Office
The office could have been any one of three. After making a coal merchants office for the layout it looked a bit large so, a 4-wheeled observation coach and a bogie coach were also considered. The latter two were made for the garden railway, but never put into service. The 4-wheel coach won the day - a good decision.
|
Pre-covid, the observation area seating had been removed to make way for the office, while the smaller compartment seating was left in to become part of the staff room furniture. A table, chair and filing cabinet were made for the office and all work stopped. In lockdown, the kitchen sink and all of the office paraphernalia were made and added. I was told that the kitchen needs a kettle, so maybe a small cantilevered worktop will have to be made.....
|
If it had a roof, I couldn't find it, so a new one was made of laminated card. At first, thick paper strips were overlaid to represent roofing felt. However, after seeing the medium grade sandpaper used on the engine shed, that was used on the office as well.
As the interior fittings got underway, thoughts turned to lighting. Filament lamp light always looks softer than LED's, but being more dependable, and numerous, experiments with staining LED's were carried out, but ultimately put to one side. A box of lamps of unknown voltage was rummaged through (you buy them at a show meaning to label them at home, but never do!). A pair of grain-of-wheat lamps were found that gave an acceptable lighting level and 'ambience' at 9v and were taped into the roof soffit with some aluminium foil for reflectors.
|
Having considered LED's, some 1.8mm LED's gave me an idea. The long tails looked like an anglepoise desk lamp and after a bit of bending of the wires, looked even more so. Two pieces of plastic tubing became the lamp cover and base. The square head of the LED was filed down carefully to fit into the cover. A larger tube became the base and a coat of paint later... All this lighting would need several switches, so a frame was fabricated to be located behind the office.
|
I have to admit that I managed to blow the first anglepoise lamp by forgetting to refit the resistor after feeding the wires through the small hole in the coach body. However, the replacement took no time at all and actually turned out a bit neater than the first.
|
Knowing when to stop is always difficult, but the chair looks a bit rushed, so maybe a new one will complete the scene.
|