Scenery and structures
Ballast Color
Does anyone know what the original color was for the Monon (CIL) railroad ballast which ran through Indiana from Chicago, IL to Louisville,KY?
Canadian grain elevator boxcar loading spout
Hi ,
Can anybody tell me who makes or has an idea how to make the above spout? When I worked for the grain companies loading boxcars, ( Dated Myself ) the spout was segmented into about 20 sections with chains on both sides for drawing the spout up.
It could swivel from 1 side of the boxcar door to the next from the overhead exit of the elevator. A few years ago at Super Train in Calgary, I ran across a fella that said he could get them but I never saw him again.
Than Steve
Concealing a helix
I'm planning to build a 2-level HO layout. I've read articles and seen videos about constructing a helix to connect the two levels. I have not seen descriptions / photos / videos about how to conceal the helix with scenery; especially the finished results. I guess I conceptually understand concealing it within mountain terrain. However, my layout will not have mountains. How can I conceal the helix? Example photos and/or videos (both in-process and final results) would be especially helpful. Also, I need advice about how to ma
Parsley for trees
I'm trying to model South African Eucalyptus trees on my layout and can't find suitable material. A large sprig of parsley looks about right and a bit of paint can deal with colour. But I've not been able to find a way to dry a sprig of parsley without its losing its shape. Has anybody else tried this and what was the result?
New Diorama for Credit Valley Railway
Starting another diorama for the Credit Valley Railway.
I have decided to do the scenery in Diorama form. What that means is I will build each "Scene" on a piece of hardboard on my workbench, then place it onto the layout and "work it in".
My trick for thinning craft paint
For those of you that like to use an airbrush for scenery work specifically I have found a way to thin cheap craft store paint. As far as for your locomotives and rolling stock I still recommend the better quality airbrush specific paints but like all things it’s a matter of personal preference.
TYCO piggyback loader
Gang,
I got this in a box of junk buildings at a train show. After removing 30 years of layout dirt and grime and trimming some of the dock, removing the gigantic forklift-looking thing... this is what is left. The office covering the motor was missing.
Superleaf shortage
I've been a lot of building trees lately and have run out of medium green Superleaf flocking material. Scenic Express, it's main supplier, appears to be out of stock with no indication about when it will be back in stock. Other dealers and Ebay are also out of stock.
Does anyone know when it might be available again? Is there is an alternative medium green leaf material? Thanks.
Your background building recommendations.
The closet expansion has finally begun! The benchmark is complete, the sky boards are painted blue and will have clouds added this weekend. They are about 20” above the foam base. It’s HO scale.
It’s 2 feet deep and about 10 feet wide ( long ) and will basically be a yard with background buildings along the 10 foot closet wall. I will attempt to shadow box this area as a trial run for the rest of the layout.
My question to you is this:
Unclogging a hair mister
My hair mister got clogged with some crud that was in my scenic cement. To fix it, I was able to pry up the nozzle cover over the black nozzle. From there, I used some pliers to wiggle the black nozzle off. It took a fair amount of force before it popped, so maker sure you have room for your hands to move when it does. I used a micro brush and water to clean some chunks out of the nozzle. I then pushed it fully back into place and snapped the cover shut. Mister saved. Your model and mileage may vary.
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