# A busy 4x8 layout. (My First)



## broox

G'day guys and girls, this is my first post here, so I'll make it worth it for you 
Apologies in advance for the massive wall of text!!!

When I was a boy, my Dad got a train set set. Apparently it was a birthday present for me... Thats the story my mum tells me anyways, after 20+ years my old man has still not confirmed it... I think my birthday was a great excuse for him to buy a big set, haha.

Anyways, it was a LIMA set. Started off as a typical oval. A Loco (some sort of diesel) and a few carriages, and buildings. One of the buildings (unpictured) was a pretty cool, but basic by todays standards, a container transport yard, that picked up semi trailers and put them on a flatbed... But I digress.

It has only been setup a few times over the last 20 years, for only a week or 3 at a time. I remember being about 10 and buying some extra track, a couple of points, buildings and accessories with my hard earned pocket moneys. It got setup for a short while, with a flashy new inner loop! but it was packed up again... too soon, too soon I tells ya!

Fast forward another 10 - 15 years, and I've now got a son (now almost 6!!) who is train crazy... I've built so many Thomas tracks (Trackmaster & Takealong .. its not even funny). He has seen 'poppys train' setup in a basic loop before, and loved it.

Now he's getting of age to appreciate and play without being as destructive, **** is getting real. 

So now we have 3 generations of aspiring engineers, and some space, time, and a bit of drive to get 'er done.

This weekend my missus and I bought a reasonable sized set for our son, (similar to the set my dad got for 'me') with the aim to incorporate it with our existing setup. 

I've always wanted a setup with a bridge, and mountains and generally stuff that is 'awesome'. After trawling this site for a few days (Till 2am on Friday night - addictive stuff!  ) I had a few ideas to inspire me!

All our track was laid by the method of 'winging it', really its the only way to go, right?
Anyhow, Its a 4x8 setup (good, but not great, from what I've read). 
It needed to have a 'main line ring', to keep the boy happy.
It needed mountains and bridges to keep me happy. 
and I think my dad will appreciate a good yard (still in progress)


This image is for anyone who likes looking at dodgy MS Paint drawings. haha.









Purple is the highest point.
Blue is all raised grade, to the bridge height and back again. grade is fairly steep atm, approx 5+%... needs a slight tweaking.. The grey bridge is not permanent (but i think my dad is attached to it. lol) so a new bridge will be lower = less grage overall required.
Black is flat to the board
Red is a tunnel
Orange circle highlights 2 points that need to be reversed, so the train reverses into the 'yard' instead of going in nose first.

Oh, and excuse these pics, took them on my phone as I left my folks place tonight.














































The wife and I have decided to put in a divider / scene board to separate the yard / industrial side, from the other more towny, pleasant side. I'll take a better pic next time I'm there, to illustrate our idea better.


Also, a few months ago I bought a bulk lot of second hand supplies to make scenes. paints, foam, a hot wire foam cutter, grasses, rocks, paintbrushes, almost everything I could imagine. so these things will make their debut sometime soon!

PPS, I've got some random second hand trucks, and a small assortment of track - as well as a bunch of old modeling mags and (real)train magazines - coming in from a guy on another forum. Just in time for my boys birthday


Comments, criticisms, welcome. And if you've read all that, you deserve a beer!


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## joed2323

good setup for your son to play with, he will have lots of fun on that.. 
Now is this setup going to stay this size, or does daddy want to run trains a switch cars at industries? 

Did you set the grade yourself or did it come with those block risers?? How does your loco handle that grade?

It looks like this 4x8 will keep you guys busy for awhile. But down the road if you guys become board running around in a circle, is there a option for maybe extending it on one section, maybe making it into a L shape? Im not saying you need to rebuild now, but its always a good idea to keep the future in mind so it would be eaiser to go bigger if the want is there...

You never know, maybe you guys will be happy with this for a long time, maybe not. You have a good start with your layout, Im not trying to knock or say you should be doing something else, but its always a good idea to think ahead for room for expansion if need be.


