Large Scale Central

Home run, or, "Ya can never have enough buildings"

Modeling
#1

I was on a roll. After completing my small cabin, minus the diorama, I felt I needed to maintain that momentum, so I dug into my file of need-to-builds and decided what my town needed was another house. I’d been collecting various photos of possible contenders, but the one that kept calling was a two-story I’d spotted on the Laserkit site. I liked the front porch (every truly American house should have one) and the little rear add-on, which apparently is a kitchen. So I started measuring, intrapolating and doing everyhthing else ya need to do to scale up from HO to 1:22.5, including counting the boards in the siding to determine how big something like a window was. After lots of fudging around I came up with dimensions that looked right, so I decided to mock 'er up in cardboard before cutting any styrene. Thsi way, if it didn’t look right, I was out only a hunk of cardboard (I have more than the average homeless person). In the process I knew I would need windows, so before embarking on another scratchbuilding venture, I decided to go through my Grandt Line collection. No dice. The windows I had were just not right. But what to use as a template? Well, it just so happens my small hotel, which you guys have yet to see, was about the same size as my future home, so I dug out all the Xerox copies of that building, checked the windows, which were just right, then made copies to glue in behind the window openings of my home–just to make the mockup look more presentable. Long story shorter, I got carried away. I built the porch, its overhang, the rear add-on/kitchen and even a basa wood chimnet, which I colored with Bragdon Brick Red and Rust weathering powders. Oh, yeah, I also painted everything with Rustoleum Gray, and Black Automotive Primer. And even though a simple paint job would have sufficed, I stuck strips of masking tape to the roof to simulate tar paper. Is this anal or what? After the paint had dried, I glue-gunned the whole mess together and, Ta-Da! My model of a model. Hope you like it. Next week, I bring out the styrene.

#2

Nice Joe. You need an indoor railroad; then you could call that building done!

#3

Nice! Your cardboard mockup is nicer than the crap I build for real.

Terry

#4

nice looking house… Should be a beauty in Styrene…

#5

Nice mockup. Looks like a company house.

#6

WOW! Some mockup… I’m with Terry…

#7

Well done. that is a neat building. I will watch with interest when you start the styrene one.

#8

Thanks, gang. Sorry for the delay in responding, but we were up in Sacramento where I got to shoot details of the South Pacific Coast Rwy sidedoor caboose, another project I am planning. Great museum and some super people who are really into trains–real and our kind.

But back to the house. I really got into rivet counting trying to upsize the thing from HO. For example, how big is that rear kitchen, etc. Like some real person is gonna cook in it?

Jon, I agree, if I modeled indoors I’d be all done.

As for the styrene part, which I’ll either add to this post or start as a fresh post, I’m thinking of trying a different technique of cutting out the window and door openings. Up to now, I have either used the scribe and snap method, which takes a ton of scribing with material 1/8-inch thick. Or I’ve drilled pilot holes at the corners and big hole in the middle where you insert the saw, then cut to the corners and around with a hand or power saw. A keyhole saw (manual) takes a lot of sawing–zootoo, zootoo, zootoo–which drives everyone around you crazy. A skill saw (power) runs real fast and can melt the styrene. A scroll saw, is the same as a skill saw only bigger and takes more to work to set up, as you have to unhook the blade and thread it through the pilot hole at each opening. Plus, as easy as it seems to just color within the lines–or simply follow the pencil marks–scroll saws have a mind of their own, and like dogs smelling fear on a human, them saws sense a novice operator and take off in an uncharted direction when they sense ineptitude. Ask me how I know this.

So, based on a method used by the excellent modelers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (hey, it’s not all about science and keggers at old RPI), I am going to try their technique which involves cutting a whole wall into pieces, throwing away the window opening pieces, then “glueing” the remaining parts back together (hopefully, in the right order) to reconstitute the wall. Styrene cements, as well as MEK, and such, “weld” everything together and if you do it right, a reassembled piece is almost as strong as an uncut one. True, the joints aren’t dead smooth, but after you cover the whole thing with Precision Plastic sheet or even individual pieces of siding, ya won’t know the difference and she’ll be plenty strong.

However, before I begin cutting them walls, I may start by making the windows, as I’ll be needing another rainy day project that I can work on away from home. I’ll need 16 large, two or three small (for the kitchen) and two doors, which are a piece of cake–or a piece of styrene.

Chimney-wise, I’ve been itching to try Precision Board, a densly-packed urethane foam material that’s used in sign and pattern making. It cuts/carves like wood and makes great looking bricks. When I visited the Pipers, who run Rainbow Ridge and sell pre-scribed sheets of the stuff (not inexpensive, but weather can’t kill it), Ross gave me a discarded slice that may just be large enough for a chimney. To get great looking bricks with size you want (usually 8 or 9-inches by 3), ya just scribe the stuff with a dental pick or any pointy object (my head, if it weren’t so fat), or attack it with your Dremel tool. The material has a nice rough texture so it replicates masonry or wood perfectly.

I hear eyelids snapping shut, so I’ll wind it up for now. As you were.

#9

Joe - If you are going to cover with siding anyway, Have you considered clear acrylic sheet rather than styrene for the walls? No openings to cut, and no glazing to add. Glue on your window and door frames, then add you siding. I don’t speak from experience, just from watching others!

#10

Jon, yes I have–considered clear acrylic sheet. In fact, on my Riders Crossing general store, a work in progress, I’ve used clear acrylic for the store front windows, which have a lot of cross pieces, moldings and such. And several people such as Russ Miller (TAP Plastics) and Richard “Port Orford” Smith have suggested using the stuff. But I’m sure that in the depths of what passes for a mind, I have a reason not to. Besides, I am of the Polish persuassion and kinda pig-headed (the word in our language is “uparty,” which is pronounced oo-par-ti, the ti sounding like the “i” in “it.”). Or maybe it sounds like “You Party,” 'cause I do! :slight_smile:

#11

Hi Joe,

That is going to be a good looking building, you have done a lot of work so far, I look forward to the building of it.

Thanks also for the name of the iste from which you had the idea - very useful!

Yours peter