Plaster Cloth & Painting + A Little Fun

There be Mountains! The next step is to take plaster cloth dip it in water and lay it over the newspaper balls. The important thing is to make sure you have at least two layers of plaster over all of the newspaper for support. I like to lay one layer front to back, and then the other layer across the entire length.

It takes about 48 hours for the plaster to fully dry and harden. Now the real fun begins -- painting the mountain. This step was far easier than I thought. The paint you use is really diluted down and goes on like a water color. The trick is to brush it on and let it run down into the nooks and valleys. This way the crevices will collect darker colors and the tops of the mountains will be a little more bleached. When I finished, I couldn't believe how well everything turned out with so little effort.
I took this picture right after I had painted the mountains and laid down the track bed. A couple of buildings were placed to make sure everything is fitting well. I plugged in the DCC system and ran my first DCC train engine around the layout. I couldn't believe how well everything worked, and having an engine with sound completely changes the model railroading experience. I'm still getting used to DCC after having spent decades with DC trains. So far my feelings are mixed, the control and sound capabilities are amazing, but wrapping my head around all of the commands, specifications, and lingo can be a little daunting.