Black Country Blues

[Mark Forrest]

On the Ore Tipplers which had the ends cut (like: http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/brironoretipplerunfit/h699AA1D#h699aa1d ) were both ends cut?

[wagonbasher]

Could that be as simple as to enable loaders to walk from wagon to wagon considering there are no doors and someone has to tie a rope or chain around the beast?  A point raised based on no historical or actual knowledge at all.

 

Andy

[wagonbasher]

Missed the butterfly fluttering past though......

 

Stewart

 

sorry, butterfly's at exhibitions only

 

Love the detail Andy...

 

A

[Mark Forrest]

A while ago I picked up a couple of Hornby Iron Ore tipplers.  My original plan was to convert these to Coil Js as per Adam's fine example here.  However, the prospect of the ingot moulds which Arthur is doing prompted a re-think.

 

The Hornby model represents one of the earlier batches, whereas the example (from one of Paul Bartlett's photos linked above) which I'm going for is a diagram 1/183 so the body height needs reducing by a scale 4" (ish). 

 

Out with the razor saw......

 

There is a bit of tidying up to do, then a few further details, including swapping the axle boxes for roller bearings.

[Adam]

Nice work Mark and thanks for the reference to my Coil J. I must get round to posting an update on that particular saga. These more extensive conversions are a bit out of my modelling timeframe but are interesting to me nonetheless.

 

I know that you have a rake of Clayliner opens for BCB on the go. Did the tanks ever get up that way? I know that they made the West Midlands from the comments to this picture: http://www.flickr.com/photos/robmcrorie/5397305662/ and, of course, I have a fairly extensive conversion of the Tri-ang one on the go; I would't fancy doing a rake of these without a custom etch, but it should make a nice model.

Adam

 

 

 

[Fat Controller]

Nice work Mark and thanks for the reference to my Coil J. I must get round to posting an update on that particular saga. These more extensive conversions are a bit out of my modelling timeframe but are interesting to me nonetheless.

 

I know that you have a rake of Clayliner opens for BCB on the go. Did the tanks ever get up that way? I know that they made the West Midlands from the comments to this picture: http://www.flickr.com/photos/robmcrorie/5397305662/ and, of course, I have a fairly extensive conversion of the Tri-ang one on the go; I would't fancy doing a rake of these without a custom etch, but it should make a nice model.

Adam

Pretty certain the tanks only worked to Sittingbourne in their earlier days; in later years, they may have worked via Bescot to either Blackburn or the Scottish paper mills. Slurry wasn't used much in the Potteries, as most pot-banks used to make their own version of 'slip' (semi-liquid clay used for casting ware) to their own specification. 

I think the person who wrote the caption confounded the 'Clayliner' service of clay in open wagons to the Potteries with the Sittingbourne service, which may have carried the 'Clayliner' service when it first started.

[Andy Y]

The embankments looked a bit too green/beige so I thought it needed something to break it up a little and chose to have a crack at some Rosebay Willow Herb as something appropriate for urban dereliction rather than rural flora. I've never seen any modelled which really lit my fire(weed) so I thought I'd have a go using some other products.

 

Woodland Scenics Field Grass (medium green)

Woodland Scenics Blended Turf (green blend)

Green Scene scatter (midsummer green)

Flower Soft Ultra Fine (raspberry fizz) - available from Hobbycraft

 

 

 

Take a pinch of the Field Grass, give it a twist in the centre and dab superglue around the centre. Cut at the centre when dry and trim to suit, spray with hairspray and dip into a mix of the Blended Turf and Green Scene scatter. When dry another blast of hairspray and dip into the pot of Flower Soft. Stab a hole in the scenery, fill with PVA and plant your weed.

 

 

I know these 'erbs should be a little more singular and upright but it gives a passable interpretation from normal viewing distances. Only a fraction of the packets of stuff have been used to create the weeds shown and is certainly less than a quid's worth.

 

Most hedges that I see look like they've fallen out of a box rather than a random mix of aged plants taking over the original hedge planting to make something that's wider than it is tall until it becomes part of the landscape.

