Not the Seaboard 2.0

[narrowminded]

Well now.  Less talk and more action!

Painted, glued, and sprinkle some foam.  Good as new!   This was less trouble than I anticipated and learned a few more things.  It never ends.

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After this base cover dries, a little light blending for foam color difference and seal it.  I'm satisfied this far and it fills another big hole.   

[narrowminded]

And with the station set back in place.  I'm satisfied.   Now for more detailing, finish the scene.  Any and all suggestions or comments welcome.

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[pdx1955]

I think it looks good. The depot fits nicely in the scene without seeming to be too big or small and fits well within the context of the town.

[narrowminded]

Quick question.  Would Railway Express Agency operate out of the railroad station?  I am thinking about what and where to place signs and such and it occurred to me that maybe they weren't a part of the RR and therefore might operate out of separate facilities.  Or is that all wrong?

EDIT:  Forget the question.  I did a very brief search and found all I needed to know.  If I had done that first I could have saved myself this embarrassment.    I thought they operated out of train stations but as I pondered a sign I started to question that.  And signs can and should be on a station of this era. 

[narrowminded]

I think it looks good. The depot fits nicely in the scene without seeming to be too big or small and fits well within the context of the town.

Thanks.  There wasn't a lot of wiggle room with the space that was available.  In light of it all, I'm happy with the outcome... this far.  

[narrowminded]

Decided on a fictitious town name (Genmar) and made signs for each end of the station, finished some more painting and miscellaneous details. Did some more scenery cleanup from the surgery to place it, and just now completed the fence.  It's coming along good. 

The fence is Atlas hairpin that was in one of my brother's boxes.  It's some delicate stuff to work with especially when altering lengths and making an odd joint but I think I got it in and tough enough.  I decided to use it, thinking it would add some neat detail.  I'm not sure if it did, might be overdone, but will leave it for now.  It can be simply removed with nothing to redo or fix if I decide later that it's no good.  Would also like opinions on that from anyone who would care to voice one.

I still have details to complete especially on the station.  It needs glazing, schedule board, miscellaneous debris , a decision on an interior and how extensive if I do any at all, and assorted other details.  It's got the hole filled for now and some of it can wait while other things get done.

And here are some pics.

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[narrowminded]

Looks good! I like the brick platform outlined with the curb stones. Will the station get a sign?

Is this what you had in mind?   This forced a town name decision.  Maybe that's the new layout name.   And then, maybe I should change the topic name. 

The sign in the pic is from my experiments with size.  It's one bigger than what actually wound up on the station but I didn't take any closeups of those.  They're the same, just slightly smaller print and height and no white border, just the black.  They're printed on decent quality paper and then sealed front and back with lacquer to hopefully keep them looking OK for the long haul.  I was going to back them up with plastic but decided that would make them too thick and with the lacquer seal they're pretty stable and shouldn't need it.

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[narrowminded]

... and I just added the front sign on the eaves.  This might give a sense of the reduced sign size.  This is the same as both end signs.  I'm happy this far.

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[svedblen]

The fence is Atlas hairpin that was in one of my brother's boxes. ...  Would also like opinions on that from anyone who would care to voice one.

I would say it looks good in the first pic, where it seems to circumfence the momument rather than the station building. I would definitely keep that part. On the other side of the building it maybe looks a little too "model railroady". On the verge of a Märklin style layout. Perhaps. Not sure. Just my two pennies 

[narrowminded]

I would say it looks good in the first pic, where it seems to circumfence the momument rather than the station building. I would definitely keep that part. On the other side of the building it maybe looks a little too "model railroady". On the verge of a Märklin style layout. Perhaps. Not sure. Just my two pennies 

Thanks!   That's where my concern was.  A little overdone, maybe.   Then there's the what you see in person vs: what you see in closeup photos.  In person this doesn't strike me the same as in the photo. I'm really undecided at this point and will consider others' opinions as well as my own.  Time may adjust my view.   

Now, something I DO see is in the completed fencing around the monument.  It looks decent but I think it should be extended, parallel to the tracks as the single section is, down to the corner of the sidewalk.  Because my focus was the depot I didn't see it while I was working (and didn't have any more fence if I had) .  I think it should extend but might wait to decide what to do with the whole monument scene.  My inkling is to not get much fancier than what's there now but maybe with a simple concrete pad that it sets on affording a paved walking area around it.  What has crept into my thinking is adding a table and benches to the left, in the vicinity of the anemic tree.   Basically a picnic bench but not the classic wooden ones.  Maybe cast concrete, if at all.

