My first SierraWest model

Jim M

Thanks for that great information. I've never seen that roofing in practice, so I was wondering if it was just a local lingo for rolled roofing. Good to know, thanks

randyp

Jim, thanks for your questions. Muddy, thanks for your reply to Jim. It is always nice to find out new information. Randy

randyp

I think I mentioned I was going to get a couple more Sierra West kits. Will I did. So here will be my second and third SW models.
I will probably not start on them until after August. I need to get the layout fixed up for the layout tours during the NMRA national here is St. Louis.

vietnamseabee

Can never have too many of Brett’s kits on the shelf waiting to be built
Terry

KKarns

Nice start to a SierraWest Scale Model stash!

randyp

Terry and Ken, these will be something I will do for a break from the forty or so S scale building kits I have on the shelf. Plus the five foot long bridge I am building to fill a gap in my main line. Oh Well "Model Railroading is Fun" Right?

Karl.A

So good to see those two now on your shelves. You are definitly going to enjoy them both.
Have fun with them and post pics when you get to building them.
Thanks.

randyp

Karl, I will do that. But I have a layout to get ready for the NMRA tours here in St. Louis. Also I plan to go to the Narrow Gauge Convention. So it is going to be at least middle of September before I take on another O scale kit.
I have made some more progress. I now have the walls together.
The model is on the plywood I will be using for the base. The hole is going to be at the corner and have the wires for two lights gong through it.
The hole under the goose neck light is going yo have the wires for three lights. The person I am building this for wanted it on half inch plywood as a base. So when I get to the point of glueing the building down I will be using the wood glue I have been using to glue the kit together. Thanks Randy

brownbr

Looking great.

How are you planning space for the circuit board and battery for the lights? Will there be a switch included?

randyp

Bryan, I will let the person I am building the model for decide how he will position the board and power it when he installs it on his layout. If it were on my layout I would use a regulated power supply. I would then, keeping the wires as short as possible to keep from snagging them, attach the circuit board to the underside of the layout. When I display it at a local narrow gauge meet I will power it with a nine volt battery.

admin

Flooring looks fantastic, this is an exciting time seeing the structure come together!

randyp

Thanks Brett. I have a cautionary tail. I had never used grout as a ground cover. So I got it all scattered and smoothed out. I did not want to use a spray of water on the building so I used an eye dropper to wet the grout with alcohol. I then dropped on matte medium. It was white on top of the grout. No problem it will sink in and disappear right, wrong. An hour or more latter the matte medium is still all white and on top of the grout. I was lucky, it was not dry yet. So I took a thin metal scale ruler and slid it under the building including the floor and got it loose with little damage. I have done some testing and will revert to the tried and true wet water and white glue. I am not sure what the problem was with the matte medium. It could be a reaction with the alcohol or the binder in the grout. So the damage is glued back together and I will glue the building down again and start over with the grout. Wish me luck. Thanks Randy

Jim M

Randy, did you dilute the matt medium? It's what I use for applying the scenery and I think it works great. I use a mister to apply the wet water and add a drop of dish soap to the wet water as well. I hope you get it sorted out, good luck

Karl.A

Sorry to read of your problem Randy, but so glad to read you saved the situation, it's a fantastic build.

Always follow the manual my friend, Brett's techniques, methods and instructions never fail to produce the consistently best results. They have been proven over and over again.

The only times I have ever seen anyone have a problem is when they don't follow the instructions.
Deviation leads to disaster... (possibly).

As a side note... Matte medium contains talc, which is what gives it the flat finish. This is possibly where you got the white residue from. This residue will sink to the bottom of the bottle over time. Never EVER shake the bottle before use.
You can however decant off the liquid into a new bottle after allowing it to settle. This will minimize this problem.

randyp

Jim, I used alcohol not wet water. So I think it may be a reaction with the alcohol and the matte medium.
Karl, It was not just the talc. As I told Jim I think it is a reaction with the alcohol and the medium. Any way I did a test in a scrap piece of plywood with wet water and white glue and it worked just fine. I will be going back to the old tried and true method of wet water and white glue. Thanks, everyone for your comments and suggestions. Randy

Karl.A

Glad to read you have it figured out Randy and I look forward to seeing the excellent results.

randyp

Karl, I will do that. But I have a layout to get ready for the NMRA tours here in St. Louis. Also I plan to go to the N arrow Gauge Convention. So it is going to be at least middle of September before I take on another O scale kit.

randyp

In the past few days I did some work on my work bench. A friend built me some paint shelves. I now have a place for my
aK, Reaper, and Folqual paints that I use the most.
After that I glued down the Truck Repair. After that glue dried I glued down the grout, using wet water and white glue.


