Friday, August 31, 2012

playing with picasa 3

Checking out the drawing feature on Picasa 3. 

A gon of limestone from the crusher at the foot of Marble Mountain, is spotted for delivery to the Beaver Portland Cement Company.

The gon is from a Presidents Choice Train Set.  It was shortened, new trucks and couples added and repainted oxide brown from the original bright blue.

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Star Oil Co.


 The Aug. 2012 issue of MR had an article by Don Ball, Build an 1880s oil refinery, just what I wanted.

The original Star Oil Company (pictured on the Right) had to be removed.

 The brick parts for the stills and the stacks were made by glueing brick plastic pattern sheets made by JTT Architectural Model Parts, to wood cores.  The tanks were made from various plastic tubes.












To make the rivit detail to the tanks I drew lines on Avery, clear label sheets.  Then using a homemade tool (a clock gear mounted in a brass tube) I embossed the rivits from the back of the label sheet (the paper side).







The embossed sheet was cut out and stuck on the side of the plastic tube.. Be carefull not to get any wrinkles.  This process works best on straight sided tanks.


The tank was painted after some piping was added.
A group of weathered tanks have been added to the layout.
The old parts of the Star Oil co. were rearranged and the new items are added.