The third part of my layout /diorama will be to build the luxury passenger car.(Morton's car in the movie) I plan to use finer hardwoods and leave in a few remnants of furniture and memorabilia from the era.It will be weathered as though it has sat in the backlot for some time.I will build it like a sound stage and probably not even put it on tracks except maybe near one of the car stairs where Claudia Cardinale first steps off the train to make her unforgettable grand entrance in the movie.This was the one and only Western movie ever written for a woman and I would like to recognize that fact in the diorama.
In the opening scene the train is going in the other direction but I had to compromise a bit if I want to show the locomotives best (realistic) side.From this view all will look normal but from the other side it will all be movie set.The work that I am doing now on the mock up side of the locomotive will hardly be seen at all in the final version as it will be mostly in front of the station. In the area between the front of the locomotive and the front right hand side of the station will sit Sergio's empty directors chair with his name on the back.Morton's deluxe car in the back will be modified into another movie set somewhat like the station was but will look normal from this viewpoint.On the backside of the station wall I will put up a double sided screen of a view of Monument Valley that will be viewable from both the single front window of the station and Morton's car.Claudia's arrival set will be on the backside end of Morton's car. I never like to put anything square to the base so the final setup will be at an angle yet to be determined.
From this angle it will be all movie set.The unfinished Bachmann car will be gutted in the mid section.The last two windows and stairs will be retained as will the last 3-4 windows between the cars as that will be where the double sided Monument Valley screen will go.As I noted before the gutted locomotive will hardly even be seen at all but the tender will be another story.This is an abandoned lot so an old poster from the movie could go on the side and of course wood will be piled on top. I prefer this staggered look rather than the round idea for a layout/diorama at this scale and yet it remains interesting for the viewer when viewed from any angle.The whole purpose of this layout/diorama is educational for kids to know how old movies were made before the modern era of animation etc...When finished I will probably offer it to a museum of science and technology for display purposes.
Wow. Had not heard or read her name in a while. Wandered over to Google and took a look. She has quite an extensive filmography. Much more than I'd imagined.
You know I think that this would make a great model either as a entertainment park scene or a dummy locomotive.Model trains pass many structures on their journeys ,a movie set is just one of those structures that can be depicted in scale. I have heard that this kit is subject to warping.This is probably true if left out in the sun on hot tracks,sand,pavement etc....I have tested the plastic myself and it is no more subject to this problem than any other plastic that I have worked with.And yes there are options,one of those being to support the structure before assembly.I think that I would try coating the interior of the larger pieces with exopy,fiberglass or some other warp resistant material.Where the plastic touches hot metal like tracks make a section of the wheels in wood which is a great insulator. For indoor setting I don't see a problem at all unless you were to put it next to a wood stove or other high heat generating source.When I do my 2nd General I will experiment with this a little further. As far as availability is concerned just do some networking.I am sure that there are lots of Generals sitting in closets waiting to be built.I got the one that I am working on now for the price of the postage.It was partially started (a small bit of the tender) but no harm was done and the parts were still all there.I have also seen many sell on ebay for less than 50 bucks,new and in the plastic packages. Personally if I was to do a G scale layout I would do it with a movie making theme of which the General would be just one of the structures that I pass along the way.I would do it as a "out of season" amusement park thus avoiding anything that would move other than the train .Having to make or modify all those figures would also be quite unnecessary. Sounds like fun doesn't it ? Once Upon a time.........dioramas by JohnReid
Morton's Car The choice I have here is between a straight passenger car or a combo. The first choice would be to pretty much scratchbuild the whole thing beginning with the shell.The lower combo car has some of the work already done for me.Having already built a wood version I think it may be fun to do the plastic version and make it look like wood. Luckily for me the plastic itself is colored and not just painted which will make my job a lot easier.It is also more interesting as it is already broken down into two sections passengers and baggage. The baggage side could be set up for movie making purposes while the passenger side could contain a portion of Morton's car as seen in the movie. This is an abandoned movie set so a lot of stuff would have been removed and the set will be depicted as having fallen into some disrepair. The steps at the far right I can use for Jill's arrival scene and the view through the windows will be of Monument Valley.
This is all way too crowded together but it gives you guys an idea about how the final composition will look.
