Blackwater Canyon Line - March 20, 2025, Brick Street Extension Planning

Good luck Mark

Andy

Thank you Andy!  I survived the tests and am back home.  They served a good lunch while I was there.    I had a 4th floor corner view of town in between tests.  Now I can wait and see what Doc says next Thursday!

Hoping all goes well Mark! Prayers are with you.

John, Thank you so very much!!  I am scheduled to see the surgeon who replaced my left knee on Monday and the back surgeon Thursday.  The preliminary reports from the two scans show a couple bulging discs right above where I had trouble before.  We will see what the surgeon has to say.  Maybe back to PT again.  This week has been more painful.  I had trouble driving down to see my parents at the personal care home, and stood half the time I was there to ease the pain.  I'm up part of the night, so to be productive here is what I did, standing at the layout edge instead of sitting at 1:00 to 2:00 last night.

Yesterday was warm enough with no breeze, so I sprayed the dull coat on the station wall sections to seal the mortar.  I think they turned out pretty good.  I've been assembling windows and doors, and the largest windows are installed in the brick walls.

Mark.....looks great.....and, I hope you feel better real soon!

Peter

Mark the walls came out good. Windows are a necessary pain.

You will be in our prayers for the health problems.

Warmest and the most positive thoughts for you. Be well. And thank you for sharing your rail progress.

@Bill Webb posted:

You will be in our prayers for the health problems.

Same here.

@Bill Webb posted:

Mark the walls came out good. Windows are a necessary pain.

You will be in our prayers for the health problems.

I see what you did there…windows, pain.  Lol.

Mark, best wishes for both of your concerns.  I understand back problems and my wife has had her same knee replaced twice in a matter of 3 years.  The second time was the super-duper version.  She said it hurt less and she was doing grocery shopping (I drove per docs orders) within a week!  Hopefully you don’t have to go that way!

Bob

Mark sorry to hear about the recent issues. Hope everything goes well. I was hoping to meet up with you in April at York. Anyway keep us updated and hopefully you can recover quickly. 🙏

I hope you get those discs in line there Mark. My mom has had trouble and they can really cause some havoc.

This is going to be a heck of a building though! I'm excited to see it come together. I can't believe how good things look with a little dull coat.

Thank you everyone!!!

I’m happy with the walls!  The windows are a pain (pane) 😄 but worth it!  It is an impressive station, and the prototype was on top of the mountain as well.

I was hoping to go to York as well.  I’ll just save my money for another time.

Bob, I’m sorry for your wife. I evidently got the deluxe knee right off.  The pain seems to be in the knee cap or tendon or whatever is beside it.  I can feel something moving that wasn’t when I had my two year checkup in November.

Bill, I’m sorry for your mom.

@Aegis21 posted:

Hoping all goes well Mark! Prayers are with you.

John, how are you recovering from your knee replacement?

Hopefully Mark, we will see you at York.

@Mark Boyce posted:

John, Thank you so very much!!  I am scheduled to see the surgeon who replaced my left knee on Monday and the back surgeon Thursday.  The preliminary reports from the two scans show a couple bulging discs right above where I had trouble before.  We will see what the surgeon has to say.  Maybe back to PT again.  This week has been more painful.  I had trouble driving down to see my parents at the personal care home, and stood half the time I was there to ease the pain.  I'm up part of the night, so to be productive here is what I did, standing at the layout edge instead of sitting at 1:00 to 2:00 last night.

Yesterday was warm enough with no breeze, so I sprayed the dull coat on the station wall sections to seal the mortar.  I think they turned out pretty good.  I've been assembling windows and doors, and the largest windows are installed in the brick walls.

Great work Mark, It must be very frustrating to revisit your back surgeon... Astounding you can do such nice work with what your back is putting you through. Hoping for the best for you and praying your pain eases up without a surgical direction.

Mark, Outstanding job on the walls! They look great!

I hope your doctors figure out what is going on and get you feeling better soon!

Thank you, Jay, John, and Mike!!

I really think spring York is out for me.  Hopefully on a future date.

I did a little more trimming and assembling doors last night, but not enough progress to photograph.  I ran a couple trains last evening, changing out one engine.  It is nice to have a variety to chose from.  The last one is a Protosound (PS1) F3 AA set I got from a Forum member, which looks great and runs great.  I think I will get the ERR boards for it and convert it so I can run it TMCC via the DCS remote.  The way I set it up, I have to bend down to reach the power handles on the Z4000.  I have no problem bending down for a short time, but needing to adjust voltage for my changing grades caused me to shut down after a few laps.

Have a great day and weekend everyone!!

@Mark Boyce posted:

John, how are you recovering from your knee replacement?