And now for remarks on another of the many things I'm learning.  I have found some instances where the photo scene vs: the in person makes almost two different scenes.  This is something I'm just learning and found a photo taken during construction can catch things the eye didn't see.  An example would be the sign sizes above (and maybe this fence thing) .  I calculated a sign and text size that was actually just a little smaller than what I used.  I printed it, thought it looked a little small, printed another slightly larger, thought it looked OK, set it in place and thought it looked good with the naked eye, then photographed it.   In the photo (above) it struck me as too large and by a fair amount.  Turns out, the calculation was about right and I went back to the smaller size but this time just larger than my first calculation.  That's what's on the building now.  A compromise, I guess.

And any more opinions would be welcome.   I find them useful.

[casmmr]

Find a 20mm figure from a war, civil or WWI, paint it weathered bronze and put it on the top of the monument.  Many small towns had this feature.  Benches around the monument would help with the look.  Very nice what you have done thus far.  Keep up the great work.  later, Craig

[Kentuckian]

Is this what you had in mind?   This forced a town name decision.  Maybe that's the new layout name.   And then, maybe I should change the topic name. 

Yes! I like the size of the sign. Names are part of the reality, the history, of a place. The station looks more like a specific place and less like a model.

[narrowminded]

Find a 20mm figure from a war, civil or WWI, paint it weathered bronze and put it on the top of the monument.  Many small towns had this feature.  Benches around the monument would help with the look.  Very nice what you have done thus far.  Keep up the great work.  later, Craig

Thanks for the supportive comments.   They're appreciated.  But so would criticisms when necessary.

I actually thought of that but in my deliberations was leaning to the more basic monument.   My thinking was that the town is fairly small and maybe less able to support something too fancy.  The style as I made it felt a little fancy for such a town but I felt it was demonstrating the importance of the events being memorialized to the residents and maybe still believable.  This town does have a strong civic pride, keeping a very neat place (maybe a bit idealized) so I thought it was OK in the style carved but maybe about as fancy as I dared.   And made a little smaller.  That said, the statue thing wouldn't be wrong, totally possible.   What might be more likely would be a cannon or two (military donations) but I don't have the space for that, I don't think.  Does that make sense or am I being too... whatever.   Opinions are welcome!

One concern is how to model the plaques that would list the names.  I suspect they will become shadow lines and my printer isn't the greatest.  Haven't experimented with that yet.

[narrowminded]

Yes! I like the size of the sign. Names are part of the reality, the history, of a place. The station looks more like a specific place and less like a model.

Thanks! 

My printer quality is a little weak but they came out OK, I think.  They're also lacquer sealed and just attached with white glue so can be changed at any time with the ability to clean up the spot with soap and water should the need arise.  I plan to add one to the street side as that seems pretty prototypical from photo research but that one will have to be hung from the eaves.  Because there's still a fair amount of handling required to finish all of the other details, it will have to wait until the end.  Too easy to damage it otherwise.

While we're here, any thoughts on the monument or fence?

[narrowminded]

As part of completing the scene I have to decide what else will be placed about the station.  I don't want it too cluttered but there are functional elements that should realistically be included.  In my reviews of proto pictures it seems that a semaphore and clock were pretty common as well as a schedule board.  Those items make sense, too.  The benches as they appear in my photos are just ones I had and while I will have benches of some sort they may not be those or placed as they are in those photos.  Here's a link to that kit as purchased and all of the doo-dads pictured are included.
https://woodlandscenics.woodlandscenics.com/show/Item/PF5207/page/1

What I'm inclined to do is use the clock and maybe the free standing schedule board on the track side platform but have to pick a placement.  There is a schedule board that belongs on the street side of the building that I intend to use, not much question (except what the hell I did with it when I set it in a "safe place") so if the free standing board seemed to be too much maybe it's not so necessary and could be left out.   Baggage carts seemed to be a staple as well as two wheel dollies.  The weighing scale would be a real part of a station but maybe not set outside on the platform if it's getting too busy.  It could plausibly be inside the warehouse.  That could apply to a dolly too.  The pole lights as included will probably not be used as they aren't functional.  I may add something like that later but it would be functional if I did and maybe a little simpler style.  Not sure on that either.   And finally, there's the semaphore.  Should it be included?  It may get a bit busy but it seems prototypical.

Any thoughts on any of this this would be appreciated.