PAINTING AND DETAILING

I used acrylic paint throughout. I lightly dry-brushed the mesh and the girders with brown, while the sleepers were dry-brushed with grey to provide a weathered effect. As with other parts of the layout, I painted the rail sides with a rust colour and cleaned the rail heads to prevent excess paint from affecting performance. I replicated oily patches on the sleepers by smudging them with pencil graphite, using my fingers. Building interiors are grey, as are the roofs, which were weathered with a light coat of white acrylic. Externally, the building walls are buff coloured with stone printed card glued around the base. I used the smudged pencil graphite effect again to give the walls a dirty, grimy effect. The car chassis is grey, as is the roof vent. The roof is brown and the body is gold. Self-adhesive red vinyl lining, from Hobbies, was applied and the window frames were picked out with a fine-tipped black marker pen.

Above: Steps leading up to the cliff top building are formed by layering and gluing overlapping pieces of styrene sheet. The path is made out of Metcalfe paving effect card.

Left: Guttering and downpipes on the buildings are made from styrene rod, while dirt and grime on the walls is replicated with smudged pencil marks. Posters on the wall are from the Tiny Signs range marketed by Gaugemaster. Planting a few scenic trees...