This knee (so far) has been a lot less painful and I am going through half of what I went through with the other knee. I had promised myself if I make it through the surgery I would break down and get a 3d printer to give me something to work on while I rehab. So it arrived today and after getting it out of the box, some assy is required. I am hoping to be able to make a lot of small detail items along with other projects that are in the works. Thanks for asking Mark, again praying you can avoid that medical x-acto blade and get some pain relief. Also I do marvel at the work you are able to get done, dispite the pain you are in!

I am so sorry that you guys have been having difficulties with your knees and back. My hips are bad but, so far, not SO BAD. I wish all of you a speedy and complete recovery.
I’ve noticed some discussion of York. I’ve never gone but, if it is live this year, I am thinking about it. My only issue is that I would have to leave no later than noon on Friday. Is it worth going for Thursday and Friday morning only?

Mark that sucks about more disc bulging. I guess on a positive you're up at night but getting work done.

Praying for ya

After three back fusions, L3-L4, L4-5, L 5-S1,,,,,,,It follows that once yoi repair one the one below it will fail. Try not to hav a fusion done if possible. My last one failed to heal, so now I am stuck with screws loose in my back. At least I can say honestly, I have a screw loose……

Rich

Nice work, Mark.  I never looked forward to putting in all those windows.  Hope your medical issues get resolved sans too many doctors visits!

For your water project, I thought to pass this little trick on....I used Liquitex Acrylic Medium to seal the whole bottom and sides of my water area.  It is used to seal paintings, but provided a thin, glossy, shield over the whole area.  You only needed a small amount, and I tested it in a small, taped, foam rectangle to see if it would leak after I added the water.  Of course, you have to make sure you get it in and under all the cracks.  Nothing leaked through, and I was able to move ahead with the multiple 1/4 inch pours that brought it to an acceptable level.  For that, I used the WS product, then added their water effects stuff for waves and ripples.  Also, I always allowed at least a full day of drying between pours.

Hope you can use this idea when the time comes.

Regards,

Jerry

Very nice!

I had a wide waterfall on my first layout build. I tried using yarn for the falling water. I used WS product. I poured it and let it run down the yarn. It looked good from a distance but not so much when up close. I believe there's a video showing it on my YT channel.

Here ya go - https://youtu.be/tD29H-l_X7Q

@Aegis21 posted:

This knee (so far) has been a lot less painful and I am going through half of what I went through with the other knee. I had promised myself if I make it through the surgery I would break down and get a 3d printer to give me something to work on while I rehab. So it arrived today and after getting it out of the box, some assy is required. I am hoping to be able to make a lot of small detail items along with other projects that are in the works. Thanks for asking Mark, again praying you can avoid that medical x-acto blade and get some pain relief. Also I do marvel at the work you are able to get done, despite the pain you are in!

John, I'm glad this knee is going better than the other one!!  Congratulations on getting the 3D printer!  Making your own small details would be of great benefit.  I am always glad to receive prayers!

Rubin, RJ, Rich, Jerry!

Rubin, I'm sorry you have trouble with your hips.  I wish you well on that.  I'm looking at the York schedule.  I think it would be worth it if you went all day Thursday and from 9 to noon on Friday.  How far do you have to travel?

Rich, well I had fusion on L3-L4 and L4-L5.  All of that healed up nice and solid.  I was suspicious that other discs would bulge, so it isn't a surprise.  At least you still have your sense of humor with a screw loose.

Jerry and RJ, thank you for the photographs, videos, and description of how you made your water features.  Very nice.  My artist daughter will know what the Liquitex Acrylic Medium is.  That makes good sense to seal the base of the river with that before pouring Woodland Scenics.  Since I will only have 'water' descending no more than an inch and probably smaller riffles instead, it won't be like your waterfalls to the floor, RJ.  Neat idea.

Thanks Mark, you take care my friend.

Rich

Mark, I sympathize with your back issues, no fun at all. Hope you get some relief from PT. The building looks great, well done!

Andy

Thank you, Andy!!  I have to see Doc first before PT or any other treatment.  I'll see him on Thursday.

I have some more done on the station that I need to photograph and post.

Good luck at the doc.

Andy

Mark you remain in our prayers for good results Thursday.

What color do you plan for your water? James River green, Tropical blue with a sand effect, rock reflective with some dark holes,  my favorite Gulf Stream cobalt, or your own mixture?

Thank you Andy and Bill!

I plan on rock reflective with some dark holes.   I’m looking for the clear mountain stream that Dad and his friend could see the trout from the bridge like he used to have me look for.

Mark,

The walls look very nice. I'm glad the dullcote did not take as much away from the color.  Please take care man and keep us posted on the doctor's report.

Dave

Good luck tomorrow Mark. Hopefully its manageable with some PT.

