Crystal Falls

Builder:: Steve Blanding
Dimensions:: 6' x 2 1/2'
Date Started:: Winter 1994
Period Modeled:: Modern
Location Modeled:: Western Washington
Status:: Mostly Finished (Are they ever really finished?)

There are photos at the bottom.

This was my first fully compliant NTRAK module (the two end modules don't really conform to NTRAK specs). Here are a few of the things that I learned so that others can learn from my mistakes.

First of all, the module was constructed on a 1 x 4 pine frame with a plywood surface. This makes it very sturdy but it also makes it very heavy. If I had to do it over again I would certainly use the extruded foam on 1 x 3 pine frame technique that I used for my two subsequent modules (the corner and the four footer).

As an experiment, I initially had a choke cable style system rigged to all the turnouts. The system consisted of piano wire run through plastic tubing and it allowed the turnouts to be thrown from knobs set in the front of the module. This worked pretty well but it proved to be a little problematic. Since all of the turnouts are within easy reach of the front of the module, I have since ripped out all the cables and I now throw all the turnouts by hand. It's much easier.

Incedentally, the track is all code 80 Atlas flex track with Peco turnouts. I have found this to be very reliable so long as the track is laid carefully and it's what I've used on all my modules. And the fact that the rails are all too big (code 55 would be better) really doesn't harm the appearance all that much.

The track is mounted on a cork roadbed which is glued straight to the plywood. In the town areas, I used sheet cork to make it easier to bring the streets up to track level and outside of town I used the standard cork strips. I've experimented with several glues and I've found that Liquid Nails (original formula) seems to work the best. The track is also glued to the cork. There are only a couple of wire nails holding the track down in a few strategic places where I felt reinforcement would be a good idea, the rest is all glued with Liquid Nails.

As another experiment, I have three Micro-Trains electro-magnetic uncouplers on this layout. These actually work much better than I had been led to believe they would. The only difficulty was figuring out how to supply the proper voltage. Micro-Trains recommends that they be driven on low-voltage AC current to prevent them burning out however an NTRAK module doesn't really have a good, readily available supply of low-voltage AC current. What we DO have is a readily available supply of 15v DC. 15v will supply way too much current to one of these electro-magnets. It will surely burn it out. However, if you run the current through a power-dropping resistor you can get the voltage (and therefore the current) down to an acceptable level. As an added precaution, I've wired in a fuse that ensures that I'll blow the fuse long before I melt the electo-magnetic coils.

The river that runs across the left side of this module is made of poured Envirotex. First I prepared the river bed, sealing it against leaks, painting it and scattering rocks and debris. Then I poured the river in two pours. Between pours, I added a few ripples and waves with white acrylic behind the larger obstructions. (Use a light hand here. Don't over do it.) This is definitely a technique that I would use again (and have).

The waterfall at the back of the module was made by draping angel's hair (spun fiberglass) over the cliff and coating it with gloss medium and a little silicone. The effect is relatively convincing but I think I'd use a different technique next time. The fiberglass is a real pain to work with and the health hazzards are enormous.

The bridges over the river are all scratch built. The high trestle in the back is made of cut wood that was stained with a craft stain and glued in place with ACC. The other two bridges are made from styrene.

The streets are all made from a textured craft board that I found at a local craft shop. Airbrushed with a concrete color and a few oil streaks it looks pretty convincing. The only problem with using craft board is that it warps and expands as it absorbs moisture. I've had to re-glue the streets more than once now. The occasional man-hole or utility-hole cover that appears on these streets is most likely really a nail used to reinforce the glue and keep the streets from pulling up.

There are several trees on this module and they are all scratch built using a variety of techniques. The deciduous trees are mostly made from various dried plants purchased at a craft store, glued together and painted. Some of the evergreens were made by soldering wires to form an armature, painting them brown and flocking the branches by rolling them in Woodland-Scenics' ground foam. The rest were made by cutting up Christmas wreaths to the right shapes and then painting and flocking them in a similar manner.

The retaining wall that runs along the back of the town was built by pressing rocks into modeling clay and then removing them to form a mold into which was poured plaster. The plaster casting was then spray painted black and the rocks were sponge painted so that they would stand out. Highlights were added by dry brushing.

Most of the buildings are kits that were either built as per instructions or, in some cases, kitbashed to fit the scene. The feed store (with its grain elevators) was scratch built. The complex is based upon an old feed store in downtown Redmond. I had to simplify it a bit and rearrange the structures to get them to fit in the space that I had available.

Lastly, there are the traffic lights. The lights were purchased from a local hobby shop. They are wired to a circuit that causes the lights to go through a standard traffic pattern. When one set of lights are green and yellow, the other set of lights are red. It's been fun to watch the reactions when people realize that the traffic lights actually work.