I like that one of the periodicals is copy of GR.
David Maynard said:
I like that one of the periodicals is copy of GR.
Yep, and it’s the issue that featured the In-ko-pah RR on the cover. 
A bit of “infrastructure” news…
I finished that small retaining wall that was needed after the old fence was taken out. It goes down about two and half feet, and extends under the bottom step of the concrete stairs:
Another bit of recent fence work…I had an opening put into the wrought iron fence along the front of the layout. Now there are two entries to the layout, one at each end. This is much more convenient, and will also alleviate the bottleneck that forms when we have large groups come to visit:
In the background you can see the new vinyl fence going up the hill. I used to have a handrail mounted to the posts of the old wooden fence. I need to figure the best way to mount the handrail to this new fence, since the posts are hollow PVC.
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I’m afraid you’ll have to install a separate hand rail
Ask the company that put in the fencing, they might have one to compliment the fence.
Ray, I am sure it’s been mentioned before, I know you are using LED’s but, I would like to know what you use for a power source? Is it batteries or everything is wired to a power transformer? Thanks, Pete.
PS Showed this build to some visiting friends and their jaws are still on the floor. Awesome.
Ray as usual very nice work, thanks for the view!
Cool! When we use those hollow PVC posts for signs I will block the inside with pressure treated lumber as a place for the sign brackets to be attached. It would have been easier to do this blocking before the posts went in. It still could be done, but will cost you new caps and you need a way to insert a long wood piece from the top. I would use 2x4 lumber with short spacers to fill out to the opposite wall of the post at top and bottom.
I’m still working on the railroad a bit here and there, mostly maintenance and repairs. One of my earliest structures was an ore bin located on a spur track at the southeast corner of the layout. I’m calling it the Black Rock Mine.
I have long planned to build the rest of the mine structures there but never got around to it. It’s been so long now that the ore bin is due for replacement.
The support structure has fallen off, the ore chutes, catwalk and handrails are damaged, and the whole thing is severely weathered:
I started work on the replacement by assembling the profile frames which are made of 3/8" square strip wood. (All wooden components are made from Western red cedar.) Where needed, I pre-drilled holes for tie rods:
Once the profiles were complete, I began attaching them to the top and bottom timbers:
The support structure from the original ore bin was in very good condition, so I decided to reuse it. I will add additional braces to make it sturdier:
At this point I set the bin out on the layout to see how it looked, and also to test whether it would be possible to add an extension to the top. Two pieces of strip wood were placed loosely on the upper rear of the bin to give me a rough idea of where the sloped portion of the extension would fit:
Next I moved on to adding the planks that will form the front and rear walls, and sloped bottom, of the ore bin. When this was done I added some small strips of wood to brace the planks that will form the sides of the bin:
At the top of the front and rear walls, it was necessary to add small pieces along the sides of the frame timbers to support the short planks between the timbers:
Here’s the bin on the layout again. If you look closely you can see some of the additional bracing that I added to the support structure:
That’s all for now. I’ll post more on this later.
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Really nice work Ray, and great design. Thanks for posting all the progress pics.
Just like the real thing after years outside. I look forward to your progress Ray. 
magic!
thanks for sharing
I decided to add an extension to the top of the ore bin. I started by building a frame, and made it removable:
Then I added the planks to the front and sides:
This shot shows how the extension fits onto the top of the bin. I drilled some holes where I will add small brass rods to keep the two sections in alignment:
Next I added a frame for the sloped section at the rear of the extension:
Continuing from where I left off back in August…
I finished the sloped extension at the top of the ore bin:
Next I began building the ore chutes. I started by gluing in place the sloped supports. Then I added planks to form the bottom of the chute:
Before adding sides to the ore chutes, I test-fit the gates. I had planned to reuse the gates from the old ore bin, but I couldn’t get them off without damaging them. Luckily they are still available from wildwestmodels.com. I won’t permanently install the gates until after the ore bin has been painted:
I completed the ore chutes, then added the deck and handrails:
I plan to add stairs at one end of the ore bin. To make them removable, I first made a special bracket and glued it to the underside of the deck:
I drilled two holes through the top step of the stair and through the support bracket:
The stairs are from Plastruct. I glued two brass pins into the holes on the top step. I also used a razor saw to scribe “wood grain” into the plastic:
Next I added handrails and support posts. I used thick CA adhesive to glue the wood pieces to the ABS plastic:
I wanted another set of stairs at the other end of the ore bin, going from the deck up to a concrete platform on the cliff. I cast the platform in place using high-strength mortar mix and a form made from foam-core board and hot glue:
I added handrails to complete the stairs. I used four brass pins to align the stairs and hold them in place, while keeping them removable for painting or future maintenance:
That’s all for now. The next step will be to add another set of stairs going from the concrete platform up to the mine. After that I can begin work on the mine structures.
Nice work, Ray, do you know where you got the G scale woodworkers to cut and Nail that together? LOL
Great work as always, very impressive
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As always Ray, I can only just be amazed at your work. At each step, your efforts far exceed what I can imagine I would have done, even with ample schedule and under much duress.
So, once again, my flabber is gasted. Gorgeous work, Sir.
Cliff
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Continuing the Black Rock Mine ore bin project…
The ore bin was loosely inspired by this one at the War Eagle Mine in the Mojave Desert:
The upper portion of this ore bin is a slightly more recent addition, and the color of the weathered wood is a bit lighter that on the lower portion. I tried to emulate this look when I painted my ore bin.
When I built the ore bin I pre-drilled holes for the tie rods. Prior to painting, I inserted short pieces of styrene rod into the holes to keep the paint out of them:
I bought some exterior grade latex paint in three shades of brown – a dark chocolate brown, a warm medium brown, and a light, yellowish tan. I also supplemented these with various craft acrylics.
I started by painting the entire ore bin with the dark chocolate brown. Then I lightly brushed the tan paint onto the planks that line the interior of the bin, letting some of the dark undercoat show through:
Then I built up layers of color on the planks. I often used a ratty old brush to apply the paint in streaks. I also used a fan-shaped artist’s brush, and a flat brush:
After I had finished painting all the planks, I used the same techniques to add streaks of color to the heavy beams the form the frame. When the paint was finished I sprayed the entire thing with three coats of Krylon UV-resistant matte clear to give it extra protection from the sun.
Next I used needle-nose pliers to pull the styrene rods out of all the pre-drilled holes for the tie rods. I then insert thin brass rods into the holes. I glued the rods in place with CA, then added brass washers and nuts on the ends. These were simply slipped on and then glued in place. When I was finished I used a Dremel and cutting wheel to trim off the excess rod:
The last task was to paint the ore gate hardware and then glue it in place. Here’s the finished ore bin in position on the layout. I plan to add some lights to it later, after I’ve completed some of the other structure for this mine:
I still have to figure out what the rest of the mine will be.
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