Pont Dulas halt…

Last weekend I was keen to keep up the momentum on Pont Dulas. The last scenic item to complete was the halt and so with renewed enthusiasm I set to working this part of the layout up…

When viewed from above the track on Pont Dulas traces a gentle snaking curve, a natural wave through the scene I wanted to create. In this part of Wales the railway whilst still carving a man made scar across the landscape is definitely more a slave to nature than elsewhere. This curve is visually quite pleasing too, but yet, in the case of my halt platform, a slight headache.

I used a sheet of paper to trace the form of the track in this area, cut this out to form a template for the platform edge and transferred this to 40thou styrene. The platform is not extensive, barely a carriage long. Using various styrene sheet and section I constructed a sleeper built frontage, added some Slaters GWR fencing and a Scratchbuild halt building that was constructed some time ago for another project but suited this location well. Some 40 thou square section was used to represent fence posts along the back edge of the ramps, admittedly too steep, but this is a caricature after all.

I used to paint things in solid colours a throw back to my days of kit modelling building cars and planes. These days everything starts with a few colours on a palette and blending, adding, removing. The result is, I hope, a believable effect. The platform and fencing were primed grey and then worked up and down from that mid-tone… nothing white, nothing black. A slight warmth to the shades chosen. Isn’t it always sunny in our rose tinted nostalgia?

However, things (above) whilst looking like it had always been there, felt a little naked. Some hedging was added along the road to the right end of the platform and up to the gate. This neatly finished off the corner and the views across the layout, up the lane and as you trundle a train along feel very much of the character I set out to achieve. Whilst a relatively short project, started as Wrecsam was nearing completion, this has been an immensely enjoyable distraction. The scenic impact of just a 20ish centimetre scene has been a joy to choreograph and I’ve found my hand in this smaller scale. More than that, the ideas of complete AND finished have beautifully coincided.

I am sure this won’t be the last we see of the layout. Despite its lack of operational interest, it, like Lochdubh are lovely scenes to enjoy. Sadly I don’t have a shelf low enough to enjoy it regularly but as a blank(ish) canvas for setting up and imagining different era and stock it will continue to deliver. If you would like me to help design your own dream project then get in touch to discuss my fixed price layout design service. Until next time, more soon…

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