Bob

How did your appointment go today Mark?

Thank you Dave, Bob, and Jay!!

Jay, I just sat down at the computer to give an update and saw your question.  Thank you very much for asking!!  The surgeon said all the scans showed that everything in the spine (discs, vert, fusion) look good.  Two discs have minimal bulge, but nothing is close to the nerves.  He surmises that the pain down the leg is inflammation from before and from him touching the nerves as he did the fusion.  I am starting back on the anti-inflammatory medication tonight and will go back in 2 months which coincides with the 1-year post op date.  He said it will probably take 3 or 4 weeks before the anti-inflammatory could give a noticeable improvement.  So, I will ride it out in the meantime. 

I took a photograph of the lintels over the doors and windows.  From this angle it looks like there is a gap between the windows and lintels, however, when looking straight on, you don't see what is actually the bottoms of the lintels I didn't paint.  I'm not going to try to paint what you won't see when the building is on the layout.  The window sills are strips that go the whole way from corner to corner of the building with gaps for the doors.  I'm going to put them on after I have the walls glued together so I can match them up at the corners.

As an aside, here is a photograph of Bentley from one year ago today that the rescue lady posted for my wife on Facebook.  One year ago today, we made arrangements to take on Bentley who was 5 at the time.  Monday will mark one year since we met her on the Pennsylvania Turnpike to pick up Bentley.

Good news Mark. Glad to see nothing more serious… assuming that the anti-inflammatory works.

Now back to the layout.

That’s good news Mark - keep the faith!

Glad to hear the good news Mark. With the anti-inflammatories kicking in within 3-4 weeks, York could provide some nice PT.

@Mark Boyce posted:

Thank you Dave, Bob, and Jay!!

Jay, I just sat down at the computer to give an update and saw your question.  Thank you very much for asking!!  The surgeon said all the scans showed that everything in the spine (discs, vert, fusion) look good.  Two discs have minimal bulge, but nothing is close to the nerves.  He surmises that the pain down the leg is inflammation from before and from him touching the nerves as he did the fusion.  I am starting back on the anti-inflammatory medication tonight and will go back in 2 months which coincides with the 1-year post op date.  He said it will probably take 3 or 4 weeks before the anti-inflammatory could give a noticeable improvement.  So, I will ride it out in the meantime. 

I took a photograph of the lintels over the doors and windows.  From this angle it looks like there is a gap between the windows and lintels, however, when looking straight on, you don't see what is actually the bottoms of the lintels I didn't paint.  I'm not going to try to paint what you won't see when the building is on the layout.  The window sills are strips that go the whole way from corner to corner of the building with gaps for the doors.  I'm going to put them on after I have the walls glued together so I can match them up at the corners.

As an aside, here is a photograph of Bentley from one year ago today that the rescue lady posted for my wife on Facebook.  One year ago today, we made arrangements to take on Bentley who was 5 at the time.  Monday will mark one year since we met her on the Pennsylvania Turnpike to pick up Bentley.

Great News Mark!!!!    And on Bentley's anniversary to boot!!!  Although the news doesn't give any immediate relief physically, it had to be a big load off the mental aspect you were going through no doubt. Again, you deserve a break!

Thank you Bill, Bob, Jay, John!

Yes, with the temperatures going up and down, I see Saturday cold, windy, and snow.  Today it is 53 degrees, and tomorrow's high is forecast to be 23 degrees with 3 to 6 inches of snow.  Other than snow removal, I hope to work on the layout scenery some.

BTW, the surgeon said there are no more lifting restrictions.  Theoretically, I should be able to lift as much as my arms and knees can handle, as long as I use proper lifting techniques.  I was getting concerned not that something was wrong with the fusion, but that something else was going bad.  They told me 3 years ago it takes a long time for the nerve to heal, and that it may never get back to what it once was.  I am thinking I will have the drop foot for good, but as long as I am careful, that is okay unless it hurts too much.

Glad to hear it seems to be manageable Mark. I hope the anti inflammatory med works well for you and you get some relief. I think adaptation is the key to life. I wish you the best possible outcome from all of this.

The building is coming along nicely, looks like a great kit.

Bentley is a handsome boy! We got our pup Benny in April of last year. He keeps us on our toes!

Andy

Glad to hear your restrictions have been lifted. We're looking forward to seeing what you get done!

Thank you, Andy and Bill!

I glued two wall sections together last evening.  It was a little tricky clamping the two story wall sections with the bracing I had already installed to get a nice joint, but I finally got it done.  We will see how it when dry.

Hi Mark, glad to hear that your doctor thinks things might get better with the Anti-inflammatory meds, I really hope it helps!

As for the building it looks like its coming right along!

