An 'MLP' modelling thread for your Daughter - Curious??

[Army_Air_Force]

Once the clamps were removed, it began to look more like a railroad. The turnout that had been on back order arrived at the model shop, so we made a trip there after school. It wouldn't be too long before we could start laying track.

 

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

After the model shop trip, I started re-painting the spare ponies. This is Amethyst Star, converted from a Twilight Sparkle with the pegasus wings removed. Only the mane has had a base coat so far.

 

 

This is the first coat of white on Rarity, also converted from a Twilight Sparkle.

 

 

Minty, converted from a spare Pinkie Pie. Her mane was trimmed and re-shaped to more closely match Minty. The green dried a bit dark, so a second coat will be mixed to a lighter shade of mint green.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

July 21st was the first day of the school holidays, so we had a full day working on and off with short breaks between. The first thing done was painting the track bed black, so if there's any gaps in the ballast, you won't see wood showing through. We also painted the river bed and bog a dirty green/brown base coat.

 

 

It was a hot day, so it didn't take long for the paint to dry, after which we started painting layers of PVA glue for the water.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

While the PVA was drying, we began to cut some 120 grit sandpaper into stone shapes to clad the wooden bridge structure I'd made the day before.

 

 

Using the tip of a scalpel to pick them up, they were placed onto the bridge, which had been painted with a slightly dilute PVA glue mix, mainly to slow down the setting time in the hot weather. The layers of 'stones' were slowly built up and then the first side left to dry.

 

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

The first side of the bridge is complete, and once the PVA had hardened, the overhanging edges were trimmed.

 

 

While that was drying, we went into the garden to look for some stones for the river. A few larger pebbles were smashed up with a hammer to create some nice sized rocks for around the river, waterfall and bog.

 

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

The rocks were glued with more PVA and work on the bridge continued and both were then left to dry. The upper part of the river and the small waterfall would have to wait until the landscape developed.
 

 

While that was drying, the completed bridge was painted its first coat. The pinkish grey base coat would then be overpainted with random stones high and low lighted to create a more mottled appearance. The lower bridge, seen resting in place below, was going to be a steel structure, but it was changed to a wooden bridge.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

With just a couple of coats of PVA, the river is starting to look quite good. The bridge isn't glued in at this time. I would wait until the river bank progressed further and also until the bridge painting was finished.

 

 

The second bridge was going to be a low wooden structure, so it didn't block the view of the stone bridge. Some 1/16 plywood strips were stained with dilute brown household emulsion paint of variuos shades for the bridge decking.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

Three strips of 1/4 square Ramin were sanded to a rough round shape to form the main structure of the bridge. The planks were then glued over the top, picking them from the pile at random.
 

 

It didn't take too long for the full deck to be covered and set aside to dry. I would use the same method later in the project for the platforms.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

The area under the bridges was given a quick coat of green, as once glued in place, it will be hard to access.

 

 

The last picture of the day's work was both bridges in place with track placed over them for pictures. My daughter then went away camping for the weekend, so it was a few days before we got back to building. However, we were very pleased with the progress so far.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

On the 22nd, we got some white water painted around the rocks.

 

 

The day after, the stone bridge had its stones painted lighter and darker shades.

 

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

On July 26th, we began to lay the track, starting with the turnout. 

 

 

The main loop was laid first, running from both ends of the turnout, soldering the track joints on the curve and making the expansion joint on the straight area by the bridge.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

A GEM turnout lever was used to throw the rails, with the aid of a micro servo head as a bellcrank and a short length of thin piano wire.

 

 

The stone bridge was glued down next, and the climbing track to the station laid.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

With the track all pinned down, I soldered some wires to the rails and gave the loco a test run around the loop and up the incline. All went well, although the loco is still a bit rough, as I haven't replaced the 30+ year old motor yet, with the new 5 pole motor.

 

 

The day was interuppted by a school friend's birthday party and a trip bowling, so we didn't get any further after testing the trackwork.

 

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

After a day at grandma's house, we got back back on the layout on July 28th. We started by adding a plate to raise the landscape in the forest and river area, held up on several wooden blocks, seen being glued here.

 

 

Some 2mm plywood sits on top of the blocks, forming the base for the road/dirt track through the forest, and provides an edge for the continuation of the river.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

While I prepared some other bits and pieces, my daughter got on with painting the tunnel mouth a base coat of grey, and once dry, painted a number of stones in various grey/brown shades.
 

 

We then did some 'mod-roc' work around the river and the location of the camp fire. I also soldered up a red and yellow flickering LED which would be burried under a pile of logs for the camp fire.
 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

We had considered ballasting the track, but decided we needed some landscape in place where some of the ballast would slope down from the edges of the rail ties. This corner is the desert area where the 'Diamond Dogs' live. Their burrows is where they hide diamonds and gems, to be replicated with flickering LED's of various colours.

 

 

The last job of the day was plastering the area along side the lower part of the river, and creating the waterfall and upper part of the river that runs behind the 'Everfree Forest'. The plastering continued down along the edge of the bog. To assist adhesion, the landscape was painted with dilute PVA glue and the first coat wall plaster had some PVA added to the the water as it was being mixed. It was applied with the combination of a flat offcut of plywood and a stiff bristle paint brush.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Pete in Lincs]

Fabulous stuff.

Great to see Dad & Daughter working in harmony.

[Army_Air_Force]

Due to holidays and other activities, it wasn't until mid August that we got back to work. On the river side of the layout, we added the tunnel mouths. Boxing in the side of the tunnel would also provide the support for the landscape above this area.

 

 

Another piece of backscene was added parallel to the edge of the board, both to form the background, but also the control panel for the lighting switches. The base for the crystal empire is also weighted down and drying.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

The next stage was on the other side of the layout, building up the road that leads to Ponyville station. I cut some sections of hardboard and some supports on the bandsaw, ready to be glued on. The support blocks were glued using the curved roadway parts as a guide for their positions.

 

 

The blocks were allowed to dry a while before we started adding the roadway parts.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

Once the road was dry, we started adding some strips of card for  landscape supports. These would support the plaster bandage that forms the uneven landscape.

 

 

While they were drying, another tunnel mouth was made for this side of the layout, with more cut up sandpaper stones. Adding them was a time taking process, but a good exercise in patience and accuracy.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

After everything was dry, and the tunnel attached, we used plaster bandage to form the hillside shape, followed by more undercoat plaster for surface texture. That was then left to harden, which for the plaster, was at least a day to fully set.

 

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

By the third week in August 2016, we'd made a little more progress on the hillsides on the Ponyville side of the layout were covered in plaster bandage. On top of the twin track tunnel would be "Sweet Apple Acres Farm", home to Applejack.

 

 

The other tunnels would just have landscape and greenery on them as there wasn't the space for anything else.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

A couple of days after the plaster bandage had been applied, they were coated in plaster.

 

 

The area immediately to the right of these tunnels would be Rarity's Boutique.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

On August 22nd, on the other side of the layout, we began the structure over the tunnel in the 'Clousdale' area of the layout. I used a section of aluminium channel to hold the side straight while the hillside supports were cut and glued.

 

 

Card strips were then glued over the wooden structure to support the bandage as before.

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

The pathway and hill structure for the 'Everfree Forest' were added later. A plywood path and card support strips were used. Plaster bandage followed.

 

 

Edited October 22, 2020 by Army_Air_Force