Welcome aboard, good to see someone else building a layout for there kiddos like me, (but i think i may have wanted one more then my son) 
Cant wait to see more progress


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## broox

The old Hornby Steamy pictured in the yard, which I think dad picked up at a garage sale many moons age, doesn't work properly on the normal rails - it derails at the turnouts... But we do have enough track for a reasonable sized oval (not pictured, its under the table), and we now have a spare transformer from the new set so we could expand it to two separate loops one day 

Oh, and the new train we got for my boy, is the 'life-like' brand of trains (different couplings grrr. lol). We plan to mainly use trains that have run here in Australia and a selection of Australian branded trucks too. So perhaps it might be something different for most of you guys to see :thumbsup:


These are some pics from the parcel coming in the post, arriving this week:


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## broox

joed2323 said:


> good setup for your son to play with, he will have lots of fun on that..
> Now is this setup going to stay this size, or does daddy want to run trains a switch cars at industries?
> 
> Did you set the grade yourself or did it come with those block risers?? How does your loco handle that grade?
> 
> It looks like this 4x8 will keep you guys busy for awhile. But down the road if you guys become board running around in a circle, is there a option for maybe extending it on one section, maybe making it into a L shape? Im not saying you need to rebuild now, but its always a good idea to keep the future in mind so it would be eaiser to go bigger if the want is there...
> 
> You never know, maybe you guys will be happy with this for a long time, maybe not. You have a good start with your layout, Im not trying to knock or say you should be doing something else, but its always a good idea to think ahead for room for expansion if need be.
> 
> 
> Welcome aboard, good to see someone else building a layout for there kiddos like me, (but i think i may have wanted one more then my son)
> Cant wait to see more progress


Yeah, I definitely want to expand it ... I've also found a way to get the wife involved - bargain hunting! Her bro knows a guy that runs a hobby store, so we've got some huge bargains so far... the layout is bound to get bigger. She actually went back today and got another (smaller) kit with a loco (that my son likes, he has pointed it out in books and online before), 3 or 4 trucks, a circles worth of track for $50 ! All new in box!.

But as for expanding, we've gotta wait till we're in a new house. The train is sleeping at my dads for the time being. From what I've read, an L shape or U shape is much more betterer. With wider turns, room for a better yard, proper industry, and generally telling a better story 

The grade was done pretty scientifically. I googled up the ideal grade of 2-3%. then we just cut a bunch of random height chocks did whatever fitted :laugh:. I estimate the grade to be under 5% on the side with the (future) mountain... and a 6+% grade on the other side wouldn't surprise me, but removing the grey bridge will make it a couple of cm lower, and make a huge difference for the steeper side.

The loco handles the uphill grade well, climbs it fairly easy coming up the mountain side. But you've really gotta crawl down the steeper side, especially with a couple of trucks on. It doesn't help that they're just so light and wanna derail themselves all the time!

Nothing is set in stone, but the boy loves it how it is for the time being, just need to finish it a touch more to steady the raised sections. Should be quite easy with a bit of foam, or the flyscreen + plaster ('drywall mud') method as per NIMT's excellent thread

I'm not afraid of a full teardown. and I also want to build a Helix next time around too.


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## broox

Just a couple of pics of the 2nd hand trucks that are in the post as we speak.
you can spy a stack of magazines in the corner. Its a mix of british train magazines (from the 70's-80's I think). and a bunch of model railroad modeling magazines.




















and some pics of the scenery supplies still sitting in the shed... probably enough to keep us entertained for a little bit :thumbsup:


















theres also a couple of big sheets of that blue modelling foam, and a hot wire cutter - not pictured.

Hope we can get a crack on it and get it looking a bit more proper this week. So when the kids that come over for the lads birthday, in a couple of weeks time, they'll think he's ants pants. haha

The next main job, after neatening, will be electrifying the points, and modifying the yard a bit more. I'll probably drop some wire trough the board, and fully wire it up at a later date. When we expand further I'll be looking at a DCC setup, or at least a technical multi loop DC setup. I really like the idea of my son running loops on the mainline / mountain pass, while me or my old man muck around in the yard switching things and hooking up loads. :thumbup:


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## Big Ed

Welcome to the site,

Why don't you add a little weight to the cars if they are too light?
Or reduce the grade some if you can.

