Model railroad layouts plans

Dan’s been back in touch with more of his model train Santa Fe scenery – I do love how he used the waterpaints to ‘weather’ the scenery:

“Diagram of the layout with the outlined part that will show constriction and finishing look of the ceiling tile rocks.

This is the are to be done in the before look. The unballasted track is an unseen loop to “Denver” that is a holding /staging track for two trains that come and go at an interchange that is physically behind me in this photograph.

A ground level look. The track along the wall represents the Old mainline. When the early Santa Fe was being built they wanted it done quickly. Later when they had more money, a more gentle grade and curvature was done.

In photo 2 you can see a straight piece of wood. That will be the bridge taking the old line over the new line. The old line was a 4% grade and 18 inch radius. This was done on purpose. This forces me to NOT take modern locos up to the resort to come later. Only B truck locos and the 2-6-2 steam loco can use the old line.

A look from the other side looking back toward “Bovine” in the distance. The junction of the old new line is in the far distance. The unfinished part in the near part of the photo will be the Chromite mine. Chromite is use to make chrome steel. This mine uses the old mainline.

There is a lot of info here. In the US we usually have a 2 week break for Christmas. (I taught school) The part that has already been colored, I did during that break. I learned how to do the rocks doing this part. It became much easier after that.

You can see the Chromite mine in the distance on the upper level. What doesn’t show is the 4% grade and sharp curve going up to the mine level. There are some low rocks hiding that. You just see the trains as they go up. The disguise of the rocks between you and the trains makes it look much better.

You can see how much cleaning will need to be done once the rocks are in place. You can also see the control panel for the mine area. The white lines are the block for the mine and the red and yellow lines are the new mainline.

A better, although slightly fuzzy, look at the mine.

A little jump ahead. The unballasted track is “Denver” and is hidden storage.

Here is an example of “Weathered” rocks. I never use wire brushes to do the weathering. As mentioned in my “clinic”, I dab on the watercolor paints and let it soak in.

If they are to be weathered, I go back over the rock face GENTLY rubbing the rock faces back and forth. If the brush is too stiff it wears away too much tile. The wet tile rubs away very easily.

To get a natural look of the rocks I use broken pieces to simulate falling rock.

Another example if broken or falling rock.

I made the camera from pieces of a KD coupler box.

I find perspective hard to do. For my road to come in and out of the scene I had the road curve around the rocks in what looks like a natural crack.

Exiting the scene.

Notice the natural erosion to the right of the bridge. I modeled the dry season.

The railroad built along a dry wash . The old mainline it just above the wash.

Let explain how I did the detritus and small rocks. You can spend money on this stuff. However, plain old kitty liter work just right. The fallen rock should be the color of the rocks above and around the base of the fall.

Use the same color you used for the rocks. I had some old large coffee cans. Put the paint mix in the can. (Remember we do not use the paints straight from the craft paint bottle. We diluted them.) My wife sacrificed a pair of old nylons. (She sacrifices a lot to put up with me.)

Put the litter in the nylon and dip it in the paint for about 15 seconds. I spread the wet litter on a piece of window screen and let it dry for a few days. Break up the clumps. If you want you can screen out for various sizes.

Once the rocks are in place. Lightly spray a mist of water over them. Next I use a 50-50 mix of white glue and water and slowly drizzle it over the rocks.

Here is the new main line in the gap in the rock and the old water channel. The old line is above.

My model train Santa Fe era is roughly 1958 to 1961. I do cheat a little as you will eventually see in a video to come. The Santa Fe had some active steam up to the end.

My Broadway Ltd. 4-8-4.

The whole shebang!

I hope you liked this set.

Dan”

A huge big thanks to Dan for taking the time to share his his model train Santa Fe scenery – the final pic really does show how effective his techniques are.

If you missed how he makes his scenery, it’s here:

model railroad rocks

Or if you just want to see more of this layout, a little more finished: Santa Fe line train layout

Please do leave a comment below, I’d love to hear your thoughts on this one.

That’s all for today folks.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if today is the day you get started on your layout, the Beginner’s Guide is here.

Best

Al

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.

PPS Lots more HO scale train layouts here if that’s your thing.

Brian has been in touch with the model train waterfall he is working on:

“Hi Al,

I have been helping on an ‘n’ scale display.

The photos below show how I built the waterfall. (Please note – a change of scale for me. Only temporary)

It had to be made to fit in the center of this layout. The lines seen here are where the module joins are and once permanently on display, will be sceniced to hide them. I used marine silicone sealer on a piece of glass made to the right width and length for the waterfall.

Here, Woodland Scenics water affects was used to get more flowing water and shape.

Cushion stuffing was used to create water crashing over a rocky outcrop and was glued in place with the WS water effects.

Again cushion stuffing was used at the bottom of the waterfall to creat churning water hitting the pool below. (Still to be poured with Woodland Scenics realistic water)

The cushion stuffing was then teased into shape (in my opinion) and the water from top to bottom was dry brushed with a very light blue to reflect the sky. A final layer of WS water effects was put on to give it that glossy look. (Not on the cushion stuffing)

This is the ‘n’ scale display layout almost complete before moving it to the display area in the shopping center. It is 7.3 meters wide by 2.3 meters deep at its widest point. It is of modular design to enable it to be moved into it new home.

