How low (small!) can you go?

[randgust]

Rather than hijack the N scale chicken thread, or the EZ-line thread, here's a question good to this group.

What's the smallest detail you've accurately modeled that has actually been noticed by ANYONE BUT YOU.   That can be scenery, equipment, number of rivets, or virtually anything.   But it gets into something that's debatable of effort vs. results, and if it just matters to you, or is actually a feature that encourages the viewer to dig deeper and comment on what they see.

And, conversely, what's the most difficult scale detail you've accurately modeled that seems to get just no respect at all?

I'll give you my favorites - my daughter in law (that has never been into either scale modeling or trains)  caught me cold on the fact that despite all the figures on my layout, the trains themselves were empty.   Inexplicable to her "how come there's no people in the trains?".   

But, she's the same person to spontaneously break out laughing when she gets close into my "Welcome to Winslow" scene, with Woodland Scenics policemen on a traffic stop - and actually noticed that the one policeman is holding an N scale donut.  So that's my record, the N scale donut.

But I also went to a ton of work to detail the interiors of some buildings in Flagstaff, and unless I point them out...even when they are lit....nothing.   Fun but way too much work except to say that I did it.

[peteski]

While I don't own a layout, I have done lots of work on friend's layout.  I thing the smallest detail there is an antenna on N scale car.  While barely visible in this photo, if you look at the right fender of the blue car (close to the A-pillar, where antennas were usually located), you might be able to make out the antenna.  I made it from a piece of thin stainless s tell wire (0.005" maybe)?  Yes, I also opened the trunk.  I'll see if I can take a better (closer) photo).



A close-up photo of the car. The antenna is visible and so is the spare tire in the trunk. Unfortunately also visible is about 20-years-worth of dust.  That area of the layout is difficult to clean). 




Elsewhere on that layout I installed a FedEx Sprinter.  It also has an antenna from 0.002" Nichrome wire.  It is a short antenna mounted above the windshield.



Close-up.




Most people do not notice either detail until it is pointed out to them. But we did have few very observant visitors notice the antenna on the blue car.  They got attracted by the open trunk, then they noticed the antenna.

[ednadolski]

Smallest:  N scale photoetched Sinclair antenna on a diesel cab roof.

Least Noticed: Scale-width GP9 Blomberg trucks in P:48  (It's hard to notice these in pics)

It also has an antenna from 0.002" Nichrome wire.  It is a short antenna mounted above the windshield.

Winner! 


Ed

[wm3798]

There have been a few things over the years, nothing as nano as a car antenna or an N scale donut, though.  Pretty impressive.

Mine would mostly be building interiors.  I've had a lot of fun over the years adding structure lighting, and I enjoy putting things inside the buildings that "might" be seen, but usually aren't.



F'rinstance, row upon tidy row of freight stacked and organized in the WM freight house, visible only through the truck bay doors, most of which are closed or blocked by a trailer.



As for details, you can't model East Bawlamer without Mr. Pinky's Hefty Hideaway, or the giant beehive hairdo on one of Mr. Pinky's portly patrons...  I used a dab of gel CA to form the bouffant, waited for it to set (like you do) then painted it an impossibly brassy blonde color.



Lee

[peteski]

Here is another small item:  A working red light on a fire-call box.  The call box is a metal casting, IIRC by Detail Associates.  I hollowed it out from the back to house the LED.  I also cut of the metal post and replaced it with a small brass tube.  I then installed a 0402 red LED and threaded its magnet wire leads through the hollow brass tube.  I cut off the cast metal beacon on the top, drilled a hole, then installed a piece of plastic optical fiber. Inside the box the end of that fiber sits against the LED.  I then painted the outside tip of the fiber transparent red so it looks like a red lens.  I covered up the opening in the box with a piece of thin copper foil.  It was then painted and custom-printed "FIRE" decal was applied. This one resided on another friend's layout (layout has been torn down).

While this detail is small, its glow readily attracts attention.

[wm3798]

I almost forgot about my illuminated train order stand!  I still have it in a box somewhere, but the wire to the lamp broke, so it will need to be repaired.  I had it wired right to the track when I was running DCC and had a reliable 14v AC bus running anywhere I needed to tap in....

Lee

[randgust]

Lee, I'm a big fan of your Abbey Road salute on the Cumberland module.   That brought a smile to my face...

[wm3798]

Well, since you mentioned it.  Here they are in their original location on the Canton, Highlandtown and Fells Point layout...


And later on the Cumberland module

[u18b]

I’m still waiting for you to build the powered dog sled.

[nkalanaga]

I did CB antennas on a car, once, "just 'cause".  Nobody's noticed, but that's not surprising.  But, for those wanting to make scale antennas, cat hair works fine.  Just find a cat with the right color hair, and you can get all the pieces you want.  Don't even have to pet the cat, if you don't want to, just collect the shed hair.

For larger scales, cats also shed whiskers, but not nearly as often.

[randgust]

Over on the chicken thread (which got drift hijacked into alemite grease rod fittings, yeah, that one should be here Max) there's a great point.

