Show us your Train Stations

[Gary B]

OK, we've seen Gas Station and Cabooses now I know most of you have passenger stations, right? Even one? Let's see it. I know I've got a bunch.
First up, the Station at Fox River Valley, an old Revel kit I got at a garage sale very nicely built. Second Union Station of Neenah with working clock. Third, the whistle stop at Valley View. Lastly a ceramic station now used by REA. I've got more if you show me yours.

 

[Rico]

Gary that Union Station looks great!
Here's my one and only that I just started last night with some odds and ends (mostly odds) from the discount bin.
No plans really, just one of those seat of your pants kind of things!

 

[Larry]

I use to have 3, now I have 1. It's a Walthers Whitehall station w/a Faller glass top shed w/2 thru sidings.

 

[GrampysTrains]

Stoney Creek station. DJ.

 

[Selector]

Nice, fellas. I especially like Larry's...it looks very nice and elegant.

I can't recall what kit this is, someone will recognize it. I botched the painting of it, being the hurried impatient type that I am, so I hope you can overlook the paint-by-nail polish look.

-Crandell

 

[rhoward]

Passenger Station at Hopewell Junction....

Freight House at Hopewell Junction....

 

[Ray Dunakin]

Nice stuff, guys! I haven't gotten around to building any stations for my layout yet.

 

[mdcustom]

How about Como depot #1, Como depot #2 (yes I have built it twice, different clients) or Tennessee Pass depot. All in O scale. Como's are scratch, Tennessee is a modified craftsman kit.

Matt Dillow
MD Custom Models

 

[UP2CSX]

Nice stations ations, everyone. I'll have take a picture of my old Atlas Station. Crandell, that is an old AHM Rico station, modeled after the real one in Rico, Colorado. Looks like you did a pretty decent job on it to me.

 

[Trussrod]

Yes, I'll have to also agree with Ray D above that the various shots look pretty darn nice indeed.

I'm going to get to work on my Horse Medow Depot since I now have all the White metal window and door castings to add to it. So I'll have a picture in a while to post besides my John Allen Station. To bad I'm so far from getting scenery done but that's the way things go. Many of you guys are well ahead of me there.


The thing I did want to mention to many of you from having worked with digital photography for some time now is that it seems that in many cases when the images are downloaded to the site they become darker, so to correct for this be sure to try and lighten them a bit more as it will bring out a lot more detail and show the scene a lot better for you. I also have to be very careful of this as even though I generally use spot metering to expose my shots I notice my own images often tend to be too dark at times when downloaded.

I'm not trying to be critical as I've seen it with my own shots which I had to take off the site here and lighten and download them again. It's entirely up to you as most everything posted is pretty acceptable but some could be enhanced a bit more and look even better.

Now if you want the scene to be dark than that is a different story but just be sure it's pretty sharp.

Also added to this is the fact that moist digital images can use just a touch of sharpening which again helps to bring out the detail but be careful as they can get pixelated very quickly if sharpened too much. Also an image size of about at least 700 x 500 for a Fine Jpg image will also poroduce better results.

Hope this give you some helpful pointers, these are things I've found out in working with digital for some time now.

 

[Trussrod]

Say Crandell,
Although I'm far from being at the point of adding hill sides on my layout I very like the way yours turned out and wanted to know what you used to color the rocks with. Was that a commercial product from maybe Woodland Scenics or didi you mix your own?

Let me know if you would.

Thanks

I agree with Jim, Crandel that the station turned out very nice. Often that's all a plastic model needs is some decent paint or even often just dulling spray to take away from the shinny look.

 

[ChevelleSSguy]

Speaking of passenger stations. We have a club member that joined NMRA several years ago and recieved as a bonus for joining. A very large building of what I understand is the NMRA HQ in Chatanooga, TN. I cant remember who he said made the kit but it was nice looking station.

Passenger Station at Hopewell Junction....

Who made that station kit?

How about Como depot #1, Como depot #2 (yes I have built it twice, different clients) or Tennessee Pass depot. All in O scale. Como's are scratch, Tennessee is a modified craftsman kit.

Matt Dillow
MD Custom Models

Matt, just curious. Seems all your clients are O scale, do you ever do anything in HO?

 

[Rico]

I believe the NMRA HQ was done by Heljan?

 

[vato loco]

my small pass. station the matching freight is beside it!

 

[mdcustom]

Chris: I build in other scales too. Right now I have three Sn3 pieces (Cranberry Iron Works and 2 water tanks), along with 8-10 HO pieces for the Galveston club on the work bench. I personally modeled in HO from the mid-60's to 2007 when I got the O scale bug due to the detail possibilities and switched.

