Over the past year I won a HO Scale Customs photo contest receiving a small Railroadkits.com kit (The Scale Shack). I also received a free FOS Scale Models kit (Rosco's Roast Beef Stand) by buying a $50.00 kit when they ran one of their specials. Together with some amazing textured paper from Greece and the first Jorden I ever built I plan to make a small diorama. The paper will be used in several areas, the main one as the column for a lighthouse.
So here are the four main components of the diorama:
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The scene will be of a setting next to one of the great lakes during the 1930's. The depression is taking its toll but life goes on. A lighthouse will dominate with a food stand, the keeper's house and bus making up the major structures.
The design of the base is like I used at a scenery clinic during EXPO 2018. The textured paper can be bought on ebay. What makes it different is the amount of texture as well as the quality of the printing. I was told by another forum member the paper was originally designed as wall paper. It was a flop so someone got the idea to flip it over and print the brick scenes.
I used a stone texture to cover the foam base. The back will act as a seawall for the scene. A small brick version is used for the foundation on the shed, which will now be the light keepers house. I may use yet another style as the scene progresses.
Here is what the original kit from FOS looks like:
(https://www.modelersforum.com/gallery/785-151119225022.jpeg)
I decided to see how much detail I could add to the small kit. Changes included adding rafter tails, changing the main roof to a wood shake style, adding trim boards where needed, sanding flush the clapboard around the windows and door for better fit. Windows are Clover House glass. The front part of the structure got a little bit of interior added as well as a door to the back building. To address how water can get off the sloped front roof I will add a drain and downspout. A kick plate is already in place. Some additional trim pieces need adding but that is it.
(https://www.modelersforum.com/gallery/785-151119204941-416791835.jpeg)
(https://www.modelersforum.com/gallery/785-151119204940-41678838.jpeg)
(https://www.modelersforum.com/gallery/785-151119204941-416802080.jpeg)
The Light keeper house, like the roast beef stand had some changes made. Here I used a new style of wood shake that is made of real wood. To make the structure look well used I bowed the roof and even had some green mold added.
The bus is a Jorden 1934 version. It is the first Jorden I have built and was a lot of fun assembling.
Finally the lighthouse. At the moment all you can see is the column with the stone applied. I look forward to figuring out how to make it come to life, as well as the entire diorama.
Till Next Time, thanks for reading.
Jim D
Hey Jim:
This looks like a great project. I'm along for the ride.
Karl
Jim,
Looks like an interesting project. I like the way you covered the base with the stone embossed paper. I'll be following your progress.
Thanks Jerry. I'm trying thing out I want to do on layout, figured I'd learn on small stuff first.
Jim D
Very interesting indeed, Jim. I'm a newbie on here and also will be following your progress.
Horton M.
Hi Karl and Horton;
Glad you are along for the ride.
Jim D
Jim, great idea for a diorama and a really good start with those two structures. The use of the scale house as a light keeper's residence is a neat idea and it fits the role well. I like your extra detailing on the structures. The embossed stone paper looks excellent in the close ups--I'm impressed with it and may have to check some of that material out.
Looking forward to your lighthouse, as I am also planning to build a lighthouse but haven't really started on ideas yet--so this will be an excellent thread to follow.
--George
Jim,
Excellent start, I'm in the gallery as well.
Tom ;D
The diorama lighthouse will be modeled as if on a harbor entrance on one of the Great Lakes but is not a prototype structure. The light keeper house has an advertisement for Michigan, so the connection. I found a plan of a typical lighthouse and will be using it for reference.
(https://modelersforum.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.modelersforum.com%2Fgallery%2F785-030120134040-423721139.jpeg&hash=58b17e3108513383dfe74e970eea1a3241609506)
I am going to use the new Silhouette Cameo 3 printer my wife bought. While it is not designed to cut thick styrene or basswood, I am going to use it to print out cardboard mockups and hopefully it will cut the thin styrene needed for the copula. This is the first project I have used it so we will see what happens.
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I am having posting problems so will try to post the balance of update later.
Jim D
Looks like a neat scene Jim.....I'll be watching. :)
Jim:
Very well done so far. Can't wait to see it done.
Karl
Thanks folks, it sure has been a learning experience so far. Now if I can just get the web site to upload my updates and photos.
