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Just a quick hello to all our old friends at LUCNY.
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In lugnet.org.us.lucny, Larry Pieniazek wrote:
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In lugnet.org.us.lucny, John Neal wrote:
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In lugnet.org.us.lucny, Jonathan Lopes wrote:
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You know I am in agreement with using the earth tone colors for buildings
and also agree with the approach to not dusting, or, not frequently dusting
the layouts.
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We fellow Ashcanners are one:-)
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Well, it IS cheaper than weathering paint! And more prototypical.
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Not to mention cheaper labor costs!
And BTW: you cant really dust for vomit! ;-)
FUT.fun
JOHN
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In lugnet.org.us.lucny, John Neal wrote:
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In lugnet.org.us.lucny, Jonathan Lopes wrote:
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You know I am in agreement with using the earth tone colors for buildings
and also agree with the approach to not dusting, or, not frequently dusting
the layouts.
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We fellow Ashcanners are one:-)
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Well, it IS cheaper than weathering paint! And more prototypical.
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In lugnet.org.us.lucny, Kevin Salm wrote:
>
> Nate Jacobs is the builder with the brick roads. He can provide you with
> details, building tips, advantages, disadvantages, etc of the brick roads.
*SNIP*
> Kevin Salm
> LUCNY
Actually, Kevin made the roads with lots of Dremel cuts...
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?i=1210853
:-)
Ed
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In lugnet.org.us.lucny, Jonathan Lopes wrote:
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You know I am in agreement with using the earth tone colors for buildings and
also agree with the approach to not dusting, or, not frequently dusting the
layouts.
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We fellow Ashcanners are one:-)
JOHN
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> >
> > I was poking around Brickshelf and came across this image in a recent show
> > folder of yours:
> > http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?i=1200736
>
> I do know that what you are seeing are 1x bricks, primarily 1 x 4 bricks.
> There is some sub-structure but Nate will have to tell you what that is.
> 2x4 bricks probably. Black was chosen to save cost over using Light Gray or
> Dark Gray. Brick Roads definitely will eat up a LOT of plain baseplates,
> black bricks, 1x yellow and white plates, and 6x gray plates for sidewalks.
>
> The finished roads do look nice regardless of their black color. Just think
> fresh pavement. With custom-built roads you have the possibility of showing
> roads in various states of dis-repair, various textures, various colors, and
> of course, various lengths, widths, and odd intersections. Curves are
> tricky, but with LEGO, some compromises are always necessary.
>
> As the layout pictures show, our entire layout is NOT done this way. Nate
> has built a few transition sections to move from baseplate roads to brick
> roads and these transition places give the construction workers some place
> to work.
>
> Nate just recently uploaded MORE photos of the recent layout (Caution--the
> files are HUGE)
> http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=128123
> Other photos showing the brick roads can be found in other folders, too,
> from prior train shows.
>
> I think that on a home layout, the custom-built brick roads have a lot of
> possibilities and can look really cool and highly detailed. However, it may
> not be necessary to convert an entire layout to the brick roads all at one
> time. Again, think fresh pavement - perhaps on a street-by-street basis,
> etc.
>
> Kevin Salm
> LUCNY
Hi Kevin,
thanks for the reply and information. I appreciate it. I did notice that the
entire layout was not made up of the 'brick road bed' technique. (excellent
layout, BTW)
Now I have to decide what color to make my roads. I am thinking dark grey is the
*right* color as I will be having an elevevated subway above them that will be
black. I know that is just going to be really expensive.
Let me check my lotto numbers....
Thanks again for your thoughts.
Jonathan
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In lugnet.org.us.lucny, John Neal wrote:
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In lugnet.org.us.lucny, Jonathan Lopes wrote:
Hello, Jonathan-
Though Im not in the LUCNY, I have had a lot of experience building roads in
this manner. In fact, the GMLTC was making roads like this back when I
joined them 6 years ago.
We in the TCLTC build our roads
in
this manner
My advise to you is to definitely go this, err, route-- it is the only
option IMO! Besides looking 1000% better, that method is far more
flexible.
Good luck!
JOHN
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Hey, John, Thanks for replying and sharing your thoughts. That scene looks
really nice. (I had seen it before but had a mental block when looking for
examples of this technique).
I am thinking that I will be going with this method. I am not to worried about
curves because I am buidling a NYC (borough of NYC) style layout which doesnt
have to many curves.
You know I am in agreement with using the earth tone colors for buildings and
also agree with the approach to not dusting, or, not frequently dusting the
layouts.
Thanks again.
Pics to come, hopefully soon.
