The Sunset Diner in Cromwell, CT

One of the lessons I'm learning (and RE-learning, over and over again) is that persistent progress in this hobby is the result of doing what you're most in the mood to do - pivoting from one project to another and not allowing yourself to get bogged down. If you always - or at least often - #DoOneThing, you'll be surprised at how much you get done.

I was able to spend a good amount of time in the basement this past weekend working on setting the scene for the Camp Bethel Cottages I've been working on, but weeknights are much better for working at the bench. So I pivoted from working on scenery to finishing up the Sunset Diner in Cromwell. (Be sure to click here for a really cool story about how this diner figures in the history of big band music . . .)

To set the scene, literally, here's a period view looking north on the Middlesex Turnpike into Cromwell. . .

The diner is the white, octagon(!) windowed structure on the left.

BillS built a model of this structure for me a couple years ago and it's been sitting on the layout ever since. But it was high time to finish detailing it with some stacks, vents, and a cool sign.

The stacks & ventilators came from a Walthers rooftop details assortment. I used some scrap styrene to make bases and cleanouts.

The skylight is an old Scale Structures Ltd. kit. The little tracing/template on the right was to help me cut out clear styrene for the windows.

But figuring it would be much easier, I ended up using some Micro Kristal Klear instead.

I made the signpost from 1/16" tube, 3/64" and .015" wire all soldered together. The eyebolts are DA #2206 and the chain is Campbell #256.

The lack of sign in the first/main prototype photo I had ended up holding up this project for a while since I didn't even know the name of the diner for the longest time. Then I found this photo.

Bill used his computer skills to recreate the sign and I printed it out and mounted it to .020" styrene and used .008" wire to create hooks to hang the sign from the chain. 

The sign post and the stacks/vents were all airbrushed with Tamiya paints, thinned 50:50 with 90% alcohol.

I didn't like the vent on the skylight that came with the Scale Structures kit, so I used one from my scrapbox, securing it with some CA gel. You can also see how well the "glass" came out.

And this is the back, which you don't really see from normal viewing, but at least I know what it looks like :^) All these parts were attached to the main structure with CA gel.

And here it is on the layout. Still need to do some weathering, but I think it'll sit here like this for a bit until I can muster up some courage.

So there you have it! I think it came out really well, especially when you compare the photo above to the prototype pic at the beginning of this post. I really enjoy recreating the past in miniature, especially when there's a cool story involved. Thanks for following along and let me know what you think!

The Valley Local & Glenn Miller

Those that know me know that I love swing music, especially that of Benny Goodman and Glenn Miller. In fact, I typically pipe in such music during my 1940s-era operating sessions on a period-appropriate radio. And folks that have toured my layout, or seen my NMRA presentation on The Valley Local, will hear me tell a story about a remarkable link between The Valley Line and the famous Glenn Miller.

It has to do with a little diner in Cromwell, CT pictured in the photo above.  While it's fairly distinct, with its octagonal windows, you may not notice it right away, so here's a closeup:

The first time I heard of any connection between Miller and the Valley Line, was when I read the description that Max Miller had included on the back of this photo:

While Max misspelled the name, local dance band musician, Cromwellian Hal MacIntyre, figures prominently in the Glenn Miller Story . . .

Anyone familiar with the history of the Glenn Miller Orchestra will recall there were actually two Miller bands. The first one, started in the mid-1930s, wasn't successful. So what happened? What made Glenn Miller decide - despite his better judgement - to reform the band which ultimately went on to phenomenal success and provided the soundtrack of the early 1940s and WWII?

The answer lies within that little non-descript diner.

Apparently, the McIntyre family had a farm in Cromwell, CT where all the band equipment was stored. Hal had been a local celebrity before being discovered by Benny Goodman (briefly) then Miller, having led his own popular dance band in the early/mid 1930s. But the first Miller band never found its groove, broke up, and stored its stuff in Cromwell.