The design program I use for designing stuff is the free open source Inkscape running on my Mac desktop computer. I am strictly an amateur with this program but I have learned enough to design, print out the walls, roof and catwalk floor. The Silhouette has its’ own design program that comes with it. While not as complete as Inkscape or Adobe Illustrator, it too would get the job done.
After a true learning curve over a couple of days, I was able to print out the parts needed. The sticky mat you are suppose to place the material on for cutting was just not strong enough to hold the plastic sheet in place. Using masking tape to hold the .5mm styrene plastic sheet to the printing mat I was able to have the Cameo accurately cut the design. However, I was not able to cut all the way through the material. I had to snap out the parts from the sheet and with a little sanding the parts are usable. I printed two five sided star pattern parts with holes in the middle. The holes are to allow a plastic straw to slide through the openings and allow the lighthouse to be built while on a stick. At the right point the straw will be sized, cut and glued in place so the electric wiring and lighthouse LED bought from Nngineering can be installed.
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At this point the Boss and I headed off on a two week Caribbean cruise. My wife knows me so she suggested I bring something to putter on while on the trip. So I gathered up what I needed to continue the lighthouse project and off we went. More in a little while.
Jim D
OK we are back and I need to try and catch up on the build. I have tried to post for the past two weeks but have been unable due to site issues. Tonight it looks like things might be working.
The tower for the light house started life as a cardboard core for a roll of toilet paper. I can hear the jokes already. The roll is 26 scale feet in length and 12 feet in diameter. By making a V cut the length of the tube and gluing the tube back together I made it a cone with the top reduced to 10.5 feet in diameter. So it looked like this
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-300120170745.jpeg)
I used the Cameo 3 to design and print out heavy cardstock bracing for the top, middle and bottom of the tower. All had a hole at their center the size to allow a straw to pass though. Each was double thick to make sure it would hold up. The bracing made the tube very close to round.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-020220225909-428411269.jpeg)
With the bracing in place the tube was placed on a straw and put in a vise. I cut out the stone textured paper (Ebay, comes from Greece) I choose a pattern that the brick was large so it would not be noticeable the rows were not completely horizontal due to the cone shape of the tube. Since the taper of the tube was slight visually the pattern lined up just fine and you can not see anything off.
I cut the paper a little wider and longer then needed. I smeared White Elmers glue over 1/2 of the tube, its entire length. Making sure no air bubbles formed I worked the paper around the tube. I put Elmers on the other half of tube and finished wrapping the tube. At this point I let it dry overnight to ensure it was dry. The next day I used a straight blade and trimmed the excess off the two ends and trimmed up where the two halves came together. A little more Elmers was needed to make sure the seam was solid and flat.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-020220225909-428371127.jpeg)
The next part I did while on our two week cruise. I took what I needed in a small suitcase. However I would have to hand paint the walls rather than spray paint. While it came out fine I still think airbrushing would have been better.
First I took the walls and roof parts and smoothed them out with a file. Everything was then primed lightly with Kraylon gray primer.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030120134600-423792418.jpeg)
The coupla walls, roof, windows and door were brush painted using Cermacoat Opaque Red. I had to dilute the paint some as it comes out of the bottle very thick. However, it really goes on smooth and is flat in color. The tower windows were painted Cermacoat Antique White.
I did not paint the backs of any of the parts, just left them gray since no one will see them. When I test fitted the windows and door they fit perfectly. This is were using the Cameo 3 really paid off. While I could not get it to cut all the way through the .5mm styrene, it scored the parts deep enough they easily snapped out of the sheet.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030120134600-42378758.jpeg)
Finally I installed microscope slide cover glass on the backs of all windows and doors. Using calipers I measured the width and height of backside slot Tichy has molded to hold their acetate windows. Then I placed masking tape vertically on the cutting mat. I used this as a fence to butt the glass up to for cutting. Marking the cutting mat with a fine tip black marker for length I wanted cut, I used a General Tool scribe and a thin steel ruler to score the glass to the correct dimensions. The glass is so thin that with practice you can cut it clean without even scoring.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030120134601-423811228.jpeg)
Here you can see the back of the window being glued in place using Tacky glue. Normally I like to use the UV cure CA glue, just a small drop in corner works great. However I forgot and left that glue home. The Tacky glue worked fine. The last picture shows how clear the slide glass looks. It also shows I had cut openings for the tower windows and door. Then glued them in place. I had printed a cone shaped diagram at home showing the right places to put the window and door.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-020220225909-428392105.jpeg)
The last step I did was to place the catwalk in place and glue it to the tower. I glued one of the five sided stars to the catwalk. It will be used as a guide for placement of the copula walls.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-020220225909-4284047.jpeg)
Great progress Jim.....looking good. 8)
Below is the link I told you about for the new Garmin Autoland system.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-ruFmgTpqA
The last thing I did while on the cruise was build the roof and walls for the copula. First I framed both the outside and the inside of each window using scale 1 x 3 basswood that had been stained using Hunter Medium Brown. This not only framed the window and made it stand out but covered any slight mismatch the Tichy window had with the cut out opening. I glued the framing onto the walls with Tacky glue.
