Thanks very much, guys!
Greg, that sounds like a neat idea. Maybe some kind of small, CCTV thing?
Recently I needed to build a small wooden shack using Sintra PVC foam board, to be featured in an article I’m writing for Garden Railways. At the time I didn’t know where it would fit into the layout. Eventually I decided to put it in the town of Grandt Cliff. Until now the only other structure I’d created for that site was a miner’s cabin. This will be an old shack which has been converted into a sandwich shop, called Serenity’s Sandwich Shack.
The town site is at the base of Grandt Cliff, and was undeveloped. To prepare the site, I had to chisel out some of the rocks and mortar near the base of the cliff. I built up a foundation for the shack, starting with a section of miniature stone wall made of real rock and mortar. I also used some small slabs leftover from a previous project:
Strips of foam core art board were hot-glued in place to make a form, for extending the foundation:
Mortar was poured into the form, then shaped and leveled. The cavity in the foundation is to hold wiring for the building lights. A brass tube acts as a conduit. Another tube provides drainage:
Eventually there will be two or three other buildings at this site, including a RR depot. So after pouring the foundation, I also began pouring part of the slab for the platform of the future depot:
I added a small slab to one side of the shack’s foundation. This will be part of steps leading to the shack:
Here’s a shot of the unfinished shack, temporarily in place on the foundation:
A similar shot, with the more work done on the porch. The porch and shack are built as two separate pieces to facilitate painting. They won’t be glued together until after both structures have been painted:
And here’s a shot of the entire town site, located below the Cliffside Mine:
Enjoy!
I am just amazed at the amount of rock work you have. Every time you post t is just awe inspiring to see. Really show what can be done if one sets there mind to it.
Been there… Loved that. It is even more amazing in person. A note to everyone. When Ray started there were no rocks there. He hauled everyone in, and hand placed each one. He even went so far as to create different color strata running vertical up the cliff face, just like the real thing.
Completely boggled here!
Thanks, Devon, Dave and Tom!
Well, I was going to try to hold off posting more pics of this until it was finished, but I’m so tickled with the way it’s turning out, I couldn’t resist. This has been a really fun build!
I’ve finished painting it, including many hand-painted signs. Still have to add the corrugated metal to the main roof. Also need to add some light fixtures and other exterior details, and glue the porch to the building. Also need to finish the surrounding landscape, and the stairs/path leading up to the building on either side. Eventually I’ll build and detail the interior too. Here’s how it looks so far:
Enjoy!
Wow!
Great! Ray, I can see the room for 3-4 small structures around this structure, Fantastic job Ray,
Dennis
Ray you make me sick!!! (http://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)
with envy!
Absolutely astounding!! How you do it , is beyond me. Keep it up Buster!
Ray Dunakin said:
Enjoy!
I am…immensely!..(http://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)
Very nice. What’s your secret for hand painting those signs? They look great.
Bruce Chandler said:
Very nice. What’s your secret for hand painting those signs? They look great.
Ditto, those hand painted signs are great.
OMG, He’s done it again! WOW!
Good fun…I can just imagine popping the cap of a soda bottle and having a grilled cheese and chips in the shade of the porch!
Well I am glad I am not the only one that has a man crush on Ray (http://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-tongue-out.gif). I mean there are bad modelers, decent modelers, good modelers, great modelers, and then there is the one guy they all strive to be. When I first came here Ray was pointed out as one to learn from. It doesn’t take long to see why.
Just excellent Ray and i hope you don’t mind my hero worship.
Bruce Chandler said:
Very nice. What’s your secret for hand painting those signs? They look great.
Me three! How’d you do that?
Thanks everyone, for all your kind words!
The sign on the top of the front of the building (Serenity’s Sandwich Shack) and the sign on the front of the porch (Sandwiches/Cold Drinks) was done with stencils. I laid out the lettering in Pages on my iMac, and printed it onto self-adhesive vinyl. Then I cut out the letters, peeled off the vinyl and placed it in position. I applied the paint using a combination of light, dry-brushing, and stippling. After removing the stencil, I touched it up as needed with a fine brush. Then I painted the dark outline by hand using a good, #0 artist’s brush.
The large signs on the sides that say, “Cold Drinks” were tricky. Because of the battens, I couldn’t use a stencil. So I used a pink colored pencil to very lightly lay out the shapes of the letters. This was not done to any detail, just very rough forms, like stick-figure letters, mainly to make sure I the size and spacing would fit the area. Then I hand-painted it with a #1 brush, using very thinned down paint and mostly kind of dry-brushing it. The outlines were done as before, with a #0 brush. The saving grace is that I was going for a not-very-professional look for the signs on the sides.
The smaller signs were were supposed to be very amateurish and crude, so I just winged it, painting them freehand with the #0 brush.
One thing that really helps when painting freehand, whether lettering or any other small detail, is that the hand holding the brush should have at least one finger resting against the model. This makes a big difference in steadying your hand.
Yes, or sometimes, if I am holding the model in one hand, and the brush in the other hand, I press my wrists together. That way both hands shake together, in sync.
I wanted to have stone stairs going up the slope to the shack. To do this, I made a form out of foam core board:
Then I used curved tweezers to place small stones in the form, added some 1/4" hardware cloth, and then poured in some thin mortar:
The mortar wasn’t quite thin enough to get into all the spaces between the stones, but that’s fixable:
I rubbed thin mortar into the gaps, brushed off the excess with a wet brush, and after it set I sanded off some of the residue and it turned out fine:
Here’s how everything looks so far. The building itself is almost finished. I just have to add the lighting and a few other minor exterior details. I also have to finish the landscape around the building. And later I will build and detail the interior:
