Large Scale Central

In-ko-pah Railroad - Another new building

Modeling
#21

Thanks for the Maybe! My silicone supplyer is in San Diege.

http://www.aeromarineproducts.com

AeroMarine Products, Inc.
8659 Production Avenue
San Diego, CA 92121

Monday through Friday 9am to 4pm

Would it help if I bought the silicone and you send the leftover with the mold, or trade the leftover for the mold, or something.

I hope that this sound a little like i’m begging, I have started to try and make my own cut stones to make a mold from, they don’t even come close to those that you wipped out, and whaaah haaah here you dangle a beautiful set in front of my eyes…

#22

Progress has been a little slow this week, but here’s an update…

I made small sections of wall to be glued to the inner surface of the building’s side walls, along the top. This provides texture for the small portion of the side wall which will be visible on both sides, and also makes the wall thicker:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7615c/IMG_7615c.jpg)

Here you can see one of the pieces glued in place, along with a strip of styrene to support the roof:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7617/IMG_7617.jpg)

And here’s the roof glued in place. The roof was cut from 6mm PVC foam board:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7619c/IMG_7619c.jpg)

When I built up the sublayers for the front wall of the structure, I scribed “board” into the arch area of the PVC foam. Now I’ve added some trim, made from styrene strips:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7623a/IMG_7623a.jpg)

The interior rooms of the building will be removable units that can be accessed from the rear of the building. I got the idea from fellow modeler, Bob Santos. I built these from PVC, mainly 3mm thickness but also some 6mm. Here’s the lower room. The ceiling is secured by stainless steel, #2 x 3/8" sheet metal screws. Strips of .250" x /375" styrene are glued to the top of the ceiling, to support the upper room at the correct level.:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7658c/IMG_7658c.jpg)

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7645c/IMG_7645c.jpg)

Here’s the upper room. The left wall of the room is recessed about 1/8" inch, to clear the window frame and glass which will be installed in the side wall of the building:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7653c/IMG_7653c.jpg)

In this view from the rear, you can see how the interior units fit into the structure. The space between the upper and lower rooms can be used to wire the interior lighting. There will also be a gap between the rear wall and the back of the interior units, for wiring:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7633/IMG_7633.jpg)

A closer view of the units in place. Note the slightly recessed wall on the upper unit, designed to clear the window frame and glass which will be installed later:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7632c/IMG_7632c.jpg)

And here’s a look at the lower room, seen through the front opening:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7628/IMG_7628.jpg)

Next up was building the front door and window assembly. On my first attempt I tried doing it a little differently than usual, and was not successful. I started with a sheet of .040" thick styrene, and traced the opening onto it. Then I added the main frame pieces:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7666c/IMG_7666c.jpg)

Before adding any further detail, I tried to cut out the window openings. The results were too crude – having the straight edge raised above the surface by the frame pieces allowed the tip of the knife to wander slightly. Also, the knife left ridged that would need to be sanded down. I could have salvaged this, but it would be too much work:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7717/IMG_7717.jpg)

So I scrapped it and started over. I first glued together the main frame pieces, cut from strips of .080" x .125" styrene. Then I used various sized strips of .040" thick styrene to build up what I call the “backplate” on the underside of the frame:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7671c/IMG_7671c.jpg)

Then the finer details were added, using strips of various size. Here’s the finished product:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7682c/IMG_7682c.jpg)

Here’s a closeup showing some of the details. I used .020" styrene rod around the perimeter of the windows and panels:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7702/IMG_7702.jpg)

And here’s the door and window assembly temporarily installed in the structure:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7708/IMG_7708.jpg)

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7707c/IMG_7707c.jpg)

That’s all for now. Enjoy!

