This thread was started in August, 2011
Karl.A
August 2011 edited July 2021 in O Scale Builds
Sometimes it doesnt matter how many other projects you are working on at the bench and trying to get finished… the excitement and anticipation of a new SWSM box arriving seems to take precedence.
Perfectly packaged, as is usual for a SierraWest kit, the initial content inspections reveal nothing less than the highest quality, as expected.
Detailed content pics tomorrow hopefully.
Unfortunately I won’t be able to unpack this gem completely until then when I clear the desk (somewhat) and make some space…
With all these ongoing projects I’m starting to think I may need to build ‘another’ modeling bench !!
Hickory’s still a long way away… right?
Karl.A
Comments
Bill
August 2011
2 1/2 weeks 'til the Narrow Gauge Convention (cue the ‘Rocky’ theme music). Will he make it?
I can only imagine what you’re gonna do with this beauty, Karl. I’ll check in for those pics tomorrow…(hopefully)
admin
August 2011
hey man… make sure you post lots of progress shots… wanna watch this one go up!!!
Karl.A
August 2011
Well, got home from work as planned and rushed to ‘unpack’…
I thought I was good at packing but Brett sure can cram ALOT of goodies into his boxes…
‘Most’ of the contents laid out for inspection.. Tons of stripwood, lasercut subwalls roofs and floor. A plethera of Bretts innovative cutting jigs to make life(modeling) easy and enjoyable. Full sized templates, spiral manual and all the other stuff to get to…
Casting box full of resin and metal details…
The fantastic interlocking stone walls mastered by Nick O. They really are incredible to look at, size, style and texture. Nick did an amazing job on these beauties.
An excellent fit straight from the wrapper, just propped together..
This is where I’ll be starting, getting the stone walls together and painted…
Karl.A
Karl.A
August 2011
Sure will, plenty of pics all the way…
Karl.A
August 2011 edited August 2011
I braced the walls with 1/4" square stock epoxied to the (sanded for tooth) walls and then epoxied the four walls together.
The next step was to fill in the minor corner gaps with soupy plaster, applied with a fingertip and wiped with a damp cloth.
When this was dry I sprayed the interior with flat black and then the exterior with Kilz primer from a rattle can.
Next will be to colour the individual stones with several different coloured washes.
Karl.A
Karl.A
August 2011
The Practice Wall… it will be covered by the warehouse.
Colours I will be using are…
This much paint…
and this much water…
Essentially I am staining the Kilz primer with the colours and not actually painting the stones..
A wash of dark grey to blend and fill in the mortar lines…
Nothing else to do now but wait for it to dry and evaluate the results. Make any adjustments necessary and transfer this to the visible walls.
Time will tell if Xylol will be needed, I hope not!!
Karl.A
Jerry
August 2011
Karl
Wall dry yet??? I hope you didn’t lose the colors after you did the grout. That was a nice choice of colors for the stonework.
Jerry
LSNRwyAl
August 2011
Karl, you have another beauty in progress here !!!
GregInOz
August 2011
G’day.
Really enjoying the build so far, but Karl has used two trade names “Kilz” and “Xylol”, neither of which I have ever heard of. Could you elaborate, please Karl?
Greg In Australia.
Jerry
August 2011 edited August 2011
Greg
The KILZ® brand includes many high-quality primers. Xylol Paint Thinners.
I don’t if you have these down under but there just a primer and a paint thinner. Hope this helps. Until Karl shows up.
Jerry
GregInOz
August 2011
Thanks, Jerry, that helps.
Greg.
Karl.A
August 2011 edited August 2011
Jerry is correct on the Kilz… essentially any quality white primer should work as good.
Xylol is actually Xylene, it is a specialised thinner, though not for paint.
Xylene is also used as a stripper and will remove dried paint (water or solvent based)almost instantly… Great for when you need a do-over.
It will not damage the resin when wiped on with a rag or scrubbed with a toothbrush to remove paint. I have used it on Brett’s details several times with no ill effects, however it will eat through plastics and rubber so I’ve never left a resin part soaking overnight… just in case… 8~)
I also have a small ‘spice jar’ of xylene on my work bench for cleaning brushes.
