O'Neills - My first Sierra West Build

Comments

• Jim M

  May 8 edited May 8

  This is looking very nice. I love the interior decorating; I wish I would have thought of doing that. Nice touch.
• MuddyCreekRR

  May 8

  Missed your post on the interior stuff...a novel idea....even if no one ever notices...you will always know it's there....I have a Sasquatch at a window in one of my builds that no one has ever noticed.....The tone of the wood for the tower looks great....Nice Job...
• Mountaingoat

  May 9

  I like the idea of a suggested interior in a window that can barely be seen. A person's mind will fill in the rest of the picture if there is something there. Save the detail for the fully visible portion of the diorama. What I see so far looks great. Keep us the forward progress.......Rick
• TomMich

  May 9

  Really like the weathering on the clapboard walls on the addition and the tower.
• swissrail

  May 9 edited May 9

  Thanks for all the positive comments. I absolutely love the way the clapboard siding comes out with this technique of applying separate boards, it is well worth the effort. Hoping to get some more modeling in over this coming weekend. Work definitely get in the way.
• Karl.A

  May 9 edited May 9

  Looking great so far, really like the wood finishing, both the peeled paint and the raw wood, natural variation and randomness. The walls will stay straight once glued together.
  The interior detailing is a nice touch, although minimal it will give some interest and illusion to the viewer when they notice there is 'something' inside when looking through the windows.
  
  Looking forward to your next updates on this wonderful kit and great build.
• swissrail

  May 13

  I finished the tower yesterday. One thing I was dreading was to create the "tar" mixture with epoxy. There is nothing rational about it, but I just never get two-part epoxy to work for me. So I checked out some other options to produce the tar, and I ended up on liquid electrical tape applied with a piece of wire. I thought that worked out pretty well well (for sure better than the mess I would have created with epoxy).
  
  
  
  Here are a couple of views my finished tower walls. I decided to name the business after my friend Mark and created some new signs on Powerpoint. While I really like the contrast, I am considering knocking down the paint on the windows and doors a little.
  
  
  
• Robert.G

  May 14

  You've got to use what works best for you, it's the result that counts. In this case, GREAT !!!
• MuddyCreekRR

  May 14

  I've used that several times...and will continue to use it. It also works well as flashing around a flat roofed structure with a tarpaper roof..
• sdrees

  May 15

  I mix a drop of black paint with white glue for my tar.
• TravisS

  May 16

  Color looks great and construction crisp and clean. The warmer the weather, the quieter the forum so don't take it personally. I used the wrong stock somewhere along the way on my Foundry build and it all worked out fine in the end...
• swissrail

  May 20

  Another Update!
  
  I assembled the main structure and fabricated the roof, however, I did not yet attach it since I wanted to think through the lighting and make some headway with that. Here are a couple of pictures with the roof propped in place:
  
  
  I love those angled vies, I think that is how this structure presents itself at its best.
  
  Before making too much more headway, I wanted to conceptualize the lighting. Nothing worse that trying to install lighting in a completed building. In hindsight, I wish I would have started to think earlier about it, and installed some before putting the walls together.
  My plan is to install 6 lights, but I might not light all of them ultimately:
  - Addition interior
  - Loading dock
  - Under addition
  - 2 Yard Lamps
  - Gooseneck over welding shop entrance
  
  I started with the buildings for the main building and addition. The light inside the addition was already installed together with the interior, so all that was left to do was to connect it.
  
  
  I purchased this little microchip from ngineering, which simulates the ebb and flow of the glow of a furnace/fireplace, which is unfortunaly not visible in the photo.
  
  
  Here is the light installed in the stove/furnace that I put into the addition.
  
  
  I then installed the light below the addition. I used some Tichy 18" lampshades and fabricated a little bracket to hold them. The floor joist under the addition provide an ideal way to hide the wiring.
  
  
  Note that the addition roof is just propped.
  I will adjust the lighting later to fine tune intensity, and to not overwhelm.
  
  Finally a picture of where Langley Fabrication will eventually sit on my small layout. I am planning to install the Sierra West Morton Foundry complex across the tracks, so that they can share a siding. Please excuse the appearance of my track for now.
  
• admin

  May 20

  Wonderful progress, looks awesome! Can't wait to see it all lit up.
• Karl.A

  May 26

  Fantastic construction of the components, peeled paint looks fantastic and the contrast between the tower and main building is just right.
  The lighting adds another dimension.
  
