The station sign and Turtle Creek name for the ends are on my list. I would tend to want to put a lawyer with a briefcase or a politician in in rather than do that to a poor Yeti.
I already have the little brass stencil of various flat objects for the roadways so stenciling on the glacier and then laminating the stencil with several layers of transparent Water Effects might work. Besides a Yeti and a Sasquatch are one and the same, just different locales and hair colors to blend with the surroundings. And the Sasquatch already inhabits a part of the layout. Managed to replace the ballast and fill in the grade crossing at the road where I had done some track work. Then applied my grass and weed cover including touching up a few areas where needed. Because of the humidity yesterday delaying the drying for way too long I did not get much else done. Today I will clean the track where the scenic work was done and finally tidy up the wiring I was supposed to do yesterday. Found where the tree had been surgically removed and replaced that also and then last night caught Callie strolling down the upper mainline. Culprit identified and apprehended. A visit to the spice rack is in order.
Certainly not on that scale and more to something like Glacier Park where the slow melting Glacier is feeding a stream. I say slow melting in context to 1940-1950 rather than today. I have two curved trestles slated to go into the log camp module and the one end of the layout when eventually finished. Since that area is also a corner probably would be a good filler and backdrop for that corner with both trestles, the rear one being the highest, crossing the glacier fed stream. Probably will end up using this backdrop behind the glacier. One that I recently acquired with though about using it behind the current section featured in this thread. 100_4556-1 by John Moore posted Jul 15, 2015 at 11:38 AM
The reason for their retreat is not temperature. It's lack of moisture. Melt in summer, no heavy high moisture content snow in winter to replenish, for twenty some years now. Cold winter weather, we have, no problem.
After doing other things of greater importance I got back to the layout this AM. Still haven't straightened up the wiring but there is another day. Pulled out the sheets of Masonite measured and cut to fit then measured for the tunnel access portals and cut them out. I have to glue and brace a 7 inch extension to the back section as the Masonite I got was only 4 foot in length and I just could not accommodate trying to handle a full sheet. So I will glue my splice piece in place hopefully today and clean up my mess. Finally got a respite from all the rain and low humidity so a good day to glue. I have corner molding that will support and brace the ends where they met at each end of the layout. The back section will be 55 inches wide once done while the end pieces are 30 inches long. I have to splice two identical printed backdrop scenes once I have the spice set up in the Masonite. The two end pieces get a base color of sky blue before I add the backdrop sheets to them. 100_4557-1 by John Moore posted Jul 16, 2015 at 11:51 AM
I'm glad you said "tunnel portals". At first glance, I was wondering why you had painted eight small scenes, except possibly to test backdrop ideas.
Started laminating the backdrop sheets to the Masonite backdrop this AM. The sheets I am using are Instant Horizons. The sheets are designed to join with other scenic sheets of gradually differing terrain to give a transitions say from mountain the desert. Because the backdrop is wider than the sheet I elected to start right in the middle and the mountain feature on the sheets at each end dovetail together nicely in the middle. The excess at one end and top I have already trimmed from the first sheet using a single edge razor blade and the other gets trimmed once the glue has had drying time, about two hours. The trimmed pieces are being saved to use on the side along with probably the High Sierra backdrop blending in down to the front. Still haven't done a danged thing with dressing up the wiring or cleaning track and this is probably all I will do today. Other things are getting in front like going out and digging small new potatoes for supper tonight. I container raise potatoes that are harvested when small every year. 100_4558-1 by John Moore posted Jul 17, 2015 at 12:38 PM I am not a 100% in love with these printed backdrops and if I had the room I would set up my big easel and break out my paints and do my own straight onto the Masonite.
I'd love to know more about this! The store bought stuff absolutely sucks, with the required chemical washes, etc. Taste is beyond horrible!
Love salt boiled new potatoes. Simply have enough containers that are at least 8 inches deep minimum by at least 10 inches wide minimum. I take potatoes from my bin that are wanting to sprout and plant them. About 3-4 weeks after potato vines flower you can harvest new potatoes. Let them go longer and you have more. This was the first planting from back in late April. Have a 2nd and a 3rd planting all going.
Dammed Murphy again and this time he brought his cousin Bubba Murphy Jones with him. With the Wife's help this AM I managed to get the backdrop mounted on the layout. First issue I noticed was that even though I measured and measured again, and yet a third time was that I had a small area of Masonite showing right down at the line where backdrop meets scenery. Okay a bit of green paint and a brush solves that. Next I noticed that even with my very carefull fitting and lining up edges that a daggone line shows, Right in the middle. Nottafinga. And while both the sides are from identical sheets one is just a bit brighter while the other is a little duller or washed out. Come to the conclusion that the age of the backdrops has to be the reason. One is years old while the other was just ordered about 3 months ago. My older sheet has faded while rolled up in the box it came in and stored in a dark closet. Go figure. So it looks like I will be breaking out the artist's brushes and my paints and pallet. I figure to put a simple big Pine tree right in the middle which will hid the join and blend the two sides more. Then the fun starts in getting the right blue mix to finish the rest. I may end up visiting the art supply store for some very light blues and some more white. I can also explain some of the difference away in saying the right side is the Sun side while the other side of the mountain is the shade side. On a bright side all the tunnel access ports in the rear lined right up with the tunnel openings in back. Your opinion or suggestions. 100_4562-3 by John Moore posted Jul 18, 2015 at 2:36 PM
Over the darker side blending into the lighter side? Another thought entered my old mind since I am trying the blend in and hide the evident backdrop joint line. Beside painting the tall Pine on the backdrop over the joint would be to give the mine and stamp mill stacks an exhaust of mostly steam in the cool Fall air, and actually take that exhaust all the way back to the back drop about 12-14 inches away. Maybe a light colored fine thread to support some cotton fiber between the 4 stacks and the backdrop top edge. Going to have to give it some thought also.
John, I like Jim's suggestion, but for a slightly different reason. I believe you've said this is modeled near Puget Sound or some other high moisture rain forest location of extreme western Washington. That being true, I believe the area is known for its mandatory quota of 50+/-10% non-cloudy/foggy days a year. Ergo, take Jim's suggestion and create a typical foggy misty suicide inducing atmosphere with the backdrop. With your creative genius, all concerns can be resolved, and Mrs. Murphy's arrogant illegitimate child be damned.
Me.... I would dry brush some whiteish color (randomly) from the light side of that mountain across the edge of the darker side. 1) It would break up the straight verticle line 2) It would let the darker side look to be in the shadow side of the mointain. Kinda like this..... http://www.play-golf.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Mountain-Shadows-Golf-Club-3.jpg But...thats just me
A lot of good suggestions coming through and I had to go back to the web images to look at some of the weather conditions keeping in mind that this is a locale set on an island off the Washington coast. And being surrounded by water does lend itself to conditions of fog and mist during the early AM and late PM. Pulled this off the web that was shot at the marine research lab in Friday Harbor which will be my NUMA facility on my layout. Friday-harbor-students-study-away_tsdlg by John Moore posted Jul 18, 2015 at 6:45 PM Did not check for a date but just based on clothing it is either early Fall or Spring. Found another with a shot of a small thunderstorm over part of the island. Got me thinking about a light gray cloud with a darker underbelly across that area. Something to think about for a few days while I see what else may get suggested along with my own ideas. Might end up going with a combo of things. But for the future I have to think about this happening again and may well want to separate the newer and older backdrops with some type of full height feature.
John, Having worked at Friday Harbor a few years back, I can attest that could easily be early morning on a summer day. Fog never lasted long up there, but was a regular summer occurrence, mostly due to the cold water coming into the Sound from the Pacific.