Don't get too carried away building it, unless you can move it out of the house when you need too.
Unless it doesn't matter if you start building it all over .


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## broox

big ed said:


> Welcome to the site,
> 
> Why don't you add a little weight to the cars if they are too light?
> Or reduce the grade some if you can.
> 
> Don't get too carried away building it, unless you can move it out of the house when you need too.
> Unless it doesn't matter if you start building it all over .


Yeah we added rocks to the quarry type trucks and it helped, I think I'll open up the box cars (?) and pop in a bit of blue tac or something to add a bit of realistic weight. They get a bit funny over the points sometimes, so a bit of weight might help there too.

The grade will be reduced when the bridge is replaced (sooner rather than later)

No worries with moving it... There's big sliding doors in that back room, and my dad and I drive trucks for a living, so thats the easy bit :thumbsup:

Thanks for the comments guys, appreciated


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## Big Ed

broox said:


> Yeah we added rocks to the quarry type trucks and it helped, I think I'll open up the box cars (?) and pop in a bit of blue tac or something to add a bit of realistic weight. They get a bit funny over the points sometimes, so a bit of weight might help there too.
> 
> The grade will be reduced when the bridge is replaced (sooner rather than later)
> 
> No worries with moving it... There's big sliding doors in that back room, and my dad and I drive trucks for a living, so thats the easy bit :thumbsup:
> 
> Thanks for the comments guys, appreciated



Do you drive something like this?









I drove this for around five years, 









otherwise I have been a Tanker Yanker.
Drove Flatbeds for around 5 years hauling old gauge RR stuff, rail, switches points, equipment, ties and timbers etc. 


Current truck I ride today,










I have done box trailer work pulling mainly chemicals in drums, but I hate the box chasing after me, I rather have a tanker.


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## Carl

Until the tanker is empty of liquid and holds only flammable fumes.


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## tjcruiser

Broox,

I see you're posting photo url links from ImageShack. For some reason, our Auto-Spam-Bot here on the forum doesn't like those, and will often trap a post as a potential spam thread.

I have since approved one of your posts above that got trapped.

No wrongdoing on your part. Either be patient with us here if a post of yours doesn't show up right away, or perhaps use another photo source ... PhotoBucket works fine.

Regards,

TJ


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## brik-el

Hey, great layout!

You have a lot of rolling stock with names I've never seen before.

Mobil I know, is Weet-bix a cereal?

Anyways thanks for sharing and keep up the good work.:thumbsup::thumbsup:


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## joed2323

did you pick up that bundle of scenery material all at once, or? Nice


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## Big Ed

Carl said:


> Until the tanker is empty of liquid and holds only flammable fumes.


Well when it is loaded there are fumes too?

But they say it is more explosive when empty then loaded. 

You can't convince me though, I think I would rather have an empty tanker blow then one that is loaded with 7000 gals of a flammable liquid.

A true Rocket Sled on Wheels.

Years ago we used to leave the top open to air out the fumes on the way home.

Now they want everything shut so you can blow up, I guess.


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## broox

Hey Ed, I'm just 'an around town clown' at the moment. I have a 10pallet/6ton tautliner. My old man runs a couple of trucks too, but his daily is a 12pallet/14ton tautliner. 
I mainly haul pallets of general freight, with the occasional DG load to keep me on my toes.



tjcruiser said:


> Broox,
> 
> I see you're posting photo url links from ImageShack. For some reason, our Auto-Spam-Bot here on the forum doesn't like those, and will often trap a post as a potential spam thread.
> 
> I have since approved one of your posts above that got trapped.
> 
> No wrongdoing on your part. Either be patient with us here if a post of yours doesn't show up right away, or perhaps use another photo source ... PhotoBucket works fine.
> 
> Regards,
> 
> TJ


