Wow, so I had a new idea. Same scale, new idea. DOWNSIZE!

Once again I had grown my simple railroad idea into something that was going to take a lot of space, a lot of time and a lot of money to do. Before I had even put down the first piece of track I had managed to almost talk myself out of even trying. This was going to be too big!

So I backtracked and remembered what it was I wanted to accomplish. It's not so much about the "Train Set" for me as it is the building the world that the train will run in. That is what I like to do.

So I decided to go somewhat modular in my design. I say somewhat because the first "module" is not what most modelers would think of when it comes to model railroad modules but none the less, it is as it is (or so they say).

I found a 42" diameter wooden spool and decided it would be the home of Fitch.

I cut a piece of thin plywood and put it on top and layered that with some Styrofoam for a base.

I used a hot wire cutter and carved out a little run-off stream then painted it all with a base coat of some Georgia clay colored paint.

Then I started placing buildings and track around to get an idea of just how much space I really had to work with. I knew I wanted to model Fitch's home (the trailer) and his workshop/scrap yard.

This is too close, need more "separation".

I decided to move the trailer "up the hill" so I made a very tight turn of the track and brought it up hill 1 inch (scale 4 feet) this allowed me to create a "hollow" for Fitch's still to sit in.

This is the path/siding up to Fitch's trailer.

A little more detail going up the hill.

I used crafting sticks that I found at Hobby Lobby to build the retaining walls.

The tulips and wildflowers are from MRC/JTT (also at Hobby Lobby).

The tall grass is paintbrush bristles stuck into the foam.

The moss and short grass are a mixture of fake foliage from Woodland Scenics and real moss from my own back yard. Most of the sprinkled ground cover is real moss that I dried partially and ground up in a coffee grinder. I painted some of the moss before grinding to add more colors to the mix.

Everything gets held in place with good misting from a spray bottle filled with watered down Elmer's Glue.

This is some detail work I've been doing for the interior of Fitch's office.

The building itself came from an Wooden Cigar box that I was using as a place maker on the layout.

I have a couple of them and they are just the right size to represent a building.

I got bored and decided to use one so I printed out and glued the flooring and walls (Thank you clevermodels.net ), the building front is from some plastic kit. To bring it all to life I added a soft LED bulb and a modified RC Servo to create a special effect.

The crew gathers to build the bridge.

The Bridge

 Heading home from a hard days work.

I scratch built a little outhouse to put up at Fitch's place.

It's down in the hollow next to the still.

This short clip is a ride around the loop.

I managed to wedge my Cell Phone onto a flatbed.