# Recent work on the In-ko-pah Railroad



## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

I haven't had a lot of time for modeling so far this year, and what time I did have, has mostly been spent refurbishing older models. The newest structure is a through, plate girder bridge. Until now I've just had a crude temporary bridge made of wood, which has become badly warped:













I built a permanent replacement for it. My previous plate girder bridges were all made using a structural fiberglass material called G10. This time, I wanted to try making it out of Sintra. I used 6mm Sintra for the deck and sides. The interior braces were made from 1mm Sintra. The rest of the details are styrene. I got a bit lazy on this bridge and decided to leave off the rivets -- where it's located, no one can get very close to it anyway. The underside of the bridge is strengthened with three lengths of 1/2" square acrylic tube, plus three sections of extruded aluminum angle for good measure. 
























I sprayed it with red primer followed by gloss black. Then I weathered it with a thin, alcohol wash of gray acrylic paint. Then I used RustAll to create reddish rusty streaks. Next I used Sophisticated Finishes' "Iron" and "Rust Solution".























Two of my earliest structures on the layout were really starting to show their age. The paint was faded and worn (beyond the intentional weathering). The clear plastic used in some of the windows had yellowed, fogged, and warped. Slide cover glass used in a few places had broken or fallen out. A couple signs were faded, and both structures had minor damage caused by a raccoon. One of the buildings still had incandescent "grain of rice" bulbs, which I wanted to replace with LEDs. Here are the "before" photos:

































Here are the "after" photos:












































Enjoy!


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## placitassteam (Jan 2, 2008)

Great work Ray. Your detailed interiors blow my mind! I would not have thought of using Sintra for a bridge. I would love to see your layout in person.


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Thanks! Let me know if you're ever going to be in the San Diego area.


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## Florida Trains (Jan 7, 2013)

Does anyone know how well sintra will hold up in Florida heat, humidity and rain?


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## Huh? What? (Jun 20, 2017)

Love the work!


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Humidity and rain shouldn't bother it. As for heat, we get plenty of days in the 90s here in San Diego and a few days of triple digits now and then. So far my buildings have held up just fine.


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## fyrekop (Sep 20, 2011)

Ray,
Your idea of being "lazy" is about the same as my "****, that is fantastic work". Anytime you want to visit the Tombstone AZ area and bring some of your rejects I'll be happy to weather test them for you.
Alan


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## Florida Trains (Jan 7, 2013)

Hello Ray. I love your work! I have taken your suggestion and have ordered some sintra board. Where do youorder your exterior and interior lights from for your buildings?


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Recently I've been working on a new building for the town of Mineral Ridge. This will be a saloon called "The Grizzly Bar". That's a double pun -- not only the obvious "bar/bear", but also there is a piece of mining equipment called a "grizzly" consisting of a series of thick metal bars used to separate oversized rocks from the rest of the ore.

Anyway, this saloon has to fit an odd-shaped space underneath a mine tram bridge. There will be a small covered porch or patio area attached to the main building. I'm not going to post a step-by-step at this time because I plan to use this build in a magazine article. But for now I will post a few in-progress pics:









































Enjoy!


PS -- On Thursday I'm leaving for my annual Nevada/Mojave ghost town trip, so I'll be offline for a while.


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Florida Trains said:


> Hello Ray. I love your work! I have taken your suggestion and have ordered some sintra board. Where do youorder your exterior and interior lights from for your buildings?


Thanks! I use LEDs from this source:

http://www.modeltrainsoftware.com/bl-212.html

They have a wide variety of sizes, and each LED comes prewired with a tiny circuit board that reduces the input voltage to the correct amount, and also eliminates the need to worry about polarity. So they're really easy to use, especially for someone like me who is "electrically challenged".


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## Scott (Jan 29, 2008)

Looks good Ray, keep up the good work.


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Thanks Scott!


