Mark Boyce posted:I am doing something similar, but with a painted backdrop on sections of Masonite that I bought from a Forum member a few years ago. His intent was to show the Ohio River valley with the hills above. I won't have room above track level for the whole 4-foot high sections, so I will be able to cut off portions to fit. I won't be using the river portion, and will be using the sections in a different order than he did. Here is a photograph shortly after I brought them home.
Here are two sections that I did have cut and lined up for the mountains to match. I slid one over the other to start moving things and cleaning up the mess before starting benchwork on the next wall. It is tight quarters building an O gauge layout in an 11x11 room. The other sections are leaning against the wall protected from scratching.
Mark, my original backdrops I created in the mid-1990s were also sections of Masonite that I painted. That's another way to go if one either has artistic skill, knows someone who does, or is willing to learn. I learned from reading books about scenery that included a chapter on painting a backdrop. Here is a sample of a section of Masonite in the background (the blue sky, light green trees in the distance and darker green tree, all behind the red caboose parked on the siding and the trees, rowboats and scenery in the foreground) that I painted:
Because of my lack of artistic talent, I needed to paint the Masonite boards many times to get it right, using acrylic paints. This was in contrast to my older sister, who stunned me one day with her artistic skill. After telling her I was struggling to paint a mountain on a poster, she literally picked up a brush and painted a beautiful mountain in 5 seconds. Here it is:
Mark, I think the backdrops you have, painted on sections of Masonite, are beautiful; they will help you create a gorgeous layout. Arnold
