I already have the plastic sign in the layout room in preparation for building some roads. Was wondering the exact steps & formula for painting, and now I know! I'll be sure to post some pics when I get my roads in. Great looking addition to your already superb HCD layout. Jamie
Thanks for the compliments, guys! For reference, here are a few pictures from the Conrail Historical Society's website of Enola in about the year I model. Photos by Dick Bregler. Photo by John C. Durant
I've always been a huge fan of your modeling, Dave. Great job on the new addition. I will be running out to find some garage sale signs today!
Chaya, Thanks! I only wish I had your incredible backdrop skills. Then again, more often than not, the "mountains" of central Pennsylvania in summertime are hazy blue-green outlines versus the incredibly detailed and majestic features you've so adroitly captured for your New Mexico line.
There are not enough adjectives to describe the work you have done on the Juniata Divison. The additional yard expands the layout 10 fold and for the size is A LOT of layout! Keep the pictures coming!
sweeeeeeeet........... Looks like you went with code 55 on the extension. Overall, I like what you've done!:thumbs_up::thumbs_up: Any future expansion plans?
what type/brand or how and what did you use to make your trees they look excellent!! everything looks excellent!!
Okay, now I'm embarrassed. Thank you. But the backdrop in other parts of my layout will be less dramatic, and some will be nearly as understated as yours. (I say nearly because of course our air is very clear, here, not laden with water vapor). That's because only one leg of the layout is in a dramatic area. I can't tell you how many times, during painting that first backdrop, that I wished I had decided to model some Appalachian coal line! I really like your backdrop, by the way. It's absolutely perfect for the area you are modeling.
I'm always thinking about the future. Some day, probably post-Air Force (I'm a lifer with 14 years in) I think a modular layout (including Enola) based on the PRR/CR's Northern Central/York Haven line between Enola and York, PA would be in order. Thanks, and yes, that's code 55. I love it and won't be going back to code 80. There are lots of compelling reasons why one might use code 80 but I'm smitten by the correct tie spacing and lower rail profile of code 55. Those are just SuperTrees by Scenic Express. Real easy to use! Thanks...! That's a very real compliment coming from you! I have many fond memories of looking out my fourth floor dorm window at Penn State to watch the sunrise over a very hazy Tussey Mountain or sunset from Walker Building over the bluish Bald Eagle Ridge. PA is prettiest in autumn, but I didn't think I could do it justice without making it seem cartoonish. So I settled on a hazy, somewhat overcast July day... mainly just to be safe.
Now that is some first rate Pennsylvania modelling! The part I like most about the raods everyone are enamored with is the square pothole patch, thats attention to detail and knowing your subject, lol!:thumbs_up::thumbs_up:
Absolutely AMAZING!!! The only bad thing is that it makes me want to quit on my layout, 2 days after the first section of bench work was finished, because I know I'll never be able to come remotely close to your level of work. I sooooo wish you had videos available of your techniques.
Just found your thread. Nice work. You've definately got a layout that appears to be bigger than it is.
Well, that wasn't exactly the result I was hoping to elicit! I gather you're being facetious. I would argue quite the contrary... If my work shows anything, it's that anyone can achieve the same results in a small space simply by taking their time and being deliberate about their work. I have no special model railroading talents at all, except maybe that I'm a stickler for trying to conform everything I do into a single unifying theme (obviously in my case being mid-summer in Pennsylvania between Harrisburg and Altoona, either in 1956 or 1980). My advice: If something doesn't work right the first time, whether it's appearance, or something even more sinister (a bad track joint or failed turnout), don't be afraid to rip it out and keep trying! Your model railroad isn't a one strike and you're out kinda deal. I've made all sorts of adjustments on the fly with my layout; changed out track, structures, scenery, etc. In other words, DON'T be discouraged by your first result. Merely use it as you step-off point for the next, better result. My only other advice... Choose a theme and stick with it. Plausibility is probably the one thing above all else by which I measure someone's layout, and the fundamental property of plausibility is a unifying theme. If you saw some of the failed experiments on my layout, you wouldn't have the same idealized impression. But trust me, there have been FAR TOO MANY to count! The difference is I don't often photograph or post my failures... Maybe I should start doing that too. There's plenty of learning value in mistakes!
Looks great. Your video was one of final pushes I needed to get into the hobby - glad to see your new progress. Love the road and quick tutorial on it.
A bit facetious?, Yes. But a large bit of truth to?, Yes. No, I'm not going to quit on the layout. But I would be fibbing if I said that I expected to ever come close to your level of artistry...No matter how much time, care, and attention to theme I take. To me the artistry is more in the fine nuances of things. Yes right structure in the right color is important... extremely so if your intent is to recreate a specific theme. But what catches my eye is more of the surroundings of those structures. The third picture you posted..the road past the house. That scene is generic to a large part of the country, spanning many decades. I could have the house, the super trees, the styrene for the road, the packages of the same scenery materials...all exactly as you had...but I would have no clue how to go about creating the level of reality that you created using them. But I'll carry on as planned, as long as I am able.
Dave, well done. I wish my area had some of that scenery! Golden hills get boring after a while. I'm actually considering a separate small layout with part of a town - no trains, just town...
