Dunbracken

[invercloy]

My layout Dunbracken has featured on RMweb and NGRM during it's build, I took it to it's first exhibiton at Tonbridge on the 14th feb this year, and will be taking it to ExpoNG later this year too (where it's likely to be up for sale to help me get SWMBO's permission to build a bigger one!)

The setting is a harbour on a branch of a common carrier line (heavy inspiration from Irish lines) in the Scottish Higlands.  The majority of the baseboard is made from foamboard (apart from the original ironing board). 

The idea for a Scottish 009 layout has long been in my head, and thanks to Ted Polet's articles in the News i was very easily swayed and began planning a layout when still living at home.  This layout was a U shape and ran around our cellar, unfortunately whilst i was away at uni my family moved house and the new place didn't have a space big enough to erect the whole layout...  That one sat in storage, then i moved out of home and wanted to start again, so an ironing board was chosen as the basis for the new layout after seeing Briding Noora at ExpoNG a few years back.

I'll leave explanations at that for now, here's some pics...  :)









before the old mineral chute got painted...




This last shot has been requested to go in a gallery in Model Rail at some point, and i've also had a provisional invite to write an article for Hornby Magazine  :)

Here are the two threads of the layout's construction in case anyone is interested....
RMweb: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12098
NGRM online: http://ngrm-online.com/forum/index.php?topic=13.0

[pilotfriend]

Tom

It is looking wonderful
The waves lapping on the beach are the best I have seen in a model. 10 out of 10 (1 for the photography!)
best
JdF

[jaymzhatstand]

That's really a superb bit of building!  If my layout has half as much atmosphere as that I'll be happy!

All the best

J

[invercloy]

I've not checked into the forum for a while and missed your comments.  Thanks very much both of you, much appreciated  :)

I'm hoping to make a couple of minor improvements before Dunbracken's trip to EXPOng at Swanley (where i'm selling it to fund a bigger layout).  Hopefully improving the waves as they've now lost their colour a bit, and building them up a little more.  Also improving the running which plagued it at Tonbridge, will require some tinkering to find the problem, and finally getting two of my Backwoods kits finished.

[clanky]

has the guys have already said great modelling , only thing thats missing for one of your cameos are the crew havering/hovering around the local , para handy, macphail, dougie, sunny jim and hurricane jack , or have i missed them . chust perfect ..
interested to know what lighting and how it was used and the technique you used for the waves .cheers john .

[invercloy]

Hi John,

Thanks for the comments.  I'm trying to summon up the energy to build the crew of the Vital Spark myself from Miliput to match the figures from the TV series...

The waves are made using Woodland Scenics 'water effects' which is poured over a base of WS 'realistic water', it's nothing sceintific, just a line of PVA like stuff drawn across the harbour, then shaped with glue spatula and cocktail sticks to smooth it in and create the curved esge of the wave.

Lighting wise... it's a combination of 5x

[clanky]

re the lights , are they the tiny ones with halogen bulbs ? , do langley models not do figures of a nautical nature , thinking for quickness .
chust perfect cheers john .

[invercloy]

Hi John,

They are the small halogen angle poised ones with a G-clamp like arrangement attached to it.  I just clamp them on to the top of the backscene (hidden by a pelmet).

I've looked at the Langley figures, but reckon with a few bits of surgery (head transplants) from various Dart Castings figures i'll have a reasonable approximation of the crew sorted in time for ExpoNG.

Cheers,
Tom.

[ASK]

Hiya, Dart Castings do some nice ones too, dockside figures and sailors that is...

[invercloy]

Cheers ASK, i'll take a look.  There's a thread somewhere on RMweb where some of us worked out exactly which figures to chop to make the crew of the Vital Spark, but i'll be looking for some more general nautical folk too!  :)

[pilotfriend]

Langley actually do some quite good crew. Please be aware that these halogen spots can suddenly explode. That is why I now use strips. I still find bits of glass on CG.
John

[invercloy]

Thanks John, I hadn't realised that these were the exploding variety...  I'll probably not change them now though as ExpoNG will be the last exhibition for Dunbracken before I replace it.

I'll keep an eye out for the Langley crew next time I go to the model shop...  ;)

[clanky]

i've probably missed the obvious , what are the dimensions of Dunbracken ? . where is the farthest it  has travelled ?, has it ever travelled north of the border . re the lights i get the feeling that those particular lights are the making of that ' atmosphere ' . anyway it's chust perfect  as they say in french equitorial glasgow ..
cheers john .

[invercloy]

Hi Clanky,

So far it's only been to Tonbridge exhibition twice, once as a work in progress in 2008:

And in 2009 when it was finished.

As for size, well, it's an ironing board, so it's roughly 4'x1'.

The last exhibition it will be going to is ExpoNG later this year, after which I will be replacing it with a bigger layout i'm developing.  Hoping to sell it on to raise funds for plywood  :)

Trackplan for the bigger layout looks set to be either this:

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__CxMZUKuT0U/SKnJnwOTFxI/AAAAAAAAADM/rgolZcJNVLU/s1600-h/scan0001.jpg

or this:
http://bp3.blogger.com/__CxMZUKuT0U/SHETfE9UZiI/AAAAAAAAADE/kLZHHuEv8Hs/s1600-h/trackplan+labelled.jpg


I will start the baseboards for Port na Cailliche this summer and hopefully work on it over the winter.  Dunbracken was only ever intended as a test bed for that layout as i'd never actually built a layout on my won before, let alone finish one!  ;)

[pilotfriend]

Well Tom, your work is first class whether this is a first time or not. I expect the big layout to be world beating! ::)
best
John