Hello everyone.

New heading picture this week, Chuffers Pat and Colin. I'm moving  the castles down to be part of the post - which will continue below.

Last post it was this castle in Carmarthenshire. Some may have identified it - Dryslwyn:

 

In 1287 the castle was laid to siege and wrecked by the English in just two weeks. I guess the outcome may have been different had there been an Italian referee overseeing the action - but we wont dwell on that...

 

How many can identify this weeks castle? (it's in Pembrokeshire)

 

 

 

Got a mixed bag for Chuffers this week. We are still in isolation mode, but nevertheless we have managed to do a little bit between ourselves.

Kicking off with my efforts out in the wilds of Pentrecagal, I have managed a passable image of Login in N gauge ready for the new Museum layout. It's representational, so not all that accurate. Trying to model in 3mm was bad enough, but dropping down to 2mm... admiration for Colin increases in leaps and bounds.

The idea is to have pictorial displays of the stations on the wall above each one, and more details of the area below, possibly with brochures etc advertising the products/attractions available in the area around each station. All to be discussed when the Society can next meet.

Moving on. I mentioned Colin and N gauge - the two are synonymous, we think of N gauge, and automatically Colin pops up.

On his home layout, he has a turntable:

Perfect, you would think. But oh no... It's not prototypical. There are no alignment stops, which the GWR had on their turntables. So, Colin makes them... (less than half an inch wide)

By the side of the turntable a grounded carriage has appeared to do duty as a workmans mess room:

And to improve the running of a couple of his Grange class locomotives (which he had converted from Graham Farish Hall class engines), he added electrical pickups to the tenders.

The locos ( well, one of them ) at quite a busy time at the station:

And turning it bottoms up to reveal its nether regions ( I do apologise ) here we have the extra pick-ups exposed:

What can one say?

(Going back to that station, I don't know where in Colins N gauge world it is situated, but three tender loco trains departing from a branch line terminus... Doctor Beeching and Co missed that one, thats for sure.)

To finish off, we pay a visit to Chessboard Hotel and station, and the annual Classic Car Show.

To add to the attractions, the Chessboard Railway Heritage Society arranged for a  visit of a replica 'Stephenson's Rocket' to make a surprise visit:

As well as the coaching stock, the train also included an open carriage with the passengers entering into the spirit of the occasion and dressing the part.

The Rocket steamed down to the end of the short heritage line:

And then trundled backwards through the tunnel to the Heritage Society's sidings and workshop.

All in all a great day was had by all.

I think that must be about it for this post, apart from extending a welcome to an honorary Chuffer across the pond in one of our far flung Dominions Canada. Hopefully we will get some pics of his layout to grace our pages. Who knows.

Cheerio,

Shaun.

 Hello everyone, welcome to the third blog of February. Despite the constraints of lockdown, we are managing to get something together thanks to the wonder of the internet. We all take it for granted these days, but I don't think I'm alone in remembering the first television set to appear in our street...

Last weeks castle was Dinefwr - National Trust property in partnership with Cadw. Lots of people go to Newton House at Dinefwr, but not many make it to the castle, as it is a bit of a climb. Well worth it though for the views down the Tywi valley.

Another Carmarthenshire castle picture for this weeks blog - again, not a particularly well known tourist spot, worth a visit though as there is a free car-park and it's a good picnic spot.

 

On to the blog. I mentioned innovative things we take for granted. How about 3D printing... it is really catching on, and an expert in this field is Patrick's son Daniel. Having the daunting task of making seven more sets of crossing gates for the C-B N gauge layout, and not having enough bits of plasticard, I approached Daniel with the problem. Within hours, he came up with this:   

I sent him a sketch and the dimensions, and this is what he came up with. Just incredible!!

All I have to do is stick the gauze that I had from Bethan on the back, and away we go. Just got to make the stations...

Lots of pictures for this posting, so we will start off with some more images of the progress on Pat's 00 gauge Heritage layout, depicting a Classic Car Exhibition at the station hotel and adjacent yard.

Despite all the hoo-ha that is going on around them, the permanent way gang still have work to do, though more time seems to be spent discussing the work, rather than doing it.

The gent on the bench gave up interest a while ago, and seems to be fast asleep.

In the station itself the old heritage steam train has just pulled in after a half hours run up and down the couple of miles of restored line, and is disgorging a bunch of happy enthusiasts, whilst in the goods yard the restored vintage omnibus is taking on passengers for a nostalgic run through the local countryside.

and two late arrivals for the show are coming over the bridge:

Leaving Pat and his layout in Cilgerran, we move further into the hinterland, down the route of the old Cardi-Bach to Login, where Pete Towns has been busy with some really exacting modelling and painting. He has had to really, as a slight leg injury meant resting up as much as possible

He has produced the following farmyard bits and bobs from laser-cut kits to enhance his Lynton and Barnstaple 009 layout.

Starting with some farm carts:

and adding a horse (looks like one of Huw's from Dyfed Shire Horse farm)-

Next we have the chicken coop, which was a feature in a previous blog, but now it is completed, and already has residents:

Imagine painting these...

