Last year when I arrived here the 2024 Challenge was winding down; wow I've been here almost a year already. Anyway I thought it would be fun to have a go; not that I need another project right now.

To try to satisfy some of the requirements here is something I found online awhile ago as a source of inspiration for this diorama:



The diorama will be scratch built in O scale and probably in the neighborhood of about 8x12 inches; give or take but will be well under the 288 sq.in. limit. This will be a new challenge for me since I have never built anything that looked old and disused. While this will be a scratch build, the detail items will be purchased from the online vendors I use; 3D printing is way above my skill level.



The first item of business was to draw up a structure plan and since O scale uses 1/4 in = 1 ft. I grabbed a fresh piece of graph paper which has a 1/4 inch grid so that worked out perfectly. One item of note, I usually plan where the outside lumber goes and any interior studs/beams I figure out as I build which for me is an easier way of doing construction. The second item of business was to place an order with Northeastern Lumber which should arrive in about 3 days from now. While I wait for the wood I'll go back and work on my other current project.

 

Some time ago I was looking though my computer files when I ran across Brian Nolan's "Ullins Machine Shop." After looking over the photos I thought it would make a nice project. Now I know Deemery (Dave) is also in the middle of his Machine Shop build but his is a kit while mine will be scratch built.

Some personal history:
Quite a few years ago Rick started a thread in the RR-line Forum building a Shop patterned after the one built by Steve Pettit. It started out as a thread that Rick was building but as time went on more and more people jumped in; when the thread was finished it was about 120 pages long.

Being inspired by the thread I decided to have a go at scratch building my first Shop. Needless to say that was a learning build of what to do but more importantly what NOT to do. About the same time Karl Allison was kind enough to give me the link to his build on the SW Forum. I spent hours studying his great work and how he did things realizing I was going about things backwards but I did finish the Shop. Fast forward I made a second Shop and this time I used what I had learned previously so it turned out pretty good. Both Shops had rail coming into it for Loco repair.

Now I thought it would be a fun build to do just a Machine Shop, using Brian's Shop as inspiration, and see what I could come up with. After taking some measurements of my second Shop I sat down and started figuring what exactly I wanted this one to look like and how to go about the construction.

Welcome to Hank's Machine Shop

With this build I'm going to try and give more detail on various techniques I use. First thing was to come up with a size; nothing terribly large but a manageable size to be filled with machines and details. Also I decided to have the horizontal steam engine, boiler, and water tank on the side of the Shop this time around. Any rail will be behind the Shop this time more for deliveries more than anything else.



To get started I taped a piece of 1/4 inch graph paper to my glass working plate with a sheet of wax paper over top so the glue won't stick to the paper. Like making any building in real life, I started with the bottom and will work my way up. The floor measures 36 x 20 scale feet. The base frame is made up from 8x8's grained where it'll be visible only.



The floor joists are made from 6x6's grained and colored with chalks, clear alcohol then given a coat of A&I; again only what will be visible. With the floor having to support quite a bit of weight from the various machines I wanted to use a beefier size lumber.



The floorboards are made from 4x10's grained, colored with chalks and clear alcohol then given a liberal coat of A&I to bring out the grain. Each row was constructed using either 2 or 3 pieces of flooring per row to look more realistic. Each joint received some extra graining on the ends with my plumbers wire brush and yes I did add nail holes throughout. Also I used a darker color for the floor to add some "age" to it.

My goal is to have a Shop that looks used over time but well taken care of. Too many times I've seen shops that look like they're "on their last legs", which is what the builder intended, but I'm sure there were many throughout this Country that were used but well taken care of.

The next task is to elevate the floor to the point where my Ford TT truck can back up to a dock in the front and be even with the truck bed for some modeling variety and for a different look from what I've modeled previously. Come along and join the fun. 

Over the past few years of modeling I realized there are two things I really enjoy building; one is anything that has belts and pulleys and the second is creating scenes or dioramas. That being said I've decided to follow my passion and build what I enjoy. I was a little torn as to where to start this thread since everything will be scratch built but in the end they will be dioramas.

Now that I have an On18 small layout I decided to take my old On30 layout and utilize that for a place to display my dioramas. I replaced some of the foam and at some point the entire thing will get a coat of brown paint just to make the base look better.

Ok, let's get down to business shall we. I thought it would be fun to build a scene with a portable saw mill that a logging company might use and this is of my own design:



This is what I'm starting with; 2 pieces of half inch foam, that I acquired free of charge for my local trash transfer station, that I glued together to keep all the bases the same and to give it more strength. This diorama measures 15 x 9 inches. Decided to step out of my comfort zone and try my hand at laying the track myself. After ordering a set of Kadee HO scale track gauges I set to work. The ties are grained and colored 3x10's for a beefier looking tie and the rail, which has been rusted on the sides, is by Atlas. All of the scenes will be built in On30.