Aah, that explains it. lol. I thought a post dissapeared on me. Usually I use imagur for hosting (as image shack is quite spammy!). So I'll keep that in mind. Thanks for the heads up :thumbup:



brik-el said:


> Hey, great layout!
> 
> You have a lot of rolling stock with names I've never seen before.
> 
> Mobil I know, is Weet-bix a cereal?
> 
> Anyways thanks for sharing and keep up the good work.:thumbsup::thumbsup:


Yep weetbix is an Aussie cereal, I'll see if I can find some more unique (to you guys) rolling stock along the way. cheers 

The Hills one is from the famous company that makes the 'Hills Hoist' rotary clothes line.



joed2323 said:


> did you pick up that bundle of scenery material all at once, or? Nice


Yeah a bulk lot, for about $100(AU). The guy was planning on making a huge warhammer layout... But then he became a single father, and ran out of free time, and could do with some spare cash. Its a real win for me I think


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## 93firebird

This image:








Gave me an idea for my layout. A couple of strategically emptied cans of my favorite beverages. Some scenic details and presto, a couple of storage tanks for a beverage factory.


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## broox

Fixed up my previous post, my phone has been playing up, and I didnt proof it before I hit send, so dont worry, I wasn't stroking out :laugh:



93firebird said:


> This image: http://i.imgur.com/ZVwuul.jpg
> Gave me an idea for my layout. A couple of strategically emptied cans of my favorite beverages. Some scenic details and presto, a couple of storage tanks for a beverage factory.


Hey, I also had a reasonable reply mashed out on my phone and it decided to lose it all just as I hit reply... Technology, eh.

Anyways I was trying to say that over here some of the energy drinks (red bull, etc) occasionally come in a thinner 250ml can, the scale might be better than the regular 365ml cans


Oh and Ed, that red car transporter makes me moist. hahaha


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## broox

Had a spare couple of hours, so we attacked some foam with the hot wire cutter 

Fairly rough cuts, but it'll be easy to clean up when shaping a bit later on. I'm thinking the sides of the foam will be modeled like cliff faces, mostly. On the large curve facing the yard area it'll be slightly more shapely. Anyways its a work in progress.

We've adjusted the track a bit more too, I'm liking how its evolving... even though its is still quite rough!!














































Any comments on refining the layout?

I'll be swapping a lot of the track out for flexi track, its cheap and will make the curves a lot nicer, both aesthetically and functionally.

cheers


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## brik-el

Boo-yah! Looks good.
Keep us informed.:thumbsup:


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## broox

After I knocked off work this afternoon It turned out I was near a model train shop, how convenient! I picked up a couple more lengths of flexi track, and a roll of that plaster cloth stuff.
the plaster cloth is heaps better value online (including post its still about 50% off) but I figured if I'm going to try it out, I may as well buy the first one from a bricks & mortar store, support the locals and all that.

Anyways, after dinner we hit up the old boys house. I played with more foam, and have mostly shaped the steeper downhill grade.
I also shaped a basic bridge out of foam... Lets just say it'll need a bit of a touch up 

Tomorrow I plan to get around there early and put a layer of plaster over the foam 'hills'. That should give it a bit more natural shape. 
The most likely plan of attack is scrunching up some newspaper in the low points to offer some extra shape and support (good plan?)

No pics, both the kids got cranky so I pulled the pin early.
Will grab some tomorrow 

Thanks for reading.


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## Big Ed

Use slightly warm water for soaking the cloth.
Find an appropriate size container for the soaking.
The microwave plastic trays that you throw out after cooking from larger meals work good.

Look at the cloth you will notice that one side has more plaster face that side up when laying it down. 
Don't soak for more then a few seconds. 
After you lay it down smooth the plaster out a little, a finger works nice.:thumbsup:
A teaspoon too. If you want some ridges on the mountain now is the time to form them just crease the cloth some when it is wet.
I use sculptamold to fill in the holes in the cloth as you go around laying the cloth, though you can add it later.
Don't change the water as after some time it will turn into a plaster soup, good for laying the cloth. Do try to keep the water warm when you add to it.
Don't over soak just a few seconds .

