This thread was started in June, 2013
Joel
June 2013 edited June 2013 in O Scale Builds
Well time to dive back into some model building. I’ve been working on a small mining scene and wanted to build this little beauty for the foreground and hopefully upscale the bunkhouses from “essentials” for the background.
I started with preparing the stripwood. I’ve experimented with quite a few methods in the last year and have settled on a slightly altered version of Brett’s method. Not sure if it will be to everyones tastes but I find it saves a bunch of time and yeilds pretty nice variation in colour.
First of course is the texture. Since much of the wood is only textured on one side I used double sided tape and stuck it down to a pine board.
Then I used a few wire brushes ( I use the stiffer ones made to strip paint).
First I strike the boards randomly with the stiffest brush. This causes a bunch of tiny holes which may be smaller knotholes or deterioration from other sources. Then I brush the boards and really work some of the board ends.
Then I drill many small holes up and down the board with my dremel. Usually I do a couple of sizes. The I scribe in some deeper lines with a dental pick and then I sand the surface with 400grit sandpaper. This is all really easy with the wood stuck on the board.
Then I take some asphaltum ( an aging glaze found in paint stores or Lowes) and paint it on. Sprinkle a bit of white chalk to vary the shade a bit and then wipe it all off. Pretty much the colour of 403.9.
Now let it dry. BTW best with thin wood to remove from the tape now and colour both sides so there is less warping.
Now instead of drybrushing chalk or paint I take a stick of chalk (in this case 3) and rub a flattened side over the boards. if you press with minimal pressure the colour sticks to the raised portions and the “Grain” stays dark. I use a couple of browns and then a final coat of grey. then a quick spray of Fixative (less likely to disolve away the chalk than “Dullcoat”).
Meanwhile I tend to precolor my toothpicks by dipping both ends into AI and the ink wicks up. saves me the trouble of colouring each later and avoids the poorly staining gluey areas.
Now I glue the toothpicks in place removing almost all the glue before inserting at various angles. I rarely make the hole as big as a toothpick but usually just big enough to get 1/2 of the bevelled part insertted. You can twist and push a bit harder and get bigger knots.
Now I use a rail nipper but on inspection I didn’t like most of the results so I used a new single edged razor and sliced off the small nubbin of toothpick so it is almost flush.
Tah duh!
Now on to the walls…
Comments
Joel
June 2013
I forgot to mention. Because of the order in which I do this many of the knotholes look great without even needing a toothpick as they are filled with sawdust and paint. I would say 25% are more than acceptable.
the three in the top board and one in each of the middle and lower boards are examples.
PaulSmulders
June 2013
Hi Joel, excellent tutorial on strip wood treatment and you’re right … not all knot holes have knots in them. Looking forward to the rest of your build.
Paul
Karl.A
June 2013
Great work Joel and very effective results.
Looking forward to more!!
Karl.A
brownbr
June 2013
Looks fantastic. I’m going to give it a try
Jerry
June 2013
Joel very nice coloring. Can’t say much about the knot holes will have to wait to see them on the frame.
Guess I’m just not a real big fan of that many of them.
Jerry
Joel
June 2013
Fair enough Jerry. like I said this might not be to all people’s taste. That said I’m trying to model the type of barn board I see up here in Canada which tends to be pine and spruce and often has tons of knots. Her’s a few picks of the real thing:
MikeM
June 2013
I notice on the left side of the first image an interesting effect where the knots were apparently set at right angles to the plane along which the log was sawed into boards. Have you tried to replicate this effect, perhaps just gouging the wood, then staining the scratch marks?
James
June 2013
I was going to post a comment yesterday that this is a great technique for replicating aged pine, which weathers differently than cedar/ fir- but you beat me to it!
Jerry
June 2013
Joel now that I see what your doing. Yes it makes sense and a fine example. I’ll be following to see how this comes out.
Is this an EXPO Show Model???
Jerry
Joel
June 2013
Hi Mike, I’ve used the toothpick technique on larger beams like this one:
In fact I might use it too often I like the effect so much. I think a woodburner or soldering iron with a fine tip would would really well. That board might better be left as one of those things that look fake when you model them even though there are real examples.
