This is the English Version of the Making of.. Page that was already published. To give our modelling friends around the world the chance to understand how to handel the kit and the machined barrel by 48 Special Models it was translated.
We recommend to take a closer look to this page before starting building the model. Although we don't think we know all about modelmaking it may be helpful to know the "mistakes" others did!

Instead of the German Version this is a finished Version which will not be updated anymore.

The Kit

The machined Barrel

Diorama preparations

The Base

Diorama

Shelter

Building Report

Fitting the Chassis

The Carriage

Generator-/ Ammunitoncontainer fitting

Painting
Troubleshootlist

To store the assembly sections more easy I decided to build the railroad cross first. Only for getting the size, the whole model will occupy in my livingroom, to my consciousness, this made sense. I instandly realized I need to add a room to my house. The railroad cross occupies about 1m² of space. A size impossible for permanent display. A straight track was to less for me facing the turntable, which will be erased in that case. The track cross was to wide, that 's why I decided to redesign the tracks. I reduced the one cross section to a short piece and added the surplus to the long track section. I had to check the segments to ensure it will work first. Then the segments were cemented together and the ties where put in. At the connections of the segments 3mm plastic sheet were cemented in from the inside for reinforcement. The base plate was measured out and cut in shape beforehand. For the straight part of the base I used an exsiting 19mm thick chipboard, which was veneered with real wood unnecessaryly. The turntable part was a simple chipboard piece. Both are connected with furniture couplers (from the home store). The use of it is to disconnect the turntable part for transport as well as for separate display. This reduces the total space needed to 154cmx 23cm. Enough to put it on the windowsill or the closet. 

The Base

On top of the base a slat is screwed, which is as high as the inside of the railroad embankment and minimum as wide as the ties. This supports the embankment and prevents bending down under the weight of the model. The open end of the embankment is filled with a piece of plastic sheet, sanded to fit and cemented so it becomes a smooth surface. The small holes inside the embankment need to be sealed by use of tape. Sounds like a lot of work, but is more. It is necessary to prevent the PUR-foam injected later to poor out. A 3mm wide papertape will do. Put a strip to a smooth surface and cut out a long 5mm wide strip. Then cross cut 2mm wide small strips by help of a ruler and a hobby knife. Lift them of the surface with a cutter and stick them to the inside of the ties. They will stay there forever.

The board is exactly as long as the embankment. By use of epoxy glue the embankment was cemented to the board and slat. The whole slat was cemented on. So it has the most strenght possible. Than in both sides of the embankment several holes were drilled. Here a PUR-foam was injectes carefully and in little amounts. It will expand about 2 to 5 times in volume! and release a lot of force. That's why the embankment should be held down by a board on top of it which is clamped to the base. 

So I want to build the embankment true to the original shape and not in the museum like style like in the kit, I skipped the sanding of the segment edges and covered it with a PUR- foam wedge, which I cut to shape and cemented it on with the same mounting foam. After that the foam was fitted to shape individually, covered with epoxy resin and sprinkled with the fitting size gravel. Afterwards it was completely sprayed with filler from a can to level it and fill small gaps.
Now the terrain is made by the help of thickened epoxy resin. So it isn't quite complicated terrain I limited it to give it an uneven structure and some tracks from a truck or car. To the still wet resin  sand was applied and some rocks placed too. The surplus sand was brushed off after drying and the edges were cleaned. 
Now the whole set was spraypainted with matt black from a can. This gives the needed depth for the onfollowing paintjob. Also the base edge gets its final finish. The edges will be taped then to protect them from the ongoing paint activities. The gravel is spraypainted with XF-64 tank grey then and the ties become a XF-10 brown. They need to be handpainted each! This takes a lot of time. After that all will be drybrushed with light grey. This looks erie, but don't panic. After the tracks are laied all will be covered with a layer of rust, to simulate breakedust etc.. Then much of the light grey will vanish again.

The tracks are pushed to the ties. Beforehand they have been sanded on the lower side and painted iron. Adding on a little brown follows to simulate rust. Don't sand them to good, they need to have a little resistance when laied. Start with the turntable. The cross roads need to be installed first. It is important to adjust them proper and not to cement them, because they may be shifted in small amounts. The plate in the middle needs to be installed before the cross rails are cemented! Same occures to the circle segments which are mounted below the tracks.

The rails should be pushed from the outside in and be put in no further than one rail lenght before. Use a flat piece of wood or metal to push the rail forward and take care the rail doesn't get wedged. On the first centimeters it is mostly easier to lift the rail at the front and draw it. Take care that two rails ends meet in the right spot! The couplers that connect them only fit to certain positions. Use them as a template. At the edge of the two bases the surplus part of one rail end will be cut of accurate and used on the opposit side of the track again. When all rails fit prefect they can be cemented with thin superglue. Cementing the rail couplers is almost enough. 

Are the rails laied the embankment will be finished with rust, followed by a darkwash. This will add depth again. 

The terrain was covered with epoxy resin partially and static grass was applied. So it only stays where it is wanted. A thick bristle brush is used to nudge the static gras to the surface. After drying the surplus is brushed off. Now the terrain will be colored. By spraypainting and drybrushing with several browns it gets a natural look.
The gras will be spraypainted too with different greens. This helps to prevent it from fading out and makes it more sturdy. Also it looks more like real gras than plastik fluffs. Now the final gardening can appear to happen.
 

To place the model, with the complete railroad into the box, one side of the shelter can be removed by hinges. So the railroad can be put inside easy and the shelter can be shown cut open too. By use of the hinges it can also be closed for transport or shown in complete. For transport a handel is to be mounted on, which is taken of the rest of the time. 

The wooden gates on both ends are mounted movable. Eather so that one side can be opened or both. Therefore the gates are fixed with hinges. 
The outer gates roll on rails at the top. This rail construction is just stuck into holes in the shelterwall and can be put of for transport.

The shelter was made after the diorama was completed and therefore made to fit. Who wants to make a shelter also and hasn't even started making the diorama, should check for the right height of the railroad dam and the shelter ground beforehand, to prevent problems when puting them side to side.

The shelter isn't completed jet. The picture gallery will be completed soon and the diorama can be seen live at the Expertentag in  Mainz.