If you want to add some boulders cut a piece of packing foam to shape and lay a piece of cloth over it, fill in with scultamold.

See this ROCK I made, all the little boulders are pieces of packing foam the stuff you throw out when you get say a TV. I cut and shape it.











The rock above the tunnel was old ceiling tiles I had cut and shaped up, then laid some cloth to hold them in place and filled it out with sculptamold.

My Rock is not done yet, You can see it here,
http://www.modeltrainforum.com/showthread.php?t=5314


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## joed2323

Pretty nice big ed..


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## broox

As I mentioned yesterday, I shaped some faom for the other hill. Dont mind the mess of track and tools.











And today I attacked the first hill with some scrunched up newspaper, and a roll of the plaster cloth 

It was quite fun, and also hassle free!
I had my lad doing the dipping of the cloth, while I cut and layed it. 





















While I'm at it, Heres some pics of my locos.

if anyone can identify the Lima and the old [del]hornby[/del] Tri Ang, that'd be cool







































Thanks for looking


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## broox

Apologies for the low quality pics so far, I'm still using my phones camera..

anyways, got a bit more landscaping done today. My dad had the idea of mixing up a plaster of paris sludge and dunking strips of 'chux' style cloth wipes.

It was not as easy (or clean!) as the woodlands scenic rolls of plaster cloth, but it was a lot better value. $10 for a 3kg bag of plaster of paris, $20 for a huge roll of cloth wipes. We used all the plaster in a couple of hours, but we have a phenomonal amount of the wipes left 


Touch up on the first grade










Preperation of the second grade.










New mix, plaster of paris & cloth wipes, goes on
Time will tell how well it lasts and easy it is to cover the blue base colour with paint.





































We'll have to get another bag of plaster and mix up a batch and apply over the structure with a paintbrush. This should even up the cover of plaster in/on the cloth, improving aesthetics and strength.
My dad did most of the laying on the second grade.... his old eyes need a bit of calibration  I'll have to touch up a bit of his handywork on the inner face of the second grade.

Cheers, thanks for looking.

If you have any questions / criticisms, fire away.


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## brik-el

Good stuff happening!!

Keep it comin.

:thumbsup::thumbsup:


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## broox

Cheers Brik!

We've got a public holiday here on Wednesday (ANZAC Day), so some more progress then I think,


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## Big Ed

broox said:


> Oh and Ed, that red car transporter makes me moist. hahaha



Old Red did turn heads, especially when it was clean.

I had to look up Tautliner, Is that the make of it? I never heard of the word before. Tautliner.

A 12 pallet Tauliner,


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## tjcruiser

broox said:


> We've got a public holiday here on Wednesday (ANZAC Day), so some more progress then I think,


A quick sidenote of remembrance for all of those brave souls who endured or perished at the battle of Gallipoli ... certainly one of history's most brutal battles.

TJ


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## broox

big ed said:


> Old Red did turn heads, especially when it was clean.
> 
> I had to look up Tautliner, Is that the make of it? I never heard of the word before. Tautliner.
> 
> A 12 pallet Tauliner,
> Image Attached


Yeah, thats what they look like. Tuatliner just refers to the curtains on the side of the tray, instead of a solid pantech. Tautliner / Curtainsider, not sure what you'd call them over there. Very popular here, and I'd assume so there too.
I run a Hino, My dad likes his Nissans.




tjcruiser said:


> A quick sidenote of remembrance for all of those brave souls who endured or perished at the battle of Gallipoli ... certainly one of history's most brutal battles.
> 
> TJ


+1 :thumbsup:


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## joed2323

Very cool. Sculpting mountains and working on scenery is fun, i cant wait to get going on carving rolling hills and what not for my project. Are you buying plaster of paris at walmart? If so how much is a bag? Im pretty sure they have it over in the paint section, i think thats where i remember seeing it.

I gotta pick up something whether it be plaster cloth or plaster of paris.
i cant remember how fast those rolls go, but when i was young i remember having to get numerous rolls of the plaster cloth...