To get an idea of where this is going here’s an interior shot of a wall I’m working on and an exterior shot and yes Jerry the hope is to bring this model to the Expo if it is ready. Still a lot to build but I like to show something I’m working on…
admin
June 2013
Wonderful work Joel! I really love the overall feel. Great color and peeling paint…
MikeM
June 2013
Amazing!
Jerry
June 2013
Joel great coloring nice peel. Knots look a lot better with some paint on them.
Besides that what is inside with the gear showing???
Jerry
Joel
June 2013
Thanks for the kind words. The gear is a mine winch I’m working on. The Lineside shed is a foreground model and I hope to put the Bunkhouses as backround (the big plan)
I started building the walls and glued down the siding. As a small deviation from the excellent instructions I always save the board ends and use them either where boards abut or on the bottom of walls where they might be seen. I’ve tried weathering the ends with brushes and knives and sandpaper but the cut end of the boards out of the box are always best. Maybe I just have to learn to be a better modeler. So when I put the strip wood guides down I then abut the chewed up board ends on the bottom of the wall, it saves time as I don’t have to trim them later.
Also because my chalk application is random some boards do come out better than others so I try and sort them and use the best ones on the front of the model.
For the inside I used the same technique but no knotholes and a browner hue.
Now on to the battens…
Joel
June 2013
Now the window frames and battens…Again I choose the ones with the chewed up ends for the batten bottoms.
davej
June 2013
Joel, this is looking fantastic. I really like the knotwork. I’ll have to grow some patience and have a go at the toothpick method that you have used.
cheers
Dave
Karl.A
June 2013 edited June 2013
Outstanding Joel. You really have mastered these techniques and are elevating them. Beautiful modelling for us to enjoy and aspire to.
Karl. A.
Joel
June 2013
Karl, thanks so much - says the student to the teacher. If I could do a tenth the work you do I’d be happy. Thank goodness you are willing to share and help.
Wes
June 2013
Hi Joel. What a pleasure to see such great work. Im looking forward to the next update.
Joel
June 2013
Well Wes here it is. Sorry to disappoint but I’ve gone off on a tangent today. I decided I wanted to do shingles on the bunkhouses (which I haven’t yet built). I realized I would need a ton of them but I decided it was worth the investment in precut stripwood. I went to my favourite hobby store and was hoping to buy 10-20 packs of 1X10 or 1X12, possible some thinner and few 2X10. Unfortunately they didn’t have anything bigger than a 1X4 in stock. I’m inpatient and so stopped at a Home Depot and found an 8 foot long piece of birch veneer for $7. (probably saved more than $50) I cut off about 8" and put in grain as I did with the other wood. I had to use a stiffer brush and push harder but the “grain” didn’t disappear as much as with the basswood.
Then I cut the sheet into strips with a ruler. Making varying widths.
Then the asphaltum and rubbing chalk followed by fixative.
Then I used a “chopper” to cut 1/2 long pieces. I used it like Kevin described whereby I would put the blade on the surface of the wood and then bend up and snap the wood to give a rough/worn appearance.
Then I experimented gluing some on the back side of another building:
Really quite pleased with my cheap alternative. Might actually use it as the boards for the bunkhouse walls.
Jerry
June 2013
Great idea and really they came out to be so nice looking shingles.
Jerry
Wes
June 2013
Joel that post is no disappointment at all. Infact its very informative and a trick ill be saving for future use. Thanks for posting.
James
June 2013
Funny u mention the issue of board ends- I came to the same conclusion - I really like the way the out-of-box ends stain. I guess it is how they are cut. I use a soaking method to colour the strip wood so I do some advance distressing and if possible cut to length prior to soaking - including roughing up the ends - and then more distressing afterwards. By the way I love the “Eurotool” for this work. Pre-cutting isn’t always viable of course and the ends can be coloured afterwards with a number of methods - yeah but I do save those ends for the same purposes!
Karl.A
June 2013
Looking great Joel, a continued pleasure to follow along with you.
