Richlawn RR fascia - in the beginning

Yesterday I went to my big box store and bought a 4ft x 8ft by 3/16" sheet of tempered hardboard.  I had them cut it into four strips 10" wide.  Here they are on my layout floor awaiting the next step.

Nothing wrong with colorful fascias

Rich, its your railroad. Do what you like. I painted my fascia on my old railroad rust red. I thought it might be distracting but after a short time running i didn't even notice it. And I thought it added a nice decorative feature to the layout when looked at from across the room.

Highball!

Yep. I'm following this one, since I plan to do the same.

I think it will look very

I think it will look very nice. I also believe there is no one best solution. Keep in mind I am partially color blind so my take on proper colors might leave something to be desired. I will mention what looks best to me. I think the fascia should be the color that is the most predominant in that area of the layout or a color that is in harmony with the rest of the layout. I will give examples. If an individual is modeling eastern roads and the fore ground is following a river then a dark green color such as would be present on river banks covered with foliage would be appropriate. Western roads might be best served by having the sand and light earth tones treatment. The pacific north west and similar places would also look good with the dark green. There are some special treatments that just look good with out following the rule above, black, light grey, furniture grade wood finish, sometimes matching the wood work in the room, and the look Rick is after shown above would all be great additions to the layout. A well done treatment like that will be very pleasing to the eye and will likely fade from view quickly just like the letter box black spaces do when one begins to watch a good movie.

I have seen these different colors applied to different layouts I have seen in videos and they all looked very good to me.

It's my railroad and I'll do want I wanna'

It would seem your's isn't much different than the norm...it's just a different colored tempered hardboard with some sticky-out thingys attached.

(which begs the question: what are the rivets - really - and how are they attached?)

You have some lofty goals

You have some lofty goals here. I haven't gotten to that point yet, So I'll definitely keep an eye out for this one.

Anthony -here is Tim's website that describes the technique

http://www.bronx-terminal.com/?p=1124

Rob - I think that my rusty fascia

will match some of the rust on the equipment!  I'm hoping that the fascia will "set off" the rest of the layout.

Bill B. - now the pressure is on!

Knowing that you are watching I'll have to make sure that I try and do a bang up job!

Rick, I think it will look

Rick, I think it will look good, your idea is one like black that will likely look real good. I believe your treatment will not detract from the layout but add to it.

Thanks For The Tip

I'm following along; not that "rust and rivets" will be my choice. You reminded me to look and measure so when I get to the point of ordering hardboard, I'll have my DIY cut it to strips I need. That way, I can just vary the top edge as needed for uneven terrain.

When it comes to painting, do you rough up the surface with light sanding so the paint has some "tooth" to hold onto? I'm thinking of either foam board or the same fascia material for the backdrop - your recommendation?

Dave C.

P.S. - the 1/2 inch sub-roadbed went down just fine. I am so pleased with the benchwork. Patience and tips from the guys here really helped.

" I think that an interesting

  I think a themed fascia can be a nice feature, it works for Tim's CNJ layout. for the Richlawn I think a custom style based on the setting and natural features would work better however. Tree and rock elements abstracted somehow with perhaps hints of whisky barrel and fly rods? ( or whatever the essence of the scene is) .........DaveB

Bill B. - now the pressure is

I'll be watching as well and I might even come by and inspect everything in person !

Dave C. - you're welcome

As far as painting - yes, I will rough up the surface of the hardboard to give the paint a better surface.  And thank you - as you gave me an idea.  I think that I might beat up the surface of the hardboard a bit to give it more character.

Michael - you're welcome to visit anytime

However, it's a long trip to see a short railroad!

Dave B. - those are some interesting ideas!

I'll have to give them some thought - especially the whiskey barrel!

"I'll have to give them some

   You might ask Michael if he could laser out some silhouettes fitting with the layout theme? Leaves, pine cones, whiskey barrels, revolvers, canoe paddle,or whatever then maybe combine them with local terrain,stone or wood textures in some interesting way? It would take a lot of effort to work up a design but it might be fun and worthwhile in the end .......DaveB

Personality...

I love to see personality added to railways, and this definitely counts. Cant wait to see what you do! (PS that CNJ edging is a thing of beauty)

Caution

Dear Rick,

I know you'll do a bang-up job, but 2 things come to mind:

1 - I seem to recall that Tim took 2 bites at the fascia, because the first "rust enhanced" version ended up continuing to rust and getting overblown in appearance. Test first before committing the treatment to the "real deal" fascia

2 - I've been really Really REALLY tempted to do something similar for a show layout with sympathetic "theme"
(old timey NG logging, heavy industry, waterfront railroading), but keep coming back to the practicalities of a mobile show layout:
- layout fascia needs to protect the layout sections during transport
- fascia needs to be able to sustain rubbing of operators sliding past, etc
without damage to either the layout or the operator clothing

I'm not sure if a healthy dose of matte spray sealant over the dusty effects would mitigate the "rubbing on clothing/layout damage" issues, but I'm sure you'll find a working solution...

Happy Modelling,
Aim to Improve,
Prof Klyzlr 

Thanks, Prof

I'll be careful with the technique.  Since the process uses different colors of acrylic paint to achieve the rusty look I believe that the amount of rust will be both controllable and durable.  I could even add a few coats of clear matt spray as a protectant. 

Stone Paint

Wonder if giving the fascia a texture will help the steel look. Maybe try a can of stone paint .

Old steel is never perfectly smooth.

Just a thought.

Spray

You can get water based clear coatings as a liquid at the big box too.
In case you don't want to use a spray in your finished space.

Joe - I was thinking about adding texture

Thanks for the information.

Bill - thanks for the info

I may add some clear protecting coating.