Morning gang!
How's things? Hope you've had an amazing week… We popped up to Liverpool last weekend to watch Elizabeth's end of year show, Footloose, which was rather blummin' brilliant. All the students had worked so hard, and they put on a fantastic show! And we can't believe she's already completed two years of her university course. One more year and she'll be back home for a while or heading out into the big wide world to find her way! Really scary how quick it's gone… and she'll be 21! Bonkers
So, as we didn't get back from Liverpool until Tuesday evening our work week has been somewhat condensed to say the least, but the rest of the team have been hard at it while we were up north. Ooh I did spot a really lovely, and yes, very grotty, building I shall be tackling in the near future while we were up there. It was actually the back of another building that backs onto an alleyway, and it was just crying out to be modelled. So I'll be getting stuck into that shortly.
Jess has been getting stuck into our social media channels over the past couple of weeks, tidying things up massively and making things look far more presentable. She's also been knee deep in Excel spreadsheets and reports which she says she's enjoying… but I'm not so sure! Also, Jess would like to thank everyone for the lovely feedback regarding her first newsletter a couple of weeks ago! The community made her feel really welcome and as a complete newbie to model making, she's getting to grips with the industry and learning all about it… This week she made her first two kits (garden sheds and greenhouse) and thoroughly enjoyed putting them together! Such great kits to get started with.
Tina, Scott & Carl have been looking after production and fulfilment as usual, with Scott also giving our laser room a bit of a spring clean this week. We've amassed rather a large amount of offcuts again over the past few months so he's been having a good sort out and things are looking really nice and tidy now in that department.
And Tina's been helping me navigate the minefield that making some changes to the Railway Modellers community has brought about… they're all positive… There's just a lot to sort out and manage… but that's for another day and time, not this lovely sunny Saturday morning.
Father's Day Is Just Around The Corner
Just a quick reminder that Father's Day is fast approaching, and if you're not sure what to get your Dad, we have a few model railway related Father's day gift ideas. We've just added a few more bundles to the Gifts section on the website too.
We have gifts for all price ranges with everything from building kit bundles and tool kits, a t-shirts and keyring, mugs and coasters! If you're really stuck, how about an eGift Card. They're delivered by email and you can choose the value. Plus unlike other shops, our gift cards don't expire.
Product Development - Latest News
This week, I've done very little in the way of product development as I've been tied up with community stuff. But I have done the basic groundwork for the rework of one of our older wall kits which I'll be working on next week.
Sam's been working on a new range of customisable signs which we hope to have ready next week.
And then we finally got round to tackling some pavement sections to make bus stop bays. We were asked to do these ages ago but never got chance to get them sorted, so Stu took up the challenge and has created four pavement sections that are all compatible with our LX217-OO MDF Pavement strips. Full details of these are in the new products section below.
In the meantime, it's over to young Sam for this weekend's videos.
Good morning! It's June already, can you believe it? Where has this year gone? Hopefully, you've had a good week and have a great weekend. Unfortunately, with the bank holiday and me still being under the weather, I've only been in a couple of days this week. Nonetheless, I've had some great chats with you guys over the phone and made a couple of custom bits for people.
We are still looking for catalogue images! Please send us some photos if you have used any of our kits in your modelling. You can do this via the help desk (help@scalemodelscenery.co.uk) or by emailing me (sam@scalemodelscenery.co.uk).
Now, it's time for some videos.
Creating Overgrown Track
To start off the videos, I've selected this tutorial by That Model Railway Guy. This is a great tutorial for those looking to improve their trackside detail. It's also a good tutorial if you are planning to use static grass. I believe I've featured That Model Railway Guy before and for good reason! He has some excellent videos covering new releases, tutorials and discussions.
In this video, he goes through the process of creating an embankment, layering that up, adding static grass and foliage.
Don't forget we have everything you need to create the perfect embankment:
- Embankment Formers
- Mod Roc Plaster Bandage
- Static Grass
- Gravels & rocks
- Coarse foliage
- Fine foliage
- Thistles (due back in stock in about a week)
- Bracken
- Flowering Gorse
Modelling A Realistic Dirty Pond
Next, here is another tutorial, this time from Fos Scale Models. Last week, Doug showed us how to plant a structure, this week, it's how to model a dirty, filthy pond. He takes us through his plan, sculpting the pond, painting, applying static grass, using resin, adding details and more. It's so satisfying watching the whole process take place. One of the most satisfying parts has to be where he gets rid of the bubbles in the pond. Great stuff, worth a watch.
Need some clutter detail your own dirty pond? Here's a few suggestions…
Britain's Failed High-Speed Train
Right, the last video is a bit different. This comes from The Right Track who also made The Flying Scotsman Paradox which I featured a few weeks ago. In this, they discuss Britain's attempt at a high-speed passenger train and why it failed. The APT (Advanced Passenger Train) was developed by British Rail during the 1970s and 1980s. It's so weird seeing the train tilt when going around corners. I don't want to spoil the video too much so give it a watch!