Mark,

Good luck with the meds!  Hope you’re feeling better soon.

John

Thank you, Mike and John!!

Mark, I've enjoyed following your entire layout build. Good news about your health issue, just stay within your limitations and you should be fine. Many of us have had to adjust accordingly. Your kit build looks great, keep up the good work !

Thank you very much, Eddie!  Yes, like anything else, we have to make adjustments.  My Dad’s advice on working smarter, and not trying to man handle every job, certainly comes into play.

Last evening, I got 4 walls glued together and trimmed to size, the wall separating the two story section from the one story section.  I’ll try to get a photograph up after I put in the diving wall.

I finished assembling the walls of the station kit.  The kit had one piece of heavy stock for the gabled roof and thin pieces of cardboard for the hip roof.  I used the cardboard pieces as templates for heavy pieces similar to the one that was in the kit.  The instructions are sketchy, and don't mention the roof at all other than shingling, so I really don't know the kit maker's intent.  I'm going to add a length of wood for the peak of the gable for the roof pieces to rest on.

Here are a couple of photographs of the station with the walls assembled.

Mark, that’s coming along nice. Have you thought of making the roof removable ?  If your doing lighting it may make things easier. The thing I struggle most with on kits is the roof and getting everything lined up and square. Clamps always don’t work and sometimes you need more hands than you have. Lately I’ve been using 1/4 x 4” wood as bracing. The big box stores have a hobby wood dept. I think selling poplar. I trace out the end wall and try to get a good match to the peaked end. On a long roof. I’ll make 3 of them . You will end up with sort of a triangle. Clamp one side to the wall nice and flush and run a bead of glue down the quarter inch piece  [try to keep the glue off the structure] and place one piece of the roof on and square it to the building. When the glue sets. It should stay somewhat in place. Then you can tackle the other side. When that sets you can add other braces. Some kits have you bevel the roof edges where they meet. I’ll be honest I’m not that good. I just let them butt up to one another. The small v groove that’s left. I find a metal rod [coat hanger] that can lay sort of flush down in there. Then run a bead of thin CA down each side of it. I tend to overbuild these things.

What I have found. Once you get a good fit with the roof. It’s so much easier to work on just the roof sitting at the table adding shingles and such. Not sure what they gave you for shingles in the kit. The peel and stick go on nice and are close to scale. It’s just the staggering price to buy them.

Dave, Excellent comments about building the roof.  No, I am not satisfied with the roof components that came with the kit, but I'm not being critical of the manufacturer.  I saw this same kit built in HO on a Western Maryland Rwy modeling Facebook group.  I commented it would be great in HO.  Jeff of Carolina Craftsman Kits contacted me almost immediately and asked if I would buy one if he made it in O scale.  I said I would, and was surprised that he had it ready in a couple days.  For all I know, he may have only made two, the one he built which he sent two photographs in the kit.  I realize it wouldn't take much to change the scale on the computer that drives the laser cutter.  That said, all the lasercut parts are really crisply cut, and it went together great.  I did have to trim that center two story wall a slight bit because I beveled a little too much off the two story full brick wall section.  That was my fault, not his.  It's a great kit.

As for the roof, I decided I'm going to buy some peal and stick shingles because the ones that came with the kit are thin paper that I would like to be a darker gray.  Yes, this kit will take a sizable amount of them.   Jeff suggests using 3M 465 double sided tape to stick the thin paper shingles on.  I know me.  I'll be tearing the thin paper too many times.    So, I may have the kit done and waiting for shingles.  Sounds like real life, doesn't it?

I have made all my roofs removable, so I can add lights and interiors later.  I have not made any effort yet to search for details for two stores, the signal tower, or two stations.  I do appreciate your suggestions, because I was thinking last evening, these two roofs will be quite light to be taking off.  Am I reading your method correctly?  Is there one 1/4" triangle on each end just inside the peaked wall and one in the center?  Other than the coat hanger wire, are the roof sections the only thing that is connecting the three triangles together?  I'm thinking I need wood for the roof sections themselves.  This card stock is 3/64" thick, and may bow.

Yes the 3 braces are cut to match the pitch of the roof. Will look like a stretched  out triangle when done. I still add 3/16 or 1/4 strips lengthwise if the roof material is thin between these. I tend to overbuild as far as bracing. The metal rod is there more or less just to smooth out the seam and give the 2 pieces of roof a solid thing to glue to where the seam is. I’ve also just filled it with a basswood strip and sanded it smooth. I have one in the works at home. I’m away for a bit otherwise I’d shoot a photo. Actually it’s been in the works for 2 years. I ordered the shingles after I finished it as I was getting a lot done during the pandemic. Went back to work and got sidetracked on other projects but am retired now so it’s on the slate to get done outside when the weather gets nice.

