Squeezably Soft For My Caboose

With the four walls of the caboose assembled, it was time for the roof.  I hadn't yet decided what I was going to use for a roof, so I had some thinking to do.  After obtaining the necessary inspirational material, I began pondering the situation.

After a few minutes of deep thought, I found my answer.

My caboose needed a curved roof, and here I was, looking at a curved (round, in fact) piece of cardboard.  If you've ever tried to flatten a toilet paper (or paper towel) roll, you know that it's impossible.  The cardboard wants to return to it's curved state.  To me, it seemed like this would be easier than trying to curve a flat piece of cardboard.  This "pre-curved" cardboard would give me a nice smooth curve, and would naturally hold that shape.

I proceeded to cut a piece from the empty roll, and attached that piece to the top of the caboose.  After a little trimming, it fit perfectly!

The fit is perfect, but the look isn't quite right.  The prototype caboose that I'm modeling didn't have a smooth roof, it appears to have been built from several sections of sheet metal - there are visible seams in the photo that I'm working from.

To achieve that look, I turned to what is fast becoming a favorite modeling medium of mine - aluminum foil.  Using strips of foil, each 36 scale inches wide, I began covering the roof of the caboose.  The aluminum foil is readily held in place with CA.

Hopefully tomorrow I will find time to finish applying the foil strips, and then I can paint and weather the metal roof.