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Kit 311 O scale O'Neills

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Comments

  • Track work looks great and ripe for further details as you mentioned...getting close to "planting" the main complex!
  • Bryan, getting caught up on these threads as I attempt to return to structure building. The quality of modeling on your O Scale O’Neill’s is other worldly.
  • Thanks all. Much appreciated.

    Kevin, I moved my tracks also. Not fun, but the diagonal approach is going to help with the final look I am going for.
  • looking forward to seeing the way you arrange the diorama.
  • I made a plinth for a crane using a Dulcote cap and plaster. Covered it in bricks just because I thought it would look good. I'll put a cap on the top course of brick and add mortar and weathering. The tube sticking out is a channel for wire. I want to light the crane.IMG_0531
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  • Very nice....
    Terry
  • way cool! nicely done.
  • I put on a cap and gave a brown and rust wash to blend the brick colors together. Next will be mortar and fill in the top of the cap.IMG_0051
  • it looks fantastic
  • Is this going to be a part of your O'Neills diorama? Excellent craftsmanship.
  • Thanks all. Ken, yes this will be in the O'Neills diorama. It's the base for a true backwoods, bashed steam-powered crane mounted on a re-purposed flatcar. Boiler will run on used oil of course, and a crew cover will be welded together with angle iron. Should tell a fun story.

    I need to have the base finished to plant before the first layer of groundcover can go in. Also need to complete a concrete pad for the corrugated "dueling" shed as it will be incorporated into the dio as well.
  • Really great work. Love the colouring on the bricks. Sorry if I missed it but what did you use for the bricks and what colours did you use?
  • Joel, the bricks are available as 1:48 scale bricks and are a plaster type material. I used a 2/3 red mix and 1/3 terracotta mix. Mix these in a bowl and pull out randomly. I pre-stained about 10% of red bricks with IA. I also knocked off a corner on about 10% of bricks as I laid them. To blend the colors I used a "dark brown" wash and a "track rust" wash.

    I would lay one course of bricks then add a shim of an HO scale 1x3. This kept them evenly spaced.
  • Here is the base with mortar and a first layer of weathering. I'll give it some moss at the bottom to match the walls of the main structure and can plant it at that time. I'll save making the crane until later...probably one of the last things to get constructed. Second photo gives an idea of what I'm looking to create. A 16' flatcar will serve as the base of a steam powered crane.IMG_0055
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  • That's so make pretty slick modeling

    George
  • Thanks guys. One last post today. I placed everything on the base and took a pic from each side. The cardboard mockup is the proposed location of the corrugated shed. I wanted to take these shots outside but it's raining with no end in sight.IMG_0066
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  • Simply amazing....well done
    Terry
  • Coming out very nice...what are the dimensions of the base?
  • The base is 15.5 x 19.5. With the 1/4" cutout all around it fits inside a 16 x 20 frame that I'm using to give the base a finished look.
  • So here was a fun little experiment...

    I want to make a concrete pad that has seen better days. I made a mold from scale 8x lumber and secured to cutting board with double sided tape. I cut some small 2x2 spacers and place in the corners. On top of the spacers I laid some .012 stainless wire. Piled some fine HO/N scale ballast into the corners to cover the wire and spacers. Poured gray plaster. Once dry, pop off of the cutting board and brush out the ballast. Here we have a cement pad worn away so much that the rebar is coming through. I painted the wire rust color with enamel paint prior, but the paint still came off during the process so I painted again here for this pic. No other weathering has been done. The scratches are the cuts on the cutting board picked up during the process.

    This one MAY be overdone for the look I am going for, but it is in the right direction.IMG_0072
  • I like the effect of the spalling concete and exposed rebar...you’re on the right track
    Terry
  • Looking good Bryan, the broken away concrete is a great effect and the exposed re-bar is a very nice touch. I remember when we used it in the O scale BlueSky kit for added detail....
    Dontcha just love O scale detail !!

    Karl.A
  • Uh oh....sounds like a challenge to have concrete with exposed re-bar in 1:87!

    Great looking detail Bryan, can't wait to see how it all comes together.
  • Love the exposed rebar. Amazing textures. Looking forward to seeing the completed concrete pad in action.
  • Karl, I do love O scale for the detail. Shortly after building Blue Sky I saw a diorama online of a bomb-cratered runway with exposed rebar. I've been waiting to try this every since.

    Ken, I suggest you give it a try. I did another pad-3rd time is a charm- and took pics of how I suspended the rebar while I poured. I'll post those along with a pic of the new pad after I give it a couple of paint washes.

    Ditto Joel. I know you could put a detail like this in one of your dioramas.
  • Here's a quick STS if anyone wants to do give it a try as well.

    Start with a mold and place wire on small risers. I used a very small drop of wood glue to hold in place because it is easy to clean off the wire later.
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    Add fine ballast and brush into the edges. Cover the wire where you think it will look good exposed.

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    Fill mold and level it off. I use pre-colored dental plaster.

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    Let it dry and remove from mold. Brush/scrape away the ballast.


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    Add washes. I use a light gray, tan, and dark gray. Stains will be added later once the structure is placed.


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    Weather the rebar. I used brass .010 wire here so I blackened it then painted dark rust then added some lighter rust wash.


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  • edited September 2018
    Thanks for the step by step process. Question, did you have to use any type of mold release on the Wood Mold? I've heard WD40 is a good mold release. Also, not sure on those scratch marks. I assume you could have poured the mold on top of wax paper to eliminate them...

    Alan
  • Bryan,

    Thanks for this neat tutorial on making a concrete slab/dock. It is clear and concise. Your photos really help understand the project. All in all you have covered the three basics for a great lesson: see it, say it and do it.

    Later, Dave S Tucson, AZ
  • Thanks Dave.

    Alan, no mold release used. I used a razor to pop it off the glass, then snap off the wood. No issues at all. Ah the scratches. I chose to incorporate those after the first experiment. This is the floor of the corrugated shed so you won't be able to see them very well. I felt like seeing a scratch or 2 through a cracked door told a story about something heavy being dragged across the floor. If this were a more visible floor I would have eliminated those by either looking for a clean piece of glass or using wax paper as you suggest...probably would include some expansion joints as well.
  • Thanks for the explanation. You brought up another good point, how would you create expansion joints? Just cutting lines using an exacto knife..or something more sophisticated?
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