Thanks both of you for your comments!
DoughlessQuestion: In creating the corrugated roofing, you said that you pressed "3M aluminum tape between styrene pieces". I assume the styrene was corrugated, which begs the question, why not just use the styrene pieces as the roof components? (Having now just typed the question, the answer of "not enough of them" comes to mind)
That's exactly right-- I had a spare corrugated wall from one of the kits, and fashioned that into a stamp for the tape. The original roofs were also corrugated, but thicker, with a rough, deep pattern that I didn't find very convincing.
Quiet summer so far. Here are a few shots from today's meditation time.
Happy August,
Phil
Phil - great looking stuff all the way around and excellent proof that you don't need to have a lot of space to have a fun time in this hobby. In fact, the more I try to do on my layout, the more I appreciate those who have gone smaller but have created incredible examples of modeling. Keep the updates coming.
Dan
I too have just discovered this thread and find the layout very impressive. Being a shelf switching layout guy myself, the simplicity of the design, the roster, and some of the approaches to structures and scenery I really appreciate.
Reducing the warehouse to a 3D building flat against a backdrop loses nothing in its ability to represent the real thing, IMO.
I like the way you've woven the industries into the idea of the end-of-the-line theme. With this type of layout, the industries are very important, and I'm impressed with your explanation of how they generate the traffic on the layout, in that you have to understand the industries themselves to do that. Its an aspect of model railroad design that typically isn't very developed in our hobby's publications and can be difficult to research.
I'm very impressed with the results of your scenery techniques and materials.
Question: In creating the corrugated roofing, you said that you pressed "3M aluminum tape between styrene pieces". I assume the styrene was corrugated, which begs the question, why not just use the styrene pieces as the roof components? (Having now just typed the question, the answer of "not enough of them" comes to mind)
- Douglas
Thanks for the kind comments Mike, always appreciate folks looking around!
In unpacking my supplies I found the missing tree, as well as some sagebrush twigs I had set aside. I remembered that I had meant to re-work them into a better cottonwood trunk, and ended up cannibalizing the old tree to flesh that out. I think this is the most successful one so far.
I also found time in the past few weeks to put together a little Wheel Works white metal '34 Ford truck kit that came out of my parts drawer. The stakes and flatbed belonged to a separate laser-etched wood kit, whose origins I forget (I had planned to combine them ages ago, and discarded the packaging for the wood kit.) I've roughed it into place here-- still deciding if that's the right spot, and still thinking about how to improve it:
While I've made a lot of progress capturing a sense of place on this layout, an occasional addition to a scene like this should help evoke a specific time as well-- especially for friends who are not rail-oriented.
Thanks for looking,
I've been a long time Trains forum reader, but only recently started looking at the MR forum. Being a fan of anything Colorado, when I saw your post I read it from the 4 year old beginning. I especially liked the photo of the stream crossing, the one with the tank car. Also those aspen trees looked spot on.
I last visited the San Luis area in 2007 and drove along the SLC and was happy to see how busy it looked with lots of processors/wearhouses and rail cars along its 15 miles.
Hi again, everyone! I found I had no space while I was living in the Northeast for a year, but coming back out west my wife and I made it a priority to be able to set up the layout again-- and I'm pleased to say trains are running again in our new place. Despite being packed away for all that time and moved around the country twice, relatively few details got banged up or lost outside the occasional stovepipe or brake wheel (although I did lose one big tree, somehow-- I'll have to make a replacement.) Here are a few pics snapped during the inaugural switching ops.
More soon,
Well, it's time yet again to hit 'pause'.
I alluded a few posts ago to an upcoming move, and it has come time to fold up and box the layout again. Before doing so, however, I took an opportunity to break out my DRGW heavyweight observation and an old REA for a leaf-peeping excursion for folks in the southern part of the valley to see the new trees.
I removed the three primary buildings-- the grain elevator is too tall to fit with the layout folded, while the storehouse and oil facility cover the hinges. One tree is also still in need of finessing placement, so I removed it for now.
Then everything folded up, just like it has in the past. I was impressed how little scenery came loose. Lights and backdrop came down, too.
