Category: Raildig Build Projects

The Haunted Hamlet Layout | Part 3
In this installment of the MTL Haunted Hamlet build, we get down to fleshing out the layout, and we begin with the layout base. I wanted to give the layout a good authentic Halloween feel. As we wrote earlier, the base inspiration came from a rustic serving tray with rope handles. I do like to […]

The Haunted Hamlet Layout | Part 2
Last time in the Haunted Hamlet build, we got our layout base together and rough arrangement of the buildings in place. This time out, we’re finalizing some of the hamlet’s details. Even on a layout this small, I want to have a sense of a place; roads that come in and out of town, like […]

The Haunted Hamlet Layout | Part 1
Welcome to our online build of the N scale Micro-Trains Haunted Hamlet layout, a small but very scary layout! I wanted to build this little layout for some Halloween fun and maybe to get some of you to build a similar layout as a great way to introduce some younger people to the hobby. Kids love […]

Micro-Trains Haunted Hamlet Layout
Almost every year for the past several years around this time, I’ve wanted to play with the Micro-Trains Haunted Hamlet building set, usually a few days or so before Halloween and by then it’s a bit late. This year, I’m all in for the Haunted Hamlet, and over a month before Halloween get here, cool! […]

Kato Unitrack Weathering Update
In the last Kato Unitrack article, we masked the rails on our track before painting. We took this extra step to keep the color of the gray roadbed untouched to allow for a better color blend when we added the Kato ballast. By painting the rail sides, we also eliminate any metal from the rail […]

Painting Kato Unitrack Rail
In a recent article, I applied Kato ballast to HO, N and Z scale track and I was pretty happy with the results. Here’s the link to that article: https://raildig.com/useful-tools/kato-unitrack-ballast-for-ho-n-z-scale. What I was less happy about was the rail itself, specifically my paint coverage of the rail sides, there was still too much underlying shine […]

Add Roofing To Our Pizza Layout Buildings
We previously added a little age to our MTL laser kits and we were going to tackle the decals next but decided instead to add some custom roof work to these buildings. The thinking was, it would be better to have these kits basically finished, except for final weathering, before we applied our decals. This […]

Aging The MTL Kits
Just a quick post tonight as it’s already 3:40 AM, seriously, how do I manage to lose a couple of hours whenever I’m working with trains and kits? Missing time aside, I thought I’d take a few photos just prior to the decal work I’ll be doing on these kits. I’ve added the Grandt Line […]

Pre-Decal Paint For Our Yard Kits
For some time now, I’ve wanted to make my own water slide decals and I think the Micro-Trains kits I’ve built for the pizza layout are some great decal candidates! Late last year I picked up an HP Color LaserJet for work but (much as I hate to admit it) have yet to try my […]

MTL Laser Kits For The Pizza Layout
After getting our Kato Compact Unitrack grungy in the last article, it’s time to look to the structures for our pizza layout. Since I’m working on the idea of a yard-flavored scene with this layout, I looked at the Micro-Trains Line Yard Structures Kit that includes 3 kits with relatively small footprints. This kit set […]