Weekend Update 6/9/19

[Jbub]

Finished up the T-scale Santa Fe F7-A for a fellow who wanted it to display alongside warbonnet F's of all scales.... It was difficult to say the least but I think it turned out ok.  I'd like to weather it up (maybe paint the grilles silver as well).  The only decals on it are the black striping/front logo, lettering, and numberboards. 

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Also finished up a test of a PRR signal gantry for electrified territory.  I also have catenary gantry on the bench.  I think this design of signal bridge was used across the system with differing supports.  It's constructed of etched brass, square 1mm styrene rod, .3 mm brass rod, and 3D printed signal heads.  I used the cut-off head styles, but I also have full round PL heads which were found on the upper signal head, I just grabbed one for this test build.  So I posed it with the GG1 and FP7 for grins alongside a scale reference that should look familiar! 
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The goal is a diorama style module representing Princeton Jct. so these are all components of the scene in the late 70's/early 80's.
Jesse

I have to say what you've done is quite amazing!

[jagged ben]

Finished up the T-scale Santa Fe F7-A for a fellow who wanted it to display alongside warbonnet F's of all scales.... It was difficult to say the least but I think it turned out ok.  ...

Understatement of the year?   

[peteski]

Finished up the T-scale Santa Fe F7-A for a fellow who wanted it to display alongside warbonnet F's of all scales.... It was difficult to say the least but I think it turned out ok.  I'd like to weather it up (maybe paint the grilles silver as well).  The only decals on it are the black striping/front logo, lettering, and numberboards. 

That is some outstanding nano-modeling!  Especially considering that the warbonnet is painted, not decaled!  But in that photo the model looks lvery glossy.  It might just be the lightinig.

So, would this model fit on a quarter dollar coin?  Or maybe on two quarters, placed side by side? You know me, I'm all about using a coin as a great indicator of just how small  a model is.  You know: the Wow factor! 

It instantly gives someone an idel about the relative size of a model.

[Chris333]

Helped a buddy spread fill dirt. Took it from the fresh area to the right and filled in the area to the top left. Got to use side dump and bottom dump cars. Got a nice sun burn 


The fill:


The mule:

[central.vermont]

Chris, what and where is this place?

Jon

[Chris333]

Chris, what and where is this place?

Jon

Youngstown Steel Heritage Museum in between Hubbard and Youngstown Ohio. Basically a one man show, he is trying to extend the mainline a bit. The green engine house will go over to the newly cleared area. And the neighbor just gave him a slice of land to go into the woods behind the place.

He's trying to be open to the public and running one weekend a month. Not my video, but:

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This is mine. Blow down at the end of the day:

[Maletrain]

The goal is a diorama style module representing Princeton Jct. so these are all components of the scene in the late 70's/early 80's.
Jesse

Are you going to include the PJ&B cars?

[Joetrain59]

Piperguy, I have some BLMA horns still unopened. I'll check to see if I have 226.
 Joe D

[Jesse6669]

the model looks glossy. 

Yah, I want to hit it with Dullcote but waiting on the guy who commissioned it.  Personally, I'd like to (lightly) weather it also..     

By the way, that fire engine is outstanding!!!       I'll need to send you a GG1 kit..

As for coinage and such, here we go.. not quite on a quarter:
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Are you going to include the PJ&B cars?

I'd like to have a Dinky on site (of course)! 

- Jesse

[nickelplate759]

Got back to trackwork.
Modified some Atlas #7 switches to fit closer together and installed them.




This is for the leads to my engine terminal.  A little cheating is necessary on the throwbars - they slide under the adjoining track just a bit.

[badlandnp]

Had a bit of fun running trains. This older Model Power 2-6-0 has had a Bman slopeback tender frame applied and Loksound installed. I see that the shell needs snapped down better, one of the benefits of closeup pics!

[peteski]

Yah, I want to hit it with Dullcote but waiting on the guy who commissioned it.  Personally, I'd like to (lightly) weather it also..     

