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Kit 311 O scale O'Neills

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Comments

  • Looks great Bryan. Great job on the shingles.

    I bought a cheap 9v case with a built in switch from Amazon to power one of my dioramas. I think it was 4 housings for $6.

    I’ll post a picture of the setup when I get home
  • edited March 2018
    Weathering on the Roof cap looks perfect man...
  • I like where you are going - how does it look in conjunction with the tower itself and the main building? Hard to evaluate just the roof since the shingles are so worn and even missing. Great visual storytelling, especially if you add a birds nest!
  • Thanks guys. I'll be looking for that picture Steve. I'm thinking that I will use the 9V as you suggest by creating a cavity in the bottom of the dio and putting a push-button on the fascia to turn lights on/off. I'm thinking 1 for lights, 1 for barrel burn effect, 1 for welding effect.

    Brett, I think the roof is matching the overall "use" of the tower. But still need to get the color right. Here's a pic of the current state of the model along with some experiments on getting the shingles right. I'd like to try getting that mixed coloring you sometimes see on cedar shingles...kind of reddish at the top turning to gray at the bottom. See some trials in the top right of this test card.

    I'm not optimistic about being able to make a convincing bird's nest. I've been trying to make one with 0000 steel wool but its not looking quite right when placed in the missing shingles.IMG_0184
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  • For the bird's nest, I made some quiet convincing ones with small / tiny cut pieces of sisal rope and jute rope. Then some chalk' bird poe' and you'd fool a real bird .... :wink:
  • Nice effect on the roof.
  • edited March 2018
    Nice looking roof Bryan and I like Roberts suggestion for the birds nest...I can visualize that detail with sisal and jute rope and the "poop" effect.
  • My lighting supplies arrived so I think I will wire up a few lights and return to the proper sequence in the construction manual (metal roofs).

    I'll post a few pics of how I wire up lights. I'll post a supplement on making goose neck lamps later.

    In the first pic you see some supplies. I use magnet wire which is very thin. To help keep it under control I tie a knot in the end of the wire that will end up being soldered to the power board. This just helps keep these wires together once you have a bunch of them to work with. Another trick is to use the tool in this pic to twist the wires together. I hold one end and clip the alligator clip to the other end and twits.

    Next pic shows my vise and extra set of hands holding an LED and wire. Then a close up of the LED. You will need a magnifier viser for this.

    I installed this light in a small hole inside the office roof and ran the wire through a hole in the back wall. Just tape to hold in place since this will be hidden. Route the wires through, then wrapped them around a scrap of wood and secure with painter's tape. This keeps all the wires under control as you add more lights.

    The last 2 pics show the effect. I put some venitian blinds in the window because I was concerned that the support piece of card stock would show through the window with the light on. Last pic shows the light in a dark room.

    Fun times! I have a few more to do inside the 2 main structures before I can start to attach the loading dock and install the roof.IMG_0188
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  • Great effect...and it really tops off the splendid work your doing.
  • Lightning always gives it something extra. Very nice work indeed.
  • Thanks guys. I do like adding lights. They just add a whole new dimension to the build.

    These pics show the goose neck lights being constructed. The big bolt is 1/4" and I use it to make clean bends in the tubing. Having a second one can help. You will find that the tubing takes on the angle of the threads while being bent. This can be fixed when you are done bending. Tip: thread the wire through the tubing before bending.

    The tube is .025 diameter aluminum. The shade is scale 18". I poke a very small hole in these with a pick then ream out the holes with a .026 drill. Put them on the tubing, and I use gel CA to hold them.

    Next step is to prime and paint. After paint, install the LED.IMG_0200
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  • The lights are installed in the main structures so I can get started on the roofs. I ran the wires from the tower through the main building and secured all of the loose ends to keep it from becoming a tangled mess. Once I'm ready to mount onto the diorama, all of the wires can be run through a hole directly under the building with the circuit board underneath.

