We want pics of the cylindrical steel ore bin!
This project has been on hold for a very long time. Because it was unfinished, I hadn’t even given it a UV-protective coat, so I’ve been putting it outside only for photos or shows, and storing it indoors the rest of the time. Now I’ve finally got it “finished”. Not quite completely finished, because eventually I will have to put in the lights, interior details, and window signs, etc. But for now it’s done…
First off, way back in October I added the sheet metal flashing over the top of the brick wall. This was made from .010" shim brass, painted with zinc paint. I also added chimneys, one on each side wall:
Later the building was weathered, particularly the roof and window ledges.
More recently, I built the removable “drawers” for the interior. There are two, one for the ground floor, and one for the second floor. However, the second floor interior ended up being used only as a light block and to fill the space. (more on this later).
Anyway, here are some shots of the ground floor interior structure. Since this is supposed to be an old hardware store, I went with an unfinished style ceiling. The walls and floor are photographic textures printed onto self-adhesive vinyl and “weathered” slightly with thin washes of craft acrylics. I still need to add a door to the rear wall. This is all I’m doing on the interior for now, but later it will be fully detailed and lighted :
Already the exterior looks better with the interior installed. I also finished painting the doors, installing glass, and adding the door knobs. The key plates/door knobs are scratch built from styrene, because I wanted something a little fancier than usual:
The second story windows are blocked, which is why I didn’t do anything with the interior there. Two of the windows have old sheets loosely draped across them. These were made from thin silk cloth. For each piece, I glued the upper corners to a brass rod, then coated the material liberally with artist’s acrylic matte medium and hung it up to dry. Once dry, they were painted off-white. BTW, note the bird poop on the window ledges:
The third window was already partially blocked by the air conditioner. I covered the upper sash with “old cardboard”. To create this effect, I found a photo online of a vintage cardboard box and used it to make a photographic texture. This was printed onto self-adhesive vinyl, retouched with craft acrylics, and applied to a thin brass sheet:
Here are some shots of the completed structure:
And a nice view up the sidewalk:
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Outstanding work !
Ray, your work is amazing.
Truly impressive, Ray.
What else can I say but what they all said…
Ray, incredible, absolutely incredible!
Is it real or memorex??? Truely amazing workmanship…
I quit!
Ray wins!
Thanks guys!
David Russell said:
I quit!
Ray wins!
Yup… Ray wins… That is ultimately awesome… Bird doo and all…
I’m speechless. Or is it wordless? Either way, Ray, your work is in a class of its own. Superb.
What they all said… and then some!!!
-Kevin.
Wow!
Why don’t you climb up those steps and have the wife take a photo of you?
I mean, holly cr*p that can’t get anymore realistic.
I should have just said WOW too!
I wonder how he would model something “New”
Ya he wins hands down!
Holy smokes! I officially hereby and forthwith demand by these presents that a small-town storefront SHALL NOT be the subject of our next Challenge Build! No no no!
LOL!
Thanks, everyone!
Wonderful work Ray. Details like this doorway are what make your modeling outstanding.
Stan Cedarleaf said:
David Russell said:
I quit!
Ray wins!
Yup… Ray wins… That is ultimately awesome… Bird doo and all…
I third that. Ray wins!!