Building the Pinnacle Creek Mining & Timber Co. RR

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This next photo will clarify some things. You can see the wooden blocks/risers holding up the plywood. Also I've cut a hole in the plywood and inserted my turntable pit. Jim:)

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Around the four inch high edges I have to make some scenery. I've decided to pretty much make this layout using rolled up newspaper instead of cardboard webbing or other terrain formers. Once covered with two layers of plaster cloth rolled newspaper is just as strong and most other methods. Notice the new terrain also gives me a barrier should an earthquake tip a car over! Jim :)

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HOexplorer said:
Around the four inch high edges I have to make some scenery. I've decided to pretty much make this layout using rolled up newspaper instead of cardboard webbing or other terrain formers. Once covered with two layers of plaster cloth rolled newspaper is just as strong and most other methods. Notice the new terrain also gives me a barrier should an earthquake tip a car over! Jim :)

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Nice and a good idea Jim.
Mike
 


I like that slight incline. That's one thing that I fear about layouts- it seems everything can be perfect and yet one locomotive will take a notion and derail in the most spectacular way over the side. The most expensive engine I have took a header twice in the same spot. Luckily, the damage was very minor, but nothing else has derailed there or since.
 
For the record, the second time I was trying to figure out what happened the first. I'm still not sure. But my layout being "long term-temporary", I screwed a piece of moulding to the side and went on with life. Nothing, including the offending locomotive have derailed there since.
 
Thanks Mike.

RR, Since I have begun building layout without traditional hardboard fascia I have added these subtle 'guardrails' into my designs. When you think about it to make the grade in the first place the builders simply shoved the dirt to the side with no worries. The way I model it is the railroad is so old that the original dirt and stuff is simply overgrown now. That's my story and I'm sticking to it! Jim;)
 
Another look at supports for the next piece of plywood. I was able to make the boss happy by cleaning out some of the excess wood. In the back ground you can see a start to making some hills. Jim:eek:

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I built a layout ONCE where I built just the layout, scenery and all just to see what is was like to cut and carve for the tracks and towns, etc. Well I learned a good lesson: Plan before building! Not that the other way wasn't rewarding, it was just like building four layouts instead of one. In this photo you can see me trying to fit my small village on the layout. You can see the folded newspapers for hills. Jim:)

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HOexplorer said:
I built a layout ONCE where I built just the layout, scenery and all just to see what is was like to cut and carve for the tracks and towns, etc. Well I learned a good lesson: Plan before building! Not that the other way wasn't rewarding, it was just like building four layouts instead of one. In this photo you can see me trying to fit my small village on the layout. You can see the folded newspapers for hills. Jim:)

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Jim , That is really coming along nicely.
Mike
 
HOexplorer said:
In this photo you can see me trying to fit my small village on the layout.
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You've certainly got a challenge on, Jim. Building an HO scale in that area would be hard enough, but going "O", even in narrow gauge, is going to test your skills. But I guess if you can build "Z" in a suitcase?? At least you shouldn't need magnifying specs.
 


Adding folded newsprint to the sides of the stream walls. The newsprint will be covered with two layers of plaster cloth. Jim:)

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It is a fun day when all the plaster cloth is laid. Remember, everything on the layout is covered. Here I'm just finishing the entrance to the stream.

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When you do streams, creeks, and rivers that run 'off' the layout you should try to hide the entrance to, and the exit from the layout from observers. Make your water course bends around a cliff or copse of trees if you can. Much more realistic as that is what real water courses do! This layout will be a walk-around so it is up to the observer to realize the water continues on. Jim :)
 
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Now we're getting somewhere. Once the layout is covered in plaster cloth then I put the buildings back on the layout to make sure they fit. If they don't usually a gentle press on the plaster cloth is all that is needed. Jim :)

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HOexplorer said:
Now we're getting somewhere. Once the layout is covered in plaster cloth then I put the buildings back on the layout to make sure they fit. If they don't usually a gentle press on the plaster cloth is all that is needed. Jim :)

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Wow Jim , That is coming along really fast and looking great.
Mike
 
Thanks Mike.

Next up is covering the white plaster cloth. Some folks just go to Lowe's and buy some brownish latex paint to do this job. I've stated before that while this paint is not supposed to show, in the long run it actually does. More than show where we miss adding enough ground covers, but somehow latex paint deadens the look of our layouts. I have no reason why other than latex covers everything the same and maybe our eyes just don't like the "look" in the end.

I'm always talking about doing these layout inexpensively. BUT, in one area I do go full price, and that is the Earth Undercoat made my Woodland Scenics. In the picture below is a photo of the bottle and the layout is now covered. Notice that the plaster cloth is all painted, but has enough brighter areas showing a lighter brown thus allowing through some magical process to liven up our finished product. Interesting to me is how something that is completely covered by other material makes such a visual difference in finished form than does latex. One of life's mysteries. Also, I thin this undercoat with water thus lowing costs. Jim :)

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After the undercoat is dry it is time to figure out where to put the rocks if you don't already know. In the photo below I started in the stream bed. Because of tight spaces in the canyon I opted to try and get rid of my extra Sculptamold. I was going to put plaster castings on for rocks, but the work involved didn't make sense in my physical condition. Easier by far to use Sculptamold again. Instead of kinda just throwing the Sculptamold on like previous layouts I have put it on with my hand, simply spreading it on. I wait half an hour and then I dip my hand in water an spread the Sculptamold into a smoother more roundish rock. I do scribe with a knife for layering and cracks, but the difference is the rock looks different this time. Also, I wanted a darker gray this time around. Jim:)

PS Stay tuned because I'm going to show you a new, simpler way, to weather your rocks. Way easier, way simpler, and way more realistic!

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