You Can Build My First and Smallest Diorama

I thought I would break away from the 5'x10' Layout Build Clinic Thread with something a bit smaller, 4-1/2 x 9, ......INCHES!

I started this scratch built log cabin some years ago on a small table at a street fair that Marvin and I attended, buying the last booth for $50, to introduce our proposed & un-named model railroad club to the Yuma community and Winter visitors.

I also use it to debunk the theory that model railroading is expensive.  I invested $1.39 in 1/8" dowel sticks and spent an enjoyable (and FUN) 20 or 30 hours completing it.  Like most of my projects I built it to learn new skills and try out new techniques; build a stone chimney and well using sand, hand cutting shingles from manila folders, modeling very small details like the wood pile, chopping block and ax (now missing the ax).  The well also lost its roof somewhere along the line.  The outhouse is a card model one holler downloaded from a free internet site.

I started the build with corrugated cardboard walls to give the logs something to line up with and glue to.  That framework was edge glued to a piece of cereal box that warped while doing the ground cover and thus stapled to the wood block.  The engineer in me measured and cut all the logs before starting the build so all I had to do was pick up the appropriate length log and work around the walls.  I used diagonal cutters to cut all the logs and give a more chopped appearance.

Front view

Those with sharp eyes will now notice that the logs are not notched and therefore only every-other log end goes through.  The door frame is lined with thin wood stock (no pun, I didn't go) to help align the logs.  The logs on either side of the door are of 2 different lengths, a short one to butt into the mating wall logs and a longer one to extend beyond the other wall to make it look like a log cabin.  If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it is a duck.  Sorry rivet counters, but I take my lead from the live theater - caricature.

Right side

This right side view shows the only window in the house.  It is a 2 over 2 with the frame lined like the door.  On the left is the stone well missing the roof and one roof support post.  The well was formed by rolling paper around a 3/8" dowel several times and glued.  When dry, I coated the outside with glue and rolled it in some sand until covered and allowed to dry.  Then I glued two 1/16" square stock x 1" long to opposite inside walls.  An upper cross piece connected the tow uprights and a folded piece of card stock completed the roof.  By the way, all the wood items were distressed and stained prior to the build.  The red rock on the right rear is just there, something to look at.  It was found in the sand i collected for the well and chimney.

Rear view

The back of the cabin is plain, no openings.  It would maybe make a place to store junk and unused items in among some weeks.  If there would be a garden I would put it on the right side near the well, close to the water source.  The outhouse is on the opposite side of the house from the well, just cause that is how I would do it.

Left side

The door is open to the outhouse simply to show the inside.  My relation always kept theirs closed with a hook or large twist knob.  There is a lot of detail on this side, the outhouse, stone fireplace and chimney and wood pile.  I chose to show some wood stacked and ready to use while chips and kindling was scattered about.  The silver, single blade ax was shown set in the chopping block like I would imagine it to be.  Like all tiny details, these things get knocked off with handling.

The fireplace and chimney was formed with three 1/8" square wood, one tall one forming the chimney and two shorter ones, with the top edged tapered, glued to either side to form the fireplace section.  When dry, I coated the outside and side surfaces with glue and pushed it into the sand supply left over from the well.  The chimney is centered on the wall and simply glued to the log wall.  Missing stones were placed with tweezers and glued.

The roof is supported with a ridge pole running the length of the cabin.  In future builds I would add a couple of support poles from the ridge to the front and rear walls to prevent the roof sag that seems to have occurred over the years.  If you look carefully at the roof line you will see a board right below the roof and covering the log ends that I didn't trim very well.

The shingle details will have to wait for another day as it gets long winded without needed pictures.  If you are building this and really need shingling information get to me.

Armchair

Paper & Card Models I Have Built

Paper and card modeling is an economical way to fill a scene with buildings and structures.  Over the last several years I have downloaded and printed over a ream of 110# card stock of which most is still un-built.  Some were for my railroad layouts, others because they were historic, and still others just because I wanted to.  In its simplest form, card modeling is just cut, fold and glue.  The more complex aircraft and ship models require learning to manipulate the paper in ways it does not usually lay.

 

If you are my age (73) you may remember the cereal box models from the 1940's, tabs and slots like the paper dolls the girls had.  In my recent past I tried a little HO scale (1:87) model of an old store.  I trimmed out the windows and doors, had extra trim on the false front and tried adding corner trim, all in card.  After doing a simple roof I added hand cut card shingles, one side old & worn, the other new.

This lower photo shows the old 'worn' shingles.  There is a wood sidewalk attached to the front of the building.  The red strip above the false front is part of a layered addition, common on buildings of that period.

The two building to either side of my store are railroad buildings downloaded from the internet in color.

The large building top left is from Build Your Own Main Street, also in HO scale.

A large wooden trunk is visible to the right  of other familiar structures.

