Updated Track Plan, (23.12.14) This shows how a train would leave the yard 'west bound' to drop cars just a foot to the right of the Grandure Yard. Eventually there will be a lift out 'block' for when I have guest.
I like your operating scheme, Grey One. You can spend many happy hours switching cars or just enjoy watching a train run when you are so inclined.
@country joe Thanks! That is the plan ☻ Features: Switching Just run trains Let guests run trains from the outer area with me in 'The Pit' My 14yo grandson (and his family are coming for Christmas) Tomorrow the cleaning ladies are coming. I live in a 'Family Friendly' Apartment building Maybe an actual model railroad. Wait, if a model railroader visits do I have to give up the contol?
Share? What is this 'share' thing you say? 50/50? 40/60? 80/20? ☻ I am going to share a vid for now. I had 2 problems related to couplers. First Problem: The 60+yo bobber caboose, (family heirloom from our Christmas Tree Train), had ancient 'loop and hook' couplers. There was no way i was going to try to swap them out. 2nd Problem: It came to pass my step-daughter and I assembled a pair of Accurail boxcars. Well, sort of. Mine: Wheels onto trucks, trucks ont bottom and top on to bottom. Um, Steve? You din't metion couplers. Er, um, well, ya see it is like this. I don't see and could not assemble them or the undercarriage detail. Why, they are all black and I could not see how. My step-daughter: did the details, wheels, trucks, and couplers. Interestingly, I had to do the 'top to bottom'. I used a pair of empty gift cards to slide the top into position. I would strongly recommend these kits to anyone. They are very attractive and unique. For the fully sighted they are relatively easy to assemble. It took my step-daughter about 2 hours and she has never done anything like that befor.
Monster Mountain and Kid Mt Get a Paint Job I finally was able to get a decent shade of something on most of the layout. Here is 'Monster Mt, (temporary name. I'm open to suggestions). Kid Mt. View including 'Simple Bridge'
Kid Mt. I'm very pleased with the color on this My thanks to my Wife who guided / confirmed the colors.
@country joe and Everyone, I'm looking for ideas on what to do with the 'cracks' in the rock. Geologically speaking they would be fine if they were not exactly 2"s apart. I'm open to suggestions / ideas / concepts and humor. ☻
One option would be to enhance them by carving back into them some like the lighter colored cap rock above or the strata towards the bottom or try and blend them more like some of the other strata above. I've had good luck using Spackling (above) but some use Sculptamold (I have some but haven't used it yet). I mixed the base color I wanted for a strata .... ... into the spackling and applied it with the paint stick I stirred with and used a brush to force it into the cracks and spread it around some. The foamboard had been glued together with Loctite Power Grip so wasn't going to move. More here.... https://1fatgmc.com/RailRoad/UP%20Canyon%20Division/page-205.html Sumner
My thought is to fill the cracks with spackle and paint the rock, or carve additional cracks so they aren’t all 2” apart, or a combination of both filling some of the cracks and carving some new ones.
You could alternate different thicknesses of foam board, so that not all layers are the same thickness (rock strata are rarely the same thickness as strata above and below them). I plan on using a base layer of 2", but other layers of 0.5" thickness, because I will be using WS incline starter sets, and each will climb that height (once I trim the ramps to length). Then when I get above the highest track level, I can go back to other thicknesses for the higher layers. This will all be supported by an HCD.
Sumner, THANK YOU for describing your process for coloring your textures. It seems simple enough, but for those of us who have not actually done this yet, sharing your method is a huge and welcome confidence booster.
@Sumner , @country joe , @BigJake and Everyone, Thanks! That is a big help! Mixing the paint in with the speckling and the source at ACE was great! Side note: The mountains are held in place, (and held together), with cooking skewers. In some places I also use white glue or paint. This Allows: I can carry them out to sunlight for painting. I can take them down if / when I have to move The next mountain will be my 'Great Divide' in the South East cornor. As shown in the track plan at the top of this page the new mountain will 'break' the 'O' into a point-to-point. I think I will use @country joe the 1/2" pieces with 1" and @Sumner try my hand with the spacklin, (if it does not cost much. Otherwise //Thinking outloud here: I might use Dremel or sand paper to 'smooth' it a little Paint mixed with foam dust as gap filler. I could probably do the gap filler retroactively to Monster, Kid and Coffee mountains. Will have to try that. //End thinking Thanks! Everyone!
I forgot to mention that I mix the 'base color' paint with the spackling. Doesn't take much. Then while that is still wet go ahead and mix the other highlight shades that I want to put over that 'base' color. I did all the colors mixing the colors that were shown. They had smaller cans of paint at Ace but they weren't 'flat' paint which is what I wanted so bought the size show as they could mix those to any color I wanted. Sumner
@Sumner Thanks, yes, I figured what you meant. You described it better than you knew. The goal is to use what I have on hand. We shall see. Maybe by Sunday night. ♣
If you use an airbrush with the paint cup on top, it is fairly easy to mix small batches of color, right in that paint cup. Or so I've seen/read... Airbrushing is another skill I want to develop.
The Luxury of Being OverwhelmedYikes! 2 Months and i have made *No* progress. Argh! I don't know how many days I have left on thes plain of existance but in less than 6 months I'll be 70. time to get the lead out. Possible Projects on the Grey and Grandure Visually Important Deal with the artificial strata as in above postings Start 'blocking out' buildingsx with foam Finish painting 'Simple Bridge' Start / build 'The Great Divide Mountain' using part of 'Old Mountain', (from N-Scale layout). Should it be high enough to act as a partial view block' Tedious Finish transfer caboose Fun to Do: Make rock formations for 'Monument Valley' including one formed like a 'Needle' with land speeder flying through. Change industrial area so it flows more easily Create removable modualr covering of Industrial area so I could put a town or mountains there. Electrically isolate yard / industrial area from main line.and add 2nd power supply Start painting figures for 'Long Horn Bison Ranch' Print 'GandG' logo and fasten to 'The Three Bears' Mystrium storage silos Go for a walk. I am not complaining. It is a luxury to have soooo many options. Open to suggestions / ideas / humor / other. Pictures to follow.
Monument Valley is 70 miles from us but since we are at 6000 feet we can see it from here. You might get ideas from............ ..... ThunderMesaStudio's videos. I use some of his techniques..... https://www.youtube.com/@ThunderMesaStudio Sumner
@Sumner WOW! Thanks! Yes, he has the same idea. I'll be putting in my own sculptures around the layout with several alone the 'north' side of it. Possible Formations The Needle The Arch (2 or 3 of these) The Three Sisters Eagle, (or Angel) Rock Snoopy, (decades ago there was one at the Grand Canyon but it has since fallen.) Plat Teau - Shaped like a toe. plateau Vulcan 'Live Long and Prosper' Ultimate Goal A 'formation' that takes on different recognizable shapes depending on angle or lighting. Open to suggestions. Could I make the needle look like a flame? You got me thinking. In the old N-Scale layout I had direct sun and created a 'Steve Hange' for the Solstice, Equinox *and* birthdays. I can still do that but just no shadows unless I get a small lamp hidden in a mountain or structure. Thanks!
