Peek Under the Hood

A Quick Review of Products of Interest to the On30 Modeler

Scenery How-To DVDs

Realistic Scenery Vol 2 & Advanced Techniques for realistic Scenery
by Paul Scoles
 

If Dave Frary is the Betty Crocker of model railroad scenery books and methods, Paul Scoles is the Iron Chef. His Sn3 Pelican Bay Railway & Navigation Co. has been featured numerous times in the Narrow Gauge & Short Line Gazette and other publications and is generally regarded as one of the finer model railroads in the US. In his two DVDs he gives detailed demonstrations of his foreground scenery techniques. Vol. 1 covers adding wet rock castings to bare hardshell, and staining them with realistic earth tones. The next segment shows how to build detailed fir and deciduous trees. He then shows how to place trees, bushes and other secondary growth on the layout. The following segment shows development of a townsite, some dirt roads, and other scenery features. Finally, you get a tour of the whole model railroad, which ought to get you inspired to try his methods.

Vol. 2 shows his removable, large hillsides in his yard area, his methodology for building placement, creation of junk and refuse piles, and detailing an engine facility. Moving on to a diorama, he takes you through building cuts, fills, mesas and talus slopes. He then details a streambed and shows how to pour the epoxy water.

Pros: These are very professional productions and Paul does a great job of showing how easy building even highly detailed scenery really is.

Cons: The “field trip” in Vol 1 showing him driving up to the mountains and shoveling dirt into a bucket is of limited value, whereas the trip to the stream is Vol 2 is actually quite useful.

Reviewed by Chris Lane

Available from www.paulscoles.com
$29.95 for each DVD plus $5.00 shipping and handling ($10 if outside the US or Canada)
Paul Scoles, 105 NW 176th Place, Shoreline, WA 98177

Scenery How-To DVD

Building Waterways on your Model Railroad with Dave Frary and Bob Hayden
 

When you think about model railroad scenery, you have to think about Dave Frary. This guy literally wrote the book on most of the scenery techniques in use today. In his new DVD, he partners with his long-time modeling buddy Bob Hayden to build every type of water you might need for your model railroad. Running time is a little over an hour and Dave and Bob take you step by step on materials and methods for making streams, ponds, rivers, harbors and waterfalls. Also included is some the layouts they have used these techniques on for inspiration.

Pros: Step by Step, easy to follow, very good camera work and photography, and its Dave Frary, which makes it a must-have for scenery builders. Both Dave and Bob are very professional and polished on camera.

Cons: Volume goes up and down in the various segments which is a little distracting, but you won’t fall asleep watching it!

Reviewed by Chris Lane

Available from www.mrscenery,com
$29.95 plus postage
Dave Frary P.O. Box 1234 Forestdale, MA 02644 USA dave@mrscenery.com