In-ko-pah RR: Some new photos

[Ray Dunakin]

Lately I've been busy installing and wiring the depot's lights, both interior and exterior, as well as making some more interior details, installing doors and windows, etc. I made ceiling lamps out of clear plastic beads and brass-plated plastic buttons, with 3mm LEDs: Here are a couple of the simple background details for the interior -- a wall clock and a safe: The safe is tucked into a corner and will only be partially visible through the bay window, which is why I didn't put too much effort into it: This next photo is a bit out of focus, but it does show some of the ceiling lamps: I also made a vintage typewriter for the station master's desk, just inside the bay window. I'm not very happy with the keys but it'll have to do. I couldn't think of any better way to represent them: That's all for now, more later.

[hon30critter]

Ray:

You are amazing!

"...didn't put too much effort in..."

Dave

[Ray Dunakin]

Thanks! Here are a couple more details… First is a desk fan, which I made from the engine fan and jack stand out of a model car kit, plus part of an old Gundam kit and a few other bits:

 

 

 

Next is a telegraph receiver. Kind of crude in closeup but actually turned out much better than I expected for something so tiny:

 

 

 

And then here's a shot of the desk top, with the items temporarily in position to see how it all fits. I may end up moving the fan to the ticket counter, and replace it with a lamp. This desk will fit into the bay window:

 

 

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["JaBear"]

Insanely marvellous!!!

[hon30critter]

Insanely marvellous!!!

Thanks Bear! I couldn't think of the right words!

Ray: 

Dave

[Ray Dunakin]

The window shades were made from strips cut from a Tyvek envelope, painted "antique white", and sprayed with Krylon UV resistant matte clear: These were glued to thin styrene strips mounted on both sides of each window. Lace was then added where needed, to represent curtains: Here's a door with the window shade and doorknob installed. The doorknob was made from a tiny, genuine crystal bead: The balcony railings were made from brass etching, sold by Scale Link in the UK. To make them long enough, I had to butt two pieces together and solder them. Then I added a thin brass rod over the joint, both to reinforce the joint and to strengthen the post. I also add rods to the corner posts: Strips of 1/32" square brass rod was soldered along the top edge, on the inside, to stiffen the railings. A pair of machinist's "1-2-3" blocks were handy for keeping the etchings flat and holding everything in place during soldering. Excess posts were cut off: The railings were sprayed with self-etching primer, followed by gloss black, and then UV resistant matte clear. Then I used Sophisticated Finishes' "iron" and "rust" solutions to weather it: .

[Ray Dunakin]

At long last, the Dos Manos depot is finished! 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 The signs were printed on self-adhesive vinyl, then touched up and weathered using craft acrylics:

 

 

 

 

 

Details of the north side:

 

 

 

 

 

 

The south side:

 

 

 

  

 

 

I ended up making the door closed on the phone booth. Doing so solved several potential issues. I may add a bench or two inside this waiting area: 

 

 

 

  

I'll shoot some night shots this evening.

 Although the depot structure is finished, I still need to a bit of work on the foundation and sidewalk. I also have to connect wiring to the depot site. 

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[hon30critter]

That is a work of art Ray!!!

I noticed the windows and doors could use a paint job though!  Seriously, the detail is incredible.

Dave

[-E-C-Mills]

Yes indeed.  Fantastic.  Great modelling and photos!

[Colorado Ray]

That may be one of the finest model buildings ever constructed.  The attention to every detail is absolutely amazing.

["JaBear"]

Ummmmm, which are the model photographs and which are the prototype ones?????

Cheers, the baffled Bear.

[last mountain & eastern hogger]

Ray,  You have my vote for "Modeller of the Year"

Fantastic work,  I stand in awe......................

Johnboy out...............   mouth still gaping

[Ray Dunakin]

Thanks, everyone!

 

I shot some pics last night with the lights on… it looks so cool! For these shots I just hooked it up to a 9v battery since I haven't yet run wires to the depot site. Here are some of the night pics:

 

 

 

In this next shot, the small lights above the depot are from the Cliffside Mine:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The frames photos on the wall by the stairs are pics of my dad:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm not real happy with the figure seen through the bay window. It was just a resin copy of a cheap figure I found on ebay a long time ago. I may replace it later with something better:

 

 

 

 

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["JaBear"]

Ray Dunakin

I'm not real happy with the figure seen through the bay window.

Gidday Ray, while close up photos can reveal all sorts of “sins”, I do wonder in this case if you’re being your own worst critic?

