Nixnie - a minimum size 009 layout

[tedp]

Having done some detail work on the layout, I decided to revive the thread. I spent a few evenings painting figures and whitemetal castings. This morning I made a few photos which naturally reveal a number of things still to be put to rights. Anyway I won't hide that from you. Here goes.

I made a small 'cameo' scene featuring three boy scouts, a cat and two tree trunks, but I managed to overlook the fact there should be bushes hiding the lower edge of the cabin  ::) :





Next, some views of the tiny station which now features some prospective passengers. Evidently there is more traffic than one would expect on such a sleepy line. Must be a bank holiday!



By the way, the lady in green, next to the little girl, was painted by Reinier Hendriksen.





The train staff on this short train of Egger and Minitrains stock is pre-painted Preiser. These are small enough to fit in the tiny stock as opposed to the Roco H0 figures used elsewhere. I had a lot of trouble with the scale of the figures, as I want to run the big C&DR stock on the layout as well as these tiny H0e models. So I had to compromise. I hope they won't look too much out of scale. The cyclist is a very primitive plastic figure of uncertain parentage which I painted with some camouflage work. Its pose is very natural though.



Some detail round the 'goods shed'. There are two ancient Preiser figures carrying loads, which I repainted as their overalls were in garish red and blue. There is a cat chasing the pigeons in the foreground, but this doesn't come out very well in the photos:



The boxes next to the shed need to be painted better as there is still some plastic sheen on them.



An overview of the brickworks showing a lot of activity. There is a tiny Gmeinder diesel and driver next to the kiln building, a skip is being lowered from the ramp - there is a chain and hook which it is attached to, and the man on the ramp is signalling to the winch operator. There is more detail there which I will show later.



Some wildlife can be found if you look for it. A night animal, I know, but this one ventures out under cover of the tree trunk and the bushes:



Finally a view of the river bridge, with someone sitting on the bank sketching the picturesque view down the river. He must be oblivious to the short train passing overhead!



More to follow.

[MickT]

Excellent photos once again Ted! Nixnie really has become a living example of small layout design and "achievability.

One tiny comment which I hope is constructive: The figure in the Minitrains "Koppel" steam loco looks very miniscule indeed in the photo. I know you are trying to keep a reasonable balance between 1:87 and 1:76 scale stock on the same model, but I personally think that a small 4mm figure (or maybe a larger 3.5mm one) would be a better match with the rest of the layout than what looks like a small 3.5mm figure. I don't think there would be any concerns about the loco looking very small with a bigger figure driving it as it is a small loco anyway!

I've posted here and not on the "other forum" as there are quite enough people there who will happily start a thread-drift debate without me firing it up for them!!

Regards - I don't know what further improvements are possible on Nixnie, but I await new reports eagerly!

Mick

[tedp]

As it is I had great difficulty in inserting a mutilated Preiser figure in the Egger replica (which everyone persists in naming a 'Koppel' although it doesn't look like an O&K at all!). So I hope you will forgive me leaving it as it is...

I will post a few more photos soon, including one of a new bogie carriage I'm building right now!

[ECMT]

Great pics Ted, and as Mick has stated, a good promotion for small layouts. In that last batch of pics my favourite would be the last one. That water is superb and amongst some of the best modelled water I've seen in a while - I keep expecting a trout to jump out of the water. I look forward to the next batch of pics  ;D

[Hugh Norwood]

Hear Hear (or is that here, here?) that water does look wet!

[MickT]

Hear Hear (or is that here, here?) that water does look wet!

From looking at "Today in Parliament" I think amongst certain classes of people it comes across more as "Earrr, Yah", which is followed by a rather small moronic figure sat in the middle with a supercilious smile on his face, wearing fancy dress knickerbockers and a wig calling out "ordaarrr!". Not sure what it all means, some sort of tribal ritual I imagine.

Sorry for the digression.

Mick

[tedp]

ORDER!    :police:   ;D  ;D

Thanks, all, for your kind words....   ;)

[Isle of Stoner]

Mine's a pint!    ;D

John W

[Hugh Norwood]

I know what I should have asked - Does "Nixnie" mean anything?

[MickT]

It's more or less the same as the "nowt" that is commonly used in your part of the frozen northlands Hugh!

Mick

[Hugh Norwood]

Aye;
'ear all see all say nowt, eat all sup all pay nowt (or tak' all keep all, gie nowt)
an' if iver tha does owt fer nowt, allus do it fer thissen.

[berryr99]

As my old mam used to say

"If tha's nowt to say don't say owt"

Bob

[tedp]

And you all expect to fool a b....y foreigner with your Yorkshire dialect?
Mien moo komp oet Hengel. Now how's that for dialect? I bet you haven't a clue...

;D

Here is a photo of the almost completed layout with its light fixtures fitted, as I'm going to show it in a very dark hall next weekend. I used two telescopic photo light stands and a lightweight ply frame to clamp two spotlights on. These are fitted with LED lamps. Expensive, but they give a huge amount of light.

[berryr99]

Ted

Your dialect won't translate from Dutch to English on Google so it must be obscure !


Nice picture of your layout...looks good.

I am (trying) to build an 009 layout for exhibition and was just wondering how you support the layout as I am having problems in deciding how to do this for mine, which will be 48" long and 20" wide.

Would it be possible to have a picture of the legs ?

Thank you very much

Bob

[tedp]

I thought that would faze you! It says 'my mum comes from Hengelo'. My mother, still going strong at 86, was born and raised in the east of our country. Hengelo is her birthplace. I grew up with her speaking Twents dialect with my grandmother, so I understand it although I don't speak it.

The support for Nixnie is a Workmate. It's heavy and collapsible, although a bit low down for some. The kids love it though. I put two screws through the holes in the worktop, with two large size washers, straight into the bottom sheet of fibreboard. If there is a table available at an exhibition, I simply put it on a table, although that would give me a challenge fixing the lights!