Hills of the North - The Last Great Project

[Tortuga]

Hi Graham,

Do you need to see what loco is on each road or just which roads are occupied? Would an infrared detector under each road linked to lights on the shed control panel be a possible solution?

 

Like others have said, a non-circular hole might present problems when you come to build the roof.

[Michael Edge]

I think it does look a bit odd not being circular but you'll have to live with that. I had a close look at our slice of Upperby roundhouse, can't really see how they built it but I think the basic structure is foamboard. I took this photo of the roof which might be of some use, there are windows over every road and notice that the roof is set well below the top of the outer wall.

We only had room for a small slice of the roundhouse, up against a double sided backscene - no possibility of locos inside it anyway.

[Barry O]

perspx or mirrors would be of use methinks. You can have a scenically "correct cover" for the perspex for photos if required.. but you need to keep muck out of the turntable mechanism.

 

Baz

[Tortuga]

Actually Graham, I take back what I previously said about problems when constructing the roof - I hadn’t appreciated it was effectively flat with a raised front edge and radial skylights!

 

I’d imagine the finished product would look a lot more like the flat plywood than I’d originally imagined and therefore the “non-centralised”-ness of the cutout might be more obvious.

 

I’d try out mock ups using card - one with a “central” hole closer to the front edge of the building and one with a more “egg-shaped” hole - and see which version gives the most realistic impression from the most common viewpoint (I’m assuming this would be from the shed control panel).

[ian]

I'm with Clive on this one. When you are busy operating anything that obstructs access or view is a nuisance. Anything that involves technology will play up at some point. Have a removable roof for show (and dust prevention) and a mirror for visibility. As long as it doesn't reflect direct sunlight or fall off its mountings....

[Fishplate]

Not sure how detailed you plan to go with the roof or the internals, Graham @LNER4479? 

 

Would an option be a de-roofed shed with just some columns and girders? There are various examples of these in BR days. But maybe not Upperby? 

[LNER4479]

Thanks for thoughts, one and all. No offence taken with any - all good.

 

Funnily enough, not long after I'd posted it, I thought to myself: 'Why not just remove the front half of the roof for an operating session?'. Definitely an option - this is what it looks like with roof removed.

 

In case you were wondering, the roof rests on a ledge inside the wall panels, which you should be able to make out in this view.

 

Each wall panel is removable (for now), like so. You can see the aforementioned ledge strip on this piece. Removable like this, so that the detailing can subsequently be added prior to final affixation ... one day.

 

Partly influenced by your comments, I spent an hour this evening, fixing up a mirror like so (see - I do listen!). Positioned like this, it gives a more or less straight down view onto the turntable. A quick play showed it to be more effective than it might first appear. A localised lamp would probably help.

 

You've probably also convinced me to leave the centre circle as it is, although it should actually be thr'penny bit shaped! When not in use, the roof will be on, with a perspex cover over the centre circle.

 

I think I'll sleep on it for a few days now - time to get back to the interlocking, methinks!

Edited October 4 by LNER4479

[Sasquatch]

Very impressive so far Graham. I did have one a couple of thoughts and that would be to dig out the modeling license and make a fan shaped roof with skylights out of Perspex. Perspex is a much-neglected modeling medium. You could also employ LED interior lighting. Realism and you get to see what's going on!

  OBS studio works with any webcam and will give access to a full screen view. Mirrors show everything the wrong way round. Why not go belt and braces and have both mirror and camera. In hindsight having had similar problems and put lighting and webcams in hidden storage sidings I wish that there were more options available. 

 

Edit. Modeling that fan shaped roof looks very challenging. Hummmmm. 

 

Regards Shaun.

Edited October 5 by Sasquatch

[gr.king]

I reckon, that unless you want to spend ages re-doing things and trying different materials (and I assume you don't), then stick with the ply roof, make it removable as Clive sensibly suggests, and don't elongate or de-centre the hole towards the operator as that will make even more obvious the shallower curvature of the nearer wall. Once details are added, and the emphasis shifts to operating the layout rather than scrutinising it, I bet the irregular shape will go largely un-noticed.  Good job you are only trying to create an essentially flat roof, the geometry would be a nightmare for something with a circular main ridge or a central apex...

[Clive Mortimore]

39 minutes ago, gr.king said:

I reckon, that unless you want to spend ages re-doing things and trying different materials (and I assume you don't), then stick with the ply roof, make it removable as Clive sensibly suggests, and don't elongate or de-centre the hole towards the operator as that will make even more obvious the shallower curvature of the nearer wall. Once details are added, and the emphasis shifts to operating the layout rather than scrutinising it, I bet the irregular shape will go largely un-noticed.  Good job you are only trying to create an essentially flat roof, the geometry would be a nightmare for something with a circular main ridge or a central apex...

The roof is quite interesting, each bay has its own ridge, the same as the old Hornby Doublo engine shed roof.  Red leader needs 12 Doublo shed buildings to cut up to make the roof.

 

This is an aerial photo of Leicester shed which was to the same basic design.

[lezz01]

Well there are quite a lot of HD engine shed parts on the bay of E. Some of them are quite cheap others not so cheap but if you bide your time or maybe mock one up with HD spares you could cast the rest from resin. I quite like the old Hornby Dublo buildings they were very nice.

Regards Lez.  

Edited October 5 by lezz01

[LNER4479]

38 minutes ago, Clive Mortimore said:

 

This is an aerial photo of Leicester shed which was to the same basic design.

Thanks for that, Clive.

Yes - Upperby and Leicester were to the same design. Interesting to speculate that the roundhouse design adapted the same design as for the straight shed version when it came to the roof? 

Interesting also to see the remains of the earlier double roundhouse in that aerial photo.

