April Layout Party

[Gary S]

How about a layout party? Everyone post a photo or three of what you've been doing on the layout this month, and plan to do in the next couple of weeks. Let's get caught back up on where everyone is on their railroad empires.

For me, I've been doing some ballasting and dirtwork lately. Eventually I'll get around to the greenery, but I am holding off on that until I get the rest of the terrain carved into the blue foam - don't want the little "staticky" particles getting all in the scenery. I am using a mix of woodland Scenics ballast, light gray, dark gray, buff, and a touch of black and brown. For the dirt, I have been using fine sifted dirt from the unpaved roads in the area. I've got several different colors, light gray, light tan, light brown, and dark gray/black. Also sifted some tiny pebbles that I add in here and there for some contrast to the fine stuff.



Added some culverts here and there:





Put in a little housing addition and a road, the mock-up houses are made from 2x4s. I don't know that I am happy with the arrangement of the road and houses. Funny, since I have been building from the prototype, I am second guessing all my freelance stuff. I mean, I know the prototype stuff is how it would really be, but don't know about the stuff I create. This photo also shows more culverts and drain pipes.



And another shot of the neighborhood. The house on the right is one that Kurt sent me. I'll build some more similar to that, and add garages and fences sometime in the future.