Sunday Scenic Showcase April 26, 2020

Highway finished in this area. Area to right of highway in foreground of first photo is unfinished.:

Checking clearances on the new crossing (The buildings are still being test fitted):

 Was able to get a lot of small projects done this week. First was a milk platform.

 I built a ball signal. A kit from River Leaf Models. I did change out the balls to some from Bollinger Edgerly Trains.

I had this structure pretty complete. Wanted and open door and maybe some details inside seeing it was near the layouts edge. Needed to scratchbuild doors. My original plan was for 2 hindged doors. The ones I ordered were actually really to small looking for doors this size. I managed to assemble the hindges but they just didn’t look right. They had the smallest nails I have ever seen to attach them. I also ordered some small pins with eyelets. I ended up using them to make sliding doors on a rod.

Nice work fellas. I had to make some custom poles to traverse the area around the new scenery efforts. I made an alley hanger type pole and a couple with junction boxes to feed underground cabling:

I have been working on this scene for two seasons.  I built the Station Building last year and worked on the "underground" last year and this year.  I tore the whole thing apart twice because I did not like it.

The stay at home order has extended this train season for me and allowed me to pour a lot of work into the top side.  It's not finished (Nothing ever is) but it's coming along.

UNDERGROUND

Structural Mod

I thought I had gone through great lengths to ensure every engine and every car had clearance for the Station.  My Son found the one set of passenger coaches that would not fit on one track.  I told him to park them somewhere else until he told me the length of cars and the length of this track was perfect.  He was right.  So we did a fun mod where I cut out the regular pillar and installed a plastic I beam.  We painted it red and put some decals on it.  Now it's a fun conversation piece on my mistake.

TOPSIDE

Every element of what I built in these scenes and the ideas behind it came from OGR members.  I'm not very creative or talented, but I can watch people and try to replicate what they do.  So thank you OGR members for sharing your train layouts.  It has helped me build mine.

Thank You Bob (RRDoc) and Jim Policastro for planting the seed with their scenes.

Have Fun!

Ron

Looks great Ron.

Great work this week as always.

Here is one from the past. I have a Budweiser building that features an employee break room with free Beer for the employees (after working hours of course). The beer mugs were made from thin dowels painted yellow and the topped with white. An interesting scenery project to add that something extra to a scene.

The building and the Korber grain silo were created as a flat to fill a place on my home layout. Each ceiling has a string of LED's and various office scenes were created

The bottoms of the beer glasses were sanded to make them stand up. Don't try to be to neat with this as to put a robust head on the brewskie.

Steve, 

Those are some big steins.  Where can I submit my job application?

Ron

Nice mountain Pete and nice telephone poles Norm

Hi Alan,How's your car doing?

@Ron045 posted:

Steve, 

Those are some big steins.  Where can I submit my job application?

Ron

 

Ron

The scene is set back about 4 feet so I decided to go a bit larger so the steins could be seen.  BTW your station and passenger platforms are outstanding!!!

Steve

For the first time ever.... I’ve made it to actual scenery!

Still very much working on it, but in all the fits and starts I’ve had I’ve never made it to green. I’ve stockpiled a huge stash of stuff over the years and I’m discovering quickly I don’t have enough “stuff”. Plenty of static grass and ground foam, a decent number of trees but not many “good” trees, and I definitely can use some more “junk” to accent it all. 

I planted about 130 bush and need maybe 600 more.

I began a MOW bridge repair project on an outdoor shelf layout under a covered patio. Years ago, when constructing the layout, my son and I built 3 wood bridges to span the open end that faces a pond. The bridges were made to be old and distressed, so I decided it was time to get a crew working on the burned support post, and the badly rotted planks on the walkways. I made some posts and planks to put on a flat car, some saw horses, (no photo), and a 40 foot wood extension ladder to go with the crew. 

Trans man,

Havent heard from you in awhile, glad you posted. The car is still running and ready to go. I hope you are enjoying your layout. Enjoy all the great posts on this thread today.

.

@wbg pete posted:

Highway finished in this area. Area to right of highway in foreground of first photo is unfinished.:

Checking clearances on the new crossing (The buildings are still being test fitted):

Pete,

Your road work and grade crossing look wonderful. How did you make the cracks in the road?

Dave

@Norm Charbonneau posted:

Nice work fellas. I had to make some custom poles to traverse the area around the new scenery efforts. I made an alley hanger type pole and a couple with junction boxes to feed underground cabling:

Amazing detail as always Norm! I have to ask, are the wires glued to the insulators or wrapped around them?

