Nice looking kitbash, John. And no felines reconstructing it with you! I like the way the two layouts combine up and make it work together. Thanks for posting!
If the creeks don't rise and other assorted things. Made one pass through the house thinning out and just scratched the surface and when the Wife retired last Fall made another sweep. Collected a lot of stuff in over twenty years in one place. Thinned my library and I still have 6 or 7 hundred books. Still thinning my craft supplies and railroad stuff. Tossing clothes that don't fit anymore. And the small layout that was recently built doesn't fit into my scheme of things and it will be dismantled and every thing salvaged to go on the next. Nice thing about using water soluble glues. Just wet it and wait and it all comes up. Have to see about getting a crab net though and check my fishing supplies. When I get down there the end of crab season will be near and oyster season just starting. And every week they get a large supply of fresh caught shrimp at the local mart and fish.
Sounds like you'll be plenty busy having fun outdoors. Hope there will still be some time for model railroading!
There will be quite an adjustment. The first will be getting my lungs used to clean air. Agricultural and marine down there and actually being able to drive 10 miles in 10 minutes will be nice. Around hare it takes almost an hour to drive 10 miles. As far as the hobby goes I doubt if there is a model layout on the peninsula any where within 50 miles if that. Most of the hobby stores are in the Tidewater area and most likely good for general supplies and another few up toward Williamsburg about an hours drive. A little bit of a search online though has revealed most to be limited in scope and materials. Fortunately I am in situation of having everything I need and what I don't have I can order through my longtime dealer and have in less than a week. And having one of the largest Walmarts, and a Home Depot and Lowes I can get all the foam for scenic work and glue and timber in about a 15 minute drive. I really don't expect to do anything model railroad connected after I build the last kit and tear down and recycle the old layout for about a year. About 6 months packing and throwing and when I am there about another 6 months to get settled.
Well, hopefully you'll keep checking in here. Gotta keep the excitement and interest levels pumped up.
Well I am working on what I described several posts ago as probably the last kit I will build. It is the Bartlett by Showcase that has been in my box of stuff for awhile. As compared to the last two kits in this thread, this one is at the bottom of the heap. Very few parts of it are cut completely through for a laser kit. Instead of just cutting the retaining nubs for the part in the sprue I instead of having to run my blade around all sides. What few diagrams for parts fitting you have require studying and then are vague. You have no idea that this is a 2 level kit without studying the poorly designed diagram closely. The written instructions seem like they were translated about 15 times for various languages and about 50% was lost when it finally made it into English. This is another kit where the windows are multiple peel and stick parts, but the laser cutting is fuzzy at best, not the clear sharp lines of other kits. The result is uneven dimensions. No window glazing material is provided like in other kits. Also there are no chimneys or stove pipes so this building must be heated by Mysterium. The one picture that show a completed model has truss rods supporting the roof at the loading dock, also missing in this kit. So my last foray into kit building is going on a wing and a prayer. Thank the goodness I have some experience with these or the entire thing would have gotten raked to the side into circular file #13. So far what I have managed. DSCN0052-2 by John Moore posted Jan 14, 2016 at 4:47 PM DSCN0053-2 by John Moore posted Jan 14, 2016 at 4:47 PM
Continuing on with the sage of assembling this kit. If this is based on a real 1 to 1 bldg then something is missing. There is enough piling material for the loading dock and to go under the extension on the back side as shown from the side view. However the door has about a 6 ft. drop, no stairs or loading platform here. So to the parts and scrap boxes here. And the 2nd floor overhang which has inadequate support first of all, and a area underneath that serves nothing. No rhyme or reason to the design. So I will install the piling supplied with kit for the wing as support and probably go to the parts supply for simple set of concrete stairs. As far as that mystery end I am making a loading dock out of it and installing a better support system. DSCN0054-3 by John Moore posted Jan 15, 2016 at 11:42 AM
Except for weathering the kit from hell is finished. The roof overhang was projecting out to far for rail service so trimmed it back, and there was no provision for any way to get to the loading dock from the side door except jump so fabricated some stairs out of scrap. DSCN0055-1 by John Moore posted Jan 16, 2016 at 2:55 PM Also went into parts box for braces to dock roof. Next was the door to nowhere and again the parts box for stairs and railing. And while I liked to roofing material look I never had luck with a self stick holding so some thin ACC to tack it down. And in my opinion the strips for the gutters and peaks was too narrow and not flexible enough. DSCN0056-2 by John Moore posted Jan 16, 2016 at 2:55 PM Then I beefed up the support for that dangling end and created a loading dock, and yeh I got a drop of glue on the side, now removed. DSCN0057-3 by John Moore posted Jan 16, 2016 at 2:55 PM After weathering down the tar paper roof, loading dock and rest of the structure time to put it away. Went back and added top railings to the bridge also. DSCN0059-5 by John Moore posted Jan 16, 2016 at 2:55 PM Next week I start dismantling the small layout and salvaging structure, trees, and track. Last visit to the oral surgeon to see if the $$$$ dental implant is ready for a tooth and hopefully the moving contractor gets in to give me an estimate on the move. I'll bet he is cheaper than the dentist.
Yup. Next time you are out in public, look at the people going by and wonder how many that are missing teeth, are so due to lacking those $$$.
I have dental insurance as part of my retirement package benefits and it still cost me right at $2000. And that doesn't count the tooth. I have to go back to my regular dentist for that and it will be another $300-$400 after insurance out of my wallet.Puts a dent in the old hobby budget.