Xylene should be available at a good paint store next to the Paint thinner, paint strippers, acetone and other nasty chemicals…
Karl.A
Karl.A
September 2011
I got back to this build earlier today and have made some progress.
Sometime ago I completed the stone walls.
Today I spent some time graining and staining the stripwood for the clapboard upper story. Chalks used were 408.3 and 408.5 predominently. A tiny amount of black and grey was also used on some boards for a subtle variation.
Hopefully more progress later today.
Karl.A
Karl.A
September 2011
Karl.A
September 2011
Finished boarding and ‘nailing’ the four clapboard walls, next up will be the warehouse walls, should be fun…
Karl.A
Jerry
September 2011
Karl
Nice job on the stonework. Like the color of the siding to. Glad you got back to the bench.
Jerry
Karl.A
September 2011
Thanks Jerry, I appreciate it.
I never really got away from the bench, just been working on stuff that hasnt been posted.
85 holes , 90 pick-points and 2 hours of ‘fun’ later…
Karl.A
Daryl
September 2011
Karl, will the method you used on the resin walls work just as well on plaster cast or should I try something else?
Karl.A
September 2011 edited September 2011
It should work well, if not better, I have done it on plaster brickwork but more specifically on plaster rock work using the same colours.
The main thing to be careful of is the final blending/mortar wash. Unsealed plaster will soak this wash up and you will need to be careful not too make it too dark and obliterate your hard work on the stones.
Sealing the plaster after the stones are coloured and before doing the wash is one option, but, I havent tried it personally so I cant vouch for the results, but it should be good.
Karl.A
Karl.A
September 2011
The siding was added to the warehouse, followed by the trim. Next all of the windows were coloured and added in. (They still need shades).
Karl.A
Karl.A
September 2011
Next I added the windows into the clapboard walls and braced them. Once dry the walls were glued together and the floor glued in place.
At this point I did a test fit to see how things were looking.
Karl.A
Bill
September 2011
Very nice work, as always, Karl. And, it appears you’re back up to your traditional break-neck speed!
On your knott holes…did you clip the toothpicks to the exact length so they’d be flush with the hole or did you shove the toothpicks in, then go back and sand/file them down somehow? In any case, you’ve got a great rustic look on that wall that’s very realistic.
Karl.A
September 2011
Thanks very much Bill, not quite upto speed yet, still spending too much time sitting/staring/doing nothing.
For the knots…
First the boards are weathered/coloured to completion.
holes drilled and small glue blob placed on back of hole.
tooth pick pushed in from front and then clipped flush with toenail clippers.
(toenail clippers are convex instead of concave and are extemely use full in modeling
at many times)
board is placed face down on the desk and pressed down around pick, this drives the
pick perfectly flush with the front of the board.
let the glue dry and then clip the back flush, sand lightly if required.
colour the knots with tiny amount of A&I on a detail brush to avoid staining the surrounding board.
Karl.A
Karl.A
September 2011 edited September 2011
Quick Tip…
For anyone who has tried and had trouble with the tissue paper for tarpaper technique here is a quick and simple trick to make it simpler.
The first step makes everything quick, easy and repeatable… (three of my favorite words)
Grab your handy can of 3M Super 77 spray adhesive.
Give your base paper a quick spritz with the glue.
Lay your tissue paper ontop, try not to get any wrinkles, I was rushing and did.
I just used regular single ply TP, and yes it was embossed, not a problem though.
I painted the laminated paper with 50/50 craft paint black and water almost imediately. Brushed on with a half inch soft brush.
Quick snap of a roof on a current inprogress scratchbuild I am working on, not finished or weathered yet, but, it does show a nice texture.
Takes about 5 mins to do an 8x11 sheet.
Karl.A
Dwaine46
September 2011 edited September 2011
Bill, thanks for asking the question, and Karl, thanks for explaining the knot holes so I finally “got it”…
Thanks also for the tarpaper technique…dwaine
Karl.A
September 2011
You’re welcome Dwaine…
Worked on the storage shed to about 75% complete, will finish off the remainder when it’s time to put everything together.