This is a refurbished small flat car that I had on hand. The wood is grained and colored using 4x12's for the sides and 2x10's for the deck; this will serve as the log car.

Next I'll start building the machines and of course I'll still be working on my On18 layout as well. Thanks for stopping by for a look and please leave your comments and/or suggestions; they are appreciated.

 

Probably about a year and a half ago, on the RRL Forum, I designed and built a Sawmill. Knowing how expensive the kit was from Sierra West I opted to design and build my own using SW machinery; although I never did finish the project.

Fast forward, a few weeks ago I was looking at it sitting on the shelf and decided it was high time to finish the project. That being said, I thought I would start a thread showing photos from the inception to present along with the a few changes I'll be making along the way.

I'll be showing a condensed version of the build so as not to bore you. Enough chattering let's get started, shall we?



The first thing I did was to order lumber from Northeastern before getting started; this was the largest order I had ever ordered and happily I ended up using about 90% on the build.



The actual length of the Mill is 25 inches and the width is 7 inches at the widest point. Also I decided to make it to sit at ground level as opposed to building it on piers. Using 3 sheets of graph paper I set to making the design to glue the lumber to; this is the largest structure I have ever built.



Since most of the wood shown would be covered by flooring I opted just to color it with chalks and clear alcohol then added a coat of A&I. The floor joists are 4x10's and the supporting pieces underneath are 3x12's.



This is the base covered in flooring which was grained with a wire brush, colored with chalks & clear alcohol then given a coat of A&I. I also did some basic weathering while the floor was empty. The hole in the floor, on the righthand side, was made purposely for a pulley on one of the machines.

We'll end here for now. The next installment I'll show the machines used and explain a little about them. So follow along on my progress as I review the previous parts of the build and finish the project altogether. Stay tuned.

After much contemplation, head scratching , doodling, and searching the internet I've come up with a plan for my small layout. I'm going back to my roots and building a Micro Layout in On18. Years ago, before my foray into On30, I built micro layouts in Gn15 using G scale with standard HO track and chassis which measures out to 15 inches between the tracks in G scale. Micros have a few basic requirements. Firstly they cannot exceed 4 square feet, NOT including a "fiddle track or fiddle yard"; otherwise they're not a Micro but a Mini layout. Secondly you must be able to switch cars on the layout and it must have a clear reason for its existence; otherwise it's considered a diorama.

My new layout measures 36 x 14 inches and weighs in at 3.9 square feet. The construction is pretty straight forward with a 1x3 pine frame screwed and glued together with an extra support in the middle. On top of the frame is a sheet of 1/4 inch birch plywood glued and tacked to the frame. The reason for the ply is twofold, added strength and a base so I can carve out the foam in a few areas. Lastly is a piece of 1 inch green foam glued to that. Now I have a lightweight and strong base for my new empire.

While searching the internet I came across a very simple track plan with two turnouts and a turntable which I've wanted to model and have done so only once. Why a simple track plan for such a small layout you ask? Easy, it will still give me switching opportunities but also a good amount of room for scratched buildings and more of a dramatic scenery profile.

Welcome to Jacobs' Landing Light Railway:

Jacobs' Landing is a light railway set sometime in the 1950's. Its primary purpose is to supply materials and goods to the business located within. This is an area that time forgot with people still using horses and wagons who live in a nearby town down the road a piece or two. About the only modern conveniences  that can be seen is one of those new fangled center cab diesel engines and Mr. Jacobs' 1928 Ford TT pickup truck. Business is good for everyone concerned making Jacobs' Landing very prosperous.

So enough yapping:



This is the foundation for my new layout all set to go and no I'm not listening music; by the obvious CD laying on the foam.



"So why have a CD & case planted in the layout" you may ask. Simple, it's the foundation for my turntable. I traced the case onto the foam then proceeded to carve out the underneath. Once finished it looked like the outside of a golfball on steroids. The case fit well but was a little unstable the way it was. My solution was to place some sheetrock mud (plaster) into the hole then place the case on top and gently rocked the case back and forth until it was level and flush with the top of the green foam. I allowed it to dry for 24 hours which made the case stable and secure.



This is a finished turntable that I did years ago on my GN15 micro. It's cheap, as in free, and works quite well for turning a loco albeit manually.

So this is the beginning, not earth shaking but a beginning  none the less. Next will be some track experimentation then hopefully the track crew will come in and start laying track. Thanks for stopping by for a gander; any comments are appreciated.

It has been said that those who model in O scale narrow gauge, specifically On30, have gone to the "dark side" of modeling.