#23

Awesome work, as usual. Next time i’m in SD I’ll have to ask for a visit…

#24

Time for another update…

I did some more preliminary work on the front of the building. I had previously laminated some 3mm PVC foam board to create some raised areas. But I decided that the non-raised area above the upstairs windows needed to be taller. So I had to cut off some of the laminated material. After a bit of effort I got it off, however it damaged some of the substrate:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7724/IMG_7724.jpg)

I patched up the damaged area with some automotive spot putty. It doesn’t need to be perfect, since it will all be covered with stone castings later. I also decided to add the arched attic vents above the windows. Originally I had planned to use rectangular vents, but the arched vents looked so great on the prototype building, I couldn’t resist them even though it means more work:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7730/IMG_7730.jpg)

To make the attic vents, I laid out the radial “sunburst” design on a sheet of .040" styrene:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7741c/IMG_7741c.jpg)

My intention was to cut out the indivdual openings, but this was getting too tedious for me. So I went to Plan B: Cut out the entire arc opening, then glue in bits of .040" x .060" styrene strips. It’s not as elegant, but it works. Then I built up the frame out of curved and straight styrene strips, and added the “backplate”. After it’s painted, I’ll glue some fine brass screen to the rear of the backplate:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7746c/IMG_7746c.jpg)

Here’s how they look installed in the structure:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7757/IMG_7757.jpg)

The upstairs windows were built in conventional manner, starting with the large frame pieces. Then I added strips of .375" styrene to the rear of the frame as a “backplate”. In this photo you can see how I used steel blocks, with a strip of .250" square styrene as a spacer, to align the backplate piece on the frame:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7761/IMG_7761.jpg)

The finer details were built up using various strips of styrene. I cheated a little and built a fake sash into the lower part of the window frame. I didn’t want to fuss with trying to cut glass precisely enough to fit into a real sash. This way, all I have to do is glue a single sheet of glass over the rear of the entire frame:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7769c/IMG_7769c.jpg)

The side window was built the same way, but lacks the short section at the top:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7774c/IMG_7774c.jpg)

Here are a couple shots of the building in position on the foundation, with all the window frames temporarily installed:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7796c/IMG_7796c.jpg)

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7804c/IMG_7804c.jpg)

The next phase of the project will be making the rear enclosure. After that I will be able to start attaching the stone castings to the front of the building.

#25

That’s going to be really nice.

#26

Very nice Ray. Those arches look good

#27

Amazing work.

#28

Thank you for this very informative build.

Tom

#29

Tom Grabenstein said:

Thank you for this very informative build.

Tom

I agree. I know how much extra time it takes to document a build and post construction details. I really appreciate it when others do it and try to do it myself when I have something to contribute.

#30

At the rate you make buildings, I imagine your railroad becoming an urban setting.

#31

Moving right along…

I did some more work on the interior, adding strips of styrene along the top of the interior walls to prevent vertical movement of the removable rooms:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7813/IMG_7813.jpg)

I also attached strips of styrene to rear of the room units. When the rear wall is installed, these strips act as spacers to prevent front-to-back movement of the units. They also serve as convenient handles:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7810c/IMG_7810c.jpg)

The rear wall is basically just an access panel. I made it from a sheet of 6mm PVC foam board cut to fit inside the rear of the building. On the outside of this, I laminated a larger sheet of 2mm PVC, to create a “flange”. Hopefully this will keep out rainwater:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7816c/IMG_7816c.jpg)

Here’s a shot of the rear of the building with the wall secured by eight #2 x 3/8", stainless steel sheet metal screws:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7819c/IMG_7819c.jpg)

The edge of the 2mm thick portion of the rear wall, was rounded off, then scribed to match the stone pattern on the side wall:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7823c/IMG_7823c.jpg)

I cut a strip of 2mm PVC and textured it by tapping it with a rough rock. This was glued over the window on the side wall, to represent a rectangular, cut stone:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7826c/IMG_7826c.jpg)

Finally, I get to the fun stuff – mounting the stone resin castings! I used a drawing program to lay out some radial lines to match the arches. The lines aren’t spaced to match the width of the stones, because I didn’t know how to do that with this program. But they at least serve as a guide for getting the angles of the stones right.

