US $5.95 • Can $7.95 - O scale trains

with a coat of Badger OxideRed paint and applied ScaleModel Works modeler’s mortarbetween the bricks. The sameprocedure was used on theGrandt Line cap that sticks outthrough the roof.Signs were something Iwanted to have plenty of onmy depot. The majority of themwere made by building a framearound a pre-painted, 1 ⁄16-inchthick, sheet of wood and addingpress on letters. A small square ofstyrene was painted grimy blackand press on letters and stripsused to create a black board onwhich train arrival and departuretimes could be posted. TheA street-side view of the depot showing the baggage platform on the right.red Railway Express Agency signis a decal applied to a thin pieceof styrene.For the platform, I built aGrandt Line baggage cart andacquired some milk cans todisplay on it. To blacken whitemetal castings I use a productcalled Blacken-It made by the A-West Company. I’ve found thatthe length of time the casting isemerged in a bath of this mildacid solution determines howblack it will become. A short bathwill produce a tarnished look onan item like a milk or garbagecan that in real life would bemade from galvanized metal. Along bath will bring a dark, richInterior of the depot with details added.patina to the metal.To get a weathered look on thestructure, I used artist’s chalks.So, there you have it. Now, if you’ll pardon me, I think I’lljust wander out on the platform and watch to see who gets onand off the afternoon local.◆Resources:Model RailroaderP.O. Box 1612, Waukesha, WI 53187-1612,262-796-8776, www.trains.com.C. C. Crow / Builders In ScaleP. O. Box 1427, Mukilteo, WA 98275,www.builders-in-scale.comFloquil, a brand from the Testor Corporation440 Blackhawk Ave, Rockford, IL 61104,800-962-6654, www.testors.com.Grandt Line1040 B Shary Court, Concord, CA 94518,925-671-0143, www.grandtline.com30 • O Scale Trains - Sept/Oct ’04