Sometimes you have to help people find stuff.  The radio antenna works because the trunk is open.    I think my donut probably works because the CMW cruiser has full lighting in it with a flashing red light and alternating flashing headlights, and the cop with the donut is standing right next to it.    Bruce's chickens work much more effectively because of the sound card with chickens running.   

Conversely, when I do night running, the entire town is lit; it's difficult to absorb as there is just 'so much' at once that the really fine stuff like detailed building interiors blends in.   

There's lots of interesting N scenes from Woodland Scenics, but with enough background noise you'll never notice them. 

My observant daughter-in-law challenged me over Christmas for an N scale "Where's Waldo" challenge, I took her up on that for her next visit, and that's not a bad idea at all in N scale.  Anybody done that?  They are made in HO.

As far as for separately applied details, my peg stops at putting in lift rings (GMM etched stainless).

[chicken45]

It would be my N scale anatomically correct Ed K.  It was hard to find .002 wire.

[mrhedley]

It pales compared to the level of small detail others have posted, but this one gets comments when spotted on my layout.. the $.25 Bud bottles sign in the tavern window. [ Guests cannot view attachments ]

[robert3985]

I've done some small detailing, although in some instances even the smallest I've done was still too big.  Some features are particularly visible to me, and since I'm definitely a U.P. caboose fanboy, I like to superdetail the cabooses that run on my layout, and one of the the things that really stand out to me on standard brass or plastic models of U.P. cabooses is either the grossly oversized smoke-jack braces or the complete lack of them.

To compensate for their oversizeness on brass models, I remove them completely (usually along with the cast-brass smokejack too since every one I've seen is incorrect) and after machining a new smokejack and soldering on a .003" brass cover on top of it, I use 6-0 black suture silk to represent the wire braces fore and aft of the chimney, which is around .002" diameter...or a scale .032".

Does anybody notice that?  I don't get any comments about all of them, but they satisfy me, even though on wooden CA's and CA-1's, it's probably a little too large in diameter.  However, on metal CA-3's through CA-7's it's about right.

Another thing that I do just because it satisfies me, is detail out caboose cupola interiors, as well as put wall divisions inside my cabooses so when viewing through the windows, the interiors don't look empty.  Cupola interiors are particularly important to me because of the big windows on U.P. caboose cupolas, and look very "empty" without seats, window safety bars and other obvious hardware inside.

However, I never get a comment concerning my detailed cupola interiors, so if my goal was recognition, I'd say the results negate the effort...but, I don't give a rat's a$$ about recognition and do it because it satisfies me.

Photo (1) - Much reworked Hallmark U.P. "Welded" caboose with proper smoke-jack wire brace on a scratch-built machined smokejack, and detailed out cupola interior along with a lot of other added and substituted parts:


Photo (2) - Kitbashed U.P. CA-1 with near-scale sized cupola braces and .002" suture silk smokejack braces...no windows or interior yet:


Not fully happy with over-sized separate grabs on my cabooses since gawking unashamedly at Ed Nadolski's @ednadolski  scale-sized grab and handrail rework of his N-scale diesels, future U.P. caboose kitbashes will have scale-sized grabs also.  Luckily, I've got several prototype cabooses that I can crawl all over and take measurements of at my local Utah Railroad Museum at the Ogden Union Station, so I'll come as close as material choices will allow on three caboose kitbashes still under construction.

Of course, this will entail also designing and having etched several frets of near-scale sized steps, ladders, brake wheel housings and end-rail hardware for future CA, CA-1, CA-3/4 and CA-5/6 cabooses which are in my 1947 through 1956 time period.

Another characteristic of the time period and location that I model on my layout are the unique U.P. steel cantilever signal bridges.  I managed to take my trusty Nikon and tape measure up to the U.P. mainline back in the middle 1980's and take measurements, as well as find an article in the U.P. Historical Society's quarterly magazine "The Streamliner" that published official blueprints of the most common style of U.P. cantilever signal bridge as well as the original 1930's "Type D" signal head.  Took me a while to scratchbuild my first model of the cantilever bridge at the 1000 Mile Tree Monument in the middle of Wilhemina Pass just east of Devils Slide between Weber and Echo Canyons in Utah, but one of the prominent features on it are the embossed rivets, which are exactly the correct size in N-scale for the prototype's and also properly constructed ladders and scale-sized railings up top.  I include these models in various photos of my layout because they are prominent, but hardly ever get a comment on them...in fact, I don't ever remember a comment about them, even though I think they add greatly to placing my scenes in location, era and road.

Photo (3) - Scratchbuilt U.P. Cantilever Signal Bridge in its proper early 1950's black paint and early "Type D" signal head with large snowhood, 40 years later called a "Darth Vader" hood at the west end of Echo Yard:


Although all of the models I've pictured here are first-place winners in several model railroad model contests here in Utah, I don't make 'em, nor include them in my photos to gain recognition, but just because I really like to detail stuff.

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

[TVRR]

Might I ask where the really neat running lamps came from? I'd like to add them to a couple of units.