Next on the list will be the loading dock assembly for an hour, then it wll be cool enough for some yard work…
Karl.A
Jerry
September 2011
Karl
Thanks for the toothpick lesson. And a great tip on roofing paper.
The build is of your usual quality work.
Jerry
Karl.A
September 2011
Thanks Jerry, I appreciate your comments and support, more tomorrow.
Karl.A
Bill
September 2011
Karl-
Thanks for the additional toothpick info and the tarpaper method. Looks great and the “5 minute” quality makes it even better!
admin
October 2011
tarpaper is excellent… better than satisfactory…
Kaz
October 2011
I’ve tried a different method for tarpaper but I think I’ll give yours a try.
Thanks
Karl.A
November 2011
I used chalks to adjust the colouring and contrasts between the stones.
I’m now much happier with the walls and can now move forward past this stumbling block.
Shingles are always fun.
Wes
November 2011
Karl that stonework has turned out just perfect. Infact the whole build is looking great.
I always look forward to your updates.
Bill
November 2011
Way to go, Karl! Hand cut shingles truly make a distinction between “good” and “great” models. I couldn’t tell if you were being sarcastic or not (“Shingles are always fun”). I actually enjoy doing 'em…relaxing and rewarding all at the same time. I’m curious as to how you did the ridge cap–that’s something I struggle with a bit.
Are those type of shingles included in the kit?
Are you planning on coloring them?
Is there a lemon in that Corona?
/questions
Karl.A
November 2011 edited November 2011
Thanks Wes I really appreciate your input and support.
Thanks for the kind words also Bill.
I actually enjoy doing individual shingles and havent been able to replicate the look any other way.
The kit actually comes with excellent lasercut shingles, unfortunately for me I cant seem to master colouring them to a way I like personally, too heavy handed or maybe set in my ways, all my builds are individual.
Besides, individual doesnt really take too long, once you get in the flow, turn the music up and pop a C , or two.
The shingles are already coloured, the over desk lighting is washing them out in the picture.
However, as the building is modelled in good repair and not ‘old’, I coloured the shingles accordingly.
ie:Just starting to age gracefully and turning slightly grey, just like me.
No lemon and we ran out of lime so, it’s crisp, cold and pure. Besides I couldnt find any lemons at the store small enough to fit down the bottleneck.
Karl.A
Bill
November 2011
Hang on…that should be a LIME in a Corona. No self respecting Brit (or American!) would drink a Carona with a lemon!
Glad to you you’re back working on this one!
admin
November 2011
Love the shingling, the natural variation in color and size are the perfect companion to the way you colored and weathered the stonework! If I had bigger ***** I would do a kit with an individually shingled roof of this size but I think many customers would hesitate over it. The laser shingles on the pilot model (Karl constructed by the way) look awesome and if someone wants to do individual shingles they can!
minion
November 2011
Brett ,
It is part of your job as a manufacturer to educate your customers as to how they should be building their kits to get the best possible results . If sticking shingles on individually is the way to do that then that is what you should be telling them . If this is too much trouble for them then you can also sell them a nice roll of Campbells shingles !
So how big are your ***** ?
MM ( formerly Middle Minion , now changed to Mischievous Minion ! )
LSNRwyAl
November 2011
I am not sure I totally agree with Minion. Fine Scale Miniatures went this route and where is he in the marketplace ?
It is my job as the modeler to take the kit, add my skills, add things learned from my betters and try to produce a finished product that looks better than the kit box-top.
Karl.A
November 2011 edited November 2011
Very well said Alan, couldn’t agree more.
Karl.A
Karl.A
December 2011
Got the structure components epoxied together and the roofs glued on.
Next up will be dirt and details on the diorama base.
Karl.A
LSNRwyAl
December 2011
Awesome as usual. I will try to do as well. Thanks for the inspiration.
Karl.A
December 2011
Thanks Alan I really appreciate your kind comments.
Planning placement of a few of the deatails on the dock area, nothing glued, just staring and adjusting.
