Large Scale Central

Pete's 1st time Build Challenge, the CAMB Beer and BBQ

The MIK - Annual Build Challenge
#21

Pete Lassen said:

Well after reading a lot of build logs, last years challenge and advice from all the great modelers here, it has made the learning curve a lot better. Plus the 10 foot rule has helped a lot.

What do most of you use for a base for the whole thing for outdoor use? how do you anchor it?

I have wondered this as well and have seen lots of suggestions on what works and what doesn’t The idea is you need something that can sit in direct ground contact for an indefinite periods of time. I will be interested again to see what people offer. I have heard mixed reviews on flex seal but I am thinking a piece of outdoor plywood thoroughly coated with some sort of rubber materiel.

#22

Pete

It looks great. Here are my suggestions.

The rear overhang of the roof can be left long so as to cover the woodpile for the BBQ brick smoker. Those kinds of places go through a cord of wood every few days so a significant pile would be an easy and cheap detail.

For the patio it is quite common for the roof over that section to change pitch and be much flatter than the main building. Don’t go totally flat but as little as 10 degrees would be realistic. Or since we are in the southwest do a flat Spanish style arbor with the open top or maybe even with a cloth sunbreak.

For bases on my buildings I use 3/8 plexiglass. Waterproof, has some weight which you will need for the wind and not overly expensive. You can also use Rubbermaid shelving if you can find a piece the right size. Don’t be fooled by the particle board interior it will never dissolve in our climate. I do recommend coating it with oil base paint to hide its original white color. You can find both of these at HD.

#23

I agree with Boomer. Sealing any wood components with a good oil base paint should prevent any deterioration here in the southwest. I’ve done that with all my wood structures and they have not suffered with water damage. Plexiglass is a good idea and shouldn’t have to be sealed like I do with hardibacker board. My last building I used a coroplast base and added weight inside the building. Has worked well. The wind doesn’t move it.

#24

Boomer K. said:

Pete

It looks great. Here are my suggestions.

The rear overhang of the roof can be left long so as to cover the woodpile for the BBQ brick smoker. Those kinds of places go through a cord of wood every few days so a significant pile would be an easy and cheap detail.

For a normal BBQ joint that would probably work Boomer. But from what I’ve heard, Pete and his 4 son-in-laws like to drink a lot of beer and eat just as much BBQ and that doesn’t start to include their regular customers. Since the restaurant will be on a RR then it should have its own spur so he can just have a reefer backed in for beer and a box car for the firewood. Heck he might even need 2 reefers so he will have one to pack all that wonderful BBQ in and ship to all his RR buddies across the country.

#25

Dan the fireplace is a piece of 3/4 " poplar with anoither pices added above the roofline.

I really like your idea of shipping beer and BBQ to other RR destinations, may have to get their own refer and boxcars

#26

How 'bout this scenario. At some point in the future when we both have an actual RR to work on (I don’t have an actual layout yet either), I’ll fix up a couple boxcars with the logo of the firewood division of the WSRR and send them to you. And since my RR will be focused primarily on logging, you will be getting great firewood from the deepsouth to include various species of oak, pecan, peach, apple, etc. and we might even make a stop in Texas each time we ship you a load and pick you up a little mesquite. And being as my logging crews love BBQ and beer, I can get a couple of reefers with the CAMB Beer and BBQ logos to make sure the boys have plenty of drink and food. Something to think about anyway.

#27

Oh boy, now I have to come up with a logo for the BBQ joint?? !!!, I WAS just going to make something fairly simple but now that the pressure is on, I will have to come up with a logo worthy of being on boxcars. Research time this week, sine I am going out of town for a few days, read up in the evenings. Looking forward to doing it Dan

#28

Oh sweet a billboard reefer to carry that sweet BBQ. Not quite the right era but you can bring back the idea in a steel reefer. It would be trendy

#29

Too bad these logos are already taken

#30

“Yo needs no teeth to eat our beef”

#31

On my foundations I use plastic wood and then sit the building on a patio block or gravel. Plastic wood can be pricey but the 1x2 is not too bad.

