Hello Folks,
I have been hard at work almost all afternoon into this evening on a particular scene. The only thing missing in this photo is a track bumper. The layout is still under construction and i havent purchased my digitrax yet. What do you guys think of this photo provided below? Is there any minor details you would add or remove?
Thankyou,
Keith
Why is the track sitting on top of the ballast?
It certainly appears that you are modeling o scale right? One thing I would do is put more ballast on the tracks. That is all I can notice. The scene you worked all evening on looks decent.
new camera and ballast between the ties [:)]
Mass man,
I am modeling in N Scale actually.
The ballast in top of the tracks because that track isnt even nailed down. that is just temp. so i could get a view of an engine on the new layout.
I would go with a finer choice of track. That track is very ‘toyish’.
David B
Ooooh, that kind of afternoon delight… [:-^][;)]
As a fellow N-scale modeler, my advice would be to add more ballast between the ties and add rust to the rail. It would greatly improve the appearance of the track. Otherwise, as Dave suggested, go with another type of track (like Atlas code 55).
Also, the picture seems out of focus and at a poor resolution.
The ground cover seems to be nicely done, and I like the Guilford geep. [tup]
While the code 80 rail you’re using has been the defacto standard N scale track for the past 1,000 years, there’s a lot of reasons not to use it. The tie size and spacing is grossly out of scale, the rail height is impossibly tall, and even the profile of the rail doesn’t look like prototype rail.
I switched over to Atlas code 55 when I started my current layout, and it makes a huge difference in the appearance of the railroad. That’s not to say that properly ballasting and painting code 80 won’t mask its shortcomings, but that’s really just putting lipstick on a pig, in my opinion.
Compare this image with the track in yours, and I think you’ll see what I mean…
Also, I’m curious why you put down a bed of ballast before you installed the track?
Typically, most guys will use cork roadbed and install the track directly to that, then fill in the ballast to finish it off. You save a lot of material that way.
Keep plugging away at it, and keep us posted on your progress. Good to have another N scaler around!
Lee
As Lee says…
“Painted and ballasted code 80 is like lipstick on a pig.” Case in point:
I painted this code 80 with PolyScale Railroad Tie Brown, ballasted it carefully including the cinder shoulder, and weathered it using Joe Fugate’s method which uses dry tempora paint powder and Hydrocal plaster.
Looks okay in person, but still looks bad in photos. Oh, and those oversized signals are also on the “hit list.” I have the proper-scale LED signals now (they’re some 60% smaller), but installation is delayed due to other priorities at the moment.
I will say this, though… …and this is why I haven’t dug it out and replaced it with code 55… …and that’s that Atlas code 80 flex with Peco turouts, properly laid, wired, and soldered, are virtually indestructable and will provide years of trouble-free operation. Atlas code 55 gets mixed reviews. Some guys (like Lee) can get it 100% right. Others seem to have major problems. It’s hard to say for sure, but my impression is that the first few batches of Atlas code 55 had some quality issues, but the rest of the code 55 problems seem to be user error, i.e., that product is more unforgiving of minor imperfections in equipment and installation than is code 80.
I would say at the very least, consider painting your track no matter which kind you use. Any dull brown will go a long way toward making it look like real track.
And welcome aboard!
Yes I agree; I read the comments regarding set up for pictures and such; at least it should be painted more realistically.