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MP Rich
Fireman
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 Posted - 10/25/2005 : 12:09:21 PM
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Excellent work, Chuck. I've spent many hours around old barns and this is as close as it gets to real. My father-in-law farmed and would have appreciated that type of display. When I first read of your planned weathering for the tractor it triggered a bit of worry for me. The question was whether to mention it to you. In my working with my FIL, I found him to be very conservative and I am sure that I would not have weathered a new model without checking with him first. There is a certain mindset that would find it totally wrong to mess up a new model. As I read further my mind was relieved to hear your father is also into modeling type things. Most likely he will have a much better outlook on weathering for the real look. Tremendous job you are doing for him. He should love it.
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Country: USA
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Chuck Doan
Fireman
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Posted - 10/25/2005 : 12:23:01 PM
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Rich,
No worries, he knows its going get a little dirty!
His Dad had a Fordson, and he has told me stories of how it always overheated and boiled water that stained the radiator. I haven’t decided how dirty it will get though...the more mistakes I make the more mud and rust it will get! Should be fun!
Chuck
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Country: USA
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MP Rich
Fireman
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Posted - 10/25/2005 : 8:04:27 PM
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Right on with the dirt then. If it was his father's that he remembers and still enjoys he will figure the dirt to be right in place. It looked a bit old for something your father would have had but there are a lot of the old ones hanging on to this day. A steam engine group operates near where I lived and I always wanted to take my father in law to one of their shows but you know how those things go. Never enough time to go when he was working but didn't quit working until he could no longer walk that far. Nice to see you trying to give him some nice memories while you can. We only get to play this course once they tell me.
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Country: USA
| Posts: 1762 |
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terry hansley
Engine Wiper
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Posted - 10/25/2005 : 9:27:21 PM
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Chuck
Just to add my comment.
Amazing
Terry H 
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Country: USA
| Posts: 453 |
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racedirector
Engine Wiper
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Posted - 10/25/2005 : 10:08:00 PM
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One word ..... gobsmacked! Just awesome work Chuck!!
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Bruce Nordstrand, Riverstone, NSW, Oz-stralia
Back in HO...and stayin there! |
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Country: Australia
| Posts: 245 |
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k27rgs
Fireman
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Chuck Doan
Fireman
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Posted - 10/31/2005 : 10:31:20 AM
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I decided to take a break from the siding and work on the foundation. I hadn’t modeled stone detail before, so I was eager to give it a go. I wanted to do a “dry stone” type of foundation, that is stones stacked without mortar. Apparently, this was favored as a way to let a foundation (or wall) shift and settle without cracking. I did an image search on the web, and also downloaded a couple of illustrated instructions for making dry stone walls. I found I had a coffee can of nicely colored rocks from years back. I took a hammer and broke some of them up and then sorted the pieces. I cut a strip of .1/32” thick basswood for a base and started practicing some stone stacking. Once I had something I liked, I glued the stones using carpenters glue. I had to let each layer dry overnight, but I figured if I didn’t like them in the morning, I could soak them in water for a do-over (fortunately not required!) Many of the stones fit together well, but a few had some rough edges filed off to get them to nestle better (prototype practice as well). I didn’t dress the stones too much though, as I wanted a somewhat crude look, not something from Home and Gardens! I kept the final stack as level as possible, and when dry I used a heavy steel file to carefully smooth and level the top. Smaller rocks (chinking) filled in some of the gaps. The photos below show the results. I will add a few displaced “crumble” bits once I mount the wall to the base and begin blending the ground cover.
Here is the glued foundation “strip” with the top sanded smooth. I will eventually glue the wall onto this. The stones are their natural color. I have no idea what kind they are, but I think I lucked out with the nice coloring! It’s not as challenging as painting carved plaster; that will have to wait for another project. I mixed up some fine dirt, water and white glue and applied a mudpack to the backside to keep light from showing through.
Here is the wall temporarily sitting on top of the foundation.
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Country: USA
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the arkansas traveler
Section Hand
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Posted - 10/31/2005 : 11:03:59 AM
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Hi Chuck
One word says it all.
Awesome!!
Regards BILL DAVIS
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Country: USA
| Posts: 87 |
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MP Rich
Fireman
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Posted - 10/31/2005 : 11:25:03 AM
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Geez, Chuck. Are you sure you aren't just Photoshopping these from some Farmers magazine? They are so real it is wonderful. Just don't let your father find the keys to that tractor. He will pull it into your shed and think what a mess that will make. 
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Country: USA
| Posts: 1762 |
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postalkarl
Fireman
Premium Member
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Posted - 10/31/2005 : 11:53:57 AM
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Chuck:
Very nice job on the stone foundation. I like the way you fited all the stones together. Keep the pics comming.
Karl S.
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Rick
Administrator
Premium Member
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Posted - 10/31/2005 : 11:55:08 AM
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Chuck, VERY VERY nice.
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___________________________________
All the things that others want for me...
Can't buy what I want because it's free... |
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Country: USA
| Posts: 12198 |
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MikeC
Administrator
Premium Member
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Posted - 10/31/2005 : 5:25:46 PM
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Once again I am just blown away by the realism, Chuck! That stone foundation looks great!
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Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm a busy man. I have a railroad to run.
