"There's an old mill by the stream, Nelly Dean!"

[Guest]

This looks good.

[Adrian "Marvel" Reynolds]

Just wish I had half your skill at scratch building, hats off to you and I'll keep watching and picking up some tips.

Adrian

[Guest]

Truly amazing scratch work Ron,that wheel looks awesome!

[Gern]

Excellent work as usual Ron, but I do sometimes wish you wouldn't make it look so simple. I'm always disappointed when my stuff doesn't come out as well as I hoped. Mind you, I'm over the moon when it does look OK so I suppose it balances out.

Gern

[Guest]

Magnificent wheel Ron! You are a genius

[flyjoe180]

Wonderful work Ron, that wheel is a nice piece alone

[Richi72]

Hi Ron,

excellent work on the scratch build my Friend. Nice wheel can't wait to see the end result.

Cheers Richi

[Guest]

Thanks folks for the continuing support....It's nice to have you along.With trepidation, and not a clue how to proceed, I turned my attention to the waterwheel, which I suppose in a way, will be the centre piece.

I had a look at pictures of these things, some complicated, others less so. In the end I decided to create my own relatively simple design, which I reckoned would be easier to do than try and copy a real one. It's made from scrap plastic card, coffee stirrers and an RAF Cosford cafe plastic straw for the 'axle'!

After a bit of idea scribbling I came up with this :-

Here are the stages.......

First off I marked a circle from a piece of thin plastic card

[ATTACH]82379[/ATTACH]

I didn't want a simple second inner circle, so I came up with this idea and divided the wheel into 8 segments and cut these out. Then I cut a centre hub and marked around the centre with my straw axle to get the right diameter hole, then made some 'spokes' from coffee stirrers........

[ATTACH]82380[/ATTACH]

Here is one side finished...Now the other!

[ATTACH]82381[/ATTACH]

The second side done and joined to the first with suitable cross members...I was so chuffed with my wheel thus far, that I forgot to make holes for my drinking straw axle......Too late now!!

[ATTACH]82382[/ATTACH]

Next I made a scale pattern for the paddles, again from bits of thin plastic card...and cut out 24 of them!

[ATTACH]82383[/ATTACH]

This shows the finished bare wheel ready for painting...Because of my previous excitement, I had to make the axle in three bits - a middle and two outers......Sorry for the fuzzy picture.

[ATTACH]82384[/ATTACH]

Here is the finished water wheel, painted in a first coat and ready for weathering.

I'm well happy with my first ever go at one, and the design is mine, all mine I tell you!!! lol

[ATTACH]82385[/ATTACH]

That's it for the wheel. I'm pleased to have got this part of the diorama behind me, as at first I had no idea how to tackle it.

Mind you, I won't be doing another in a hurry!

Next I will make a start on the mill building.

Thanks for looking in.

Cheers,

Ron

[Guest]

Hi Ron that bit of scratch building is up there with the invention of the wheel. Top build mate, I do agree you should replicate some of this in resin.

scott

[colin m]

All looking great. But I had to smile to myself, you've still managed to get water in there somehow !

[spanner570]

And where do you get large pizza's for a quid??

Li**, we regularily get them.....usually two in a box for around £2 odd. You sound surprised Patrick?

Serves you right for living in 'The Smoke'. Things is right cheap up North! lol

[spanner570]

Enough pizza talk, it's making me hungry.....

Thanks again for the excellent and very complimentary comments on my mill wheel. They made all the hair pulling and unsavoury language seem worth while!!!!

Let's move on.

Now the dio. is taking a bit of form, some ideas are coming through into me noggin'.

To break up the building wall a bit, I decided to make a drying room on the first floor, so here is the stage build of this.....

Simple enough, made from coffee stirrers and thin plastic strips cut at random widths and stuck on none too neat to try and get a haphazard, neglected effect.....

[ATTACH]82314.IPB[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH]82315.IPB[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH]82316.IPB[/ATTACH]


Then placed on the top temp. to see if it looked right....You may have noticed the front wall has been cut right down, more on this later......

[ATTACH]82317.IPB[/ATTACH]


Also, I built up the stone support for the wheel axle...

[ATTACH]82318.IPB[/ATTACH]


I also closed up the top bit of wall

[ATTACH]82319.IPB[/ATTACH]


Next up, I'll finish the mill building walls etc.

Cheers all,

Ron

[Ian M]

Looking very nice as usual.

Ian M

[monica]

looking grate Ron, , coming together, well, cannot wait to see what you do next,

real do like the stone work you have done, i real must have a go at that one day,

[spanner570]

real do like the stone work you have done, i real must have a go at that one day,

Thanks Monica, but why do that when your own stonework is so good?