I'm really happy with the progress I've made here over the past 12 months. There are no bare spots, all of the industries are built up with pleasing detail (though resolution can always be increased) and the scenery is beginning to form individual scenes on this operational diorama. Hopefully it won't be too long before I can set everything up again and continue.
Until soon,
Y'all are going to make me blush!
Thanks so much for the kind words, both of you. Rich, glad to hear you're liking these armatures too, I'm finding them pretty great for what I need, and excellent for learning quickly how to improve with tree-making. I've been impressed with what I've picked up from Scenic Express so far (the Super Leaf products are also theirs.)
pt714 An early holiday gift this year: Super Trees! I have been playing around with building my own tree armatures and enjoying learning through the process, but I have to concede that these things look fantastic to my eye straight out of the box, unpainted, unflocked. The branch structure is gorgeous, and I think it'll be just right for my late autumn setting with some touch-up and very judicious flocking. Right now I'm just playing around with placement of the bare armatures, using photos I've taken in the valley to figure out what looks right and trying not to overwhelm the overall sense of a high desert (the Super Trees box comes with what is probably, for me, a lifetime supply of armatures.) My initial test-stuff-out tree on the right, the bare Super Tree on the left: No contest.
An early holiday gift this year: Super Trees!
I have been playing around with building my own tree armatures and enjoying learning through the process, but I have to concede that these things look fantastic to my eye straight out of the box, unpainted, unflocked. The branch structure is gorgeous, and I think it'll be just right for my late autumn setting with some touch-up and very judicious flocking.
Right now I'm just playing around with placement of the bare armatures, using photos I've taken in the valley to figure out what looks right and trying not to overwhelm the overall sense of a high desert (the Super Trees box comes with what is probably, for me, a lifetime supply of armatures.)
My initial test-stuff-out tree on the right, the bare Super Tree on the left:
No contest.
Your work is simply excellent, and I am sold on the trees. I only recently started to use Scenic Express products when I bought their real rock ballast for my current layout. But, now, you have me hooked on their Super Trees.
On my past layouts, I used Woodland Scenics trees which do not hold a candle to the Scenic Express product. There is a video on the Scenic Express website that illustrates how to work with Super Trees. It is impressive, and it is extremely informative.
Keep posting more photos of your work.
Rich
Alton Junction
"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."
NorthBrit A new thread for me, Phil. Love the trees. So realistic. Thanks for showing. David
A new thread for me, Phil. Love the trees. So realistic. Thanks for showing.
David
Thanks, David, appreciate you looking. I decided I liked the tree configuration and affixed them in place. On a more permanent layout I might not take that step since it makes it easier to replace them, but with this portable one it's easier to keep them as securely attached as possible (another move is coming up in a few months, this time thankfully not across the country but still a decent distance.)
Before permanently attaching them, though, I scattered dead leaves and debris at their bases to finish this "level of resolution" for the scene (they're never really done, are they? )
To the world you are someone. To someone you are the world
I cannot afford the luxury of a negative thought
A lot of quiet on the layout front, as sometimes happens, but a long update for today-- the past few weeks I've been diving back into the tree game. A few months ago I ordered some Super Leaf dead litter-- I have used other Super Leaf products before and been happy with their look, and needed to expand my current color palette for my autumn trees (and for littering the ground, as well.)
A few tentatively-placed trees, trying out the colors and spacing. This time, I spray-painted the armatures before flocking (using some cheap tan spray paint), which I think makes them look even better.
I decided the varied brush between the creek and the grain elevator would have to come out, as the trees would take up all the sunlight-- I saved them and can use them to fill out the sparser treeless sections away from the creek.
The two types of trees that really scream "Colorado autumn", to me, are cottonwoods and aspens. Aspens typically grow a tad higher in elevation than the valley, but I'm making an exception because they make such a strong impression of place-- and quaking golden aspen trees are one of my favorite things in nature.
I spent time looking at photos of each, then took my entire Super Tree brush ball out of its box (quite the mess!) in search of the right shapes for armatures. I found an excellent thick, forked trunk for a big creekside cottonwood, and filled out its shape with some additional branches.
Then I sprayed the armature and set to my flocking technique: diluted glue for the "seed" golden yellow flocking at the tips of the branches, then layers of cheap hairspray and additional flocking, with a sprinkle each of dead Super Leaf to the underside and aspen yellow Super Leaf to the top, for dimension.