Karl.A
Joel
June 2013
Well I’ve been busy but got a few hours of modeling in. I’ve finished the windows and glued the walls together. I tried adding a few small knotholes with a soldering iron but they may be a bit too much. Here’s the fine soldering point I found at michaels and the building as the walls near completion.
Now I’m starting on the bunkhouses. I photocopied the cardboard parts and enlarged them 181% so I got essentially O scale plans. I spray glued the back and pressed it on some cardboard and cut out the pieces.
I don’t have a huge stock of stripwood so I decided to try using the birch veneer here too. It’s my first scratch build ever so why not go all the way. I stained the veneer the same way except I used mostly 408.10 a very light grey chalk. Also instead of cutting random widths I used a piece of 4X10 stripwood and tried to make all the pieces similar.
It’s a background building so I want less detail and so brushed the wall a bit with a wire brush (brass) which defused the grey a bit.
Jerry
June 2013
Joel nice start on the bunk houses. Really like the color.
Jerry
davej
June 2013
Coming along very nicely, love the shingle, I’d love to try that method but would be very fiddly for HO I think.
cheers
Dave
Karl.A
June 2013
Nice colouring on that wall Joel.
I used the birch veneer extensively also when I started scratchbuilding. All of my early builds used it for clapboards and shingles. great stuff indeed. cedar sheet cigar box liners are also good for shingles. your local cigar store will just be throwing them away.
Dave check out Bills Twin mills build thread. he did individual shingles on one of the buildings, looks awesome.
Karl.A
Joel
June 2013
Thanks Karl,
I should have known you would have invented it before I came along. I haven’t been able to track down any cedar sheets yet but I’m hoping to hit a few cigar stores this week.
I hand shingled my shipyard in HO but I used 1x8s and 1x10s and mixed in about 1/3 paper shingles. But that’s in a different post/thread.
Joel
July 2013
OK a couple of days off and we’re right back into it. The bunkhouse #2 walls are covered in veneer. I drilled holes at various angles and added a few knotholes with black toothpicks.
Then snipped off and trimmed flat with a razor blade.
Now the difficult part. Another first. I’m going to make the windows. What a pain. I made a small jig out of cardboard with a small hole so I can remove the finished window pane.
Then used a dirty piece of plastic sheet (from an old overhead projector) and cut the “Glass”. Then added the wooden frame (1X2) using a speck of ACC to hold it together.
I added the mullion cut from the selfstick windowboard from the Lineside Shed kit. I cut thin strips (1X1) and stained with AI.
Then I removed it from the jig and touched the ACC to the edges and it wicked up and made the window nice and solid.
Whew, just 18 more to go…
brownbr
July 2013
Nice progress. Looks like a porcupine got mad at your wall in the first pic.
Jerry
July 2013
Joel nice job on the windows. Easy way to do them. Thanks for showing.
Jerry
Karl.A
July 2013
really nice work Joel,
a new challenge is always a satisfying accomplishment.
Karl.A
Bill
July 2013
Joel-
This is looking great! The chalk idea is becoming a signature of your builds and one that I’m going to try in short order. What type of fixative are you using–rather than Dullcote?
Also, this texture is outstanding!
In real sunlight it will be indecipherable from the real thing! Just fantastic! You O scale guys are killing me!!
Bill
Joel
July 2013
Gey Bill glad you like it. I use Krylon workable Fixative. It’s designed to fix pastels and chalks so it doesn’t dissolve them or wash them away like dullcote.
Jerry
July 2013
Beautiful color. Enough weathering but not overdone.
Jerry
Joel
July 2013
Ok finished the windows and added some blinds ( yellow paper with AI) and some bracing.- reminds me of the old Finescale kits. I have to finish up the hinges but it was a nice day so I took a picture outside to give the general idea…
Wes
July 2013
Beautiful Joel.
davej
July 2013
looks fantastic, amazing what decent lighting reveals. Looks very real. Still loving your knotwork.
Joel
July 2013
I finished the doors for the lineside shed and attached the smaller roof. I fit in a few pieces of left over scrap stripwood so I can have the tarpaper peeling back (like it rarely does on a building in use)
ironmountainlumber
July 2013
Joel,
I have been really enjoying your build. The color of the siding and knotholes are fantastic.