Karl.A
Bill
December 2011
Looking good, Karl. Nice collection of castings. The scale to the left of the door is one that I hadn’t noticed before.
LSNRwyAl
December 2011
placement is all about “pathways”
where would normal traffic flow direction be ?
to steps…to doors… to boxcar and or truck ?
Karl.A
December 2011
Indeed Alan, you are absolutely right, detail placement needs to be logical, random, and, pleasing to look at.
I had planned in all the logical ‘pathways’ as I positioned the details, it just wasnt so visible in the previous shot.
Here is an over head view to show my line of thinking more clearly.
Karl.A
LSNRwyAl
December 2011
good-o
i do feel you do it right
brownbr
December 2011
The color of the building looks great in that outdoors shot.
Karl.A
December 2011
Thanks for the kind words Alan and Bryan.
Finally a day off work today so… I cleared the desk, finished glueing down the dock details and prepped the dio base.
Time for a funfilled afternoon of dirt, details and debauchery… well, dirt and details anyway.
Karl.A
LSNRwyAl
December 2011
The last pic sure does make your model look great.
Karl.A
December 2011
Thanks so much Alan I appreciate it.
I’ve made some progress with the scenery base layers and started adding in a few more of the details…
Karl.A
admin
December 2011
that looks awesome!!!
LSNRwyAl
December 2011
Karl it is real enough to believe I can walk into it.
You are bang on again.
Karl.A
December 2011 edited December 2011
Thanks so much Brett and Alan, very encouraging.
I found and installed the missing doors.
Next will be the truck loading door area.
Time for work…
Karl.A
Bill
December 2011
That side shot of the shed with all the clutter is my favorite. So much to see. Very natural and well composed. Glad you located those doors!
Does that one green bottle on the bench stand out a bit? That’s pretty nit-picky, but it caught my eye and thought I’d mention it.
LSNRwyAl
December 2011
I agree Bill that the green bottle is “an eye-catcher”. I think it works to draw you into the scene and it is tied to the case of green bottles near the front of the dock. Just my opinion…
brownbr
December 2011
I like all of the weeds and junk that is accumulating under the dock. Like the cinder block bench too. Nice variety on the door handles…gives extra interest to the doors. I’m going to give you back a suggestion you gave me once. Vary the colors of individual crates in the stacks at the front of the dock.
Karl.A
December 2011 edited December 2011
Thanks for the replies and the inputs gents, much apreciated.
Yep, the green bottle does stand out a bit too much even though it ties into the nearby crate of bottle. I plan to tone it down a little with some chalk when I fix the lunch box that is next to it.
The crates do look a little too uniform in the pics Bryan although in person there is variations between them. I will try to accentuate these tonal differences when I get to the final touch-ups on the build.
Thanks again.
Karl.A
Karl.A
December 2011 edited December 2011
I had a little trouble deciding what to do here…
I decided to just keep it fairly simple and came up with this… essentially the layout in the manual, a little more scenery and a few less details.
Next will be roof vents, chimney, final details and touch ups..
Karl.A
brownbr
December 2011
Fantastic! Love the side loading area.
Dang you Karl. You’re making me want to get this kit…I don’t have room for it.
Karl.A
December 2011
Thanks very much Bryan, much appreciated.
Pffft, no room indeed. What kind of an excuse is that? Just make room… 8~)
Karl.A
davej
December 2011
I love the simple uncluttered appearance, my HO scale version kept the area fairly clean so that vehicles would have no problems getting to the loading doors, unfortunately I only have a side view of the diorama. I have another kit yet to be built and will incorporate some multi level terrain.
But ummm some of hose rafters show up a bt crooked. Thta’s why I lovephotos , they highlight those litle things that aren’t quite right that you miss when looking at them. Like a coffee mug right in the middle of a beautiful shot.
cheers
Dave
davej
December 2011
nice bit of spelling there weird using a laptop at the moment
LSNRwyAl
December 2011
Very nice loading dock area - - details and open space for an area that is modeled as well used in the present.
I love what you do and how you do it.