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## Alan Prichard (Dec 27, 2007)

Sintra is very weather resistant. Attached is a bridge that served my modest RR for at least 15 years. It is painted with a coat of latex paint. I just replaced it with a Howe truss bridge so it's up for grabs to anyone in The Santa Barbara area.


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

I've set aside my model of the Grizzly Bar saloon, and started work on a new building for the Mineral Ridge mine and mill. This will be the power house. It will eventually contain a diesel-powered generator, an air compressor for the mine, and possibly a blacksmith's shop. 

The major components (walls, roof, etc) are made from 6mm Sintra: 












This is the main room. There will be a smaller room added on one side. The floor is 3mm Sintra, and won't be glued in until after I get the roof installed:






















The smaller room was also made with 6mm Sintra. I use these steel machinist's blocks to keep everything square:












Here, I've started adding the roof:












There are openings on the rear of each room, for access to the interior. The rear walls will be removable:












This is where the structure will sit on the layout:












Fitting the roof of the side room into the roof of the larger room was a bit tricky. I used scraps of Sintra and some Dynaflex 230 paintable sealant to fill the gaps:






























Another shot of the structure temporarily placed on the layout:












The smaller room will only have one window, located close to the cliff, so there is no need to detail the interior there. But the large room has multiple windows, making the interior fairly visible. The interior is built as a separate model that slides into the rear of the building. Because the exterior will be clad with corrugated metal, for the interior I am simulating the appearance of a a wood-framed structure. The interior walls are scribed to give it a little bit of a corrugated look. The framework is built up out of strips of styrene:









































That's all for now. Enjoy!


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## josephunh (Mar 27, 2013)

Ray you do fantastic work and you and your articles have motivated me to look into trying to build some stuff using Sintra. I am curious though as I saw you article in GR magazine on creating brickwork but what tool do you use to get all your lines across so exact? An special type square?


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

josephunh said:


> Ray you do fantastic work and you and your articles have motivated me to look into trying to build some stuff using Sintra. I am curious though as I saw you article in GR magazine on creating brickwork but what tool do you use to get all your lines across so exact? An special type square?


I just used a T-square from an art store or craft store. A metal T-square is best if you can find one, but plastic will do.


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

A little more progress...


I made the ceiling for the interior. It is detailed with rafters, and will be attached with screws so that I can remove it to access the interior:











I also adding some frame detail to the inside of the front wall. This detail had to be carefully placed so it would line up with the removable interior:











These shots through the side window shows how it all comes together:




















Next I started on the corrugated metal exterior. I had previously used real, galvanized, corrugated steel from Rainbow Ridge on my Assay Office building, and considered using it again on this one. But this building has more windows and also many more angles and joins, and the steel is difficult to cut or bend. So I went back to making my own corrugated metal out of .001" thick shim brass sheet. This comes in a 6" wide roll, and I cut into 4" x 6" sheets. I heat the sheets of brass with a plumber's torch to anneal them. Then I place each sheet between two pieces of the corrugated steel, and scribe the groove using a dull pencil:











I start at one end, and scribe a short section at a time until I've gone more the half the length of the piece. Then I turn it around and start scribing the other end, and meet in the middle. Next I flip it over and scribe the other side. When it's done, I trim off that piece (about 1" wide), remove it, place the remaining brass in between the steel, and start over on the next piece. Tedious, but eventually I get it all done. The pieces of corrugated brass are then sprayed with oven cleaner to wash any residue off. After rinsing with water they are set out to dry. 

I glue the corrugated metal to the structure using Dynaflex 230 paintable sealant. At this time I have completed covering the exterior walls and have just started on the roof:




















There is no need to apply metal to the rear walls, since they will be up against the cliff and not visible. In this photo the rear walls have been removed:











Here are a couple shots showing how it will look on the layout:





















That's all for now.


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## Crisolite (Jan 9, 2008)

Looking good Ray. 

I like the timbered ceiling, may have to try that in one of my buildings.


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Amazing Ray! 

One question, what do you use for glue for the Sintra board?

-Jim


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Thanks!

