I started out in the early dark days of N scale when a steamer was smoking it wasn't a smoke generator, but rather the motor frying. Choices of structures and equipment was European in flavor. So you ended up scratch building stuff or kit bashing. I acquired the nickname of the butcher at one of the LHS we used to have because a lot of what left the store with me got bashed into something else I wanted. And raising a family kept me on a frugal budget for years so building, or bashing, what I wanted became the norm I still have today. Therefore when I decided to combine my railroad interest with my maritime interest again there wasn't much in N scale and what there was was too expensive or big. Therefore I cast a lot of my own hulls out of resin and used some old time passenger cars to provide the superstructures. Other parts came from styrene or I made molds and cast them. Some commercial kits in other scales where either worked down to N scale or worked up. Also in photographs of motive power, equipment, and structures it has been what else was in the photo, rather than just eyes for the subject. Therefore I often have more interest in what is behind the 4-8-4 or around it than the loco itself.
Well I was busy last night re-arranging the man cave furnishings when a problem that was there all along finally leaped out and smacked me across the face. 100_5129-1 by John Moore posted Jan 18, 2018 at 9:37 AM The port section is supposed to go in this location with part under the cabinets. And there is supposed to be a backdrop. Nottafinga!!! I am in a over hundred year old house with the high ceilings typical of the era and these cabinets run to the ceiling. Not about to rip out and give up these useful cabinets. The other 3 walls are full of windows and a door. After agonizing over possible re-arrangements I finally reached a solution. The first idea was to paint the cabinets all sky blue soon dismissed looking at the expanse of them stretching up to about 10 feet off the floor. I don't do to well since having the stroke up teetering on ladders. Some more thought and then it hit me, wallpaper. A search of the home improvement stores for sky blue wallpaper was both unsatisfactory and expensive. One roll of wallpaper was going to cost me as much as the whole base for the layout. A Google search led me to Amazon and Disney wallpaper for kids. And for less than I paid for one HC door. 91CuSN8fOaL._SL1500_-1 by John Moore posted Jan 18, 2018 at 9:37 AM Sky blue with clouds and more than enough to do both under the cabinets and the bottom portion. Plus it is already coated with adhesive and is stripable. Order was placed and will be here next week.
That could solve a lot of others problems. I'm thinking that it is a great backdrop for NTrak modules. How about a link or more info?
Don't use wallpaper as it'll be a b*tch to get off. What I would try doing as an experiment first is to go ahead and do the backdrops. Then cut off the piece that is in the way (horizontally) so you can double side taped them to the cabinets above. BUT before you even do that, cut them again vertically at the width of the doors (plus a little for the gaps). This way you won't ruin the cabinet and you have a backdrop that some what can go higher than the bottom of the cabinets.
Look at the first photo again. HVAC vent and a hot water radiator and 2nd the wall paper is stripable. In the original plan the space around both devices would have been open for them to function. This way I can do the wall and the cabinets and have that necessary HVAC space open.
I know what you mean about the old homes. Ours is 200 years old. Still has blown glass windows with storms painted to match trim, very few electrical receptacles and turning staircases. I don't know how wide the cabinets are or how often you go in them. Could you mount the wallpaper on foam core board hung from cabinet pulls?
Well each door is 17 inches wide and there are 4 of them. One side has a lot of my modeling supplies the other has a reference library and office supplies. Then there is the top tier, also 4 doors wide, where I have a lot motive power and car cases stored along with other MR stuff. The whole unit is a little over 6 feet wide and has about 17 inches of usable depth. So the cabinets see a lot of use. The wall paper is a water based paste so just wetting it and using a little heat comes off. Plus I probably will apply a seal coat to the wood prior to applying it which will enable it to be removed in the future. If I do it right should be fine and I have to install some lighting under that cabinet also since it will be a dark area. And I have to rig some power to the highland section under there. I could run with one power pack and cab but I decided on two keeping the port area as a separate entity. I must have unconsciously saw this coming as this is the last area that will be done.
The backdrops which were supposed to have arrived yesterday are still somewhere between Richmond VA and here. But that's okay because I am still finishing up the room arrangement. Looking at those cabinets I also have a dimly lit area there. So this morning I ordered a three unit set of very low profile under cabinet lights that operate off of a 12 volt DC system. So hopefully tomorrow I will be cutting foam and backdrop sections.