They reflect Pete and Dawns actual flock, and all have names, though the only one I can remember is a chesty white one named after Carol Kirkwood the BBC weather lady...

Moving swiftly on, we have a dog kennel:

A rabbit hutch:

(Bear in mind that these are kits of several parts, painstakingly put together and painted - each doorway is in three separate pieces.) To go with the hutch, kennel and chicken coop is the garden tool shed:

Finally one man and his dogs, who with a lot of come-by's and away's managed to organized the sheep into some semblance of order, while at the same time clutching a molly-lamb...

The kits to make up the carts are 'Arch Laser' from Osborne Models, and Ancorton.

Chicken house/kennel/hutch/shed from Model Scenes,

and the chickens and sheep from Serious Play (Wargamers)

Construction and painting is down to Peters diligence and patience. Well done Pete!

I think thats the lot for this posting - hope you are all coping with the present situation. Majority of us seem to have had our first inoculation of the anti-virus serum, with no ill effects.

Lets hope we can get back to normal fairly soon.

Cheerio.

Shaun.

 Good evening - noswaith dda - to everybody.

Second blog of February, and nearly twelve months of pandemic driven upheaval. No exhibitions, no Cardi-Bach meetings, and no Chufferduffers get-togethers either. But being British we soldier on...

Change of a castle picture heading the blog once again. For those who didn't get the last one it was Kidwelly. Or Kidwelli, depending on which sign you look at. Well worth a vist

New one is up there now is once again in Carmarthenshire. With a view of the towy valley from the battlements.

I paid a socially distanced call on Emyr our Chairman, during the week, and took this picture of his topiary work which will eventually become a loco and wagons on the Cardi-Bach:

I think it may be a year or two before the smoke stack reaches the desired height, but already it is recognisable!

While I was at Emyr's, knowing that Bethan, Emyr's wife, did a lot of needlework I asked her if she had any very fine gauze which I wanted to use to represent wire mesh for level crossing gates.

She came up trumps, and here is the result, the two gates for Rhydowen...

A good bit of gauze left, which is handy, as there are another seven level crossings to think about!

Patrick meanwhile has been quite busy adding to his 00 gauge display, with a couple of purchases, a Hornby 4 wheel coach, complete with magnetically operated interior lighting, and a small Rushton Diesel, again a Hornby product:

The Classic car show is now in full swing, and has almost reached capacity, with commercial vehicles parking across the line in the station yard - 

Among the celebrities that were spotted, we saw Rick Stein enjoying a plate of barbequed sewin outside the hotel:

and outside the post office we caught sight of Chairman Emyr posting his latest Ebay sale, having driven up in his Land Rover (without it's canvas)

Up in Pat's railway room, the 0 gauge layout is growing in leaps and bounds. More additions to Patricks collection of tin plate vehicles are these two shown below - a breakdown lorry and a traction engine, both clockwork powered, and painstakingly restored to working order.

They can be seen here on the hill leading up to the village sitting on top of the hillside with the railway running through tunnels below:

and talking of the railway running below, we have a quick and noisy video of the trains running around the vintage three rail system.

Definition is still not the best, as I forgot to adjust the camera settings...(again)

I guess that is about the lot for this edition - Hwyl fawr,

Shaun.

 Welcome to the first Chuffer blog of February - not a great deal of content, as lock-down is still in place, and showing no signs of letting up.

Being over 75, I was lucky to get my first vacination jab last Sunday. Nothing but praise for the staff manning the centre in Cardigan - smiling, polite and helpful. We really are a lucky nation to have our NHS. Just hope we can hold onto it.

Did you get last blogs castle? It was Llahaden, for those who aren't familiar with it. Out of Pembs for this posting, and into Carmarthenshire.

Not a lot on the modelling front, except for an excellent refurbishment by Patrick of an 0 gauge purchase - shown here as it was received:

After getting a good wash and brush-up, plus judicial application of various different paints, it was deemed good enough to be given a place on the 0 Gauge layout - 

Being a fairly rare tin-plate model, Pat has not tarted it up too much, trying to retain as much of the original as possible.

Back here at home in Pentrecagal (a cagal, by the way, is a Welsh word for a ball of dung that is often found hanging from a sheeps nether region... Not a lot of people know that. Or want to, really)

Anyway, I thought I would start on the stations for the re-vamped C-B Museum, starting with the easiest, Rhydowen:

 

 

Above is the original, and below are a couple of pictures of my effort. I've yet to add the crossing and gates, which might be on a separate strip of 3mm ply holding the rail connecting the next station (Llanfyrnach).

I've stuck in a cattle ramp - haven't seen any pictures of it, but one was there for a while.

I guess that's about all we can offer of this episode - just one more thing though. I picked up this book last week when I was doing my weekly stint in the Book-shop.

An excellent insight into the political goings on concerning the British railway system, and all the chicanery that went on (and is still going on) behind the scenes. I'll pass it on to Chuffers when I can.

(No marks for spotting the artists deliberate mistake on the cover illustration. Not really a mistake - it's artistic license to improve the picture...)

 

 

That's all we've got time for for this post...

Cheerio.

Shaun.