My loco-fixing campaign having ground to a halt for the time being, I turned to the second of three summer projects, which was addressing the repairs of our various buildings. Most of these are donations from my father-in-law, who has a knack for turning scrap into art. He set a standard that works for us, which I’ve described as place between toy and model. The little town of Haluku’ilio exists because of his contributions, most of which are below:
They vary in technique from scraps of lumber squared off and decorated to proper frame buildings. Our own contributions (the pump house under the water tower, necessitated by its legs’ lost battle with the late Mr. Otto, our cattle dog), the little yellow house, and, of course the Mik Builds used other materials like HardieBacker and foam as cores with various materials used as cladding. Weather, rot, kids, and dogs (to include Mrs. Opal and Ms. Pearl, our new fur buddies) have taken their toll, so it is time to evaluate each, repair what we can, and repurpose what we must.
The goals I’ve set are:
- Honor the builder’s intent. The net result should show the mark of the original creator. The Triple O is a product of many hands, many thoughts, and more than a few donations of bits and parts. I’ve come to see it as a bit of a “heritage railroad,” so I don’t want to obfuscate the origins.
- Improve what we can. We have picked up some ideas (thanks, guys!) on material selection, material preservation, adhesives, etc. I want the end results to be sturdier, if possible, in the end.
- Detail as appropriate. The dogs have shown little respect for the railroad, so minute details won’t last. Little hands and well meaning parents still reach, prod, and poke. We’ve no place to store structures inside. Stil, things like window pains, signage, door frames, etc. should make these look better, improve our skillsets, and not violate Goal #1.
- Evaluate the Materials and Techniques Used. This is a great opportunity to see what materials hold up and what methods hold things together. This, in turn, can inform future purchases in terms of tools and materials.
As ever, I am abiding by my prime directive, “This can’t be just YOUR hobby” which I operationalize as “All may participate, none must participate.”
No real timeline on this, as I intend it to be a running project (the church is already under repair). I just find putting myself on record helps me keep moving forward.
Eric