Shedding the O-Gauge Zen Garden

My $5.00 purchase.

A while ago I picked up a Lionel Barrel Shed kit. these kits are quite common. Lionel/MPC brought them out in mid-1970s, and over time offered assembled versions. The latter is still available from Lionel as of 2018.

When I purchased my kit at auction (for $5.00), I intended to use it on my O-gauge Zen garden. Building this kit represented something of a turning point in my philosophy about the layout.

The Plasticville structures I had put together could all be disassembled and restored to their original condition. Not so this toy train "collectible."

Once I started applying the paint and glue, there was no turning back. And, really, that was fine. I knew exactly what I wanted to do with this model, and where I wanted it to go.

Even with the additional materials I used, I still came in way under list price.

The metal Erector shed had a very toy-like appearance.

One of the original additions to the layout was a metal shed. It came with many Erector sets of both pre- and post-war eras. I had mounted it to a green-painted board and placed a single light bulb inside.

The footprint of the barrel shed was about the same as that of the Erector shed.

One of the first decisions I made was to not use the barrel shed's included base. I kept the piece in case I changed my mind, but I wanted the shed to sit directly on the layout.

I also opted to replace the molded plastic gooseneck lamp with one that worked. My choice was the Woodland Scenics Just Plug Lighting System. The set came with two scale gooseneck lights. And that was fine. This would not be the last project I would use these lights for.

The barrel shed has a more realistic appearance, especially with the exterior light.

I painted the shed to match the color scheme of the adjacent building. I've seen several structures at a small station all painted alike, and it just looked right (as you can see below).

I didn't have to buy any paint, glue, or filler. I already had plenty left over from other projects. My only additional expense was the lighting system. And half of those lights I used elsewhere.

So overall, I'm quite happy with this latest addition to the Zen garden.