Construction Update #15 - State Line, Kentucky Part 2 - Painting Track & Basic Ground Cover

Developing Scenery in Phases

I don't think I mentioned it in the last post but I divide scenery into 5 phases.  I usually finish one phase before going on to the next.  They are:

1. Land Forms - Pink foam or lattice work covered by plaster cloth followed by a layer of exterior house paint.  I like to use a gray/brown color.  I also give my track an initial coat of brown paint.
   
2. Basic Ground Cover and rock work - I use paver sand for my basic ground cover.  I buy it at Home Depot in the garden section. A 50 pound sack is less than $10.  I hold it in place with diluted matte medium.  Some people use diluted white glue but matte medium is superior for at least 2 reasons.  First it remains flexible and second it transmits less sound.  I buy it from Scenic Express.  I also sprinkle a little ground foam (fine) around and sometimes a few rocks at this stage.
3. Ballast and weathering - I prefer Highball or Arizona Rock & Mineral because its heavy and easy to work with.
   
4. Textured Ground Cover - This includes ground foam, grass, shrubs, trees & water effects
   
5. Details - Ties, electrical boxes, line poles, phone booths, etc.

I pretty much covered the first part of Phase 1 in the last post, so lets move on

Painting Track

 

I use two colors to start with.  One dark brown and the other tan.  Rust-Oleum makes two suitable colors in their "Camouflage" series a spray paints.  I bought them at my local Ace Hardware but most hardware stores carry Rust-Oleum brand paints.  Other brands will work but make sure they dry with a matte or flat finish

 

 

Before I spray the track, I mask off the switch points.

I start with the dark brown color making sure that I apply a light but even coat.  Then I will go over the dark brown with the lighter brown, very light on the main line but heavier on sidings and spurs.  Ties are replaced on the mainline on regular intervals so they generally newer and darker in color.  I used to go back and paint individual ties but in my opinion the result wasn't worth the effort.  I had a section of track on my Sn3 layout with individually painted ties.  Over a 10 year period, no one ever commented on that section of track.  Later on, after ballasting, I will come back with some Bragdon powdered pigments for additional weathering.  I use a block of pine to clean the paint off the top of the rails.

Here's what the track looks like at this stage.

Basic Ground Cover

 

The goal here is make the layout presentable while providing a good foundation for additional scenery layers.  There were portions of my old Sn3 layout that remained in this stage for years including portions of the lead photo in my last post.  Here's what I use from left to right.  Diluted matte midium (5:1), fine turf, a spray bottle with 80% water/20% alcohol, paver sand, paint brush and pipette.

I simply spray the scenery base with water and spread the sand.  The water holds the sand in place and helps the matte medium break the surface tension.  On slopes, I will often spray on additional water and sand to make sure I get coverage.  I don't leave any bare spots.  Once I am satisfied with the coverage, a use the pipette to carefully apply the diluted matte medium.  You have to be careful on slopes because the matte medium has a tendency to carry the sand away and leave bare spots.  If this happens, just add some sand and additional matte medium.  On large areas, you can apply the matte medium with a misting spray bottle.  Then sprinkle on a little ground foam to add a bit of color.

This is the area I worked on today.  Note that I added a few rocks, just for fun.  The paver sand will lighten when it dries.  Tonight I will work on SuperTrees, tomorrow, I will put down some ballast and additional ground cover.