By the way, that fire engine is outstanding!!!       I'll need to send you a GG1 kit..
As for coinage and such, here we go.. not quite on a quarter:

- Jesse

Thanks Jesse!  I built that Micron Art etched brass fire engine kit (not scratchbuilt, like your models) several years ago.  I replaced some of the its flat brass parts with ones I turned on a lathe. I also made the gold pinstripe decals.  That fire engine was featured on the Micro Art website, but unfortunately I just noticed that they seem to have closed their shop. The website is gone.  Looks like we lost another manufacturer of some great Z, N, and H0 kits. 

And that photo of your T-scale F-unit on a quarter is exactly what I had in mind: It instantly conveys just how minuscule that model is.

[robert3985]

That is some outstanding nano-modeling!  Especially considering that the warbonnet is painted, not decaled!  But in that photo the model looks lvery glossy.  It might just be the lightinig....

Peter @peteski , Hmmm...so, @Jesse6669 's fabulous T scale F-7 is very glossy.  What's your point?  Just for shirts and giggles, I looked up photos of red SF Warbonnet F's, and whaddya know??...90% of the photos show them prototypically glossy as can be, both the red parts and the silver parts...to varying degrees.  I don't think hitting it with Dullcote is going to make it look better, it'll just make it look like a model, rather than shiny, like the real deal.

Photo (1) - Sante Fe Red Warbonnet F-units Photo (typically glossy):


However, @Jesse6669 , I would hit the front parts of the grills that intrude into the red warbonnet with some silver paint.  That's a very obvious spotting point for the Warbonnet Scheme.  A bit of weathering on top and along the bottom of the sides would look good too, but I'd leave it shiny under the weathering...just like the prototype.

Otherwise, simply FABULOUS!!

So, when are you going to start putting DCC sound in your engines??? 

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

[peteski]

Peter @peteski , Hmmm...so, @Jesse6669 's fabulous T scale F-7 is very glossy.  What's your point?  Just for shirts and giggles, I looked up photos of red SF Warbonnet F's, and whaddya know??...90% of the photos show them prototypically glossy as can be, both the red parts and the silver parts...to varying degrees.  I don't think hitting it with Dullcote is going to make it look better, it'll just make it look like a model, rather than shiny, like the real deal.

Well Bob, it  might be true in 1:1 scale world. But, to be blunt, in 1:450 size, macro-photographed, the thickness of that glossy (still 1:1 scale) paint creates fillets in around the minuscule details on the shell, making the model look like it was dipped in honey (or in Envirotex resin).  I think that dulling the shine would hide that "dipped in honey" appearance.  This is in no way meant to criticize Jesse's work. He did an awesome job - it's a limitation of the materials (paint) he has to work with.

[robert3985]

Well Bob, it  might be true in 1:1 scale world. But, to be blunt, in 1:450 size, macro-photographed, the thickness of that glossy (still 1:1 scale) paint creates fillets in around the minuscule details on the shell, making the model look like it was dipped in honey (or in Envirotex resin).  I think that dulling the shine would hide that "dipped in honey" appearance.  This is in no way meant to criticize Jesse's work. He did an awesome job - it's a limitation of the materials (paint) he has to work with.

Well Peter, I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree.  Dullcote is just going to add another layer of paint to the model, making the fillets bigger and emphasizing the relative thickness of the paint. 

The solution is, of course, airbrushing, which when carefully done, will not produce the uneven gloss highlights that using a paintbrush inevitably does. 

I think that the close-up photography emphasizes the paint problems in this small scale, and most likely, when viewed with just the naked eye, the uneven gloss highlights will be exponentially less obvious. 

However, the prototype was glossy, so does eliminating that to minimize the brush-painted problems, make the model look any more prototypical??  I think it's sixes.  Some people like the "model look" achieved with flat paints and some don't.  Thick paint is thick paint...whether glossy or flat.  In this scale, just about any paint applied is going to be "thick"...even with an airbrush.

But, for me...I like the glossy look, and I give allowances because of the ultra-small scale.

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore