January Progress...

All,

Well what a month it has been & before going any further with this post I must take this opportunity to thank everyone who has supported us with the recent release of our Timber Tank Stand kit...  Since the initial release on the 3rd of this month we have now clocked up sales of ( a staggering ) 229 of these kits & it is certainly interesting when the sales split is examined.  30 sold on Ebay, 40 to a US hobby outlet, 42 sold to overseas customers, 20 to Warren at Gwydir Valley Models & the balance through direct sales.  One interesting aspect is that through email discussions with the overseas customers...the vast majority are not expats or building Aussie Layouts....Go figure.

While on the subject of the Timber Tank Stand kit....it has come to our attention that a couple of people have been confusing our kit with another supplier's offering.   To clarify our kits are supplied in a box marked plainly with Harlow Graphics Laser Rail Bits with all timber parts manufactured from Premium Basswood with the base etc being 3mm pre-machined acrylic.  We do not & will not ever contemplate utilising inferior or unsuitable materials for inclusion in any of our kits.

BTW... I am also hearing we may soon have some more choices of overhead tanks to fit on the stands????!!!!

Now on with the post...

Our latest incarnation planned for the Timber Bridge Range is approaching completion.  One of the key features we are always striving to improve upon is ease of construction while being very mindful of not compromising on the prototype in terms of scale, detail or general appearance.  Following on from the last post which talked about the girder & corbel incorporation at the deck level... we have looked at adopting the same methodology of the rest of the kit where possible & in particular the support "bents".  With the almost completed bridge sample in the attached shots we have trialled the use of  a one piece headstock, sill & pile assembly with the angle bracing being added separately.  We have also added simulated joins where appropriate  This of course means deviating from round piles in favour of square which was certainly not unknown in prototype...assembly time is certainly the winner being sped up significantly. 

So... as stated i have added some shots for perusal & as usual any comments ( good, bad or constructive ) are welcome.  It must be noted that the bridge still requires foundations, angle iron guardrail supports & nut bolt detail...I will post another instalment when these decided upon & added.

Have a Great Australia Day & Long Weekend!!! ....I just may spend some time on the layout....Yeah Right.