Using the two five sided braces on the straw I put in place and cemented the walls to each other using Tamyra thick modeling cement. I did not glue the walls to the floor or the roof at this point, I knew I would be needing to work a lot in this area with the railing method I wanted to use and the lighting.
Finally I cemented the triangle pieces for the roof I had previously designed and 'printed' on the Cameo 3 together. To connect the parts visually I covered the joints with 4 x 4 scale styrene for the roof and 2 x2 scale styrene for the wall corners.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030220153652-428422033.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030220153652-428442299.jpeg)
With that we were back in port and the cruise was over.
In the photo's you can see the glass windows getting dirty. I keep having to take things apart and back together as I work my way through how to proceed with the construction. When I get everything right they will clean up fine with alcohol.
I forgot to mention part of the lighthouse build completed on the cruise. I installed bracing around the underneath of the catwalk. Each consisted of .5mm styrene cut in a triangle shape with two sides measuring 2 scale feet by three scale feet. Each was cemented to a styrene board measuring scale .5 foot by 3 foot scale. I painted them Ceramcoat Charcoal. Each was installed so as to be between each railing. There are 13 of them.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030220205922-428552059.jpeg)
To make the catwalk railing I wanted something that would have clean lines and look nautical. A friend of mine in Ohio had showed me his layout having a great lake freighter he was in the process of making. To make the railings he had used etched brass stanchions (intended scale 100:1) bought from a company in England. The stanchion had three holes spaced across it. These would allow .015 inch piano wire to pass through. Further it had the bottom mounting plate designed as part of it. In the real world these triangle plates are used to attach the railing to the deck. In modeling they act as self-aligning height guides. When the stanchion is placed in the deck slot it stops at the triangle, thus all are exactly the same height. The tricky part I was attempting was to have these stanchions form a circle with the wire passing through all and bonding to itself.
I will not bore you with details of all the failed attempts I had, however I stayed with it and found a method that worked. The items needed are the brass stanchions, .015 coated beading wire and Hobby Lobby's super glue. The name of the suppliers are shown in the following pictures.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030220205922-428561891.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030220205922-428571083.jpeg)
You may have noticed the catwalk itself appears different from one picture to another, it is. In my trials I went through several versions until the one you see on the finished catwalk. The material needed that worked is .8 mm ABS. The more rigid material helps give the stanchions something sturdy to glue too resulting in them staying in place and at a 90 degree angle. I was able to get the Cameo 3 to score the material enough to cut it out and make the hole for the straw to pass through. I also had the Cameo score where the stanchions (railings) were to be placed. Using an exo-knife with #11 blade I carefully pushed the tip of the blade into the plastic at the points marking the railings. I kept the cut to about 1/32 of inch with the slit perpendicular to the edge of the catwalk.
If you look carefully at the picture of the brass etching sheet you will find the parts that are the railings on the lower part. The long rectangular parts have the three holes and are squared off at the bottom. The top is connected to an eye bolt and will be cut from it.The other parts on the sheet are ladders, hand holds and such. All in all the sheet from Scale Links has many high quality parts that can be used in modeling, not just railings.
Using my best nippers I cut out the 13 railings and a few extra in case they were needed (they were). Using a Dremel drill with an extra fine drum sanding wheel I lightly sanded the any spurs left from the cutting. I used the Dremel on its lowest speed setting (mine is a battery powered version) and made sure I was very light on the touch so as not to damage the brass.Just a quick touch is needed to clean any spurs away.
