Lou’s stunning pics

We start today with Brian’s next installment on his scratch built engine shed:

“Hi Al,

Corner trim painted as well as the walls with the base coat. Roof window openings cut out and the roof is ready for the shingles to put on over the double sided tape.

Once the building is complete with all the doors and windows in position, it will then be wearthered with a black wash plus some other dirt.

Another 2 hours work under the belt. The shingled roof will take about 4 hours as it is laid strip by strip using Campbell shingle roll onto the double sided tape.

A good tip for using Double sided tape is, it makes the process much quicker and cleaner and the big advantage is that stops the roof from warping when painting it. I have learnt the hard way in the past.

Cheers for now until the next installment.

Brian”

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“Here’s some photos of an update on my layout.

Most larger buildings you see are laser cut using acrylic sheets. Wood loads and wire spools on rolling stock are also done on a laser cutter and I sell them for both HO and NScale. All track work and turnouts are hand laid using fastracks. The layout is divided into 96 blocks with over 400 led’s for true signaling. All touchscreen controlled using a proprietary processor that does not require a Windows or Mac based pc. The room is 16’ x 20’ HO scale.

Lou”

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Stunning pics from Lou – I would love to see some more!

Please do keep ’em coming, and before you go make sure you have a look at the ebay cheat sheet. Just some silly deals around at the mo.

That’s it for today peeps.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if today is the day when you grab this hobby by the scruff of the neck, the Beginner’s Guide is here.

Best

Al

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.


34 Responses to Lou’s stunning pics

  1. Bob Lowes says:

    All I can say is: WOW!!!
    What a beautiful layout. One can tell from the pictures that you take pride in your work.
    Please keep the pictures coming.

    Bob (In GA USA)

  2. Chuck Bartunek says:

    Very nice,can we see more.

  3. Brian Staples says:

    Hi Al, I am 55 and still in the work force. My youngest of four is a year away from college and I will have a lot of free time on my hands. I always can look forward to seeing some great work from everybody. Just wanted to say how much I appreciate the hard work that goes into putting everything together. The inspiration is overwhelming and is giving me thoughts of pulling out all my stuff after a two decades of storage. Have a wonderful holiday. Much Love to everyone.

  4. A really “fine-tuned” layout. Extraordinary detail! I’d love to see it in action in a video!!

    JCK
    Florida, USA

  5. wow…Lou is REALLY good with the scenery…
    his tree/ground cover is superlative
    the structures are total inspiring
    and the scratch built bridges are…well
    too too koool
    keep runnin and wanna see more!!

  6. Ash says:

    Hi Lou,
    Amazing and so detailed layout . How many hours have you put to this? Looking at it like a dream to me, I wish I could also do like this.
    Anyway, thanks for sharing pictures with us.
    happy Holidays.
    Ash from Toronto

  7. David Wilson says:

    Lou’s layout is fabulous. Hope koto see more of it. Would be interested to know what type of points/ motors he uses?

  8. John Graves says:

    looking for G-scale straight tracks, 12″ or 36″.

  9. david howarth says:

    Good pictures of GREAT LAYOUT ..WELL DONE LOU…Dave UK

  10. Jerry Harper says:

    Just retired, and getting ready to start on my dream of constructing my first “S” gauge layout. Your pictures are inspiring me to pay a lot attention to detail. Great job, thanks for sharing.

  11. christine says:

    Nice layout. Too bad only a few of us are just into steam trains out of the 1800’s to the 1950’s.

  12. John R says:

    Lou,
    Great looking layout. One fine job putting all together. Lets see more pictures.

  13. Ralph says:

    Great scenery Lou.
    An impressive layout. Hope we can see more of it.

  14. BUDDY MILLER says:

    GREAT LAYOUT. I LOVE THE BRIDGES MOST OF ALL. THANK YOU FOR POSTING IT.

  15. Lou Santello says:

    Thank you for all the gracious comments. I sent Al some more photos along with a link to a youtube video explaining how the automation system works. Thanks again. Lou

  16. sundaram says:

    Great layout. Where do you get these acrylic sheets laser cut? Is it necessary. Some times it is possible to cut them with a sharp craft knife or scissors depending on the thickness of course.

  17. Steve Roberts says:

    Hi Lou, great and inspiring piece of work. Patience really is a virtue. Keep the pics coming. Steve R. UK

  18. Lou Santello says:

    You can’t cut acrylic with a scissors. It’s too brittle. I own a laser cutter, so I order full sheets and have the supplier cut them into 12″x24″ sheets. This way they are already precut to what fits in the machine. The laser will cut or engrave up to 1/4″ thick. Styrene in a laser is not a good idea. Number one, it has a very low melting point and the edges are not as crisp. Also, I’m not really sure whether styrene has pvc in it. If it does, you never want to burn pvc. It’s very toxic

  19. Pastor Harry C Wigmore, III says:

    AWESOME!!!!! Great layout, love the modern look!!!

  20. Jim says:

    Great looking layout, Lou. The landscaping is most impressive with so much realistic detail. Truly a fantastic layout from a modeler with great talent.

    Jim AZ

  21. Roger says:

    Brian’s use of double stick tape for shingles reminded me that I’ve been meaning to suggest using it for the signage buildings. I converted to using it and think it really works well (If you get it close enough to the edges and corners). The are more easily changed as the proprietors expand into larger quarters or move on to other endeavors.

  22. Cary B says:

    Awesome work by Brian and Lou. Thanks for your site to share these builds
    Cary B

  23. Jose valdez says:

    Wow what you can do when you have space super layout

  24. This layout was so amazing. The hand laid track looked awesome.

  25. Dennis says:

    Great work. Truly a piece of art. Thanks for letting mere mortals glimpse your kingdom.

  26. Hemi says:

    WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thats a GREAT layout! Keep up the GREAT work!

    As said, I’d LOVE to see MORE of it! VERY NICE! ~Hemi

  27. Chris Sylvester says:

    That’s a very very cool layout some great detail on the buildings thanks for sharing the pics!! XChris

  28. Chris says:

    Great layout! What are the blue corner braces you’re using as a jig for the shed? Are they available?

  29. Mark T. Pianka says:

    well done layout

  30. Will in NM says:

    Lou, That’s a great looking layout. I especially like all the super trees. The only recommendation I would make is that it would benefit from some more figures to bring the scenes to life.

  31. Erick says:

    Nice work

  32. Ron says:

    Great photos of a great layout. I’ll echo the one word description … WOW!

    Ron

  33. Jeff says:

    Beautiful job
    I wish I had the skill to to that great work
    I build my shed 10by 12 just for my trains
    I’m thinking about going Dcc but right now all dc.
    I would love to find an experienced person that wants to build a layout with me so I could do more extensive work
    If anyone is interested please let me know
    I’m in Ventura California. Thanks jeff

  34. Walt Walters says:

    I absolutely love that bridge! Always wanted to build one, but none of my layouts can use such a bridge!

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