Photo Plank, was: Tomix ED75

[marknewton]

This is the gadget:

 

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/like/281944472354?lpid=107&ul_ref=http%253A%252F%252Frover.ebay.com%252Frover%252F1%252F705-139619-5960-0%252F2%253Fmtid%253D1797%2526kwid%253D1%2526crlp%253D40593704497_573061%2526itemid%253D281944472354%2526targetid%253D91828877857%2526rpc%253D0.00%2526rpc_upld_id%253D0%2526device%253Dt%2526mpre%253Dhttp%25253a%25252f%25252fwww.ebay.com.au%25252fitm%25252flike%25252f281944472354%25253flpid%25253d107%252526chn%25253Dps%2526adtype%253Dpla%2526googleloc%253D9056935%2526poi%253D%2526campaignid%253D184043497%2526adgroupid%253D8467825417%2526rlsatarget%253Dpla-91828877857%2526gclid%253DCMf02vWTm84CFYOXvAodtNIMsw%2526srcrot%253D705-139619-5960-0%2526rvr_id%253D1069269961131&lpid=107&chn=ps&ul_ref=http%253A%252F%252Frover.ebay.com%252Frover%252F1%252F705-139619-5960-0%252F2%253Fmtid%253D1797%2526kwid%253D1%2526crlp%253D40593704497_573061%2526itemid%253D281944472354%2526targetid%253D91828877857%2526rpc%253D0.00%2526rpc_upld_id%253D0%2526device%253Dt%2526mpre%253Dhttp%25253a%25252f%25252fwww.ebay.com.au%25252fitm%25252flike%25252f281944472354%25253flpid%25253d107%252526chn%25253Dps%2526adtype%253Dpla%2526googleloc%253D9056935%2526poi%253D%2526campaignid%253D184043497%2526adgroupid%253D8467825417%2526rlsatarget%253Dpla-91828877857%2526gclid%253DCMf02vWTm84CFYOXvAodtNIMsw%2526srcrot%253D705-139619-5960-0%2526rvr_id%253D1069269961131&ul_noapp=true

Edited July 30, 2016 by marknewton

[marknewton]

Can't sleep tonight.

 

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[marknewton]

Some more progress:

 

 

 

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[marknewton]

 

Some Limited Express action.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[velotrain]

Based on the middle photo, it looks like the truck is going to leave its roof under the bridge.

[marknewton]

You're right, the truck won't fit under the bridge, but it's not intended to. Once the scenery on that side of the creek is a little more developed there'll be a fence or other barrier at the end of the little dirt track that the truck is on. The idea is that the track ends at the bridge, and vehicles then have to turn around and return the way they came.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[marknewton]

Some further scenic development...

 

 

The fence that stops vehicles from driving under the bridge. I put the first layer of grass down around the little warehouse, and put down further layers on the other embankments to add depth and texture to the slopes.

 

I should also mention that I'm in love with the static grass applicators! They're fun to use, and the results already far exceed my expectations. I've been using them to make narrow strips of long grass to place along the walls of the warehouse and at the bottom of the bridge abutments.

 

The next thing I have to consider is whether to plant a row of trees along the rear edge of the plank, or leave them off so there's a clear view of the sky backdrop I'm painting. Suggestions?

 

Cheers,

 

Mark

Edited August 3, 2016 by marknewton

[velotrain]

Just one man's opinion, but I think the obvious plastic nature of the road barrier detracts from the good work you've done.

[marknewton]

Charles, thanks for the compliment. You're right of course, the fence needs to be painted and weathered. I just cut it off the sprue and placed it for the photo.

 

All the best,

 

Mark.

[velotrain]

And maybe fill in the ejector holes, which is what gives it way.

[marknewton]

I've been busy over the last few days making grass clumps and tufts. They're so easy to do - a dollop of adhesive on a non-stick surface, attach the earth lead and grass away! I use the lids from Chinese takeaway containers as my non-stick substrate. I don't know exactly what sort of plastic they are, but none of the various glues I've been trialling will stick to them.

 

All the glues - Noch, WS and generic PVA seem to work rather well. The Noch and the PVA tend to flatten out as they cure, the Noch more so, while the beads of WS Scenic cement retain their shape when cured, so you can achieve different effects just by using a particular glue.

 

I find that the Noch Grassmaster works best with shorter fibres, while the Chinese copy is better with longer fibres. So they compliment each other nicely. Did I mention how much fun I'm having learning to use them? :)

 

Tonight I experimented with some generic trees along the back side of the plank, just to see whether I like them or not. I'm still undecided.

 

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[serotta1972]

Looks great Mark! And thanks for the narrative on what you're doing.

[cteno4]

Great stuff mark, I've wanted to make a static grass machine specifically to make tufts like that! Did you have to ground to each of the glue spots or did the plastic lid carry enough charge just grounding to it?

