Another building on my In-ko-pah RR

[Ray Dunakin]

My latest scratchbuild -- Serenity's Sandwich Shop. Made of Sintra PVC board and styrene, with corrugated metal. The door and window are from Grandt Line:

[NarrowMinded]

Always love seeing this layout and always jealous!

Nm-Jeff

[Loco Bill Canelos]

Ray,

Another great job!  Loved the detail under the front overhang corrugated metal awning, also rust treatment on main roof and on an on.......

Tell me more about the Sintra PVC board.   What is it(thickness etc)?  How do you work with it?  where do you get it?  cost?

Thanks,

Bill

[Ray Dunakin]

Another great job!  Loved the detail under the front overhang corrugated metal awning, also rust treatment on main roof and on an on.......

Tell me more about the Sintra PVC board.   What is it(thickness etc)?  How do you work with it?  where do you get it?  cost?

Thanks Bill!  

Sintra is a brand of PVC foam board. Although it is technically a "foam" board it doesn't have a coarse or foam-like texture. It's smooth, inside and out. But unlike regular PVC used in pipes and such, this stuff is slightly soft, just enough that you can indent the surface with your fingernail. This makes it really easy to texture it, either by carving, scribing or debossing. It's also stiff yet somewhat flexible, and it's made for outdoor use so it's very durable.

I've been using it to make "stone" buildings, "brick" buildings, and now wood. It also takes paint well, and you can apply other materials to the surface for various effects. For instance I used an artist's acrylic stucco material to make a cast concrete jail out of Sintra:




These buildings were all made of Sintra plus some styrene for doors/windows, etc:



I get Sintra from this online supplier:

http://www.foamboardsource.com/sintra-pvc-foam--sintra-pvc-board.html

They have it in a variety of sizes, in thicknesses from 1mm to 13mm. I use the 6mm stuff for most structural walls -- it's about 1/4" thick. The glue I use is mainly Weld-on 16. To glue the corrugated metal to Sintra, I use Dynaflex 230, which is a paintly silicone sealant.

[Loco Bill Canelos]

Ray,

Thanks for the link.  At $2.65 a sheet in a package of 10 is not bad at all pricewise.  I experimented with corrugated plastic sheets on my indoor layout, it only OK, and is good for mock ups and temp buildings. 

On the eatery with the peaked roof, do I see the 6MM sheet under the corrugated tin roof??  On other buildings with peaked roofs say with shingles or roll roofing how do avoid the thick overhang using the 6MM sheets. 

I plan to try these sheets on my new basement layout.   Have you ever thought about writing an article for Garden railways on scratch building with this material??  The Eatery or something similar would be a great candidate for an article!!  The Eatery would also be a great candidate for the model contest at the National Convention!

Come on over to my place I need a little help here !!!

Be sure to post on your next project, and maybe take a few pictures at several key points along the way and post them as well.    Your quality work and techniques are some of the best, if not the best I have ever seen!!

Thanks for sharing.

Bill

[Ray Dunakin]

Thanks for the link.  At $2.65 a sheet in a package of 10 is not bad at all pricewise. 

Just make sure you're getting a sheet size large enough for your needs.

BTW, if there is a plastics dealer in your area they may carry it too. The dealer near us recently started stocking it in 2' x 4' sheets.

On the eatery with the peaked roof, do I see the 6MM sheet under the corrugated tin roof??  On other buildings with peaked roofs say with shingles or roll roofing how do avoid the thick overhang using the 6MM sheets. 

Yes, I used the 6mm stuff for the roof. You can use use thinner material but it must be properly supported to prevent sagging.

Have you ever thought about writing an article for Garden railways on scratch building with this material??  The Eatery or something similar would be a great candidate for an article!!

As a matter of fact, I built this structure specifically for a 3-part series of articles I'm writing for GR.

Be sure to post on your next project, and maybe take a few pictures at several key points along the way and post them as well.    Your quality work and techniques are some of the best, if not the best I have ever seen!!

Thanks Bill, I appreciate the kind words! BTW, I have step-by-step details for most of my structures on my website.

[Loco Bill Canelos]

Ray,

I will look forward to the GR Series!! 

Thanks for all your patience with me, I was unaware of your website, and sadly I do not have the GR issue with your RR.  I will be spending time on your site for sure learning your techniques.  I did see your railbus article in GR.  I must be the last guy on earth who didn't know about your website, I have it bookmarked now.  What a fantastic site!!  If you are in the Denver area and can recommend a plastics dealer here let me know. I will look into the larger sheets as you suggested.  I will also read your column in the free Model Railroad Hobbyist Magazine. 

Great work! Great website!  You should plug it in your signature line here on the forum!!

Again thanks for your patience!!

Bill

[Ray Dunakin]

Great work! Great website!  You should plug it in your signature line here on the forum!!

Thanks Bill! Somehow I overlooked adding it to my signature here. Got it now, plus an avatar photo.

[Loco Bill Canelos]

Ray,

All is good!  Read your column in MRH Magazine.   I have done a similar thing with my make believe "Colorado & Kansas Ry and my Missouri Western Ry. subsidiary with respect to making it believable.  I have a very complete history, system map, interchange's with actual rr's .  Equipment lettering diagrams, Locomotive and roiling stock roster, etc. etc.  All developed over a 45 year period first in HO then large scale.

One time when displaying some of my Colorado & Kansas boxcars on a modular layout  in Manhattan, KS about 30 years ago, I knew I was successful making it believable when a couple of viewers said " Remember Joe, we saw those cars over on the Santa FE in Abilene(KS) ".  My son and I looked at each other and gave ourselves a mental high five!  I am sure you understand the feeling.  We love the freedom of freelancing with believability.  I just just wish I had 10% of your creativity.

Bill

[Ray Dunakin]

BTW, you gave me some help a while back when I was converting my 4-6-0 to battery power. Really appreciate that, it would have been much more difficult without the info you provided.

[Loco Bill Canelos]

Ray,

Glad I could be of help.

Bill

[Ray Dunakin]

Here's a new photo...

A passenger train goes by Serenity's Sandwich Shack in the town of Grandt Cliff. High above is the Cliffside Mine:

[Loco Bill Canelos]

Ray Very nice mine!!  Are you sure yo can't come to Denver and help me with my layout

Bill

[on30gn15]

My latest scratchbuild -- Serenity's Sandwich Shop.

Looks good. Who's cooking, Kaylee, Jayne, or Shepherd?
Hmm, might have to try that Sintra.

[Ray Dunakin]

Here are a couple photos of a bridge I just finished. It's for a 15" gauge mine tram, that will run from the mines above Mineral Ridge, across to the mill. I gave it a planked deck because I figure they wouldn't want to risk spilling rocks onto the building, pedestrians or vehicles below. This is also the reason for the corrugated metal along the sides (plus it hides some less-than-prototypical construction elements):











I still need to extend the concrete base of the bent, and also fill in a couple small voids in the concrete. The bent, and most of the bridge, is made from strips of styrene textured and painted to look like wood. The deck is 6mm Sintra.