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## broox

We don't have Walmart here in Australia, I picked up the plaster of paris at Bunnings (Large chain hardware store). Small tubs were available in the paint section, the larger bags were in the trade section :thumbsup:

The cloth wipes battered in plaster mix worked well... But I think if I had my time again, I'd use woodlands scenic style plaster cloth for the lot. Apply one layer of cloth over the board to get the style I desired. Then once it had set, I'd mix up a plaster of paris batch and apply over the cloth with a paintbrush for extra strength (and aesthetics).

I found the pre bought plaster cloth to give a more realistic hill look, to me anyways, especially if you wanted a cliff style look... It held the wrinkles better. 
The homemade cloth & plaster mix seemed to apply more smoothly, with less wrinkles, but this would be better for some hill styles though.

I'm glad the roll of plaster cloth covered one of our rises, and the homemade mix for the other, atleast we can try sculpt different hill types on the same board


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## broox

Hey dudes, its ANZAC Day here today, so if you don't mind I might just pop this in here first.

They shall grow not old, 
as we that are left grow old;
Age shall not weary them, 
nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
Lest we forget.​

My mum was telling me today how my great grandfather (on my mothers side) served at Gallipoli. He survived the war, but later died of complications due to a dose of mustard gas. My Aunty knows more details, so I might chat to her later on.

Anyways,
We went around to the old mans today, and made a little progress.:thumbsup:
A full layer of plaster was applied to everything, we also added a dash of paint to the sludge. It tinted quite nicely and made a nice base coat for us to work from for the next step 

The downhill grade, you'd be familiar with this by now , the plan is to make this a pleasant hill. All green and stuff, a bit of a forest, trees and shrubs... The usual I guess.










The top landing, done with a bit of black paint to make grey... we initially used grey paint, but the white of the plaster meant it had no real effect :laugh:
This will eventually be a bit of a quarry type area.



















The red is a nod to the outback, took a while to actually get this colour! When we mixed a few coulours in it turned to hot pink! haha.
This will be a bit of a yard or something, theres a fair bit of space to work with, so I'm not sure how it'll evolve... But I'm sure it will!










Now here was a real moment, when I set up the hills prior to plastering I figured it'll be all good... But it was a touch out of skew in the end.
This was my solution, raise the crossover and switch section to reduce any side twist, the grey will be painted on the board to blend with the rest of the colours



















Heres a couple of full shots, showing a bit of progress later in the arvo.
My boy wanted blue in the corners, so wallah, we have a bit of beach there too now :laugh:




























Cheers for looking.
Have a good one :thumbsup:


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## joed2323

cool beans...

Looks like you prefer the paper towels over the plaster cloth.. any reason why besides cheaper. Cheaper usually wins


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## broox

Its more like a kitchen cloth wipe, than a paper towel. Maybe paper towels would have been better, but I was thinking long term about possible mould / bad stuff that might happen to the paper ? dunno, I didn't think that hard about it actually :laugh:

To be honest, after yesterdays work, I prefer the woodlands scenics plaster cloth.
95% of what we did yesterday was apply a layer of tinted plaster to the structures with a paint brush, to add a bit of strength, and fill in the little holes left behind. Theres only one layer of cloth on each hill.

The store bought (woodlands scenics) plaster cloth is a lighter, more open weave, with a good amount of plaster evenly distributed through it. 
This means 
It holds its shape a little better when first applied, better for creasing and making little rocky outcrops
When we applied the second coat of plain plaster the store bought hill stayed strong and rigid, where as the DIY solution needed to be treated a little more delicately. The weave of the 'chux style' kitchen cloths are more fine, penetration of the plaster mix through it didn't seem as even, this resulted in softer spots where the cloth wasn't set rock hard, and had a bit of flex.

If I could find a cheap source of a loose weave light cloth, like a light bandage or maybe even a heavier/finer lace curtain? I'd try with that again, instead of going straight to the woodlands scenics style plaster cloth


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## Kwikster

You could always look for "cheese cloth" it's similar to gauze bandage material and comes in several weaves. Would be a better choice over bandage or lace.

