Building a New Layout

[Len]

This kit reminds me of one of those old Megow kits:  a set of plans and strips of raw material to work with.

That's exactly what most Plastruct "kits" are. Building their 'Through Truss Bridge' kit (shudder!) years ago came close to giving me a nervouse breakdown. It's what finally drove me to get an HO scale ruler.

Len

[RAM]

Megow made ho car years ago. 

[Woody Elmore]

Central Valley made some kind of bridge - a buddy bought one but I think he found it too complex. Megow is ancient - where did you find a kit of theirs?

Jonathan - your new Layout is really nice. The roundhouse is definitely an eye catcher.

I hope Santa Claus brings you some nice trinkets for your layout!

Merry Christmas to one and all!

[Woody Elmore]

If you don't have a scale ruler, an eighth of an inch works for HO. It is a tad under size. 5/32nds is also workable - it is oversized by a bit.

Maybe Santa can get you one for your Christmas stocking.

[jonathan]

Good to hear from you again, Woody! and thanks...

We've had some old hats in our club, who would occasionally bring in some of their old kits to see if anyone was interested in one of those projects... hunks of wood and plans that look like something out of a balsa airplane kit. I can't imagine trying to tackle one of those.  I know my grandfather built a few.  I have built some balsa airplanes in my youth.  Don't think I'd have the patience for one now.

Regards,

Jonathan

[ebtnut]

Walthers, Megow, Silver Streak, Central Valley, Ambroid, Main Line, and many more made what are now referred to generally as "craftsman kits".  A box car kit would generally consist of pieces of milled wood for the floor and roof, scribed wood sheet for the sides and ends, and various sizes of strip wood for trim, roof walks, etc.  There would usually be a handfull of soft metal castings for end beams, ladders, brake gear, etc.  They might give you some common staples for grab irons.  The good kits came with pre-formed grabs.  Some of the kits came with painted and lettered sides; others, just decals and you had the paint the car body first. The kits came "LTC" - less truck and couplers.  I built a number of them in my day - still have a few stored in some boxes.  With careful work, they could build up quite nicely.   

[jonathan]

I had to compromise a bit with my coaling tower plans.  The smallest footprint available was the ever-so-common concrete coaling tower.  On the bright side, it's very similar to a B&O concrete tower in Akron, Ohio, which was still standing last time I checked.  

Also, I had to plant the tower a little closer to the roundhouse than I would like.  Still, I think it will fit well with the decor.  

What else?  Ah, you will see a lot of rubble... This is all the ballast I had to scrape out to move the track. I will crumble it some more, and use it as filler when it's time to lay new ballast.

For now I'm filling in the roadbed, re-wiring the track.  Oh, and I did thread some wire through the tower and control house. Lights are forthcoming.

Finally, I may have (may have) gone a little crunchy-munchy crazy with the weathering.  I was feeling froggy in anticipation of an upcoming PMP exam (4 hours!).  Was also getting frustrated because the soot would not adhere to the bottom of the tower.  So, I will have to dry-brush some grimy black underneath at some point.

I'm rambling... sorry.  Here are the photos:













Regards,

Jonathan

[Jhanecker2]

Jonathon the location looks fine ,  it appears  to be a functional setting  .  Prototype  railroads  had to squeeze  in equipment where ever  & how ever they could real estate  was always expensive & limited  .  I noticed the conveyors  next to the walls  , where will they be operating ? John2

[J3a-614]

I concur, the tower in its location looks OK to me--with the elevator track as close as it is to the roundhouse suggests this "new" facility is a replacement for an older one, and it had to be squeezed in.

I am reminded of a roundhouse on the N&W that had, if I remember, eight stalls--in two groups of four, located on opposite sides of the turntable!  The reason--the facility was up against a hill, and there was no room between the two segments for more stalls without a lot of digging, and of course other tracks were on the other side of the turntable, the side away from the hill.

So cramped locations, especially with some hill in the area (which you have), are quite prototypical! 

As to your weathering, I think it's a bit understated.  Some in-service photos of concrete towers, especially late in the steam era, show a structure that is almost all black!

[WoundedBear]

Nice. I like your work Jon.

A question about the building weathering.......especially the coaling facility.......powders? washes? both?

Whatever your technique is, the blending is really nicely done.

Sid

[jonathan]

Thanks, Gents!

The conveyors will hangout somewhere near the roundhouse doors, being used for small amounts of coal, to get the locos lit off before heading out of their stalls.  Then they can get a proper filling at the tower.

I used powders, only, on the tower and coal shed.  I started with "soot" anywhere and everywhere.  Just couldn't get it to stick to the coal bunker and around the legs.  Then I used dark rust around all the metal joints, followed up by medium rust to soften the affect.

Finally, light rust was brushed over everything, to lighten up all the structures.  When finished, the upper part of the tower looked too over-done and splotchy to me.  So, I took an old gym sock, that got too holey to wear  , and rubbed up and down on the tower til it looked a little less overdone. 

Like I wrote before, will probably dry-brush some grimy black over the lower portions of the tower.  I do want that real dirty, used looked around working area.

Thanks again.

Regards,

Jonathan

[jonathan]

OK. The track and lights are wired and new ballast is laid (still wet).  Need some fine coal to spread around to represent spillage.

Just about to crawl underneath and solder up the wires.  Still trying to work my way to the eastern side of the layout.

Regards,

Jonathan

[Jerrys HO]

Jonathan great work as usual. Be glad you do not live in New Orleans for the mayor would probably want to remove your statue also . Could not resist that eh Trainman203.
Waiting for your next pic JV I love looking for that one piece you seem to stick in there.

[J3a-614]

Looking good as usual. . .See you did get to paint and plant the water tower behind the roundhouse, too.

Now all you need is the usual ground stuff, ballast, cinders, and of course lots of trees up the hillside.

What stands out for me in the views as you have them is how much they have the feel of Grafton, W.Va., though of course it doesn't look like it.  That includes the town on the hill above the railroad; again, it doesn't look like that, and in the prototype it's right there, but the feel is there!

Love it!

[jonathan]

Thanks, guys!

You caught me!  That statue is of a Navy Chief.  I was a Chief, a lifetime ago it seems. He would be over 30 feet tall in HO--so hard to place.  Plus, I don't remember ever resting on a bollard while drinking coffee.  Coffee drinking happened inside the skin of the ship, not the outside. 

And thanks for the "feel" comment.  I have photos of Grafton, Cumberland, a few places in Ohio, and one nice service area with an unknown location.  Space, and lack of skills, prevents me from modeling a replica of an exact location... so feel is what I'm going for.

I made over 1000 trees for my last layout. I will be planting them one day. Trying to get some ballasting out of the way for now.  I need a break from scenery... again.  After the recent thread on the FM H16-44, I think it's time to put some flashing lights in the empty holes on top of my two trainmasters.  Then back to scenery again.

Regards,

Jonathan