Expanding a 132 stations capacity

I love projects like this!  You are solving a problem in a very creative and fun manner.  This is a great idea and will end up with a unique and very interesting station.  Wonderful!

 

Hope you will post pictures when you are done and its one the layout.

Thank you sir, I'm hoping to inspire others with the same problem{roof} or those who wish something different.

...and yes, I will post more progress pics and finished ones- just tossed on a coat of primer on all of the building, except the windows...

Now, some of you might be wondering why the pics are on the washing machine...cause it's right next to the double wash tub where I washed them off and let them drip dry...any time you handle a given part you get finger oil on the piece{s} and paint doesn't like to adhere to that very well...sometimes. When I finish a build, I wash the parts off well with an old toothbrush and soap and let them dry...then with minimal handling, I take them up to my garage painting area and spray them. This process just takes away alot of adhesion issues and fish eyes in the paint.

That's a GREAT project! And you and your son are pooling your imaginations.

Very cool, looks like a great way to solve the issue.  That seems to be a common break, apparently the chimney gets rammed into the roof in shipping.  I have one in the closet with the same break!

 

Very creative approach to fixing a problem.

 Still at it, it's just been a very humid week and I was using enamel....slooooow goings.

So, we picked out colors for the windows, roof and the buildings-

windows - testors spray enamel Light Ivory

roof - rust-oleum kona brown spray

building - rust-oleum colonial red spray

...left to do yet are

-foundation/cement color for the lower level

-gutters painted silver

-building/window trim in a complimenting color...more light ivory around the building or a green window surround and building trim maybe?

-tweek the base brick to a more tannish color

 

 

Looks great and it's an ingenious scratch build \ rebuild. I am using that flanger of yours with a Whitcomb on the G..another great scratch build. Still trying to sort out the coupler deal on the other cars, Ill go with knuckles, and I see that moving to O suits you. We'll have to do another swap some time.

Bruce

-Pictures...we need pictures...toss em on that G thread with your short video.{told you you'd like that flanger!}

-and yes, we need to do that again sometime. Our new scales suit us well!

 

The plan is that all 3 of us get a full station- mine will be the origonal 132....hmmm, maybe untouched, my son gets this one as "Stevensville station" though the origonal plan was more of a CB&Q Red Cloud station...ish...., and my daughter gets one later on. The wife says simple platform stops will work for her....

Nice addition.  This is a neat build and creative solution.

Wash day ain't always a saturday, and here's why...the bricks get it today.

I 1st sprayed the whole base with primer, then a white wash and now a brick colored wash...this is modelmaster acrylic ROT RLM 23 thinned waaay out if you like the color.

 

Any of you who know this station know that the bricks are recessed and the mortor is raised...so normally one would curse this, but not today. You can use this to your advantage- that's why the white wash over a grey primer, for the mortor....I will "fill in" the brick color as we go along since they are recessed and the brick color will stay in just the bricks.

Next again will be another red ROT RLM 23 wash...the ROT RLM 23 is a pinkish red for that aged brick look, and the 3rd wash, if the main color is solid enough, will be an orange-ish color wash using a tweeked international orange thinned way out.

 

In the 2nd pic you see all the windows left to paint the trim on yet.....a few at a time is all I can handle today-  -I have other projects to play with still...

Just did some random orange and black washes...trying to not go overboard as this is a "toy"...but it's fun.

 

Ok, I'm calling the bricks done at this point...alot of random colors to catch the eye, but in hind sight I would've put more mortor color on 1st...seems alittle thin when I got back down to it, so for those who wish to try this- add a coat or two of your mortor color then use an eraser to get the tops cleaned when the washes are done.

 

 

Need 3 door knobs and the rest of the windows yet painted still...then set up the new lighting and assemble.

I'm looking fwd to seeing the finished product

LOL...the wife just chimed in with the name for her station when I get to it...."Queen B"...see what I have to work with here......going back to painting up more windows, the door knobs are painted{yes, door knobs}, and the upper and lower levels as well as the base are now flat clear coated.