It is run by DCC Digitrax with three controllers and is of continental prototype running steam locomotives.

Many thanks

Brian Knysna RSA”

Now on to Margaret:

And she proves in spades that a layout can be whatever you want it to be.

“Dear Alistair,

I built this N scale fairy village layout at the request of my granddaughters. They love it.

Margaret”

Next up is Daniel:

“The attached photo is a replication of an actual MOW car that was taken from revenue service for one specific function, one specific function only.

I thought it might be fun for your readers to guess what the car was used for.

It was part of an eastern railroad. The Delaware and Hudson was the railroad, and was used for one location; Tunnel, NY where the D & H had a tunnel. This is northeast of Binghamton, NY.

Above is a photo by Bill Mischler (D&H Color Guide to Freight and Passenger Equipment – a GREAT book btw) of the prototypical car as seen in Oneonta, NY. Its usual home was in Binghamton, NY.

Below is the truck the D & H used to clear ice at the Ticonderoga tunnel. This photo is by Jeff Martin (D & H Color Guide to Freight and Passenger Equipment) and was taken in July of 1968.

Daniel”

A big thanks to Brian for sharing his model train waterfall, and Daniel and Margaret too.

That’s all for today folks.

Please do keep ’em coming because it’s getting very thin on the ground this end again.

And if today is the day you decide to join in the fun and take that first step, the Beginner’s Guide is here.

Best

Al

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.

Dale has been in touch with how he reused his model train rolling stock.

“When I first started my layout, before I had made my design decisions, I saw this combination passenger/baggage car at a train show.

For the exorbitant price of $5.00US I thought it might be useful.

When I got it home and put it on my layout, a few problems came evident.

First off, it had a tendency to derail on anything that wasn’t straight track.

Second, it had a light inside that was so bright it made the top and sides of the car glow. The pickups for the light were putting enough drag on the wheelsets that the car barely rolled if I pushed it down the track.

Fixing it wasn’t hard. First, I took out the light and the pickup wipers entirely. T

Then I removed, disassembled and cleaned the trucks.

Finally, I readjusted the wheelsets so they were in scale. Now the car rolled properly and I was left to decide what to do with it. Since by this time I had determined that I wasn’t going to be running passenger service, the car sat on my bookshelf.

Now skip ahead about 4 months and I needed a restaurant for the town. None of the kits I saw were quite right for what I wanted for the locale I was modeling. Then my eye caught the combine on the shelf and I thought it might make a fine diner. So, I pulled it apart again, painted it, installed a couple of low power LEDs in the roof (with enough resistance in the line to make them pretty dim), and reassembled it leaving off the trucks and couplers.

Addition of steps and a handicap ramp, some ground cover, bushes, trees, a picnic bench, a sign on top (it’s named for a very special lady in my life) and we have a diner in town.

There are other pieces of rolling stock that can easily be repurposed: cabooses make good yard boss offices, old box cars make industrial storage sheds, a flat car makes a stage for performances in a park. The only limit is your imagination. Go wild and have fun.

Dale”

A huge thanks to Dale for sharing how he reused some model train rolling stock – a wonderful example of being creative and using what you already have (or bought for a few dollars!).

Now on to Dennis:

“A nice teenager was a bit too young for a summer job. He kept his agile brain and hands busy and built a diorama from the Jennings Lumber Company kit.

The kit is still available online for $150-$200 un-assembled from Scale Structures Limited. And what a job Tim did!

Look at the detail, you can even see tire tracks in the dirt. Tim added a lot more detail to the basic kit and then built a stand and surrounding glass and frame for protection.

The diorama went on a journey, residing for a time at the local historical society and then the railroad park in Scottsdale Arizona. Eventually it became a fixture at the train store that Tim’s father ran in Mesa, Arizona. I enjoyed visiting the store for years, and although I never met Tim’s father, who became ill, I was charmed by Tim, his wife, employees and a couple of friendly cats.

It was a gathering place for us train geezers! Finally, it was time for Tim to move on and he closed the store, selling all the fixtures. I approached Tim and said, “You don’t want this winding up in someone’s basement or garage, sell it to me and my patients will enjoy it every day.”

We agreed on a price, separated the display from the base, loaded the two parts into my SUV and I carefully drove it a few miles to Scottsdale. I put a fresh coat of paint on the base before reassembling the parts, and, yes, I’m proud to display Tim’s work at my Ophthalmology office.

The only change to his work is I added an old locomotive and a few HO train cars, but otherwise it is just as he created it more than forty years ago!

My prediction was true, it is a guy magnet and patients passing by my office window often come in to ooh and aah.

Thanks, Tim!

Dennis M.D.,”

A big thanks to Dennis.

Hope you can see why I love seeing what’s in my inbox each morning.

That’s all today folks.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if today is the day you get started on your layout, the Beginner’s Guide is here.

Best

Al

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.