Perry’s waterfall

“Alaister

Here are some pictures of my waterfall scenery at Butt’s End Falls on my N Scale Greater Muttering and Cussing Railway Inc.

It’s an eclectic railway with diesel, steam, North American, European and British all mixed in together, set somewhere in a land nobody knows. Certainly not prototypical of anything but my imagination.

The pictures include a small campground on the left. Another trailer is just about to cross the bridge to the campsite.

Some logs were washed down during the last spring thaw. Looks like it would be good fishing.

The last picture is from the top of the falls looking down.

Hope you enjoy them.

Cheers

Perry”


“Here’s a trick I use to accurately start a drill in a piece of plastic stock.

Take a needle or pin and fix the head end in a bottle cork or dowel. Then heat the point in a flame and touch it to the plastic in the exact spot you wish to drill the hole.

The heated needle will make a “punch” mark in the plastic that will keep the drill point from wandering.

This is especially helpful when you need to attach or reattach a part, such as a locomotive bell, that has had the post or mounting pin broken off.

One can drill holes in both pieces of plastic and use a short piece of wire to serve as a dowel to glue them back together.

Jon”


“Hey there.

I noticed the last email showing tips, and some of them by mistake.

I don’t know exactly how this happened, but check it out.

I glued 4 Walthers walls together and the original plastic color was that lovely brown color.

I decided to go out to the spray booth in my garage and spray it a darker brown color using a Rustoleum spray can.

It was fairly cold in the garage, and I promise I sprayed the building very even from all 4 directions per wall.

When it dried, this was the outcome. Somehow the cold temperature affected the paint.

I could’t have done this if I tried.

After it dried completely, I gave it a wash for brickwork and a dull coat finish.

The picture attached was right after the “freeze dried” coat before the wash and dull coat.

Lou”


Love hearing about the mistakes that turned out well. Please do send ’em in.

That’s all for today my friends.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if today is the day you decide you’re going to show everyone how it’s done, the Beginner’s Guide is here.

Best

Al

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.


39 Responses to Perry’s waterfall

  1. Good tip with the needle for using as a punch hole

  2. Albert Weir says:

    hey there
    that waterfall ,sceenery and bridge are awsome . great work
    cheers
    Albert

  3. Jaaques Shellaque says:

    Love the name of your RR (“Greater Muttering and Cussing RR”).
    The “legendary” John Allen’s was “Gorre and Daphetid”. My own
    (high rail) road, will be “Flatbush and Grand Tetons RR”. (The
    Flatbush Avenue line, is a branch of the BMT (Brooklyn Manhattan
    Transit) subway line in NY City. The ridiculousness of the name
    is what inspired this choice.
    jaques

  4. Michael Ankerson says:

    Perry’s waterfall…

    Great Job

  5. MIKE,Seattle WA says:

    Iworked in paint yard for a structural steel co in Illinois & durning winter we would notice if temp got between -10 to -20 we would have to heat steel with torches,not very hot or the paint would run as did in above story Heating the tip of pin or neddle to start your drill in plastic is a great one. Also the waterfall is beautifull Keep up good work
    MIKE

  6. Bob says:

    I’m impressed with the layout AND the waterfalls. Especially the last pic. The scenery on your layout is awesome.

  7. Joe Payne says:

    awsome work all of it i was going say that ur paint queery is that the temp was cold enough that the paint didnt mix with the thinner completely and gave u seperation i have used this techneek in aging items when i worked for the movies to get the affect in warm wether is 3 times thinner 1 times paint and in warm wether spray lightly 1 coat only but all the work i see here is amazing to me i can build on large scale but am not even close to yalls skill level on small scale just beautifull workmanship really.

  8. John bos says:

    I also love Perry’s name for his RR, it conveys a sense of humor and irony that comes with model railroading, actually any modeling.

    I’m packing up my camp gear to go to Perry’s camping spot. Where, exactly, is it Perry?

    John
    Western Massachusetts, USA

  9. carl says:

    Great job on rock work, water falls and bridges.

  10. Ed Dunaway says:

    Nicely Done!

  11. Kenn says:

    Kind of humorous. Is that a red canoe getting ready to come down the falls? I can hear the poor guy in the canoe muttering and cussing as he/she goes down the waterfall wet or dry.

  12. Tom says:

    that waterfall makes me feel refreshed Great job Perry

    regards,

    Tom

  13. paul Otway says:

    nice waterfall,

    Liked the paint finish on the building looks like faded pink or red.

  14. Yash says:

    I think you should’ve used a better camera. It’s not really clear.

  15. Jerry says:

    I’m just not seeing what is so special. The wall looks fine but what is the big deal?
    Where are the 4 walls ? I see 9 sections or 3 columns of wall or just 1 wall. Please explain. I’m viewing this on on 27″ iMac with great resolution.

  16. Perry says:

    Thanks for all the comments. Butt’s End Falls is between Butt’s End Halt and Port Tidesout. Reservations only for the camp site. The red boat is actually an inflatable dinghy which is where he shouldn’t be despite the warning signs. Some of the other names on the layout are borrowed with respect from a favourite author: George MacDonald Fraser’s book The Reavers – Thrashbatter Castle, Gungemyre. There is also Dribblethorpe, Reaver Abbey and Whisky Mountain because of the moonshiner and his still. And yes despite the muttering and cussing a sense of humour helps. Thanks again.

