New Beginnings

PapaG Mar 1, 2021

  1. PapaG

    PapaG TrainBoard Member

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    UPDATE:

    Encouraging news on the rework effort on my water pour.

    As you may have seen in my original post, I had a water pour of some Woodland Scenics product - Deep Water Pour: Murky - go sideways on me. I won’t go into all of the issues here, but suffice it to say that it’s not good and needs to be fixed… if it can be.

    The first thing I did was sand the worst of the bubbles off and try to level some of the worst deformations.

    I then took my Dremel, loaded with a small engraving bit, and opened up the smaller pin holes to remove sanded resin that had collected in them, and to allow resin to flow more easily into them when I pour a thin covering layer.

    The immediate concern was whether my sanding marks would disappear when I apply that skim coat of resin.

    So, to test the theory, I applied some clear resin with a brush over all of the sanded areas, and filled some of the holes.

    As you can see, the sanding marks have all but disappeared, though I do have some more work to do on cleaning up some of the holes before I make the final pour.

    The bottom line is that this is a really encouraging result and leads me to believe that the scene is salvageable. I may still have to disguise some things that I won’t be able to fix, but I think that one of the big hurdles on the road to repair has been overcome.

    I want to thank everyone in the group who shared advice and ideas, or their own tales of ‘water woe’. I appreciate every one of you!

    I’ll post further developments as I make progress.

    The original pic of the bubbles.

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    After sanding the worst of the bubbles down.

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    After a thin coat of clear resin applied with a brush over the sanding marks.

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  2. PapaG

    PapaG TrainBoard Member

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    I've been practicing with my static grass application. My early attempts didn't look nearly as good as these, more recent efforts. The glue was still very wet when I snapped these pics, but the grass is definitely standing up better than it was in those earlier efforts. It seems that I wasn't keeping the applicator close enough to the grounding pin, which left most of my grass lying down. Since then, I'm much more conscious of the distance of my applicator to the ground and the results are much better. Thanks to all here who aided me with tips and tricks! Much appreciated!

    I tried different lengths of grass and applied them in varying degrees of denseness. I applied 2mm light green and 4mm medium green as a test.

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    Here is my 2 mm light green applied sparsely... I'm not sure I like this result, but things may look different once the glue dries. I'm hoping that this sparse application will work at the edges of other, more densely grassed areas.


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    This is the same material, 2mm light green, applied more heavily. This, I think, is a much better result. The grass doesn't all stand up in the same direction, there's adequate coverage


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    This is 4mm medium green grass applied sparsely. Not as sparsely as the 2mm light green was applied, but not as heavily as the more dense application.

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    This is more of the 4mm medium green, here applied more densely than previous. This is a pretty good look, in my opinion.

    I think the mixing of lengths and then the mixing of colors is going to be part of the next round of testing. I think I'll try one length of straw and another length of green so both can be seen more readily. But overall, I'm satisfied with these results and am almost ready to start applying grass to my layout.

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  3. Shortround

    Shortround TrainBoard Member

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    Thanks for sharing. Would it be better to pour the 'water' in thinner layers? Allowing it to dry before pouring the next layer.
    I've no advice to give. I've never done this myself.
    Keep it coming please.
     
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  4. umtrr-author

    umtrr-author TrainBoard Member

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    There are certain bodies of water in my home state of New Jersey that look similar to the "before" picture :eek:
     
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  5. PapaG

    PapaG TrainBoard Member

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    LOL! :D I should have just started modeling the Jersey Central and I could have left it as it was!
     
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  6. PapaG

    PapaG TrainBoard Member

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    The review of this pour that I received from Woodland Scenics was that I poured it too deep. But, I didn't pour any of this to a depth greater than the product was supposed to be used for. the "Deep Pour" product is designed to pour to a depth not greater than 1/2". In fact, the Woodland Scenics 'Water Volume Estimator' app that they recommend customers use indicated that, based on the dimensions of the cavity I was attempting to fill and the depth to which I intended to fill it, more than 15 oz. would be needed. I used only 12 oz. and still got the results you see in the pics.

    But, to your point, I won't ever pour resin - regardless of the manufacturer - to a depth greater than 1/4" at a time again.
     
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  7. Shortround

    Shortround TrainBoard Member

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    Thanks for the info. I've never poured water, just painted it. So if I do I will have learned from your results.
     
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  8. umtrr-author

    umtrr-author TrainBoard Member

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    I tried the Woodland Scenics "EZ Water" once. The adjectives I had for it did not include "Easy." :censored:
     
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  9. PapaG

    PapaG TrainBoard Member

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    Lol! You can say “my mistakes”, because I certainly made at least one here.
     
  10. PapaG

    PapaG TrainBoard Member

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    The continuing saga of my water pour in Four Falls Gorge has taken a sharp turn…

    … and then a long skid on shrieking tires, and then a violent roll-over, before bursting into flames! Lol!

    I was trying to clean up the raw edges of my pour where the dam was so I could seal everything off for the repair pour over the top, when a large piece of the resin snapped off.

    To my mind, this was simply ‘a bridge too far’ and represented one too many variables in pursuit of my repair.