    I notice that both structures are longer than their foundations by the length of the wall trim. Hmmm...I'll construct some type of camoflauge like Kevin did with his. IMG_0206
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  • Bryan. That light in the last picture is spot on I will take at least three..................Carl
  • Bryan...If the claps overhang outside the foundation just a bit...that is normal in real construction...it allows rain runoff to drip to the ground as opposed to build up on the concrete foundation and seep into the building and up into the wood...Since I am way...way behind on my build (I've only finished the main building, which sits pretty much directly on the ground with no visible foundation) I haven't seen the overhang with the tower on the concrete base as of yet...a slight overhang is prototypical...
  • It's important to have a simple perspective on the process of making resin castings. It is done by hand and like any hand made item, small variances in the finished product are normal. I account for the inherent shrinkage of the material when designing and making my masters but resins respond to ambient conditions during the casting process. Summer = less shrinkage while curing. Winter = more. To account for that I would have to have separate masters and molds for each Season... Wood swells and contracts as well so having a .010 - .020 difference between production castings and customer modeled walls are well within a tolerance I can live with. Besides, we are all focused on your wonderful weathering!
  • I agree, the weathering is top notch for sure...slight dimension variation just adds to the realism and effect of the overall structure appearance. I love the forming impressions in the "concrete" castings, such a cool and often overlooked detail. You really nailed the concrete color and age effect Bryan...well done.
  • Carl, I'll get right on your order.

    Muddy, get to work.

    Brett, its not a problem. I knew there would be variances in a casting of this size. Add to this slight warping in the wall due to my weathering techniques and probably not sanding completely flush on the siding all equal an overhang of about 4 scale inches. No worries. I centered everthing up towards the front and center. To the far right, I'll cover hangover with casting. To the far left, cover hangover with deck planks. It's all good.

    Ken, I too loved this concrete casting as soon as I took it out of the box. I think it is one of the best castings that Brett has ever produced. I spent a lot of time considering how I would weather it because it is such a focal point. Thanks for the feedback, I am very happy with the way it turned out.
  • Bryan, like Carl I think the last pic really shows how well you have weathered both the lamp shade and the walls. Just outstanding! Thanks for sharing your lighting methods and techniques.

    Geezerbill
  • edited April 2018
    Looks like you've got the lights covered and are moving right along.

    IMO if you're going for a welding simulator go with the gas torch one. It simulates 1) the striker, 2) acetylene flow (orange LED), 3) oxygen flow (white LED) and then slowly pulses (randomly) the white and orange LEDs to simulate the gas cutting torch in operation. It's a great effect. Especially for a place that makes acetylene. ;-)


    Bill S.
  • Thanks Bill and Bill. Yes, will definitely go with the gas torch.

    Been slow progress with spring cleanup in the yard, etc going on. But I have been getting the base coats of paint on the raised ridge roof and the tank. The rusted roof was painted a base coat of dark rust and green paint was sponged on to simulate what used to be a beautifully painted green roof to match the trim. The newer roof was never painted, it was just plain metal and is showing less rust since it is newer of course. Further weathering underway.

    The tank was painted a dark gray primer then lettered and washed lighter and a few streaks added. I'll add further streaking once the pipes and ladder are in place.IMG_0233
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  • The rust on the newer roof looks very natural. Fine work !
  • Roof panels and tank look great Bryan, love the streaking coming off the tank and running down through the "S" in O'Neills...subtile but most effective...are the streaks running slightly sideways or is the tank!...
  • Looks great Bryan!
  • Thanks Ken and Joel. I did my best to keep the streaks vertical. I think (hope) the tank being at an angle in the photo makes it look a bit off.

    Test fitted the roof panels and placed a repair/patch job on one side. I'll get the rafters and facia done and will install the roof.IMG_0237
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  • Love the rusted brown/hint of green roof and the contrasting addition roof...not sure about the light areas on the roof of the main building on the delivery dock side...my eye is drawn immediately to those two panels...maybe just me...
  • I am definitely seeing where you are taking this and the story you are telling. I think the difference between the roof panels are a bit too striking however. Hard to evaluate at this point since the surrounding scenery and details will bring it down for sure...
  • Thank Ken and Brett. There is quite a contrast between the colors, but I think the shine off of the lights is making the contrast greater. The roof is glued on now and another wash has been added to the panels. I'll post another pic once dry. I'm a big fan of the repair story...there is an old barn near my house that took a beating during a hurricaine. It lost a wall and a big section of metal roof. They patched it just like I am trying to accomplish here. Worst case scenario is that it l don't like it once done and have to repaint it.
  • I really like the effect too. The question will be the bigger picture and if it will pull focus from the other details or will it add to the feel of constant upkeep and wear.
  • Slow but steady progress continues. I've been working on the welding shop walls. All of the woodwork is done and now I'm detailing the outside of the walls. First wall done...except for the off-angle hoses I see in this pic.IMG_0260
  • Looking mighty fine...what happens to the shovel when the wall gets tipped up?

    Terry
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