GFG Modules

[renegade]

Hi All!

i have so far built 2 45degree corner modules to be used with the GFG club layout, and I am currently building a set of 2 straight modules, and planning on a 3rd set that will depict a port somewhere on the great lakes.

below are a couple of images I snapped with my phote of the 2 45degree corner modules.  they are set up in my garage for some maintenance, so I set them in a straight line.  they can also be changed around to form a 90degree curve.  the track is curves at about 1200mm radius, as per club specifications.





and 2 closer up images of the primary focus of each module




these are for all practical reasons, now considered finished.  the occasional spot of maintenance and perhaps an addition here or there might happen...

[renegade]

I am also working on 2 new modules for the GFG.  The 2 modules will operate as a pair, with an overall view something like this...

I have placed this somewhere else, but put it here to keep it all together.  apologies for double posting...



and a 3D rendering of the module framwork...


and this is what the actual module framework looks like.  I have not yet added the highway overpass, as I need to lay roadbed and track first before adding the highway.



the open areas will be filled with polystyrene, and shaped using a kitchen fork and 60grit sand paper.   Once the basics are finished, I paint on a soupy mix of rhinolite. next a custard to mash potato consistency layer of rhinolite.  this layer is tinted with brown oxide powder, so nicks and scratches does not show up white...  photos of these stages will follow when I get to those stages

regards

[LooVille]

Awesome, looking good 

[BigEd]

Francois, are you using 9mm (5 core ply) plywood?

[renegade]

yes, I use 9mm.  a good compromise between weight and strength.

with the 2 braces in the middle of the module (dimensions are 1420mm x 500mm) and glue and screws at each joint, the module is rigid enough to handle it from one end with virtually no flex...

[renegade]

Good day all!  so there has been ZERO progress on the modules over xmas...  went away with the family and did not get much time to work on the modules yet...

I little note on the design of the module, which might be of use to other guys building modular layouts...

A big problem in making modules work reliably, is to ensure good and consistent connection between modules.  At GFG we achieve this with 2 design features of our modules:
1) the module end has a piece of wood (+/- 100mm long that is mounted at EXACTLY 90degrees to the CONNECTING FACE of the module, AT TRACK LEVEL.  IE there will be NO cork of foam under the track at the extremes ends of the modules.  we nail the track with 2 or 3 track nails in this section, and we also prefer that this +/-100mm id straight
2) we remove 2 or 3 ties from the end of the rail, and replace it with 2mm fibreglass PC board.  The pcboard is screwed down to the wood.  The rail is aligned using a custom alignment jig, and then soldered to the PC Board.  a Second acceptable method is to place 2 brass screws as close as possible to the end of the module. again, after track alignment with the jig, the 2 rail ends are soldered to the brass screws.

We do this to ensure that track is perpendicular and straight, and that during handling, the rail ends are not damaged or moved.  it also ensures that the rail stays in gauge at the module ends.
We have also started to file the INSIDE of the rail ends at a slight angle.  This makes it easier  for locos/cars to cross between modules.  They are less likely to derail as the train crosses between modules.

hope this is of use for some of the other guys...

regards

[renegade]

so.... I finally got around to a hobby shop that stocks code 83 Peco track.  I got 6 lengths of flex, and one each #6 left and right hand points.  I got electrofrog, and will be insulating the the 2 rails on the V end of the point.  I also got around to cutting the 6mm foam trackbed into 40mm wide strips.

Then I set up the 2 modules, end to end in the garage, and levelled the tops, and double checked that the track sub-roadbed is 100% square to the end plates.

I cut 2 pieces of track, 120mm long, that will be installed and fixed with brass screws under the rails to keep the rails 100% fixed in position, and the track will have at least 2 nails to keep it 100% straight and perpendicular to the end.  the points will then follow, and the rest of the track to connect between the 2 points to form the passing siding.  Only when the track work is done will I start work on the highway overpass and scenery...

hopefully I will have some time to do some track laying over the weekend...

[renegade]

Wow! How time flies!!!!   so, it is December, and I have not posted anything here!!!   well, some work has been done, but not a lot. 

lets see... after acquiring some Peco code 83 track and points, I laid the track on 5mm closed cell foam.  the track work is not perfect, I am not even going to apologize... track laying is not something that I do well...

I have added the polystyrene scenery base. my daughter is helping me a lot!

Visible in the distance is the I-94 highway bridge that will cross the tracks...

[renegade]

After sculpting the polystyrene, I added first a thin 'soupy' layer of RhinoLite to get into all the holes and crevices left by carving the polystyrene.  then, a thicker consistency mix was added over the thin layer.  this layer is used to smooth off most of the polystyrene surface.

