Using Plaster to Create Mountains

Last time I finished using newspaper wads to built up some elevation for the mountain area of the landscape. To cover up all that newspaper wads, first up I tried using plaster cloth. At my local art shop, they sold plaster cloth which I believe is the medical version, which is the one you would use to create casts to immobilise body parts (for example to treat broken bones).

It was good and not messy. Simply cut small pieces, dip in water and position in place. However I finished up the whole roll after only covering less than a quarter of my landscape... not good since they are 8 dollars a roll. This is how much coverage I got:



So, on to plan B, off I went to the local hardware store and I bought a 3 kg bag of plaster of paris for just a little over 10 dollars. Also bought some paper towels.
Although this method is more economical (as in cheaper), it is also a lot more messy.
After mixing the plaster of paris with water (I used 1:1 ratio), I dipped pieces of papaer towel and they would drip everywhere. And also when I didn't get it properly saturated, the result wouldn't look good.

Because of the mess, I had to do it in the garage. Luckily it came out rather nice, see pics:

Posted by Andy at 9:15 PM , 6 comments  

First DCC Conversion

For my first N-Scale DCC conversion, I am installing a Hornby DCC decoder into the Modemo Enoshima light rail train NT83.

At the beginning I thought there will be plenty of space, however as I work on the install I was just beginning to appreciate how small it is ...

On to the photos...

Posted by Andy at 9:57 PM , 2 comments