Scotia Supply

KKarns

Dave, now we're talking! Great post, you finished up nicely. Your stone color and weathering turned out well. I really like the old pole with the light..well done. I also think the damage to the siding on the back of Scotia is suburb! Very well done and appears completely natural and done in a perfect spot with just a bit of the studs showing. The overall weathering on the siding on the back of Scotia looks very nice. Scotia's roof looks very nice. The last picture shows all your castings blending well and nicely colored...however, the couple of steel barrels towards the front appear a bit bright with heavy contrast with the dirt/rust spots. Also like the weathered dirt drive up to the side loading dock, very nice. Great stuff David...

captsully18

Phil, thanks for checking me out. The tree is one I made. It is made from sagebrush, pieces of "super trees" (Scenic Express). I started with the sagebrush armature and glued pieces of the super trees to it until it had a shape I liked. Painted it with Krylon Camo. let it dry overnight, sprayed it with Aileens tacky glue and rolled it in Woodland Scenics fine foam so that just the tips of the branches touched the foam. It took 2 or 3 times to get the amount of foam I wanted. Let it dry good and planted it. The vines are weed roots that I sprayed with glue and rolled in the same foam.As for LP's, will add some as soon as I can modify a few to look natural in that scene.

Ah, Ken, I be thankin' you for the nice words. You have been one that has kept my nose to the grindstone, along with our good friend Karl, and I thank you for that, and all the great ideas I got from you. You have been after those barrels for a long time now. I have tried to tone them down. Still have an idea or two, so after I think they are better I will post one more pic. Your critique means a lot. Now I must decide which to tackle next. I have an idea bouncing around in my head, but best not share it now. It may send Brett into heart failure. Talk about thinking outside the box!

Thanks guys

Dave

Bill

Dave-
Congrats on seeing this project through to completion! Having been MIA most of the summer, I was thrilled to see you posting final pictures. You should be proud of your work here. At times, you weren't happy with the results you were getting, you sought help, and went back and tried again. That's important. I can assure you that ALL of us have "undid" our less than satisfactory efforts and took another whack at it.

I know you're looking for criticism, but first I'd like to hear your honest take:
What are you most pleased with?
What are you least happy with and hope to improve with the next model?

Karl.A

Great words from Bill. Our own internal viewpoint is what we ultimately build on.

captsully18

Nice to see you found your way "hone". Thanks for visiting. To be honest, I would like to start all over, again. I'm happy with the over all work, I think it looks interesting with a lot of personality. The side yard is my favorite part, but it contains a lot of the things I am least happy with........the castings. I aim to do a much better job on the casting painting and weathering on the next build. I am not unhappy enough with any of it that I would remove anything to do over.

Karl, thanks to you I've learned a lot from this model. This has been my first craftsman type model, and like I said above, I am pleased, over all. I have a bunch of Brett's kits waiting to be built and really don't know which one I shall dig into. But I will certainly dig into one of them. I feel more confident now and knowing that all you guys are there to help, encourage, and give of your talent makes this the very best forum. Thank you.

Dave

KCSTrains

Dave, thanks for the explanation on the trees and vines. Something for me to think about. I'm patiently waiting on my first kit and can't wait to get started. BTW I'm doing a clinic at our local swap meet this weekend. I have found an pretty easy way to make pine trees using dowels, caspia and flocking like you did.

Bill

Okay Dave-
This is good. I'd tell you that you're correct: this model is done. Don't change anything from this point on. Two, ten or twenty completed models down the road, you'll be glad that you have this one as is. You'll be able to see how far you've come since today.
Recognizing what you yourself aren't pleased with is key. That says you see room for growth in your modeling and you're not just trying do things differently to please your peers. Knowing what you dislike and understanding WHY it doesn't sit well with you are two different things. The second half is most important in order to get your skills to that next level.