I picked up some shingles at the Springfield show a few years back. I liked them and ordered a few more packs. They seem to sell close to the going rate for peel and stick.  I think I spent as much on the shingles as I did for the wood, windows and doors. Bollinger Edgerly Scale Trains. They are online based in NH.  It looks like you get a lot when you look at the package. Till you realize after you do the correct overlap the package goes quick. They have a good variety as well as colors. I usually just use tarpaper type roofs just to save some money. But certain structures such as a passenger station or in this case a milk station would only look right with shingles.

Thank you Dave!  I never heard of Bollinger Edgerly Scale Trains.  I see they have some nice HO kits in addition to the shingles in 3 scales.  Yes, this station should have light gray slate shingles, and I would need 4 sheets; $48 plus whatever shipping and tax they charge.  Well, this model is worth it.

I think the 3/16 or 1/4 strips lengthwise would be needed for this model also.  Better to overbuild than underbuild and break one of the roofs when handling.  That is a nice building you pictured above!  Congratulations on your recent retirement.  I was given early retirement in late 2018.  In mid 2019, I got a part time job and needed off for a knee replacement right before the pandemic started.  I never went back.  We are doing fine.

I just ordered the peal and stick shingles from Bollinger Edgerly Scale Trains.  I might go out tomorrow to get stripwood.  Thank you, Dave!

The shingles even though they are peel and stick they are tedious to do a large roof. A crew of real roofers I think could knock out a house quicker than I can do a model. Pick a quiet dreary day.  Sit down and put on some music or for me a sports talk show and have at it. You will find yourself telling yourself. I’ll get one more row done and take a break. But for some strange reason you want to keep going and next thing it’s done.

Over 30 years ago I started out  building Gloor Craft kits. The structure was done and ready for shingles. It had a complicated roof. They did include paper shingles that had some adhesive. They came rolled up and being an older kit the adhesive didn’t work. Well I glued them on and got about 1/2 way up one side. Just didn’t have patience back then. I ended up tar papering the rest of the roof. Built a ladder and bought an Arttista figure kneeling with a hammer. Laid out some shingles beside the roofer from the kit and was done.

The small, simple Altoona Model Works Branch Line Station came with peal and stick shingles.  It has a simple gable, and was tedious enough; so your suggestions are well taken, Dave!!!

The roofer nailing new shingles was brilliant!!

@Mark Boyce  Ron Marsh had a video on putting shingles down. I had seen another about making your own using tape in the process and cross cutting the material but I cannot find it.  Check out this link https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1146298012469055

Jeff, Thank you.  Ron did a nice video.  I did a lot of the same things on my Altoona station.  One thing I didn't do was add a couple other colors when I painted the shingle strips initially.  I did streak the completed roof for some weathering, but all my shingles look pretty much the same color.  I guess I could say the roof was shingled in the last year or two.  I'll try the different colors dry brushed on this upcoming roof.

Mark the kit is coming along nicely. I think the choice of a slate roof would add a lot of character and would be more in keeping with the overall feel. I added some trusses to the section house I built out of styrene. I think next time I’ll beef up the structure as Dave suggested. Look forward to the roof.

Andy

Thank you Andy!  I have some sheet styrene also, but took Dave up on the 1/4 x 4 poplar today at Lowes.  A 4-foot piece will last for several buildings.  I also bought some 1x2 poplar and a 2x2 sheet of lauan to make a base for the station.  Right now, the place I plan to locate the station is on the upper level across from the wye out in mid air.    It's a prefect spot since the prototype had a walkway that had a railing on two sides to keep people from falling off it into the Black Fork.

That’s a very interesting location in mid air. The poplar sounds like it’s worth a look. Thanks Dave.

Andy

Andy, It's mid air now, but there is room to build out a shelf from the roadbed for the station area, and leave space for reach in to the track underneath.  I'll post a photograph later to show where I mean.

Andy, this is where I mean.  The station will be located where the red caboose is sitting.  You can see a small clipping tacked to the roadbed.  The upper level benchwork extension will have to extend a couple inches beyond the benchwork below.  I think it will work out okay.

This is the clipping in the photograph above.  This catalog advertisement for a painting of the Thomas, WV station is what I meant about the railing.

@Mark Boyce posted:

I finished assembling the walls of the station kit.  The kit had one piece of heavy stock for the gabled roof and thin pieces of cardboard for the hip roof.  I used the cardboard pieces as templates for heavy pieces similar to the one that was in the kit.  The instructions are sketchy, and don't mention the roof at all other than shingling, so I really don't know the kit maker's intent.  I'm going to add a length of wood for the peak of the gable for the roof pieces to rest on.

Here are a couple of photographs of the station with the walls assembled.