    So, it seems that surgery is the only option left…

    it wasn’t difficult removing the gorge, but it was really hard plunging the knife in the first time and committing to the amputation.

    This is the piece of resin that snapped.

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    The first cut is the deepest

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    Exit… stage left!

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    But now I can definitively say that my pour did not exceed the maximum 1/2” depth recommended by the manufacturer.

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  11. PapaG

    PapaG TrainBoard Member

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    The crane shed for Vulcan Manufacturing makes it’s way to the layout.

    I bought this because I’d seen a picture of it with an overhead crane installed in the shed and I thought that would be awesome.

    Little did I know that the N Scale crane by Walthers that fits this model has been discontinued since 2012.

    Lol! Just my luck!

    So, I’m searching for the crane (Walthers 933-3810 if any of you collectors care to part with it ), and have a couple of promising leads.

    But, I also have a backup plan…

    Im going to leave one section of the roof off, and cut it into fourths. Then I’ll create a scene where the shed is being dismantled with a team using a mobile crane. That should explain why the overhead crane is absent.


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  12. MK

    MK TrainBoard Member

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    I know this a bit late but you could have left that broken piece off, added some boulders and created a fast flowing water stream or mini-waterfall with white water, etc. to hide the breakage.
     
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  13. freddy_fo

    freddy_fo TrainBoard Member

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    Great start on the layout George. Sometimes it's better to rip out and start over again. I've yet to try this method myself but I bookmarked a well done vid showing how to lay down epoxy/water scenes. The fellow uses a mini torch to get all the bubbles out before the epoxy cures.

     
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  14. PapaG

    PapaG TrainBoard Member

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    Hey MK,

    I had considered that, but the amount of heat that was generated when this pour cured was enough to deform the the cavity. When this piece of resin snapped out I was concerned that the water-tight integrity of cavity might have compromised.

    It just seemed like one mishap too many with this water pour to continue investing in it.
     
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  15. PapaG

    PapaG TrainBoard Member

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    The steel shop makes its way to the layout.

    I haven’t yet committed to this being the ‘Vulcan Mfg.’ plant… I may make my own signage and name it something else. One of the things I intended when I started building a model railroad was to name the places and businesses along the line after my grand-kids. So, this may eventually become the San Gabriel Iron Works or Christian & Sons Metal Fabrication.

    I’m not yet sure what it is that will be manufactured here, maybe I-beam girders or pipe… I’d like to run some center beam cars, so maybe something consistent with that mode of transport.

    I’m also playing with the location on the layout. Once I get my train station, restaurant, and bar built I’ll know better how and where they’ll all fit.


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  16. PapaG

    PapaG TrainBoard Member

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    I was going to put my railway station here, along with a couple of businesses; a bar and a restaurant. But then I found this warehouse kit that I’d assembled last year and thought that, instead of buying/building more structures, I’d use it.

    The other little out-building/freight office, may or may not be a part of the scene, I was just playing with the space to see how it might be used.

    The group has been generous with their input in my previous posts, so I’m seeking more of that now.

    If you care to weigh in, what are your thoughts?

    Use the warehouse/distribution center in an industrial park shared with the iron works, or put a station and some small businesses on this spur as part of a small downtown scene?

    I’m a pretty firm believer in using what you have, but I like the idea of maintaining some continuity in appearances. I’d intended to use Woodland Scenics pre-built structures with LED lighting installed; Dansbury Depot, Ethyl’s Gas & Service, Sully’s Tavern, and Emilio’s Italian Restaurant, as the businesses in that downtown scene. I opted to do this to save time, but it’s not the most inexpensive choice.

    I already have the WS Fill’er Up & Fix’er structure that I’m using in my campground scene as the service station/rental office. So, if I use more of those WS structures in a downtown scene, they’ll all be consistent in style and detail and wired and ready for lighting.


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  17. PapaG

    PapaG TrainBoard Member

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    After some brainstorming, I’m also considering removing the turnout that creates this spur to the warehouse, and using that space for a small downtown/retail area.

    In this configuration I can use the entire inner oval as a siding to the double main-line middle/outer ovals, and support a small passenger service at the station without having to reverse a passenger train into, or out, of a spur.

    I’m thinking about putting my small station on the double crossover and aligning the streets as indicated in the mock-up. It looks like I’ll have room for some businesses that you might find near a small town depot on either side of the street, with some space for parking, and still have a little room to grow.

    I’m also considering a ‘ring road’ around the downtown area to keep traffic to the iron works and the station from contesting things.

    I’m kinda liking the idea as it makes the DT area seem more dense, but there are no more structures in either design.


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  18. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

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    I think I would leave the warehouse spur there and place your downtown between the track and the hill on the end of your layout. lots more operational fun, and it would fit.
     
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  19. PapaG

    PapaG TrainBoard Member

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    Okay... I smell what you're shovelin'... I'll have to play with that too. The only thing that jumps out at me right off the bat though, is that while I've gained a warehouse by moving the downtown area, I seem to have lost a depot as there's no good place for one near a downtown area that hugs the mountain.
     
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  20. PapaG

    PapaG TrainBoard Member

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    Who knows what this yellow tool is?

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