Diary of a 26" x 14" H0e Forest Layout

[Madsing]

Wow, don’t worry, it really looks fantastic! I love it!

Marc

 

[mags_minibuilds]

Spent this week working on the little engine shed. Once again, created this out of styrene, but this time I scratched up the plastic even more to enhance the wood effect. While airbrushing the brown on the structure, I tried varying the amount of brown paint to make it less uniformed and I really like the result. I used various pigment powders and washes on the roof. So far this is the 2nd structure on this layout. I'm thinking about making a small wood storage shed next to the staff station? I intended this layout to be more forest vibes so there's going to be many tall trees so there's really not much real estate to fit in more buildings.

[Madsing]

It looks fantastic! Styrene is such a great material to work with.

Marc

 

[SL-san]

10 hours ago, mags_minibuilds said:

I scratched up the plastic even more to enhance the wood

Great work with wood effect!  You are a champion modeller!!

Graeme

[Kamome]

@mags_minibuilds Sorry there is no WOW button. Actually there is no "We are NOT worthy" button either. 

 

I love the rust tarnished roof. Some details of the colours used and process would be appreciated.

[mags_minibuilds]

Thank you! After many tries I think I've finally found a formula on how to weather buildings (not trains yet, I'm too afraid).

 

@Kamome The blue roof color was a custom mix of Vallejo Medium Blue (2 drops), Light Yellow (1 drop) and White (1 drop). With these small projects, I try to use the colors I already have and mix a custom color. This is how I weathered the roof.

 

I used a hobby knife to cut and scrape at the paper corrugated roof for the areas where rust has eaten away. The roofing material is made out of thick metallic paper, I left the metallic side facing the inside and painted the blue on the back side.

 

With black paint, I diluted it to make a wash. I used a paper towel and dipped it lightly in the wash and dabbed/dragged it carefully onto the roof and make sure it doesn't take away the blue paint underneath.

 

I used Vallejo Air Burnt Umber to paint the eaten away edges. I used Model Air instead of Model Color as I wanted the paper to soak in the paint, but diluting thick paint is also the same.

 

(Not pictured) I diluted White paint and used a brush to create the white washed areas.

 

Then I started painting the rust with pigment powder. I don't use this dry (yet), I add a tiny bit of water and use it like a paint, so in this process I can pinpoint where the rust goes. Once it dries, you'll see the color come back and looks chalky, which is what you want. I used Bragdon Weathering System Light Rust FF-61: http://www.bragdonent.com/smpic/nweather.htm

 

At the end I added tiny touches of red to the rust with Bragdon Weathering System Old Tuscan FF-270. The larger light rust area I added at the end with dry Light Rust pigment powder.

 

It sounds like a lot of steps but the key is layering and having the right products. It really helped with a reference photo: https://www.baiodo.com/shop02/#cc-m-product-8349084356

[tossedman]

Cool! I'll have to remember to add this technique to my list of things to try. Thanks for sharing such a detailed tutorial.

 

Cheers,

 

Todd

[cteno4]

Very nice mags, thanks for doing the writeup!

 

jeff

[Kamome]

Thank you for the details. Very inspiring modelling. 

[mags_minibuilds]

I've been lurking on Twitter lately to follow a few Japanese modellers that specializes in Light Railway builds. A tip that I wanted to try out was this S-shaped coupler pin. I've been using the U-shaped style but it really didn't work that well with couplers that varied in height and sometimes the coupler/coupler pins will hit and pinch each other on tight curves and derail. This S-shaped pin works rather well, moves more freely and it looks better too.

 

[cteno4]

Nice, so many times such a simple elegant solution is there!

 

jeff

[mags_minibuilds]

Absolutely, I was so stoked to find this tip/trick that I had to try it out right away!

[mags_minibuilds]

A couple items from World Kougei (through ZenMarket) just arrived, two diesels and a speeder to add to my collection.

[mags_minibuilds]

A little bit more progress on the diorama, I weathered the ballast, embedded the turntable and revisited the river embankment. The rocks on the embankment was looking a bit sparse and I also wanted to finish up the rocky terrain to where the bridges are. I made more rock castings (filled the molds halfway so the castings will be thinner) and used Sculptamold to adhere the castings and fill in the gaps. The river bed will be filled with sand and rocks so I didn't put too much time into finessing it.

[mags_minibuilds]

While waiting for the plaster to fully dry on the rock forms, I started building a tool shed that will reside next to the staff station. I had a Baiodo bus stop kit but decided not to use it as I wanted to match the look/materials of the other structures I had scratch-built, so I basically replicated this shed in styrene. There's quite a few pieces of overlapping corrugated pieces that will need to be painted and weathered.

[mags_minibuilds]

Finished up this little tool shed using similar methods as the engine shed. With the exception that this time I wanted to try airbrushing a light coat of Vallejo Air Rust on the corrugated panels on the roof.

[Martijn Meerts]

That looks fabulous. Can you build my layout for me? 😄

 

[mags_minibuilds]

@Martijn Meerts It's been exactly a year since I started this layout and it's around 70% done. So you're looking about approximately 1.5 years per 26" x 14" 😆

[cteno4]

Happy layout anniversary Mags! That’s actually a good pace, especially considering how much work you have put into the brass kits as well. You’ve done amazing work in the year!

 

cheers,

 

jeff

[Martijn Meerts]

On 11/26/2024 at 5:38 PM, mags_minibuilds said:

@Martijn Meerts It's been exactly a year since I started this layout and it's around 70% done. So you're looking about approximately 1.5 years per 26" x 14" 😆

Still more progress than what I’ve been able to achieve so far 😄

 

[mr bachmann]

On 11/26/2024 at 4:38 PM, mags_minibuilds said:

@Martijn Meerts It's been exactly a year since I started this layout and it's around 70% done. So you're looking about approximately 1.5 years per 26" x 14" 😆

The layout in my loft has been ongoing since the 1960’s (00 gauge British outline) and still not finished , so you are doing well to get over the half way 👍

[mags_minibuilds]

My sister just came back from a Japan trip and helped me bring back a few items from Models Imon. I really enjoyed flipping through the Light Railway Commemorative book and seeing the photos and how life looked like back then on the logging/narrow gauge railway, it's great to use it as reference to see what else I can add to my layout. Models Imon also included a fancy reusable bag 😄

[Kingmeow]

Damn!  I was at two Model Imons last month and both instances bought more stuff (way more!) than that and no fancy reusable bag!  😞  But I'm sure your sister is prettier than me!  🤣

[mags_minibuilds]

They made it a point to her it was a “special” bag, which I thought it was quite humorous since it’s just a thicker plastic bag with the handles that snap close, honestly, you’re not losing out on much. 😂 The bag was given to her as they felt bad that the speeder wasn’t there when she visited the store so she had to go back again later in the day. Especially when I had confirmed with them 2 days prior to make sure all the items were available for pickup.

[Martijn Meerts]

I really need to stay far away from any IMON store next time I'm in Japan. If I visit one, it'll probably bankrupt me. At the same time though, I do want to see all the cool stuff they have there 😄

 

The book looks really interesting. There is plenty to find online with the correct search terms, but having it all gathered in a book is always a lot nicer.