Dave

@Boilermaker1 posted:

For the first time ever.... I’ve made it to actual scenery!

Still very much working on it, but in all the fits and starts I’ve had I’ve never made it to green. I’ve stockpiled a huge stash of stuff over the years and I’m discovering quickly I don’t have enough “stuff”. Plenty of static grass and ground foam, a decent number of trees but not many “good” trees, and I definitely can use some more “junk” to accent it all. 

This is a great start on your scenery. Look forward to more.

Dave

Great projects this week!   I've been working on functionality this week, I'm trying to tame this.......

I did manage to work on a very small water feature on the edge of the layout mostly because I just wanted to include this bridge my father had given me as a child

Paul

@Serows1 posted:

Great projects this week!   I've been working on functionality this week, I'm trying to tame this.......

 

Yeah, we all have one of those.  Yours is neater than mine. 

You guys are outdoing yourselves. While the rest of the world goes stir crazy with cabin fever, us crazy modelers are in seventh heaven. I almost hate to think this way since so many people are unhappy and suffering. But that's just the way life works these days. In the mid-winter in a blizzard, everyone's locked up, but the guy who just invested $$$ in a new snow plow for his Ford Super-duty Pickup is all excited. I have a friend who's an oil trader in fuel oils and diesel. When the temps drop into single digits, he's happy as a clam. In a mild winter like we just had, he was miserable. So… regardless, be happy we enjoy a wonderful hobby where being at home in the basement is not a punishment. It's a reward.

I did a simple project from Friday to today. I made a permanent length gauge for my NWSL Chopper to cut multiple pieces that extend past the tool's edges. It used some metal I had lying around. The drill rod is 3/16", but I made the hole one size bigger 11/64" to give leeway. I J-B welded an aluminum block to the underside to give some more material to tap and hold the clamp screw. The "wingnut" was made out of a 1/4-20 round head slotted screw and a piece of steel wire. All of this was soldered with a propane torch and non-lead solder. I used it today to cut 27 scale 2 X 10 basswood for the flooring of the Tie Hacker's Cabin (Rusty Stumps kit) which I started building last week. This add-on greatly improves the tool. Previously, I would clamp the Chopper to the bench and clamp another block where I wanted the cut to be. It was insecure and rudimentary. This is the way it should have been.

I also finished and installed a scratch-built chain hoist for the machine shop that abuts my engine house. This was essential to feed the Niles wheel lathe.

@wbg pete posted:

Highway finished in this area. Area to right of highway in foreground of first photo is unfinished.:

 

 

 

Pete, I love the stretch of highway parallel to the road. This is so rare to see in a model railroad because (understandably) most modelers, especially high-railers, want to squeeze as much track in as possible. They would have track where you have road. 

As a result, your scene is very convincing and refreshingly prototypical. Bravo! 

@luvindemtrains posted:

Pete,

Your road work and grade crossing look wonderful. How did you make the cracks in the road?

Dave

Dave,

Just saw this.  The roads are 3/16" foam core.  I use a screw driver to emboss the expansion joints and cracks... pretty simple and easy.   After the road is in place, I paint with a "aged concrete" latex paint. I then brush on and wipe off an antiquing glaze to make the concrete look worn and highlight the joints and cracks.

HTH,

Pete

@luvindemtrains posted:

Pete,

Your road work and grade crossing look wonderful. How did you make the cracks in the road?

Dave

@Will posted:

Pete, I love the stretch of highway parallel to the road. This is so rare to see in a model railroad because (understandably) most modelers, especially high-railers, want to squeeze as much track in as possible. They would have track where you have road. 

As a result, your scene is very convincing and refreshingly prototypical. Bravo! 

Wiil,

Thank you!  I am a firm believe that the trains should be a part of the scenery and not dominate the layout.

Pete

@wbg pete posted:

Wiil,

Thank you!  I am a firm believe that the trains should be a part of the scenery and not dominate the layout.

Pete

That is a tough rule to follow. It helps when you have a room the size of yours.

I guess that's why we call them train layouts, not scenery layouts

Great work BTW

Bob

Most of us get into this very engaging and diverse hobby by wanting to run trains. We then evolve. Thankfully, the hobby is large enough to accept and embrace every kind of hobbyist: from those who collect unopened boxes of classic trains, to 2-rail Proto:48 practitioners who have working brake linkage on their freight cars and everyone in between. I've evolved from watching trains run around to watching trains run around in areas with complex and unusual scratch-built structures. That road looks amazing.