Here’s the next installment from the talented Cameron:
“Dear Alistair,
Thanks for posting my last diary entries and to your readers for their words of support, encouragement and further tips. I have just got back from a camping trip so thought I should get in a couple of posts for your mailing list before I get back to work.
Phase 8 – Kit Bashing
Making buildings for a layout was a time consuming but rewarding process. I put together a small work tray that I could sit on a coffee table and make buildings at night while watching TV. There hasn’t been much on TV worth watching for the last year so I was able to get through quite a lot of buildings. Plastic kits can be quite expensive so I bought job lots of rough second hand ones on Ebay and at the local model train show and rebuilt them. For new kits I found the Dapol kits quite inexpensive. I only scratch built two buildings as this takes a lot more time. A couple of the kit bashing buildings that your readers might be interested in are as follows.
Municipal Building
This Municipal Building is made out of a second hand Life Like Fire House and some Wills brick & roof tile sheets. All up is cost me $12. I used all the kit walls for the front and kept the walls at the back quite plain. This gave me twice as much building for the cost a single second hand kit.
Factory
I looked everywhere for a cheap Brewery kit with no success.
Ironically had most of the parts I needed in the regects bin. The
final factory was kit bashed out of a new Dapol Engine Shed kit, a
second hand Airfix booking hall building an old piece of Hornby
Platform and some Wills brick sheets. Aside from the Dapol engine
shed the components were all surplus materials from other purchases.
A couple of tips I have for the buildings generally are as follows:
1. I noticed that a lot of the second hand buildings I bought (that
didn’t have bases) had deformed at the bottom of the walls. To stop
this from happening to mine I glued a base to the bottom of all the
walls. Hopefully this will stop them for deforming in the long term.
2. Drill the layout base and the bases of the buildings for lighting
before you glue them down. When you are drilling from underneath the
layout it is hard to judge where the hole ends up.
3. If you have a town it is easier to make it up in large sections of
multiple buildings all glued together on a single base. This way you
can take it off the layout to work on it and not be bent over the
layout for long periods of time.
Next post I will be putting on the trees.
Cheers
Cameron”
Another superb ‘how to’ from Cameron.
Course, I’m biased, but I think the print out scenery below is rather good too!
And don’t forget to click here for the latest ‘ebay cheat sheet‘. You’ll be glad you looked…
Best
Al
This is one fascinating layout that creates a great environment with nice details, though the plan is very simple. Good Work! And I love the buildings too! 🙂
Outstanding Sir. I hope you will share more layouts. Job well done,
Cam: thank you for the valuable information about buildings. I particularly liked the idea of building a town on a seperate base to be able to remove it to work on it. I am going to be doing this with the town I have selected for my layout. Cam: again I must say, A job well done! Thank you for sharing.
Note: To You Al: I look forward to the latest email from you in fact I look for your email first. I can’t speak for everyone: I will though for me: What a wonderful thing you have going here: For you Al and those that share with all of us there skills and knowledge and you to bring it to us … works cannot express what it has meant to me what I have learned and will be using on my layout will represent a part of each of you…
Model Railroading is the best hobby in the world. And through this site the world has shared with and for us all.
Thank you each and everyone!
Keep on Training!
tom N
Very well done!!
With the space you have you did a great job.keep up the good work.
Another great email.
Bravo, as raw beginners its great that my grandson & myself have some real talent to aspire to, thank you.
A fantastic looking layout, keep up the good work
great layout photos of the full layout shows all your hardwork. i also found revamping second hand buildings very rewarding.
It’s great to have an alternative to the expensive building s or kits out there.
in addition you can have more fun with your kids putting buildings together!!!!!!!!!!
It looks so realistic, what you have done so far.