Model Railroad Blog

Working Successfully with Structures

MeWantIt!

Exercise self restraint when purchasing structures.  Determine what you need and only then start the purchasing process.  Avoid the natural tendency to randomly “buy and plop”.

 

Incorporating structures into your layout in a way that works visually involves a little more than “buying and plopping”.   Some things to consider………………

  • Color:  Color and weathering drives everything.  Successful color application and weathering can dig you out of a lot of holes. The colors you select and your weathering strategy should be your primary focus.   Paint everything.  Those light blue, totally appropriate, Rix Products light blue injection molded steel structure kits?  Paint them.  Those pre-assembled/built ups made from colored styrene?  Problematic.  Study photos carefully.  Work in subtleties and use ink washes.  Teach yourself to weather and repeat the mantra, “keep it subtle, keep it toned down” over and over.
  • Appropriateness.  Is the kit appropriate for the location you intend to use it?  When I attend a train show, and see the shopping bags stuffed with structures, I wonder how many actually get built.  Not many I bet.  Buying a kit and then trying to find a place for it doesn’t work.  You need to do the opposite.  Determine the structure you need and only then buy one.  Sorry, I know, this requires self restraint!
  • Be keenly aware of cross sections.  Overly thick rails, guy wires, vents/pipes and window mullions are tip offs that you are looking at a model.  There is a growing range of photo etched products that make replacing overly thick parts a viable option.  Tichy makes some very thin injection molded parts.  Many manufactures make etched stairs and walkways.
  • Basic neatness.  It takes practice but learn to produce gap free, tight joints at corners and joining points
  • Pay attention to what else is around the structure and the environment it is placed in.  Don’t place other structures, roads, or elements too closely to the model you’ve just finished.  Allow some space.  Again, I know, this requires self restraint.
  • Beware of “seen it before” disease.  Some kits are so immensely popular that you see them on thousands of layouts.  The Walthers ADM grain elevator and New River Mine are  two such examples.  The brain shuts down when it sees these on your layout and screams the “it’s a toy!” alarm.  These are nice kits and the work around is to creatively modify them.

 

Federal Cold Storage

IMG_5695

I put the wrap on Federal Cold Storage to be placed in the crook of the “L” on the LAJ layout (the corner if you will).  Getting the first structure under my belt gives me some momentum.  Built to the “reasonable representation” standard it wasn’t intended to be an exact replica of the prototype. Walthers RJ Frost was used as the basis.

FederalColdStorage

 A few of the techniques:

  • For the overall base coat I laid down a foundation of Rustoleum textured paint (rattle can).  This was followed by Rustoleum light gray primer.  Finally, I lightly fogged on white primer allowing a hint of the gray to show through.
  • The light blue columns were an airbrush dusting of Model Master “Azure” applied lightly enough that some of the white underneath would still show through.
  • I flipped the kit canopy upside down exposing the flat side and applied Builders in Scale corrugated roofing adhered with 3M Super 77 and few drops here and there of CA.  The metal was then sprayed with Rustoleum light gray primer.  Weathering was with an India ink wash (1 teaspoon of ink per pint of alcohol) applied with a soft brush using strokes parallel to the corrugations.
  • Guy wires are .015″ music wire.
  • The loading ramp corner protector was painted with Rustoleum Earth Brown camo. paint, one of my favorite colors for dark rust
  • Cracks on the loading ramp face were simulated by very, very lightly dragging a Crayola black pencil about.  Several India ink washes were applied to the face afterwards (2 teaspoons of ink/pint)
  • To create the rust streaks on the platform face, I lightly dropped a few specks of brown weathering chalk at the top of the ramp, put on a latex glove, and then wiped the chalk downward with my finger
  • Four of the doors were blocked in with cinder block (photo wallpaper using photos of actual block).  If you want to use the file below, print it out 1.3″ tall so the blocks are the right size.  Use gloss photo paper and seal with with Krylon “Preserve It” (Matte)

BlockBase

  • The two steel rollup doors were photos as well

IMG_5902e2

  • The sign on top was a photo edited screen capture of the prototype sign using Google Streetview.

FCSsignLight