I kept looking at the shingles and the colors are very realistic ( I had wood shingles on a previous house). Looking foward to seeing more of your build.
Jim
Joel
July 2013
Glad to hear you are following along but I’m really just making it up as go along. New discovery this week - Balsa wood. I used to build airplanes from it years ago but I’ve used bass for the last 20 years (except my birch veneer). I wanted to make the “Plates” on which the bunkhouse sits and needed some 3/16 stock. i found some balsa at michael’s and tried my old techniques. It was so soft it got chewed up by my wire brush.
really pleased with the results. You can see it along the bottom of the building. Also I finished the door hinges and hung some horse shoes to indicate Bunkhouse #2 (not sure if there will be room for #1 yet).
Now on to the latrine car and then the roofs.
admin
July 2013
very nice… love, love the rust streaks from the horseshoes. The horseshoes always remind me of my dad. He used to have a dozen or so hanging in the garage… Door handle looks awesome. Subtle fine detail my dear friend!
Mike Engler
August 2013
Joel- Thanks for all the tips on new things I can try- birch veneer, balsa, Krylon fixative for the pastels, pre-staining the toothpicks, using the “flat” pastels, etc., etc. Most informative thread I’ve seen in a while.
Question- when you did the peeling red paint , was the base color done with pastels, and what did you use for a “resist”, and what did you use to lift the peeled away red? Your peeling red effect is outstanding, because as you know it’s much easier to achieve with white because of the contrast.
Karl.A
August 2013
Those last two pics are just pure quality Joel, really nice work.
Karl.A
Joel
August 2013
Thanks Mike and Karl. Small problem with working on the backround buildings last is that I’m learning as I work and they are coming out the best.
As far as the question of peeling paint. Nothing new - just Chuck Doan’s mineral spirit tequnique. i finish the strip wood same as always (even though the chalk gets stripped away) and then liberally brush with mineral spirits until I get a shenn. Then 2-3 coats of polly S paint in quick succession. Then some quick cuts in the almost dry paint (5 min) with an xacto knife along the grain. Then scotch tape with minimal pressure. peel off and repeat until happy.
davej
August 2013
Wow Joel love the finish on the walls, makes me want to do an O scale build.
cheers
Dave
Joel
August 2013
OK a nice sunny day and I’ve almost finished the bunkhouse. Just need to add some moss to the roof and add a little mold to the bottom of some boards. I neglected a couple of windows on the back for interest and because it was so time consuming to make them.
Question: Does the building need rafter tails? I’m debating and not sure both aesthetically and architechturally. What do you think?
Now on to the Latrine car.
Karl.A
August 2013
Absolutely superb Joel, beautiful colouring and finish. Very impressive modeling.
As for your question… yes to rafter tails, both aesthetically and architechturally.
Karl.A
Karl.A
August 2013 edited August 2013
Another thought for you… I would also add NBWs along the short wall sub floor. at around 4’ spacing.
I’m guessing they are 1/8" square strip wood. This would suggest that the side base is bolted to the long sides with lag bolts.
Just a detail idea for you.
Karl.A
Jerry
August 2013
Love the coloring and yes to the rafter tails. This was a very nice build Joel looking forward to the next one.
Jerry
PaulSmulders
August 2013
Well done Joel, superb work, and yes to the rafter tails…
Paul
ironmountainlumber
August 2013 edited August 2013
Hi Joel,
The bunk house looks fantastic. The shingles and siding color is just superb. The rafter tails and NBWs idea will really add more detail and aesthetics to an amazing build. Go for it!
Jim
Joel
August 2013
Ok well the votes are in and I added the rafter tails and NBWs. Also added some moss to the roof and green chalk to some of the moisture damage along the bottom edge of the building.
When I added the moss some of the shingles lifted and warped. It may add something to the piece. The day here is cloudy but the pictures aren’t bad.
KKarns
August 2013
Joel, Very, very nice! The faded gray siding is spot on and the mossy roof and subtile amount of moss along the bottom is perfect and NOT overdone…hard not to do once you get going. Swear I just saw someone walk by the open window…Ken
Karl.A
August 2013 edited August 2013
Sweet colouring Joel, the added details certainly add a lot to the overall structure, very nicely done.