[Clive Mortimore]

24 minutes ago, LNER4479 said:

Thanks for that, Clive.

Yes - Upperby and Leicester were to the same design. Interesting to speculate that the roundhouse design adapted the same design as for the straight shed version when it came to the roof? 

Interesting also to see the remains of the earlier double roundhouse in that aerial photo.

Hi Graham

 

Do you have British Railways Engine Sheds, London Midland Matters, by Hawkins, Hopper and Reeve? It has quite a bit about renewing of the roofs (rooves?) of ex LMS engine sheds. There was also a very good article on reroofing Goole shed in an old Backtrack. I can either scan or photocopy anything you would find useful for or on Thursday.

[Clive Mortimore]

35 minutes ago, LNER4479 said:

Thanks for that, Clive.

Yes - Upperby and Leicester were to the same design. Interesting to speculate that the roundhouse design adapted the same design as for the straight shed version when it came to the roof? 

Interesting also to see the remains of the earlier double roundhouse in that aerial photo.

The site of the old roundhouse became the locomotive repair shop, a two road shed. The repair shed is all that remains of Leicester shed as it was repurposed as a diesel shed in the 1960s.

 

I did once and once only bunk into the roundhouse at Leicester, just before it was demolished. Quite disappointed at the time as it was only housing preserved locos from the Clapham museum while York's roundhouse was being converted  to the NRM. Well I was a diesel spotter. It use to be great to stand on the walkway that over looked the shed area when spotting at Leicester. I understand that the walkway does not exist anymore.

[LNER4479]

1 hour ago, Clive Mortimore said:

Hi Graham

 

Do you have British Railways Engine Sheds, London Midland Matters, by Hawkins, Hopper and Reeve? It has quite a bit about renewing of the roofs (rooves?) of ex LMS engine sheds. There was also a very good article on reroofing Goole shed in an old Backtrack. I can either scan or photocopy anything you would find useful for or on Thursday.

No ... and yes please!! 🙂

[gr.king]

4 hours ago, Clive Mortimore said:

The roof is quite interesting, each bay has its own ridge, the same as the old Hornby Doublo engine shed roof.  Red leader needs 12 Doublo shed buildings to cut up to make the roof.

 

This is an aerial photo of Leicester shed which was to the same basic design.

Shallow radial ridges won't be such a problem of course, and don't much alter the overall flatness of the roof. The nightmare I had in mind was that of trying to bring a load of quite pronounced slopes (over the varying lengths of the different bays) up to a uniform ridge level, without making those inevitably varied slopes look a total mess. Impossible I suspect...

 

Let's hope the league against cruelty to Hornby-Dublo engine sheds don't hear of the proposal to cut up several of them.

[6220]

Hi Graham ,

could you made the shed roof so as the front piece just hinges  back when an operator requires to see the the bays at the near side, then drop it back down well the loco in on the turntable or in a bay!

[Enterprisingwestern]

 

For those of a certain age, perhaps something like this?

 

 

Mike.

[lezz01]

4 hours ago, Enterprisingwestern said:

 

For those of a certain age, perhaps something like this?

 

 

Mike.

Is that Wembley? If so I was in that crowd. It was a great concert! Oh God that was a long long time ago.

Regards Lez. 

[CHAZ D]

On 05/10/2024 at 19:46, gr.king said:

Shallow radial ridges won't be such a problem of course, and don't much alter the overall flatness of the roof. The nightmare I had in mind was that of trying to bring a load of quite pronounced slopes (over the varying lengths of the different bays) up to a uniform ridge level, without making those inevitably varied slopes look a total mess. Impossible I suspect...

 

Let's hope the league against cruelty to Hornby-Dublo engine sheds don't hear of the proposal to cut up several of them.

There is an alternative Playcraft made the same shed.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/116348920287?

They also did an extension roof

 

Chaz

 

[lezz01]

13 minutes ago, CHAZ D said:

There is an alternative Playcraft made the same shed.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/116348920287?

They also did an extension roof

 

Chaz

 

Wasn't Playcraft HO scale? I say this because my first trainset was the Playcraft freight set with the Class 21 and 3 bogie freight cars and a standard Brake van and the brake van was very small against a Triang one. 

Regards Lez.

[CHAZ D]

12 minutes ago, lezz01 said:

Wasn't Playcraft HO scale? I say this because my first trainset was the Playcraft freight set with the Class 21 and 3 bogie freight cars and a standard Brake van and the brake van was very small against a Triang one. 

Regards Lez.

The moulding is identical and interchangeable with Hornby Just the colour id different! I have 6 of them

Edited October 6 by CHAZ D
spelling

[bimble]

On 04/10/2024 at 22:47, LNER4479 said:

Partly influenced by your comments, I spent an hour this evening, fixing up a mirror like so (see - I do listen!). Positioned like this, it gives a more or less straight down view onto the turntable. A quick play showed it to be more effective than it might first appear. A localised lamp would probably help.

 

 

It may be an idea for visiting signallers to have an indication around the mirror of the road numbers to see which roads are available/in use.  Especially as the far/near lines will be flipped from position in mirror to position on control panel.  Presumably you'd only be looking up at the mirror from a single position so there shouldn't be too much drift in position.

[Chamby]

Rather than source/cannibalise the HD shed roofs, the vents look to be a good candidate for a 3Dprint job.  Simple enough shape, not very big and by the looks of it, all identical.

[lezz01]

53 minutes ago, Chamby said:

Rather than source/cannibalise the HD shed roofs, the vents look to be a good candidate for a 3Dprint job.  Simple enough shape, not very big and by the looks of it, all identical.

Someone's already selling them on the bay.

Regards Lez.