HOn3 Rio Grande Southern First District 1938-1945

[Dave V]

Last week at the Colorado Springs TECO show, I picked up this brass HOn3 Precision Scale model of RGS caboose 0401. This caboose was unique because of the ladder extensions that no other RGS caboose had. Anyway, the original paint this came (top) with was problematic in several ways. Besides being poorly and overly weathered, the logo should have been aluminum rather than white, and that scheme was applied to 0401 in 1949, two years outside the era I model. I painted it a lighter color, lettered it for the early 1940s, and gave it a light airbrush weathering.

[Dave V]

Received my author’s copy of the 2021 HOn3 Annual from White River Productions today. Cover shot plus an article.

[John]

Congrats ... real nice cover

[John]

[davefoxx]

I watched that video live last night.  It's very entertaining and worth an hour of your time.   Dr. Hotballz was on his game.  TRW got a shout out.

DFF

[Dave V]

I built a Wild West Scale Models bakery kit. I'm planning to plant it in northern Rico along Glasgow Avenue.

[narrowminded]

That video was a pleasure to watch.  Thanks, Dave.   An hour well spent.

[Dave V]

To be clear, the NRA poster on the hardware store is a National Recovery Act advertisement, not the National Rifle Association. Part of the new Deal, the NRA and its ubiquitous posters help anchor my layout's era in the late Depression/early war period.

[Dave V]

Finished the Ragg's to Riches kit for the RGS Placerville freight warehouse.

[Dave V]

Here it is installed and "dirted in:"

[Ian MacMillan]

Looking real nice Dave.

[Dave V]

[Philip H]

Those doors make the model.

[chuck geiger]

We use to know the Doctor when he was a Juniata guy, he's top drawer now.

[Dave V]

Over the years since I built it, I really began to dislike my kitbash of the Rico-Argentine Pro Patria Mill. It never really captured the shapes, textures, or size of the prototype. So over the last two weeks, I built a replacement. The core is still a Grandt Line East Terrible Mill kit but I’d say a good 75% of the final product is scratchbuilt. There’s still more work to do, but I’m at a point where I can take a break. The entire surrounding scene was also revised.

So this is the new version.



Comparison:



Additional progress pics here:  https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=43728.msg740613#msg740613