The lifted shingles are holding moisture, resulting in dampnesss and thus the moss grew… ;~) makes sense to me.
Karl.A
Jerry
September 2013
Beautiful job on the coloring at the bottom. The moss with the lifted shingles excellent.
Jerry
PaulSmulders
September 2013
Great work Joel, moss on the roof and green (mold?) growing up the sides, well done.
Paul
Joel
September 2013
Thanks guys. Well now to build the latrine car. Same stuff basically and I’m half way along.
admin
September 2013
superb!
Joel
September 2013 edited September 2013
OK following the exact same techniques I finished the latrine and then realized I forgot to add the roof vents to the bunkhouse so I went back and did that.
Now onto the cookhouse. Honestly I’m a bit tired of the building from scratch and I doubt I’ll be finished in time for the show if I try and do all four buildings so I cheated and ordered a kit that I’ll modify to fit.
Also time to start painting all the castings. A bit tedious but boy does it make all the difference.
Karl.A
September 2013
Superb Joel, they certainly look like they have been out in the woods for a few seasons. I really REALLY like the siding look you have achieved.
Even if they’re not finished please do bring them for us to admire in person.
Karl.A
James
September 2013
really nice work! Love the moss as others have commented on plus the balsa foundations and weathering at the base- very convincing. up here in the northwest even in drier areas there is always moss on wood buildings, particularly north sides. I just added horseshoes to woodcutters shack- may add a tiny bit of rust as you’ve done.
Wes
September 2013
Beautiful Joel. Cool to come back and see those great updates.
Bill
September 2013
I’m loving the moss as well, Joel! Excellent!
Structures certaily seem like they’ve had a lot of time in the elements…water damage at the bottom is especially well done. I also really like the slight color difference between the siding and the doors.
Jerry
September 2013
Joel you can do it. Make sure to bring them with you. There really looking good.
Jerry
admin
September 2013
love the siding and the moss… great look
Joel
September 2013
OK I’ve decided to take a day and work on castings. I just collected up all the castings in the kit and bunches from other kits and from the Expo. I figure I’ll need them all at some point so just go for it.
I blackened the metal ones and primed the resin ones with black/ dark rust. I tend to add another step or two so at this point I spray them with hairspray or the new AK chipping solution. After it is dry I paint each barrel or tank, often missing small patches here and there. After about ten min (while the paint has not cured) it is easy to scratch off a bit of paint with a toothpick. Really easy if you left a bit of paint off and have a starting point. If you wait a bit too long you can put a drop of water on the casting to soften the paint and activate the chipping fluid/hairspray.
Here’s a couple of examples.
At this point you could just dust a little chalk powder on and great great results but I really like the effect of adding a bit of water mixable oil paint. It allows me to add chips and extend scrathches. I usually paint the bands of the barrels and then add a few chips and scratches. Sometimes an old oil spill from the contents.
Those are the three brushes I use - the 3-0 to paint with, The big fluffy one to dust and scrub on the chalk and the numb of an old brush to fix up any mistakes.
Here are the castings with paint:
Now the chalk I use the same 3 colours all the time and usually dark to light so by the time I dump on the 370 only a bit sticks.
The results.
Here are some others so you can see the varying effcts. Very forgivable and very simple technique I learned from Brett but apparently some of his adherents find it combersome and messy.
Wes
September 2013
Sweet. They turned out great.
Thanks for the SBS.
Jerry
September 2013
Joel they look great. Coloring is perfect. And a nice weathering effect.
Jerry
PaulSmulders
September 2013
Great work Joel, always a pleasure to reading your tutorials, following along closely since I’ll be jumping into the castings for the Shipyard any day now. By the way, is that a pill box holder the pastels are stored in…?
Paul
Joel
September 2013
No but that would work fine. This one is about 4-5X bigger so I can dunk the casting right into the compartments.
Joel
September 2013
Well as I said before I caved and bought the boarding house from Stoney Creek/. Won’t spend a lot of time on the SBS cause it’s not SierraWest but I reworked this.