I use Weld-on 16 for gluing the Sintra. It's also sold under the "SciGrip" brand name.


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## esteam (Dec 27, 2007)

That's looking really good - can't wait to see what you do with that interior Ray!
Are you doing all those clean cutouts in the Sintra by score and snap, or do you use a laser?
Are you liking the Dynaflex 30 as well as the Lexel for gluing metal to Sintra?


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

esteam said:


> That's looking really good - can't wait to see what you do with that interior Ray!
> Are you doing all those clean cutouts in the Sintra by score and snap, or do you use a laser?
> Are you liking the Dynaflex 30 as well as the Lexel for gluing metal to Sintra?


Thanks! I'm just cutting the Sintra with an X-acto knife. I usually cut it clean through and not snap it.

So far the Dynaflex 230 seems to work very well for gluing metal to the Sintra. I've also used it to glue styrene "Spanish tiles" to the roofs of a couple buildings. 

I'm not familiar with Lexel.

When gluing Sintra to Sintra, I use Weld-On 16.


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## Mike Flea (Apr 8, 2014)

I gotta say, Ray, I enjoy going to your webpage, great info. I used to live in Santee, Jacumba and El Centro between '84 - '88.


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Thanks Mike!


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

I finally finished creating and installing the corrugated metal. Here's how it looks with all the metal in place:





























This overhead shot shows how closely the building fits against the cliff:











Soon I can begin painting it. But first I have to do some work on the doors and windows.

.


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Will you treat the brass or just let it age?

Greg - 664


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Greg Elmassian said:


> Will you treat the brass or just let it age?


It'll be painted to look like galvanized steel.


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## Russell Miller (Jan 3, 2008)

esteam said:


> Are you doing all those clean cutouts in the Sintra by score and snap, or do you use a laser?


*Do Not LASER cut* Sintra, Komatex, Celtic or any other PVC materials. The fumes from LASER cutting PVC are acidic and will destroy the expensive optics of the LASER along with causing a lot of other nasty things to happen.

Russ Miller


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Before I can go any further with the building, I need to create the interior details. These will determine the locations of smokejacks, etc. I'm starting with the largest and most important item, the generator. This will be a "good enough" model -- something that will look good when seen through the windows -- rather than a precise scale model. I'm basing it on this diesel generator I photographed at the Diamond Tunnel mine in Eureka, NV:






























I began by building up the "core" shape of the engine, using layers of 6mm and 3mm Sintra:











A piece of 6mm Sintra was added at one end:











I decided that the rectangular openings on the sides were a bit too small, so I cut a little off the top and one end to make the openings larger. The rounded top of the engine was made using a section cut from a 1" styrene tube:











Then the sides were laminated with .020" styrene sheet. The styrene wrinkled slightly in a few places when the glue dried, so I filled in those spots with Squadron white putty and sanded it smooth:












Next I added the arched extension at one end of the top of the engine. I also cut and sanded the top of the engine so that one side has a flat, angled surface, as on the prototype:





















The next step is adding the various shapes that protrude from the "core". I began with the piece seen in these two photos:





















And that's where it stands for now. More later!

.


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## Mike Flea (Apr 8, 2014)

Starting to look like an engine


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

I've made a little more progress on the diesel engine...


This part was made from a piece of 6mm Sintra mounted on a sheet of .020" thick styrene. The bolt heads were made from thin slices of hexagon rod:




















The plastic "pupils" from a set of cheap googly-eyes was just the right size for the disks on the side of the engine block:




















At this point I realized that I had made a mistake when I added the arch at the top of the engine. There is supposed to be an overhanging extension at the front of the engine block, with the arch on top of that. So I added the overhang, then extended the front of the arch, and cut some off the rear of the arch. Here's how it all looks so far:






































There are twenty small covers, plus ten large covers, on the engine, that look sort of like cookie jar lids. I've been trying to find an easy way to make them. Here's my first attempt. I think I'm on the right track, but this one is pretty rough. I'm going to try making another one, and if it turns out good enough, I'll try making a silicone mold and casting the rest of them:












That's all for now. Enjoy!



