BIG X Posted April 13, 2020 Share Posted April 13, 2020 Well, I’ll start by saying that if you are reading this at some point in the future – I’d better set the scene. It’s Easter Monday 2020 – a bank holiday – the sun is shining & all should be well with the world. But it isn’t - the world is in the grips of the global corona virus pandemic and Britain, like many countries is in ‘lock down’. So I’ve been isolating with SWMBO for three weeks now – doing our bit to STAY HOME / PROTECT THE NHS / SAVE LIVES. In normal times I’m sure that a three week break would have seen me knocking out a good few kits – what else is there to do… Life isn’t that simple though – for with my usual knack of making a bad situation worse – I managed to break my ribs right at the beginning of all this. That left me propped up in a chair for almost two weeks, drifting in & out of consciousness – racked with pain. In the last week I’ve actually made it up to bed at night – but I haven’t had any motivation to sit at the bench & butcher some plastic. That has to stop!!! So yesterday I took a good long look through the stash – for something simple to build. Something easy, something almost ‘disposable’, just something to get me going again. In the end I found a couple of farm buildings that I picked up when my LMS was closing down a couple of years back. From memory they were £6 each – but after a 25% sales discount I think I paid about £4.50 each for them. So, may I present a couple of WILLS KITS – distributed by PECO… The Stone & Timber Barn & The Village Forge They are designed for railway modellers & come in at OO/HO scale – making them around 1/76 or 1/72 – which make them perfect accessories for my ‘toy army’. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 13, 2020 Author Share Posted April 13, 2020 Here are the sprues... BARN FORGE ...and here are the 'comprehensive' instructions... 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorby Posted April 13, 2020 Share Posted April 13, 2020 Are you sure you've studied those instructions carefully? Interested what you can do with this one Mr Big. Hope the ribs aren't giving you too much grief at the mo. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 13, 2020 Author Share Posted April 13, 2020 12 minutes ago, Gorby said: Are you sure you've studied those instructions carefully? Interested what you can do with this one Mr Big. Hope the ribs aren't giving you too much grief at the mo. Hi Gorby - it's obvious that railway modellers are a lot more 'advanced' that us mere mortals. I ALWAYS study the instructions for a kit & follow them to the letter (yeh right). The ribs are on the mend - but still causing a lot of discomfort - hopefully this build will take my mind off them. The upside has been Madame X hasn't felt the need to find any jobs for me over the lock down period - she has even been taking the bins out - which is my responsibility - BLESS HER!!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorby Posted April 13, 2020 Share Posted April 13, 2020 1 minute ago, BIG X said: The upside has been Madame X hasn't felt the need to find any jobs for me over the lock down period Yes I need to keep faking illness and telling her how many are queued on the B&Q site. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 13, 2020 Author Share Posted April 13, 2020 OK - Down to business - the sprue gates are a little on the thick side & the plastic is quite 'soft'... These pieces have no detail on one side - I am sure there is a reason for that... ...I'll consult the instructions... … or maybe not BARN - DE-SPRUED FORGE - DE-SPRUED I like the way the parts are already the approximate correct colour - I suppose you could just build them & apply a little weathering & get away with it - but I think I'll paint them properly. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 13, 2020 Author Share Posted April 13, 2020 Construction has commenced... BARN The barn doesn't have a base to keep it square - so I've cut some 'L' section to square it up a bit... The next step was getting the roof at the right pitch - so I used one of the end panels as a guide... They say modelling is just 'sticking one piece of plastic to another' - but on this occasion it was sticking 3 pieces together at the same time... as the ridge tiles are what hold the two pieces together - then the end piece was removed... ...a bit fiddly - but sorted now. FORGE The forge does have a base - as you will be able to see inside when it's done - so squaring was easier AND I found out why those 2 pieces have no detail on one side... They are the insides of the front wall & you won't see them from the front... The cross member over the entrance helps too - but I'm going to need to do a bit of filling on the corners... I think a bit of sprue that I melted a while ago in a nearly empty Tamiya extra thin bottle will be the fastest setting. