Been A Long Time Between Posts December 2023

Certainly, over the last couple of years my regular updates came down to monthly and then once every three months down to only a few a year.

This has come down to being busy at work and home life being chaotic as well. I did get some little bits of railway modelling done on the side, but did not find the time put a blog together up until now.

I have all of sudden found myself a on large break which should allow me to power through in completing my HO Layout of Muttama. I guess will start from where I left off from last time.

The messy construction site of Muttama

Rethinking My Approach to Muttama

I guess it all started with me having a feeling that something was not right or out of place with Muttama and just by a random read up got me thinking. After reading up time table instruction for the Cootamundra to Tumut Branch for passenger trains, it noted that trains needed to stop and allow for several minutes at Muttama to allow the Gate Keeper to close the level crossing gates for safe passage. 

This got me rethinking on a few items which is as follows:

1) Should I put crossing gates on the Level Crossing instead of the Level Crossing Signs?

2) The Rest House, what was its purpose for being there in the first instance? My thoughts are that the Station building may have gone in the 1970's and that the Gates got remove and replaced with Level Crossing Signs and that the rest house may have been purposed as an admin office for the goods yard that was being still utilised until the closure of the Tumut Branch Line. 

3) Do I need the Rest House as the pictures that are around when the Rest house existed shows the Gatekeepers Cottage in a bit of a run down state?

The above led me to conclude to not to include the rest house as I will have more aiming for steam era to steam to diesel transition era running to be factor in. Furthermore, I felt for that part of the layout was looking too crowded items and that having Level Crossing gates will help fill in area with something more appealing to look at. Therefore, I have decided to not include the Rest House building on the Muttama Layout.

Muttama Layout now cleaned up minus the Rest House structure

Cleaning Up Muttama Layout

Over the last year, miscellaneous items have been placed on the layout which has been congesting the looks of the layout and at the same time clouding up my thinking on what needs to be done next on the layout. Therefore a clean up was carried out which has helped me better asses what remains left to do to get Muttama completed. Seems not much left to complete.

Getting Work Back in Motion Again

After the assessment, I determined that I needed to complete smaller items such as the seating and Office Furniture for the Station Building, water tank stand for the water tank for the Gate Keepers Cottage which  have managed to build up and to have them ready to be primed and painted in the very near future. 

One of the seating supports that I scratched build which I made a casting mold for

Bench for the Station Masters Office has been constructed and fitted in place

Seating in the Station Building is now taking shape and will be soon completed

All of the smaller items are now in a work in progress state

Level Crossing Gates

I will go into deeper detail on the Level Crossing Gates as soon as they are completed as it has enough content just to do a blog topic on its own. However, here is a preview on what to look forward too. I have progressed further than what you see now. 

Level Crossing Gates currently under construction. But will this be the end product?

Finally, I would like to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a safe and enjoyable holiday period. Hopefully I will be back in full form in 2024 with at least a few more blog updates than what I have provided this year.