The following picture shows the first railing put in its slot on the catwalk. You can see the perpendicular slits made at the points scored for railings. If you zoom in you can see the railing is not fully seated yet and the triangle stoppers are clearly seen. Further, it is slightly bent. As careful as I was I still found it hard not to bend the railing slightly when pushing it into place. The method of pushing the railing in place is to take a pair of good quality fine tip tweezers, hold the railing just above the triangle shape at the bottom and carefully push until it is seated. To be correct to prototype the larger triangle on the railing needs to be on the inside. The photo shows the railing backwards but it was corrected. Without a doubt you will need a good pair of magnifiers in order to see the parts clearly.
After all railings are seated and upright use a pair of medium paddle end tweezers to straighten the railings back into shape. Fortunately they go back to correct shape with not much trouble.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030220205922-428581845.jpeg)
If you use these stanchions on your own project make sure you do not prime or otherwise paint them until everything is in place and the wire run through the uprights. The tolerances are extremely close, any paint will stop the wire from passing through the holes.
The railings bottom below the triangles passes all the way through the plastic. In order to be able to push through entirely and not bend the bottom of the railing I found taping the catwalk to a shot glass worked perfect. The glass gave a good base but was out of the way so the bottom barb did not bend. Here I have placed all railings in place but still need to straighten each fully.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030220205922-42859468.jpeg)
I found .015 coated steel beading wire was able to pass through the stanchions if done with care. The advantage of the beading wire is it is flexible enough to be shaped into a circle and remain that way, putting little or no pressure on the stanchions (railings) To keep the stanchions upright, straight and not bend while the wire was passed through I made a jig to go on the top. I used one of the failed catwalks for this purpose. Using a .015 drill I opened up the holes to allow the top of each stanchion to pass through and be held in place. I then used a rubber band to hold the top and bottom catwalks together, sandwiching the stanchions between them.
Here is what it looked like
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030220234341-428631186.jpeg)
Here is how the wire looked when in place with the top removed for the picture
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030220210302-428601771.jpeg)
To complete the catwalk railing it needed the wires to be connected as seamlessly as possible. I cut each wire so just enough was left to be glued to the other end near one of the stanchions. I then used Hobby Lobby thick super glue. Apparently the coating reacts well with this glue, just a small amount on a toothpick was placed on one end. When the other end was brought to it the wire bonded almost instantly with no seam visible.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-040220000142.jpeg)
With the wires in place I again made sure each stanchion was straight and seated to the catwalk. I then used the Hobby Lobby glue and joined the stanchions to the catwalk from underneath so no glue would show. When dry I used cutters to clip off the excess brass footer flush with the bottom of the catwalk.
Finally I sprayed the entire catwalk and railings with a light coat of Krylon gray primer. When dry I placed a smaller circle within the catwalk and using double sided tape held it in place while I airbrushed the catwalk and railings with Badger Antique White. Removing the inner circle allowed the gray primer to show so the floor of the catwalk is gray where a person would walk and white everywhere else. Here are is the completed catwalk.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030220210303-428611695.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-030220210303-428622071.jpeg)
That is all for now.
Good progress Jim, I'm following along.
I love lighthouses.
Thanks for following Graig and Carl and thanks for the encouragement.
With the lighthouse outer structure complete I made the actual light. To keep it simple I first super glued a round disk to the straw about 3 scale feet from the straw's top. I intend to have the light mechanism able to be removed if needed so want the roof and the straw to able able to come out. The disk will ensure the light is at the correct height. I made another disk and glued it to the top of the straw. The diameter of this disk was the same as that of a container used to keep contents dry. I cut the container bottom off, cleaned off the printing using acetone. To simulate window panes I glued scale 2 x 2 plastic rod to it after having painted the lengths in red. The top I painted bronze just in case it could be seen. Prior to gluing the the cylinder to the disk I put a 5mm warm white bulb in place and ran the wires down the straw to the other end.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-060220205524-42946326.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-060220205836-429482060.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-060220205710-429471888.jpeg)
The last part of the lighthouse needing to be made was the base. I first printed out six .5mm styrene circles 12 HO scale diameter. Each had a step built out from the circle. I stacked and glued the circles together. Using a textured paper printed red brick I glued it around the circle and over the formed step. Using a black magic marker I blacked out the white edges of the paper. Once dry the assembly was super glued to the base of the tower. The finished lighthouse less the top is shown below. As you can see, unless literally inches from the structure the brick looks very good.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-060220212015-42949226.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-060220212015-42950311.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-060220212015-42951376.jpeg)