I am just now completing this same kit. the instructions are difficult to follow because they are written for the HO scale kit.

Mark, that is what I assumed you meant 😁. Just my sense of humor. We have a tower locally that was raised up to meet the elevated tracks. That will be an interesting feature for sure. Can’t wait to see it.

Andy

@Mark Boyce posted:

Andy, this is where I mean.  The station will be located where the red caboose is sitting.  You can see a small clipping tacked to the roadbed.  The upper level benchwork extension will have to extend a couple inches beyond the benchwork below.  I think it will work out okay.

This is the clipping in the photograph above.  This catalog advertisement for a painting of the Thomas, WV station is what I meant about the railing.

I can give you some tips and tricks when you are ready to do the railings Mark.....

@David Eisinger posted:

I am just now completing this same kit. the instructions are difficult to follow because they are written for the HO scale kit.

David, I saw that the instructions are for the HO kit.  I'm glad to know someone else is building the same kit!!

@Steamfan77 posted:

Mark, that is what I assumed you meant 😁. Just my sense of humor. We have a tower locally that was raised up to meet the elevated tracks. That will be an interesting feature for sure. Can’t wait to see it.

Andy

Andy, I thought so, but had intended to take a photograph to post when I first mentioned the location, but didn't.    I would like to post some photographs of the B&O station that was in Evans City, Pennsylvania, but can't because I never took any of my own.  It was less than 10 miles from where I grew up and less than 15 from where I live now.  It was supposed to be the only railroad station in the US that was built over water.  Sadly, the railroad razed it in 1980, so the link says.   https://www.west2k.com/papix/evanscitypass.jpg  Wouldn't that we a challenging model to build.

@RSJB18 posted:

I can give you some tips and tricks when you are ready to do the railings Mark.....

Bob, you did a great job!  You will know when I am ready for that.

I made a first try at assembling the cardstock hip roof for the two story part.  I just Scotch taped the 4 pieces together, and need to go back and get them positioned a little better, but here is the idea.  I also cut some triangles as Dave C suggested, so I am on my way.

Looking good Mark. You have creative license to make the platform and surrounding area.

Nice railings Bob.

Andy

@Mark Boyce  was the station build over a creek?  At first I thought it may have been another rail line, but then decided that would not make a lot of sense.

Notice the cable bolted into the ends of the beams to add additional strength against bending on the floor of the station.  I imagine they could pretension the cable like pre-stressed concrete beams today to keep everything flat.

Thank you Andy and Jeff!

Yes, the Evans City station was built over Breakneck Creek.  I see the cable too.  I drive past the location every so often, and seeing the panorama, there was really no other place for a station.  I still find it intriguing that the Pittsburgh & Western, later B&O had a mainline through there with the reversing curves of the creek up against a hillside.  The town is on the other side of the creek.  As an added point of interest, there was such an oil boom in Evans City and the surrounding area, that I have seen photographs of the town with so many oil derricks, that there must have been one in every yard.  I recall the casing for one in the woods over the hill from my home where great-grandpa tried his luck.

I finished the bracing for the gable roof and redid the hip roof so it fits properly.  I see one gap, but the shingles will cover all that.  They are ready for paining the eaves.  I moved the station out of the way since I have the painted steps for 9 doors and the chimney drying on the rolling work bench.  I still find it less painful to work on it standing up with the benchwork about 4 inches above my waist.

Looking good Mark. You are well on your way.

Andy

That is a real showpiece Mark; excellent craftsmanship.

Nicely done, Mark.  Very nice, indeed.

George

Thank you, Andy, Jay, George!!

I painted under the eaves yesterday.  I was looking at what to use for the base.  The kit just has 1/4 x 1/4 stripwood and some stone embossed plastic sheet material to cut to size.  I want a solid base to act as a floor and stabilize the building better when lifting it.

In the meantime, I started fitting some 2 x 1 poplar for brackets to hold the scenery base for the whole station scene.  I also printed some of the photographs I got from the Internet of the station.  I have a couple that show the walkway with the railing Bob pointed out.  One from 1907 shows a wooden railing, and one  of a later date shows a metal railing.  Also, I might note that the station was heavily damaged by a tornado in 1941.  The model is of the rebuilt, post 1941 station.  Prior to that, there was an awning around the 2-story part of the station.  Even more noticeable, is that the end of the 1-story part had a rounded wall and roof that forms a semicircle that really looked neat.  Since all my trains and vehicles fit into a 1950s steam-diesel transition period, the model is correct for the era.  I had posted these photographs in this thread at the time I was researching the concept of the layout.  However, when the OGR administrators pointed out we shouldn't be posting published photographs that aren't our own, I purged those photographs from the thread.  I'm going to do a little more research and see if I can come up with some links to post.

