Having had so much fun with our first micro layout, Nick wanted to move on to something more ambitious. After pouring over my 30 year stack of Narrow Gauge & Shortline Gazettes, Nick wanted to do a small lumber layout and we chose On30.
Bachmann On30 Porter 0-4-0s can negotiate a 12″ minimum radius and Nick wants a large trestle.
I had an idea but was having a hard time describing it to Nick so I made a quick planning model in 1/8″ = 1″ scale. The footprint is 30″ x 4 feet long and about 4 feet tall.
![Nick's micro layout planning model](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2421/3560078270_bf97c75522.jpg)
I made a pencil sketch to show how the bridge would look.
![LayoutPlan](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3571/3560159426_ecfcb3bca0.jpg)
The lower back will have room for a separate small town/logging camp area. We may do this in HO scale.
![Nick's micro layout planning model](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3369/3560078252_ba61ffde11.jpg)
We labeled lots of the construction dimensions on the planning model so it’s acting as kind of a 3D blueprint.
The frame is made of 3/8″ x 4″ plywood planks ripped on the table saw and connected with 2×2 blocks glued and screwed. We added casters so it is easy to roll around.
![Nick Fitting the Pieces Together](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3373/3526624777_2bc9950185.jpg)
![Nick with the Power Drill](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2328/3527437104_e5ee7c47d4.jpg)
Next we built up the sides and made an oval of plywood as the roadway.
![Nick Drilling](http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2308/3540798787_1c0425d799.jpg)
We’ll cut away the portion that will be spanned by the bridge.
![Nick Drilling](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3324/3540798875_42c6d64634.jpg)
David Lyman a.k.a. Dan D. Sparks posts a great description of how he makes and applies home-made decals to his Birney car project. Really nice work.
![Photo by David Kyman, Dan D. Sparks](http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kKP142YHLOQ/SgUXzqne3JI/AAAAAAAABYA/0GPyuyz7_HE/s400/decals13.jpg)
Photo by David Lyman, Dan D. Sparks
Posted by Daniel Swearingen under
Modeling Ideas ,
Other ModelsComments Off
There has been a wave of Warhammer 40K modeling and game playing sweeping my place of employment lately. A common scale is what is called “25 mm” and is taken as 1:72 scale.
I think the methods routine in this modeling genre can be really effective for HO modeling. I found a horse that no one wanted and decided to do some painting.
![Step four - all done](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3597/3495242537_733b44ca45.jpg)
I went for a softer, to my eye, more realistic look. Here’s how I did it:
First I assembled and primed the model.
![step one: primer](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3564/3473689389_9967fe511d.jpg)
The detail in the castings is really impressive.
![step one: primer](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3092/3473689419_7df7a4e006.jpg)
Next I roughed in the main colors.
![Step two: rough broad colors](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3641/3471044344_4d235d851b.jpg)
I detailed the edges and details like the harness. I used a dark wash of Burnt Umber followed by highlighting with white or light brown (depending on what I was edging).
![Picture 001](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3338/3495242491_e1fa1428a7.jpg)
Lastly, I used Dullcote and Polly S “Dust” to flatten out the shine.
![This is not a big model](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3333/3496061498_82c1759313.jpg)
I did the eyes with a black ball-point pen.
![Picture 036](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3597/3495242713_6059d60e11.jpg)
This was really fun and took me about two hours not counting drying time.