Downtown Deco - Trackside Tavern

[ReadingBob]

When I went to the EXPO earlier this year one of the things on my list of 'must haves' was to pick up another Downtown Deco kit.  I also wanted to stop by, say hello to Randy and tell him how much fun it is to build one of his kits.  So, here's the kit I picked up, "The Trackside Tavern": 



The contents of the box, unwrapped.  The castings are very well wrapped to protect them while inside the box.  Downtown Deco offers will replace any damaged castings (and I'll let Randy, if opts to comment here, expound on his very forgiving replacement policies).



More kit contents, wire, instructions, etc.



First step was to even out the back of the castings.  Just a few light swirls in a circular pattern on a sheet of sandpaper does the trick.  Normally I use a sheet of sandpaper that's been glued to a piece of handy board but I couldn't find it and I was in a bit of hurry so I just placed the sheet on my workbench and had at it.  It doesn't take much to even them out.



In one or two places there was glob of hydrocal that needed to be removed from the edge of a casting.  Using a chisel blade in my X-Acto handle I gently rocked the knife back and forth pressing down ever so slightly until the offending glob was cut away.



It only took a few seconds to remove the glob and, after a light touch up with and emery board, everything looked fine.



I removed the door and window casting from the sprue's the were attached to using a sprue cutter and touched them up with and emery board as well.



More in a moment...

[ReadingBob]

Time to glue the walls together.  This structure has an odd shape to it so I started with the walls that need to be at a 90 degree angle to one another.  I glued them together using Titebond Wood Glue and held them in place until the glue set enough to hold them on it's own.  If you opt to clamp them don't over do it or you may be testing the replacement policy.   



More gluing and holding...



After the walls are together you can fill in any gaps in the joints using spackle.  A strip of painters tape on both sides of the gap will prevent the spackling from filling in the nearby details carved into the walls.



Skip ahead a bit, I've already sealed the castings with a cheap, rattle can white primer.  Now it's time to start having some real fun.  I don't know how many pictures I'll show of this process, but I start by applying washes of colors.  I use cheap craft store arcylics and thin them out by dipping my brush in water, then the paint (and sometimes more water) and painting them on the castings.  In some cases it's hardly anything more than dirty water.  I like Raw Umber, Black, Burnt Umber, occasionally some Sienna's, Georgia Clay for the bricks, Gray's for the stonework, etc.



I painted the stucco with a thicker (but still thinned) coat of a light blue acrylic.  Later on I decided I didn't like this particular color and repainted it with a green.
 


I keep adding layers of colors and washes over the structure and fine tuning it as I go.  I find this very relaxing and enjoyable.  One thing that Randy recommends in the instructions is to step away from the project for a while and then see how it looks.  Very wise advice.  I have the advantage of keeping my workbench in the living room of our house (except when we have company) and I notice more than once, that when I'd glance over at the structure when I wasn't actively working on it, that the stone work was too dark or the walls too light.  Things like that.  I'd make a mental note to address that the next time I worked on it.

That's all the pictures I have uploaded to the forum at this point so I'll stop here.  More when I get to it.  As always, feel free to add pictures of your own hydrocal builds, advice, comments, whatever!

[MAP]

Following along with your build.  Looks great so far Bob.  Thanks for the great commentary/tips/instructions as you do the build.  I've got 2 of Randy's kits and will be getting to at least one of them in the Summer.  Keep the progress photos coming!

[GPdemayo]

Nice looking building Bob.....I'll be watching. 

[Zephyrus52246]

Lookin' good so far, Bob.

Jeff

[donatode]

You have my interest Bob (as always!) I'll be definitely tagging along on this build.   

[chris.mincemoyer.3]

I attended Randy's clinic at the Expo and he recommends using 2-Part epoxy.  Do you have good results with the Tite-Bond Glue?

[ReadingBob]

Thanks Mark, Greg, Jeff, Donato and Chris!

I attended Randy's clinic at the Expo and he recommends using 2-Part epoxy.  Do you have good results with the Tite-Bond Glue?

Chris, we drove back to Florida on Saturday (all day Saturday  ) or I would have attended Randy's clinic.  I was sorry I couldn't make that one.

I think I picked up the Tite Bond Glue tip from when I built the hotel that comes in the SRMW Cambridge Crossings kit.  It holds quite well.  But I certainly wouldn't hesitate to use 5 minutes epoxy.  I gave some thought to adding some 1/8" strip wood to the inside, glued in place with 5 minute epoxy to inside of each corner to strengthen the structure but decided it wasn't really necessary.

[Dave K.]

Trackside Tavern is a great starter kit if you're uncertain about hydrocal. Looking good! 👍

[ACL1504]

Bob,

Of course I'm following along as well. Your step by step tutorial is not only excellent but probably appreciated by many who haven't commented.

Tom

[PaulS]

Bob,

Of course I'm following along as well. Your step by step tutorial is not only excellent but probably appreciated by many who haven't commented.

Tom

Amen Tom !  AND Guilty as charged !!   Bob, as always appreciate your outstanding build threads not only to they display your craftsmanship but also plenty of tips and techniques for all of us to consider potentially other ways of doing the same or how to approach certain aspects of building.
Thanks again Bob and keep up the great work and outstanding tutorials.
--Paul
Okay back now to our regularly scheduled hydrocal build thread.

[S&S RR]

Bob


It looks great so far! Another first class build thread too!

[ReadingBob]

Thanks for the nice comments Dave, Tom, Paul and John!

I'm almost finished with this one.  A few roof details, a sign and the canopy are all that's left to add.  I have more pictures to process and upload before I can update the thread but I'm quite pleased with how it's turning out.   

[martin.ojaste]

Bob, i'm now thinking about building a Hydrocal kit because of this thread. Good job.


Marty

[cuse]

I'm absolutely following along and taking notes. I'm pretty certain I'll build my Downtown Deco kit next with your (and Randy's) threads as a guide.


John