[silky_jack]

WOW - Looks brilliant!

 

[Pierre]

Hi,
I'm totally impressed with your skills, absolutely brilliant. Can you share how you created the platform top edge large paving stones with the white line ?
also is the platform top made from cardboard or plastic ?
I am planning to build my platform soon, and would llike to learn how ….

Many thanks..

 

[Alan D]

Hey Pierre, It has been a very long time since I looked at or updated this thread so I didn't see your post until this morning. I hope you are still on the forum yourself and get a chance to see this post.The summer months I don't seem to have a lot of time for my layout and modelling and related things seems to take a back seat so I'm really sorry I missed your question. But I'm back again ready to have a go once more.

To answer your question The platform tops were made from artists mounting board cut to shape and then sprayed with a matt grey primer from a local pound shop. Then when glued in place I made a tiny little tool from a piece of wood a bit like a marking gauge with a small panel pin through it. The pin was set at 6mm(2 feet in scale) so that when i ran my lttle tool along the edge of the platform it gave me a perfect line which ran in parallel with the platform edge. I then scribed the pavings at 9mm (3 feet) intervals to give the impression of 3x2 slabs.

The rest was paintwork. I stipple painted the "slabs" with Humbrol "Pale Stone" Then when dry used a "00" brush to paint matt black for the mortar between the slabs which I rubbed away immediately with tissue. This leaves black in the scribed groove and gives a dirty look to the slabs. For the White lining it was just a matter of patience, a steady hand and a good quality rigger brush.

For the station walls I am also using artists mounting board and will be painting in a similar fashion with artists acrylics as these are cheaper go a very long way and I can blend the colours to try and get a realistic appearance.

 

[Ian Everitt]

QUOTE I decided to house everything within one unit and it will be clamped to the layout. Having lots of scrap wood in the shed from previous projects I decided that it would cost nothing to build a Control Panel from the bits I had lying around. The size of the pieces of scrap wood also dictated the dimensions of the Control Panel. I must admit I'm rather pleased with the results, it looks a bit retro

I love it - I want one! In fact, I am working plans for my own version

. Mine will be a lot smaller but the idea is the same. Wonderful timing seeing this and a real motivator, cheers

 

[Alan D]

Hey Ian

Glad to know I've inspired you, after all this is what this forum is about, sharing ideas, knowledge and giving mutual encouragement. Keep us posted with your own thread on the subject. I'll be very pleased to watch your progress. I take it your using DC like me?

Cheers

Alan

 

[madon37s]

Hi Alan

When's your next update mate?

Kind regards

Paul

 

[Alan D]

Slight correction here I mentioned above about my 3x2 slabs being 9mm x 6mm. I can only say it was late at night when I posted and I wasn't thinking straight. In 4mm scale the slabs should equate to 12mm x 8mm. Sorry about this, I'm embarrassed now.

Hey Paul I'm still working on the station, more ballasting done and still doing the station walls. Also currently fitting the switches for the upper section to the control panel. It's good at the moment because I can run trains in both directions on both tracks however when I do this the watch trains go by syndrome kicks in and nothing else gets done.

 

[reddo]

Alan - if only I could get to that stage I would be very happy! However, I have now made an executive decision and purchased 2x EF Peco double-slips - a massive investment but alloows me to replace the clunky old GF ones I bought at a fair years ago before I learnt what I was doing and they will also match my fine SMP track. I will doing some work on the track in 10 days time and am on a mission to get the track wired and something running as you can only watch so many DVDs plus the latest free DVD with MR didnt help either.

I will be using copper tape as a bus then feed at 1m intervals to the track. The upside of this ongoing deliberation is I have now planned in a modern loco terminal to house the Bachmann single road shed and the twin road service depot, plus the refuelling and washplant items I will get before Xmas. Need somewhere to house my significantly expanding stable of DCC Sound modern traction....which will all get 'planted' over Xmas.

 

[Alan D]

Sounds like you're a man with a plan. If you're running a thread on it post me the link cause the above fotos look interesting.

 

[reddo]

OK - will do. I will start one in January. I was sterring clear of those Bmann items, regarding them as a cop out against my masochistic tendencies but have realigned my 'logic' such as it is that it can be used for my modern image locos and the kits I jave built will be assigned to my steam era locos.

I am trying to offset the cost of these buildings with the scalescenes downloades of containers so my conscience is somewhat appeased...

Cheers

 

[Alan D]

A little foto update:-

No doggy jokes please

Just the colours I'm using! Artist's Acrylics!

To the right showing the marble effect and on the left is where the magic happens by painting in the mortar between the grooves and rubbing excess off very quickly.

This is meant represent sooty red sandstone and not brickwork. That is why the blocks look so large because in reality they are. Older buildings in the Paisley, Glasgow area predominantly are made of sandstone.

 

[madon37s]

That's looking very nice Alan, thanks for the update and great to see you doing a bit mate.

Kind regards

Paul

 

[reddo]

Brilliant - what is it painted on to...Wills sheets?

 

[Alan D]

Cheers Reddo!

No it's mounting card I embossed myself in the same way I created the platforms. I'm finding it a much easier material to work with than plasticard. It's also cheaper and comes in very large sheets.

 

[reddo]

Very good - I will give that a try as I also find plastikard too heavy to work with. What do you use to emboss - back of scissor blades?

 

[Alan D]

I have a dental pointy tool - don't know what it's called but it's pointy at one end and got a right angled pointy other end with a grip in the middle. I got it in a pound shop in Saltcoats along with the dental mirror and another hooked tool. I have blunted the edge slightly as digging too deep can tear the mounting card. You can also I believe (not tried it yet) use a ball point pen for thicker grooves. I do however sometimes like thinner grooves. For this I use , believe it or not, a very fine crochet hook of my mothers.

 

[reddo]

Thanks...though all this talk of dental tools gives me nightmares...

 

[Mike Pyers]

Nice finish that Alan, I take it using oils doesn't warp the card?
Regards Mike

 

[Alan D]

Hey there Mike

It's acrylics mate. I use little or no water to thin them, it's more of a dry brush technique. And the card is quite solid so no warping problems.

 

[Alan D]

I think I've finally achieved a finish I like

What do you think? Sooty and dirty enough?