Building the embankment

So, here is the finished webbing that makes the transition as we blend the 3D hill into the photos.

You can see how we stacked the foam pieces to make the base of the embankment. Next is to cover the hill and blend that onto the lower embankment. 

I used casting plaster cloth to cover the rosin paper and tied the hill intot he scene. 

I incorporated the small embankment that the main line resides on and also included the base of the interlocking tower and the line side shed. 

I coated the plaster with my ground cover paint and was generally pleased. More work to do though. 

Slow progress as I painted the area around the base of the tower. 

So, now to move down the line and build the length of the embankment.

Here is is, ready to be coated with paper mache as the foam is a pretty solid base. I will try to smooth out the hill to avoid those ridges from the three sections of foam. 

It is beginning to take shape. 
 

Improving the backdrop at Herndon

Well, I was taking a picture of a kit I was selling and used a piece of ground foam to hold it up.  It got me to thinking of how could I use that foam to make a steep embankment to cover the base of the picture. 

I was thinking I would use it in a vertical format and cut a very shallow angle on my table saw. Mat Thompson who was working with me, suggested we stack the foam instead. That was a better approach so we computed a good angle and cut it, reflecting three pieces to cover the white which rose about 6 inches off the deck there. 

The foam bent around the curve I had in the sheet rock and reached towards the webbing and plaster scenery already erected. 

 I was trying to match the angle of the slope at the end of the plaster hill. 

Using carpenter glue and dry wall screws, I glued and screwed the pieces together. I staggered the joints to make it smoother. You can see that the base is now hidden. I wanted the hill to rise above the base and have some space at the top so the plaster coating would drop down into the picture. 

So, I cut some small strips that I placed on top of the wall and about an inch away from it. I also used the plaster hill to cover the joint and slope downward onto the backdrop as it comes around the curve.

I carried the webbing out onto the foam and the hot glue worked to hold the cardboard onto the foam. So, here we have me building the last portion of the hill. You can see the tabs that the webbing will be glued to, they are just under the plaster covering that was pulled back so we could work there. 
 

Continuing on the Development of Herndon

Pardon the can of soda but I wanted to show some of the colors I used to bring the portal to life. This is a cast plaster portal that was used on a friend's layout. It has to be about 35 years old and comes from a mold made by another friend. 

The wing walls are made by Scenic Express and are an expanded foam product. So, trying to get the colors consistent was a challenge. 

So, our desert scene here is nearing completion. 

It seems to tie together well.

Now for the addition of ground foam. I was not totally thrilled with how this came out so made some changes as I looked at it over time.

I want to add a cinder road that leads up to the portal and have to figure  out how to get that done. 

This is the backdrop after covering it with clear plastic to protect the photo as it is not truly color fast, I raised it up to have a better perspective and am thinking of how I can integrate that into the scene, and make that white base disappear.  

That is the roll of plastic in the foreground. The photo runs about 25 feet. 
 

Projects - F7's

Just a few views of the completed F7 set. I changed the lettering and striping to make them more correct

I used 2 inch striping and rub on lettering. These are Key units from the late 1990's. 

They run very well and can really pull. 

I have been painting cars and trying to get them on the layout. I will send some photos along soon.

 

Some Model Projects - A GP7

I have a Sunset GP 7 that I have been doodling with for some time. I want to wrap it up so I installed DesPlaines photo etched grilles and louvers in the hood, assembled a 3 chime horn from PSC, and decided to model a non-dynamic model as the Northern Central in my area had received four such units in 1953. 

I also added lifting loops and a hand brake to the end of the hood. I had to drill out the headlights so I can install lighting. 

So, now it goes into the painting booth.
 

The Hill Moves Forward

I next covered the webbing with my red rosin paper and then a layer of plaster cloth. 

I worked around building onto the existing hill and raising its peak to cover the end of the photo. The plaster cloth then drops down to meet the foam hill. 

Alan sold me some of his excess Sculptamold which is like paper mache and showed me how to mix it. He suggested I add my earth color, which is a tan latex paint, to the mix. The resultant mix came out like tan mayonnaise and I troweled it onto the plaster base. It has a sort of a rough finish which will be covered in ground foam. 

I carried the paper mache down to the foam hill where I stopped for the night. It stuck to the foam very nicely.

 So, the hill looks very nice and I need to now set up the foam base along the wall to the bridge at the end of Herndon. I also have to think about how to vary the surface to look more naturally. I may try some red rosin paper to smooth the layers into a single slope. 

Continuing the hill saga

I had the help of Ed and Rich in putting up a plastic covering of the photo backdrop. I need to develop an approach to covering the lower level of the photo, up to the top of  the white border. 

I started the photo in a place where it can appear from behind the plaster hill which is coming around from the left.

Paul brought me some scrap 2 inch think green foam to use to build a low hill. Mat helped me rip it on my table saw into pieces that stack up into a 6 inch slope up to the base of the photo. 

There is some flexibility to the foam so it curves with the backdrop. I found that it glues with carpenter's glue and really sets up quickly. 

So, we mocked up how it would appear before covering it with some plaster. 

Now, I have glued the foam down and held it in place with screws until the glue dried. Now I have to integrate it into the cardboard frame.

Low and behold, the foam can be glued with hot glue so the strips just glued to the hill base. 

Now I have completed the webbing for the hill base. 

So, the corner's base is now in place.