Mark that building is looking great! Looking forward to seeing the shingle work.

Morning Mark, sorry I have been away for awhile. The building looks great and will be a wonderful addition to your layout! Keep up the outstanding work!

Looks good Mark. Are you going to have station placards on the station? Also, where is the Mark Boyce figure waiting at the station? Will he make it out to the train?

Beautiful model!

Peter

Mark this is looking great.

Can’t wait to see the completed shingles.

Mark, I constructed a base for my Thomas station. I will see if I can take some photos of it to show you how I did it.

Thank you, RJ, Mike, Dave P, Bill, David E!

RJ and Bill, Yes, I am looking forward to getting the shingles in the mail and seeing the station shingled too!

Dave, the kit came with paper signs with the name 'Thomas" on them.  I thought I could cut some of the left over material used for the windows and doors, and use that for placards.  That's a good point, about a Mark Boyce figure.    I'm planning on having his dad Jim Boyce and late friend Bill Saul fishing in the Blackwater, so why not ? 

David, that would be great if you posted a photograph or two!!  I was thinking about whether material I have on hand would be suitable.  Masonite would be pretty thin.  I have a little high quality plywood left from before the prices went through the roof.  Styrofoam may be too light weight.

This afternoon, I clamped an extra wide piece of lauan onto the brackets I put in last evening.  Then I positioned the station different ways with photographs so I can decide where the cutout and railing will be.  Here are a couple photographs to show the general position for the station, though it could be flipped with the two story section facing the camera.  You can see why I picked lauan, so I have enough room to put cars on the staging track.  A caboose is just visible under the lauan in the first photograph.

This would make the most sense with the layout as is, where instead of the Black Fork running under the bridge and railing, I just have it keeping pedestrians from falling onto the tracks below.  However, you won't see much of the railing until you get up close to the layout.  I don't want to cover over very much lower level area here since that is where the switch from the mainline to the short staging yard is.  I see I need to reposition the lintel on the big door as it is a little cockeyed.  This is the original wooden railing, and you can just see that awning I mentioned last night on the right of the photograph.  I have another photograph with a small portion of the later metal railing.

This is what the reverse side of the station looked like on the prototype.  There are tracks going to the Blackwater Canyon and on to Elkins, and the other tracks are for the Francis Branch to nearby Davis.  I could put in dummy tracks if I use this orientation for the station.

Last, if I flipped the station around so you can see the railing well, it would look like this.  If I did it that way, I think it would be better to make a mirror image of the photograph so the railing is along the tracks.  This way, I could leave more area for access to the staging track below, but that might take away from the overall effect.

I posted all these photographs and discussion of the options to ask all of you for your opinions on how you might do it.  You will come up with, questions, ideas, and reasoning I didn't think of.  Thank you ahead of time for your interest and participation!!!!!!!!

Mark, if your looking for a good sturdy base have you considered MDF shelving. Lays flat and doesn’t have a tendency to ever warp. If your modeling any platforms around the station. You can carve expansion joints in it. Takes paint well. The big box stores all seem to carry it. You can get it fairly wide and usually in a 4 ft. Length. Relatively inexpensive. This ones from Home Depot. Best to check stores on line. Not all Home Depot’s carry the same products.

Mark, wow, this is going to be some unique feature! I like the position in the first four pictures best. You wouldn’t see the railing from far away, but I think the building looks good situated this way in this space as long as you have access to the switch below. The railing looks better too because as you said it is protecting from a fall to the tracks. To add on to what Dave said, you can get ultra light MDF. Very lightweight and won’t warp.

Andy

These photographs show how I constructed a base for the station. It serves as a floor and the foundation wall. Its make of 1/8 thick styrene for the floor with 1/8 thick strips that are glued around the perimeter. The stone work is glued to the sides. I added small blocks of wood glued to the inside walls for the top of the floor to sit on. This design allows me to remove the floor from the structure.

Wow Mark and David and I'm sure many more members... your modeling talent is awesome! GREAT JOB for sure. Holy cow! You have me speechless.

Mark I like the first two pics. Are you planning to make this a removable setup?

@David Eisinger  David - Beautiful work - I am going to steal your idea of the base and the foam lintels on my Twin Pines Hotel/Resort building.

@Mark Boyce  Mark,  I would position the building so you will see its best "face" most of the time. I kind of thought you were going to let it overhang the rails like the real building overhangs the creek?   

Thank you for the replies, Dave C, Andy, David E, John, RJ, Jeff!!!

Dave C, Andy, I had some MDF left over but after searching, I must have used it all building the layout!  I haven't heard of the light weight MDF.  That may be a good choice.

