender covering was to protect the coal and crew, from snow and is a white metal kit from Genesis Kits, I think. It is a non-powered dummy at the moment, and usually just sits doing nothing at the back of the shed, as did the prototype in fact, but I plan sometime to motorise it- just waiting for the loser in the 4F wars to drop enough in price!

Hello Ben,

Looks to be an interesting layout. Looking foward to see the landscape evolve from here on. I do like the back scenes. Are they the ones available from ID ?

Cheers, Gary.

G'day Ben,
Lovely work.
What did you end up using for the good shed slate roofs?
Marty

Hi Ben
I have just taken a read through you thread and like very much what I see. The two things that stand out for me is the spacious nature of the layout. You have got a lot in it but it does not look crammed. I also like the curves, particularly in the station. All to often they are dead straight (like on my layout) and yours have that extra touch. I am glad you decided bring your layout to the forum as I am having great pleasure watching it grow.

Bob

Sorry for not replying sooner- I have been busy finishing off the station buildings and getting ready for the landscaping phase, so have not visited here lately. My  reply alert seems to have gone so was not aware of your kind words- thank you.

The backscene is indeed the ID one-the 15" version, with a bit of the greenery cut off the bottom- and is a very useful piece of kit. I have seen it used on many layouts based throughout the UK, and it always seems to fit into the area being modelled- I used a smaller version on my last layout but went for this larger one to get the maximum potential for photos without extra  fiddling to an image.

I have taken some liberties with the curvature at Helmsdale compared to the prototype in order to fit it in, but am pleased with the way it is starting to photograph up, and there should be more progress reports  from now on as most of the buildings are now finished- the last one is the train shed at the terminus, and this should be sorted out in a few days.

The goods shed eventually got paper slate sheet covering from a new set-up called True Texture- they're on the web- that have a nice range of surfaces available- and has saved a lot of painting , as I was going to use Wills plastic sheets, but decided that these were a good substitute. A photo is attached, and I hope to have some more to post up soon.
Thanks again for the interest- it's a great spur to me for making progress.

At last, summer has arrived in the Far North- actually, its 1.35am and the sky is as light as day here-but here are a couple of shots to show the changes. They are first coats, with much junk lying around, but are the start of the coming to life of the new layout, at last….

Excellent shots Ben. :thumbs  The lone deserted wagon is a sight frequently seen at isolated "country" stations where, unless there's a train due, everything goes to sleep.  It looks great.

I've commented on the backscene before but will say again, how good it looks.  The shot of the signal box could be early spring with the last remnants of winter snow lingering in the shadows.  I can imagine the somewhat remote and windswept location perfectly. Please don't cover the white areas nor the bit of snow resting on the wall top.  A very atmospheric picture - well done. :cheers

When you tell us it's daylight at 1am, I mentally move on to December when you'll be telling us it's still dark at 1pm …………  Don't forget, every silver lining has a cloud attached …………….:hmm

Glad you like them- considering they were just trial shots of the painting they have come out quite well, and make my future work look promising. It does prove that working from the backscene forward has been a good decision.

Thurso box looks at home in its sparse setting, but in reality it nestled in a overgrown cutting full of bushes and tree growth, and was one oe the most rustic of the Highland boxes, most of which were in exposed or plain situations- we'll have to think about this one.

Attached is the companion shot of the solitary van- looking the other way- I have had to do a bit of cloning on this one to hide a point motor- there is as little happening here as in the other one!

Stunning. thumbs:thumbs

:oops: - thank you. I think the months, years, decades of deciding to model these two stations are perhaps going to be worthwhile. Once I get beyond the creative stage, I'll bore you all to death with the thinking behind my work, but tonight I gave the first coat to the terminus platform- please ignore all the plastic swarf lying around, plus all the other unpainted bits- it'll be tidied up soon.