Superior & Seattle Railroad Build

[S&S RR]

Yesterday, I forgot to mention that the short concrete wall castings on the right in this picture have detail on both sides.  I will also be making a small mold with the castings on edge to capture the detail on both sides after the is mold is complete.

[S&S RR]

Today, I made considerable progress in building the base for the Brambell's build. I also finalized the design concept in my log book and decided to mark it up on base.  Since this is a build thread here are a couple pages from my log book which will give you and idea of my design process.  I started with all of the pictures George provided of his design.  I looked up all the dimensions of the structures and key features and then started the process of fitting and shaping things to my available space. The design log books give me a way to take the hobby on the road and have served as a valuable tool as I build this layout.

[S&S RR]

I also finished the buildup that allows for the trains to pass underneath to a hidden yard area and also allows for the pit area of the Brambell's build without interference.  The scrap wood stash took a hit to find all the right thicknesses and sizes of wood.  This base will be a hybrid of foam and plywood to make all the dimensions work.

[S&S RR]

The piece that bridges the hidden track will also serve as the surface of the pit area for Brambell's.

[S&S RR]

After all of the layers were glued in place and the correct height was achieved for the pit and the siding track it was time to test and make sure everything was still level. It passed the bubble level test and the digital test. It's ready for the top layer.

[S&S RR]

This is a picture of the top foam layer with the 5/8 spacers in place that take it to the height of the siding track and provide for the correct depth to the pit. I need to finish the foam and the build up on the right side and complete the mark-up to confirm the design. Once I have completed the mark-up I will walk through the changes that I'm making form the standard build of the kit.

[S&S RR]

I completed the pour of the latex mold.  Here is a sequence of pictures that shows the process.  The key to this is to make sure you have equal parts of A and B - I use clear plastic cups to measure each component then I pour them into a third cup for mixing. The other potential mistake is not mix the two components throughly. Once I'm happy with the mix I slowly power it into the mold box - then gently shake the table to get the air bubbles out and let it dry.  After it's dry just cut away the artist foam box and retrieve the original castings and carefully cut away the flash.











You can really see the 3 dimensional depth of the features on George's castings when you look at the mold.  The bright castings tend to wash out the features in the photographs.

[S&S RR]

I also completed the foam/plywood base for the build.  Here is a picture of the base in place on the layout.  This kit is a natural for this site with the elevation change.  You can also see where I need more castings for the wall along the mainline.

[S&S RR]

The next step for the Brambell's build will be to finish the markup and then move the base to my workbench to start the build. I have one more mold to make and then the castings will go to the paint booth for primer.

[tom.boyd.125]

John,
Do you coat the metal castings with anything prior to pouring the mold ?
I will watch your Brambell build, sold mine long time ago 
Tom

[S&S RR]

John,
Do you coat the metal castings with anything prior to pouring the mold ?
I will watch your Brambell build, sold mine long time ago 
Tom

Tom


No - I don't coat the castings.  I have never had a problem with release with metal.  George does have some of the small details in backdraft so you pull small pieces of latex that stick in the details.  If you look real close you can see a couple that I need to pick out before I paint the castings. I do use a release agent when I cast plastic parts - the latex likes to stick to some types of plastic enough to tear the mold. The detail of these castings is amazing and George has really perfected his casting process. Thanks for following along - this one is going to take a long time.

[deemery]

Sorry if I missed this earlier:  Are you casting the parts themselves in resin or plaster?


dave

[Mark Dalrymple]

Looking good, John.  Its very interesting to watch your working process.

Cheers, Mark.

[S&S RR]

Sorry if I missed this earlier:  Are you casting the parts themselves in resin or plaster?


dave

Dave


I will use plaster for stone walls - I just like working with it better than resin.  I have made parts with resin and maybe someday I will get to the point where I like the look as well as plaster.  I have a number of kits in the my build queue that have resin castings so I need to perfect my techniques for resin.

[S&S RR]

Looking good, John.  Its very interesting to watch your working process.

Cheers, Mark.

Mark

I think my process is to have lots of things going at once.  I sure don't get bored. Thanks for following along.