The upper part of the diorama will consist of the lighthouse and the lightkeepers home. The scene is of the 1930's. Many homes at that time had little of no electricity, the lightkeepers place is one. I did make sure he had a fireplace and a screen door to let the evening air in. I took this picture after much other work had been done so it is a little bit of a spoiler.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-060220223248-429521036.jpeg)
As government property a fence is in place to keep people out and keep them from falling into the water. To build the fence I will be using the same brass etched stanchions as for the catwalk. Since the railings will be straight I will use .015 bronze wire. The fence will be built on what will resemble a steel retaining wall cap that will go over the brick. To make the fence I found it easier to put the bronze wire through the stanchions first. I cut .5 mm styrene sheets to be the the length or width of the diorama and 1.5 HO scale feet wide. Marking the resulting strips every 8 scale feet I put the stanchions with wire into the drilled holes and superglued them in place.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-060220194759-42924806.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-060220194759-42926945.jpeg)
I also needed to make a staircase to allow the lighthouse keeper access. Using Inkscape I designed the steps. At the top of the stairs will be a platform having a steel mesh floor. This was made by having the Cameo 3 printer cut out the needed steps, side bracing and 2 open squares. Screening material was sandwiched between the two squares and the squares cemented together. The railings proved to be the hardest part, the wire would not work, even the bead wire. Instead I had to use EZ Line and while it really was not easy it did work.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-060220194800-429281840.jpeg)
To complete the look of iron bracing on the retaining wall I added iron plates (Tichy makes them) to the corners and the middle of each styrene strip. WIth all parts ready I airbrushed them using the following Badger paints to get the result I was looking for of a structure that was beat up but still going strong.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-060220195313-429301449.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-060220194800-429291692.jpeg)
More Later
This is going to be utterly amazing when done.
hey Jim:
Well done so far. I'm following along.
Karl
Hi Bob and Karl;
Thanks for the great comments and for following along. This project has pretty much taken on a life of its own. I started it over two months ago basically to see what I could do with the textured paper I had bought from Greece and to find a home for the small kits I had made. The platform used for the scene is a copy of one given to me at a clinic during the 2018 Albany Expo. It is not truly square , was a little beat up from travel but a great memory. The corrugated fence I will use on the scene came from a clinic at that show as well. I took all the parts left over from the clinics and made the first diorama while there. Here is what I came up with then.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-100220023525-42970438.jpeg)
Well back to the project at hand. With the lighthouse made I turned my attention to the electrical needs for the scene. The operating light for the lighthouse is from Nengineering. It has a circuit as part of it that pulses the light to mimic the intensity of a flashing lighthouse strobe. The food stand will have two grain size LED warm lights with prewiring. Finally there will be a streetlight. The lighthouse needs between 9-18 volts. The other three lights use about 3 volts each. To make sure all was powered up fully I decided on using 18 volts to be provided by two 9 volt batteries run in series. To ensure I could get to the electric board and remove parts as needed I decided to make a base unit which the foam diorama will attach too.
To make the base I used my new table saw to cut a sheet of micro-plywood the needed dimensions (copied from the base with a pencil.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-100220020801-42964416.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-100220020801-429662272.jpeg)
I wanted the base to tie to the rest of the scene so I made the walls out of 1/4 x 1/4 basswood. I cut the lengths so one layer sat on and overlapped the layer underneath. Using Hunterline Gray alcohol stain I dunked all of the cut sides for a few minutes. When dry, I glued the first layer to the base using Elmer's and then reversing the pattern I glued the second layer to the first. Holes were drilled in the four corners of the base and 2 inch cut bamboo stick glued at each point. Finally I drilled a hole out located at the back left hand side. A toggle switch will go there. I did not take pictures as I should have but these should give you the idea.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-100220020801-42967948.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-100220020920-42969788.jpeg)
I then made a holding area for the two batteries. They should stay in place as there is little area around them to enable them to shift. I hooked up two battery caps so the batteries can be replaced as needed. The power side wiring from one battery went to a buss bar, the ground went to the positive side of the other battery. battery line on the buss was connected to a toggle switch. The black wire from the lighthouse circuit was connected on the bus to draw from the power line of battery through the switch. Continuing on the circular circuit the red line of the lighthouse circuit board goes to a second perpendicular buss. This bus will be used to connect the lights into the circuit. Coming back from this bus a black line runs to the first buss and connects to the positive side of a current limiter. The black line from the second battery connects to the other side of the current limiter and completes the circuit. The busses and lighthouse board were super glued to the base floor. Sounds like more than it was, here is the result.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-100220020801-42968985.jpeg)
Next up scenery.
