pacbelt
Sonoran Desert
Brakeman
Posts:51
Send Message
 | | 07/09/2008 6:41 PM |
| Are we forced to pay $25.00 EACH and up for decent trees just because we model indoors????? 
Does anyone have any better ideas/solutions? There's gotta be a cheaper way!  | |
Carmine
Tucson, AZ
 Since 1975! | |
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Torby
1st Class Member
North Chicago 'burbs.
Engineer
Posts:1682
Send Message
| | 07/10/2008 6:48 AM |
| | In this buisiness, if you don't want to buy it, you make it! | |
 "If Christianity was something we were making up, of course we could make it easier. But it is not. We cannot compete, in simplicity with people who are inventing religions. How could we? We are dealing with Fact. Of course anyone can be simple if he has no facts to bother about."-- C. S. Lewis | |
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kormsen
in the middle of the westparaguayan semi desert
Conductor
Posts:546
Send Message
| | 07/10/2008 7:46 AM |
| wait till chrismas-time.
buy the cheapest little xmas-trees, you can get, and convert/refine them a little. | |
 construction site - keep off! | |
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pacbelt
Sonoran Desert
Brakeman
Posts:51
Send Message
| | 07/10/2008 8:58 AM |
| I remember Michaels having good deals on trees.
One of these days, I'll actually try making some trees Torby! | |
Carmine
Tucson, AZ
Since 1975! | |
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Mik
Indiana, Pa
Foreman
Posts:345
Send Message
| | 07/10/2008 9:59 AM |
| Michaels and Big Lots both sell "usable" xmas trees at Christmas. They'll put them out sometime in September/October for $3-$7 but if you wait to buy them the week after Christmas they'll be half price.
Deciduous trees? Pretty much gotta either go collect some branched sticks, get some filter floss and flocking and make your own....or learn how to do Bonsai. | |
Mik
Unsupervised children will be given espresso and a free puppy | |
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dawinter
1st Class Member
Peachland BC Canada
Foreman
Posts:266
Send Message
| | 07/10/2008 10:00 PM |
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Ok. Some quick and ugly photography....
These are Curly Bock plants growing wild on the side of the road. They have been sprayed with a cheap rattle can of green or brown and sprinkled with Woodland Scenics. Cost - nearly nothing.
All of these are 'bottle brush' trees that I had made for me at 40 to 60 cents each and I covered them with spray glue and Woodland again. Cost - as above.
These are Christmas trees that I got from a Wal-Mart type store. I paid $3.00 each and they will form a wall of cover in 'the park'.
These come out a Christmas as well. All are part of the 1/32 scale villages that are sold pretty much everywhere. I needed some small trees with snow anyway. They were $3.99 for two or three depending on size.
This is Sage and I get it from the hillsides around here. It's free but best used when you want a tree that's got few leaves. Excellent for my railway in September.
These are picked up at 1/2 price at train show in Edmonton. Pola I think but verrry expensive when paying full price. Ugly as well. Better to build your own.
I hope this offered a suggestion or two.
Dave
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pacbelt
Sonoran Desert
Brakeman
Posts:51
Send Message
| | 07/10/2008 10:38 PM |
| Thanx Dave! That's downright inspirational! " border=0>
That tree from sage you made is something I could do a forest with! If there's anything Arizona has too much of - it's sagebrush! | |
Carmine
Tucson, AZ
Since 1975! | |
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vsmith
1st Class Member
SoCal
Engineer
Posts:1000
Send Message
| | 07/11/2008 10:01 AM |
| Now you know why I model the desert  | |
 Kitbashing, welcome to the Dark Side | |
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kormsen
in the middle of the westparaguayan semi desert
Conductor
Posts:546
Send Message
| | 07/11/2008 10:24 AM |
| i made a try with something new (for me)
using matressfoam, ripping out small pieces with the fingers to get more or less the desired form.
only spraycanning is not enough (see the one on the left)
spraycanning and applying greencoloured sawdust on the wet paint is not good enough either (the one on the right)
but, i think, what i did to the one in the middle might have potential, if executed better.
on the formed mattressfoam i applied little dots of the kind of foam, carpenters use these days to fix doors and windows in the wall-openings.
giving it a more sophisticated form and applying more than just one coat of sawdust, that might be good enough for background trees.
