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BillMichaels
Engine Wiper
USA
249 Posts |
 Posted - 08/03/2011 : 3:42:52 PM
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I started the Twin Mills from Sierra West early in June and have been slow to get my progress posted.
Construction of this kit has been well documented by Elliott (ETinBH) and Mike E. (runner) in this thread: http://www.railroad-line.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=24460
and Carl Laskey in this thread: http://www.railroad-line.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=4895
I'm going to experiment a little with this build--mostly construction techniques since the way the buildings are laid out fits perfectly with the area I have available on my benchwork. With that being said, let's go!
The first thing was to color the stripwood (LOTS of it!). The recipe in the manual is almost identical to the recipe from the last build I did (SWSM Essentials) so I played around with some different color combinations. I used these acrylics:
1 tsp Folk Art Burnt Umber,
1 tsp Folk Art Barn Wood,
1 tsp Ceramcoat Charcoal
1 tsp of Anita's Charcoal (it's a much lighter gray than the Ceramcoat).
Also, 1 tsp of Higgins black India ink in 20 ozs of water.
After 24 hours, I got a nice dusty gray-tan color:
One thing about using the craft paint rather than Pollyscale is that they settle to the bottom a lot quicker, so the bags had to be shaken up more often.
For swiping, I tried a variation of Mike Chamber's ink stains. 12 oz 91% alchol + 1 tsp of black ink plus a pre-mixed solution of 4 oz of water + 1 tsp of Bombay Van Dyke Brown + 1 tsp Bombay Sepia. Rather than "swiping" each piece of stripwood, I added the entier bag of stripwood into a pan and covered it with the ink stain. I left the wood in for a short time (maybe a couple minutes) then started pulling them out and wiping them off. By the time I got to the last pieces, they'd be darker than the ones I pulled out first. Here's a sample of the color range:
The walls of the new mill are first. The right wall gets boarded while the left wall does not.
And here's the completed right wall:
As always, any advice/criticsm/tips etc. are much appreciated!
Bill
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jaynjay
Fireman
USA
4340 Posts |
Posted - 08/03/2011 : 3:50:23 PM
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| Just seconds ago, I read your account for the Essentials build. You did an outstanding job on that with plenty of photos. This is a really big kit; so the more pictures, the better |
John |
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ETinBH
Fireman
USA
4242 Posts |
Posted - 08/03/2011 : 5:25:41 PM
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Super color on those walls and the details are creative and realistic - well done...
Oh, and we always need another Twin Mills Build on this forum - almost a tradition that one is on-going - lol |
Edited by - ETinBH on 08/03/2011 5:27:10 PM |
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BillMichaels
Engine Wiper
USA
249 Posts |
Posted - 08/03/2011 : 7:51:40 PM
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John-
Thanks for the kind words. Essentials is a really great kit. I'll do my best to pile on the pics in this build.
Elliott-
I'm proud to carry on the "Twin Mills build-a-thon" tradition. You and Mike have set the bar extremely high on this kit (and Carl!). If this were the Olympics, I think I'd already be out of medal contention! (by the way...you're gonna seem some blatant rip offs ET & runner inspired ideas as this progresses!)
I should mention, anybody who has this kit and wants to jump in and build along, please do so. In the mean time, here are the five trusses that will go on the new mill:
Bill |
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visman48
Fireman
USA
4485 Posts |
Posted - 08/03/2011 : 8:20:59 PM
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Bill,
What scale is this I may have missed it?
Les |
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BillMichaels
Engine Wiper
USA
249 Posts |
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visman48
Fireman
USA
4485 Posts |
Posted - 08/03/2011 : 8:57:17 PM
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Bill
Thanks I will follow along, was going to offer up a log bronc to move those logs around on the pond. I dont have room for a big mill, but might just build a mill flat on one of my curves with track running between mill and pond.
Les |
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UKGuy
Fireman
USA
5428 Posts |
Posted - 08/03/2011 : 10:54:45 PM
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Well Bill, "one more time" will be one more chance to see this kit being built by another great modeller.
I'm sure that "one more time" will keep rolling around, as Elliot says.
It is always a fascinating, enjoyable and incredible kit to follow along with.
I'm looking forward to your journey.....
Karl.A
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Edited by - UKGuy on 08/03/2011 10:56:19 PM |
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wesleybeks
Fireman
South Africa
2215 Posts |
Posted - 08/04/2011 : 02:08:52 AM
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Bill i`ve been following your great thread on the Sierra West forum, and i will be following along gladly here too.
Its a magnificent kit, and you are doing it real justice. |
Regards
Wes.
Dont leave for tomorrow what you can do today. |
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Frederic Testard
Engineer
France
16457 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2011 : 6:58:37 PM
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I'm never tired to see this wonderful model being built. It seems most builders have some interesting idea about not exactly following the design suggested by Brett, and this makes the thing even more interesting.
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Frederic Testard |
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BillMichaels
Engine Wiper
USA
249 Posts |
Posted - 08/14/2011 : 8:19:54 PM
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Karl & Wes-
your words are a huge compliment. Thanks!
Fredrick-
I'll do my best to add a couple new twists to an already great model.
Here's how I did the main floor: I'd been reading Kevin's thread on detailing castings:
http://www.railroad-line.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=33146
and took note of the chalks he was using to help define wood parts. Using Rembrandt Burnt Sienna 411.3, Gold Ochre231.3, Raw Umber 408.7 and Burnt Umber 409.5 I was able to get a bunch of color combinations for the floorboards.
After I had them all in place, I toned the colors down and blended them together with a good rubbing with steel wool and a little A/I.
I gave the sub-floor the same treatment as the main floor with the chalk weathering. The colors are nice, but a little too loud. Looked sort of like a gym floor. So again, they got a good brushing with steel wool and a coat of A/I, let it dry and repeat. Here's before and after pics:
Bill |
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UKGuy
Fireman
USA
5428 Posts |
Posted - 08/14/2011 : 11:23:25 PM
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Great colouration Bill. The tonal difference is fantastic. Subtle but well defined.
Karl.A |
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ETinBH
Fireman
USA
4242 Posts |
Posted - 08/15/2011 : 09:53:31 AM
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| Hey Bill - really nice work there - are you going to have a removable roof and loft so that great flooring can be seen amongst the machinery and sawdust - it really is a great effect if you do - |
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wesleybeks
Fireman
South Africa
2215 Posts |
Posted - 08/15/2011 : 10:44:31 AM
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| Perfect. I love it. Elliotts idea is a great one. No pressure though.:) |
Regards
Wes.
Dont leave for tomorrow what you can do today. |
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BillMichaels
Engine Wiper
USA
249 Posts |
Posted - 08/15/2011 : 8:00:35 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by ETinBH
Hey Bill - really nice work there - are you going to have a removable roof and loft so that great flooring can be seen amongst the machinery and sawdust - it really is a great effect if you do -
Yes, I was thinking about it, BUT I seem to remember either you or Mike trying it and having a pretty tough time making it work. That's still a ways down the road, but any tips you can give me (or Mike if you're following along!) on how to make it removable, I'd love to hear them! |
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TRAINS1941
Fireman
USA
4899 Posts |
Posted - 08/16/2011 : 08:10:50 AM
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Bill
Nice work. Great coloring and weathering. Removable roof well that would make it different wouldn't it.
Jerry |
Jerry
How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are. |
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SWSM Twin Mills...one more time!
