ahh a christmas plasticville layout! thanks for the inspiration.
quick question for you becky since you are into plasticville: i have a church w/ paper windows that are glued into place. the church is horribly mildewed, and what I've done w/ other pieces is simply soak in soapy water and scrub w/ a toothbrush. I don't know that I can do that w/ the church though, b/c of the paper details (they are not the kind that slide out). Any suggestions on how to get the mildew off w/o damaging the paper details?
Thanks!
If it is mildew, a cloth dipped in Clorox bleach will remove surface mildew. If the stain has permiated the plastic, I doubt if anything will remove it, including a "bath".
Try a MR CLEAN ERASER.
I always use Plastiville structures.
msbsouthpaw ahh a christmas plasticville layout! thanks for the inspiration. quick question for you becky since you are into plasticville: i have a church w/ paper windows that are glued into place. the church is horribly mildewed, and what I've done w/ other pieces is simply soak in soapy water and scrub w/ a toothbrush. I don't know that I can do that w/ the church though, b/c of the paper details (they are not the kind that slide out). Any suggestions on how to get the mildew off w/o damaging the paper details? Thanks!
I'd try the bleach method first, testing it on the inside of a wall with a cotton swab if that's possible. If that fails, or the paper inserts get damaged, here's a place that manufactures replacements: http://www.tandem-associates.com/plasticville/plasticville_db02.htm#PAGE2 You can also find them on Ebay.
Becky
Trains, trains, wonderful trains. The more you get, the more you toot!
PS Here's a little Plasticville mod I had a lot of fun with:
It's one of those things they should have made but never did! I made the signs using a mimic of the HoJo font and printed them to the sizes I needed. There's also a white Tonka van (ambulance) with homemade HoJo markings!
Doug:
Quick question ...
on some of those thortrains.net layouts, he has a trolley crossing another set of track. Do I need a 2nd transformer to make each one (the trolley on its bump-n-go path, and the train on it's loop) move at the same time? I like the motion of having two moving trains/trolleys.
Matt
very impressive! looks like the p-ville schoolhouse turned into the HoJo? what did you light it up w/?
thanks for sharing.
msbsouthpaw Doug: Quick question ... on some of those thortrains.net layouts, he has a trolley crossing another set of track. Do I need a 2nd transformer to make each one (the trolley on its bump-n-go path, and the train on it's loop) move at the same time? I like the motion of having two moving trains/trolleys. Thanks! Matt
Matt,
The simple answer is "it depends". Some transformers are capable of powering multiple tracks as well as multiple controls. If you don't have one of these I would suggest separate transformers so you can have individual control. For a trolley line a small transformer would be more than sufficient.
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msbsouthpaw very impressive! looks like the p-ville schoolhouse turned into the HoJo? what did you light it up w/? thanks for sharing.
Thanks! It's one of my faves! I used Model Power peel and stick lights in all of my P-Ville buildings. I also glue tissue or tracing paper into the window frames with a water based glue stick. The glue doesn't damage the plastic BTW. Some buildings, like the HoJo, require more than lamp to look good. There's also a "Simple Simon and the Pieman" weathervane on the top of the spire! I'll try to get better pics next month when I start unpacking and servicing this layout.
Your creativity "ROCKS" Becky! I always enjoy your pictures!
Doug,
When you say you use x-mass led light sets do you cut them up and then rewire them under the layout? Then do you plug them into the ac outlet or do you wire the lights to a transformer?
Doug: I would appreciate a little more info about this as well. I've got my platform up (I have new-found love for nail guns!), and am wondering what to do about wiring, too. Thanks!
For a "short term" layout, such as Christmas, halloween, etc., just use them as they come from the package. Try to find the ones with the greatest spacing between lights you can. For a more long term/permanent arrangement they can be broken out into individual pieces but that requires a lot of additional labor and additional parts.
Michael's is starting to display their new line of LEMAX buildings. Here is a link:
http://lemax.org/index.asp?id_cat=245&pag_cat=1
I like the Doggy Day Care.
Bachmann trains has just added some new Christmas fun to their new line of bluetooth trains. The trains animate (motion/lights) to Christmas music. Here is a video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf-DYoQ3D4s
Try the hardware store... They usually have some brands I cant remember, but that's where I got all my Christmas buildings.
Love Plasticville. They have been put under our trees for years. Nothing wrong with ceramic if you like it better.
Edit Plasticville is not expensive, A repaint will make them look new again with no real value lost.
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Charter Member- Tardis Train Crew (TTC) - Detroit3railers- Detroit Historical society Glancy Modular trains- Charter member BTTS
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