Hal, who had become one of Miller's closest personal friends during those early years, finally persuaded Glenn to take another chance. While I typically relate the story based on some conjecture, I just tonight discovered verified proof in this book:

Instead of me telling the story, why not hear it straight from Hal himself from an interview from May 1945 about a day in the early spring of 1938 (p. 112-113):

"After the first band broke up, I took all the equipment up to our farm in Cromwell, Connecticut, and got a job in a factory and played with my own band at night. I used to call up Glenn every Sunday afternoon at one and try to argue him into starting the band again. But he'd always say 'Nothing doing,' and that he hadn't gone through $18,000 too fast to want to go back into the band business. 

 "Well, one afternoon he was driving through Cromwell and he called me from a diner. I went over to see him, and we talked for a while and I brought up the subject of starting the band again. At first he said 'No,' but I sort of detected a lessening of resistance, and I kept working and working and working on him until he finally said, 'OK, we start rehearsals at the Haven Studio next week."

And the rest, as they say, is history. The Glenn Miller Band went on to become the most popular band of the Swing & Big Band era, winning the first ever gold record for Chattanooga Choo-Choo (appropriately, another railroad reference).

I actually didn't know about any of this history when I first decided to model the New Haven Railroad's Connecticut Valley Line, but once I saw Max's note during my initial research, I just knew I had to model that diner on my HO scale version of Cromwell. And, thanks to BillS, this little bit of history - and the story associated with it - can live on.

Wordless Wednesday #442 - Cromwell Then, and Then (c.1908 & c.1948)

Wordless Wednesday #409 - I get a sign, FINALLY!

 

Modeling Monday - A Gas Station for Cromwell

As a small tribute to my friend Jim Sacco, who recently passed, I decided Cromwell needed a gas station. The Sanborn map of the area indicates one existed south/east of the tracks and on the east side of Middlesex Turnpike (aka Main Street), but there's no photo. So I figured Jim's archetypical "Crafton Ave. Gas Station" would fit the bill nicely. Follow along as I start what's turning out to be a pretty easy build...

The instructions are straightforward, so I'll just emphasize a few important steps which I found especially useful. While "all you have to do" is glue four walls together to get the basic structure, a little time and patience will ensure a good build. In the photo above, I'm making sure the bottom of each wall is perfectly square. Due to the moulding/casting process, they have a slight taper which should be removed or else you risk gaps between the structure and its foundation.

Speaking of the foundation - I wish it was all in one piece, but - alas! - it's 4 separate parts which must be glued together. Again, patience with your sanding block - not to mention some assistance from 1-2-3 blocks - will make things perfectly square, which will in turn help everything else square up properly.

More use of the blocks to keep the walls square as I make one corner, and then the other...

. . . culminating in all four walls being glued together, nice and square.

The roof is made from a sheet of styrene included in the kit. To get the proper size & cutting lines, I turned the structure on its head and traced along the inside.

Here's the mostly-completed structure, with the roof dry fit in place and resting on the foundation.

With the four walls assembled, I decided this was as good a time as any to paint. To replicate the "porcelain" tile walls, I used a rattle can of Rustoleum gloss white. While I was at it, I went ahead and painted the rest of the white parts on the sprue (gas tanks, oil can racks, sign parts, etc).

Once the white was dry (it took a LOOOONG time for the Rustoleum to cure fully - like almost a week! Be careful when handling that you don't make fingerprints. Ask me how I know...), I masked the "porcelain" and shot the rear "cinderblock" wall with some rattlecan gray. I also sprayed the foundation and gas tank island with the gray, and painted the roof a flat black.

I had visitors coming over, so I quickly made up the sign (after confirming with my muse, John Wallace, that the prototype station was more likely to be an ESSO station than anything else) and placed the station temporarily on the layout. The explanation I came up with is that the station had been abandoned, but recently sold to someone who's in the process of restoring it. There are no windows or gas tanks yet, but the sign is up and there's a fresh coat of paint on the walls. At least that was my story and I'm sticking to it ;^)

Once the visitors were gone, it was time to make some more progress. Based on the prototype photos I've been able to find (beware - old gas station photos are a HUGE, though very enjoyable, rabbit hole), ESSO stations had a wide red stripe along the bottom. So I started by masking as closely to the "foundation" panel as possible. Even then, there were a LOT of little ridges and edges to deal with - especially over the garage doors - but tucking in with the toothpick helps a lot.