 

[PaternosterRow]

In that last shot of the undergrowth it's very hard to know that you're not looking at the real thing. Fantastic scenics. This layout has been a brilliant collaboration of some amazing modeling skills.

[Adam]

Thanks Brian. I knew that the tanks were built for the Burngullow-Sittingbourne run and tended to run as a block train. I was a little confused about the caption myself; what made me wonder about that was that via Bath seems an odd route to get anywhere in the south east from Cornwall given the option of the Langport cut off. I wasn't sure about the Western on the front either since the other pictures I've seen of that service have a Brush type 4/class 47 on the front (although at introduction, they wouldn't have been able to work these tanks at any great speed since the tanks were AB only and the Westerns were only converted a year or two later).

 

Adam

[Baloo The Bear]

Guys

 

Just been notified of this on Saturday from Robert at the Tipton Library. Might be of interest.

 

-------------

 

GRAND INVITATION

 

Cuts and Cuttings - Tipton Library's Annual Local History Day

In memory of Fred Barnfield

 

Saturday 28th September 2013

10.30am - 1.30pm

 

You are cordially invited to the annual local history day which this year is themed on canals and railways and events and activities include:

 

·         Opening by special guest at 10.30am

·         Canal and railway photo exhibition including the opportunity to cast your vote in our people favourite photo competition

·         Performance by poet Brendan Hawthorne at 10.45am

·         Local film shows throughout the event

·         Book launch by Billy Spake Mon at 11.30am Little Bigguns an’ Big Littluns A book of Stories for Babbys and The Bravest Wench I Know  A Series  Of Lyrics in Dialect

·         Local history booksale and the opportunity to buy the Canal Towns DVD by John Whitehouse (exclusive to this event)

·         Coffee and Cake Stall in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support

·         Black Country Food tasting including Gray Paes and Grorty Pudding

·         Pog rug making and special 'Care on the Cut' display by Della Sadler Moore

·         Canal themed colouring sheets and wordsearches

·         Presentation of Summer Reading Challenge Medals at 12.30

 

Hope to see you there!

 

Robert Hazel

Community Library Manager

[Andy Y]

it's very hard to know that you're not looking at the real thing. 

 

It's a doddle to do, start with a length of this http://www.javis.co.uk/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=shop.flypage_norm&product_id=14326&category_id=19&manufacturer_id=0&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=2 to give some rigidity and give it a dusting of the aforementioned Blended Turf, stick in some left over bits of Woodland Scenic Fine Leaf Foliage, glue in some tufts of static grass at the foot and job done. The indeterminate weedy growth in front of the hedge is green polyfibre with another dusting of Blended Turf.

[RedgateModels]

The beauty of this approach is that as with overlaying static grass over hanging basket liner, you can get the basic feel for how the layout will look, then improve it as you go on layering more scenics over the top until you are happy.

Edited September 23, 2013 by RedgateModels

[Dave47549]

.

Edited October 1, 2021 by Dave47549
Removed pointless guff

[Dave47549]

.

Edited October 1, 2021 by Dave47549
Removed pointless guff

[Andy Y]

Thankfully Geoff realised there was a danger that the viaduct board would end up as a twee garden so he's taken the board off me and deposited another load of work I'd left unfinished. As part of the sidings board one of the features was the abandoned boat. Now some time back Andy had made a lovely delicate boat.

 

 

Some idiot's just been and taken it to the bench grinder in some kind of Viking funeral recreation.

 

 

It now lists a bit, especially with its load.

 

[jwealleans]

Looks hammered to me.

[Dave47549]

.

Edited October 1, 2021 by Dave47549
Removed pointless guff

[gwrrob]

The embankments looked a bit too green/beige so I thought it needed something to break it up a little and chose to have a crack at some Rosebay Willow Herb as something appropriate for urban dereliction rather than rural flora. I've never seen any modelled which really lit my fire(weed) so I thought I'd have a go using some other products.

