What did you do on your layout today? (N scale)

[railsquid]

Not strictly on my layout, but In conjunction with end-of-year cleaning activities I've managed to reorganise some of the stuff which has been building up under the layout, purchasing more storage boxes etcetera.

 

And a teensy bit of woodbodging with intent to run elevated trains, replacing some very temporary supports.

elevated-curved-section-construction by Rail Squid, on Flickr

[nah00]

Did quite a bit over my days off for Christmas. Started on some scenery on the front of my layout, the in-progress pics:

 

 

 

And the finished product, think it turned out well:

 

 

 

Now I just need to get some Sculptamold to get started on rocks for the hills and I can finish up that section...once I make about 30 more trees....

 

Also started to cover the gaps in my approach ramps with das modelling material, dries really nice and no noticeable shrinkage (even next to a drafty basement window), going to paint it tonight:

 

 

Also I vastly overestimated the size of the container i was using for ground foam. Luckily I used enough that the lid closed:

 

 

[kvp]

Last two days:

-some ttrak assembly, started working on my first double length modules (one elevated, one double tunnel)

-turnout adjustments and servo assembly for the hungarian fremo station

-platform work for both ttrak and fremo (kato elevated side platforms kitbash and scratchbuilt hungarian island platform)

-i also built 4 ttrak traction power panels (also used for dc/dcc power routing selection), i use these instead of dangling kato plugs

-and tested my ttrak minimalist module carrying frame idea (it works!)

[Davo Dentetsu]

Got a bit of a start on a new group layout.

https://www.facebook.com/ntoppia/posts/1827211800858605

Will also be taking away my winter scene, store until March for public display.

[medusa]

Glued some little people to footplates. Since my layout is temporary, I cannot put them in fixed locations.

For the foot plates usually I take the transparent plastic sheet from the package. Glue is 5min epoxy.

 

 

Second photo shows how the residents of Nekomori welcome their new Shrine Maidens...

 

[valkyriepm]

Adding mirrors to the vehicles and little weathering.

 

 

Martin

[cteno4]

Martin,

 

Nice as always! What did you use for the mirrors and supports?

 

Jeff

[valkyriepm]

Thank you Jeff! Used copper wire for the support and stretched sprue cutted as fine as I could for the mirrors.

 

Martin

[cteno4]

Martin,

 

Cool, did you streatch the sprue to get the right cross section then shave off s slice of that cross section to make the mirror?

 

I've made fine stock with sprue stretching but not thought of it it make different cross section shapes.

 

Cheers

 

Jeff

[valkyriepm]

Yes! That's exactly what I did. As the stretched sprue makes wider to the extremes, you can slice different sizes and see what would work better for the model.

 

Martin

[railsquid]

Mocking up the British section, which will be a compacted, simplified version of a real station called "Moor Street" in Birmingham, with two through tracks and three terminus ones (just like the prototype). Happily the current iteration of the prototype has been restored and expanded in the original Edwardian style, which makes it easier to justify running trains from a number of periods, should I care too much about that (they'll be going round the corner and popping out in Japan anyway ;) ).

 

knotmore-street-mockup-2017-01-04c by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

knotmore-street-mockup-2017-01-04b by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

knotmore-street-mockup-2017-01-04a by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

Edited January 4, 2017 by railsquid

[medusa]

I took the challenge of doing something cool with the Torii and lanterns Toni sent me as New Years' presents. First task was to glue the chosen parts ( one Torii, six lanterns) onto kind of footplates like the figures. I could glue the parts into fixed places at some of the buildings but the model building experience of years tells me it will break off quite fast during the "set up" and "clear the table" phases.

As footplates, I took the same transparent plastic sheet from Tomytec blisters as I did before. Combined 2 rows of three lanterns. The Torii gets its own footplate.

 

Painting was done with Revell enamel colors. I prefer these since my childhood since nothing else sticks so good on plastic parts and metal. ;)

For the lanterns, I took some wood brown since I guess stone lanterns cannot have that tall supports.

 

 

Here is some test setup of the shrine in the hillside, done on my bench. I arranged the lantern rows as kind of "procession pathway" between the Torii and the Shrine entry. My newly acquired Miko do a very short procession at the photos. Don't know if it is a correct situation in a Shinto shrine but for me as a European pagan the arrangement feels very spiritual this way.

Edited January 5, 2017 by medusa

[ToniBabelony]

That looks very neat! I'm glad you like my little present I sent along with the buses.

 

Tōrō (shrine lights) can be placed virtually anywhere, gathering from visiting a few shrines here, but they are usually placed along the entry path and on the sides of the premises. The central yard is usually kept open and clean for ceremonies, gatherings and festivals. There are also bigger versions, however these are more used in a more prominent way, at least visually. I should also get on making these, as well as lions and other details...

[medusa]

Like so? :)

 

 

[ToniBabelony]

The Tōrō can be used in that way, but ghey block the bell on the left. It's maybe a better idea to set those right of the entrance, or use them as an alleyway along the pathway to the entrance.

 

To be perfectly honest, all the buildings in your scene are Buddhist temple additions; bell (kanetsukidō), gate (nishōshiki no mon) and a wishing board (teokekake). However, it's not unusual to see Shinto elements mixed with Buddhist temples and vice versa. However, these elements are usually pointed away from the main buildings, as both religions generally deal with either different elements in life and the supposed beyond.

 

In your case, the Torii could be used somewhere on the side to indicate a spiritual powerspot within the premises of the temple (a tree, a collection of stones or something else).

[medusa]

Ah, thanks for the architecture lesson.

 

In my opinion, Japan is much more difficult if it comes to temple architecture. When Buddhism reached Japan, it did not wipe out completely the older worship of the Natural Gods but merged it somewhat.

In Europe this was quite different... Christian missionaries tended to destroy pagan sacred places, building a church upon the ruins and forced pagans to become Christians, too. The old Gods were condemned as devils and demon.

Of course, in both cases it is a very rough and sketchy description made by me - but as result you find only Christian churches over Europe. No pagan places are left (except as exvacated ruins). In Japan, on the contrary, most temples are somewhat more or less mixed Buddhist and Shinto (that's my impression).

 

This makes modeling sometimes a bit of a challenge for a Gaijin. ;)

However, I'll take the "modeler's license" on a few detail.

Edited January 5, 2017 by medusa

[railsquid]

Talking of Europe, today's exercise was to mock up the German station on my layout:

german-station-mockup-2017-01-05 by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

to make sure the plans and what I imagine "work", which it happily does (and I've now "completed" the entire layout main double-track loop in more or less its intended final form, just need to fix it in place, add scenery and electrics and all that...). For anyone taking notes, this station is vaguely inspired by Berlin's Hackescher Markt S-Bahn station which I used for many years, albeit without the upper walls and roof so the trains are actually visible (and it's easier to model :P ). Theoretically it's the early 1990s around this station (before it was renovated). Interestingly I had run out of track and used some old-style Tomix track with the brown "ballast" I had around, and it looks right for a station of this era in this location (i.e. in desperate need of renewal).

[medusa]

Railsquid, it's perfect. The brown ballast almost makes me smell the smoke from burnt coal... :)

[bill937ca]

Added my Tomix 4021 platform to the layout allowing a timed overtake station.  Power routing switches are set up.The two end pieces and the covered center piece accommodate a four car train. In this case an old Kato 10-050 Hankyu 6300 when it was a Kyoto mainline train.

 

 

 

The elevated line is still a work in progress, but in its present state trains can be run but its not prototypical. Actually it looks more like something out of a Lionel toy train layout just hanging there.   

Edited January 5, 2017 by bill937ca

[railsquid]

Railsquid, it's perfect. The brown ballast almost makes me smell the smoke from burnt coal... :)

 

It makes me smell the cleaning fluid the DR used up until about 1993 ;)

[nah00]

That looks very neat! I'm glad you like my little present I sent along with the buses.

 

Tōrō (shrine lights) can be placed virtually anywhere, gathering from visiting a few shrines here, but they are usually placed along the entry path and on the sides of the premises. The central yard is usually kept open and clean for ceremonies, gatherings and festivals. There are also bigger versions, however these are more used in a more prominent way, at least visually. I should also get on making these, as well as lions and other details...

 

Maybe some Kitsune statues too...?

[medusa]

I cut short pieces (62mm) of double tram track in pieces to improve the crossings in my layout. On the center cut, I kept to the dot marks. The dark grey side parts are simply cut off.

 

 

The center top plastic part is just snapped in, so it falls apart on cutting it. The halves have to be glued back in place.

This way I get 4 short tracks which are perfect for certain crossing combinations:

 

 

With the ramps from the Kato standard crossing/rerailer it forms a much more compact and nicer crossing. The cut tram tracks can even combined with double track. One of the cut off sidebars can be sticked in the gap.

 

 

Even angled crossings (using my cardbord triangle extentions) look much better now...

Edited January 5, 2017 by medusa

[bill937ca]

As Jeff would complain, the freezer door is open again. But got lots of work on the layout along with running a train today.  The overhead railway platform is finally back together after I discovered I glued a vending machine over one of the platform roof support holes.  After prying at the vending machine with a hobby knife this was corrected. Ready to move onto other projects over the next week. For several scenes, figures, vehicles and pavement markings come next.

 

Kato 10-050 Hankyu 6300 on Tomix canted curve.

 

 

Upper and lower platforms

 

 

Maneki Neko

 

 

Lower platform pending detailing

 

 

Overhead Railway platform pending addition of figures.  View block in place.

 

 

Narrow street progress.

Edited January 5, 2017 by bill937ca

[Rod.H]

All I did today was change out two Kato type b bumpers for type a bumpers on my 4'x2', converted a Tomix wide track CA-S set into a single track viaduct set and got it to just fit in a 4'x3' space.

Even ran a small train.

Next I'll reinvent the the CA-S+CC-S up and over figure 8. 

[brill27mcb]

All I did today was change out two Kato type b bumpers for type a bumpers on my 4'x2', converted a Tomix wide track CA-S set into a single track viaduct set and got it to just fit in a 4'x3' space.

Even ran a small train.

train 004.JPG

Next I'll reinvent the the CA-S+CC-S up and over figure 8. 

 

It's always good to run a train!  - Rich K.