Large Scale Central

New In-ko-pah RR pics & info!

General Discussion
#1

I just finished uploading some new stuff to my website, including several new photos of the recent additions to the In-ko-pah Railroad.

The first several photos show the lower level of Cora Canyon, where the last major construction of the mainline was finished. The newest features are the two large stone arch bridges, and the permanent site for the water tower. There’s also a couple sharper photos of the hoist and headframe of the Cliffside Mine, to replace the earlier photos which were of lesser quality. And there’s an newer overview taken from the roof of our house.

I also added a couple pages of instructions for building my stone arch bridges; a page on disguising electrical junction boxes on the layout; and a preliminary design for my first major structure, the Dos Manos depot.

I used an old 3D program to rough out the design of the depot and rendered a couple images, with textures to approximate the materials that will be used. The next step will be to construct a scale mockup out of foam core, to see how well the depot will fit into its surroundings.

My website is www.raydunakin.com

Or use this url to go directly to the In-ko-pah RR page:

http://www.raydunakin.com/Site/In-ko-pah_Railroad.html

#2

Ray,
You are an inspiration, as always.
Ralph

#3

Ray,

THe bridge and the electrical box coverups are great. Can’t wait to see the depot.

Todd

#4

Thanks!

BTW, I recently timed it and found that it takes a train three and a half minutes to make a complete circuit of the layout.

#5

Ray,

You’re doing a beautiful job capturing a mountainous desert look for your railroad. Very nice modeling and theme. I’m really looking forward to seeing that stone depot too. Great stuff!

#6
Ray Dunakin said:
Thanks!

BTW, I recently timed it and found that it takes a train three and a half minutes to make a complete circuit of the layout.


Three and one half minutes for a circuit is great. This should make it easy for you to run several trains on the same track.
Ralph

#7

Great stuff, Ray.

#8

The cut stones I’m planning to use for the lower portion of the depot arrived yesterday. They’d been on order for nearly two months. I got them from Home Expo, a Home Depot type store devoted to decor. The stones come mounted on one foot square sheets.

It looks like I’ll have to make my own window frames for the depot - can’t find any Grandt Line or others that are the right size.

Meanwhile, I’ve working on a wooden water tank, with a stone base, to go next to the hoist house on the Cliffside Mine. The tank also serves to hide the wiring for the lights in the building.

And I’m trying to get started on a small, hand-cranked crane for the mine.

Last night I finished up some more scale ocotillos (a desert plant) to add to the layout.

#9

Ray,

Thanks for posting all the construction details on your site, along with all the great photos. Very inspirational and helpful for planning future additions.

Now I just need to find a convenient rock slide nearby… :wink:

Paul

#10

Reading the REAL HISTORY piece on your site stirred some memories, Ray. I was wondering where all that rock came from!

Shortly after Kay and I married, we built a patio on the back of our house. The edges sloped away from the slabs on two sides, and I figured black plastic, covered with chips from a beautiful local quartz called Toodyay stone (pronounced “2jay”) would do a good job covering it.

Little did I realise:
a) how hard suitable pieces would be to find in the first place, and;
b) how much work I’d let myself in for to chip that stuff down to reasonable size.

Hats off to you again, mate, but this time for your endeavour rather than your artistic talent. All that rock would’ve taken a power of moving!