Fall weather is here...

WOW! Where did that summer go? Early in the summer, it was extremely hot and humid. Towards the end of the summer, the weather was more tolerable. Holidays were during this time. This past weekend I participated in a half marathon and walked it in a time of 3 hours and 7 minutes. I have 2 kits ordered for this fall. Can't wait for them to arrive. I have some small home reno projects to get done prior to train stuff this fall. Hopefully I can get them done quickly and efficiently. I don't rush through home reno's as I plan everything out. So we'll see how this goes....... Oh well, just thought that I would keep you up to date on what is going on..........

Motivation or lack there of...

Well, it has been a while, since I last posted. I haven't done any modelling in a long time. I just haven't been motivated to get to the bench. I come home and just don't do much of anything. I think it might be a bit of depression. Some health problems with family members, a lot of negativity at work and it just drains me when I get home. I want to get to the bench but just can't find that motivation. I'll get there........... I will.

Scenery time...

Well it is that time. I am at that stage of this diorama, when I need to start doing some scenery. The pics below, show the creek area. It is built using sculptamold. It is like a plaster. It is easy to form and has a good working time. Next, I need to paint it and add some shrubs and vegetation. I will have to pour some water ( fake ) as well. In the middle picture, you will notice a hole in the wall.This hole is for the rod that supports the water wheel. I had to remove it to do the plaster work. Well, that's it for now.......... Next time there should be some vegetation growing along the banks.......

Elijah Roth update

Here are some updated pics of my latest build. I am still learning the settings on my camera. Some of the pics aren't as clear as what I would like them to be. The track in this first pic looks like it curves upward. I assure you, that it is securely fastened to the base. Next comes the ballast and ground cover.

In the second pic, you see a lot of plywood. I will be creating an L shaped creek. To the left of the graffiti and to the right of the red water faucet, I will be installing a water wheel. This will go in when I pour the water ( resin ).

This picture could be a bit clearer. The detailed castings in this kit are really nice. The are a white metal ( pewter ). I clean the parting lines with a file and then clean them up with a solvent to clean off any oils or residue that might be on them from when they were cast. I then prime them with a cheap krylon grey primer. I let them sit for a week or 2 to dry completely. Then I take acrylic paints, those found at Michael's, and paint them. Once painted, I hit them with an antique white, dry brushed on. This brings out the details. If at this point they are too clean I give them a wash of alcohol and india ink mixture. This seeps into all of the low areas and makes the casting look dirty. That's it for now..........

A New Year 2011

Happy New Year. I really hope to get some serious progress done on my model railway this year. In the past I have mostly concentrated on building Craftsman Structures and not really building anything in the way of a running railroad. The previous pictures are of the Fine Scale Miniatures kit Elijah Roth and Sons. This was put out in 2010. I have pretty well completed the kit and just have the scenery to do. I think I will wait until I install on my railroad and that way I can blend the scenery with that of the railroad. I will post some recent pictures when I download them to the computer.

Here are some things I would like to get done this year....

A simple diorama for photography.

Take inventory af all of my rolling stock.

Build a couple of 4 foot by 18 inch modules for a small switching layout.

Finish up my train room...drywall, ceiling, carpeting.

When starting my benchwork for my train room, I would like to build a nice box to hold about 10 drawers to hold all of my rolling stock. Somewhat like a tool box, but the drawers when pulled out, would nicely contain my engines and freight cars. This would be a great project during the warm summer months.

Start another craftsman structure.

Well, these things should keep me busy for a while. We have purchased a new computer. It is a Macbook pro made by Apple. I really enjoy doing stuff with the computer so hopefully this year I will do more posts to this blog. We shall see........ Thanks for looking...