David - Discussion thread

[Krackel Hopper]

Thread to discuss David's project and updates.

[Bernard]

David - really nice work on the tunnels. It looks like you're having a lot of fun!

[Krackel Hopper]

David - Great work so far!  This should be a cool little layout!

Thanks for keeping this project party alive with your updates!

Will you be adding trees or brush?  Or is this a grasslands scene?  Either way, I think it will look great.  I feel like depending on the vegetation this layout has the potential to look really different.  If left grass or with just a few trees it is a nice open meadow.. bogged down with bamboo or palms and it's a humid station with the sun beating down.. a dense pine forest and you can imagine seeing your breath on a crisp cold morning while you're waiting on the platform..

[David]

I couldn't really find any trees that I liked - due to the small size, and the fact that I want to keep the height limited, I had a choice between taller trees that would dwarf the surroundings, or tiny trees that would look like either newly planted trees or Z scale (the 5 or 8 pack from WS). I just don't think I have the layout experience to do realistic trees at this time without breaking the bank on an entire forest.

Ultimately I'm going with grass as in the test, with a few worn dirt areas where people move (as painted), with some bushes added in mostly on the hill, in particular I'll be using some bush to cover up spills and imperfections around the tunnel portals.

[Bernard]

David - Nice work so far. My opinion...I would put down the track and structures at this point. Once you put them in, you can see the "bald spots" that you'll need to add more ground cover. You might even find that you might have to trim away come of the ground cover to make the track and structures flush with the layout.
Your layout looks great and look forward to seeing the next step!

[Krackel Hopper]

One question, are you planning on making the structures permanent fixtures or removable? 

If permanent, what worked extremely well for me was to cover the area with a thin coat of the woodland scenics scenic glue.  I then set the structures into place and applied the flocking all around.  This helped create a seamless transition from the buildings to the surrounding landscape.

If you want your buildings removable, I would carefully mark off the outlines of the structures and scenic around them, paying extra attention to the boarders.  You'll be able to see a joint, but it probably won't be very noticeable unless you are looking for it.  The big problem is usually with the base showing (unfinished pink foam or particle board) a color that does not blend with the scene.  Since you painted the whole thing green, it shouldn't be an eye-sore if the flocking doesn't line up perfectly.

[KenS]

This is looking really good.  Even after the contest ends, please keep us up to date on your progress.

[Bernard]

David - Nice work so far. As for the people (and this is something I still have to do on my layout) Are you going to glue them into position or are you going to mount then onto a clear piece of thin plastic? (used in some model house windows)  I've toyed with this idea because it give the option of moving around figures but am not sure how it looks on a layout.

[David]

I was thinking of sticking them right to the layout (in part because I didn't have an ideas for where I'd get a base). The other part is that the layout will get moved a lot, and potentially set vertically as in a few pictures (the stability I got without even trying has led me to think about creating a 4'x2' layout that I could store on its side) so I want everything firmly attached (except the trains which will be taken off for moving).

[David]

Based on how the fencing is going, I'm probably going to try adding some trees to this. I'd prefer not to add towering trees, despite how scale accurate they are over the small ones (I'd like to keep the layout profile reasonable).

Does anyone have any suggestions for specific trees that would match my generally grassy layout? - I don't want to buy something that's not even found in Japan. I'd be looking at spending $10-$25, with Woodland Scenic and a few other brands available at the LHS.