layout New layout project: Sakuragi no yu sen

[Dani]

Hello,

 

I completely agree with Jeff's opinion.  I exhibited my modules several times, and the problem were never the kids, but the adults and the barriers. I had a couple of catenary poles pulled out because of adults trying to make photos putting the camera on the modules. With the camera strap they pulled out something from the scenery, and there were barriers.

 

I think that without barriers people is more careful.

 

Good luck with the autumn festival! I'm sure everybody will love it.

 

[cteno4]

Back in the old days! 20 years back! cell phone cameras were not very big/good/on all phones, but pocket cameras with short straps were the big thing. We had Dani’s experience that folks leaning over barriers and trying to hold a camera out with a dangling strap were probably the worst offenders to knocking into stuff. I also saw a few folks almost loose their balance toward the layout while leaning way over trying to snap pictures. Of course it put a horrid picture in your head of what the outcome would be of someone falling forward into the layout! Almost sounds like one of my April fool layout disaster posts!

 

jeff

[SL58654号]

Thank you for your kinds words of encouragement on the chances to exhibit it. I think they're trustworthy.
Here's the most recent progress. I learned that setting up all the track first makes it easier to judge how much foam to remove to shape the landscape to look natural and make agreeable slopes. 
Also, can anyone tell me an efficient way to consistently carve tunnels out of solid foam? I wonder if there may be any better and time-saving method rather than simply hacking it out with say a spoon?

I even recently picked up a craft wood carving kit to make the kanji nameplate. For that I'm very excited. 

Edited September 28 by SL58654号

[cteno4]

A method for cutting a tunnel arc would be hot wire cutter. They have some with stiff,  but bendable wire that you could bend into a tunnel arch shape and then drag thru the bottom of your hunk of hill foam to sit the tunnel. You have to be careful to move it constantly thru the foam and keep on course and depth and angle of attack (as you go thru curves). Also requires a hefty hot wire element to get that big hunk of wire hot.

 

usual way is simpler by cutting your tunnel curves out of the first layers of foam that go up to the height of the tunnel. This is usually about 2” for regular clearance or 2 layers of 25mm foam or one 50mm. This way you can get pretty clean curves cut for your walls by block sanding them out. The  put another layer(s) of foam on top for the ceiling and the rest of your hill going up. Doesn’t get you the arched tunnel shape, but clean walls and roof and easy to do with coping saw, knives and sandpaper.

 

to whack tunnels out of your existing foam hill with out hot wire you could use a circle gouge. This is a knife blade sort of bent into a circle. You can get a number of different carving gouge blade shapes to help whack out a tunnel. I wouldn’t go at it with a spoon as extruded foam doesn’t like to get scooped out like that even with a sharp gouge let alone a blunt spoon and may break the foam in ways you don’t intend. Once roughly gouged out you can use rough sandpaper wrapped around your finger to try and smooth out your walls. Even sharp gouges may crack foam and rip it up some in ways not intended.

 

with really rough sandpaper you could just sand your tunnel. Messy, but controllable and lime 60grit really tears up extruded foam fast for a rough path and then refine with finer grits. A wire wheel on your drill could be used to whack out the rough opening as well, but I expect that will be very messy! I have vague memories of like 40+ years ago of using wire wheels when we were trying to shape large rock models for the aquarium out of extruded foam and foam dust was everywhere! 
 

again before trying to carve a tunnel experiment on some waste foam.

 

cheers

 

jeff

[MeTheSwede]

For the tunnel digging on my first layout I used chisels of the spoon-shaped type https://www.amazon.com/ATOPLEE-Woodworking-Professional-Carpenter-Semi-Circular/dp/B07Z8Z5GPW?th=1 , so basically a spoon but sharper.

 

I've got this very basic cheap hot wire cutter https://www.amazon.com/Cutting-Electric-Styrofoam-Instruction-Handcraft/dp/B095K94NKT and it saves a lot of time when shaping foam for terrain. It also got to help out with tunneling on my first N-scale Billy sized layout.

 

In the end, whatever works works and the inside of tunnels usually don't require any precision work.

 

[cteno4]

Search carving sets on your favorite online places and you will find some cheap hand carving tools like a hook knife that are useful. Cheap ones will do, you just need to spend a little time honing the edge first and it should not dull cutting extruded foam for a long time the even with cheap metal!

 

jeff