Buildings & Railway Structures on Rowandale - Station Section
Viaduct
This occupies a dominant position at the front of the layout. It was
built on a slight curve with the pillars at a skew to match the
direction of the river underneath.
The stream is made from Solid Water by Deluxe Materials
Industrial Units
This couple of small industrial units are
Scalescenes kits, with added yard area, together
with general clutter and workmen etc.
Water Tower
This is based on the
Scalescenes water tower from
their industrial set, but with
the tower reduced in height
and clad in ashlar, rather than
brick. Access ladders and
small platform was also
added.
The Station Inn and terrace
As they are in the front row, the pub is fitted
with a bar and has customers inside; only
visible on close inspection or with the internal
lights on. The terraced houses also have lights
in some rooms and an indication of furniture
can be glimpsed through the windows.
They also have rear yards & garden areas
which back onto the goods yard retaining wall.
Small Warehouse
Again this building is complete with warehouse men
loading packages onto the wagon. It has internal lights.
Buildings Grouped as Modules
The buildings at the rear, which cover the
hidden tracks and the control units for the
points and sensors, are built as removable
modules to allow access to the tracks and
the electronics.
The modules are shown in this gallery in
isolation.
The buildings on them are shown in more
detail below.
The Hartmann’s Factory
This large group of factory buildings is
over the curved tracks which lead to the
hidden holding/storage tracks at the rear.
It is based on one of the Scalescenes
Factory kits, extensively adapted to fit
the site and with a matching range of
low-relief buildings along the rear.
The main building has indications of
machinery in the lower floors. The top
floor has a drawing office, complete with
drawing boards and filing cabinets, and a
typist pool with tables & chairs. People
are present throughout the building. The
large windows and skylights enable these
internal details to be glimpsed, especially
at night when the internal lights are on.
The Wythe & Sons Factory
This low-relief factory building is over the hidden tracks at
the rear. It is adapted from one of the Scalescenes Factory
kits and fitted with lights and internal details.
It was originally used on Archie’s Yard; an extra entrance
has been added at the left end, a blank wall at the right,
and a plinth added to raise the height.
The trees at the right are my usual method of heather
twigs for their trunks and branches, with foliage from
Woodland Scenic.
Most of the buildings and railway structures are built from
card with photo quality overlays, using either kits from
Scalescenes, some heavily modified, or scratch-built using
their Texture Sheets. They all have some added internal
details and figures, which can be glimpsed though the
windows, especially when the internal lights are on.
The majority of the windows in the buildings are etched
frets, from Brassmasters, mostly painted white.
The lighting is by small filament bulbs, either the
grain of wheat or the even smaller grain of rice.
They are 12v bulbs run at 9v, for long life and
subdued glow. I find that even the warm-white
LEDs are rather harsh by comparison.
The signal box is a Ratio plastic kit, as are the
girder sides of the road bridge, over the entrance
track to the good yard. The turntable is also a
plastic kit, and is rotated by a stepper motor.
Tunnel Entrance
At the left of the viaduct, the track
starts to curve round to the rear of the
layout. A tunnel entrance has been built
at the start of the curve, with moorland
above.
The hills are made from expanded
foam, sculpted to the required
contours. A layer of light weight filler
was then added to give a firm crust,
before being painted to represent
limestone uplands, complete with gorse
bushes. sections of the moorland over
the track can be lifted off, for track
cleaning and train rescue!
Station Approach Bridge
The girder walls are plastic mouldings with the supports
and walls in card with overlays of random ashlar stone.
Because of the tight gap between the main line, in the
foreground, and the turntable, immediately behind it,
the bridge is only wide enough for one vehicle to cross
at a time.
Engine Shed
This was built from the Scalescenes card kit; two
modules lengthways, with added internal lights.
The windows are etched frets, from Brassmasters,
painted black
Engine Shed and Turntable
The turntable is a plastic kit and is motorised by a highly
geared stepper motor, driven by a Raspberry-Pi Zero
computer. One press on the control panel button causes it
to turn exactly a half revolution, with acceleration and
deceleration.
Coal Yard & Office
This is a card kit. The office has an internal light.
The coal staithes are also card, filled with real coal.
Small Good Shed
This small private shed suffers in the
summer by being squeezed next to the
cattle dock.
This was one of my earliest card buildings.
Platelayers Hut
This small hut is between
the tunnel and the viaduct.
It was my first scratch built
card structure.
Click here for:
The row of Eight Terrace Houses
This is at the end of the front row, backing
onto the rear of the goods yard. They have
lights in some rooms, and an indication of
furniture and occupants can be glimpsed
through the windows. Each has a garden
or yard, and one has a pigeon coup.
( No, the pigeons do not fly! )
The Warehouses
These warehouse building are the final part a low-relief
module of buildings over the hidden tracks at the rear. They
are slightly modified versions of a Scalescenes’ High Street
Backs kit.
They are fitted with lights and internal details and have
additional yard areas and trees.
The right hand one, is a whiskey warehouse, Dewar’s Whisky
of course (small blue sign on the wall).
The Mill Building and Garage
Abutting the warehouses are a range of
very low-relief façade of some mill buildings.
In front of them is a small garage.
Signal Box
This is a Ratio plastic kit. Internal
details and a signal man have been
added, together with an internal light.
The balcony railings around the outside
are yet to be fitted.
The Waiting Shelter
This is also a scratch-built card structure. The windows
and roof fascias are characteristic of the Midland
Railway, and are brass frets.
The Station Building
The station is a standard Midland Size 3.
It is scratch built using card with printed paper overlays,
using techniques learnt from previously constructed kits
from Scalescenes.
The windows and barge boards are characteristic of the
Midland Railway, they are excellent multi-layer brass frets
from AMBIS Engineering.
The station platform is higher than the station yard,
with steps leading up to it at the entrance end; there
is a ramp for trolleys at the other end of the building.
Internal lights are fitted and passengers can be seen
through the windows. There are also passengers and
porters on the platform, together with various
trolleys, sack barrows and seats.
The Main Goods Shed
This is a standard Midland Railway design.
It is scratch built using card with printed paper overlays.
The windows are characteristic of the Midland Railway
goods sheds.
Building the station.
This gallery shows the build up of the station.