The Model - Scenery 

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My favorite part of model railroading is constructing structures and scenery.

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In this section I'll lightly discuss my methods, procedures, and why I chose certain ways of doing things to attain the effect I desire.

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As construction progresses, I'll add photos of my work as it appears on the actual model railroad itself, in this Scenery tab.

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My first portion of scenery is illustrated below, showing the beginning of the painted backdrop and some minor scenery construction in front of it to hide where it joins the benchwork.  Updates will be periodically provided depending on how successfully I am able to represent the scenery along the fictional Turquoise Line between Santa Fe and Madrid, New Mexico, where I now live.

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I'm using my favorite method, once again, consisting of Styrofoam for the basic shapes, followed by plaster cloth and Sculptamold.   I have been experimenting with the unique scenery in this location, and I'm still working on the best way to represent the desert scenery, junipers, grasses, and unusual rockwork.  I expect the scenery will be my greatest challenge, as it's a whole new type of scenery for me.   Luckily, I can look out my window and see it; but seeing it and modeling it seems to be two very different domains.

First Tree Installed!

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I achieved a landmark of sorts today, and installed my first tree.

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Since most of the trees along the fictional Turquoise Line are junipers, I made an attempt to reproduce a model of one of those.  For a first attempt, I'm happy, but I have a lot more work to get it right.  I tried some new techniques (to me) and think I'm on the right track.  I slightly modified the photo on the right just to see what would happen.  I only need several hundred more now.

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More is coming as I improve and refine my technique, which I shall describe as I start the process.

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Back in the early days of the hobby (to me), Kalmbach had a publication called Model Trains, a somewhat simpler version of Model Railroader meant for less experienced people.  One article in particular that stands out that was about modeling trees was simply entitled "Kilmer Was Wrong."  

If you look up Joyce Kilmer and the word "tree" you'll likely figure out the joke, which to this eleven year old kid was hilarious.

Perro Blanco

Panoramic View of Perro Blanco

Galt's Gulch  (Under Construction)

Galt's Gulch - West

Galt's Gulch - East

Galt's Gulch - Panorama

Future Iterations of Scenery Coming

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     To the right is the namesake for Perro Blanco, our dog Giordi.

     He is shown at full scale.

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