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Written by Paul D. Race for Big Indoor TrainsTM

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Antique Brick (344K) This was the first "brick" paper I posted on this web site, and it has been very popular. I originally created it to use on the sides of some shallow buildings that would basically only be seen from the front. To make it fairly weather-resistant, I used an Alps 2000 printer, which prints waterproof copy (at $1-$2 a page for a full-color photo). I also printed these on .010" white plastic, which not every printer will handle. If you print this with an ink-jet, don't use it outside unless you've coated it with a waterproof acrylic spray or something similar first. This texture is also useful to add temporary "streets" to inside railroads or collectible villages. It isn't as nice as the products made for that purpose, but it's pretty much free and it looks better than the top of the buffet. Resize them larger or smaller to suit the scale of your trains and buildings.






Regular Pavers - I harvested this image in the old industrial district just east of downtown Dayton (near the Webster Street Market). It consists of old pavers, probably a century old, that were reset on a street near a shopping district to provide an old-timey feel. If you want old pavers that have stayed down for their entire lifetime, try the next graphic down.

To make this graphic as useful as possible to most people, I have created three different versions.







Coarse Pavers - I harvested this near the image above. Unlike those pavers, these have been right where they are for about a century. The courses that run the opposite direction have probably replaced an open drain, not a trolley line, although there were the remnants of trolley tracks in the same block. If you want a coarse, broken-down, and patched-up look for an old factory or city street, this pattern will do it for you.

To make this graphic as useful as possible to most people, I have created three different versions.







Hocking Valley Pavers - I harvested this image a block away from the image above. This section of road has also been repaved with old pavers to keep the "old-timey" look near the shopping district. The pavers may be old, but the work is new, as you can tell from the fact that the paver manufacturer's name is on the top, which only happened by accident in the old days. Still it is a unique look, and the yellow and blue pavers make a nice change from the traditional red ones.

To make this graphic as useful as possible to most people, I have created three different versions.





Flagstone Veneer - Although this looks like the flagstones you see on patios, it is actually a vertical "veneer" used on the wall of an office building in Vandalia, Ohio. Of course that shouldn't keep anyone with an indoor railroad or collectible villages from using it for a street or patio surface as well.

To make this graphic as useful as possible to most people, I have created a version suitable for smaller (indoor) scales as well as a version suitable for larger scales.

T111 Siding - Although you could probably use this for antique barn siding, it is actually based on a weather-blasted utility building at a storage rental in Vandalia, Ohio. In addition to making your own weather-blasted-looking buildings, this texture is also useful indoors for making wooden sidewalks or station platforms.

This texture is available in a Dollhouse Scale Version as well as a version suitable for smaller scales.

Stacked Stone - The historic section of the Southern Hills neighborhood of Kettering, Ohio has undergone many recent restorations, including rebuilding of several retaining walls. They used new rough-quarried stone, stacked two deep with enough mortar in the cracks between the front and back layer to hold it together, but not enough to show too obviously from the front. This is ideal "stone wall" material that could also be used to represent pioneer-era building construction. The "wall top" file contains shots of the top of the walls. That file isn't pretty, as you mostly see mortar that obscures the stones, but it may be useful to anyone using this to represent stone walls per se.

Note: I took this photo with a 6mp camera, so the resolution was ridiculously high to begin with. I've had to reduce the resolution somewhat to get the files to reasonable size, but they're still pretty large. The "Smaller Scale Version" is just a "shrunk"-down version, so folks who want to use these for O or smaller scales don't have to download the big version and shrink it themselves. Please let me know if you find these higher-resolution files helpful, or if you think they are overkill. Also, you might keep in mind that making files this large downloadable increases my cost of running this page, hint, hint. . . :-)

Rough Tin Roof - So-called tin roofs are really sheet steel that is either galvanized (like buckets) or plated with a tin alloy (like "tin cans") . To protect them further or keep them from blinding passersby, they are often painted, usually green or silver. The first paint job usually lasts ten year or so; after that, they need to be repainted every few years to keep from rusting through (and once water can get to the underside, all bets are off, regardless). Fortunately for folks who like rustic-looking finishes on their buildings, not everybody keeps their tin roof painted like they should. This roof is on a barn at a plant nursery near New Carlisle Ohio.
Rough Cedar Shakes - If you ever wondered what happened to a cedar shake roof that was totally neglected, you have your answer, as well as a totally unique surface to add to any deserted barn or shed on your indoor railroad.

Note: Like the Stacked Stone shots above, I took this photo with a 6mp camera, so the resolution was ridiculously high to begin with. I've had to reduce the resolution somewhat to get the files to reasonable size, but they're still pretty large. Again, the "Smaller Scale Version" is just a "shrunk"-down version, so folks who want to use these for O or smaller scales don't have to download the big version and shrink it themselves. Please let me know of you find these higher-resolution files helpful, or if you think they are overkill. Also, you might keep in mind that making files this large downloadable increases my cost of running this page, hint, hint. . . :-)

Faded White Painted Barn Siding - A barn in Medway Ohio that had a good coat of paint on it is starting to look a little weather-weary. In addition to the fading and peeling paint, almost every board is beginning to show a vertical depression or crack, which makes many of the boards look half as wide as they usually are. That said, I've provided several versions so you can get one you like.

Again, the "Smaller Scale Version" is just a "shrunk"-down version, so folks who want to use these for O or smaller scales don't have to download the big version and shrink it themselves.

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