This was a few months back, initial track laying and ballasting done, and no backscene of lighting rig. At this point I knew I’d have foreground water, just not how much or how I’d represent it.
Shelfie4 Maple River
A few months on I’d got most of the core elements blocked in, water effect sorted, and a simple lighting rig established. The foreground was still ‘bothering’ me however.
Shelfie 4 HO Scale
Whilst it looked okay, it wasn’t generating the ‘got it’ feeling that you get when a piece falls into place. This was partly compounded by having to swap the control section from left hand to right hand end. Originally the configuration was determined by the build location in the man cave, with Larkrail on the horizon this needed resolving.
A quick build of a control switch panel, and relocated to right hand end was the catalyst for the next sections of scenery.
Shelfie4 Maple River HO
With the controls in final fix positions, just a DCC plug and simple point switching via Peco PL-11 switches and a PL-35 Cdu, I now had all the basic’s completed.
The water foreground was still an issue in that it didn’t look right, with tracks too close to the edge.
Shelfie 4 Maple River Land Grab
The obvious solution was to make a land grab into the water, which wasn’t ideal, but was necessary. So that was the next step. Having done this, the land proportions fell into place, this doesn’t always happen, sometimes Pembroke 87, it needs a bit of maturing time to develop, i.e, for you to be happy with the effect and path you’re heading down.
Maple River HO scale
So the land mass is now correct proportionately to the tracks, the first fix of grass and scrubs are in. They’re too bright however so some toning down and removal will take place. Once that’s done the Silos and elevator will get final fix, details and weathering. Then it’s back to the right hand end and masking the entry and exit points. At that point it’ll be done, and then on to Shelfie 3 for a refresh, or start Shelfie 5!
It might seem odd to be talking about ground work with a picture like the one above. The reality is that the structures above are ‘placed’ for the photograph, and the eye level viewpoint disguises this.
Maple River
This is the reality today. I’m fixing the final core ground structure in place using 5mm balsa wood to bring the majority of the ground levels to the underlay height.
Shelfie 4
In the right lighting conditions the layout is really beginning to ‘pop’, and with the ground work and foreground to be completed it’s really encouraging just to start playing with the potential that I think will come from it photographically.
Maple River Shelfie
Another day on the core ground work and a refresher of the wiring loom and control position and it’ll be down to the final touches and blocking in the fascia, and lighting rig. Four weeks left to complete!
Having been made redundant late last year, things slowed a little on the modelling front. However, I am now progressing with Shelfie4 and am currently working the building locations and physical sizes. Once I’m satisfied with them it’ll be a pretty quick completion, it needs to be as the layout is going to Larkrail in Bath this July. The left hand end of the layout is proving easier to view block as there’s no hole in the backscene!
LarkRail 2023
Another element I’m going to experiment with is magnetic uncoupling. I’ve tried rare Earth types on Shelfie3 with some success, and they may work with the Kadee types in use on Maple River. Failing that it’ll be ‘the hand of God’, one thing I do need to do is standardise the knuckle couplings with a closer to scale size unit. Any suggestions gratefully received!
So that’s where we are the moment, Shelfie3 ticks over in the background too and some TT and N project ingredients are arriving too. So there’s stuff to be getting on with, as ever, thanks for taking the time to drop by.
It seem odd that just about a year ago I was writing about Shelfie 4 taking a leap forward. Well over the past few months and weeks it definitely has.
Shelfie 4 Stage One
In the picture above, the core concept was structured in my head, this had come from separate discussions with Chris Mears and James Hilton around a shelf layout concept, based on Canadian grain traffic.
Maple River HO Scale
A peculiar (domestically), year later I now can’t replicate that early stage image above. As typically with me getting the wires down, literally took far too long. It’s less than a month since the track was fixed permanently, but since that progress has been rapid. Originally the thought was to use Rapido Rail crew point motors. However not having firmly planned it, it but me on the bum, and they haven’t been utilised. I’ve not abandoned them however, but they do need placing correctly, something the existing build didn’t allow.
Once that cock up had been identified, the revised version came forward really quickly. Side mounted Peco PL-11 have been used and should be almost hidden by scenery.
LED Lighting
A wraparound backscene has been added and LED lighting is being tested. It’s ok and I’ve just started looking again at the ‘add blue’ lighting that I did with Shelfie 1. Basically that allows me to add blue light into the overall scene changing the colour temperature and effect.
Maple River
The river water I’m think is too low in the image above, so I’ve tried raising it by around 6mm using battens. It doesn’t sound much but the first impression is that it’s a significant improvement. The reflections work better.
Maple River Grain Silos
The effect can be seen above, as well as the first trial of the ‘concrete canyon’ look I want to achieve. The left hand silos are mocked up from house gutters, and maybe too large a diameter for the size of facility I’m representing. One of those things that I’ve left in situe to mature, and go back to in a day or so to assess it.
On balance though I’m pleased with the progress over the past weeks, I’m definitely going with the grain!
This, above, was where I was Friday morning. The day after, a Saturday no less, the appearance is markedly different, there’s weed and grass in the early stages of development.
Weed and Grass development
The core operation shakedown of Shelfie 4, Maple River is complete. The electricity is getting where it should, and the points throw every time.
Peco PL-11 point motor.
This means I can get into the scenery development quickly. I’ve often mentioned I tend to stick to manufacturer ‘systems’, and with good reason. If you use components from one brand, there’s a pretty good chance their products will work well together. When you go ‘off piste’ there’s always a chance that two different brands products won’t match well, and I have experienced that in the past in particular with paint.
So this last week or so I’ve been using a number of Woodland Scenics products as I’ve fitted the track to Maple River. The underlay (above) I’ve used before, on both Shelfie1 and Shelfie2 and not had any issues with it. The fact I’ve used it on three layouts I guess underlines my satisfaction with it.
For Shelfie 4’s track I’m using Woodland Scenics medium and fine ballast, and as a new thing for me their Scenic Cement . This was suggested by James Hilton after a discussion about how hit and miss the traditional glue/water/IPA/detergent can be. It made sense to try it, it’s obviously formulated to work with the track bed and ballast and importantly James had tried it and got on with it.
Woodland Scenics Ballast & Static Grass
Above you can see the final fix of ballast with a couple of toning washes overlaid once dry. I hesitate to say I ballasted the track in the traditional way because using the Woodland products that’s pretty much what you do. However the results are likely to be successful using them as recommended, where the PVA mix techniques aren’t always straightforward. One thing I didn’t get on with was the spray applicator. The Woodland sprayer has no real finesse to it, I changed to a household plant mist spray application, and that was more controllable and much more effective.
The tonal variations were achieved with washes of Tamiya German Grey, and then dry brushing with Farrow & Ball Oxford Stone emulsion paint. Happy with that effect I’ve returned to the Woodland Scenics cement and used that with the static grass. I’m using a Noch grass-master applicator and only adding small amounts each time of 2mm and 4mm grass lengths mixed together.
Maple River
Over the course of the afternoon I’ve been trying out the static grasses and the cement, and am very pleased with this first fix of grass. The cement’s capillary action allows it to flow through the ballast and not reactivate the original ballast fixing. It’s tacky enough that the static grass holds well in the cement so that within a minute or so running a vacuum cleaner over the top, pulls the blades vertically and most of them stay put on the scenery.
Shelfie 4, Maple RiverMaple River, Shelfie 4
So with a couple of hours spare, the first fix of grass has been completed. Comparing the before and after above, and realising the effectiveness and time saving benefits of using the ‘system’ I’m very pleased. I think the one thing that brings this system together is quite literally, the cement. I’m looking forward to my next fix.
Albion Yard 
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