Scenery Work At Malabar

It took me a couple of weeks to get my new computer, download my files, and get the other software re-installed. But now that that's done, I can get caught up on the work I was doing at Malabar.

The big part of the project was to create a hillside into which the tunnel portal could be installed. I used white foam to make the basic shape. I used Liquid Nails for Projects to attach it to the shelf and the wall behind it.

I then used a flexible metal grating material called Dragon Skin to shape the foam more closely to what I wanted. This makes a mess, but a shop vac cleans it up pretty well.

Then I covered the basic form with plaster cloth and installed the tunnel portal.

Then I applied the basic ground coat with Sculptamold mixed with craft paint. I used to be able to find Sculptamold at places like Michaels, but it seems as if Sculptamold is now seen as mainly a model railroad product, and if you can't get it at a train store, you have to get it off the web. Oh, well.

I use the dragon skin and coarse sandpaper to smooth the surface of the Sculptamold after it dries.

You can also see that I built up a road form with Sculptamold, with the crossing by Blair Line. In the photo below, you can see I've begun to add final ground cover. This is done with paving sand. We had a patio installed several years ago, and the masons left a big pile of paving sand, which I was able to use to make a supply for model work before they cleaned it up. After I spread it out, I soak it with wet water and drizzle white glue over it. I also applied Woodland Scenics Burnt Grass fine turf over the paving sand while it was still wet.

I also used Sculptamold mixed with craft paint between the sections of Unitrack in the yard. The surface was covered with paving sand and Burnt Grass fine turf in the same way. The area will be touched up and get more detail later.

The view below shows the Sculptamold areas between the Unitrack sections before the surface is covered with paving sand. Looking at what some guys have done with Unitrack on YouTube, it's clear that this product has a lot more potential for scenery than people might think.

Again, the building flats are temporary to help me envision how things will eventually turn out. The grain elevator will stay, though.