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+--- Thread: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge (/showthread.php?tid=9623)
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - TMo - 10-09-2025
Yep - definitely the same proportions and functionality, Jim. If I don't like what I end up with, I could start over.
While I was watching baseball last night I mostly finished two of the four sides. I still need to figure out some rafter supports - I may resort to some plastic there.
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - jim currie - 10-09-2025
sounds like you got some time on your hands try this link and type in what type of railroad structure you want. Looks like a good start could never build anything out of paper we have a silverfish infestation.
Jim
https://www.loc.gov/pictures/
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - TMo - 10-12-2025
A Silverfish invasion would certainly be bad news for my layout.
I've been working on a 8-mm VCR over the last couple of days - trying to make the thing operational by buying a parts machine. Trouble is, you never know if the parts you want are still in good shape. In this case? 2 days of futility and I've come to the realization that 30-year-old plastic parts just aren't going to hold up much longer. Sony doesn't stock the parts and the leftovers are cracking too. Time to junk her. Another refugee of the disposable goods economy.
After that frustration, I got back to some building of the White Haven LVRR station. The four exterior walls have been completed aside from some detail work and foundation adds on three of the sides. In preparation for the roof, I built one of 32 of the rafter trusses (equilateral triangle-shaped truss in the center of the photo) that will support the extended roofline on each long side of the building. Each truss is made from six pieces of sliced paper siding glued back to back. Tedium x 32!
Several loading docks and steps from the doorways will also have to be built, and all of the corners will get corner trim after assembly. The roof fascia boards on the prototype have scalloped edges. I don't think I want to drive myself nuts doing that, but I may....
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - TMo - 10-13-2025
Installed some of the detail trim and joined the four sides together. Next, I'll be reinforcing the structure internally to take some of the bow out of the middle before making those rafter trusses and installing some corner trim followed by the roof construction.
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - jim currie - 10-13-2025
looking like a good build, did at one time have some car kits that had cardstock printed sides like 60 years ago if memory serves me right, they were made by red ball don't know where they went.
Jim
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - TMo - 10-14-2025
Haven't heard of Red Ball, Jim. I ran into Clever Models quite by accident. I was thumbing through an old Walthers catalog a few years ago looking for an engine house and saw a section devoted to their products and took a look. I've been hooked ever since. As long as I can print to my inkjet printer, I'm in business. The big plus for me is that you buy the designs and can print as many as you want - in the case of this particular project, I've drawn from 6 different models to pull in details that I'm using, and I've rescaled some other portions of files to produce individual components. When all is said and done, if you don't include glue, cardstock and ink, I paid about $2 for this station.
The marathon production of roof trusses is finally finished to include doing all of the edge work on each of these 30 rafter trusses. Ready for roof construction! I did put the corner details in and added internal reinforcement at the base and at the ceiling level. The sporadic roofline supports will give me something to glue the roof to. I may get to some of that tonight, but the next few days are full with visiting kids and grandkid as well as dear old dad being pulled into a prospective home inspection for my other son. Things should settle down by Monday night.
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - jim currie - 10-15-2025
if I remember right the line was started before ww2 the printed car sider I think went the way of the dodo in the 60 after the line was sold I think the new owner made Bristal board sides for a bit then went to plastic kits i think they were still addable in the early 2000 after several new owners the printed sides were impeccable very clean print will look through some 1940 mr's to see if I can find a photo to post.
Jim
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - TMo - 10-16-2025
I look forward to seeing those photos, Jim. Until then, photo progress of my own as I've installed all of the roof truss supports (had to do something a bit different over the sliding barn door due to space limits on the slider. If I had to do it all over again, I'd have made one single truss in MS Paint and duplicated it 30 times before printing - I could have produced much better uniformity. However, these will do.
I cut to strips of siding to serve as the underlayment for the roof and glued those in place.
Next comes a complete fascia board around the edge of the roof followed by a "metal" roof to cover all of the white space. Don't know when I'll get to that...
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - jim currie - 10-16-2025
trusses took great wood and paint don't age at the same rate gives the building a look of age.
here is a photo of a add in a model railroader as for the age you can guess by the price its old'.
Jim
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - TMo - 10-17-2025
Wonder how those box cars would have held up over time, Jim...
I did get the fascia built (the photo below is folded siding that got glued on top of the underlayment)....
and roof installed this evening along with the White Haven sign pulled off of the same website I got the station photos from. Next come some loading docks and steps. All in all, this kitbashed station is going to work well once I get a space to install it.
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - jim currie - 10-17-2025
(10-17-2025, 05:58 PM)TMo Wrote: Wonder how those box cars would have held up over time, Jim...
they were actually quite durable had bass wood reinforcement and the castings were well made, the ones i had lasted into the 70's what dud them in was a rainstorm that flooded the basement. There are some original on the bay that are reasonable priced other that are way too high.
Jim
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - TMo - 10-18-2025
Tonight I installed some steps, handrails and finished installing loading ramps. I think construction is complete on the LVRR station. I guess it's time to move on to another structure!
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - hillyard999 - 10-19-2025
looks great!
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - jim currie - 10-19-2025
looks great would love to have it but the silverfish would too.
Jim
RE: Rainbows in the Lehigh Valley Gorge - TMo - 10-20-2025
Thanks!
On to the next purchased structure - this one won't be bashed in any way - straight out of the printer: kit S77 - Central Camera...
Clever Models Paper Models for the 21st Century - Catalog Pg 17X
Once I get some progress made there will be pictures....