David E, You did a beautiful job on your station!!  The styrene floor and foundation looks great!  I didn't think to cut in doorways between the one story and two story sections until I already had glued them together.  That is something I am going to have to do.  I like the window and door frames inside and the raised relief lintels and sills on the outside.  Thank you for sharing the photographs!  Very nice ideas.

John, Thank you.  My modeling talents have been kind of resting dormant for a lot of years while our girls were growing up, college, weddings, etc.  I am rusty in some areas, and my eyes and hands aren't what they used to be, but I am getting it back together.  One product line that has come along over the years, are these nice laser-cut kits.  I never worked with any until this winter.  Getting practice on some skills turn out some really nice models that I couldn't have built from scratch.  I used to be pretty good scratch building with styrene in N-scale 30 years ago.  I need to apply that to O scale.

Andy, RJ, I do think I like the first arrangement best, also.

Jeff, Best face forward is a good rule of thumb. 

I hadn't mentioned if this whole scene would be removable.  I think it does need to be removable to access some wiring connections and the tracks underneath.  Here is a photograph of the whole section of the layout.  I could position the station anywhere along this area, perhaps more to the left of my previous mockup as Jeff asked.  I don't have to use all 4 braces I put in the other day, or I could use them all.

Also Jeff; I haven't forgotten your suggestion about the raised town and lower tracks in the 'canyon' instead of raised track above town as it stands now.  That will be an issue for another time.

I finished the supports and removable top for the station site.  Here are the supports that will be exposed when the top is removed.  I made them so there is plenty of overhead room for the hand operated staging track below. 

Here is the lauan cut and fitted to the roadbed.  I have marked the bottom of it to add centering brackets so I can put it back in the exact position every time I take it off.  I still have plenty of lauan plywood if I decide to extend it in any direction.  I made it long enough to make room for the dummy tracks as in the photograph from the prototype.

I received the peal and stick shingles in the mail today.  They look like they will work out well.  I also ordered some 1/4" sheet styrene and 1/4 x 1/4 strips to do something like David did.  So, I will probably go back to finishing the station next.  Thank you everyone for the ideas.

Looking good.

Question, will the space below the station remain open or will you build a tunnel?

GOOD LORD MARK!  For a guy not feeling 100% you sure are kicking a**!

Nice Work!!!

Thank you Bill and Dennis!

Bill, I hadn't thought about that much.  Since you mention it, it may be good to put a removable panel on the front that hides the opening and tunnel portals on each end. More and more ideas!!     Who needs a big layout?  It is true, I will never finish this small one! 

Dennis, I was able to do all this standing up with an extra high surface to support the wood when cutting, so I didn't have to bend over.  I built a lot of the two stations and signal tower standing up, and will probably do the shingling, foundation, and other trim work mostly standing.  Standing isn't bad; it's walking, laying down, and sitting that are the problems.  I think I will get up from the computer chair now; it's starting to hurt. 

Mark,

This is looking great.  I can't wait to see how the shingles turn out.  

Mark, I second what you said. A removable panel(s) will allow you to create another scenic element and provide access when needed.

Andy

Thank you, Chris and Andy!

I too look forward to seeing the shingled roof.  Andy, Bill's question lead to the thoughts of making a cover for the lower level staging track.  It just shows the value of being able to post what you are doing and getting more ideas from other folks!

Here is another view of the area.

@Mark Boyce posted:

I finished the supports and removable top for the station site.  Here are the supports that will be exposed when the top is removed.  I made them so there is plenty of overhead room for the hand operated staging track below.

Mark- The station is looking good. I like the platform too. I see that this view matches the photo, but I'm sure you'd rather have the tall side facing you when you enter the room. What's your thought?

Removable panels on the lower level would work. I did a simple one on the face of the wall for my upper level. It's held in place with a couple velcro dots. I have wiring hidden behind and can reach into the tunnel if I need to retrieve a wayward car. The long panel on the right side comes off. I hid the seams with the columns on the corner and on other end. All of this is paper prints mounted to cardstock.

Bob

That looks great Bob!

Andy

Thank you, Bob!  You brought up an interesting point.  I’ve been toying with which is the most interesting end.  The way I have it now only corresponds to the way the prototype was situated.  That doesn’t mean I have to do it that way.  I am inclined to agree the two story end has more windows, a door, and a more interesting hip roof.  

Your stone wall looks great and is easy to remove for access.

Here is the opposite side view I took last evening.  I was going to post it when I was up at 3 am, but had forgotten to download it off the phone that was charging upstairs.

Bob, here is the view with the two-story section facing out, compared to yesterday's photograph.  Yes, it is more interesting.

I started on the peal and stick shingles.  They are nice to work with, though all shingles can be tedious.  Thank you for the tip,  @Dave_C