Rescuing and possibly restoring a Layout section

[cnrglen]

Thanks. I finished off the track work this afternoon.

   

It took a bit of unbending, re-spiking and adding a few new bits if rail, but I got it done. 
My next project will be matching the ballast. I don't think it will be too difficult though, it looks like it was landscaped using Woodland Scenics products.

[UP SD40-2]

Nice job on the track patch work

[Schraddel]

Very nice done trackwork Glen


Lutz

[ezdays]

I really have to give praise to anyone that hand lays track. Great job,

[BR60103]

It'll take a bit of work to make the new track look as scruffy as the old.

[cnrglen]

Thank you.
David, thanks for reminding me to match up the track, I had almost forgotten in my hurry to match up the ballast. I'm trying to compare a few colors. I'm thinking airbrushing an earth color followed by a raw sienna. I'm also thinking of trying some chalks.

[cnrglen]

After checking some paint colors this is what I came up with:
   

These are some color 'patches that I made up. I figure I'll airbrush the ties in a base coat of the Earth Flat, followed by an overspray of the red earth. And I'll finish up with a dusting of a red oxide pastel chalk.

[cnrglen]

I did manage to blend/match the paint fairly well:
   

Hopefully when I ballast you won't be able to tell when the old ends and the new begins.

[cnrglen]

I did a bit more work before ballast and ground cover:
   

I made a small hillside in the back corner to get away from the billiard table look. It's just a piece of foam that I shaped with the Woodland scenics hot wire cutter and painted. 
The larger project:
   

Our carpenter made this for me yesterday. I'll finally have a place to put Hemsley and get my layout space back. It will be at a good height that I can sit in my rolling chair to work on it. I'm heading to Lee Valley Tools today to get some casters so I will be able to roll it around. I'll also be painting it. I'll mostly be keeping it in my workshop and brought out for guests to see.

[cnrglen]

'Hemsly' Has a new home:
   

I spent the weekend cleaning the workshop out and then painting the new cart for the diorama. I also installed 4 caster wheels with brakes so I can roll it around but still lock it in place when I'm working on it. With the wheels on the diorama sits 35" from the floor.


     

[cnrglen]

More progress:
   

I ballasted the track that I repaired/ re-laid with Woodland Scenics Fine gray ballast. I decided to experiment with making my own scenic cement using Mod-Podge. I mixed it @ 1:3 ratio with water and added a few drops of dish detergent and it works great. It seems to have the same or better holding ability as Woodland Scenics cement but at less than 1/3 of the cost.

   

When the ballast was dry I added ground cover using WS earth blend ground foam with their grass blend sprinkled on top. I know it's not a match for the original ground cover but one of my goals was to lighten/ green the diorama up a bit. I sprinkled some of my ground cover in some existing areas to blend the two in a bit. 

   

My next step is to add some static grass to give the ground a bit more of a 3-d effect and blend in the areas a bit more.

[cnrglen]

I added static grass to the diorama today:
   

I brushed on Matte medium to the areas that I wanted grass and used a Noch static grass tool. I used two different types of flocking, both from Woodland Scenics. One is their static grass at 7mm and the other is their static flock, which is shorter but lighter. I first shot the longer static grass, then ran my Shop vacuum over the area  about an inch or two over the surface. This picks up any excess and also pulls the strands a bit more up. I then swap in my lighter flock and use it to fill in and patches where the taller grass missed.
I have noticed that the Noch tool works better with the flocking than with the heavier static grass.

[cnrglen]

   



I ended up covering the new hillside with grass. I think I'll add some bushes later.



I also found that using static grass can also cover other scenery flaws. There was still a seam between the new and old sections showing that became pretty much invisible after the grass went over it.

[tompm]

Looks great! The more and more I see of the static grass the more I want to use it.

[ezdays]

You are doing the original layout justice, nice restoration..