.


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

I'm holding off on those covers for now, and doing something more fun. I started building up the thing that sticks out the front of the engine at the top. It's made of layers of Sintra with some styrene details:








































.


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Ray, I hope you are putting this in a modeling contest. And if you do please let me know which one so I don't waste my time  What an eye for detail! And I like how you don't let anything stand in the way, you get it done!

-Jim


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## placitassteam (Jan 2, 2008)

Ray, That is great! It is already looking very believable and when done should leave no question as to what it is. Your attention to details on the inside of buildings never ceases to amaze me.


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## Dave Meashey (Jan 2, 2008)

Ray;

Your diesel generator set is already looking better than the prime mover that AristoCraft used to put in their FA diesel locomotives. I always enjoy your build threads.

Best,
David Meashey


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## Phippsburg Eric (Jan 10, 2008)

I like the corrugated siding and roofing, what is The stock you are using as a form?

The engine is a cool and Interesting project Ray! A little different too!


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Phippsburg Eric said:


> I like the corrugated siding and roofing, what is The stock you are using as a form?
> 
> The engine is a cool and Interesting project Ray! A little different too!


Thanks! I used a couple pieces of scale, corrugated steel which is available from Rainbow Ridge:

http://www.rainbowridgekits.com

It's great stuff that galvanized just like the full-scale material. I've used it to cover one of my previous buildings. The only downside is that, being steel, it's tough to cut or bend. This particular building as a lot of window and door openings, as well as a lot of angles and joins, so I wanted to use something that would be easier to cut and bend.


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

First off, I found a pair of websites about restoring an engine almost identical to this one:

http://www.eldensengines.com/F-M Power Station/F-M Power Station.html

http://www.coolspringpowermuseum.org/Exhibits.htm


I learned a lot about the engine from from these two sites. For one thing, it's a 300 horsepower Fairbanks Morse opposed-piston engine, probably model 38F5-1/4. This type of engine has two crankshafts, one at the top and one at the bottom. It also has two sets of pistons, which face each other in the cylinders. Also, the large thing protruding from the top front, which I'm currently working on, is a supercharger.

In addition to powering generators, these types of engines were also used in locomotives, submarines, and surface ships.


Anyway, I've mostly been working on adding all the details to the supercharger. The air filter was made from a short segment of 5/8" styrene tube, with a piece of 1/2" tube stuck into it. An acrylic, elliptical dome was used to make the rounded bottom of the air filter (shown bottom up in this photo):











I cut another segment of 1/2" tube and cut a slit in it, so I could wrap it around the first tube. Later I cut a piece to fill the gap:











A few years ago I bought some photoetched mesh with round holes, thinking I'd find a use for it eventually. It turned out to be perfect to replicate the mesh on the air filter:











I cut a strip of the brass mesh to the proper width, then wrapped it around a much narrower tube before installing it on the air filter. I sealed the ends together with tiny bit of thick CA, which was enough to hold it in place. Then I topped off the air filter with a styrene disk to represent the lid. I still need to add the bolt to the center of the lid:











Here's how it looks on the supercharger. I haven't glued it in place yet, it's just sitting there. The other details were made from various bits of styrene tubes and strips:





















Here's the whole engine so far. The orange piece was made from the bottom of a prescription pill bottle:




















That's all for now, more later.


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## Mike Flea (Apr 8, 2014)

Coming along very nicely Ray!