Celebrated the bent spike ceremony a day early with the actual commencement of construction. 100_5131-1 by John Moore posted Jan 19, 2018 at 4:28 PM Yup that is an actual 1 to 1 scale spike from mile one of the old RF&P holding down some Masonite. Was able to start since I finished the furniture re-arrangement. Cut the wood for the mine extension in the left corner and then cut the backdrops for it. Using Gorilla Glue to spice the Masonite sheets together for the long wall section or a 80 inch section that ends where the port section of the layout starts. Should be dry tonight when I can turn it over to the smooth side and start measuring where the backdrop terrain will start. I am debating whether to go with a 10 inch high upper level or a full 12 inches. The 10 inch will give me a lesser grade and that grade will have an 8 inch radius curvature which adds to the grade. Also broke out the hot knife and cut down a 4 by 8 foot sheet of foam to manageable sections.
The glue set up enough to be able to flip the Masonite over to the smooth side and layout some elevation lines after supper. I settled on 8 inches for Lonesome Cove and the sheep meadow. That is about 125 N scale feet above the port area and I am going to have about 8 or 9 feet to reach there on the branch line, or about 96 inches to climb up to 8 inches. I am probably going to have to re-align some trackage and probably end up with one or two trestles on the grade up. I had three trestles on the original Turtle Creek Central. I am using some of the same scenic backdrops as before and the one in this picture is Sierra Boom Town. Like it for the stream and it expands Lonesome Cove. Plus once again I am going to tie my own stream and waterfall into it. And the Beaver pond may appear up near the sheep meadow, plus I have a water powered mill that was saved from the former layout. 100_5132-2 by John Moore posted Jan 19, 2018 at 7:22 PM So tonight I may be attaching this and the Tall Timber to the Masonite so tonight the glue dries and tomorrow I can attach the big part of the backdrop.
Used Elmers spray adhesive I found at Wally World and attached two of the scenes to the backdrop. 100_5133-3 by John Moore posted Jan 19, 2018 at 8:14 PM Notice where Sierra Boom Town meets Tall Timber there is a haze to Sierra. Easy fix is I go to my artists' supply box and get some pastels and just blend it in better.
Trimmed the excess sky from the top of the Masonite backdrop this AM after an early morning trip to Wally World for some more spray adhesive. While there was checking for some water based paint for the foam and found good old Tempura paint from my childhood days. Hmm $1.77 a pint bottle, and in blue, black, brown, green, and white. Stuff is called Art-Time. Then I enlisted the aide of the Wife to mount the backdrop to the HC door base. Fun was to be had there. While there are some very capable women in the building industry my Wife unfortunately is not. Then there was the fun of trying to start the short drywall screws I had purchased at Wally World in the Masonite. Daggone cheap @#$%#@ screws. But after two attempts to get it level mission accomplished. 100_5136-3 by John Moore posted Jan 20, 2018 at 12:46 PM And while I had it down before mounting I addressed the differences in shade between the two panels that were supposed to go together. Ended up using Bragdon weathering powders to blend the two. A very tall tree will block what seam shows. The box like structure on the layout is the base and Masonite walls and base for the mine insert that tucks around the chimney protrusion.
Installed the section for the Macie Moly Mine then started the first layer of foam. And then tonight I will wrestle with the section of scenic backdrop for it. 100_5137-21 by John Moore posted Jan 20, 2018 at 4:08 PM I continued on with the rest of the first layer and made the cut out for the stream lined up with the backdrop. 100_5138-22 by John Moore posted Jan 20, 2018 at 4:08 PM
Tactfully stated. I was think something along those lines today while we were working outside today. I could not have worded it so nicely.
Practice. Been married to the same woman now for 52 years. Taking a departure from the normal in that a lot of the scenery that will be in front of the backdrop will be built off the layout and then put on. This will be the area directly behind the staging on the plan. Too much strain on the old back to try to do it in place. Once that is done I will lay the staging track and the back section of my run around track along with any turnouts. Then will come the elevated section of Lonesome Cove in front of all that. Foundation for the scenery in front of the backdrop. 100_5139-23 by John Moore posted Jan 20, 2018 at 7:21 PM Saved a lot of foam from packing cases that is now going into play. The climb up to the elevated areas is going to be done with Woodland Scenics riser kits. I have used that before and it saves a lot of trouble and that will be installed when I do Lonesome Cove. And the last thing for today is that I added the scenic panel to the Macie Moly Mine area.
