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Comments
Respectfully,
John
On another note, this notice appeared in the local paper. As you can see there were many applicants. Mr Sawtooth is seen here giving the new hires instructions which probably include things like: fill in the gaps in your arms, don't come back looking like you just came out of a coal mine, and get that toothpick our of your a.....
Awesome idea in the picture above with the cut boards. Did you use a scroll saw ? If not you may be able to keep the board together using either and electric or hand scroll saw. Your build continues to be amazing in every way. Details on details and details in details. Very cool.
It looks like the ad worked. The crew looks like they will be hard workers for St Mary's Lumber company although I would be worried about that guy taking it easy on the right. He may need a little persuasion. You would think the toothpick would have been enough.
Jim
Respectfully,
John
And yes you would think that a toothpick placed there would be enough to motivate anyone, but I guess not.
John, I will post some progress photos of the figures and yes I was figuring on about a week to complete. However, there is no wife or kids at the house for the next 48 hours and I have nothing better to do so...
While I have been working on the figures I've also been dirtying up the sawmill with sawdust. I started by mixing some of the sawdust I have accumulated through the build and mixing with Desert Sand pigment. I put it in logical places and brushed foot paths then set with AK Sand and Gravel Fixer. I'll start using the same pigment to dust up the tops of cabinets, etc.
I hope it's OK to post a link to another forum here. These are the set of steps I will be following for painting the figures:http://www.militarymodelling.com/forums/postings.asp?th=43146&p=1
I will start by giving 2 coats of diluted paint to all of the components--skin, shirts, pants, etc. It's easier to touch up solid colors. Then I will work on shadows and highlights. Below is a military figure I painted using these instructions.
I will use the 2 figures below to document progress. They are both from Phoenix. The one on the left was part of a 2 man saw team. His arms were set holding a board that he will be putting on top of the wood stacks. The guy on the right is a farmer that was holding a pitchfork. I cut that off and drilled a hole in his fist to fit a log roller which was placed in his hands while the epoxy cured.
NO TRESPASSING!
Thanks for the figure painting link as well. The military guys got nothing on us when it comes to structures and scenery however they are miles ahead when it comes to figure painting. There is a French guy (cant't think of his name right now) who has several excellent books out on figures...
The military guys sure do have an advantage on the figures with the wide selection in various materials. It's too bad we don't have a better selection of high quality figures, preferably in plastic or resin.
At this point the figures are painted solid colors. I went skin, shirts, pants, jackets, details. By painting just the solid colors at this point it is easy to touch up. Next will come shadows and highlights.
I took the model outside this morning and got a couple of shots just to document progress. A couple of areas I don't think seen before are the end of the mill where the rejects are tossed. Note the water line that goes to the boiler and will attach to a tank on the hill above the retaining wall. The other end of the mill by the maintenance shed where I have been piling up junk. This will hide the wires that will come out of the ground here. I am considering changing this pile to a stack of pallets. The log roll has bark debris accumulating. And the loading dock is starting to come along as well.
Marty
Like I said...48 hours and nothing better to do. So the first pic is our model subjects posing for the camera after their shadows and highlights. I really like how the face turned out on the one. Too bad most of the faces were cast very poorly.
Last pic shows them in their future occupations- a wood stacker and a log turner. With a little sawdust powder added for good measure.
Remember, these guys started out as part of a 2 man saw team and a farmer. I've learned not to rule out figures just because they are intended for a purpose I don't need.
The figures look great too! Figures can be the weak link in any rail dio. As Brett notes, this hobby blows others away for scene setting and landscaping and structures, but figures require a different set if skills which have to be practiced (apparently- I haven't tried yet). Many fantasy gaming sites have good technique blogs but often the intent is to over emphasize things like eyes and clothing.
But enough of this - back to the sawmill !!!
Another great area is the log rollway, all the debris looks superb and is exactly how many rollways looked in the photos I saw.
Excellent modeling all around, looking forward to more.
Karl.A
James, that blacksmith from Aspen has a lot of detail and a good figure to start with.
Karl, I just couldn't imagine a rollway without a ton of bark debris on it.
I promise this is the last update on the figures. Most have found their worksites. You can see Mr Sawtooth giving some positive encouragement to one of the mechanics. The companion to the 2 man saw team is getting ready to engage the dual husk. The bean counter is busy at his desk. I used figures to accentuate the depth of the model by placing some in the distant rooms.
I've run into a minor snag. I started putting together the trusses. I want them built and temporarily installed while I finalize the light placement. The snag came in when the truss did not sit flush on the roof beam. It seems that my walls are about 1/16" too wide. Goes to show the tight clearances on this model. I ended up taking about 1/16" off of parts "sweb" to make the truss sit square on the timber. Shouldn't be a problem but will probably have to carry this fix to the large trusses as well.
It's opinion time. I'm also thinking about the tin roofs. I've seen lots of great pics online of painted roofs. Mostly light gray/silver, red and green. I'm debating painting one or more of the roofs. Most likely gray or green, have it faded with some rust streaks. Thoughts?
Glad you improvised on the truss pieces. Sounds like you will be just fine.
Karl and I went round and round on corrugated vs. wood. Obviously settled on wood as there was so much corrugated I felt that color would overpower the structure. The wood roof just blends in.
Michael
Marty
There's one vote for green roof, thanks Michael. The roof I'm thinking about is only the tin roof covering the boiler and maintenance sheds, not the main roof-that will stay wood.
Marty, the figures were actually custom made for those positions. By that I mean about 1/2 of them had separate arms/heads. They were designed for another "job" by the manufacturer. I assembled them to the shape I needed which meant some filing and filling joints if the parts didn't line up right. I'd like to get better with painting figures myself since I feel like they add life to my dioramas. I think you could do it in HO better than the paintjob on pre-painted figures with a little practice.
Thanks Dustin
Karl.A
Respectfully,
John
I've temporarily placed the trusses with the exception of the rear wing wall extension and the little pieces of blue tape are the approximate location of the lights. There are 16 because that's how many I can put on 1 of the power boards from ngineering without needing resistors and other goodies. 16 sounded like a lot until I put the pieces of tape on, now it looks kind of sparse in their placement.