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

A few days ago I posted this photo of a styrene test piece for the covers on the engine:











My plan was to make a rubber mold and cast these things in resin. But that test piece was too rough. Well, I tried a couple more and couldn't get it to look as good as I wanted. So I tried a different approach, making it out of 1mm Sintra and scribing the indentations. That turned out even worse:











Even if I could have created a suitable master, I had doubts about how well such thin pieces would reproduce as castings. So I scrapped the whole idea and decided to come up with a non-prototypical design that would be simple enough that I could make all 20 of them individually. My first test of this was extremely simple, just a flat piece of styrene with rounded corners and a nut/washer in the middle:











But I felt that this was TOO simple. I wanted something that looked a bit more interesting. The design I settled on was made by layering two pieces of .020" styrene. Both pieces had the corners rounded, and I beveled the edges of the smaller piece before gluing it on top of the base piece. Here's how they turned out:





























I also did some work on the base for the engine and generator:






















.


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

****, looks realistic even without paint and weathering!

As usual another fine bit of modelling Ray!

Greg


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## Mike Flea (Apr 8, 2014)

Very nice Ray, your eye for detail is astounding!


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Thanks guys!


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## Crisolite (Jan 9, 2008)

I like your solution. It’s very believable. 

Sometimes the simple approach is the best.


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## aceinspp (Jan 2, 2008)

Very nice. Detail is outstanding. Later RJD


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

After a very lengthy hiatus from modeling, I'm finally starting to get back into it a little. Currently I'm trying to finish up the two incomplete projects I'd been working on before. One of these is the Grizzly Bar saloon. I last worked on this almost a year ago. Here's where I left off:











Since then I've painted and weathered the upper portion to look like old wood with faded/peeled paint. The corrugated metal was painted with two-part rust from Sophisticated Finishes. I also put corrugated metal on the roof of the patio. Signs were made by printing out the designs onto self-adhesive vinyl, which was then cut out as a stencil:







































Because the roof has warped a little, I had to curve the lettering slightly:












The windows and doors were painted separately prior to installing the glass:












I added security bars to the patio door. These were made from styrene:












The building is now complete except for the lights and some interior details:






















Enjoy!


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

The other incomplete model that I'm trying to get finished is the power house for the Mineral Ridge mine and mill. When I last worked on it, I had been in the middle of constructing the large diesel generator for the interior. That part of the project is still on hold, but I'm currently working on finishing up the exterior of the structure. Here's what it looked like when I left off:












I built two different smoke stacks for the building. One is for the generator and one for the blacksmith's forge. The generator stack is made of brass and has a conical cap:







































The forge stack is a bit shorter and has a simpler design:












I also decided that the building really needed a pair of ventilation cupolas. I built these out of 6mm Sintra, with styrene strips for the louvers. Since I had already covered the roof with corrugated metal, I had to mount them to the metal with Dynaflex 230: 







































That's about as far as I've got, for now.


Enjoy!


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## Scott (Jan 29, 2008)

Just add some grizzled old timers and some usual barflies to add character - looks good.


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## placitassteam (Jan 2, 2008)

Dennis, Glad to see you back at work. The buildings are looking great.


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

A little more progress...

Four strands of fine copper wire were soldered to the large smoke stack. The other ends of these wires were tied to tiny eye hooks, which I got from the jewelry section in Michael's:












I sprayed the entire exterior of the building with self-etching metal primer. Then I sprayed a bit of white primer onto the "wood" portions of the cupolas and trim:












I painted the doors and window frames, beginning with a coat of white primer. Next I applied various shades of brown and gray, to simulate the appearance of old wood. When that was dry, I liberally brushed on some Testor's enamel thinner. While this was wet, I added the white/green color coats, using a modified dry-brush technique. The enamel acts as a "resist", and this effect combined with the dry-brush technique results in a look of worn, peeled paint:






























I also painted the removable interior of the building's main room. It's a bit rough, but doesn't need to be perfect. Much of it will be obscured by the generator and other items, and most of it will only be visible from one angle when seen through the windows:





















The "wood" portions of the cupola and exterior trim were painted in a similar manner to the doors and windows:












Then I had to mask off these areas in preparation for the next step. I will be spraying the building with Rustoleum "Cold Galvanizing Compound". This will give the building a realistic appearance of galvanized metal:




















That's all for now, more later. Enjoy!



.