  17. THOMAS says:

    VERY VERY MICE.

  18. Ross says:

    Great pictures and a great tip too Perry! Can we see some more pictures of your layout please. Cheers Ross

  19. Hi,
    I think I saw on one of your videos a while back that you had developed a hand held magnetic decoupeling tool. Could you show again and some detail on how you made it. It looked like a good idea and I would like to make one.
    Thank you, keep the videos comming.
    Marshall Roath

  20. Ron Roedel says:

    To all you railroaders out there I recently purchased a Bachmann N Scale Point -to-Point Reversing Track Set and I have a question.
    Has anyone experienced a problem with this track set with regard to the stop time at the end of its run? Mine only stops for about one second, whereas the description on the box indicates a Five to Seven second stop.

    Bachmann service department tells me that the info on the box is wrong.

    Thanx
    Ron Roedel

  21. Barry Pearlman says:

    Re: Locating precision holes in plastic or metal.

    Good tip for plastic. Once you make the tiny deformation with the pin, you might want to check into something called a “center drill.” (Just google “center Drill” to see what it looks like if you are not aware of the drill). They are used to make sure that when you go to drill, the drill bit doesn’t walk all over the place and scratching the adjacent surface.

    Center drill are kinda touchy when one gets in a hurry and can break off in the hole, especially the very small ones. They work best on a drill press, but if you are careful, can be used with a hand drill.

    In metals, use a center punch. Center drill are made to drill just about any material, up to tool steel.

    Hope this helps someone.

    Barry

  22. magicman says:

    Nice job on your waterfall/river..I’m in the table construction stage on my tables.. A 4′ x 8′ layout is planed..Hope it goes as well as yours has…

  23. Desert Rat PHX AZ Tom says:

    This is from the Desert Rat RR, in the desert. As far as starting holes you can also use automatic center punch there a punch you just put on the spot and push down. You do not hit them no hammer required, their spring loaded. Only need one hand. Also a good chose is what they call a center drill, they come in many sizes they are short and have no flutes they are used in machine work to start holes because they do not wander like a drill will. Just a few things I do that work well for me. Thanks for every body for all your tips I have used many of them. Tom in the desert

  24. Preston Dannelley says:

    About your paint problem, spray painting below optimum temperature, usually displayed on the can, will sometimes cause “blushing”. It’s caused by the sudden drop in temperature of the paint surface condensing moisture. To avoid this, you should warm the paint booth and materials above optimum temperature before painting.
    Very nice Rockwood and waterfalls! Thanks for sharing

  25. MICHAEL GLASS says:

    Looooooooove the waterfalls & the logs are perfect.

  26. Perrry says:

    Great info.

    On the water fall they are great looking, but one comment no real rail road would put a turn out on a bridge to many chances for something going wrong and a car or an engine going off the track and down the river

    Peryr from New Orleans

  27. Tom Sawyer says:

    Love the RR names. Mine is the Warein
    Farcarwee with a branch line the
    Puff & Pull.

  28. dangerous daveErmnie has done a nice jhob says:

    Nice job with the waterfall scenery ..looks great ..Dangerous Dave

  29. Joe Kincaid says:

    Now that is one realistic waterfall. That’s the kind young people dream about getting married under.

    On another note, HELP! I bought a Vollmer 5754 roundhouse. It is really something special when compared to what we find in the states. Down to the last stall….whoops the smaller roof bracket and hook are missing together with the spring that operates the doors. If any of our ‘over there’ friends know of vollmer sources, please let us know.

  30. Stephen Dean says:

    Excellent waterfall.

  31. Herman Crauwels says:

    Yes, it is an excellent waterfall and layout.
    HC Treintje Belgium.

  32. Robert Brady says:

    I’m impressed with the layout AND the waterfalls. Especially the last pic. The scenery on your layout is awesome.

  33. Ron Nelson says:

    What’s the switch doing in the middle of the bridge??Ron from sunny Fla.

  34. Layout and waterfall nicely done! — I was kind of wondering also about the turnout location!

  35. Perry, great job on the waterfall! Don’t let the naysayers bring you down in regards to the turnouts on the bridge. As you stated in the beginning, the railroad comes completely from your imagination, and needn’t follow any prototypes. You are truly a trendsetter, placing a turnout on a bridge is pure genius.

    Randy, Kimberly Idaho

  36. QRichard Walter says:

    Looks good! I gotta be a nit picker: railroads always avoid putting turnouts on a bridge, let alone two. What the heck; enjoy your railroad!

  37. Terry Sipe says:

    Perry: Great scenery. Love the water fall.
    Jon: Thanks for the tip on the needle (no pun intended. Errr,,, Yea, it was intended.)
    Thanks to both of you for sharing your skills. It’s what keeps me checking out the post everyday.

  38. Brian Love says:

    Wow, what a great lesson for a beginner like me. Not just the beauty of your waterfalls and landscaping but the overall concept of taking my time and doing something amazing because the joy is as much in the planning and construction as watching a train through it.

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