The doors just a little a-jar implies someone just went in or out - - perfect!
Looks like you did a path to the right end of the dock. Next task are steps for the little people at that right end of the front side dock, Karl ?
The left end has a set of 4 steps so…
Karl.A
December 2011 edited December 2011
Thanks very much for the replies Dave and Alan.
Very nice work on your HO version Dave… got any more pics?? We’d love to see them.
Yup. I knocked those rafters loose when I was 'planting the structure onto the diorama. Also you’ll notice none of the rafters had A/I on the ends at that point.
The rafters were strightened yesterday evening and the freshcut ends all touched up with A/I while I was working on the roof vents…
Alan, I do not plan any steps for the right side. The guys just hop up there when needed but generally they just grab the trash/boxes from the dock to ‘dispose of’.
Thanks for looking.
Karl.A
rtbaron
December 2011
Karl…great modeling…love it…
LSNRwyAl
December 2011
Thanks Karl.
Dwaine46
December 2011
Karl, your work is fantastic. I look at everybodys work to see how I can make mine better and this is great fun. Thanks for all the explanitions and pictures.
I see your picture of the plain dio base, do you have any from that point to finish???
Or sometime can you or someone do a thread on diorama base construction?
Karl.A
December 2011
Thanks for the kind words Dwaine.
I didnt take any shots of the dio base layers for this one, but, I’ll be sure and post some pictures/descriptions while I work on the next one for you, when I get to that point.
Karl.A
brownbr
December 2011
I may have to make room. Those look like they belong together
Karl.A
December 2011
Thanks indeed Richard, I’ve been admiring your work for quite some time now.
I hope so Bryan, looking forward to seeing it.
Karl.A
Karl.A
December 2011 edited December 2011
A few outside shots on an overcast Christmas day…
Time for this one to go sit up on the finished shelves while I work on the next one…
Karl.A
Bill
December 2011
Terrific scene, Karl. Bryan beat me to it–all the structures have a sense that they belong together. I think the gloomy sky and softer shadows add to the realism.
So when/where can we see it in person?
What’s in your “on-deck” circle?
LSNRwyAl
December 2011
Just wow!
It looked great under artificial light. Outside it just looks real!
Hard act to follow Karl and I will just try to do my best.
Thanks for sharing.
Karl.A
December 2011 edited December 2011
Thanks so much Bill and Alan for your comments, they are really appreciated.
Bill, the only time it ‘may’ go somewhere is to the expo next year, although that is essentially pointless as Brett will probably have his pilot model there. However, you are most welcome to stop by anytime and see it before then.
I have a brain freeze and cant figure out what you are asking in your last question, you will need to elaborate.
Thanks Alan I’m really pleased with how it came out, just follow Brett’s instructions, thats all I did, I look forward to admiring your build.
Karl.A
Joel
December 2011
Amazing work karl. Nothing less than I expect. Incredible. Looking forward to the next one.
Joel
admin
December 2011
Karl those structures look great together. I think that illustrates what attracts me to this type of modeling so much. The versatility of simple structures and the way they can be brought to life with details and scenery. Then the interaction between them to form a scene and tell a story… The absolute KING of this type of modeling was Brian Nolan!
Kevin
December 2011
That looks awesome YM!!! Nice to live in such a balmy climate!
OM
LSNRwyAl
December 2011
Again Karl great modelling.
It was nice to see one of the pics “antigued” and used on the Sierra West Website.
I as one would encourage you to take it to places so people could see it even if Brett had a “Sample” at the same event.
novice
January 2017
Just to let you know that I finished the O’Neil build following Brett’s great instruction manual and your detailed build tutorial. Came out better then I expected for my first kit. Learned a lot and now beginning on the RR camp. Selected this project because of this review to go along with Brett’s manual. You are a great photographer as well as a master craftsman! Keep the tutorials coming as these are a great inspiration for us less talented folks to climb the ladder to perfection.
KCSTrains
January 2017
Thanks Novice for posting a comment. I haven’t seen this one. I miss Karl and his great modeling skill. Phil
Leonard
January 2017
Outstanding build!