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Thanks for the update! Looking grand! Appreciate the pics  Superb modeling!


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## up9018 (Jan 4, 2008)

Looks great Ray


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

I used this photo of the control panel at the Diamond Tunnel mine in Nevada to create the electrical control panel for the model:












I started by importing a copy of the photo into Photoshop, where I retouched it, cleaned it up, straightened it out, and cropped it. Then I printed it onto self-adhesive vinyl. I mounted this on 6mm Sintra. I also printed a second copy to use as a guide in making some details that would stand out in 3D. I mounted these on 1mm Sintra, and cut them out:












I added some thicker pieces of Sintra as needed, and sanded them to shape. Then I glued the details to the main panel:












Next I cut out the slots for the switch levers, and removed the remaining vinyl. I also added some dials made from slices of styrene rod:












The switch levers were made from brass and glued in place:












Next I made a frame for the control panel, using styrene strips and a piece of heavy brass screen:












I painted the frame, and also painted the switches and other details to match the photographic print. Then I glued the control panel into the frame, and glued the entire assembly into the building's interior:





















.


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## placitassteam (Jan 2, 2008)

Ray, Your detail work just blows me away!!!


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## Mike Flea (Apr 8, 2014)

Very nice detail Ray


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## Dave Meashey (Jan 2, 2008)

Ray;

WAIT!! That's a model! I almost thought I could hear the hum coming from that electrical panel in the final photo. Wonderful work.

All the best,
David Meashey


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## denray (Jan 5, 2008)

Looking very nice Ray. Glade to see you back on it
Dennis


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## Paulus (May 31, 2008)

Very impressive and very educative / inspirational!


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Dave Meashey said:


> Ray;
> I almost thought I could hear the hum coming from that electrical panel in the final photo. Wonderful work.


Knowing Ray, he's working on that... 

Looks fantastic!

Later,

K


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## Scott (Jan 29, 2008)

Raising the standard there Ray


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Getting near the end on this one...

After painting the exterior with Rustoleum's "Cold Galvanizing Compound", I went to work on the weathering. I've noticed that even galvanized metal can become rusted and/or discolored when exposed to the minerals and chemicals that are often found in and around mines, so that's what I wanted here. I used a two-part process to create real rust. This is sold under the brand name Sophisticated Finishes. Part one is an acrylic paint filled with iron powder. Part two is a chemical solution that rusts the iron. 

Applying this effect to only parts of the structure, and in varying degrees, is a bit tricky. And the zinc in the galvanizing compound seems to inhibit it, which adds to the trickiness. I had to brush the iron paint on, applying a thick coat in some places and thinner in others. Then apply the rust solution. A lot of trial and error was involved, and additional applications of both the iron paint and the rust solution were needed. Here's how it looked partway through the process:












And here's the finished weathering. Time and exposure to real weather will improve it, turning the rust to a more natural coloration:












I added a rain gutter over the door to the blacksmith's shop, and also added a wooden lamp post and exterior lights:




























I still need to cement the concrete steps in place, and build up the "soil" around the base of the building.



For the interior of the powerhouse, I painted the ceiling black between the rafters, and drilled holes where the lights will be:












The industrial-style lampshades are from Plastruct. I drilled them out to fit 3mm LEDs, which will be inserted from the top. Then I glued them to the ceiling:






























The diesel generator is still unfinished, but was installed temporarily for these photos. I also added lights to the assay office, on the level below the powerhouse:




















Meanwhile... the fence along the east side of our yard was replaced recently with a nice, new vinyl fence. But removal of the old fence left one corner of the pathway at the bottom of the railroad unsupported. So I had to dig out a lot of gravel and soil, and build up a small retaining wall of concrete blocks and concrete. Here it is in progress. I still need to dig soil out from under the corner of the step at the bottom of the stairs, and back-fill it with concrete:






















That's all for now. Enjoy!


