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This blog presents my thoughts, information and activities in my model railroading world.

Friday, February 13, 2015

Bar on the other side of the tracks

I have built a small (2" x 4") bar inspired by a photo that I had copied some time ago from a source I no longer recall but I believe it was a book.  The inspiration photo appears behind the model in the photo below.  The model is built from cardstock reinforced with wood strips and covered with corrugated metal siding.


I did not try to exactly duplicate the structure in the photo but rather capture the spirit.  I was able to find similar signs in my extensive collection of sign material that I acquired over many years.  The biggest chore with these is sorting through them to find what I want.  One sign I found included the Owl Bar sign I placed to the right of the door - no idea what that referred to but seemed to fit my model.

I tried a new (to me) approached to painting and weathering the corrugated metal sections.  First I sprayed both sides of the metal strip from the Campbell Products package a gray color.  When it dried I cut them into 4 x 12 sections and touched up the edges with gray Floquil paint (from my dwindling supply).  When that was dry, I set my bottle of india ink & alcohol (I & A) open on the workbench along with the small bottles of orange and of brown oxide acrylic paint in a solution of alcohol (I prepared these long ago and use them frequently in my modeling).  Using a 1/4 inch modeling paintbrush, I first coated the metal section with a puddle of the I & A, then immediately applied some of one or both of the paint solutions into the I & A.  This allowed the coloring to blend with the I & A for a varied coloring.  After it dried, if I thought more color was needed, I repeated the process.  I really like this process better than painting the corrugated metal.

This bar will be located by my upper yard with a rustic road I am building going down a cliff face to the lower level.  That road is almost complete.

Even some of these simple projects can be involved.



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