Weekend Update 6/1/14

[up1950s]

[bbussey]

The "modeling" work I did this week was reviewing the first GSC well car pilot models and documenting the needed modifications for the contractor.  Very pleased with the model's weight and the low center of gravity.

[CBQ Fan]

The "modeling" work I did this week was reviewing the first GSC well car pilot models and documenting the needed modifications for the contractor.  Very pleased with the model's weight and the low center of gravity.

Very cool!

[fifer]

Here is the mate to the #600 I did last week. This is #650 and I was a little more comfortable with this one and I like the heavy weathered use look.









Mike

[mark dance]

Nice weathering job Mike. (and nice Lennon quote as well... thx for that!)

Work continues on the Castlegar area...



Some road work.





and Some ballasting.





Here is where the main ducks behind the pulp mill to make its way to the two turn helix to the second deck.



And while not prototypical, ever since I saw the beautiful Muskrat Ramble in the Gazette I have wanted to model a swamp.  The colour matches a beaver pond about 5 minutes from me (by bike).  I was going to try Andrew's puddle technique but I am not happy with how it works on a large area.  The scratches show, any small distortion of the plastic sheet is quite noticeable and, well, it just looks like painted plastic. 



I am going to paint the swamp bottom, add detail then 2 part water.  The weeds can go in afterwards and I will scenic down to the waterline to cover the "creapage" up the sides.  Anyway, that is the idea!

Have a great weekend!

md

[up1950s]

Going to want a well car . Will decals be included ?

[nkalanaga]

Richie:  Do you know where that opening photo was taken?  My guess would be southeast Oregon, on the UP, but I certainly wouldn't put money on it.

[bbussey]

Going to want a well car . Will decals be included ?

It will be a mass-market fully-deco'd ready-to-run item available sometime this year.

[up1950s]

Richie:  Do you know where that opening photo was taken?  My guess would be southeast Oregon, on the UP, but I certainly wouldn't put money on it.

I thought those mountains looked like the Wahsatch (sp) range . They are , view from Utah . http://charlestrentelman.blogspot.com/2013/05/sign-of-times-past-and-present.html

[up1950s]

It will be a mass-market fully-deco'd ready-to-run item available sometime this year.

Now other than the almost always transformer what can I come up with ?

Parked by the roundhouse , lined with a tarp and filled with water would make a wading pool for the crews break and lunch relaxation .

A large , or two large simi-circled halves of something .

A large gear with custom reusable blocking to return the old worn gear complete with manufactures sign .

A big crate .

[Pennsy]

MD
Nice scenery work. I really like the roads and the way they blend in. And it looks like you've used static grass. How do you like it and any tips?

Work continues on the Castlegar area...



Some road work.





And while not prototypical, ever since I saw the beautiful Muskrat Ramble in the Gazette I have wanted to model a swamp.  The colour matches a beaver pond about 5 minutes from me (by bike).  I was going to try Andrew's puddle technique but I am not happy with how it works on a large area.  The scratches show, any small distortion of the plastic sheet is quite noticeable and, well, it just looks like painted plastic. 



I am going to paint the swamp bottom, add detail then 2 part water.  The weeds can go in afterwards and I will scenic down to the waterline to cover the "creapage" up the sides.  Anyway, that is the idea!

Have a great weekend!

md
[/quote]

[VonRyan]

Monday I went to The Engine Shed (Hard to believe I was in the UK, now that I'm back home), out in Ford on the Southern Railway.

I picked up a few goodies, a couple are for my Nn3 project.



The Peco stone walling, and the Noch granite ballast in Gaugemaster packaging, are for use on my Nn3 layout.

The Dapol O-gauge 5-plank wagon is a "just because" purchase that I've wanted for some time.

Speaking of which, I did a comparison shot between it and a Peco N-gauge 5-plank wagon.




Cheers!

-Cody F.

[nkalanaga]

Richie:  Thank you.  As far as I know I've never been there.

[arbomambo]

Well Gang,
last installment on this one until the setup at the regional convention on Wednesday....
It's been a pretty fun 'ride'...if I had  had two more weekends, I would have done just a little bit more....no time to weather the track to my satisfaction (that will have to be done by the club if they so choose)

The weather here is a little 'iffy' today, but I was able to finish it up...legs now have the adjustable T-bolts mounted, wiring harness is complete and color-coded to the hilt!...and I was able to give the vertical rock surfaces a nice black wash, and consequent drybrush....really adds depth to an otherwise monochromatic, flat surface, and blends the color of the vertical outcroppings...
 (the only thing that I'm not completely satisfied with is the vertical rock face-entirely too 'two dimensional'...even with the constraints of the trackplan, I could have given it more depth and varied the height along its face-it would have been quite easy to do this, and I'll definitely incorporate it into the Kingman Canyon layout and any other mesas and buttes I'll build)

Thanks for looking,
~Bruce

[mark dance]

MD
Nice scenery work. I really like the roads and the way they blend in. And it looks like you've used static grass. How do you like it and any tips?

Many thx for the compliment!

I do like static grass but it is just a single tool in the arsenal.  I use it only where the scene calls for it...mostly for foreground scenery where you would expect grass to be.  I don't cover everything with it.  The method I use is just a combination of other methods I have read but it works for me. 

I finish the ground cover with a combination of latex paint, real dirt, ground leaves and ground foams all fixed with matte medium.  I let this dry.  I then come back and re-soak the area with matte medium and give it an hour or two to re-set but the underlying scenery is still damp and conductive.  In areas I *don't* want static grass I cover with paper towels dampening them with water so they hold their shape around tracks, ballast, roadways, etc.  The static grass does have  a tendency to go everywhere! 

I hit the target areas with hair spray and load the applicator (I use a Scooter Static Stick) with 2mm Silfor grass of the required colour then liberally grass the area.  Using a vacuum held above the grass area I remove unwanted grass and straighten out the grass fibers a bit.  I then adjust the location of the paper towel covering areas where I only want the 2mm grass.  I hit the remaining uncovered area with hair spray again.

I then choose a 4mm grass.  I may mix colours and manufacturers.  I have a very broad selections of colours from 4 different manufacturers though mostly I use Silfor.  In my experience the colour of the grass in this step is going to be dominant in the finished scene.  The 2 mm grass really just provides a furry surface for the 4 mm grass to attach to. 

For additional effect I may repeat the process with 6 mm grass in specific areas, especially along the layout edge.  Also I find it is really effective to sprinkle in some ground foam afterwards in a few select places and work it into the grass so it settles at various levels.  This looks like weeds and seems to emphasize the 3D effect of the grass above the scenic base.

It all goes faster then it sounds but the key is having all these materials and tools at hand so you don't have to go searching between steps.



Hope that helps!

md