More Detail Work

Well Monday was quite productive.  It was a public Holiday in Queensland.  I started off attaching some aerials to two cars on the layout.  Big whippy ones that the locals would have used for CB radios back in that time.  I could not resist the great modelling done by the Auscision team and added some P plates and some L plates to two cars on the layout.  I painted up 24 more barrels and have 24 more ready to go.  I have been wanting to complete the scene around The Risk crossing loop.  There have been a few photos surfacing lately on some of the Facebook sites.  So the first task was to make some gas bottles.  I made four out of styrene rod and tube and painted then up a nice silver colour.  Hey Greg – something you could 3D print! 

I then had to do some work on my signal box and station building at The Risk.  While it had been built many years ago, that was it.  First task was to paint the items a white colour.  I did that with a testor’s tin and then hit it with Frosted Glass to take the shine off the paint work.  I then picked out the window frames a nice brown colour.  I realised that the roof of the signal box did not have any guttering.  I got out a strip of 0.060” channel and cut four sides and glued then together with mitre joints.  This was painted with a spray can of Mission Brown from the 4 cans for $10 range of supercheap auto spray cans.  I then glued the guttering to the roof and fixed the roof to the signal box and placed the box on the layout.  I had sprayed the concrete water tank a white colour and the paint cracked.  Damn!  I have since weathered this water tank with some black and brown paint.

I then affixed the sign for ‘The Risk Signal Box’ to the front of the signal box and it looks quite good.  Well it has nothing inside the signal box and no internal lighting.  There is also no signalman, but when I run my timetable there is supposed to be no signalman rostered, as it is a Sunday on the North Coast and the train crews work themselves through the loops.  That will be a tasks for another day.  Hey Greg – how about you make some 3D prints of staff machines.  You will sell quite a few of these I bet!

During the week I added a downpipe to the signal box, but I did not get around to doing any planting of a few detail trees and shrubs around the crossing loop.  Geoff came over on Friday afternoon to pick up some 3D printed water tanks that Greg had done.  These look fantastic.

On Saturday I went to the Club.  I visited two hobby Shops on the way, Austral Modelcraft at Mt Gravatt and then the RC Model Aircraft shop at Brendale.  I was quite impressed with the paint and styrene available at that shop.  Quite a few people from the Club go down there.  So I will try and have a visit there before some of my trips to the Club.  It was pretty busy in there when I was there.

So when I got home, I decided to do some work on painting some wooden blocks a base colour.  I used these blocks to make sheds for the layout.  Four have been painted black on the front face as I will add styrene strip to look like a slatted wooden door.  I also painted two other wooden block sheds a maroon colour on three sides, leaving the front unpainted at this time, as I do not know what I will do with them yet.

Today I painted up some orange witches hats.  These have been placed around the piles of sand and aggregate outside the house in Canterbury Street – opposite the Cassino Station.  I’m sure the local council will not be too happy for these piles to be placed on a local street without some sort of protection.  I have also started assembling the 3D print of a cement mixer for this scene.  I have already lost a wheel off of it.  It went ping into the unknown during the week while trying to ensure it is a nice round shape.  Maybe I will do some more work this week on the cement mixer.

I have been trying to add some more detail to the level crossing just outside Lismore.  I have made some small lengths of road armco barrier.  I have also made up some fencing to go next to the road/rail crossing, and also some cattle grids to stop the local beasts from trying to walk onto the line.  I have also cut up some corrugated iron lengths to be used at a road overbridge between Lismore and Murwillumbah.  This bridge will be similar to one located at St Helena.

PK obtained some bee keepers and hives for me and these have been placed around the layout.  These complement my existing home made bee hives that I have in about 3 other places around the layout.

So lots of work on detailing scenes this week.  Probably more next week as well.