A valence is a theatrical term for the stage curtain that is hanged abover and in front of the front curtains on a stage. They are meant to hide the stage hardware and give the performance space a more tidy, interesting look.
A fascia is a horizontal piece (such as a board) covering the joint between the top of a wall and the projecting eaves. They are meant to hide the front edge of the performance space.
Valences and Fascia are often found on large home layouts, although they also can be found on shelf layouts. They are primarily used to:
- Give a finished look to the layout.
- Hide lighting above the layout and storage below the layout.
- Offer permanent information for use during operational settings.
Valences can be made from a variety of material: fabric, plastic sheeting, and wallboard.
Fascia is often gatorboard, wallboard or formica sheet.
Valences and fascia can be uncolored, colored in the railroads primary or secondary colors, colored in geologic or terrain color.
The WWSLThe WWSL is going to have both valence and fascia. Both will be painted black to maximize the visual effects of the right of way and scenery and minimize the impact of fascia 'clutter'.
Construction
Valance.
My intent for the valence is to: 1) hide the gap between the top of the backdrop and the bottom of the drywall ceiling approximately 7" of wall visible), and 2) hide the light bar illuminating the upper deck.
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I'm 6' tall (72"). The room is 87" high floor to ceiling. Each module is 24" deep, and the average operator will be about 30" or more away from the wall. Measuring downward from the ceiling module the 7" of visible wall generally disappears from view at 15 1/2". I set the valence height at 15 3/4" which would allow 3 panels to be cut from one 4'x 8' luan panel.
Each panel was constructed with 1"x 3" lumber.
- The top horizontal was a 1"x 3" L-girder.
- The bottom horizontal was a single 1"x 3".
- Each end and one center vertical (at the 4' line) was cut to size and all pieces were biscuit cut for additional strength.
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Construction began with the top L-girder glued and screwed with 3/4" wood screws. The three verticals were glued into the top. The bottom horizontal 1"x 3" was then glued to the luan and the verticals. The entire panel was then clamped and allowed to dry. When dry, the panel was flipped over and the verticals and the bottom horizontal were screwed to the panel with 3/4" screws.
Fascia
My intent for the fascia was to: 1) Give a finished look to the layout, 2) give train crews operational support information (station names, mile post information), and 3) give a stable mounting location for car card boxes, sorting rack and pen/uncoupling holders.
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The fascia is fabricated from 1/8" luan plywood, the same material as the backdrop. The height is 8 inches in general (the height of the L-Girder benchwork and section panel). The fascia is also painted black with a satin finish. The fascia will be installed after the scenery has been constructed to help define the land contour in front of the tracks.
Fascia can be screwed in or it can be nailed. For my experiment, I used 1 inch brads shot thru my brad nailer into the L-Girder and section panel. Very simple and the brads hold fairly well. I have installed the fascia along a majority of the WWSL right of way to give the layout room a more finished look while I'm laying track and constucting landforms on the smaller portions of the right a way.Shields
A shields is employed to protect sensitive areas (such as signal bridges) near the
edge of the layout to avoid accidental bumping from operators. Plexiglass or Lexan will be used. I haven't installed any to date but those modelers who have used shields have used 1/8 inch or 1/4 inch thick material.
Resources
Here is a list of web sites that I have relied on in the past and
present when it comes to backdrop construction. Each of them has an
excellent series of construction articles that you will find of
interest.
Southern Pacific Cascade Line Bill uses hardboard valence and fascia painted a dark green to fit his western Oregon region. .
Conrail's Onondaga Cutoff.blogspot.com Dave Abeles uses 1/8in tempered hardboard for his valence and fascia. The fascia is painted gray.
Adena Railroad Chris Ellis uses tempered hardboard for his fascia.
Chesapeake, Wheeling and Erie Railroad Tom Patterson uses 1/8in masonite for his facia and it is painted dark green.
Signal Station 199 Joe Smith uses 1/8in masonite for his fascia and it is painted black.
LK&O Alan uses hardboard for the valence and fascia. The valence is painted his sky blue color and the fascia is painted a chalkboard slate color. .
New Britain Station Randy uses masonite for his fascia and it is painted Hunter Green.
PRR - Northern Central The PRR - Northern Central uses masonite for the fascia and it is painted PRR Dark Green.
Mark Pruitt uses tempered hardboard for the fascia and it is painted an Olive Green color.
Hedley Junction Matthieu Lachance1/8in MDF for his valence and fascia. The fascia is painted a grayish earth color.
Maryland and Pennsylvania Ted DiIorio uses 3/16in masonite for his fascia, and it is painted black.
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