 

Woodland Scenics Field Grass (medium green)

Woodland Scenics Blended Turf (green blend)

Green Scene scatter (midsummer green)

Flower Soft Ultra Fine (raspberry fizz) - available from Hobbycraft

 

RWH3.jpg

 

RWH1.jpg

 

Take a pinch of the Field Grass, give it a twist in the centre and dab superglue around the centre. Cut at the centre when dry and trim to suit, spray with hairspray and dip into a mix of the Blended Turf and Green Scene scatter. When dry another blast of hairspray and dip into the pot of Flower Soft. Stab a hole in the scenery, fill with PVA and plant your weed.

 

RWH2s.jpg

 

I know these 'erbs should be a little more singular and upright but it gives a passable interpretation from normal viewing distances. Only a fraction of the packets of stuff have been used to create the weeds shown and is certainly less than a quid's worth.

 

Most hedges that I see look like they've fallen out of a box rather than a random mix of aged plants taking over the original hedge planting to make something that's wider than it is tall until it becomes part of the landscape.

 

Hedge_S.jpg

 

Excellent Andy.Is that Flower Soft Raspberry Fizz available in other colours or should that be flavours ?

[Andy Y]

Excellent Andy.Is that Flower Soft Raspberry Fizz available in other colours or should that be flavours ?

 

Loads; the ones in the small pots (such as the Raspberry) are quite fine, the other pots have larger flakes - I think they're about £3 a pot but it'll go a long way.

[BlackRat]

Andy, what section of hobby craft please?

Edited September 23, 2013 by BlackRat

[Andy Y]

Andy, what section of hobby craft please?

 

Card making stuff, somewhere near the glittery bits (at least you know the name now; I had to go in and describe it ). No; I didn't find it by chance, I was tipped off by Giles Favell some time ago.

[gwrrob]

Loads; the ones in the small pots (such as the Raspberry) are quite fine, the other pots have larger flakes - I think they're about £3 a pot but it'll go a long way.

 

Quite a range of colours for us gardeners on here http://www.flower-soft.co.uk/Cart/EC-Results.php?SECCategoryID=93

[Worsdell forever]

Card making stuff, somewhere near the glittery bits (at least you know the name now; I had to go in and describe it ). No; I didn't find it by chance, I was tipped off by Giles Favell some time ago.

Even easier than that for me, I just ask my mum if she has 'such-and-such' colour - she has a box full of the stuff...

[Mark Forrest]

Real life has been getting in the way of modelling a little bit recently and as a result I'm about 4 weeks behind where I'd hoped to be with finishing off various wagons ready for our trip to Peterborough on 19th & 20th October.  In a effort to try to catch up, I grabbed some time earlier today to progress a few bits.

 

Firstly, the next Tube gets its brake levers:

 

Roller bearings for the Ingot Mould Tippler:

 

Using MJT castings; I find it's worthwhile reducing the size of these slightly; before and after:

 

and then glued in place:

 

 

On a back burner for some time now are the Plate wagons.  I think these were amongst the first wagons I started building for the project, but as they weren't required for traffic feeding our works, other things took priority.  We now have two possible uses for these; the ingot moulds which Arthur is working on and pig iron, using the Unit Models cast resin loads.

 

I had got as far as getting about half a dozen bodies built up and adding running gear to three of these.  As a bit of an experiment, I'm aiming to do two of these as vac fitted examples (one with LNER pattern brakes, the other with BR) and probably the third as an unfitted specimen.  The BR fitted brakes had proven a bit of a challenge, but I'l finally been brave enough to have a look at some Ambis parts I bought about a year ago.

 

Much more to do, but quite pleased with how this has turned out so far.

[Mark Forrest]

Be careful with that ex-London Transport DMS. WMPTE didn't have them until 1979 - & at first they had just the LT 'ultimate' display with the route & via displays painted over. The 80 that they had were allocated in batches of 20 each to SO, HE, QN & YW, so wouldn't have normally ventured deep into the black country.

Top marks for your bus recognition, particularly as you can only see the roof in that photo!  Thanks, will keep a look out for something more suitable.