I am collecting information scenery phase of my 4x8 HO Model Railroad. Would anyone have tips on scenery, (I.E. how to’s, where and when to place buildings, etc.) or some tricks of the trade for a greenhorn model railroader?
Thank You!
Acela026
Stop by your LHS (Local Hobby Shop) and check out their Woodland Scenics stand. 1) Their products are what most, if not all, model railroaders use. 2) Buy their “Scenery Manual” as it has the best introduction to model railroading and the most useful information on scenery I have heard (um… well… okay, read) in a long time. One hint is to always remember that the roads, buildings, et certerae are all there for a reason, so dont plop them down willy nilly, but try to imagine how the tiny people could live there. Have fun, and Welcome to the World’s Greatest Hobby.
Dave Frary’s book on model rr scenery is exceptional. You can’t go wrong using this fantastic guide. It shows materials, techniques for all forms of scenery from the benchwork to the last piece of grass.
www.mrscenery.com website
http://www.mrscenery.com/book.html book to use
[:-^]
Well Acela,
You don’t have to look too far. At the top of these pages find a button that is marked “ARTICLES” then scroll to the bottom under ARCHIVES and go to the 2008 articles (all four of them) That is where David Popp gives a good description of building his Waterbury Industrial District. The second and Third articles give a great description of scenery techniques. You can’t go wrong with these ideas and tips. If you happen to be building with open frame work then go to the search feature here on the forum and search hard shell scenery. That will tell you about weaving cardboard strips or chicken wire base and plaster cloth covering for your teraine.
Also our Hosts here Kalmbach Publishing put out numerous MRR help manuals at a reasonable cost for the information provided on all areas , Benchwork, Scenery, Trackwork, Buildings, Wiring and DCC., Bridges, and even weathering rolling stock and locomotives,as well as Industries and Yards. Etc… Be sure to pick up some of these for your own reference library.
And thanks David, You and that other little guy, with the hats, (Cody) always do a great job.
Johnboy out… for now
Read the books is the best place to start. The Woodland Scenics advice is good. WS also makes a video that I found helpful.
My adition to what has been said is: for mountains, valleys and tunnels, consider stacked pieces of Foam Insulation board (pink, blue, yellow, green or purple all work.) I get mine from dumpsters behind consrtuction sites. I carve the rocks and gullies directly into the foam and then paint with my version of Ground goop. I then add the WS grass and stuff.
I have some pics in my sig that show what can be done with very little talent but a lot of persistance.
Have fun. Some of us find the scenery the best part.
I would send you to the book of REAL LIFE. What real railroad scenes do you know and like that would be fun to copy (rather than building a model railroad like everybody else’s model railroad)? I looked at Olathe on Google Earth. A lot of the railroad scene is straight double track that goes on and on. Hard to model on a 4x8.
But I found a short length of single track that runs from East Dennis to a connection about a mile west near West Elm and South Kansas, making a couple of long curves-- with residential neighborhoods bcked up to them. Could you use that as a prototype for suburban homes backed up to your oval loop. Making even part of your scene copy something you know is real would be beginning.
Dave Frary’s superb The Pennsy Middle Division in HO Scale is now out of print, but can still be secured with an eBay search. Here’s a weblink to Dave Frary’s website with downloadable PDFs, and that same book at $5.95.
Caveat - Some eBay book dealers say his books are worth $100+ - $200+! => looks like monkey-see and monkey-do on their pricing.
For my money (and I don’t like to spend a lot of it on “how to” materials when I can be buying actual stuff), you cant beat Joe Fugate’s scenery series DVDs. Take a look at these two links:
http://model-trains-video.com/volume4.php
http://model-trains-video.com/volume5.php
These videos are also available via download for about $2.00 per chapter. I have watched them over and over and always find a new tip or technique that I can use right away. I have never built a model railroad before and I can vouch for the fact that I am getting outstanding results by following his methods.