Aspens are a bit trickier, but in some ways more forgiving. They do not sprawl like cottonwoods, so the straight-growing ends of the Super Tree ball suit them best. Unfortunately these are quite spindly and delicate-- finding straight ones is a challenge, and there's a lot of surgery involved to remove the little twiggy leaves. Patience is key here.
I sprayed the armatures with cheap white spray paint, then hit them with passes of tan and white until I was satisfied with the color and variance. Followed that with the same flocking procedure as the other trees.
The wonderful thing about aspens is that they grow in patches like mushrooms, and often get in one another's way, so any trees that did not come out with the shape I wanted or that have trouble standing straight do not look out of place, and their flaws can be hidden by the crowd. The best-looking ones I planted in the clusters right up front.
There could be more detail on the bark, but the effect is immediate, and there's plenty of time to go back and add things like that. Nothing permanently attached yet, I'm still deciding if there need to be more of them, or a different placement to get the right effect. Once I have decided final placement, I'll add leaf litter to the ground and finish it before affixing the trees.
You're too kind, both of you. I've contributed regularly to Weekend Photo Fun in the past, I'll try to make a regular habit of it again.
SeeYou190 Phil: This has been a magnificent build thread. I think I have read the whole thing three times now. I would love to see you share some pictures over in Weekend Photo Fun and/or Show Me Something. Your work is amazing. -Kevin
Phil: This has been a magnificent build thread. I think I have read the whole thing three times now.
I would love to see you share some pictures over in Weekend Photo Fun and/or Show Me Something.
Your work is amazing.
-Kevin
Living the dream and happily modeling my STRATTON AND GILLETTE Railroad in HO scale. The SGRR is a freelanced Class A railroad as it would have appeared on Tuesday, August 3rd, 1954, in my personal fantasy world of plausible nonsense.
Thanks for the kind words Thomas, Kevin, and Mike, I appreciate it!
Thomas, I moved from there earlier this year, and already miss them, too.
No new photos to share, but hopefully some updates soon.
pt714Thanks for looking, Phil
Phil, that is a great picture.
pt714 Thank you, Isaac! I started a new job recently, and layout progress has consequently temporarily paused, but I'm hoping to still make regular updates on it (and still playing around with the new camera.) Thanks for looking, Phil i lived on the front range for 5 years and you have the right flavor i miss those ranges
Thank you, Isaac! I started a new job recently, and layout progress has consequently temporarily paused, but I'm hoping to still make regular updates on it (and still playing around with the new camera.)
i lived on the front range for 5 years and you have the right flavor
i miss those ranges
Wow! So very nice pictures! I really like the rural, branch line feel the layout has, with lots of yellower grass and not much ballast! Look forward to seeing more!
Regards, Isaac
I model my railroad and you model yours! I model my way and you model yours!
I've been dissatisfied with the quality of the photos I've been taking for a while, feeling that they're not capturing the level of detail I'm trying to put into my projects. New phone and new camera this week, and already I'm feeling really excited because the photos are actually beginning to look like what I see sitting at the layout. (Of course, that's a double-edged sword, as I can see with much more focus where I still need to put in the work!) Here's some shots just from messing around with it during a recent switching session.
Thanks for looking and commenting, Rich! I don't mind the quiet, I've found it's pretty common for layout-in-progress threads if it's not a big pike with lots of planning involved. This is more of a place to keep a log of my projects, self-educating as I go, hopefully helpful and/or enjoyable to anyone who happens upon it.
Phil, I just stumbled onto this thread, and I have enjoyed browsing through it. Nice work! I am surprised that no one has replied as of late.
Can't believe what a difference a backdrop makes, even one designed to be temporary. This was stupid easy-- foamboard taped together, edges smoothed and then rather unevenly spray-painted with a very light matte blue. Already makes me want to set up more shots.
One other thing I've been trying my hand at recently is improving the scenery. I model autumn, when the ubiquitous sagebrush is turning brown, the cottonwoods are losing their golden leaves and the nights are getting nippy. I've had success using 3M grey scrubbing pads to model sagebrush.
Because the branch structure is more exposed on dead and almost-dead brush, I also tried out some lightweight furnace filter material I found that behaves like polyfill, sprayed flat tan and then misted with flat sage green.
