Thank you again And yes, it seems to be an annoying habit of hers... being right and all that Goodnight All!
Thought I'd check back and see what progress you've made???? How is the ballasting going?? ( got some tips for that if you need them.......as that was my "Waterloo" until I fooled around with it for 10 years, and finally got some good advice!!! :tb-cool: p.s - girlfriends and wives are ALWAYS right (lol) Learn that early on and have a happy life. ( I've been married to my wife/"GF" for 33 years)
I'm Back! Well, I guess I never really left. I've just been lurking around, while the layout has sat, not necessarily gathering dust, but not exactly going anywhere either. Trains were run and progress was contemplated, but after I finished sculpting my half a mountain out of bubble board, I had reached the limits of my comfort zone (and the end of my available bubble board). However, about two weeks ago, I took the plunge, and started in on the next stage of scenery: rock outcroppings, plaster shell and tunnel portals... *cringe* Oh boy did I learn a lot... I learned that if you don't put drop-cloths down all around the table then you will drip watery plaster on the carpet and get yelled at by your wonderful significant other. I learned that no matter how well you think you've covered your trackwork, that unless it's done with duct tape, watery plaster will find a way onto your beloved, much slaved over ballast work. And most importantly, I learned that there is no 'right way' and no 'wrong way' to do these things (Probably the best lesson of the lot) Furthering on that 'no right or wrong way' theme, I was very happy to discover that my cheap methods worked wonderfully well : - ) For instance, my plaster shell is made of cheap white napkins dipped in a 50/50 water sheetrock mix. My rock castings are stuck on with liquid nails, as are the tunnel portals, and then blended with more napkins (for the rocks) and caulking compound followed by yet more napkins (for the tunnel portals) I have to say, I'm pretty darn happy with how things have turned out so far. The town side of the West Tunnel The river side of the West Tunnel before plaster cloth (with experimental plaster edge blending) Same tunnel, this time with a completed plaster shell Not bad for a first time amateur! Up next I have some brand new videos featuring some of my brand new rolling stock and loco's
Hey NS1, thanks for the interest in how things are going! The ballasting ended up going pretty well once I got the hang of some basics... like how to not pour three tons of the stuff in one place and then try to push it around, and how to best angle the spray bottle when applying the rubbing alcohol etc. I still touch it up from time to time, and tonight I even chipped out a 4" section on an inside curve. I remembered the hours (literally) I spent working on that two foot stretch. I laughed to myself as I had it replaced in 5 minutes, looking twice as good, if not better Advice, however, is always welcome. There's always room to learn!
Sometimes ya just gotta jump in with both fee....errrrrrrrrrr....hands and see how it goes. We surprise ourselves a lot in this hobby. BTW...I think its looking good so far. :thumbs_up: .
Videos... So I did some experimenting: I wanted to see how my dated (5yr old) point and shoot would do shooting some videos. Before you ask, not too well. Not too well at all... Alas, they're viewable, if woefully blurry. Voila: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheRealChrisOwen?feature=mhee (Sorry, I tried to embed, but no matter which format I used, all it would show was code) As I alluded to earlier, I have acquired some new toys: The second SD50 is new, as is the U25B (third in line). Three new boxcars too: The maroon Conrail (with white door), the RailBox, and the blue 'Fraser' (which may be a bit of an anachronism, but I liked it). And yes, I know those are horrible descriptions, but labeling something as a "Trinity 50' Hy-Cube Boxcar" just isn't something I'm capable of... (I know, I'm a noob )
My ballasting tips.............. I CAN"T use "Elmer's" glue mix, not that it doesn't work great, it does (for others, just not me). I fought ballasting for YEARS, until I finally stumbled across this recipe : I use a product called "Aleene's Tacky Glue". It can be found at "Hobby Lobby" (if you have one near). I mix it 60/40 (60% water - 40% glue AND 1 oz. of 70% alcohol ) in a large carpenter's glue bottle (pint - I believe). Shake THE CRAP out of it, until it is well mixed & repeat shake every time used. Do about 3 to four foot of ballast at a time. Pour your ballast down the center of rails, using care not to get too liberal with it. push into place and form DRY............when you have it where you like it, mist until wettish with a spray mist of 70% ( or 90% - I like 90%, but careful, it will attack paint) alcohol. Then dribble your glue on until ballast is opaque white, making sure to soak ballast. If you feel you are getting a bit much, or it starts to run, I use an ice cream bucket 1/2 full of warm water, and soak up the excess glue by patting gently with a sponge, and rinsing sponge as I go. Let dry overnight without bothering it, then vacuum. If you didn't put the ballast on overly thick, it should be glued clear through, and "hard as a rock". You'll get a "feel" for how much glue to use after the first time or two, but when in doubt, use a bit extra. You always pat it up with the sponge. ( I use a hand sized car wash sponge - if your ballast "lifts" a bit doing this, just dampen a bit & tamp down with the sponge, leaves a nice texture). "PM" me if you need any further tips, or ??...................( P.S. - I ALSO USE "ARIZONA ROCK AND MINERAL ROCK BALLAST, as the "Woodland Scenics" stuff used to aggravate me by floating, but you just have to work with it a bit).