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

Way back in January 2015, I finished the interior of a radio repair shop. That same building had room for another shop which was going to be a barbershop. By March of 2015 I had scratchbuilt a barber's chair:












Then the barbershop got put on the back burner while I worked on some other projects. Well, I'm happy to say that I've finally finished the barbershop, more than three years later!

I started by building a corner cabinet with a mirror. The parts were cut from thin Sintra PVC board:






























The mirror was something I had bought from the craft store a few years ago. It had a thick, very oversized frame cast out of polyester resin. I had to sand off most of the frame to get it down to a useable size:




















Once I got this far, I decided to add a counter extending to the left:





















I added a couple strips of quarter-round rod to hold the mirror in place and hide the gaps:











After adding some styrene strips to represent drawers, and slices of styrene channel for handles, the cabinet was painted. Here's a shot of it temporarily in place in the building:












Then I started making all the little details. A coat rack was made from a strip of styrene and short sections of thin brass rod:











Various bottles were turned from clear acrylic rod and hand-painted. Vintage signs, posters, calendars, etc were printed on self-adhesive vinyl. The "glass" on the clock was cut from a cheap plastic "google-eye":





















I wanted a simple wooden chair for waiting customers. I tried ordering one in 1/24th scale from a vendor on Shapeways. The first batch arrived and were too small. I notified the vendor, he made some changes, and sent me another batch. These were too large. Finally I just scratchbuilt a chair in the correct scale. Mine's the one in the middle:











I painted it to look like varnished wood:











More details were created to fill up the east wall, including a scratchbuilt magazine rack:











Here's an overhead shot, with the ceiling removed:











I made ceiling light fixtures from an acrylic "tulip" bead, a white fluted bead, and a plastic button. The bases of the lamps were painted with a metallic "steel" paint:




















Continued in next post...


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

At last the building was finished and reinstalled on the layout. I also have added curtains and lighting to the Grizzly Bar Saloon:





























The town of Mineral Ridge is really starting to look alive. Once I've finished adding interior details and lights to the remaining structures it will really be impressive:












































































Enjoy!


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## denray (Jan 5, 2008)

oh Wow Ray, as always modeling at the top, I love seeing your modeling, That is also my goals now is
lighting my structures, having fun doing it. 
Thanks for sharing
Dennis


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## Crisolite (Jan 9, 2008)

Very impressive Ray.
Your making me want to add interiors to the buildings my railroad.


Keep up the great work


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## placitassteam (Jan 2, 2008)

Your interiors are simply amazing. I never get tired of seeing your creations.


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## Ray Dunakin (Jan 6, 2008)

A brief "infrastructure" update...

I finished that small retaining wall that was needed after the old fence was taken out. It goes down about two and half feet, and extends under the bottom step of the concrete stairs:




















Another bit of recent fence work...I had an opening put into the wrought iron fence along the front of the layout. Now there are two entries to the layout, one at each end. This is much more convenient, and will also alleviate the bottleneck that forms when we have large groups come to visit:











In the background you can see the new vinyl fence going up the hill. I used to have a handrail mounted to the posts of the old wooden fence. I need to figure the best way to mount the handrail to this new fence, since the posts are hollow PVC. 


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## Homo Habilis (Jul 29, 2011)

Put handrail posts into the ground next to the fence, don't attach the handrail directly to the fence. 

As usual, fantastic work on the RR.


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## Rod Fearnley (Jan 2, 2008)

As a youngster, Lynn Westcott was the man, as I grew up, Malcolm Furlow, Alan Olsen, Dave Frary and finally Marty Cozad. But, in the nicest possible way, Ray your modelling is on another level, beautiful work Sir.


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## MJSavage (Dec 27, 2007)

Well done. I really like all of the buildings.


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Off the charts dude! WOW!


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## Mike Flea (Apr 8, 2014)

As always, very nice Ray! I somehow missed the Barbershop, but I just took it all in, and your attention to detail is magnificent!


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## choochoowilly (Oct 31, 2016)

Always a pleasure to view your work, Bill


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