A southbound local passes bridge E8, south of Bloomington, IN on my old N scale layout. I devoted a full thirteen feet to this ‘boring’ scene. There were no industries, no turnouts, nothing but the field and stream modeled as they actually appeared. Of all of the factors that contribute to realism, at the […]
On the southwest corner of Everett Avenue and The Horn Lead is an interesting brick structure housing Pacific Forest Inc. I’ve photo edited, enhanced, and cleaned up the images so they can be used for photo wallpaper. I’m including the images for anybody else that wants to use them. Using the brick courses for scaling, […]
I’ve finished ballasting and scenicing the right of way along the Federal Cold Storage Spur. As a few others have mentioned, I find hand laying track to be very relaxing, particularly (or especially!) when you don’t have that much of it to do. Because they’re painted a darker color, the Proto:87 etched tie plates aren’t […]
Topic: Model Railroad Design The ultimate model railroad design goal? Capturing the essential elements of a scene successfully enough that you have the sense of “being there”. It’s an elusive target because hitting it is hard to break down into a step by step, “how to” sequence. At the root of the problem is the harsh reality that […]
Topic: Model Railroad Sound Hierarchy, Vantage Point, and Why We Are Approaching the Whole Shebang the Wrong Way There are two reasons we build model railroads, the satisfaction of assembly and the desire to be transported, transported to a time, place, or operational system that evokes strong emotions. The better our modeling, the more […]