More flora added along the edge of the river, using a palette of furnace-filter sagebrush, WS-polyfill rabbitbrush, and various water-adjacent plants using flax and long static grass applied with tweezers in clumps:
I also took my first stab at modeling trees. I made armatures from local twigs, attaching them using CA gel and sprinkling with baking soda to make the seam invisible (a technique I learned from Luke Towan's videos.) Then I used some of the same furnace filter polyfill for the canopy, sprayed with Super77, and sprinkled on some cheap coarse ground foam that's too bright to use for anything else. I wasn't super happy with the results, even after trying to spray the foam to get a more believable color on the rightmost one:
I expected to write these off as practice trees, in any case-- it's a new technique for me, and I figured it would take a few tries. When I felt like I had a better grasp, I made an armature, sprayed it to attach the tan polyfill, wetted the ground beneath its canopy, then put it in place on the layout and sprinkled over it some yellow fine foam I collected from my WS polyfill-- whatever didn't stick to the branches dropped to the ground to give the fallen-leaf effect I wanted.
I went back with thinned glue to add more foam in a couple of spots, then cut the webbing of the polyfill all over the place with fine scissors at the top to better represent the ends of branches and avoid a 'netting' look (it's still not permanently attached to the layout, so the tree is leaning a bit in this first photo):
Last scenicking project was planting a long-dead tree at the edge of the river. I had several actual sagebrush twigs I'd saved from my last visit to the valley specifically for this purpose-- it's got a wonderfully gnarled texture that makes for a great trunk. Same CA/baking soda method used to get the shape I wanted from a couple of twigs:
Last significant industry update is the small oil dealer, Upton Bulk Oil Supply-- a recent name I'm trying out, punning on the owner's contracting with Sinclair. This is the Walthers Trackside Oil kit, with its warehouse, office and truck pumps situated off-layout for space reasons (which conveniently freed them up to be cannibalized into the warehouse and structures across the tracks.) As with the potato storehouse, this industry needed to cover the layout's hinges, so it was built with three of its four vertical tanks and the pump house at the left end raised on an extended platform, a styrene base with wood siding and gravel top. The rightmost tank, the oldest (and only riveted one), sits at ground level next to a dock for inbound pallets of various lubricants arriving by boxcar. On the right end is the intake hose for inbound tank cars.
I took this close-up after finishing the dock, but prior to weathering the tank, painting the intake hose, and installing a few more details.
Next up is Mountain King Potatoes, which is a quasi-flat bashed from the warehouse/office buildings in the Walthers Trackside Oil Dealer-- this was mocked up before the move, to make sure it would be the right size to cover the back hinges.
(This old photo is gently nudging me about getting around to a proper backdrop again.)
The roof got the same treatment as the grain elevator-- sanded and replaced with aluminum tape corrugated roofing.
By splitting it in half lengthwise, I realized the building wouldn't be quite wide enough, so I planned to build a dock for it. Like the team track dock, this was made with balsa and basswood dipped in tea followed by iron acetate. The color variance was pretty dramatic!
I do like the look, but may tone down some individual boards a bit later with acrylic washes. The crossbeams are also pretty thin, since I used what I had on hand (equivalent to 2x2s)-- I may replace them in the future since that wouldn't be too invasive.
Once the dock was built, the next puzzle to solve was getting it and the building to mate seamlessly while also hiding the hinges.
For the uneven base, I ended up using a piece of paper towel wetted, draped over the hinges, then basically laquered in place with thinned Elmer's glue to get the contour right. With a little ground cover (grout, sand and plaster rock) the hinges are covered and the base disappears beneath the dock and structure.
The building would need to be raised so the doors matched the dock level-- I used stryrene supports to do that and built a wood retaining wall on the visible raised side. At the same time, I scored the front to make a corrugated siding pattern, and "replaced" a few of the panels with the corrugated aluminum tape to get a more uneven look. Weathering done with thin acrylic washes and Bragdon powders.
The most recent addition has been lots of Tichy pallets, crates and burlap sacks.
Next eventual step is to detail the walls and use mirrors on the back side of the structure to increase the perceived space. Also need to plan out the office.