I used Tamiya masking tape for the critical edge, and then finished up with regular low-stick masking tape. Now we're ready to paint the stripe!

After reviewing my paint collection with my color consultant (The Missus), we decided the closest color to the red in the ESSO sign was Apple Barrel Red Apple (#20784) craft paint.

Now, I'm not going to get into a debate here about whether shooting craft paint through an airbrush is a good idea or not. Your mileage DEFINITELY will vary. But I have a huge collection of colors, they haven't gone bad, and with the proper preparation, I've had very good success at airbrushing them.

This article gave me the idea, and I've been following it ever since.  The main points to remember are to add airbrush medium and flow aid to your paint. For extra insurance, I also use a strainer in my color jar.

It admittedly took a bunch of coats to build up the color for complete coverage, but the paint dries fast (especially when aided with a hair dryer *ahem*) so I was able to do 5-6 light coats over the course of 20 minutes or so.

I couldn't be happier with the coverage I got, but as you can see in the photo above, my masking over the big doors wasn't as perfect as I thought it was.

Thankfully, it cleaned up REALLY easily. Maybe it was the combination of craft paint over glossy lacquer paint, but I just scraped at the paint with a toothpick and you can see the result above.  I'll just be VERY careful not to scratch the paint elsewhere! After I add decals, I'll be sealing all of it with a clear coat.

Speaking of decals, that's really all that's left to do on this structure (well, other than a rudimentary interior, adding window glass, assembling/decaling the pumps, adding the island light, etc.), so it's back to the prototype photos to review lettering, positioning, and such. Thankfully, after looking ALL OVER for decals, I finally found what I was looking for during my recent trip to PA - and at the last hobby shop I visited.

I also picked up an ESSO tanker truck at another hobby shop. It, the station, and my SW-1 are all on the bench now awaiting further attention - as soon as my current house project wraps up(!)

Thanks for continuing to follow along here at the Valley Local, especially as my progress occurs in fits and starts. Your feedback and encouragement really helps keep things moving forward!

Wordless Wednesday #400: Sunset Diner, Cromwell

Model courtesy Bill Schneider

Wordless Wednesday #399 - Cromwell at a level of "Done-ness"

(Current situation - still lots left to do...)

Wordy Wednesday: (Lots of) Progress Report

There's definitely an inverse proportion of layout progress to blog posts. You wouldn't think that would be so, but it's certainly true in my case. The more progress I'm making, the less time I have (or want to take) to blog about it. Facebook actually makes it easier to put off blogging, since I can post quick updates to my Valley Local group page (and get pretty instant feedback too).

So the lack of posts doesn't necessary mean lack of progress - and in this case, it's been just the opposite. Here's a (hopefully) brief rundown of activity since my last progress report:

Wethersfield Backdrop @Jordan Lane

I mentioned in passing that Deb (aka The Missus) had helped me with some color choice for blending the foreground road with the background road at Jordan Lane. Here's how I went about it...

I should have taken a "before" photo, but here it is in progress... The foreground is what the entire road looked like (and as documented in this post - included a *fail* for using actual concrete). It was WAY too different from the color of the background road. So I got a craft paint color that matched the "overall" color of the background road and applied it with a 1/4" wide brush, not worrying about (and actually embracing) the variation that resulted.

I then blended it all in with a slightly lighter color of Pan Pastel.

Lastly, I used black PanPastel to add "oil marks" down the middle of the lanes, even carrying them up slightly onto the backdrop. I think you'll agree the road looks MUCH better now than how it started out!

Continuing Cromwell

I realize now that I never did a post starting Cromwell, so just by way of a quick overview...