Jamie
That describes Olathe in general, actually. [;)]
Kansas City has a lot of rail to model, just drive around different parts of town, take pictures if you can. Visit the old Depot in Independence, for instance.
check out bige61 on youtube he has some great vids
I’ll echo what a previous poster said about the roads having a purpose and imagining how your HO people will get around by car and on foot. It’s too easy to line the tracks with industries and wind up with no place for the trucks or the customers to get to them. I’m filling in an area on my N scale layout with industries now and it’s a bit of a juggling act between the roads and the tracks to get logical placement for both. I had installed a grain elevator nicely beside a siding until a farmer friend reminded me that elevators are raised up about 6 feet with ramps for the farmers’ trucks so that they can dump their grain into a pit inside. The two books recommended by previous posters are excellent references for scenery work. If you’re going to be modelling a small town, which I suspect many of us do because we don’t have the space for a city or don’t want to model a city, I would recommend taking a drive into the rural area where you live and drive around a few small towns and take lots of pictures for inspiration. My wife and I enjoy spending a day driving around rural areas looking at the scenery and exploring small towns and villages. I take lots of photographs and we enjoy having lunch in a cafeteria in a small town. We frequently come across old grain elevators and abandoned branch lines or an abandoned railway station. It makes an enjoyable day for both of us and I get more ideas for my layout than I’ll ever use.
Here’s the “ValleyRR” 4 easy rules for good scenicing:
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Look at the world around you, either through the camera or your eyes. That will tell you what it’s supposed to look like. You’d be amazed at the number of people – even on these boards – who say “that’s not very realistic” when it is in fact an exact replica of something I either have a picture of or have seen with my own eyes. Start thinking about what you see with an artist’s eye. Most trees are more than one shade of green, and most bark really isn’t brown, just to give you a couple of examples.
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The great majority of commercial scenicing materials are fine… but beware the “cheap and quick” method (grass mats, I’m thinking of you). Commercial trees are also a potential pitfall – a lot of the cheap ones really look like crap. Before you buy any commercial product, refer to rule #1.
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There are few “rights” and “wrongs” in scenery construction. What works for some doesn’t work for others. Read a few articles, watch a few videos, visit a few websites; this will give you an idea for techniques that others have found useful, but don’t be afraid to try something your own way.
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When you’re done with a project, refer back to Rule #1. If it doesn’t meet with your expectations, rip it out and try again. If it’s good enough for your needs or desires, then it is good enough, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. It’s your layout.
I am trying to find a medium to make mountains or large hills out of. I thought about using the Guaze and cardboard lattice method, but would paper mache over cardboard lattice work too? Or would it be a “Cheap and Quick” method?
For your underlying terrain base, it’s only cheap and easy if you rush it, and / or try to cut corners on how much you use.
Papier mache over cardboard lattice would work fine. Personally, I prefer plaster of paris gauze to papier mache. You can also soak shop towels in plaster, and use balled up newspaper for the forms underneath.
I have used any number of methods. The one I like best uses extruded styrofoam insulating board to create gross / rough terrain forms (evelvation changes, mointains, etc.). Tape balled up newspaper around this structure to make more natural looking terrain. Cover this with sheets of newspaper, sprayed with “wet” water (water with a couple of drops of dish soap in it to break the surface tension). This smooths out the bumpy appearance of the newspaper balls. Then cover with plaster cloth. After this is dry, paint with thin plaster to ensure the gauze is completely covered.
I have also used extruded foam covered with sculptamold to make terrain. This works especially well for rugged terrain (mountains, cliffs, gorges, canyons).
Can you post pics of your layout? That would help a lot.
I will try. Before I start though, there is still one adjustment I would like to make with the track. I will get the photo’s posted ASAP.
You are so right! 3 years ago, I made a diorama for “Take a Model Train to Work” day. I kind of threw it together, but was still pretty happy with the results… so I took a bunch of pictures. That’s when I discovered that: 1) There were little white spots all over the place, and 2) The four boulders that I had glued randomly on the river bank were so evenly spaced it looked like I had measured it with a ruler.
I immediately performed what golfers call a “Mulligan”.
Dont’ worry about adjustments, it’s not prom night. [:D]
You can still do the adjustment and do a before and after pic. We like to see pics 
I agree with Jamie. These videos are great.