Diorama/Layout scenic's.

[stevej60]

Hi folk's,my eldest bought me a Hornby set for my birthday last week so just starting to put together a base to set it up on,I know there's a Trains section here on

BM but sadly it's not much visited which given the plethora of Railway Forum's is understandable besides there's a crossover in a lot of stuff concerning scenic's.

Anyway I'm planning and have the MDF base boards up in the loft cut to 6x4 which is just a nice size for a smallish(in model railway term's) layout,first question

is using Guagemaster grass and gravel  roll's which have a paper backing what would you suggest the best method of fixing it to the base board?

The make up will feature the following,

Hornby  basic oval with track pack's A,B,C and D which is a double oval,level crossing,station stop and siding's.

I have already got a Metcalfe card model station  who's range include some great nissan hut;s and pill boxes  for anyone modelling WW2 airfield dio's.

Dapol footbridge and engine shed.

As it progresses I'd love some chipping in with advise and thought's on scenery etc.

Cheer's Steve.

[bar side]

Hi Steve will be watching out for progress.  I was Railway modelling before getting back in to plastic kits & got lots of good advice over at RMWeb.  They are a good bunch of guys totally focussed on all things train related.  My layout is still in the loft but mine goes around the loft double tracked in oo gauge.

 

 

Good luck with yours.  I guess the go to glue is watered down pva, but it can cause your paper to crinkle & curl. 

[stevej60]

On 30/03/2019 at 23:18, bar side said:

Hi Steve will be watching out for progress.

Thank's I really should post a few Pic's still working on the base which is almost there(not quite as big as your set up mind),I have to make a decision

wether to get it off the floor once completed I'm dicovering the pre-owned train world is a little different from the model world I,ve had my finger's burned

with a couple of engine's might pay to buy new next time.

[stevej60]

Hi folk's I was up in the loft earlier so a few photos,I decided to stick to a 6x8 base board layed Guagemaster grass and gravel roll for the 

relevent areas,As I said I plan to get it off the floor and add some backscene to it.

 

I love these Metcalfe card kit's never ever built in card before but loved building the Church,headstones are being made as we speak!

 

The good old Dapol footbridge and engine shed in the process of finishing.

 

I need to look at adding trees and I'm busy painting the telegraph poles etc that came with the original set,I have enough rolling stock for the size

of the layout but the Flying Scotsman may need a new motor it was bought pre owned and is very noisy.

[bar side]

Nice set up there.  I have the Metcalf church too, but dont have anywhere to put it. The station could do with being on a platform as there were very few uk stations without a platform.  Quite a few in Europe but not here.  And the bridge would normally sit on the platform.  I built my own plaforms as I wanted extra long ones.  Same bridge though

 

 

Is your Scotsman engine or tender drive?  The tender drives do make some awful noises, but most things on them are fairly fixable

 

 

[stevej60]

Hi Bar side,I've still to make the platform out of Balsa not decided wether to move it or not,the engine is an eighties release with the engine

inside the boiler,funny it make's no noise when the plastic body is off seems like the hollow body is making it sound worse.

[spaddad]

Gremlins.

[bar side]

4 hours ago, stevej60 said:

Hi Bar side,I've still to make the platform out of Balsa not decided wether to move it or not,the engine is an eighties release with the engine

inside the boiler,funny it make's no noise when the plastic body is off seems like the hollow body is making it sound worse.

Hmm, later release with engine drive.  Nothing in the body is fowling the drive gear then? Or even fowling the exterior motion?  I have a Bachman’s B1 which is engine drive but an old split frame & runs really badly. 

[BIG X]

On ‎01‎/‎04‎/‎2019 at 12:29, stevej60 said:

Hi folk's I was up in the loft earlier so a few photos,I decided to stick to a 6x8 base board

I am guessing we are talking 6 feet by 8 feet - but I am totally ignorant...  How on earth did you get that through your loft hatch???

 

I am guessing 'in pieces' - Loving the church BTW - beats my old Airfix church by a mile.

 

Nice work Steve - keep it up.

Steve

[Army_Air_Force]

For hillsides, I use MDF to form the edge, usually with holes cut in to access tracks in case of derailments.

 

Roughly shaped cardboard formers make up the basic hillside shape.

 

Strips of card glued on help to fill in the shape.

 

A layer of plaster bandage comes next.

 

Once the plaster bandage is dry, I paint it with dilute PVA and cover it with 'first coat' wall plaster, which has a nice texture.

