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And finally for tonight, the black florists sand ballast was applied and glued in place in the usual manner. There's a few gaps where dropper wires, point rod holes etc are but these will be filled in with neat PVA and sprinkled with more ballast once the rest is dry.

 

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I managed to get the final few bits done to the ballast over the weekend, the holes where the dropper wires are have been plugged up, then once dry I gave the whole thing a mist of matt varnish, a few heavily thinned browns, and finally a drybrush with some Vallejo Iraqui Sand. The mud is Vallejo's Thick Mud, originally bought for a T34 tank but proved to be far too coarse for that, but has ended up looking quite nice as a muddy track. This will be further weathered with washes and splatters of other muddy colours once the grasswork is done.

 

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And then tonight I got the first layer of 2mm winter static grass applied. A bit paler in the photo than real life, it's actually not a bad match for slightly frosty grass, however I'm debating running over it with the airbrush before applying the next layer, I'm not sure what colour I'd go with though.

 

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Lovely tone to this, Alex.  

 

The lightness of the grass really sets things off and gives quite a bleached look to it all. Quite attractive. 

 

I think a light dusting of maybe an Autumnal static grass would be okay but I'd be loathe to lose the look already achieved. 

 

 

Rob

 

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Thanks guys!

 

Second layer of static grass applied. This was done straight over the first layer without any airbrushing between (I may still do that next as I feel it is a tad uniform) simply by drybrushing the matt Mod Podge over the first layer. It's certainly going in the right direction but I'l be giving it another 1 or 2 layers.

 

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Decided on a quick blast of a light khaki brown folllowed by white before applying the final layer of static grass, just to break it up a bit and add a bit more of a frosty feel. I also sprayed the shed roof and went round everything with a light drybrush of Vallejo Brilliant White too.

 

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Once the final layer of grass was applied I added some Busch icicles which just look awesome, along with a pair of Modelu figures.

 

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I'm not that far off calling it done tbh, next job will be a coat of satin black on the fascia boards, and I've 3D printed some letters for a nameplate which just need spraying in white. Unfortunately when I was doing the final layer of grass I accidentally touched the top of one of the yard lamps with the tool and shot 9v through the Arduino that controls the points and lighting. At least, I'm hoping it's just the Arduino that's fried as it's only a few quid for a replacement, so fingers crossed.

Edited by Locksley
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Morning Alex. 

 

This whole frosty look is very appealing. Very thought provoking. 

 

 

Rob. 

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Thanks Rob :)

 

The chap who supplied the point controller gubbins very kindly offered to take a look and fix the PCB. Turns out it was actually the original Arduino that was borked, but the board controller was too. So for the cost of components, I had a working board back today. I also took the opportunity to 3D print a proper enclosure for it, as well as fit a DIN plug and a few other QOL upgrades to make it all a bit easier to use and neater. I'll get it all wired back up tonight and pop a few pics on.

 

I've also just got a dispatch notification on the backscene boards so hopefully they'll be here soon and I can think about getting it finished off.

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All wired back up and working. In the end the only real casualty of the static grass tool incident is the poor LED in the lamp that got the full 9v. I may replace it at some point.

 

The DIN plug makes a nice single entry point for both the DCC bus and the DC power to power the point controller board. The 2 on/off switches are connected to the servos so I can disconnect them from the board for the first couple of activations as they have a tendency to violently throw the full arc of movement the first time you activate them and throw off the point arm. I think this is just a limitation of the hardware. You can also see the black clips that I've printed out to slot the backscene boards into.

 

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Thoroughly enjoyed reading from the start to the present day and an excellent layout showcasing your masterly skills, its a credit to you.

 

Totally conveys what you've set out to portray in such a small space too.

 

G

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Splendid images, Alex. However, I couldn't resist a tweak. I do hope you don't mind. 

 

Rob. 

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13 hours ago, NHY 581 said:

Splendid images, Alex. However, I couldn't resist a tweak. I do hope you don't mind. 

 

Rob. 

 

 

 

Excellent! No problem at all Rob, they look great. I need to get the angle slightly different next time to avoid the massive line in the backscene lol.

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This is just spot on, Alex. 

 

Lovely image and much in the way of inspiration gained. 

 

Thanks. 

 

Rob.

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Hi Alex

Just been catching up with your thread, wonderful modelling.

The way you have captured that frosty look with a chill in the air is quite remarkable, its inspirational stuff, so much so that the only way I could continue looking at the fantasic images was by drinking a steaming hot mug of tea and putting on another layer of clothing. Can't get more convincing than that.

 

All the best

Mark

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21 hours ago, Locksley said:

An overall view of the layout. Ideally, as @Gordon A suggested on the previous page, I will put a layer of wood over the foamboard fascias as they look a bit naff now it's all finished. I may even reorder the MDF that I used for the backscene and make a proper fascia board for it with a top and bottom, with room for some LED lighting.

 

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Couldn't resist having a play around :D

 

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Wonderful pictures Alex, it’s great to see how the frost has covered the loco.

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