My planned layout, now in progress, will use natural building/landscaping materials from field trips in my province of Nova Scotia, Canada. These materials include rocks and minerals from quarries, mines, and beaches within/near my real layout area in the province, and wood products from ocean driftwood found on our beaches. Here is a recent example of driftwood I gathered to build a culvert.
Welcome to the forums.
At the moment I can't see your photos, hope someone comes along and makes it a clickable link. (Beyond my computer knowledge.)
Sounds interesting, hope to see it soon.
Good luck,
Richard
I did a cut/paste and took a look. I'll try making it live:
Are you planning on milling lumber from the driftwood? That, alone, sounds interesting and fun.
The wood might well scale down. Rocks might or might not. The exposed rocks on my layout are made from molds taken off of chunks of coal. And they look good, I think.
Ed
I did the copy/paste thing earlier, just had to take a look.
So, your going to use a hollowed out log, for the culvert? Or am completely off base, and your going to make "planks" out of the drift wood for the headwalls, on each side? Or am I comletely lost. It's happened before. being completely lost.
Just wondering.
Mike.
My You Tube
Be safe, is all I can say, if you plan tp use a table saqw. I was cutting wood yesterday to build a 1:20.3 turntable and was pretty glad I still have all my fingers when I was done. The problem with cutting sticckwood for modeling is that small wood means there is very little clearance around the blade. If it's smaller than G scale, I leave the cutting to experts.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
That photo upload didn't work either.
For some reason (maybe because I am new) my additional posts to try to add the images are not displaying. They may have to be approved by admin so I'll not make more posts until the morning and see what shows up. To answer this question, yes I am making my own lumber and have already used it to make a railway culvert over a stream. I have a series of photos on Photobucket showing the process from beach driftwood to layout culvert.
Friends,
A hollowed out piece of driftwood does not make a culvert.
I am very respectful of anyone who chooses to make their own lumber. In HO. I see no magic there, but I do see the potential for owies. As does Mr. Lehman.
But isn't it neat to actually cut your own lumber? From appropriate "driftwood". So cool! Keep us informed, please.
What are you planning to use to cut the "logs" into lumber?
Years ago I knew a guy who made scale lumber and scribed siding for the hobby market. He had an small top quality table saw modified for that purpose. However he used rectilinear pieces of wood and wood sheets, not logs.
I tried to sell my two cents worth, but no one would give me a plug nickel for it.
I don't have a leg to stand on.
7j43k Friends, A hollowed out piece of driftwood does not make a culvert. I am very respectful of anyone who chooses to make their own lumber. In HO. I see no magic there, but I do see the potential for owies. As does Mr. Lehman. But isn't it neat to actually cut your own lumber? From appropriate "driftwood". So cool! Keep us informed, please. Ed
Actually a hollowed out log could be used as a culvert. Seattle and many other cities used hollowed out logs as water pipes and sewer pipes. Seattle's underground tour has a display of hollowed log pipe from the cities original 1854 water system. .
London England had bored Elm water pipes as early as the 13th century.
http://www.sewerhistory.org/photosgraphics/pipes-wood/
Check the found wood, rocks and all for tiny critters. Have you tried microwaveing the wood? Anything living inside will die and smell bad. I once tried cutting driftwood for stove heat, the logs were full of sand. With a dull and wrecked chain saw blade I gave up.
This might be "over kill" but be mindful that you are introducing corrosive salt into your layout to whatever minimal degree (wiring, suitcase connectors, switch points) who knows? You can laugh,folks, but as an old salt water boater of many years, nothing with salt on it enters my train room if I can help it. Just sayin'....especially if handling items down the road, you never know. Perhaps another local wood source/branches would be safer...who knows? Around here woodstoves that burn driftwood often corrode through in less than a year, even thick airtight styles.
If you do use the driftwood, maybe soak it in fresh water and re-dry IF you feel the paranoia like I do
Raised on the Erie Lackawanna Mainline- Supt. of the Black River Transfer & Terminal R.R.
It should be possible, and I would think fun, to use, say, the Micro Mark (or similarly small) "microLux" miniature table saws, and perhaps also their mini disc sander, to more or less replicate how logs are turned into usable dimensioned lumber. But to do it right, and more importantly, to do it safely, would involve a considerable investment in such precision small tools. The MicroMark folks would love you for it however! I'd personally wait until I got one of their free shipping offers ...
Dave Nelson
I have been making My own scale lumber for yrs. I used to build wood ships, from scratch. Mahogany, Pine, Poplar, Birch....never tried driftwood though. I have the tools to do it though,,,starting off with 10inch table saw, 4''inch table saw and a Proxxon 2'' precision table saw. I usually do not go below 1/8'' of an inch though. It's amazing how much scale lumber you can get out of a 1x6 x3ft board.
Take Care!
Frank
Beautiful! Wish I didn't have to wait 24 hrs for a moderator to approve this message, otherwise I'd have a great discussion with you. Oh it worked!!!!
I can post immediately now! Not sure how to post photos yet but I have several showing what I do. @zstripe how did you post your photos?
First I collect suitably shaped driftwood from our Bay of Fundy and/or Atlantic Ocean beaches.
What ever works for You My friend. Driftwood would probably make pretty good, ''fenders'' and bridge abutment/pier bumpers for My river bridge scene I'm working on now. Would not have to weather it and would have all the natural splits etc. Unfortunately....here in the Midwest, driftwood is about non-existant. LOL
OldSchoolScratchbuilder I can post immediately now! Not sure how to post photos yet but I have several showing what I do. @zstripe how did you post your photos?
Check out the sticky thread about posting photos in General Discussion. I use Photobucket, but I do it differently than the sticky thread. I Do Not use the link in the post line. All I do is go to photobucket, click on the IMG. I want to copy, it will turn yellow saying copied, go to My post...press ''Enter'' click on Ctrl V the URL will show up and I press ''Enter'' again. When I click on ''Submit Your Reply'' the IMG will show. I;m running Windows 10 with Chrome for a browser.....works everytime.
Then I cut off ends.
Cut the logs.
Slice off the outside surface.
Cut boards next.
Built and painted the culvert [inspired by "A small culvert," Bill Schaumburg and Wayne Wesolowski, Railroad Model Craftsman, Vol. 45(3), August 1976, pp. 56-57.]
Ready to install in the layout near Rusty Steele & Sons, Ltd. metal scrapyard (I freelance).
Installation 99% complete. There are many natural Nova Scotia materials in this picture including red sandstone from Cape Blomidon (ground cover and tidal brook mud banks), shale from Walton (track ballast/bed, steel-reinforced blocks, culvert buttresses), grey clay from Cheverie, gypsum from Windsor (building foundations, road barricades), rusty steel from scrapbooked model railroad magazine staples (reinforced blocks, barricade hooks, old wharf spikes), scrap metal from local highway and road shoulders, railyard in Amherst, and rusty gypsum hopper cars in Hantsport, driftwood from West Jeddore (culvert and old wharf remenants), and real rust dust from the scrap metal (on the sides of the old gear on the bank of the brook). Finally, note that the track has not yet been set in place - needs to be lowered to the top surface of the culvert.
How do you hold that small of a ''log'' thru the saw to get uniform boards and walk away with all your fingers?
Have you got a jig or something like a carrage to hold them ?
I have cut scale lumber on my band saw,but off a good size pieace, when I nolonger feel comfortable, I'll toss that one and grab a nother big one.
I made a makeshift jig for that first project but now I am designing a finely calibrated custom jig for this Dremel Moto Saw.