Visit the Central Missouri & Southern
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Country: USA
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Chuck Doan
Fireman
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Posted - 11/28/2005 : 10:41:23 AM
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My section of barn wall will have two windows. I finished the easy one, which has been boarded up (the other will be a four pane window with glass). This window had several features that were a lot of fun to play with. First, the unpainted boards gave me a chance to try out some new techniques for simulating weathered wood. The trim pieces gave me a chance to further experiment with peeling paint. Finally, there was the old, upside down farm sign plugging up the bottom half of the window, and of course, the individual nail heads! For reference, the actual size of the window (outside of trim) is 2.25” wide x 2.75” tall.
Wood prep (recap): I used Midwest brand pre-cut basswood. Sand surface with 400 grit sandpaper, and then grain with a wire brush. Add splits with X-Acto. Add “rough cut” saw marks to some of the boards by dragging them across the edge of a disc sander. Knots: disc sand a piece of square stripwood roundish and slightly tapered, and cut off. Drill a hole in the plank, and press the “knot” in, small end first like a cork. Glue in from behind (basically same as toothpick method by Bill Miller). Poke in some occasional insect damage with a dental pick. Final light sand with 400 grit to de-fuzz as much as possible, but not lose grain detail. Scrub lightly with short stiff paint brush to clean out grain. Begin finish with 5-8 applications of Builders In Scale Silverwood stain.
Trim: Once prepped (per above), apply paint thinner to the surface. Just as the wet sheen disappears, brush out a coat of Floquil Polly Scale (acrylic) “custom” white (50/50 mix of Aged and Reefer White). Wait a minute or so and then brush out another coat (I also added some Oxide Red “slopped” paint to the sides). Wait a couple of minuets, and then lightly score lines along the grain with a sharp X-Acto. Take Scotch Magic tape and carefully begin to lift the paint. Remove as much or as little as desired. When dry an hour or so, lightly scuff sand with edge of 400 grit sandpaper to dull a bit.
Unpainted boards: Prep as above and then use an artist’s stump to apply Bragdon weathering powders. I used combinations of black, gray, brown and rust colors. I used photo’s of actual weathered wood for ideas. Wash with acetone, using a stiff brush in the direction of the grain. I occasionally used additional applications of Silverwood, applied with a sharp brush for darker grain lines. Re-apply and wash again until happy (the Acetone fumes can get you pretty giddy too!). I added a blotch of spilled paint to one board, based on a prototype photo I had. On the top board, I tried drying the wet Silverwood quickly, with a hair dryer. Gave an interesting mottled effect.
Sign recipe: Marc Ruesser very kindly supplied me with the original digital artwork for the sign. Thanks, Marc! It took me a while to figure out where I could place it, but I finally found the perfect spot! The list of ingredients is as follows:
Digital artwork
Epson CX5400 printer
Epson Glossy Photo Paper
Scotch magic tape
Bragdon weathering powders
Dullcoat in a spray can
I inserted the artwork image into a blank Word document. Once I figured out what size would fit in the window, I copied 10 more of the resized images onto the page. Plenty of test pieces! I printed the document using the “Best Photo” option onto the Glossy Photo Paper. I had discovered by lucky accident that new Scotch tape peeled the top layer of the Epson photo paper, and this formed the basis of the technique. Used (“dulled”) tape also faded the blue color of the sign as well without peeling. I carefully used the edge of the tape to remove little chips here and there. I used pictures of actual worn porcelain and tin signs for reference. Once I was satisfied with the chipping and fading, I used a large soft brush to apply rusty brown Bragdon powder over the sign. I brushed most of the powder off the surface, which left the chipped areas nicely colored. I wiped the sign in a vertical pattern with a slightly dampened, almost dry sponge. The paper warped a little, but straightened out when dry. I also used a dampened sharp tipped brush to streak and “gather” the rust powder. I then gave the sign several fogged coats of Testor’s Dullcoat. When dry a couple of hours, I did some more streaking with dampened powders until I was happy with the result. I trimmed the sign to its edges, glued it to a piece of wood backing, and installed it (upside down) in the frame. The last step was to dust some dry Bragdon powder around the bottom of the sign.
Nails: I used .019 diameter brass wire, cut about 1/4” long. One end was sanded square, the other roughly sharpened. I dipped them in Blacken-it and then pre-drilled holes in the wood where each nail would go. I pressed all the nails part way into the holes, and then painted some of the tips white, (metal parts often retain paint better than wood) and others Roof Brown. When dry, I used wet Bragdon powder to rust and darken the faces of each nail a bit. Then I took a piece of basswood and carefully pressed the nails the rest of the way in, making some flush, and some slightly protruding. For some, I carefully applied some Silverwood stain with a small, sharp tipped brush to darken the area around the head. I also added a couple of “hammered over” nails using .010 dia. brass wire. I haven’t yet added the nails in the surrounding boards. A final application of sawdust leaves and debris finished the window off.
I have posted additional photos in my photo album at:
http://public.fotki.com/ChuckDoan/barn_and_tractor_diorama/
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Country: USA
| Posts: 1070 |
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jknapp
Fireman
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rrkreitler
Crew Chief
Supporting Member
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Posted - 11/28/2005 : 11:33:10 AM
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Outstanding! Simply amazing Chuck. Is the NBW just below the right corner of the window a castng or an actual NBW assembly?
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Dave K.
North Bend, WA.
http://www.northbendeng.com |
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Country: USA
| Posts: 755 |
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