• swissrail

  May 28

  Sincere thanks for the encouraging words, Brett and Karl. I have built a number of laser cut kit structures and enjoyed doing so, but this build has already made me learn so many new techniques, that I will be applying to future structure builds. Also, I have to say, the fit of both the laser cut components as well as when working with the templates is just outstanding.
  
  I am in the finishing stages of getting the roof done. here is a picture after the initial fit, as well as one while installing the rafters of the main roof (The picture tells me there is something going on the the corner where the roof meets the tower that I need to investigate).
  
  
  
  While still finishing up on the roof and installing all the stacks and sign, I started on the walls for the weld shop. The wood prep took quite some time, but it was well worth it. I liked the look of the painted wood before the final step of dulling with some alcohol diluted brown chalk as per the instructions, but then realized that there would not be much contrast between the main building and the weld shop, so I am glad I followed the instructions.
  
  Weld shop wall boards before and after applying the thinned down brown chalks.
  
  
  I am happy with how the walls look in terms of knot holes and general appearance, but I wasn't successful with the imitation of the saw blade banding.
  
  Over the weekend, I did get the walls for the weld shop walls assembled. Here is a picture of one of the side walls before notching, and all four walls assembled.
  
  
  
  Lots of fun, wish I had more time for modeling, but work gets in the way.
  
• TomMich

  May 28

  Coming along nicely!
• randyp

  June 10

  Nice job om the building. Lights are working great. Randy
• Jerry

  June 11

  Very nice!!
  
  Jerry
• Kevin L

  June 11

  Looks great
  
• KKarns

  July 25

  Good grief, out for awhile and come back to this impressive piece of work! Wonderfully done.
• swissrail

  August 2

  Thanks all, your positive and encouraging comments are much appreciated. I have not made progress that is worth reporting in the meantime, due to some other activities (plus work getting in the way) during the summer months, but hope to be back at the bench more often after mid-September.
• Karl.A

  August 3

  We look forward to seeing more of your progress as time permits.
  Such a great job so far and we know there is much more to come.
  Thank you for sharing your build with us here on the forum.
  
• swissrail

  August 15

  Well, somewhat unexpectedly over the last weekend, I managed to get in some modeling time and make some progress on the weld shop.
  
  I enjoyed building the dock and flooring. I love how these types of structures come together literally from a bunch of wood sticks. I know it is supposed to be tedious, but I get into a "zen" mode and enjoy it
  
  
  
  One thing I was happy about though when cutting those 26 support posts was that I had the Ultimation Slicer that I purchased a few months ago. It was a bit of an investment, however, it made those exact cuts at a 90 degree angle easy, practically without any sanding.
  
  
  Finally, here are a couple of views of the weld shop propped up on the floor. I have not yet installed the gooseneck light over the main door, since I think that will be one that will be lit, and I need to figure out the power routing.
  
  
  
• KKarns

  August 15

  Nicely done! really solid craftsmanship is evident here and love your bench shot.
• Gd110

  August 16

  That looks very nice. Great work
• Robert.G

  August 16

  Well done !! Love the chopper device !!
• TomMich

  August 16

  Nicely done!
• Bntrainmaster

  August 23

  I just stumbled upon this post and what you have done so far is nothing short of phonominal. I actually have this building and you have inspired me to get the rest of my projects done so I can start on mine. Great job, looking forward to seeing the rest of the build.
• admin

  August 26

  Outstanding modeling, looking forward too seeing your final diorama and the way it all comes together.
• swissrail

  August 26

  Thanks for all your continuing positive feedback. I found a bit more time to continue moving along. I have to say that with the instructions and templates provided, construction is an absolute joy. Instead of spending time improvising, re-cutting and adjusting, time can go into the process and applying the techniques so well explained in Brett's manual.
  
  Next step were assembly and installation of the addition landing & stairs. Never thought i would use that small 90 degree angle, but it came in handy here.
  
  
  
  
  After that, I constructed the stairway from the main building to the tower with supports:
  
  
  
  I finally took a couple of shots with everything mocked-up in its eventual location:
  
  The temporary lumber yard behind O'Neills is the stripwood I purchased for the Sierra West Twin Mills.
  
  Also just noticed I damaged the support on the tower awning... Damn, those pictures reveal the truth!
  
  Only few more structural components, and then on to the diorama and detailing, but there will be little time for modeling over the next month.
  
  Urs