I think you tackled some BIG things on this project. Hand laying cedar shakes is not a beginner technique! Yet, you pulled it off with good results. I think the same can be said for the cyclone fence. Your scenery is very nice. The busted out section of clapboards in the back is spot on...even the sagging board at the bottom lost its green paint and is turning a brownish color.

Now, if I could be so bold as to point out a couple things you may want to work on next time. Let's look at the side yard scene:




I would suggest being a little less heavy handed with the chalks on the walls. Ask yourself how and why would the siding discolor (weather) up high on the walls in a few areas, but not at the bottoms?

Your castings to me look pretty good. But again, ask yourself if that's how oil barrels would show wear or oil stains in the real world.

More subtle use of chalk in a couple of shades on the shingles would add a lot to the realism. Too much chalk hides all the detail I know for fact you spent a ton of time adding! The nice thing about that situation is a wash of plain alcohol thins it out and allows the grain to pop back out.

Always be mindful of excessive glue and glue splotches, subtle nail holes and overall tight, clean construction.

I'm not trying to pick apart your work. My hope is this will help you understand WHY those areas came up short to your own eye. Make sense?

Like I said earlier, you have a LOT to be proud of with this one. Now, take what you've learned on this project and continue to build on those skills with the next one.
I'll be watching for it!

Bill

Wes

Hi Dave

Wewll done on your diorama. I think you did a very good job on the whole thing and if you build on what Bill has mentioned, you can only get better and better.

captsully18

Bill, thank you for your critique. You have hit on the very things that I'm not completely satisfied with. I keep telling myself to relax, this is your first try at this level, don't expect to hit one out of the park the first at bat, etc. I feel just like you said, I'll be glad to have this one around later on down the road. My intention is to have this sitting on the bench as I work on the next one so, perhaps, I won't make the same mistakes on the new one. I wanted to build Scotia to your all's standards that I set my bar too high, maybe. I'm not disappointed, am still proud of it, but want my next one to be better, and the next better, etc. I really appreciate all you had to say, and I totally agree. Thanks again.

Wes, appreciate the compliment. And getting better and better has to happen with all the talent here. I do so appreciate all the help and advise I have been given. It's awesome. Please check in on me again as I plan to begin a new build as soon as I clean up all my mess on the bench.

Thanks guys,

Dave

ironmountainlumber

Hi Dave,

Great job on finishing the kit. A finished diorama is a great accomplishment and great learning experience definitely lots of learning from just building to scenery and taking photos. Even those of us that are not posting pictures really learn a lot from everyone here doing the builds. Bills advice as Wes said will only make you and everyone else following your build better. GREAT JOB!

Jim

captsully18

Thanks for the kind words, Jim. What you say about forum is spot on, for sure.

Dave

brownbr

Nice job on the finishing. The scenery is great.

captsully18

Bryan, thanks for checking it out. Appreciate the comments.

Dave

JohnM

Dave,
What a treat it must be to receive constructive comments from the best of the best. We are very blessed in this warm and kind group of friends.
Respectfully,
John

Karl.A

Dave,
Throughout every build we do we learn something new, and learn how to improve what we just did. (a little more of this, a little less of that... etc )
Personally , every time I finish a model I want to go back and rebuild it with the things I've learned while building it, because I know I can do it better the next time.

Take what you learned and apply it to the next build, each progression is rewarding to look back and see.

Karl.A

captsully18

John, Amen. Very well said and accurate.

Karl, spot on. Since nearing completion I have wanted to get another Scotia and build it again based on what I learned this time around. Here's to the next build coming out better, then the next, etc. I received a lot of help and advise on this build. Appreciated all of it, but if it hadn't been for your help I would probably have ended up putting this one in the scrap pile. You, and a couple others, kept me honest with myself, kept my nose to the grindstone, kept me observing the real world. Thanks to you, and all the others who added their input, kind comments, and encouragement.

Now on to the next project. I do have several to choose from, but I think it may be the water tank. Baby steps you know.

Dave