Originally conceptualized in 2020, the goal of the Oasis Palms project is to create an O-gauge layout of Oasis Palms in the early 1960s. The platform for the installation is approximately the size of a ping-pong table (5’x9′) which allows us to represent the town, gold mine, and elevated scenic railroad in 1:48 scale making it possible to transport the finished work.
In the fall of 2022, the installation planning started. Because we wanted this to be a kinetic sculpture with a working railroad, initial planning was done using a model railroad CAD program called SCARM. The Oasis Palms track plan was laid out and approximate terrain, streets, sidewalks, and buildings were added. The final result was a working track plan that we would be able to recreate using off-the-shelf Lionel Fastrack.
While Oasis Palms sits on a plateau in the Mojave Desert, SCARM renders its ground cover in rich green grass. Other than the green disconnect SCARM allowed us to lay out the track and place the town buildings. A few of the buildings were also modeled in SCARM, while others were represented with simple boxes to approximate the building’s footprint. Want to build your own Desert Oasis? Download the Desert Oasis SCARM file.
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