Grab Iron Posts

Article & Photos By David Yadock

Dry Gulch & Western, Update 6

One of my favorite locations is the steep, narrow gulch that is next to Alpine on the layout.  This is my attempt to copy the famous French Gulch scene that was on the Gorre & Daphetid.  A swift moving river with several cascading waterfalls provides plenty of visual interest to this gulch.  Just like John Allen’s layout all four levels of the mainline traverse this area.  This creates an excellent photographic location, but also created a very difficult scene to complete.  Like with other areas of my layout there are lots of things going on in a very small amount of space.  Six bridges, 4 tunnel portals, and a major water feature all had to be carefully planned and executed.

Photo 28 is probably very familiar since it was used in my last update but gives a very good view of the gulch in its infancy.  It also shows how I attached some of my rock castings.  I usually “glue” them in place with simple expanding foam, I then cover the exposed foam with joint compound.  Once the joint compound is dry, I then paint it with earth colors.  Later on, I blend the colors with other paints and ground cover.  I used to use primarily lacquer-based paints but have switched to more water-based paints.  Yes, there are 6 bridges at this location.  One is on the left, 4 are in the center of the photo, and the last is a small wooden trestle just past the oil rig.

Photo 29 is taken from the Dry Gulch access hatch.  This view normally can’t be seen from any aisles.  The photo shows just how close the various towns are on the layout.  At the top right is Alpine, just to the right of the oil rig in the center of the photo is Potter Flats, and down at the bottom left is the town of Raade Springs.  The raised elevation of land that Raade Springs sits on completely hides Potter Flats from the front of the layout.  Using these types of scenery dividers helps with making the towns seem further apart from each other.  You can also see the completed rock castings and how they have been blended into the rest of the scenery.

Photo 30 gives you a close-up view of the bridges and the Conoco oil operation at Potter Flats.  It also shows how little space Potter Flats occupies!  Lots of tall timber trees surround the gulch giving it a wilderness atmosphere.  I made those trees following Jack Work’s method of using tapered wooden dowels.  Dyed asparagus fern “branches” are then glued into tiny holes drilled into the dowel.

Photo 31 is an “action shot” of a freight train crossing the steel trestle while Shay #9 pulls an empty log train over the wooden bridge.  The wooden bridge is scratchbuilt and carries my dual gauge line.

Photo 32 gives you an idea of the vertical separation of the tracks on the mainline.  Those little locomotives have some steep mountain terrain to climb!  This follows John Allen’s idea of using the same scenery on some of the sections of his layout for the mainline tracks.  Stacked multi-deck shelf layouts with divided scenery limits a photographer’s ability to produce dramatic photos.  John Allen’s method allows for continuous scenery between the levels to create photos with depth.

Photo 33 has the Dry Gulch & Westerns lone diesel in the photo.  I guess the engineer in Shay #9 decided to take a break since the locomotive hasn’t moved since the last photo!  When compared to photo 28, this photo gives you a good example of how the addition of rock castings, trees, and ground cover can change a scene.  Note how this photo really doesn’t need a backdrop, the layout, due to its depth, becomes the backdrop for this photo.

Next time we will take a second look at Potter Flats and the use of the mainline as part of the branch line. I will also show you the completed scenery in that area. There have been several subtle changes made in that location, so it warrants a second look.

David

Article & Photos By David Yadock

Dry Gulch & Western, Update 5

Moving along from my previous posting of the Wapwallopen area on my layout we find ourselves looking to the mountain mining town of Alpine.  This town finally saw completion early on during the Covid-19 stay-at-home mandates.  I decided to get this town completed since it is poised along the north wall of my layout.  Due to its location, it would be more difficult to install scenery once many of the other areas are completed in front of it.  Alpine required some scenery and several structures including its distinctive station.  Unfortunately, I do not have a very good “pre” shot of the Alpine area.  The ones I have included in this update will give you an idea of the scenery changes that have taken place.  Overall, the addition of two mining complexes and the witch’s hat station give this town its unique appeal.  Yes, this town is tucked way up high on the layout which makes switching the mining areas a challenge for the operators.  This town along with some of my other towns are located in what I consider my central mining district of the layout.  The Betterby mine is located on the west end of the town while the larger Izzit mine is located on the east end of the town.

The town of Alpine had some difficulties with both scenery blending and the many varying details needed to complete the scene.  This small section of the layout containing Alpine is only about one foot wide and 8-10 feet long. There is not much space for large structures even though it has a long combination passing siding and ore loading area.  Building flats would not look or work well in this area of the layout.  Additionally, that pesky mountain scenery background chews up most of the real estate for structures!

Photo 22 gives you an idea of the space and location.  Alpine is just to the upper right of the stone arch bridge.  In this “pre” shot I had several structures just placed in the area.  None of them were permanent.  As you can see, scenery was still taking shape.

Photo 23 gives you a straight on view of Alpine and the lack of scenery.  This needed to be remedied with more trees, ground cover, and structures.  A nice train station would help too!  The building at about the center top of the photo is no longer at Alpine since it was too large.  That structure was crammed into the available space and its placement looked very awkward.

Photo 24 gives a close-up view of the new station and some of the surrounding structures.  The station is actually quite compact but the turret spire with its witch’s hat roof makes it appear much larger.  The station fits between the mainline track and the siding.  It was completely scratchbuilt.  For those John Allen fans, the station mimics his “Angel’s Camp” station.  You can also see Jim’s structure in the background too!  Can anyone guess what item I used to top off the witch’s hat spire?  Don’t worry, I didn’t shoot my eye out with it!

Photo 25 is an overall view of the Alpine area.  The Izzit Mine complex is off to the far right of this photo.  Alpine has quite a few structures.  Please note that the central section of the layout just below the station slides upward to allow access to the Alpine area for maintenance.  The stone arch bridge is also removeable to allow access for switch motor maintenance.

Photo 26 shows the western side of the Alpine area.  Just above the steel arch bridge is the Betterby Mine complex.  It boasts a long siding which helps for switching and car storage.  The small white line about dead center in the photo denotes a fixed uncoupling ramp.  These are positioned throughout the layout to help operators know where the permanent ramps are located.  These rods can be removed for photos of the layout.

Photo 27 is a close up of the Betterby Mine complex.  It was constructed from a Campbell kit.  Again, this location has just a tiny amount of real estate for an online industry.

That concludes the tour of Alpine.  Next time we will look at the waterfalls and gulch area west of Potter Flats.  This location had lots of scenery that needed to be added or completed.  It also mimics the famous “French Gulch” scene from John Allen’s layout.  This was a key scene I wanted to have on my layout.

David