Into this:
Jerry
September 2013
Joel wonderful bash on Roger’s Kit. Great coloring and I really like the way you moved the buildings around.
Jerry
James
September 2013
Great stuff - can’t keep up with your pace! Nice to compare techniques on the small bits - I posted some pics on woodcutters thread of similar bits. I’ve found the water soluble oils have a high water tension effect which makes application difficult - maybe a bit of detergent or windex would help…
Wes
September 2013
That last shot is a real winner Joel.
Love it.
ironmountainlumber
September 2013
Awesome job!
Jim
Karl.A
September 2013
Terrific work on the details Joel, they came out superbly.
A great job on Rogers kit also, very nicely done. The corrugated roof is incredible.
Karl.A
James
September 2013
Those knots, cracks, and colouring and weathering techniques are really paying off. Enjoying these builds.
Joel
September 2013
Ah Karl,
You’d have to pick out the corrugated roof where I followed your painting techniques to the letter. Thanks so much.
Still a dynamite shed to build but I’m starting on the scenery, at least for the bunkhouse hill.
Karl.A
September 2013 edited September 2013
Actually Joel that wasn’t the reason, however, you have exceeded what I explained to you and now I am trying to copy your results.
Karl.A
Bill
September 2013
I’ll add that your bash is top notch–as usual. So it looks like you moved the stone shed which was on the far right to the back side of the first structure. Is that right?
Bill
Joel
September 2013
That’s about it. I took the living quaters and moved them from the back of the office to the side then I moved the stone building as the kitchen in the back. I also turned the wall with the door upside down so I could add a little back porch. I extended the front porch and had to rejig all the roofs. Tah duh. Still took less time than building one of the scratch built bunkhouses.
Joel
October 2013
OK time for the messy stuff. Spent a few days putting styrofoam block together in all sorts of combinations and finally settled on this one. The toothpicks and brown cardboard are the spindley walkway:
Then I added some foam rocks (bragdon method) as out croppings:
Then filled in the rest with sculptamold.
Looks a bit boring so tonight I may add a bit of colour.
Bill
October 2013
Looking good, Joel. Can’t wait to see the little walkway…such a cool detail!
Joel
October 2013
OK first painted it all light grey and tan then when dry I brushed on black tempera powder and washed off the majority so the powder stayed in the cracks.
They I did three washes of various brown/redish acrylics diluted with lots of water.
Then I added the supports for the walk way made out of some balsa I had lying around.
Then I added some soil/earth ground foam over the flat areas so I could get a real idea of the topography. I’m more visual and like to see how things fit and move them around until it looks right.
Added some rocks, twigs and ground up leaves.
the little green flags are so I remember where I had my trees. I might not keep them there but it gives me an idea. Each is numbered and the tree is too so I can place them later (maybe tomorrow).
Here’s what it looks like with the bunkhouses in place:
Jerry
October 2013
Joel looks great. Really coming together now.
Jerry
GregInOz
October 2013
Joel, the colours of the rock faces are just about spot on for the rocks that I have here in my village, and they have the same sort of squared off corners to them as well. I just wonder how deep the “soil” would be over them…the walkway looks like it would be sunk into solid rock the way its laid out…is it just an illusion caused by the camera? Apart from the question, which is not intended as a negative comment in any way, the layout of the elements looks just about perfect. Greg in Australia.
ironmountainlumber
October 2013
Hi Joel- The rock colors look great. I am inspired by the scratchbuilding you have done and the overall look your are getting.
Jim
KKarns
October 2013
Hey Joel,
I love it when you take a deep breath and start “slinging” dirt! I agree with Jim, your rock color looks really nice. Your walkway is going to look neat with it appearing to be clinging to the side of the rock walls and illustrating why it’s there to begin with! Nice job and I have already commented on the outstanding build on the structures…however, that looks like a really tough approach to the 3rd hole with the pin so close to the edge of the cliff…
Ken
Joel
October 2013
OK now some ground cover. never did this before but I wanted a loamy kinda wet earth appearance so I used WS ground foam as my base. Then I sprinkled on crushed leaves and some small branches (same as the dry river beds) and I added some coarse dark green foam which I hate and have to dab with AI to dull the colour. I left little flags for where the trees go…
Then I glued in the trees and added the weeds and grass and sprinkled on some leaves. The fall is so lovely up here I decided to copy it (as best I can). I placed the buildings temporarily as I futz around trying different combinations of castings and junk piles. Also have to get the lamps working. Just a hint of what this will look like.
