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Satsuki-mura: Small, but snow!


Davo Dentetsu

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Davo Dentetsu

Kobayashi has stalled once again (damn you, winter rain and no money), so I had a distinct lack of anything worthwhile done.  But I had acquired some spare bits and pieces that were surplus to that project, so wondered if it was possible to build a board that didn't require any spending.  As a Scot by birth, that should be easy enough!

I acquired defunct points and short straights that were being thrown out by the club for nothing, so they became the majority feature.  I used wood glue to literally just stick everything down.  No need to be fancy, not in a million years would this be functional in any way.  Once I was happy with that, I used some leftover wood from the baseboard construction to make a rudimentary bridge span.  Some very thin balsa sides made this a very cheap but believable bridge.

 

I painted the board with Mission Brown paint, then stuck grass down immediately.  Some got more, some got less, but no matter as I have a plan for later.  Time to ballast it up (these were hangover bits from my OO layout which, surprise surprise, got canned early on) and yeah, the basic water and glue mix sprayed on top stuck things down.

 

satsuki_mura_summer_by_dragracingotaku-d

 

The bridge received Noch road texture (purchased a small roll at $14.95), which I used on the bridge then as a small scenery relief at the base as well.  As you can see, everything looks rough and ready, but there was a reason...

tricky_transport_by_dragracingotaku-d632

 

The snows arrived in Satsuki-mura!  That was the only other purchase for this at $25.  As you can see, it was liberally applied in the usual way.  I also had the bridge painted up in a water-based black, which I applied then wiped along with a wet rag.  Came up quite nice I reckon.  This was transporting the board back home, only just fitting in the front seat.

 

satsuki_mura__500_pageviews__by_dragraci

 

So it got populated with a few things for photo purposes.  The old steam era coach is used as a trackside storage cabin, it is awaiting some leftover straight track to be placed nearby and snowed up.  The DE10 is a spare as I have two of those colour, which meant I was free to try out Tamiya's snow weathering powder for the first time.

satsuki_mura_by_dragracingotaku-d632vbn.

 

The two wagons will also become redundant real soon, as I'm looking to replace them with a dedicated (and therefore more reliable) new camera mounted wagon.  They got weathered up also.  For those with an eagle eye, there is a racing tyre at the back (34.5 x 16 x 17 for those taking note!)

 

snow_day_by_dragracingotaku-d632v9f.jpg

 

And that's about it really.  A small budget scenery board for a laugh or two.  Some bushes, maybe a tree or two and fences will come, as well as the aforementioned old track piles to add later on.

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Pretty cool (also in terms of temperature), but I wouldn't have the courage to weather a DE10! (those fairly cheap freight cars are another story) Maybe it's just the photo, but I find that it looks more as if it was painted white rather than that there's a lot of snow on it, but it is close to powder snow though.

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Davo Dentetsu

The white is a bit overexposed on the photos, so it looks a bit more excessive than it actually is.  I don't mind weathering the DE10, as I say it was a spare unit and saved me having to search out for something to do the job.  :P

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Dave,

 

Nice little diorama. Always wanted to try snow, but have never done it. I should experiment as I love snow plows!

 

Jeff

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Davo Dentetsu

It's nice to try something different for sure.  Can't think of anything local that has it as a feature.

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Davo Dentetsu

I added a few more bits and pieces.  A shrubbery has appeared!  :P

tumblr_nafziqHr5c1s9yxy6o1_500.jpg

 

I want to finish it with just a few track workers and maybe a ground signal or two perhaps.  Understated diorama, but still conveying a little realism too.

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