Blog Update October 28, 2009
Posted by railroadman in Buildings and Scenery, Layout Construction, Model Railroading, Trackwork.add a comment
Hello everyone. It has been too long since I did regular updates to the blog. Too much work and time being spent on other things it seems. I have been working on the layout on and off in the little spare time I have had and have documented things along the way which will make for some interesting posts. It will take a few post to get things caught up here on the blog. Lets bring you up to date somewhat on the construction status.
Construction has continued up the branch line with most of the track work being completed in Holden (contemplating a few town name changes, again.) including the rough wiring. Everything is mechanically and electrically working great, I just need to hard wire the leads to the terminals and switch machines and tidy things up. I do still have to install the west end turnout which I can start working on now as I have competed the installation of the trestle bride which I will do a separate post on. The track work is complete up to Walton which is the second town on the branchline. I am not installing the towns industry tracks until I confirm where the lumber industry buildings will go so I can work the tracks in around the buildings as I do not have a lot of space here.
Hopefully I will be able to complete the west end of Holden soon and start installing the risers and spline work for the third and furthest west bound town Clifton on the branch line. I am trying to complete all the track work as a priority so I can start developing an operating schedule. This is why some scenery projects have taken a back seat on the priority to do list.
Here are a few pictures of the track work in Holden, awaiting scenery in Woodshill and the temporary Fire Proof Storage building on Gainesville.
Pouring, Shaping, Installing, Coloring, and Detailing Rock Castings March 11, 2008
Posted by railroadman in Buildings and Scenery, Model Railroading.4 comments
I received several emails regarding my rock casting techniques which I really appreciate. So I am returning the appreciation by detailing step by step how I get my rock castings to look realistic.
1. Pouring the Casting – First I pick out a mold that will fit the space I am working on. Molds by the way can be purchased or made like I did. I made dozens of all different types of rocks with liquid rubber latex that is applied in several layers to build the thickness.
The key is the first layer as it holds all the detail so I make sure to brush the latex in every groove and hole on the rocks surface. The remaining layers build the thickness so the mold does not tear when removing it. Now I can create hundreds of castings. Make sure if you purchase molds that you get several as you do not want your rocks to look repetitive. I use dental plaster for my moldings as it is super fine, starts to setup in 5 minutes and can be installed on the layout in 30 minutes. Full cure time is about 24 hours. Dental plaster is very hard to find but if you know a dentist you shouldn’t have any problems. I am sure some of the fine molding plasters out there may do a similar job. I start by mixing just enough plaster to do the mold as I only have 5 minutes to work with it. I wet the mold and pour in some plaster and tap it with a spatula t0 get any air bubbles out and to help it flow into all the detail. I make sure to have enough plaster around the edges as if it is not thick enough, it will chip when I go to remove it or when I am installing it. After I have filled the mold with plaster I leave it to setup but return every 10 minutes to spray it with water as the dental plaster heats up in the curing process. The water keep the plaster from getting brittle.
Rock Casting Portal Scenery March 9, 2008
Posted by railroadman in Buildings and Scenery, Layout Construction, Model Railroading.2 comments
Well I have continued on with the scenery in the mountain area divide of the layout. I have lightly turfed the whole area to simulate ground cover although most will be hidden from all the trees and vegetation. The areas with no or less foliage will be colored further with greens, browns, yellows, etc… I use the woodlands scenics clump foliage on the mountain to represent the tops of the trees as if you were standing looking at the mountain. You can’t count the trees as they all blend in together to make on large tree mass. That is the effect I am going for here and I use 3 different colors and then sprinkle additional coloring afterwards to create more texture and variation. The close up areas and around buildings will have larger individual trees and some underbrush amongst other details to create realistic settings. I simply use a small amount of white glue to secure each clump. I am also starting to add some field grass in some of the dips representing areas were moisture settles and allows for more lush vegetation. I will make sure these areas are greener then most and will even place some wildlife looking for a drink. I will be doing some instructional posts in the near future on my rock casting techniques and field grass techniques as I seem to be getting a lot of questions which is great.
Here are some images of the mountain and portal progress to date. I still need to finish some coloring in the open areas and add detail where I feel necessary, ballast, etc…