I used an eye dropper for both the water and the glue. I did not want to get the building wet with a spray. After thinges dried I went to work on the large work bench in the dirt floored room on the right. The blacksmith is using an acetylene torch to repair the pick that was broken.
The next thing will be the details around the outside of the building. Thanks for any comments and suggestions. Randy

brownbr

I’m jealous of your workbench.

The welder looks right at home.

randyp

Bryan, I hope you know that my workbench very seldom looks like that. Usually there is a lot more stuff on top. The paint shelves were a big help.
The welder is Aspin's blacksmith, that I cut off the iron in the left hand and the hammer in the right hand. The flame is clear plastic painted with Tamiya transparent clear and blue paints. It is not in this picture but I also added a little yellow to the end of the flame.

randyp

Here is another shot of the welder from another angle.
I added a little yellow on the end of the flame as I said in my last post. The end of the pick in the tongs was broken off when I tried to polish the pick after using the blickner.
The next shot is the shot of the first outside scene I have tried to put together. It has more ground covering because the person I am building the kit for has his layout set in an area with a lot of precipitation.
I added the red shop rag in the first picture and orange tank to the second picture to add a little color an otherwise color dull scene. Again as usual any suggestion, comments, or criticisms will be appreciated. Thanks Randy

admin

Wonderful detailing and weathering! Love watching this come together so well.

randyp

Thanks Brett. I will be moving around the building counter clock wise. I will end with the shed as that has the most details.

KKarns

Great looking scene Randy. The acetylene tank adds just the right amount of color as you mentioned with superb weathering to boot!

randyp

Thanks Ken, Glad to get feedback on my ideal.
Ok , I went on around the to the left end of the building. The worker just saw a diamondback just crawl out from under the stack of lumber. The snake is made from a piece of solder flattened on one end and filed into a tirangle for the head. The other end was dipped in ACC to build up the rattles. I put the shovel backwards in his hands ready to swing. The ground cover is a little sparser here as I thought it would get more use.
Have you been keeping track of the beer bottles scattered in various places in the scenes? so far the last one is in the trash can behind the worker in the red shirt.

Karl.A

Looking great Randy, I'm liking all the detailed scenes, the stories and the more lucious look.
This is turning into a great looking dio all around. The details and everything else are bringing it all together beautifully.

That fresh stripwood pile could be improved a little with a light wash of chalk to give it some variation and a natural wood colour. I cant remember the number off hand but could look it up for you if you're interested.

(Dont slap a snake on the head with the back of a shovel, you'll just piss it off. Sneak up behind it and slice of its head with a sharp stab.)
Brett may remember a time with Tigger the 'flying fish' and a snake on my deck... but thats a tale for the "Off topic" forum ... Ha

Keep up the great work and thanks for the terrific updates and ideas.

randyp

Karl, it is 231.3 gold ochre. I did use it on the strip wood. Maybe just not enough. Thanks for your kind words. I will be moving around to the front tonight. I plan to make the front and the other end under the shed even more bare because I think they would get even more use. Thanks again, Randy

randyp

I turned the corner and did the front left corner .
I decided to put the oil pump bearl here so as to have oil for the trucks. The next scene will be the gas pump. I started it today at a friends house using his model size drill press.
I drilled #76 size holed through the pump top for support rods. When I get the pump painted and the glass cylinder installed I will install the rods and NBW's

Karl.A

Yes Randy!!, that's the colour, one of them, maybe the lighting in the pic 'washed it out', still looks great.
The area with the barrel and the hand pump looks good so far and I'm envious of your friends tools.

Cant wait to see what you do with the gas pump scene.

randyp

Thanks Karl. I needed to do some painting on the gas pump. So I skipped over it to the right front corner. Again not much ground cover because I want it to look more used.
Any comments or suggestions will be helpful. Looks like I need to add a little more ground cover under the trash barrel. Thanks, Randy