I have found that when wood or plywood comes into contact with the ground/soil it does not last long no matter what you paint it with.

It is best to avoid direct ground contact.

I tried using hardibacker board which I still use for roof sections but it is no good for ground contact. It gets brittle and breaks over time.

A reefer to support your new BBQ Biz is a good idea.

#32

Might have to spend my $$ on refer and boxcars and then learn to dip and paint them. Played around last night looking at fonts to use came up with a good one, so now time to try drawing something, see if I can get it transferred.

The plastic wood (Trex is the brand name here) sound like a good product to use here. Todd as for using gravel under it, I live in AZ and that is pretty much the whole yard , 3/4" rocks for my RR. I will have to rake it out of the way for track work, , so I have the base ready for anything with ground contact.

#33

Well I am out of town for the weekend and seeing progress on others while mine challenge build is sitting is really bugging me, hope I get some time this week to get caught up, going over lots of ideas, looking at what others are building helps but I NEED PROGRESS ON MY BUILD.

#34

Pete, you need to do like Rod Stewart. He takes his model RR projects on the road with him and just rents additional rooms to set up shop. Might need to turn that sleeper into a shop. Heck, you can sleep in the front seat, LOL.

#35

Well got a day off work, so I spent it in the garage, I found some old wood the other day and made some veneers out of it, so instead od stained wood above my fine Taylor Stone Works stones I now have “barn wood” or in this case, old sunbleached wood lying around the truck yard.

I spent most of my build budget at Lowes and Home Depot, buying the non skid tape to be used as roof material. Orginally I was going to cut it into 3/4" strips and make it look like asphalt shingles, but time and patience are getting low , so I just went with the flow. HD and Lowes carry a different brand, Lowes has some sparkle in it, while Home Depot product is more dull and flat looking, so I altered the strips, to give it a cohesive look, and it wiould bother me if I didn’t. Before sticking the roofing on I made edging out of aluminum cans and glued it down

The wood across the doorway is a temporaory brace until the glue dries. The barn wood on the front will hardly ever be seen, since the porch is a little lower than I anticipated, but the lizards and birds will enjoy the look of it

good view of the roof material

I think that will be all for a day or 2. The main building phase is just about done, now comes the never tried before process of making my own windows, and doors for this project, Enjoying the build and learning a lot as I go along.

#36

That’s a good looking building, Pete. The “barn wood” really gives it that BBQ joint look. Aluminum flashing is a good use for recycled beer cans and the non skid tape makes for a fine roof. I am ready to see some smoke coming out of that chimney and the beer truck/boxcar pulled up out back stocking the cooler.

#37

I second Dan. The "barn wood"yells BBQ joint. Clever use of old wood. I would have tried to color match the stuff . . . and it would have looked half as good. The different colors really pop. And the none skid tape makes good rolled roofing. Jon C suggested to use gloss black paint to make tar lines in another post. Maybe and idea.

Dan mentioned smoke coming from the chimney. Do you have an old loco smoke unit. If you don’t and you want one I will send you one (http://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)

#38

Devon, I got 4 pieces all 1x6, the longest a little over 24" and the color and look of them with the dark and light spots just screamed for me to use them somewhere, and then 2 nights ago at about 3am mind mind said use them instead of the stained wood on the BBQ joint. Glad I was not sleeping well that night I am happy with how it looks, right now I am using s piece of coroplast as a base, and I may do the front under the porch as a wooden walkway using the rest of the wood. got to figure out some detail, but that is the plan for now.

Worlds Greatest Hobby show is in town this weekend, so tomorrow going down to see what if any G scale is available, It shows Gold Coast and Caboose Hobbies are vendors, I would love to find some switches and maybe more track if price is ok.

Progres report and pictures on Saturday night

#39

You wanna know something? It’s just my two cents worth, but I’m liking the color of the stone work just the way it is. I don’t know if you were planning on painting the stone a different color or not, but I think on your build it looks great. Did you put some kind of mortar between the stones?

#40

John I just did more of a stacked stone look, minimal gaps, so no mortar line really. Devon I still have not figured out what to do with the chimeny top, so I don’t think I need a smoke unit.