 

Thanks

 

Jeff

[bnicolas1987]

Thanks for the "how it work" for those two products.

 

I'll probably need to use one when I'll stard doing something...

[marknewton]

Great stuff mark, I've wanted to make a static grass machine specifically to make tufts like that! Did you have to ground to each of the glue spots or did the plastic lid carry enough charge just grounding to it?

G'day Jeff,

 

In each case I just attached the alligator clip to the lid, and that was sufficient to carry the charge. In the first photo you can see the different tufts and strips I've made so far. The container at top left has strips made with the different glues I mentioned using on it, and the round lids are all done with ordinary PVA/white glue. The second photo shows how the strips made with the Noch glue flatten out when complete cured, they're the strips on the far left, rear and far right. The strip in the middle which didn't flatten out as much used white glue, and the narrow one to the left of it used Woodland Scenics glue. It didn't flatten out at all.

 

 

These strips can be cut in half along their middle and then butted up against the walls of buildings and other structures, which I've found easier and neater to do than trying to use applicator alongside them. They should also work well to represent the grass growing between the wheel ruts on a dirt road. I also made some tufts using darker fibres, but with lighter tops made by brushing them lightly with a Tamiya weathering pen once the glue had cured.

 

If you do make a static grass machine I think you'll be very happy with what you can do with it.

 

All the best,

 

Mark.

Edited August 7, 2016 by marknewton

[marknewton]

Earlier this evening I put a coat of Mod Podge on the creek. It dries fairly quickly, so once it got tacky I stippled it with a sponge to give it the appearance of waves or ripples. Once it's fully cured tomorrow I'm going to put the first coat of gloss varnish on. In the meantime, this is what the Mod Podge looks like.

 

 

While I was waiting for the Mod Podge to dry, I planted a few trees along the back edge of the plank. I'm still undecided about having trees there at all so they're not glued in place, just stuck into the foam landscape. If I decide against having them they can easily come out again.

 

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[cteno4]

Excellent Mark!

 

Jeff

[serotta1972]

Very nice! I love all the green grass.  

[marknewton]

Earlier this evening I put the first coat of gloss varnish on the creek surface. I panicked a bit at first as the varnish seemed to go cloudy as I applied it, and I was worried that it was reacting with the Mod Podge underneath. But the varnish dried clear and there was no harm done to the Mod Podge ripples so tomorrow I'll apply another coat.

 

The varnish I'm using is made by Chroma, and sold under their "Jo Sonja's" brand. It's a water based polyurethane varnish that's beautiful stuff to use. It flows freely off the brush, dries quickly and even smells okay. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a good quality, easy to use gloss finish.

 

It's dark here now, so tomorrow morning I'll post some photos of the glossy, wet-look creek.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[cteno4]

The water based polyurethanes are finally getting good. They were dodgy for a long time even w.in the same brand. Definitely beats whiffing lacquer thinner, did way to much of that in my childhood varnishing boat interiors -- dad always had a pleasure boat project of some sort growing up so I earned money that way instead of mowing lawns! Don't want to think how many iq points got shaved off with the vapors!

 

Jeff

[marknewton]

Some views of the creek after a couple of coats of varnish. Of course as soon as I took the thing outside for a photo the clouds came in and blocked the bright sunshine...

 

.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[marknewton]

A while back I bought some model utility poles made by Echo Models, which included a white metal casting of a transformer. I assembled the pole, painted it and planted it at the back of the little Sankei warehouse

 

.

 

I'm undecided whether I should include the wires leading from the transformer into the building. I could use that stretchy thread stuff, but in reality the wires tend to just hang in a loose loop. Decisions...

 

The next thing I have to do is add the guardrail and walkways to the bridge.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

Edited August 15, 2016 by marknewton

[marknewton]

Trial fitting of the bridge guardrails :

 

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[marknewton]

The bridge guardrails/checkrails are now fitted and painted. I'll do the final weathering and blending when the bridge is permanently attached to its abutments.

 

 

While I was waiting for the paint and glue to dry I did a bit of weathering on the various 3-wheeler trucks that will be parked near the bridge. The two Mazdas are from the Ra80 series made by Time, and the Daihatsu is from Tomix. The Daihatsu is pre-weathered, but I added some dirt of my own to tone it down a bit. It also has very glossy rubber tyres that need to be weathered to kill the shine. All of these trucks are weathered with Tamiya powders and sticks, which I think are great products.

 

(As I've noted previously though, a weathered model that looks effective to my eyes in artificial light doesn't photograph very well. The trucks look much better seen in person! :) )

 

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

Edited August 17, 2016 by marknewton

[Ken Ford]

Mark, I'm working on a simple diorama to play with scenery techniques in Nj. I'm not coming up with any better design than what you've done!