 

Not that there’s necessarily anything wrong with that because used positively it can help us to strive for even better results, but personally that guy looks fine to me.

 

Your Dads photos are a particularly nice touch.

 

Cheers, the Bear.

[Anonymous]

I´ll second what the Bear just said!

[hon30critter]

Ray:

I have to politely disagree about the figure. When I saw it in WPF I thought it looked very realistic.

Dave

[Ray Dunakin]

Thanks. My main concern with the figure is that his face is a bit misshapen due to a casting flaw. But it's only noticeable from certain angles so not really a big deal.

[caboose63]

Awesome photos of an awesome railroad.

[Ray Dunakin]

I'm changing scales!

 

I've been building the In-ko-pah Railroad in 1/24th scale for over 11 years now, and it's time for a change. I like the level of detail and realism that can be achieved in Large Scale, but it's still too small. I thought about switching to 1/20.3 scale but that's only slightly bigger. 

 

After giving this a lot of thought, I scrapped my existing layout and started a new one. It takes a lot more room, so I haven't gotten very far yet. Just a little bit of scenery, some track, and a tunnel. And I finally finished building my first model, a 2-8-0 locomotive. As you'll see in the photo below, this larger scale makes possible an extreme level of detail and realism, right down to the textures of every surface. 

 

The photo shows me standing by the locomotive to give you an idea of how big it is...

 

 

You see, I figured out that the problem was in making models that are smaller than the prototype. By building in Really Large Scale, say about 4x prototype, it's easy to make something that looks at least as good as the real thing. But it does use up a heck of a lot of styrene. Also, I think I'm going to have to expand my layout by annexing a state or two. 

 

 

[hon30critter]

Very funny! You had me at first! I immediately felt sick about the possibility of all that fine work going to the scrap heap!

Happy April 1st Ray!

Cheers!!

Dave

[mbinsewi]

!! Got me !  Ray, I've seen a lot of your work, and it is NOT short of amazing.....IT IS AMAZING!!

Mike.

[Ray Dunakin]

Thanks. I seem to have mixed up the dates a bit, should have posted this tomorrow.

[SeeYou190]

Ray,

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I do not say this lightly... you are my hero!

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What you are doing is truly inspiring. I just read through this thread for the first time, and your work is beautiful.

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-Kevin

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[Ray Dunakin]

Thanks Kevin, I appreciate the kind words!

[Ray Dunakin]

I recently bought a really awesome camera drone, the Mavic Pro. It can shoot up to 4k video quality, and 12mp stills. Today I made my first test flights with it, in our backyard, getting some aerial video of my In-ko-pah Railroad. I've put together some clips and posted the video on YouTube:

 

https://youtu.be/4T51I1SAy-c

 

 

There were no trains running at the time, because I'm missing a bridge. A temporary wooden bridge was badly weathered and needed replacing, so I'm currently in the process of building a new, permanent bridge.

 

[middleman]

Beautiful railroad(your rockwork is magnificent),and nicely done video.Thanks for posting!

Mike

[tedtedderson]

I've commented here before but it's worth commenting again...your railroad is awesome, you should be proud. 

T e d

[hon30critter]

Neat video Ray!

Dave

[mlehman]

Awesome!

Ray,

This makes it obvious I need a better drone, for those who've seen my own considerably less technically astute drones-over-the-layout videos elsewhere here in GD Forum.

I also need a whole lot more rocks on my newly operational outdoor line.

Looking forward to more from the Cambot.

[Ray Dunakin]

Thanks guys!

I had previously made a couple mini test flights indoors, just lifting off, moving a few feet back and forth, then landing. That was actually more nerve-wracking, because the room is small and there are a lot of obstacles. 

Outdoors was much easier. This is kind of a "high end" drone, and very intelligent. It doesn't depend on your skills to keep it stable in flight, and if you're not actively moving it, it will hold it's position.

 

It has some very cool autonomous flight features which I haven't even used yet. For instance you can "target" a moving object, such as a person or vehicle, and it will follow while filming the target. It can do this from behind, in front, alongside, or while orbiting the target. 

It uses GPS positioning, and also has the ability to avoid obstacles and follow terrain. It can also return to the launch site and land automatically, and will do so if the battery goes below a certain level.

As incredibly capable as it is, I was surprised at how small it is. The body of the drone is only eight inches long and about 3 inches wide.

It requires a smartphone for control and to see the video as it's flying. It has a special controller that attaches to the phone. This has joy sticks, etc and also greatly extends the range. You can fly it using just the phone, but the range is very limited.