Windows are installed, gutters are painted, and I started some signs for the outside of the building..why not? Will need to cut some window pains out soon.

Pics to follow when things are dry later...

A few teasers...I think it needs more signs!...

 

Quite a transformation, unless you read this thread, you wouldn't know where you started!

 

Thank you...got a few more signs printed up, but not the "yes, were open" sign- by the time I shrunk it down to window size you couldn't read it{hehehe}.

 

I need to figure out how many LEDs it'll take to light both levels well. 

Well done!

Ok, the signs are done now...much better.

Now all I need are some windows and down spouts...maybe a TV antenna.

The signs are found on the web, resized on MS paint, pirinted on 25lb paper, flat clear coated both sides and backed with white paint for making the colors pop better...all paint is quick drying lacquer.

I attached the signs with dabs of foam safe CA so there's now white residue like the regular CAs give off.

I gave you folks some close ups of the signs for an idea of how this looks close up.

 

Really looking good.

 

Jack

This is going to be the best looking Lionel 132 Station that ever existed!

Ok, maybe an "antenna" was waaay too ambitious...3rd attempt to make one that looks correct in size but big shock, they're too fragile.

 

Upper window glazing is in and downspouts are applied but I'm running out of day here...tomorrow for the rest of the windows and lower downspouts...then pics for everyone!

looks awesome!

Way cool..

Upper pics as promised...

Bottom windows are done

 

So, as you can see I added an upper window layer of green glazing...just because I wanted to since my son and I thought it would look cool....just to the windows and doors with high openings...anything single opening was regular glazing.

Now, sincie I don't plan on an interior I went with a tinted window glazing and flat coated every one to give it a fuzzy look like the origonals. If your inclined to make an interior I'd suggest dead clear and no flat coat- your call on your build.

 

I also added a small wall to separate the baggage room...just because I wanted to keep the lighting in there alittle lessor than the rest of the waiting room. This is just a .060 thick sheet wall with simple door surrounds of .020 thick framing strips and windows cut out...nothing fancy. It'll probably need one side painted black to keep light from shining thru, then interior tan coated over that...a little sci-fi model trick I learned years ago to keep light from bleeding thru on interior lit models.

 

All glazing is simple .005 thick sheet stock cut to size before hand - held in with good old elmers white glue and tacked with foam safe CA for added adhesion insurance.

 

Three more things and I'll call her done;

1-lighting{LED}

2-lower level downspouts{probably simple 90 degree turnouts...maybe}

3-last attempt at an antenna{gonna try one made out of plastic rod this time and paint it silver...not much luck with wire so far}

Now, if you really want to go crazy, one could go randomely around the shingles with some washes to tint those alittle off like I did with the bricks...but today I'm not that crazy.

It's all in the details if you wish to do so....I see alot of folks detailing their engines up but I wonder what they do to their buildings aside from adding figures...not pointing any fingers or anything, but its this stuff that can make your layout pop alittle better.

  I just painted the new wall black and had cut it out to clear the timing mechanism before that...I wanted to wait till the wall was installed to make final cuts for the bi-metal strip clearance after the controller was in...too much guessing with everything apart.

  I'm now figuring out what rooms I want LED lighted, how many and where they go.

So far the plan is 3 facing down for the lower lobby, 1 facing down in the baggage room{yes, alittle dimmer light there}, 4 under the lower roof and on each building side to light the side walks and 3 facing up to light the 2nd story. No attic lights.

This project could be set up to be powered from accessory power and one could control the inner and outer lights via switches for more options...I'll go track power this time and keep it simple.

 

I happen to have about 60 spare brite LEDs from other projects- 3.5v 10kmcd. I think that'll cover the 11 I need for this project.

 

Any thoughts from anyone about the amount...too few...too many? This is my 1st train LED project...alittle different from the usual Star trek or Star Wars models I've lit up - at least there's no fiber optics to mess with here.