My first thoughts on the design of the scene was to have the lower section paved for most of it with dirt (sand) behind the food stand and along the right side. The upper section would be rugged dirt covered in grasses and some granite type rock showing through. First I masked off the areas were the structures would be (turned out some ended up in different positions but that is another story). I brushed down Mod Podge and water glue on the upper section. Using a tea strainer I dusted the top with Woodland Scenics Fine Turf. I know, you can get dirt from the back yard and I often do but here I wanted a very fine dirt and the turf works great. Using a disposable eye dropper, I took 'wet water' (water with detergent added) and gently wetted the entire area. Then I filled the dropper again with the mod podge solution and covered the entire top section. I left it to dry overnight.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-100220094524-429711282.jpeg)
For the bottom I decided to try the Rust-oleum Texture Spray Paint I have seen others using on their building to create a stucco effect. With the upper section masked off as well as areas on bottom where the food stand and staircase will be I sprayed the paint on the lower section.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-100220094525-429722221.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-100220094525-429732172.jpeg)
I like the look, it makes for a pretty realistic beat up road. I airbrushed the bottom using light gray and working my way up to darker shades of gray as well as patches of brown. When I put the structures in place it looked good, just not the scene I wanted. So I did a do-over, but here how it looked before I went in a different direction.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-100220094810-429742147.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-100220094525-429722221.jpeg)
As a scene on a northern great lake it I wanted to paint a rugged, rural type setting. To that end I added gravel (fine ballast), brown turf and airbrushed both to make the colors more like the region. I used the following to accomplish this.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-110220205641-429872017.jpeg)
I again masked off where the buildings are located and removed the textured paint from the area to be changed. I had previously airbrushed a section of laser cut sidewalk so as to look like a used but cared for walkway. I had bought the sidewalk as part of a kit from KC's Workshop. Using Tacky glue I placed the sidewalk across the front of the diorama. For the parking area I applied modge podge thinly using my finger then, with a small strainer, I gently spread fine ballast over the modge podge. Using a disposable eye dropper I soaked the gravel with 'wet' water to help with applying spray adhesive, which I did next. I let the everything set overnight. The next day I airbrushed the gravel and the fine turf previously applied so they had more of the colors for that region. Also, I wanted the parking area to look used and stained from use. When dry I put the structures in place to see the result.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-110220210200-430061503.jpeg)
More in a few.
Looking good Jim.....great progress. 8)
Jim,
Great diorama and very nice scene.
Tom ;D
Thanks Greg and Tom. I am still hoping for the Boss and me to visit again, just time keeps flying by faster. Tom hope your MIL is doing better.
Hey Jim:
Looks great love your little diorama.
Karl
Thanks Karl, it has been a great teaching project. Next up Static Grass. I have a small applicator bought from WWS which is designed for small area, like what I am doing. It works great with 2 mill to 6 mill grass. Due to the small hopper size it can not handle anything larger, but for what I am doing it is perfect.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-110220205641-43002989.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-110220205642-43003191.jpeg)
I took the structures back off and placed the scene in a cardboard tray to keep the grass from flying everywhere when applied. Also, it allows me to tap it all back into a tray after each application and reuse what did not stick.
Working one spot at a time I used a disposable eye dropper to apply a 50/50 solution of Elmer's glue and water. I used to use Modge Podge but continue to find Elmer's works best for most applications. It and Hobby Lobby's Extreme Glue (super glue) have become my glue of choice. With the area coated I used the applicator to apply 2 mill 'spring color' static grass. I am not sure the brand, it came in a small packet with the applicator and I decided to use it up. After applying I took the scene out of cardboard tray, tapped the grass off into the tray and poured the unused grass back into a small container holding the unused grass. Next, using a sheet of paper to protect areas I did not want sprayed I applied a light coat of Spray Adhesive made for static grass and sold by WWS. This adhesive is a glue mixture designed to allow you to add to the grass already applied and not wait for the first glue to dry. I switched the hopper to a 4 mill 'summer blend' and applied it to most but not all of the same area. This produced a nice mixture to uneven grass. With one area done I repeated the process for the next area. Took a little while but I liked the results.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-110220205642-430041129.jpeg)
After the glue dried I used an airbrush to color the grass to match the time of year (late summer) and location (Upper Michigan on Great Lake). I also dusted the tips of some of the grass to make it look like dandelions and other flowers.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-110220205642-43005247.jpeg)
I also applied to signs to the front retaining wall. One says No Parking and the other No Dumping, you can imagine how well that is going to work out.
