Garden Railway Forum

It has been extremely wet with no let up in the rain so far this year hampering the work on the water feature,despite that some more progress was made .Two more van loads of stone ,brick and rubble have been used to form the pond base and backfill the void.
Sand was then spread in the pond base before placing an old woollen rug on top and some gravel bags then a dpc sheet was triple folded and laid on top to form the pond liner.

The heavy rain helped fill the pond up , extra stone was used to hold the edges of the pond liner in place which helped form a rock face along the railway.

I have researched various solar pond pumps and went for a 12w variant which also has the option of adding a backup battery. I tested it out and was pleased with its performance. It is capable of lifting water up to a max of 1.5 metres . So fingers crossed, there will be a waterfall incorporated into the grand scheme.
Dai the coracle couldn't wait to go fishing .

Very impressive Chris

I think the coracle is crying out for motorisation of his paddle arm and r/c !

Seriously though, its coming on well. A few months to mature and it will be a fine 'natural' addition to the railway.

Nice work Chris, well thought out and constructed. Should make an interesting feature when its matured.

Managed to book a dry weather slot for today in order to finish off the water feature . Whilst my expert friend did his magic with the final load of stone ,I set up the solar panel and pump.
With spring apon us the plants and bushes will shoot up behind the rocks providing the perfect backdrop .

Looks good.

I took advantage of the good weather today and ran a couple of trains.
What a difference the stonework has made to the railway and the sound of the waterfall adds adds to the enjoyment.

Preseli Chris wrote: ↑Thu Mar 19, 2026 11:06 pm the sound of the waterfall adds adds to the enjoyment.

Totally agree, I also added the sound of a water powered mill (wooden blocks clunking around in a wooden box turned by the wheel). The engine and train in that first shot look good too.
Grant.

Preseli Chris wrote: ↑Thu Mar 19, 2026 11:06 pm
What a difference the stonework has made to the railway and the sound of the waterfall adds adds to the enjoyment.

Totally agree about the stonework, and as you said, the vegetation will soon make an even greater difference. That last shot of the loco in steam looks superb, so how about a bit of video with steam sound and the water feature sound, please?

Indeed a great improvement. Blending nicely into the environment.

Rik

The P.M.R. held its first running session of 2026 a couple of days ago. The weather was perfect, light winds and lots of sunshine. Various guest locos turned up including a coal fired 7/8th scale engine . I was surprised by how quickly it built up steam pressure and performed . It covered 4 laps to one shovel of coal (anthracite) I gave Vincent a run

A DHR Inspired train .

Some more visitors

Looks like a really great day.

Rik

That's coming along nicely. The stonework has helped it blend in quite well.The 7/8ths loco appears to be a work in progress, but looks like it's steaming well.

I acquired a number of slate wagons which were in need of some extra detailing . Not having a printer and not wanting to buy wagon iron castings , I rummaged through my plasticard selection and used some angle and 2mm bar .


Then made some more parts. The image shows before and after bodging.
There are 8 wagons in all . The Brandbright brake van goes well with them.

Meanwhile the plants are starting to ping behind the water feature. Spot the plastic Bonsai.

The P.M.R. has acquired another locomotive for the Summer Season. Namely a Roundhouse Engineering Basic series Peggie, which I have renamed Shanghai Lil.
It arrived earlier in the week but due to inclement weather and the curing time of the silicon adhesive used to fix the name plates it wasn't until today that I could give her a run.
This is the rc controlled version with the battery pack and power switch housed in the bunker. To hide the wires and battery switch I made a coal load using plasticard and some crushed up coal it does the job.
I want to paint the connecting rods red and paint the wheels and cylinder blocks black.
Does anybody know of a suitable paint on etch primer for this purpose.
Thanks in advance.
Chris.