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construction site - keep off! | |
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pacbelt
Sonoran Desert
Brakeman
Posts:51
Send Message
| | 07/11/2008 11:31 AM |
| Posted By vsmith on 07/11/2008 10:01 AM Now you know why I model the desert " border=0>
LOL Vic!!!!!
I thought about that.....
But I live in the desert! I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, but to do that properly, I would spend $1,000,000 in trees!
My goal, Some ficticious place in the middle to go with my ficticious railroad, and enough fake greenery to make it pleasant enough to me, and to the people in my neighborhood, looking for an escape. | |
Carmine
Tucson, AZ
Since 1975! | |
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pacbelt
Sonoran Desert
Brakeman
Posts:51
Send Message
| | 07/11/2008 11:33 AM |
| Kormsen, I like what you did with your trees, but I would really like a better picture of that bridgework you did.
That's my next project. | |
Carmine
Tucson, AZ
Since 1975! | |
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kormsen
in the middle of the westparaguayan semi desert
Conductor
Posts:546
Send Message
| | 07/11/2008 5:47 PM |
| that "bridge" was nothing. i just cut some sticks in the garden, scraped them with a kitchenknife, to simulate roughly hewn logs and glued them.
never made a good pic of that.
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construction site - keep off! | |
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dawinter
1st Class Member
Peachland BC Canada
Foreman
Posts:266
Send Message
| | 07/11/2008 5:59 PM |
| Posted By pacbelt on 07/11/2008 11:31 AM Posted By vsmith on 07/11/2008 10:01 AM Now you know why I model the desert " border=0>" border=0> LOL Vic!!!!! " border=0> " border=0> I thought about that..... But I live in the desert! I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, but to do that properly, I would spend $1,000,000 in trees! My goal, Some ficticious place in the middle to go with my ficticious railroad, and enough fake greenery to make it pleasant enough to me, and to the people in my neighborhood, looking for an escape.
Remember, as a general rule most of us model things within 200 feet of the track so acres of trees aren't really necessary. All you really need is a few really good ones here and there to suggest a forest.
Dave
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pacbelt
Sonoran Desert
Brakeman
Posts:51
Send Message
| | 07/11/2008 10:25 PM |
| That's exactly what I'm hoping for Dave. I've got pretty good at selective compression in the smaller scales over the decades, but G scale - well, that's hyper compression!
I hear what you're saying. I have to find a happy medium between lush greenery and adequate and affordable! | |
Carmine
Tucson, AZ
Since 1975! | |
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dawinter
1st Class Member
Peachland BC Canada
Foreman
Posts:266
Send Message
| | 07/12/2008 6:16 AM |
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I'm going to put in a bare faced plug for a friend who does amazing trees in any scale.. They are the type of trees that a person would use in the foreground to offer that 'wow' factor. Somewhat costly in large form but well worth the investment.
Think of it this way. Four or five great trees for the price of an engine but people will see the trees even if that engine is hidden in the shop.
See http://www.easternmountainmodels.com/
Dave | |
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pacbelt
Sonoran Desert
Brakeman
Posts:51
Send Message
| | 07/12/2008 8:01 AM |
| | Those are beautiful! I would consider a couple for the foreground. | |
Carmine
Tucson, AZ
Since 1975! | |
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Dean Whipple
1st Class Member
Corona, California
Foreman
Posts:104
Send Message
| | 07/12/2008 10:20 AM |
| | Check out How to make trees by Richard Schmitt as they were made for the SUNDANCE CENTRAL modular railroad.... | |
Have fun with your trains
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Richard Schmitt
1st Class Member
Brakeman
Posts:52
Send Message
| | 07/12/2008 4:28 PM |
| Here are some other trees we also make for the Sundance Central Modular Railroad.
Richard
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dawinter
1st Class Member
Peachland BC Canada
Foreman
Posts:266
Send Message
| | 07/12/2008 4:46 PM |
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Those are beautiful! 
Dave | |
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pacbelt
Sonoran Desert
Brakeman
Posts:51
Send Message
| | 07/12/2008 5:24 PM |
| Those trees are amazing!!!!!
These are the kind of really creative ideas I was looking for! | |
Carmine
Tucson, AZ
Since 1975! | |
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