"TrCO".............. Thought I would post a pic to let you get a general idea what I am talking about re: the glue................ The glue bottle should also be available @ "Hobby Lobby" ( or whatever Craft store is in your area). They should stock something similar. I got mine from a cabinet-maker friend of mine.
Everything looks great!!! My you've made a ton of progress in such a short time. Love how there's really some nice depth perception with the mountain v train!
Its also a great thing to have a GF that supports your hobby.. I'm in the same boat.. and now that I'm working on scenery she's looking forward to.. you guessed it.. animals.
Agreed One day I may surprise her and spring for some deer to hide amongst the forest. I wonder how hard it would be to model squirrels in N scale... *ponders* Who knows, maybe there's a company out there with a high dpi 3D printer that can do some on special order lol
it's a very nice little layout... I love the long mainline runs that you are going to get in this relatively small layout. and I like the tall mountains. Good work! My wife is the backbone of my hobby and takes care of all the painting and cosmetic work since the time she was my GF, so I know how important it is to have a supportive partner - you're a lucky man!
Revenge of the bread knife These past few weeks have seen a large number of 'firsts' for me: I've made strides in the hobby that before I could only dream about - and to top it off, I've been beyond happy with my results. So last night came another first - and this one I would say was the hardest one yet. Having completed the majority of my plaster shell, and had plenty of time to admire it, I decided I had to rip into it. That may not sound like a big deal to most of you, but to me, well, it was the internal debate of the year >.< My beautiful work, about to be torn into with a bread knife. I guess you wouldn't call it a major modification, but I need more rock faces, and for that I needed recesses to fit them in. Having done a satisfactory job with my bread knife, a good smearing of joint compound on the back of the castings followed (this time I used some pre paints I'd been experimenting with) and in they went! Like I said, these are 'experiment' paintings. I wanted to get some on the layout to try and visualize colors and the overall finished product. So far I'm pretty pleased. As always, comments and constructive criticisms are welcome and wanted!
Update w/ Photos So things have been going along swimmingly here at the condo, where fall has about made its presence felt (we haven't had a day in the 90's for about a month now!) and the home is starting to look like a home again - instead of a living room and a construction zone. The layout got swung around to its 'intended' position (river facing the living room, town facing the dining room) so now the west tunnel is actually the westerly point of the layout. The DCC command station got repositioned, so it is now under the layout instead of on the edge where the facia will one day go-I also installed my dual outlet jack temporarily next to the temporary control panel, so now things look a lot 'cleaner' than before. I then temporarily hung the remaining 'curtain' with a bit of velcro: it finally looks remotely classy-no wood to see, no junk not hidden. I'm very happy about it all and the GF is ecstatic for how it looks-and that she's getting her dining room back. Anyway, pictures:
Oh yes, I also re-plaster-shelled the river bed, this time up to the track which is why I have a touch of gunk on the ballast. Rest assured that will be dealt with I'll try and get a picture or two up here in the coming days of the layout from the side so it can be seen how it fits the room now with its smart black curtains lol.
That will make an Original room divider and great conversation piece when it's done, I am jealous of your progress and workmanship.
TrCO, nice job on this layout. I am a huge fan of the small/portable layout design myself. The divider that you added will really enhance the overall effect and illusion of size when you are done. Good luck on future progress HuskerN www.nscaleaddiction.blogspot.com
Just read through this, very enjoyable thread! That birds eye view is awesome and I like how your main line "wiggles" on the mine side. Keep up the excellent progress! -Mike
I could not agree more! My g/f (now fiancee) supports the fact that I have a hobby that I love. She would rather have me home working on trains than out drinking at the bars. GOOD FOR HER!!!!! When she told me that, that sealed the deal for me! I decided right then that I was going to marry her!
