Items For Track Decoration

[SlotsNZ]

As we have traveled around Europe I have taken the chance when possible, to pop into assorted slot, model and toy shops

Every so often I grab something I couldn't get in NZ - or something a lot cheaper

I've really been looking for scenic items and kit-bash material

 

A few days ago in Padstow, England we parked opposite a tiny, stuffed to the gills toy store. Grief, I could have spent 100 quid if I had space in the suitcase; they must have been stocking up on random anything in 1/32nd for years in the hope someone wanted odd scale 1/32nd toys

 

I limited myself to the tractor, the tractor with tank trailer, as I wanted a couple of tractors for y scenery, and the tank can be decorated as emergency water or something.

The bit over scale morris minor van (1/26th).

The Morrie is large enough for some clever cookie to reproduce a small batch for house class cars .... at 1/32nd it would have been a bit small to set up

 

They were all dirt cheap about 13£ for the lot.

 

Today we arrived in Belfast and I had tagged one model and kit shop to visit. Nothing of interest but as we walked back to the mall, we ducked through a small, disheveled, downtrodden indoor market.

 

There was a pawn/2nd hand shop with a couple of die-casts in the window, decided not to buy, but she said two doors up has some kits

 

WELL, I think the little Irish lady had been buying old stock, and 2nd hand die casts, kits and some slot cars for 30 years. The STUFF

I spent an hour there. Pat - you would go Gaga on the old matchbox stuff. Any corgi collectors would have blown a fuse. She had big sliding plastic bins, each of which had four or five heavy plastic bags in it, about 15 quid each, sold by weight or volume - about the size of a 10 litre bucket per bag. Each bag had about 150 die-cast models, mostly corgi, some matchbox, some other assorted brands of "motors"

 

In the end, all I bought was one 1/32nd Airfix kit of a DB5, again, I can kit bash it, but I know a bloke who may be interested in soaking it in silicone first

 

When we arrived home last night I added them to the wardrobe where I have been stowing goodies the past few months.

 

One day my wife is going to realise we need a checked suitcase just for slots and models to get them home to NZ.... I may not be seen alive again in NZ

[SlotsNZ]

May as well cannabilise this old thread.

 

Cheap trees, they are all over EBay, but the problem is they are fairly rubbish.

The foliage falls off, and many of them, like this purchase, are bright green, like REALLY bright green. Glow in the dark bright green.

 

These shots don't really do justice to the amount of green dye which gave it's life in their manufacture.

 

Solution, quick, dirty and easy

 

Insert one spray bottle containing a 50:50 mix of PVA and water, some scenic grass and turf, shake and stir - literally.

 

I sprayed each tree above and around with the PVA mixture, shook on some brown and some mixed dark greens, a bit more squirt to seal and presto

 

 

They actually look a bit rough in the pic, but to the naked eye, the before and after is chalk and cheese.

 

I''ll leave them to dry overnight, then whack the other 5 pack through the same process, just using a bit different colour mix, then find a home for

them somewhere safe from marshals' arms.

[Shaynus]

Does the water/PVA mix leave a glossy finish when it dries?

[Ontheflipside]

Does the water/PVA mix leave a glossy finish when it dries?

On absorbent surfaces it wont. On smooth surfaces a few light applications it will but over time it will go yellowish and loose its sheen.

[SlotsNZ]

Well the glue I sprayed and drizzled on gets covered by the dusting of flock, so you don't see it at all. If I seal the dusting with more PVA, it MAY be visible, but I have done all my horizontal grass surfaces on the track with it over the years and it hasn't been an issue.

It is dry today, and looks fine to me.

The oldest grass visible on my track - maybe 8 years, could be a bit more yellow, but certainly no sheen, so it looks natural. Hard to know with slow changes, and I used various greens, browns and yellows for summer colour at the time, so I am not sure. It doesn't need to be a thick layer, just something to provide a little stickiness that dries.

 

If DownTownDeco shows up and reads this thread, or posts somewhere else, pull his ear. I have a suspicion I learned this trick from him somewhere waaaaay back.

 

At a pinch you could also water down the "canopy glue" we use for gluing clear parts, but that is a tad more expensive than common Elmers school glue or PVA

[SlotsNZ]

Pics don't really show it, but after a 2nd dusting of some today, the overall effect is much more natural than the nearly luminous product from corona-land.

 

 

I can make forest from these.

[Ontheflipside]

Great result Mark

[SlotsNZ]

10 trees does not a forest make, as I discovered when I started doing this. So I ordered a while heap more.

Two parcels arrived in my letterbox today, and unpacking, hooray, the mix of types, size range and colours was a bit more realistic.

 

A sudden burst of motivation hit me as the wife invited me out for a walk.

 

 

10 trees turned into about 80, and now the top of the hill is looking a little more realistic

Now i have to wait for more to arrive

[charlesx]

Hi SlotsNZ.

 

See your green thumb is working. Looks like a good range of native trees so you will keep the Greenies happy. Well done.

 

Just make sure no dead leaves get on track as it will make it slippery. Most appear evergreen thank goodness.

 

Regards Chas Le Breton (charlesx)

[SlotsNZ]

Hi SlotsNZ.

 

Just make sure no dead leaves get on track as it will make it slippery.

 

Regards Chas Le Breton (charlesx)

 

Local clubbies have complained about this on the odd occasion after my gardening sessions :lol:

[Alfahorn]

Hi Slots NZ

 

The trees look really great well done …….now for the carbon credits .