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 13, 2020 Author Share Posted April 13, 2020 ...just finished a lovely chicken & stuffing butty - with a cup of tea - so time for a quick update - it feels like a bank holiday blitz build... BARN I got the barn doors on... I have skimmed a couple of nobbly bits off the hinges... ...more filling going to be done in a minute... ...same story round the back... ….but it's going together very quickly... FORGE I got the forge in the forge - not a lot of detail - but when the roof goes on you'll struggle to see it anyway... The roof looks like it will be difficult to locate firmly - so I added a couple more bits of 'L' section... ...and so the filling of the corners commences - back soon - Steve 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 13, 2020 Author Share Posted April 13, 2020 BARN The building is now almost completed... The base section is together & the top section - shown here... there you go. The melted sprue for the gaps is going off quickly & should be ready for sanding very shortly... It's a bit 'primitive' - but at least it looks like a barn... 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 13, 2020 Author Share Posted April 13, 2020 FORGE I think I used a little too much glue on the ridge tiles as the 2 roof sections are bit wobbly... Anyway I had to use some masking tape to hold them together whilst they calmed down... Once it had stiffened up a bit I removed it & started putting the floor in place... With a bit of fiddling & some thin cyano it set really quickly... more later - but time for an early glass of wine now I think - cheers - Steve 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorby Posted April 13, 2020 Share Posted April 13, 2020 Good to see you're forging ahead with this. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 13, 2020 Author Share Posted April 13, 2020 10 minutes ago, Gorby said: Good to see you're forging ahead with this. Oh yes 'forging' ahead indeed - it's a 'barn' storming build mate!!! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorby Posted April 13, 2020 Share Posted April 13, 2020 1 minute ago, BIG X said: 'barn' storming build Damn, why didn't I think of that one. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 13, 2020 Author Share Posted April 13, 2020 Well we are heading for 'prime time' on telly - so time for some priming... BARN The wood detail isn't bad.... Whoops a bit more filling required FORGE The roof has stiffened up... So another rattle of the can & away we go... OOPS I'VE DONE IT AGAIN - as Britney Spears might say - oh well - a bit of the old Tamiya thin should melt the primer into the gaps. Time for tea now - HOT DOGS - we know how to eat well at BIG X Towers 🍷is it red or white with hot dogs ??? 3 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorby Posted April 13, 2020 Share Posted April 13, 2020 16 minutes ago, BIG X said: Time for tea now - HOT DOGS - we know how to eat well at BIG X Towers 🍷is it red or white with hot dogs ??? I wanted to go to the chippy tonight for the fist time since all this mess started (Chips and whisky – sounds like a plan ) but Mrs Gorby (quite unreasonably in my opinion) said that it's not worth dying for. But I am dying for some decent chips! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete in Lincs Posted April 13, 2020 Share Posted April 13, 2020 4 hours ago, BIG X said: I got the barn doors on... Has anyone seen my horse? Good to see you back in Harness, Steve. The ribs must be on the mend. Must be all that good food. These look like lovely little kits. I enjoy pottering around with this sort of thing but I don't get much chance nowadays. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 13, 2020 Author Share Posted April 13, 2020 44 minutes ago, Pete in Lincs said: Has anyone seen my horse? Good to see you back in Harness, Steve. The ribs must be on the mend. Must be all that good food. These look like lovely little kits. I enjoy pottering around with this sort of thing but I don't get much chance nowadays. Thanks Pete - please don't start encouraging me to find a 1/76 scale horse though 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 13, 2020 Author Share Posted April 13, 2020 I've been busy picking colours for the roofs / doors / walls / wooden panelling & it seemed a good idea to match them with my previous windmill & church builds. For the doors on the barn I've gone for cockpit green - ala my windmill doors... that was easy enough... For the roofs I am copying the principle of a two tone grey from my church - but maybe with a little more finesse... How Vallejo get away with calling them BOTH Medium Sea Grey I will never know - here's the first coat... I can't remember for the life in me what I used for browns on my church walls - so it was out with the spoons & anything that vaguely looked brown... I ended up with these... ...and finally for today - here is the first pass of the lighter colour... It's been a fun day - I feel like I've achieved something - for the first time in a long while. It's also taken my mind off the pain in my ribs. I reckon I'll have these sewn up by lunch tomorrow - there is still a way to go to get them looking a bit more 'realistic' - but I have 'hope' - which is always a good sign. If you've popped in for a quick look then thanks - it means a lot at the moment - I need a bit of support. So Thanks for stopping by - Steve. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nimrod54 Posted April 13, 2020 Share Posted April 13, 2020 16 minutes ago, BIG X said: reckon I'll have these sewn up by lunch tomorrow You could have a small village by the end of the week Steve. Don't forget the pub, and I'll see you there for a pint. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 13, 2020 Author Share Posted April 13, 2020 4 minutes ago, nimrod54 said: You could have a small village by the end of the week Steve. Don't forget the pub and see you there for a pint. Sadly John - the pub is closed - for reasons of social distancing - I could get us a few cans though & we can hang out in the churchyard - until we get picked up by the fuzz - which sounds painful when you think about it 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nimrod54 Posted April 13, 2020 Share Posted April 13, 2020 3 minutes ago, BIG X said: I could get us a few cans though & we can hang out in the churchyard What Like Billy Connolly? I remember one of his shows where he told a tale of some fellow Scot saying 'Hey Big Yin! We know you, we've drunk with you up by the graveyard.' That's an idea, maybe we could invite Billy too, but he has to bring his own beer. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnT Posted April 13, 2020 Share Posted April 13, 2020 6 hours ago, BIG X said: Oh yes 'forging' ahead indeed - it's a 'barn' storming build mate!!! There’s never a groan emoji around when you need one. Cracking along nicely Mr X and not just those ribs either. Nice wee models there though they seem to have a lot of too deep panel lines. You going to be doing any pointing around the stonework or going for the “in need of maintenance” look? some advice on painting buildings if I may be so presumptuous. Choose the colour call out yourself. Don’t ask Mrs Big X for advice. The last time I painted the garage and front door I did it four times. Once for undercoat and three top coats. All different shades of the same colour. I was happy with the first shade but not so Mrs T. Nor the second. I think she was about to suggest a fourth shade but thought better of it when she spotted my darkening countenance. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major_Error Posted April 14, 2020 Share Posted April 14, 2020 Really nice this one! You are creating a nice product out of an "easy model". This will become very good! Looking forward to see the progress. 8-) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 14, 2020 Author Share Posted April 14, 2020 Morning All - I was up early - I must be feeling a bit better & I'm keen to press on & get these finished today - I've been 'at it' all ready... BARN I masked off the cockpit green doors so I could get a first coat on the stone walls... It seems like an age since I last used some masking tape & it prompted me to look in the drawer to make sure my spare rolls were up to scratch. I have done a basic 'two tone' on the barn roof... FORGE I did the same on the forge roof - but I've also gone to the next stage too... I've starting highlighting tiles in lighter & darker shades... So - it's onwards & upwards this morning - but thanks too for all the comments & support yesterday - it's cheered me up enormously... @Gorby @nimrod54 @Pete in Lincs @JohnT @Jb65rams @PZRGREN @Richard E @Major_Error - Thanks Guys 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted April 14, 2020 Author Share Posted April 14, 2020 It's been a busy morning down on the farm... BARN I got a second darker coat onto the brickwork - kind of a dappled finish. These will get a grey wash later to pick out a little of the grain. FORGE The forge has got a second coat too - we are getting there - but I need some washes now. Washes after lunch - crumpets I think... 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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