It all looks pretty good to me but what would really help is a longer shot so we can see the whole diorama.

This is going to be a very impressive piece of work.

I'd second that, maybe a top down one if it's possible Ski, It does all look fine though.

Steve.
I'm so impressed with the amount of time and effort you're putting into this.
It's going to be an absolutely stunning dio when finished.

Malc

Wow Ski that looks great, can't fault the layout I believe you have thar just right. The only comment I see just now is the trunk of the tree, it needs it's own moss and lichen as it has been there quite a few years at least.

Cheers Simon

Thank you all, Gents. Remember, this is just an alignment shoot, so I did not include any full base pics. I know that might have helped explain the spacing, but I was mainly concerned with the eyes and where they were looking. I appreciate the perusal, it helps greatly.

I wanted to get a better pic of the Ranger looking thru the tree, but that will have to wait till the final. The tree will get the proper moss treatment, Simon, and thanks for the reminder, it’s now on the punch list.


There’s a long way to go still, but I plan to finish this before the snow fly, and that’s coming fast. Dang, I don’t even have any ripe tomatoes yet, sheesh!

Whiskey and Wine Barrels

Since I’m not in the mood to work the base ground work yet I’ve worked the tree trunk for more texture and started making barrels. I’m going to make everything that I’ve got listed for the lean-to before doing any of the ground work. I plan on having chains, ropes, metal gears and pulleys, saws, hammers, sledge hammers, axes, shovels, brooms, rakes, etc. This will be a storage lean-to/work shop or open storage shed.

Trying to find something that was a close size for a wine barrel was a slight challenge until I found an older rattle can that would fit almost perfectly. I’ve got a few wine barrels and an old whiskey barrel here at the Ranchito, so getting the dimensions was no problem. I matched them up against the Ranger figure to get an idea as to whether they would be in scale and they are.

Before starting on these I watched a few vids on YT to get the basics, and off I went. I used pine strips for the larger barrel lid and body, but the whiskey barrel required a more flexible material, balsa wood. After cutting the strips to a reasonable width I pinched them with needle nose pliers every 3/16ths to ¼ inch to create the subtle curves. The pine was a little dicey at times, but the balsa wood was easy to manipulate. Each strip needs to be tapered top and bottom to account for the barrel width at each end, so they were sanded slightly to accommodate the difference.



As you can see, I wrapped the rattle can with some flexible yellow foam and blue tape to get the middle width. The same process was used on the wooden dowel used for the whiskey barrel. I applied super glue and got started applying the strips. Once you get a few in place the rest are easy to keep proper alignment. Then cut and sand the ends, you’re done.



At first I was thinking of using copper sheet cut to width for the barrel straps, but sheet styrene was much easier to work and manipulate. I followed the wine barrel strap pattern that is present on the ones I have, same for the whiskey barrel. I used oils for the barrel colors and placed pin washes in between the slats before applying the straps. This gave clarity and depth to the overall look.



Once the straps were in place I primed them with Floquil primer and painted them with Tamiya Metallic Grey XF-56. This is very close to the galvanized color tone on my barrel straps, but I have no idea if this is even close to what was used in France in the 40’s. I also made the huge nails, or pegs, that hold the straps at the joints. None of my barrels have any nails on the straps other than at the joints, but I added them here for character and interest to each strap. They are widely spaced, so it won’t look too overdone.



After the straps were painted the each got a pin wash with oils for depth and to cover any light spots against the barrel. Lastly, the cork, or peg was installed and painted. I plan to make these very dusty as if in storage or neglected for years, but I’m not sure if there will be any old rust anywhere on the straps. I still need to research that. Also, I may add a very small amount of moss build-up at the base of each, using Migs enamels, but I’m still undecided.

Any comments or questions, holler, and thanks for watchin.

Cheers, Ski.

That's some excellent modelling right there Ski. Regarding the rust, often the hoops are painted, but if not I would suspect they go rusty pretty quickly.
Steve

Wow. That is some amazing carpentry and modelling. Sounds like there is a lot of work involved in kitting out the lean-to.......

Hello teeth but they look the business, only thing you didn’t do was char the inside of the whiskey barrel. Looking forward to seeing how you create all the other stuff.

Cheers Simon

Steve, thanks kindly for that ref pics, the mystery has been solved! I will address the band accordingly

Thank you, Nigel!!

Thanks, Simon, but rest assured, the barrel is charred!

Oh I like them, they look brilliant.
Melanie

Thank you, Melanie!

WOW!, that's some very impressive work there.

Malc

Thanks, Brother! I'm making some block and tackles, buck saw, etc., etc. This is the fun part, adding extras ofr the lean-to.

Hey Ski I am way behind with what is going on at the moment so was nice to see your latest post, impressive work on those barrels, they look the business. I also like the set up of the figures on the base, nice looking composition. Looking forward to seeing what you make next to add to the scene.

Cheers bro
Steve

Glad you're back, Stevo, good to hear from ya. I'm working a bunch of extras, so the updates will be lagging a bit, but we're making progress.

Building Up Accessories

I’ve been busy building accessories that would be commonly found in a work shed/lean-to and I have decided to make this part of a winery. I’m not going full blown-out crazy, there isn’t enough room to add too much, but I can give it that flavor. The Harley will be taking up a lot of space, so I’ll be adding just enough tools to add interest and keep the eyes moving throughout the scene as much as possible.

I built a buck saw using a broken scroll saw blade and wire with pine scrap as well as a few block and tackles. Looking on line once again at YT was a time saver, great tool. I’m still undecided how I will attach at least one of the B&T’s to the rafters, but the other will be on the deck.



Looking over some photos of B&T’s I was able to come up with a simple design that would be practical for my need and easy enough to make using scrap pine and brass sheet strips plus some 12ga copper wire for the hooks.



The rope for these B&T’s was first coated with water thinned Elmer’s Carpenter’s glue, then given a Burnt Umber oil wash to give it definition.




For the chain I used the old “shake and bake” method. Wet the cheap chain with black or Burnt Umber oil paints and drop into a sandwich bag with rust tone pigments, then shake it up. Once you pull the chain out of the bag give it a quick snap and most of the excess flies off. I’ll be going back over this chain with an old tooth brush to clean it up, touch up the rust tones, and finish it off. An old Dremel lathe was used to turn the shovel handle out of some dowel chunks. This unit is so weak it was easier to use the sand paper than try to turn it.



Next up, after weathering the wine barrel, I built a barrel dolly from pine scrape and shaped most of it on the belt sander. Cutting thicker sheet brass for the base and supports for the wheels was necessary. The wheels are rollers from a tank long ago scrapped and they were perfect for this purpose.



After making a grid pattern for the dolly layout it all went together rather quickly. I Dremel’d out the cross-member slots which made the assembly very sturdy. I soldered the base and support bars together before gluing the unit to the dolly frame. Then I followed up with pins down the supports to retain the brass base assembly.



Once the brass was primed I painted the metal parts and wheels with Tamiya’s Metallic Grey XF-56 and then painted the wood using Burnt Sienna oils. The standard rust and weathering applications were used to make the dolly look used and abused and now neglected.



So, with the major accessories made I will make a few more tools and give everything a good weathering. The dusting to mesh the accessories to the base will be the last step before securing each item in place.




More to follow soon and thanks for watchin. Cheers, Ski.