HINTS AND TIPS - THE FOLLOW ON
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Sources for lead weights
By Chris Stratton
I got some used sheets of flashing from my sister after her house renovations. I also got some scraps of leadlighting strips from someone at work, these can also be hammered flat easily.
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Wiring up CDU's for points
By Eugene Azzopardi
Wiring up Capacitor Discharge units, a Multi core cable that is suitable is trailer cable, the stuff used to wired up trailers etc, relatively cheap and higher current rating than alarm cable. When I used CDU's to operate my Peco point motors, I used a 24 volt supply and cdu capacitors were minimum 50 volt rating, always worked perfectly at distances over 15 meters. All motors were also fitted with the accessory switch for point indication
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Powering up CDU's for points
By Bill Roach
In my case, I use a pair of good 12 volt automotive batteries to power-up the 5 Peco solenoid point motors on my layout…..the other 50 or so turnouts are all hand-thrown as I walk-around the layout. I have just used small gauge speaker cable but the 200-odd amps in the ex 4x4 batteries is plenty to snap those little fellas VERY quickly!!! No need for a CDU here. Of course, I have a 10 amp fuse at the battery-end so that the wiring is protected from any "issues" that might arise. I simply leave the batteries for several months at a time and then give them a charge with a 25 amp C-tek charger for a day or so.
In case you are interested, the reason I have 2 good quality 4x4 batteries spare is that I upgraded my Landcruiser's alternator to a US military spec unit that pumps out 270 amps (they also make a 390 amp unit). When I did that upgrade I felt it might be best to treat the Cruiser to 2 new batteries at the same time; hence the 2 spare, heavy-duty batteries.
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Painting up Concrete Surfaces
By Mike Bauers
I got an external mix, paint cup airbrush for those quickie jobs rather than use a full internal mix airbrush. Easy and quick to clean up and it doesn't take long for the savings from -not- buying spray cans to pay for the modest cost of the airbrush.
Not having to stock both bottles and cans of the same paints is a saving as well.
With that tool in hand, I can use a stock model concrete color and vary it by adding a bit of white or black to the paint in the airbrush cup. Those three colors yield an entire spectrum of concrete colors, including weathering tone over-sprays.
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Making Plastic Surfaces look like Aluminium Pt 1
By Dave Husman
Aluminium paint will make it look like a new or well maintained(recently painted) building.
Going for a lighter shade of grey will make it look more weathered. Then you will want to put rust marks on. How much and how rusted is your choice. Go take some pictures of buildings with corrugated metal roofs, They tend to rust more between the rafters and at the ends of the sheets. Dry brushing usually works well. Another technique is to dry brush on little stipples of dark brown (burnt sienna) artists oil paint and then wet brush thinner down the corrugations from the oil paint to make it look rusty.
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Using Dead Computer Ribbon Wire on a layout
By Rob Stillwell
I used ribbon wire from dead computers to make a wall. They also make good roll up doors and catwalks on elevated bridge structures.
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Recycling Old LED Tea Lights
By James Macfarlane
A while ago, my wife bought a package of 24 LED tea lights (or 21st century votive candles, as you prefer). They operate on 3 of those button batteries (LR 44). The cost for the 24-pack was under $ 10.00. I told her to give me them as they die out. When I unscrewed the base, this is what I found:
3- very small screws, highly suitable for various uses in HO cars and structures[/size]
1- large 3/16" diameter clear rounded LED (warm white???). Easy to direct the light toward the top of the lens by painting black around the side or using electrical tape to do the same effect.
1- mini microslide switch with 3 leads (on-off or on/on depending on how you wire it)
1- small resistor (it's 1/2 the size of a standard one), appropriate to the circuit.
The leads on the LED, the resistor and the switch are not trimmed and easily separated with a soldering iron tip.
Although I can get 25 mini micro switches for about $10.00 on EBay alone, if you have purchased something like these LED tea lights (or the missus has), don't throw them out- there are salvageable parts inside! This is an excellent item to help out with structure lighting- just keep the switch hidden in some foliage near the structure and wire down under the table as an accessory, then control the lighting with the switch locally. OR- mount the switch under a car and wire the car (caboose, let us say) for track electric pick up, put your choice of LED into the interior and turn the pickup off and on!
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A source and use for small jewels
By Karl Bond
My wife spends a little on her fingernails. Often she gets these little flat jewels add on for sparkle. She saves me the old ones when she either drops one off or when her nails get redone…..they make great HO car headlight lenses
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Using Flooring Samples Pt 1
By Peter Birrell
I picked up a few small carpet samples in a flooring shop the other day thinking they could be used in some way on my layout. These are not the large samples but the 4 or 5" square samples above the rolls of carpet. I chose the low pile ones in earthtones where the rows of tuft can be clearly seen. I cut one in a strip two tufts wide, sprayed it with flat paint and rolled it in fine foam ground cover. It looks quite good for a row of shrubs.