I used foamcore (with the paper peeled off) for Main Street (aka Middlesex Turnpike), and a combo of cardboard strip lattice and plaster cloth for the subterrain. Then I started playing with structure placement, guided by my embryonic Cromwell backdrop.

For the sidewalks, I decided to try these laser-cut MDF ones that I got for Christmas.

I laid the structures out on top of chip board that was the same thickness as the sidewalks (about 1/16"). These cutouts would form the base/foundation for the structures and raise them up even with the walks.

Alternately, I made a sidewalk/structure base combo out of foamcore (again, with the paper removed) for the station. After scribing in the lines, I painted this "concrete" with Apple Barrel Country Grey.

The road "north" of the tracks, as well as the subbase for the town structures, was cut from one large piece of foamcore. Like with all my foamcore, I remove the paper to reveal nice texture for concrete roads - it's also impervious to water (no warping) and is easy to scribe. Here, after scribing in the expansion joints, I've masked off the road for painting.

Main Street and town subbase in place, with structure base outlines marked in.

Mine is a very slow, iterative process - especially when it comes to structure placement and backdrop positioning.

But all this time pays off when you get the result that looks "right" to your eye - like this.

One of my biggest challenges is actually committing - whether it's gluing down structures, or sending a photo-shopped background image to be printed. But at some point, you have to "Just Do It" or be paralyzed by over-analysis. Here's the final Cromwell backdrop. It won't stand the scrutiny of eagle-eyes, but should work fine as a background for the main activity up front.

Once I got the final background print, I realized that the road color was a little off. So I repainted it to better match and I glued down the foam core (brushed on full strength white glue), glued on the structure bases, and weighed everything down. 

Once that was all dry, I masked off where the sidewalks would go, applied some craft paint for color and adhesion, and sifted on fine dirt in the parking areas (per prototype photos).

The paint I used as a base for the dirt was Apple Barrel Pewter Gray, to match the undertone in the shoulders/parking areas of the background photo. I sifted the dirt on using a tea strainer.

While that was all drying, I used Folk Art "Barn Wood" to paint the sidewalks.

Taping them down kept them still while I used a 1/4" brush to paint the top and curbs. I didn't worry too much about brush strokes - you won't see them from the aisle and whatever your eye happens to pick up will perceive them as texture. At least that's true to my eye. YMMV.

And here's where things stand in Cromwell at the moment. I used the rest of my old Ground Goop to fill in behind the structures and fill the "triangle" between the road and tracks, and added fine ground foam (WS Burnt Grass and Green Blend) as a base for future static grass. I even used my new WS Static King for the first time to apply some grass between the buildings and the backdrop. But as you can see, I still haven't committed to gluing the backdrop in place (I really don't know what I'm waiting for). Ditto the sidewalks. BTW - note the track, how uniform it looks (shot with rattle-can Rustoleum Camo Earth Brown).

For a little diversion, I decided to finish off the grade crossing in Dividend. The gray you see is all foam core (without paper). I've filled in with DAP Vinyl Spackle.

Turns out, the spackle is really smooth and has none of the "concrete" looking texture of the foam core. But colored right it doesn't look too obvious (though I'll be looking for an alternative patching material - may try plaster). The spackle was first painted with the same base color as the road, then weathered with PanPastels. Did the same with the large parking/truck area (including oil/grease drips under where the engines of the loading trucks would be).

Remember the uniform-looking ties? Well, I spent a fun evening (truly!) listening to a couple of podcasts and drybrushing ties. Click here & scroll down for details on the process I use. IMO, the results are VERY much worth it!

So there you have it - progress over the course of a few weeknights and a weekend. It's still glacially slow, IMO, but at least I continue to move forward.

But now, I have some "honey-do" items that The Missus has been kind enough to let me postpone while I recover from legislative session. It's getting warmer though, and those projects can't be put off any longer. They're all outdoor projects, so don't be surprised if I pray for a little rain now and then! >:^)

Until next time - hope to see you back in Cromwell soon!