 

For rocky finishes, the plaster is painted with shades of household emulsion. For finer textures, I sprinkle on fine kiln dried sand, wet it out with a water/detergent mix, then drip on dilute PVA with an eye dropper, to attach the sand. I use the same method with the sand for ballast on the track, just being careful around the points. The ground or ballast is then painted in emulsion again to the desired colour, blending where necessary.

Edited April 2, 2019 by Army_Air_Force

[Army_Air_Force]

Here's some of the kiln dried sand, painted as grass on an N scale layout.

 

For trees and bushes, I use Model Scenics 'Clump Foliage', chopped into small pieces, mixed with PVA glue and applied to the ground or to copper wire trees.

I build up the tree foliage in bits, letting some dry before applying more layers.

 

[BIG X]

OMG - those hills look amazing...

..my main fear would be - what happens when my loco goes off the tracks under the hill  

[Army_Air_Force]

That's why there are holes in the MDF end supports, so you can reach in and retrieve them.

[BIG X]

I love a man who thinks of the things I wouldn't have... 

[Mancunian airman]

The whole scene looks to be well planned and constructed.

I used powder cement as a covering as I find its really fine although I havent tried your type of sand.

How heavy, or light, is MDF compared to chipboard ?

I'm looking at building a dio but need to know if MDF is a lighter and stronger alternative ? Does it come in differing thicknesses ?

Any guide tips would be welcome 

Ian

[Army_Air_Force]

B&Q has MDF in sheets from 3mm up to about 18mm, in 3mm steps. It is probably more denst than chip board, though I've never compared the two. It has a nice smooth edge when cut and a smoother surface finish. I typically use 9mm MDF for a baseboard on a 2x1inch frame. For the edging on the hillsides, I use 6mm.

[PhoenixII]

Hi Ian @Mancunian airman MDF is denser than either chipboard or block board, and heavier than both, but, also stronger, being made from a sawdust and resin mix. It's more stable and not as prone to absorb moisture. To give you an example, most kitchen unit carcasses have been made from MDF for the last twenty-five years. Does tend to blunt chisels and saw blades though, both hand held and circular, if cutting large amounts. 

If you buy from either B&Q or a builders merchants, ask them to cut it for you.

HTH

Paul

[stevej60]

4 hours ago, BIG X said:

I am guessing we are talking 6 feet by 8 feet - but I am totally ignorant...  How on earth did you get that through your loft hatch???

 

I am guessing 'in pieces' - Loving the church BTW - beats my old Airfix church by a mile.

 

Nice work Steve - keep it up.

Steve

Hi Steve yes,my local DIY shop cut an 8x6 12mm mdf board intofour pieces and I batoned it back into one piece,Metcalfe do nissan hut's and

pillboxes which would look great on an airfield dio.

[stevej60]

6 hours ago, bar side said:

Hmm, later release with engine drive.  Nothing in the body is fowling the drive gear then? Or even fowling the exterior motion?  I have a Bachman’s B1 which is engine drive but an old split frame & runs really badly. 

No, that was the first thing I looked at nothing catching at all.Mystery!

[Ratch]

Many years ago, when I was railway modelling, Sundaela was the stuff to make trackbeds from because it was light and could be cut with a Stanley knife. Is it not available anymore?

[BIG X]

9 minutes ago, Ratch said:

Many years ago, when I was railway modelling, Sundaela was the stuff to make trackbeds from because it was light and could be cut with a Stanley knife. Is it not available anymore?

we sell it - 4' x 8' - delivered by our own fleet of vans - how many do you want...

[Army_Air_Force]

I normally use cork as a trackbed on top of the MDF baseboard.

[Ratch]

16 minutes ago, BIG X said:

we sell it - 4' x 8' - delivered by our own fleet of vans - how many do you want...

I've got some (I think) - I haven't touched my railway for over 20 years 

[Army_Air_Force]

Here's another simple detail to bring the railway to life. I found a load of period posters on the internet and scalled them down to fit a 6x4 photo. Once printed, they could be cut out and glued to walls, or mounted on pins for signs with posts.

 

Posters on the walls of the station.

 

Signs on posts, ready for planting.

[Army_Air_Force]

Another graphic I did on the computer was some rail wagon tarpaulins.

 

Once cut out, they can be folded and glued to wagons, folded and left behind buildings or used to cover objects around a rail yard.