Back around 2009, after a thirty year hiatus, I decided to get back into model railroading knowing I wanted something small that could be completed fairly quickly and "not break the bank." Searching the internet I ran across a website by Carl Ardent called "Micro Layout Scrapbook" which was quite intriguing seeing what could be achieved in a very small space. About the same time I joined a railroad forum called the   "Gnatterbox" which primarily featured Gn15 scale along with some O gauge stuff; everything being narrow gauge . One of the major players there was Ian Holmes. Sadly a few years later Carl passed away as did the forum.

Fast forward to present day and I discovered Ian Holmes has an E-magazine called "Micro Model Layout Dispatch" featuring micro layouts from around the world which is a free quarterly publication.

So.....why am I sharing all of this? Some time ago as I was walking upstairs to the train room when I realized that at some point I may not be able to navigate stairs any longer which would put an end to my modeling days and I knew my current layout was far too large to be moved downstairs onto the first floor. Also if I ever needed to sell our house and move into an apartment the current layout would become a thing of the past. I needed a viable solution for down the road before it was needed.

Now nothing is set in stone, as I'm still mulling things over in the ''ol gray matter" that perhaps a fully contained very small layout might just be the solution.....sort of a micro layout if you will. I was thinking around 36 x 14 inches, two turnouts, a scratch built turntable, and would be modeled in On18 using N-scale track & turnouts. This size would fit downstairs perfectly, or could be moved to a new dwelling, and I could still run some trains as well as doing a little modeling.

I'm curious as to some of your thoughts on an endeavor such as this one so any feedback would be greatly appreciated before I think about venturing into the "Darker side of the dark side."

Thought I would share a diorama I did last year called "J.D.'s Machine Shop:



This is the back with the a scratch built water tank, an old boiler, a disused vertical steam engine, and a few other pieces of misc. junk.





Here's the left end and the right end looking into the Shop. You'll notice the water tank is piped into the ground with it going underground then up and into the boiler.



The boiler is up on cement piers with coal storage nearby along with a few details on the deck.



Here's a better view of the interior. The Shop itself is about 40 x 18 scale feet. The framing is made up from 6x6's grained and colored with chalks along with A&I. The wall boards are 1x10's finished off the same way as the framing. The floor is 2x10's glued to a piece of thin card. The windows are Grant Line while the machines, pulleys, and steam engine are from Crow River. Also the figures are from Rusty Rail which I painted. The majority of the other details are from Rusty Rail as well.

This project took several months to complete and was a fun build; hope you've enjoyed my efforts.

Good Morning,

The coffee pot's ready along with assorted pastries this morning. Didn't watch the game; really have never been interested.

Cold here in New York @ 22 with a high of 27; is it Spring yet??? Enjoy your day.

Good Morning from a snowy New York sitting @ 20 with a high of 25 and another 3-6 inches of snow possible.

Coffee's ready along with the other morning beverages. Breakfast is homemade biscuits & Country gravy with sides of hash browns.

Some modeling this am then I see snow blowing in my immediate future. Stay warm, be well, and have a great day.

Thought I would share a diorama I made shortly after Sierra West came out with their Blacksmith's details.







The structure itself is of my own design. I only did the back half of the roof so all the details would be visible. The windows were scratch built as well.Also the water cart was another scratched item using wheels from Wiseman. Don't recall where the horses are from but I painted and weathered those as well.

Most of the interior details are Sierra West with the exception of the drill press & motor, Crow River products, on the left and the workbench and cabinet on the right; those were also scratch built. The smithing details came as 3D printed parts which were painted then weathered before gluing into place. Started placing them from the back forward and used tweezers a lot of the time. The pine trees were constructed from dowels and cheap furnace filters spray painted then a fine green flocking was added while the paint was still wet. Since the structure was parallel with the front of the diorama I decided to add the track at an angle just to break up the look.

This was a fun build; enjoy the photos.

Thought I would share a kit I did awhile back that turned into a diorama. It's from Sierra West which is the only kit I've done; I normally scratch-build buildings to fit my railroad.





Some time ago I purchased the kit from someone who was selling off their O scale items. When the box arrived I opened it and quite frankly I was rather overwhelmed at its contents. Sat myself down, went thru the instruction book and thought I can do this. Long story short I followed the clear cut instructions which sort of changed the way I now do my builds.

The diorama was built on a 1 inch piece of green foam and the edges were finished off with balsa strips painted black, glued into place, to highlight the build. I did make a few changes to the instruction's layout like moving the shed from next to the main building and turning it then filling with firewood. All the firewood was cut from twigs from my back yard.

Normally my time is spent working on my layout but I will occasionally take a break and come up with a diorama to build. Enjoy.

Good morning......even though I'm still on the other forum I thought I'd drop by for a moment.
It's 20 with a high of 28 with more snow expected in New York.
Have a great day!!