I cut a bunch of the stone castings to fit the length of the arch stones. Then I sanded a very slight angle into the sides of each stone. I found it necessary to place the stones over the drawing as I made them, in order to be sure they all fit correctly. It is also important to start with the stone at the center of the arch, both when shaping them and when gluing them to the building:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7830c/IMG_7830c.jpg)

This is how far I’ve gotten. I first glued on the stone castings along the sides, up to the top of the main window opening. Then I added the arch stones:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7833c/IMG_7833c.jpg)

There are a few minor gaps which will be filled with putty later, and blended into the stones:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7835/IMG_7835.jpg)

In this close up view you can see how I cut the stones at the sides, to fit around the end of the arch. I also had to cut a stone into a narrow strip to fill a gap at the top of the column. The stone castings turned out to be slightly smaller than the masters, resulting in some minor discrepancies in the arrangement of the stones:

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7836/IMG_7836.jpg)

When I installed the stones between the upstairs windows, I originally started at the bottom of the window and worked upwards. Then I discovered there would be a small gap due to the change in the dimensions of the castings. The gap can be filled with stones cut to narrow strips, however I felt it would look better if this was at the bottom rather than at the top. So I pried up the stones and reinstalled them, this time starting at the top and working downwards.

(http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/IRR_Mineral_Ridge_1_files/Media/IMG_7839/IMG_7839.jpg)

In retrospect, it would also have been better if I’d installed the narrow trim stones by starting at the center, rather than starting from the end. Then the stones would not have ended up off center. It’s a minor thing though, so I’m not going to redo that.

You can also see some more small gaps that will need filling later.

Anyway, that’s it for now – more later!

#32

That’s turning out great!

#33

Unbelievable!

:smiley:

Do you find any issues with expansion in the summer heat with the PVC?

#34

Ya know I’m loving the cut stone castings…anyone else out there thinking Robertsdale Depot?

#35

That is goung to be an impressive structure.

#36

That looks sooooo nice! Regards, Ron

#37

Bart Salmons said:

Ya know I’m loving the cut stone castings…anyone else out there thinking Robertsdale Depot?

Yes. But you can build it :] I want to build the Rockhill Stone Farmhouse using those tiles from Lowes.

@Ray - Looking real good. I like the removable interior idea a lot.

#38

Simply top notch, Ray. Can’t wait to see the finished structure.

#39

Ray, some questions. And I apologize for them coming so late in this thread.

I take it that unlike Precision Board as sold by your neighbors at Rainbow Ridge, Sintra has no surface grain to speak of, right?

Why did you use 6 mm thick material? For rigidity? I was told that PB has to be a 1/2 inch thick in order to be carved because anything thinner, say, 1/8, would break in the carving process. Is that the case with Sintra?

Finally, did ya buy the large, economy size sheets, like 30 x 40 or just normal size like 11 x 14?

Sorry to be a pest (again).

#40

“Do you find any issues with expansion in the summer heat with the PVC?”

Not so far. My Hotel Torgo has been out on the layout since the beginning of July last summer, and hasn’t been affected in any way by the heat.

“I take it that unlike Precision Board as sold by your neighbors at Rainbow Ridge, Sintra has no surface grain to speak of, right?”

Correct. It’s smooth on one side, and has only a very, very slight “pebbly” texture on the other side.

(Edit: Looking at it again, it seems to be pretty much the same on both sides – a slightly matte finish.)

“Why did you use 6 mm thick material? For rigidity?”

Yes. The 6mm is sufficiently rigid for most large structures, yet still thin enough to cut easily with a hobby knife.

“I was told that PB has to be a 1/2 inch thick in order to be carved because anything thinner, say, 1/8, would break in the carving process. Is that the case with Sintra?”

No, the Sintra is not brittle, unlike PB which is a urethane foam. PVC foam is fairly flexible. In fact you could create round structures by wrapping it around something of suitable diameter. Of course the thicker the PVC, the tougher it will be to bend and more likely to break if bent too far.

“Finally, did ya buy the large, economy size sheets, like 30 x 40 or just normal size like 11 x 14?”

I’ve been getting the 6mm and 3mm thicknesses in 16" x 20" sheets, which allows me to make two to three story buildings without having seams in the walls.

I got smaller sheets of some thinner stock, which I’m only using for details.