While everything on the diorama was drying I worked on the lighthouse. Using brown heavy EZ string as vine stock I smeared Elmers glue on it. I then passed it though a tray of Scenic Express Super Leave. I had mixed a lite green color and dark green color together to produce variation. To cover any sections missing leaves I simply sprinkled leave over the line while holding it. When I made several lengths of the vines and let everything dry overnight.
Next day to add more color to the vines I airbrushed them just like I did the static grass. Using a toothpick I placed Elmers glue up the seam on the tower to cover it with the vines. I also had branches of the glue come off the main section so as to create a realistic pattern. The vine strings were placed carefully on the glue and worked into place. I made sure a couple hung down below the foundation so they could be continued on the front of the retaining wall. Here is what came out.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-110220210200-430071276.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-110220210200-430082298.jpeg)
With the grass in place everything was put back on but this time each has some glue holding in place. I also decided the lightpole was just to 'nice' for this scene so it was removed and a telephone pole (1/8 dowel that had been roughed up and stained brown with Hunterline) put in its place.
So here is were we are now. Starting to come together.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-110220210200-430102322.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-110220210200-430091162.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-110220210401-43011120.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-110220210402-43012874.jpeg)
Since my last post I was able to finish the diorama and have it reviewed today by NMRA judges for the Diorama AP. While the meeting was at the division level many of the national board members were in attendance, thus I truly had some of the best (all MMR rated) modelers in the organization reviewing. Through a mix up I had been told I need not fill out the normal required forms, turned out I did so the judges were only able to review and give their opinion on merit and make suggestions to for areas of improvement. Still the good news was the model would meet the requirements for the AP award, I need to fill out the required paperwork and bring it to another judging but it should pass, especially with all the suggestions I was given. I wanted to see what I could achieve, and exceeding the required points of 87.5 (out of possible 125) was worth learning what is involved in the NMRA AP program. I am told I would have just met the requirements so I have a long way to go, but it was interesting.
Here is the finished scene (except for some reason the transformer on light pole decided to fall just before I took this picture.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-220220210133-431852106.jpeg)
Here is the same picture with the main observations and suggestions for improvement.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-220220210416-4318867.jpeg)
Here are the other sides of the diorama. Not seen are the actual lights, the Tower lights with a control board having the LED come on and off as if the beacon was flashing. The street light is a yellow color and the food stand front part is lit to show the interior.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-220220210416-43189256.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-220220210417-431901850.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-220220210417-431911728.jpeg)
Finally, here is a pretty good photo of the scene.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-220220210417-431921526.jpeg)
Thanks for following along.
Jim D
Looks really good, Jim.
Lots of believable action going on without it feeling over done, and all looking very natural. There is some really nice weathering and the signage looks especially well done.
I use 4"x2" for railings. I think they would be happy with that???
Cheers, Mark.
Well done Jim.....great scene & detail. 8)
Thanks Mark and Greg;
I appreciate the comments guys, thanks for the ideas and checking in. I fixed up all the improvements suggested by the judges and made a few more details. I decided to get the brass stanchions to work as railings for the staircase. In the pictures the railings are curved but will be straight come contest time. When all done made some backgrounds to reproduce a town and took some finished pictures.
In April we will have the diorama judged at the Sunshine Regional meeting. Now it is time to get back to the layout.
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-090320211244-43409672.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-090320211244-434081338.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-090320211244-43407613.jpeg)
(https://modelersforum.com/gallery/785-090320211245-43410908.jpeg)
Jim,
Nice work ! Take the photos and this thread information of your build to the AP contest too. Remember 87 1/2 points is only a 70 percent grade.
Correct any items mentioned by other modelers to pick up those extra points prior to the event.
Good Luck !
Tommy
Jim:
Very well done. Love the little restaurant too.
Karl
Quote from: postalkarl on March 10, 2020, 05:42:09 PM
Jim:
Very well done. Love the little restaurant too.
Karl
I agree, NMRA has standards but it is still nicely done.
Tom ;D
Very nice and effective lighting work, Jim. I really like this scene.
--Opa George
Great looking diorama Jim
Looks great Jim
I just found this thread. I love it. Great work!
John