Carl


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## Big Ed

broox said:


> Its more like a kitchen cloth wipe, than a paper towel. Maybe paper towels would have been better, but I was thinking long term about possible mould / bad stuff that might happen to the paper ? dunno, I didn't think that hard about it actually :laugh:
> 
> To be honest, after yesterdays work, I prefer the woodlands scenics plaster cloth.
> 95% of what we did yesterday was apply a layer of tinted plaster to the structures with a paint brush, to add a bit of strength, and fill in the little holes left behind. Theres only one layer of cloth on each hill.
> 
> The store bought (woodlands scenics) plaster cloth is a lighter, more open weave, with a good amount of plaster evenly distributed through it.
> This means
> It holds its shape a little better when first applied, better for creasing and making little rocky outcrops
> When we applied the second coat of plain plaster the store bought hill stayed strong and rigid, where as the DIY solution needed to be treated a little more delicately. The weave of the 'chux style' kitchen cloths are more fine, penetration of the plaster mix through it didn't seem as even, this resulted in softer spots where the cloth wasn't set rock hard, and had a bit of flex.
> 
> If I could find a cheap source of a loose weave light cloth, like a light bandage or maybe even a heavier/finer lace curtain? I'd try with that again, instead of going straight to the woodlands scenics style plaster cloth



Go on your local e bay and check out plaster cloth it is the same thing they use to make body casts.

A lot cheaper then Woodland's and it is basically the same thing.

Though still not cheap if you buy in bulk it is a lot cheaper then Woodland's.

The reason it works better then what you came up with is it is thinner.
Paper towels would have worked too.
I like the way you can work the plaster cloth.

Looking good broox.:thumbsup:


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## broox

So I'm at Bunnings today, and I call my dad to ask his opinion on thier gapfiller / caulk range, for use under track to level it off and hold it steady and level prior to ballast. I think I've figured out that when you guys say 'Latex' Caulk or Latex house paint, I need to look for Acrylic Caulk / Paint. Makes sense to me anyways... 

And at the end of the convo he mentions that he has a larger piece of board in the shed that we could use and the turns would be less tight and there would be more room around the edge. GG Dad, thanks for bringing it up two weeks ago :laugh:

I decided that we'll continue with this layout, then when we get a bigger place we'll go for a fancy L layout. I have plans, big plans 

So heres some pics from after todays session. Photos are a bit clearer today, used my wifes new phone.



















The handsom chap here is my old man 










Train runs well, the crossover section proved to be a hassle, but finally got it sorted :thumbsup:

Now I think we had a little trouble when coupled to a truck, as we had a slight derailment... Which ended up with a tumble onto the tiles... So we'll have to fix up the loco tomorrow. Dad attempted to fix it, but it still needs a tune up  Will be easier to do in the light of day


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## Kwikster

Looking pretty good!!!!! I see a couple areas coming out of a curve where it looks a little bit wonky. I'd replace the curved section and connecting straights (the one at the lower edge of pic) with a piece of flex track to blend it smoothly.









Carl


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## broox

I see what you mean, I didn't think it looked that wonky in real life. I'll blame the camera for now, and have a closer look this arvo 

EDIT:
If you click this link for the full res version, ie, not the large thumbnail linked in the thread, you can zoom / look closer and see that it is a bit of an illusion, and the fishplates make it look extra wonky... I think :laugh:


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## broox

We got an opportunity to throw some scernery on the layout today 

But before that, we worked out some kinks and funny points in the track. With the help of another thread (or 3),but mainly this one here, I got a better understanding of how it all works. So I loaded up the first hopper with some gravel to add weight and help avoid derailments, and after a few goes and adding trucks and managed to pull 10 assorted cars up the hill... with a fair amount of wheelspin I might add!!
About half the trucks had ballast added, none of the heavier ones derailed, but a few of the lighter ones had an occasional mishap at an odd turnout... but I guess thats to be expected for [del]cheap[/del] light trucks with small plastic wheels.