This last scene is taken on the earlier version of my 4'x4' HO layout Camp Swampy.  All the buildings are card models, those inside the circle of track are models of WWII German prisoner of war camp   buildings.  The base of the layout is 1/4" plywood covered with 1" extruded foam as are the hills front and rear.  The trees are from China and bought in bunches of 10.

I hope you have enjoyed this little side trip to another side of me and my modeling interests.  I will close with a list of several sites and forums I visit daily.  I will try to link them for a simple click, but if not working try just searching for the tag line on Google or Yahoo or your choice.


http://railroad-line.com
http://thewhistlepost.com
http://modeltrainsforum.com
http://ModelRailroadForums.com
http://papermodelers.com
http://fiddlersgreen.net


Armchair

LO#10c - More "How To"

Not a lot of visible progress again this week.  I missed the Saturday meeting as I had to take the wife to her heart doctor for test results.  She passed them all and can wait another year and a half to return.

The recent pictures showed a lot of cardboard strips and profile boards.  I again started with Elmers yellow carpenters wood glue as that is what I am familiar with.  It  grips quickly and sets up in just minutes.

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But, I found that hot glue is even quicker, just look out or you get burned fingers.  The profile boards were trimmed to fit using a single edge blade or utility knife.  I like to support the boards from below and at least one edge or from 2 edges.  Glue will run down the corrugations so build it up along the paper edges.  Hot glue will build up better if you give it a good squeeze.  And NOTE: hot glue doesn't work well on foam, it just melts the foam.  I made a lattes of strips as you see on the right and just connected the profiles on the left.  The cardboard frame gets quite stiff after the intersections are glued.  Of course this is all to support the plaster cloth that should be coming in the next week.

 The outside profile boards were started with white paper sided foam core board as seen on the right above.  I spread glue along the bottom edge and lined it up with the outside edge of the frame.  When my cheap supply ran out I switch to cardboard boxes, but found I had to add strips on the outside surfaces to hold in position.  These strips can be plainly seen on the brown left side boards.  After the internal structure of profile boards and strips are glued in place I am able to remove the strips.  To ensure the outside boards remain vertical and inline with the frame I check it with a vertical surface from time to time.

The final fascia will be 1/8" or 1/4" tempered hardboard which will start at the lower edge of the frame board and be trimmed to the top edge of the outer profile boards.  I plan to attach it with glue and screws, maybe set in finishing washers.

I have to paint and ballast the track just inside the tunnel and maybe a few other places that will not be accessible after the plaster cloth is applied.   I will also have to form the inside walls and roof of the tunnel for several inches inside the tunnel that will be visible.  I will also have to cover all the track in the area to protect it from plaster and paint during scenery work.

My homework for the near future will be creating two tunnel portals, a plate girder bridge for the mine track entrance, and 3 inside and outside trusses for the curved 3 section bridge.  Here are some prototypes.

This sample was made from foam board, same as foam core, but without the paper surfaces.  I simply used a dull point to scribe the stone outlines and stained the whole thing with light brown or dark tan, take your pick.

This truss is built of 3/64" square bass wood with card gussets. The real ones will have gussets on both sides and support the cross beams between trusses.  The joint between the center section that meets each end section will be supported by an extended beam reaching out to clear the lower track, one to the inside and one to the outside.  You will see later.

The girders will probably be made of card with a rolled strip for the top.  Not on paper yet, still in my head.

Our next meeting is Tuesday 7-10-2012 and I hope to have a lot more pictures to show.  I lost my camera so these will be taken with my phone.

Till then,

Armchair

LO#10b - More History & Corrections

My friend and fellow RRoY Club member, Marvin C. passed on the correct name and magazine month for our HO layout.  The correct name is Pigeon Creek & Thawville RR and the MR edition is December 1967.

Another item I passed over was how we laid out the curves for the sub-roadbed.  I used a home made beam compass, or trammel, with a hole drilled for a large marker pen at one end and holes drilled and marked on inches through about 30 inches.  You could make your own using a yard stick drilling the pen hole at 1" and holes as required.  Just remember to ADD 1" to your desired radius.

 While I am not doing any of the track laying or wiring I can explain a little of what I have observed.  Marvin solders all rail joints using track joiners for alignment.  We are using Peco Electo-Frog turnouts that are power directing so do not have to power each piece of track, but must power the turnouts from the single (left) end only.  The power is directed whichever way the turnout is thrown, BUT the other two ends must be gaped if power can be fed from  another track, otherwise you have a short.  In this case the turnout is at the beginning of a reverse loop so there is a "section" of track that is isolated inside the loop to allow the mains polarity to be reversed for when the train returns to the main.

The control panel will be located in one of the corners and have provision for one, DC, power pack.  The future extension to a lower yard or town will have provision for a second power pack, but may be controlled from the main panel for 'one man' operation.

Armchair