Then when dry (about a day later) it is sanded with 80grit paper to smooth things over.  I do some of the sanding with a belt sander to sough the surface, then finish by hand with a sanding block and paper.  I migh brown oxide powder into the RhinoLite to tint it to a brown color.  This prevents white spots on the modules, should the scenery be bumped or somehow damaged....  In this mix I did not add enough oxide powder, so it came out a very faded browninsh color...  still, better than arctic snow white...

I modified an unbranded building kit into what is now my ranch house.  The kit is originally a 2 storey building that looks like it could be a block of shops with upstairs living area.  I painted the kit using Tamiya acrylics.  Then I added the porch floor and the handrails. and lastly the wood poles and roof.  The floor and roof are styrene sheet stock that is scribed for wood floor (or boxcar sides) and the roof is corrugated metal.  The handrails are leftovers from a N scale bridge kit I built some time ago...

I added some figures to liven things up.   The boy with the dog is a N scale man in a running position...  not shown in the pics is a cat on the roof.  That was originally a cast whitemetal N scale fox.  I cut its muzzle off, and using a file made the tail thinner, and bent it to a more cat like posture. so I have a cat on a hot tin roof...

the men on the porch are playing cards, while oupa and ouma are sitting on a couch enjoing the goings on around them...

I fitted a base for the structure 'into' the RhinoLite and polystyrene, by cutting some of it out.  Then glued the base into place, and filled the space with general purpose filler.   hence the white around the house.  it is a little less messy than the Rhinolite...

[renegade]

I added windows to the house, and painted the interior flat black, since the white (as in the previous post) did not look to good, and I was not planning to add an interior to the building.

Once the house was done, I slightly weathered the metal roof and the wood, using rusty brown oil paint and black ink.

Next I started with scenery.  I decided to tackle the corn field first, as it was one of the mental blocks for me, due to the perceived amount of effort it was going to take...   I got 2 boxes of Busch corn field.  they are each good for 10cm x 10cm of corn field, if done as the box says.  it looked too dense to my liking, and I spaced the rows of corn out by 5mm...   this meant I could cover 10cm x 20cm, and I like the look a little more...   I 'built' painted and then installed the first box to the module...  superglued the strips to the RhinoLite, and then covered the bases with sifted garden soil...  the usual diluted white glue was applied, and all was set in place...  a good 4.5hours work to get the 10x20cm strip planted... the next 20cm strip will be done tonight....

[capeklr]

Awesome Francois, that corn field looks fantastic. 
All the best for 2016.
Cheers.

[LooVille]

Nice one 
Really looking good.....

All the best for 2016....

[BigEd]

Very nice willows! Keep it up...

[ColWer]

Looking good, awesome! 

Wishing you a happy new year! 

[renegade]

thanx for the comments.  much appreciated.  I have 'planted' some more corn, and added a small patch at the end that is already harvested.  I also build the Walthers cornerstone 'Miss Bettie's Diner' kit, and is in the final steps of completing that.  Also in progress is the highway overpass.  it is on its 2nd iteration.

I attempted to use thin cardboard for the surface, but applied white glue that was diluted too much. it got soaked up by the cardboard, and cased a LOT of wrinkles in the paper.  from previous experience I was not in panic, I knew that once it dries, the paper will smooth out.   well, reality is a little stranger than theory, and it actually DID get much better, but there were about 5 fairly big bubbles in the paper that I could on convince to go smooth in any way I knew how...

So O sanded the paper off, back to the wood base, and opted for plan B.... I have a large roll of styrene that I bough at Maizey's, so I decided to rather use plastic.   I applied some contact adhesive to the wood, and rough cut some plastic, then also applied contact cement to the plastic.  let it all go off a bit, and glued the new plastic road surface to the wood.

A WORD OF WARNING! Contact cement has solvents that technically make it incompatible with styrene!!!!

I applied the contact cement as thin as possible to the plastic, all went well well.  however, once applied to the wood, I ended up with a few places that had too much glue, and it melted the plastic surface.  I just had to let all the solvent evaporate before the plastic cured hard again.   then I sanded the road surface as smooth as I could, removing most of the bubbles caused by the solvent.

I applied a little filler where needed, sanded down again, and added a dark gray paint coat....

So... now I am waiting for some more train time, and will then start with the road markings.  I have a faller transfer sheet with some road markings, but the lines will need to be masked and painted on...   I also scratch built the brigde sides, and barriers, which still need some work before fitting...

These to modules are taking a lot of time, but I am trying to vary what I work on, to avoid getting to a point where I get bored with that item... so it might seem like I am hopping around and have no plan...but it is intentional... 

and thats my line, and I am sticking to it!!!   hehehehe