Exhibition Coverage
Like many of you, there are so many shows that I would love to attend. Unfortunately, this is often not possible. Travelling can be an issue as well as commitments we all have. However, I still want to see the layouts!!! This week, I've got 3 videos for you covering recent exhibitions. Hope you enjoy.
Billericay MRG - 27th May 2024
Kicking off the Exhibition Section this week, we have the Belliricay Model Railway Group's exhibition held at the West Billericay Community Centre. In this video, SP Rail showcases 3 layouts - Long Framlington, Ballyconnell Road & Tigley Yard.
New Forest MRS - 27th-28th May 2024
Next, we have the New Forest MRS with their Model Railway Exhibition hosted in Brockenhurst Village Hall, a short walk away from Brockenhurst Railway Station. There were 9 brilliant layouts at this exhibition including a handful of N gauge layouts. If you are in the club, you might recognise a couple of the layouts.
RAILEX - 25th-26th May 2024
Finally, we have RAILEX 2024 hosted by the Risborough & District Model Railway Club. This took place at the Stoke Mandeville stadium over the weekend of Saturday, May 25th. I believe there was a total of 13 fantastic layouts. Greasy Rails does a brilliant job covering this exhibition so check the video out.
Right, that's all the videos I have for you this weekend. As always, if you have a video you found interesting - send it my way! Are you heavily into the hobby? I'd appreciate it if you could inform me of any upcoming exhibitions so I can keep my eye out for videos. Feel free to leave a comment on this blog telling me what you thought about the videos. You can also contact me via the help desk, the www.railwaymodellers.com community where my username is @sam or my email sam@scalemodelscenery.co.uk. Take care and have a good rest of your weekend.
New Stuff
Right then… it's time for links to the new & updated stuff…
- Modular Pavement System - Bus Bay - OO/4mm/1:76
A quick and easy way to add a bus stop/bus bay to your OO gauge model railway layout or 1:76 scale diecast diorama. They're great for building a standalone diorama to display your modern image model busses on! And very cost effective too.
In Case You Missed It…
While we're sort of on the theme of roads with the bus bay thingies above… here's a few other detailing kits for your roads and street scenes that you might find useful.
- LX073-OO Modern Traffic Bollard (Pack of 12) OO/4mm/1:76
A great value pack of modern bollards. Easy to use and look the part! - MP023-OO Roadworks Safety Barriers (Pack of 6) OO/4mm/1:76
Road works are everywhere, and these barriers are perfect for creating your own miniature version. - AX062-OO 3D Printed Temporary Traffic Lights Kit (Pack of 2) OO/4mm/1:76
The perfect accompaniment to the roadworks barriers… the obligatory temporary traffic lights! - LX074-OO Temporary Road Signs (Pack of 16) OO/4mm/1:76
And of course… what would roadworks be without a smattering of temporary road signs. - LX044-OO Pedestrian Railings
Ideal for along the sides of a busy high street, by pedestrian crossings and junctions. - LX043-OO Pedestrian Railings With Sight Gap OO/4mm/1:76
An alternative version of the above with sight gaps.
Right, that's about it for this edition of the weekly news. We're off to take Lola out for a walk, then there's more gardening to take care of. We've got a couple of shoe racks to make from old pallets & I've still not fitted that darn door to the kitchen cabinet. I've got to get a Forstner bit to drill the holes as the door needs to be fitted the opposite way to the way it was originally. Then there's windows to clean… Hopefully the sun will continue to shine while we crack on with all that lot! Then I might just fall asleep on a chair in the garden later on.
Have an amazing weekend folks… And of course…
Keep on shunting…
Justin, Tina, Elizabeth, Lola & The Team
P.S. This weekend's header pic comes from Kevin over on the RailwayModellers Community with this brilliant shot of the Unicorn Pub. A centrepiece of the quiet village of Little Muddle.
P.P.S. Missed a newsletter? You can read all of our recent newsletters online here.
Wow Justin, didna think it possible but LOVE reading the newsletter even more!
Comment - it would be nice to see you announce youve returned after Sams content to make it clear youve returned OR change the font according to soeaker not even sure if possible... lol
Suggestion... have another spot for a guest - starting off by going through everyone there. This could be about them, their work or interest in trains or even anything they love! If this goes no further than all of you then they could chat about .....
Hi, a great inclusion of the that model railway guy, his tutorials are very good. His dry stone walling looks great, more flexible then the Jarvis version. although that is a great and realistic product. A great news letter from your team very informative also your products are great too.
best regards JJ