But, I know what you're really after... PICS! Here they are :thumbsup:


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## joed2323

scenery is starting to come alive :thumbsup: 

Wish i was on this step of my layout, scenery is fun, its cool watching a layout come together to look like a masterpeice. 
Im just starting my scenery work, thought i would have been further along but im just starting to visualize how things will look on the layout, scenery for me is difficult because i keep questioning myself and the way something may look at the end. 

Keep up the good work though, keep us posted with progress pictures, your layout is looking good:thumbsup:


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## Big Ed

Looking good Broox.:thumbsup:

The different colors are making the hill side POP.:thumbsup:

I would figure out what your going to do in the outback valley before you add more scenery. 
Make a quarry operation there?
Are you going to paint the viaduct bridge?

You keep talking about your pictures, I think they look good for what your using.


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## sstlaure

Looks fantastic Broox. 

I hadn't reviewed this thread in a while and saw the WWII service you mentioned....My Grandfather served 9th Armored Infantry in the European theater (Battle of the Bulge, etc) and made it back to live a long life and my Great Uncle Leo died as a belly gunner in a B17 on March 24, 1944 on his 17th mission.....almost made it.

I truly appreciate the Service of the Australian military. You've always been a great ally.


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## brik-el

Looking better all the time!!!

Can't wait to see more.

:thumbsup::thumbsup:


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## Kwikster

Dang it Broox, you're making me want to do HO now too and I'm still trying to get my O-gauge table up and running. :laugh:

Anyways, looking good man. Cheers.

Carl


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## tjcruiser

That's some speedy progress. Great to see you and your father working on this together. Looks great!

TJ


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## broox

Cheers for the kind words guys, might be able to pop over and do a little more this weekend.:thumbsup: 

I was around there last night and checked it now its dried, the bushes made from that clumpy stuff are looking great. I probably should have layed the grasses (static flock) on a bit thicker, I didnt realise how well it sort of stuck together once the glue dried. I thought the top layer might have stayed loose and brushed/blown off easily. 

But generally its looking quite good, all the things I wanted when I was a lad 

I think my dads been playing trains while we're away, the other night I noticed some boxcars and tankers, ones that were missing their bogies, have been strategically placed around the track... Looks like theres some storage yards popping up and a little fuel depot happening too. 
And the sidings have been loaded up with all sorts of rolling stock.

The next challenge is to weather the old rolling stock for added authenticity! stop it from looking so plasticy, and new.


My dad was also chatting with one of his cousins last week, he said he has an old layout standing in the corner of his shed that we're welcome to have... So we could see some expansion soon! Mhwahaha



tjcruiser said:


> That's some speedy progress. Great to see you and your father working on this together. Looks great!
> 
> TJ


Don't forget my son too 

3 generations of different ideas all getting mashed into one. Haha. Who could ask for anything better :laugh:


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## zorba

looks good mate, good to see another adelaidian on the site too (tho you were on well before me)

would have known it even if you didnt have it in your profile too, with the FUIC carton in one of the pics.


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## broox

OK, this is pretty much done and dusted now. We're in the process of building up a bunch of modules which will fit the current space better, still at my folks, but with a view to move it or a part of it to our new place... When we get around to buying one (sooner rather than later I hope!).

I'll make a new thread for the new build, but for now heres a quick peek at how its unfolding

The modules / table tops currently made up are:
5x 1200x600mm 
1x 800x800mm with a corner cut off so 2 edges are 600mm
1x 1800x200mm removable bridge section in front of a main door way, there will likely be an extention on this.
(Boom, metric bitches!)

Heres a quick layout of the tables most likely layout, the question mark is for future modules, which are in the process of being built.
the background grid is 1foot scale.


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## sstlaure

Looking good. I'd put provisions on your track for a branch line going off into the question marked area. (turnout, section of track and a track end bumper)


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## Carl

Looking very good. The turn-out is great thought future expansion.


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## broox

yeah, just have to pick up a bir more wood (we dismantled an old shipping crate to source the last lot of wood) and we'll make a few more table tops, roughly reflecting the shape of the other side. plenty of room for a yard and a few industries this time!


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