Matt Dillow
MD Custom Models

 

[Selector]

David, I am pleased that you like what you see around my station. Thanks for your observations.

My terrain is a 'ground goop' of the type suggested by Joe Fugate. He mixes one part Portland Cement, two parts Plaster of Paris, and four parts finely-ground vermiculite. I soon learned that this concoction, mixed with sufficient water to make it like cement before layering it over aluminum window screen, is very light when it dries. So, thinking a bit, I could either buy several plastic bottles of acrylic craft paint and mix a blend into the goop, or use powdered dyes. I opted for the latter; I went to a builder's supply outfit and found masonry dye powders. It was somewhat more costly than I had anticipated, but I'm not in the construction business. I purchase two half-pound bags, one a medium-dark brown, the other a more yellow/ocher "mesa". High up above the station in the image where the Niagara is approaching, you can see only the brown. Everywhere else on the layout I added some mesa to the brown to make it less artificial.

It was hit and miss. Looking over my layout, you can see the variations, and now, three years later, I feel I should have added more to some batches. It seems very light to me still.

-Crandell

 

[Motley]

Oh man this thread is full of WIN!!

In fact, I'm looking for a passenger station with my new layout. I'm looking for an Amtrak station (going to be modeled from Denver Union Station).

 

[Gary B]

Oh man this thread is full of WIN!!

I take it that's a good thing! Boy, after starting this thread I feel the need to go back and work on my stations. You guys do some incredible work. I still have two more stations on my electric line. I'll add pictures of them this week end. (One I posted in Weekly fun last week.)

 

[ChevelleSSguy]

I believe the NMRA HQ was done by Heljan?

Thats right. He mentioned whom made it the first time I talked to him about it but couldnt remember who it was. Neat kit though.

Chris: I build in other scales too. Right now I have three Sn3 pieces (Cranberry Iron Works and 2 water tanks), along with 8-10 HO pieces for the Galveston club on the work bench. I personally modeled in HO from the mid-60's to 2007 when I got the O scale bug due to the detail possibilities and switched.

Matt Dillow
MD Custom Models

Cant say I blame you, you just dont get that kind of detail with anything smaller then 0 scale. You do excellent work.

David, I am pleased that you like what you see around my station. Thanks for your observations.

My terrain is a 'ground goop' of the type suggested by Joe Fugate. He mixes one part Portland Cement, two parts Plaster of Paris, and four parts finely-ground vermiculite. I soon learned that this concoction, mixed with sufficient water to make it like cement before layering it over aluminum window screen, is very light when it dries. So, thinking a bit, I could either buy several plastic bottles of acrylic craft paint and mix a blend into the goop, or use powdered dyes. I opted for the latter; I went to a builder's supply outfit and found masonry dye powders. It was somewhat more costly than I had anticipated, but I'm not in the construction business. I purchase two half-pound bags, one a medium-dark brown, the other a more yellow/ocher "mesa". High up above the station in the image where the Niagara is approaching, you can see only the brown. Everywhere else on the layout I added some mesa to the brown to make it less artificial.

It was hit and miss. Looking over my layout, you can see the variations, and now, three years later, I feel I should have added more to some batches. It seems very light to me still.

-Crandell

For what its worth. Lou Sassi originally came up with that idea of ground goop. Although Lou's mixture may be a little bit different, the ingredients are the same. I have never tried it but it sounds like it works excellent. Although when I think of using it on a flat surface anywhere. It makes me think that your icing a cake in a sense and I just cant picture laying down a goop on a flat surface. But appearantly it works great. When I ever get started building a module I have in mind, I plan to try it.

 

[Selector]

...The thing I did want to mention to many of you from having worked with digital photography for some time now is that it seems that in many cases when the images are downloaded to the site they become darker, so to correct for this be sure to try and lighten them a bit more as it will bring out a lot more detail and show the scene a lot better for you. I also have to be very careful of this as even though I generally use spot metering to expose my shots I notice my own images often tend to be too dark at times when downloaded.

...

I expect that you are right to a degree, but a more widespread set of variables will be the engineering, specifications, construction, materials, and settings on the various monitors that people are using across the forum.

Surely, correct lighting density and angle are important, and in my own case, a master photog has critiqued me often for over-exposing most of my images. He wouldn't care so much were I not sending them to him for comment or for his photo shop wizardry. His point is that an overexposed area, and my light terrain often imposes this problem, he can't do much to help. But he can lift to pleasing brightness underexposed areas.

-Crandell