Jerry
October 2013
Joel nice coloring on the trees. Looks like an early Fall day.
Jerry
James
October 2013
love this thread. Thanks for posting. I can’t believe how much work you’re getting done. Would take me like 10 years…!
Joel
October 2013
Ok well the backround module is almost complete. Just some birds, a tree or 3 and some leaves scattered about to finish it off.
Here’s a small retaining wall using balsa wood and asphaltum (with a touch of chalk)
It will hold up the mine head.
And here is a teaser of how it all goes together with out the foreground structures.
In some ways the bacround module alone is stronger than the whole. Probably because it’s most detailed, possibly because it is inspired by (copied from) Brett’s work.
James
October 2013
Fantastic work - I love looking at these pictures. Keep them coming.
Karl.A
October 2013
Looking great Joel, that’s one really impressive structure in the foreground…
Karl.A
James
October 2013
Yes, that monster is uber-awesome!
admin
October 2013
wow… only one of those western headframe kits I have ever seen built at it is mighty impressive there JF!
Jerry
October 2013
Great job on that Headframe Joel. Do you have the hoist house to???
Jerry
PaulSmulders
October 2013
Superb work Joel, I’m really enjoying following along…although quietly… (the guy pooring coffee is a blast).
Paul
Joel
November 2013
Hi all. Boy have I been delinquent in posting. Been busy trying to get all this done. It’ll likely be 95% done so I will probably bring it along to the show.
Yes Jerry there is a hoist house with full interior and motorized winch. Not sure if the motor will be working and it certainly won’t be moving any cars up and down the Headframe. The interior is loaded with all the SierraWest goodies from previous shows and my left overs from last years model. Doors will come.
Now to finish the eponymous Lineside Shed. Bill told me about “steam punk” last year and since I couldn’t find old broken watched I bought about 10 bucks worth and soaked them in blackening solution.
Now I’ve got to say I’ve tried to make my workbenches better than Brett’s but I’ve learned to just about copy the benches and junk piles. He is a true artist and that is part of what I’m paying for in the kit. I’ve added 3-4 pieces of steam punk but that’s really the only changes:
Here’s one of my creation:
Now to glue down the Lineside shed (lights are installed and working)
Now just one more structure and I can detail the diorama a bit more.
James
November 2013
Sweet! I’m just working on the shed now. Love the gully beside it by the way. Did you light with LEDs or standard grain of whatever bulbs?
James
November 2013
Most of the watches I’ve found have plastic gears and such - can be painted and all but not as good as the metal ones- usually older watches have the good stuff but hard to find…
Joel
November 2013
All LED. I find they are easier to work with and can be made to look like a scale bulb by dabbing them with a coat or two of weldbond (I’m sure epoxy would work too).
ironmountainlumber
November 2013
Hi Joel,
What a fantastic scene! Would love to see more pictures when you have time after the show.
Jim
James
November 2013
Ah, now I know what steampunk is ( not as hip to the scene as I once was) - just bought a batch of gears.
Karl.A
January 2021 edited January 2021
Alex.R got me distracted from my Blue Sky mission last night when I saw his ‘cat’ build in his thread…
after some time admiring his build, which led me to his Wood Cutter dio (another hour spent reading that thread) …
I thought of Joels ‘cat’ in this thread.
This thread of Joels has always been one that inspires me on so many levels so I spent a couple of hours last night finding it again and then reading it all from p1.
I thought I’d bounce it back up for others to read and admire Joels superb scenery, magnificent modeling, delicious detailing and quite simply, amazing achievement.
If you havent seen it before… enjoy. If you have… enjoy again.
Joel
January 2021
Thanks Karl for the kind words.
AlexR
January 2021
Joel, i plan on incorporating a retaining wall and was going to use the same deadman anchors.
The detail work is wonderful, thanks for sharing!