I also thought you could use a whole sample intact for a field of crops by just placing the foam on the tops of the tufts.
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Using Flooring Samples Pt 2
By Peter Birrell
The same Flooring supplier also have small samples of fairly rigid vinyl flooring in various wood tones I thought could be cut to use as grade crossings in some way. They are just about the same thickness as code 100 track.
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Using Flooring Samples Pt 3
By Geoff Cornish
I know somebody who had good results with carpet scraps when he "planted" weeds onsome secondary trackage. He put down a layer of glue (I don't remember what kind), then turned the carpet over and put it over the layout area with the fibers sticking into the glue. Then, after the glue had dried thoroughly, he cut the fibers away with a razor blade as he gently lifted the carpet. Once he was finished, he trimmed the resulting "lawn" and touched up the colors with an airbrush. Not all of the fibers stuck, so the pattern was inconsistent, just as real weeds actually grow. Weeds between the rails must be trimmed to a level below the rail surface. After the scenicking was done, we hadt occasional problems with coupler trip pins catching on a loop of fiber weeds, but these were cut as they became known and within a short time there were no loops left to present problems. It was a strikingly effective technique.
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Making Good clear holes in Foam
By Mike Lehmann
With Foam being used on more and more layouts, you can get pretty good results up to 1/2" by using a standard HSS bit (NOT a spade bit.) Run the drill slow and keep it pointed exactly where you want it to go. The smaller the hole, the easier.
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Uses for “scrappy bitsâ€
By Dave Nelson
Large copper staples, commonly used for cartons would be usable as downspouts as well as the scrap loads. Given their weight, they could also have a use when a freight car is slightly underweight and you need to tuck small amounts of weight into nooks and crannies.
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Making Tarpaulins Pt 1
By Des McAuliffe
I use quite a lot of tarpaulins to cover open wagons. After trying various methods, I have settled for the soft tubing of condensed milk containers.
After they are empty, cut off the top and bottom to the length required. Slit open one side so as to have a single piece of foil. The foil is soft enough to shape and tarpaulin over the truck (wagon) and strong enough not to need bracing. Painted a dull gray or dirty green, they make a realistic covering. Once shaped, they can easily be removed when the wagon is required for gravel, coal, etc.
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Making Tarpaulins Pt 2
By Trevor Nithsdale
Having tried many methods to make Tarpaulins, I have made some even better ones using material from a cotton bed sheet which I soak in a paint/PVA mixture. It is then shaped and dried over a mould I made and it looks just like real canvas.
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Using White Glue
By Darryl Huffman
It is not the glue you use but how careful you are about using it that matters.
I like Elmer's Glue-All (common PVA) in the smallest bottles- - - - but I buy it in large lots and put it into the small bottles. I have a full strength bottle, a bottle mixed half and half with water and a large bottle with 10% glue and 90% water with a shot of dish soap in it for ballast gluing.
I probably would use any of the other glues if they could be found in every grocery store, hardware store, Walmart, Target, KMart and so on.
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Using Dry Transfers
By John Fiscella
For wood structures and wood cars, I feel nothing looks as realistic as dry-transfers. One can vary the adhesion by varying the pressure before lifting away the base. As far as positioning, using wax paper over the top helps quite a bit. After the desired "look" is attained, the lettering can be sealed using a non-oil-based overcoating (Microscale, Tamaya water-based products).
I wouldn't risk an oil-based overcoat, like DullCote, GlossCote, Scalecoat or ModelMaster unless one experiments. Depending on how the dry-transfer is made, it might get dissolved away. Since most dry-transfers are primarily wax-based, some waxes can be dissolved by solvents other than water.
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Fixing Figurines Pt 1
By Curtis Webb
Carefully drill a #75 hole up into the figures leg and insert a cut off models makers pin with a hint of CA glue, then drill an accompanying hole in the scenery, sidewalk, etc. for placement. If you use softer material such as cork, homasote, caneite or whatever, you do not even have to drill.
The figure can be mounted without a hole if the surface is soft enough, but in most cases the tiny holes are not noticeable. It is certainly a tedious operation drilling the tiny holes and I have maimed a few legs, but the pin makes for a handy holding spot for painting.
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Fixing Figurines Pt 2
By Brett Beaman
For fixing my figurines, I simply use a teeny tiny dab of caulk. The figure easily pulls off if it needs to be moved.
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Care when using Acetone
By Dave Snyder
Be aware that acetone will dissolve polystyrene and is a component in Superglue removers and use sparingly around such. I would recommend hardware grade for our use as the additives in fingernail polish could affect paint performance. Toxicity is low because acetone is an organic solvent produced in animals and plants. I made the mistake once of trying to soak the paint off a model part, only to discover there was no part left after an hour or so.
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