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A superb model train layout

“Hi Al – I have been following your mailers for quite some time now.

I really appreciate all your efforts in running this wonderful network of Model railroaders without having to maintaining any live forum or a group – I believe that is definitely a wonderful communication technique that you discovered to use emails like a forum or a group – a wonderful idea! 🙂

Let me know what you think.

Take care, and thank you in advance for your time.

Kaustav”

Pretty amazing, eh?

A huge thank you to Kaustav.

Now on to Denny:

“Dear Al,

I recently had a proverbial bird’s eye view of heavy train activity from an unusual vantage point.

I had a room in a beautiful hotel suite about 14 floors above the downtown Dallas Texas metro train station and watched commuter and long freight trains enter and leave the city.

I’m attaching two dozen photos I took with my cell phone that day. I look at what I call weathering on my small HO collection and realize that I can’t compete with real rust, dents, spills and miscreants with paint cans!

Please feel free to share with your readers and keep up the good work, Al.

Doctor Denny in Arizona”

A big thanks to Kastav and to Denny.

That’s all for this time 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

PS More HO scale train layouts here if that’s your thing.

Need buildings for your layout? Have a look at the store.

They are great fun to make and great value too.

More model train scenery tips

“Al —

I did do some professional enlarging for one backdrop, and just a plain 8X10 for a small piece.

You can see two of three panels for which I took the pictures, and had them enlarged to 30”
poster size. I then cut away the actual sky in the photos, and glued the posters to my back-
drop, made of 1/8 inch masonite, which had previously been painted blue.

To take the pictures, I stood in the ditch in the middle of I-90, and took one to the left, one to the middle, and one to the right. I made sure there was “overlap” of the three exposures (Yeah, it was a 35mm camera, years ago) so that there were no gaps.

The other was a shot down a busy street, and that just fit the roadway in one town. There was a little “massaging” of the image by a friend who used Photoshop.

Sadly, I don’t have a saved copy of that one.

Bill”

“Hi Alastair,

Here is my Model of the shack in N gauge printed out on photo paper and glued with PVA

I am a quarter way through this project The Shack works a treat on my mountain top

In my N Gauge Coffee table setup

Hope this helps

Rog”

Thanks Rog – you can download the same shak here. Al.

“Hi Al, here is the last “quirky” layout I will be making for a while. It is N gge made in the old briefcase I used to carry to work in the Copperbelt mines in Zambia in the 1980s.

The trucks are supposed to be Euclid R45s. The two matchbox models are very old, 50 yrs+ from my childhood. When it is all folded up the conveyor tower and chute go into the open pit.

Runs rather well. The ore wagons are converted Farish grain wagons.

D/”

Thanks Duncan. A hat railway, a toilet railway… and now a briefcase railway! There is no end to your talents 🙂

That’s all for today folks.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And don’t forget the Beginner’s Guide, if today is the day you start your railroad adventure.

Best

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.

Rock formations for your railroad layout

Got this in from Dan.

Don’t care how many times you’ve made rock formations – there’s some good stuff here.

“Good morning I enjoy receiving your emails and the various links great ideas here is one for making ledges and rocks .

I spend a lot of time outside but am always on the look out for things I can use in my N scale railroad.

I have found tree bark a very good item to use for making rock ledges and rocks – search out trees that have thick layered bark such as hemlock or ash – I prefer hemlock as it has a reddish colour to it which gives it a good colour for rocks and ledges .

Also I have sanded the bark on a belt sander 60 or 80 grit to get the sanding dust ( wear a mask) and the dust can be used to give you a wash out effect below the ledge or rocks . But I also found it can be painted any colour you want.

I usually wire brush the bark to clean it out then break it of in irregulary pieces to suit the size of ledge I need – the I make a hole in the foam insert the bark and finish arround it with trees etc .

The other thing about layerd bark especially hemlock is if you seperate the layers the between layers looks like boulders . Check out the photos .

photo 1 – inbetween layers of barks – gives you rocks

photo2 – bark on edge place in foam with palster

photo 3 finished ledge with other cover

photo 4 CN loco passing rock ledges made from bark inset in foam with palster still needs trees shrubs etc I think folks will get the idea

regards

Dan”