Best,
Jonathan
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In lugnet.org.us.lucny, Joe Strout wrote:
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One thing that puzzled me at the NILTC club, and even more now that I see two
other clubs doing it: why black? Real roads arent black; theyre gray. A
dark gray (or even light gray, for older/more weathered streets) would look
more realistic to my eyes.
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For me, its a matter of color palette control. Look, there are only so many
colors in LEGO with which one can build. I am very careful to avoid primary
colors in buildings because they are rather unrealistic. So, a building can be
tan, dark gray, gray, dark red, brown, sand red, SOL green or white. I avoid
black in buildings. So, it makes for a nice contrast to have the streets black
and the muted tones in the buildings. Gray streets would tend to make a city
too monochromatic for my taste. Plus, Ive got dark gray trackbeds which add
even more grayness.
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The other thing about the 2xN bricks is that theyre shiny; much more so than
LEGO road plates. The combination of overly dark color and shininess always
makes it look to me like the pavement is wet -- perhaps all the minifigs
should be carrying umbrellas!
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Thats why one should never dust ones layout;-)
Notice how nicely one can bury trolley tracks with this method!
JOHN
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----- Original Message -----
From: "Jonathan Lopes" <jlopes@abramsbooks.com>
To: <lugnet.org.us.lucny@lugnet.com>
Sent: Wednesday, May 04, 2005 4:14 PM
Subject: Layout roads
> Hello, LUCNY,
>
> I was poking around Brickshelf and came across this image in a recent show
> folder of yours:
> http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?i=1200736
>
> I am currently in the process of setting up a town layout in my apartment and am
> trying to decide whether to use road plates or to use (what I assume to be) 2xN
> bricks on their sides for streets, as I think you've done here.
>
> Before I commit the $$ to either, I was wondering if one of you might be able to
> provide me with some insight and/or your experiences with the 'bricks on side'
> approach.
>
> I am thinking I am not thrilled about working within the limitations of road
> plates and would like my train track inset into the 'ground' rather than laying
> it over the road plates.
>
> My planned layout is 8' x 16' so either way it is going to be a substantial
> financial commitment for me. I want to do as much research as I can before I
> make a decision.
>
> Any thoughts or insight is much appreciated.
>
> thanks,
> Jonathan
Nate Jacobs is the builder with the brick roads. He can provide you with
details, building tips, advantages, disadvantages, etc of the brick roads.
I do know that what you are seeing are 1x bricks, primarily 1 x 4 bricks.
There is some sub-structure but Nate will have to tell you what that is.
2x4 bricks probably. Black was chosen to save cost over using Light Gray or
Dark Gray. Brick Roads definitely will eat up a LOT of plain baseplates,
black bricks, 1x yellow and white plates, and 6x gray plates for sidewalks.
The finished roads do look nice regardless of their black color. Just think
fresh pavement. With custom-built roads you have the possibility of showing
roads in various states of dis-repair, various textures, various colors, and
of course, various lengths, widths, and odd intersections. Curves are
tricky, but with LEGO, some compromises are always necessary.
As the layout pictures show, our entire layout is NOT done this way. Nate
has built a few transition sections to move from baseplate roads to brick
roads and these transition places give the construction workers some place
to work.
Nate just recently uploaded MORE photos of the recent layout (Caution--the
files are HUGE)
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=128123
Other photos showing the brick roads can be found in other folders, too,
from prior train shows.
I think that on a home layout, the custom-built brick roads have a lot of
possibilities and can look really cool and highly detailed. However, it may
not be necessary to convert an entire layout to the brick roads all at one
time. Again, think fresh pavement - perhaps on a street-by-street basis,
etc.
Kevin Salm
LUCNY
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In lugnet.org.us.lucny, John Neal wrote:
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We in the TCLTC build our roads
in
this manner
My advise to you is to definitely go this, err, route-- it is the only
option IMO! Besides looking 1000% better, that method is far more
flexible.
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I noticed roads like this when I got back into LEGO about a year ago, at an
NILTC show.
Theyre certainly cool, though I dont agree they look 1000% better. In
particular, they come out very square; you couldnt make a nice curve this way,
especially with lines down the middle and on the sides of the road, like the
LEGO road plates have. So I think theres room for both.
One thing that puzzled me at the NILTC club, and even more now that I see two
other clubs doing it: why black? Real roads arent black; theyre gray. A dark
gray (or even light gray, for older/more weathered streets) would look more
realistic to my eyes.
The other thing about the 2xN bricks is that theyre shiny; much more so than
LEGO road plates. The combination of overly dark color and shininess always
makes it look to me like the pavement is wet -- perhaps all the minifigs should
be carrying umbrellas!
My $0.02,
- Joe
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