A daily updated blog typed by someone with painty hands, oil under his fingernails and the smell of solder in his nostrils who likes making all sort of models and miniatures. And fixing things.
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Film and TV props, especially older ones, fascinate me. Once, when looking at some from Red Dwarf , I commented that they were more basic than I'd expected. The builders agreed, but pointed out that they were on screen for a fraction of a second, and people were more interested in the story than the details of the gizmo being waved around by the actor. Well, until the advent of DVDs, and sci-fi…
You know I love a weird, vintage kit. Well, under the table in the The Tram Junction, Laxey, Isle of Man, I found a couple of envelopes, claiming to contain bits for a coach kit. It was too complicated to go through in the shop, but a fiver secured both, so I could enjoy a proper look later. What we have (I think) is, a six-seat brake coach kit. It's made up of good-quality cardboard sides and…
As supplied, the kit comes with a split pin, a bit of wire and a plastic hook. This will produce a realistic Ffestiniog coupling, but one that will be incompatible with everything except Cooper Craft wagon kits. Even then, the things will be a fiddle to use, which is why I prefer a bit of chunky chain. Digging in my spares box, I find some rather nice whitemetal buffers. There is a bolt thread on…
The slate wagon body is simple, and ingenious. First, the sides are dropped into holes in the floor. These needed to be drilled out, although I just waggled a tapered reamer in to make them larger. Lashings of MEK softened the plastic so they would push in. Then, three slats are inserted into the ends. For the middle two, you ease the upper and lower side slats, and then the new one is grabbed by…
I like being able to slot parts of a kit together without glue. In this case, the glass-filled nylon solebars and axleboxes can be slid into the floor with a little bit of a wiggle. Handy, as there has been a change to slate wagon kit since it was introduced. Original kits were designed to take finescale wheelsets. Now, a set of 16mm Association standard wheels are included, and these are slightly…
Here it is. The kit that launched the Binnie empire . Moulded in ABS, and glass-filled nylon, a kit for the Ffestiniog 2-ton slate wagon. Reintroducing this kit has involved 40-year-old moulds and many burnt fingers from the manufacturer. As a piece of history, I felt that with my Garden Rail Editor jacket on, I ought to buy one and have a go. Despite being a limited-production kit, my parcel…
I love "Art in the Park". The beautiful, if somewhat yellow, Jephson Gardens, are filled with stalls. Each of those stalls is manned by an artist selling their wares. All the hand-made creativity you could want, in a small(ish, it's getting bigger) space in Leamington Spa. Now, I know it's possible to spend a lot of money here. There is everything from ridiculously cheap cards (I stock up for…
Some wise advice from my good self, all hidden behind a thumbnail chosen by one of my rotten colleagues! I will get my own back...
OK, I'm a sucker for one particular Groudle Glen Railway engine. When I saw this painting of the best steam engine in the world on eBay, I managed to resist, for a couple of weeks. Week three, and £25 later, it was mine. The watercolour may be slightly "naive", as the art world might say, but there is a lot right about it. The proportions of the loco, and the perspective for a start. Distorted…
You know I said I wouldn't be messing around fettling this kit? It seems I lied. On the manufacturer's website , the hull is clearly shown as a series of slices on their finished model. I didn't have a massive problem with this, but my lining up of the hull slices wasn't as perfect as I'd like. They were good, all within 0.5mm, but you could see the differences. So, down to the garage, and out…
Garden railways are never finished, and the 16mm scale Snape & Thornton Watlass Light Railway proves it! In our latest issue, builder James LePage reveals how his much-loved line has evolved over the years, the lessons he's learned, and what's next for the railway. Plus, on the workbench: Building Corris vans with a modern twist Constructing a narrow gauge tanker kit Bole Laser Craft's beautifully…
Most of the MDF parts in the Petite kit , are layers that make up the hull. It's a simple job, fit the first two, and then add the internal walls. PVA holds everything together, but it's important at this stage, to ensure all the parts are square. The walls provide some positive location for all the rest of the hull slices. All this is made easier by the accuracy of the cutting, and that the…
