Don has been in touch. He’s been busy kitbashing HO scale structures:
“Al,
I have a staging area under my main line.
Well I went to Baltimore to the B&O Museum and Fort McHenry. When I came back I had too much time on my hands.
First, I spray painted the tracks. I had extra ballast from the coal mine, so, I added that. I had some kits that I had no use for. The roundhouse had 15 degree stalls. It did not fit with larger turntables.
I cut up the floor pieces I cut 7.5 deree pieces from the third stall and added them to the other stalls. This gave me 90 degree side walls. i turned this into Blaine Mfg. after a friend of mine.
I also took a 4X2 cement plant kit and made it a 1X8 by cutting the top and bottom sections. Lehigh Cement is across the bay from Fort McHenry (Star Spangled Banner). The office is from the roundhouse kit.
The loading ramp is from a HobbyLobby pack of 300 sticks. I soaked the sticks in dilute India Ink.
Finally the road is 100 grit sandpaper on styrene sheet with contact cement. To summarize, gray spray paint, pastel chalks. and fine line markers. There is more but I’ll quit for now.
Don”
A huge thanks to Don, and it just goes to show (yet again), it really does pay to hang on to stuff.
Kitbashing HO scale structures – or any scale come to that – is fun and can save a small fortune too.
You can bet the shirt on your back, the day after you throw something out, the next day you find a use for it.
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 More HO scale train layouts here if that’s your thing.
Really cool work. I don’t understand the blue cross pieces over the track. I may be dense. 🙂 Can you explain them for me? Thanks
Very nice post about details on the layout, looking good
Nice work don. Nice to see some otherwise surplus bits being put to good use.
Mal
North Wales
Will somebody please tell my wife that all that HO Train “stuff” is valuable and could be very useful someday…just not today!
Very good models. Big industry, but with a low profile. Every modeler can use these.
Very nice work, Don, and you are so right not to throw something out, as it can be repurposed. I have a Walthers 3 bay roundhouse that I may end up doing something similar with…they do take up lots of real estate. And a note to anyone who uses Hobby Lobby, be sure to take advantage of their 40% discount. Of late I have used it when buying rolls of the plaster cloth. Saves $4 when you use the discount. Only applies to 1 item.
HO trains certainly can have value, but save the box!
The ATSF caboose in Al’s ad for his beautiful buildings I just repurposed to the D & H.
Really impressive kit bashing. Really like what you created from those old kits. Are you adding another level on top? I’d like to see more pictures of your full layout.
Thx – Bill in Virginia
I believe the blue crosses are the support for the main line above. He is showing us the staging area below…..course I may be wrong
Excellent! Blaine Manufacturing helps one’s imagination to get out of the 90 degree angle on everything!
Don, I live in Baltimore, would like to get some ideas from you. I have O scale. Been to location many times.
The blue wood is for support of a second level. The B&O Museum in downtown Baltimore is a great place to for information. You can also join the B&O historical society there or by mail.
I love the silos. Wish I had a reason to build some. And I have been to the museum in Baltimore. Very nice place. And they offer a pretty long train ride. And if you are in town, make sure to visit the Fort. Doesn’t have anything to do with railroads, but a lot of historical significance. (For Americans anyway.)
Don, that is some great work, very impressive! I too learned it’s best to save everything. I had some things saved from previous layouts from 15 years ago that I thought I’d never use…only to discover a use for them on my most recent layout! I starting to learn that recycling old parts, fixtures and such, is a fun part of this hobby! Thanks for posting all the pics, they were interesting!
LOL Franko428, i get the same question from my wife. I bet i have used at least half of all the left overs for other projects .Good work Don!