Superior & Seattle Railroad Build

[jbelwood]

John,


Just to let you know that I've been following this thread on a regular basis.
I can't imagine doing all that plaster work. Your rock work is fantastic and
really shows a lot of perseverance and creativity.

[S&S RR]

John,


Just to let you know that I've been following this thread on a regular basis.
I can't imagine doing all that plaster work. Your rock work is fantastic and
really shows a lot of perseverance and creativity.

John


Thanks for the kind words and stopping by the thread. I enjoyed the plaster work but I'm also glad it's behind me now.  It's time to finish the track work so I can get on with all the structures that need to be built. I actually spent the day today completing the plaster work that needed to be done behind the trestle that I'm currently building. 

[S&S RR]

Today, I fixed the hole in the side of the mountain that was created by the trestle extension. I need to give the plaster a few days to dry and then I will paint it and start building the trestle.  I've already produced about 30 footing castings from the molds I described above. I finished the 33 - 100 lb. bag of plaster with this latest work. I'm buying hydrocal in 1 gallon jugs now.  The big mountains are all complete.

[gnatshop]

Today, I fixed the hole in the side of the mountain 

Now, where in the heck are the Ledbetters gonna put their next still?
This is a growin' empire, you know!!!

Today, the mountain - tomorrow, the sippin' world!! 

[GPdemayo]

No wonder the plaster prices from subs has gone thru the roof for new construction.....John has been cornering the market and the manfacturers can't keep up with demand. 

[S&S RR]

No wonder the plaster prices from subs has gone thru the roof for new construction.....John has been cornering the market and the manfacturers can't keep up with demand. 

Sorry - they should go back down now!

[S&S RR]

Today, I fixed the hole in the side of the mountain 

Now, where in the heck are the Ledbetters gonna put their next still?
This is a growin' empire, you know!!!

Today, the mountain - tomorrow, the sippin' world!! 

Don't worry I have a very special place for them to hide the still.

[GPdemayo]

No wonder the plaster prices from subs has gone thru the roof for new construction.....John has been cornering the market and the manfacturers can't keep up with demand. 

Sorry - they should go back down now!

No worries John.....at least I now know the reason for the price jumps over the last year or so. 

[S&S RR]

Today , the white paster patch was painted black.  This is the best way I have found to prime the plaster.  It is also one of the processes where I use my camera as a modeling aid.  I take pictures from different angles and make sure I have all the white spots painted black before  I go to the next color.  The white spots will show up like Slim's LED lights in pictures if you don't get rid of them.  It usually takes three rounds of painting the white dots for me to get rid of them.  You can't see them when your painting - they just pop up as the paint dries.  I think it's bubbles of paint that open up as the paint dries.  Here are a couple pictures where you can see some white spots.







When this patch is painted with the final colors and blends in with the surrounding rocks it is going to make this scene look so much better.

[ACL1504]

John,

Forget about the price spike in Hydrocal, I'm just amazed that no grass grows under your feet. If this is how it's going to be for me in retirement, I can't wait until Juanuary 1, 2015.

Tom

[S&S RR]

John,

Forget about the price spike in Hydrocal, I'm just amazed that no grass grows under your feet. If this is how it's going to be for me in retirement, I can't wait until Juanuary 1, 2015.

Tom

Tom


Thanks for stopping by the thread.  Technically, I'm not completely retired - I spend a day or two a week doing some consulting.  It pays for the structure kits, locomotives, and scenery supplies including plaster, so I count it as layout time! I hope you guys decide to make the road trip up here to Michigan. I also hope to get down to Florida ( in the winter )one of these years, and see your layout.  Good luck in your retirement!

[S&S RR]

Today, I'm back in production of Pine Tree armatures - drilling the holes for the branches and getting them ready for the A&I bath.

[S&S RR]

In the picture above you can also see that I'm starting to use tints in my hydrocal castings.  I'm playing with how much to add to get the correct concrete color I'm looking for.  The nice part about tinting the casting is that any chips or bumps just look like weathering - you don't get that white showing through that has to be repainted.

[S&S RR]

Today, I finished painting the mountain patch that will be behind the trestle.

[S&S RR]

I also did a test paint of the footings for the trestle.  Which painting process do you think looks the most like an old concrete footing?





I will post the painting process that goes with each number once I see what kind of feedback I get.