Scalefour Forum

I was making this line side hut whilst painting road vehicles when I was called away on more urgent matters. I have not done any modelling for more than a month but today managed to finish the hut.

I bought the etched kit at the Exeter Show back in May from Severn Models. Most of the kits are in 2mm but I was told that more will be appearing in 4mm. I must say I was very impressed by the kits I saw on the stand and am very glad I bought this hut. I will buy more kits. They go together well and are simplicity itself to make.

I shall clean it up and take it to the Missenden Summer Retreat (there is one non-resident place left) next month to acquire a coat of paint.

Nice.

Dave

It does look very nice indeed; and Thanks for drawing my attention to this manufacturer.
Some of the 2mm stuff looks useful for those of us with a taste for very small trains.

I too bought one. Very impressed with the etching.

They also do some very fine/delicate corrugated roof sheets.

Impressive indeed. Hard to believe brass (unpainted) can really look like brick and wood planks - although I suppose we're used to the latter from wagon kits. Just regret there is nothing on my prototype to justify one for my layout.

Prompted by our Deputy Chairman's post this morning, I realised that I had not put up pictures of my completed hut which was actually painted a while ago.

I think that chimney needs re-pointing!

Severn Models are a fairly new supplier. I saw them at the High Wycombe show last weekend and they have some interesting products which can be seen at www.SevernModels.com They will be invited to attend Scaleforum next year.

Terry Bendall

As a couple of other members of this Forum have posted about their progress at Missenden recently, I though I would share mine as well.

I have long been a fan of Ivan Smith's (Southwark Bridge) models. I have had a number of packets sitting around - I find them useful as a change of scene when doing something else long-term. I spent the weekend just gone at Missenden making a couple of wheelbarrows (the wheels do go round), illustrated below with a bicycle made one evening at DRAG, a parcels barrow I made last October at Missenden and three GWR wooden platform benches (Dart Castings) I made this afternoon.

If you have not made any of these, they are very good to practise your soldering skills (note the 5p piece).

Southwark Bridge kits are now available from Roxey Mouldings.

Having deveoped an appreciation of the SBM "Fiddly things", I can do nothing more than congratulate you on some absolutely superb examples of same.

I have a barrow to paint and an ice cream bike to finish myself. I look forward to seeing yours painted!

Regards,

Craig

Craig Warton wrote:I have a barrow to paint and an ice cream bike to finish myself. I look forward to seeing yours painted!

Thank you, Craig. I am so pleased there is someone else who needs to get round to painting. I am always rather reluctant to make a start, though once started it doesn't seem so bad.

How many more reluctant painters are there out there? What is it that makes us put the job off? Is it unfamiliarity with the bewildering range of paints available; making a mess of what you have spent countless hours creating; just plain unfamiliarity with the tools; what else?

Inspirational modelling David.

I think there is a certain sense of satisfaction when a brass kit has been successfully, cleanly and neatly completed and stands gleaming on the bench or track.

On the rare occasions I get to this point I am very happy to admire the shiny brass - and somewhat reluctant to cover all that work over with paint.

Joe

David B wrote:How many more reluctant painters are there out there? What is it that makes us put the job off? Is it unfamiliarity with the bewildering range of paints available; making a mess of what you have spent countless hours creating; just plain unfamiliarity with the tools; what else?

A reluctant painter certainly describes me. I think it is just that I feal fairly confident I am competent in the material bashing area, as that is where I spend most of my time, but less confident with painting on which I spend very much less time. It is also the finish stage, and I'm not a great finisher, usually needing a decent inventive, like an exhibition, to force me over the finish line.

I love painting and weathering models when I get started. It is the getting started bit that can be tough unless the planets are aligned. Building a model is, as Will remarked, a purely mechanical thing. But painting is where interpretation and artistry comes into play and the mood has to be right!

One of my sideline interests is an interest in German WW2 ground forces and modelling them. Some of the work done by military modellers is really worth a look. Not everything translates across but some stuff and techniques are brilliant.

I have 5 more wagons that are now finished so I may need to fire the airbrush up again.

I might even get my barrow and ice cream bike painted before you do David!

Regards,

Craig

Craig Warton wrote:..Building a model is, as Will remarked, a purely mechanical thing...

I suppose I sort of said that, but I would like to think my way with metal is as lest as much an art as a craft and never just mechical.

Craig Warton wrote:I might even get my barrow and ice cream bike painted before you do David!

A challenge, Craig? Give me a few days - I am off to the 101 event tomorrow & Saturday.

Will L wrote:

Craig Warton wrote:..Building a model is, as Will remarked, a purely mechanical thing...

I suppose I sort of said that, but I would like to think my way with metal is as lest as much an art as a craft and never just mechical.

Will,

I know I was paraphrasing you and it was not intended in a demeaning way. No matter how well a model is painted, if it is not well built then it will not look any good, despite the line that a good paint job can lift an ordinary model etc

For myself i find assembly more mechanical in that it is reliant on things being neat and square, though having said that, there certainly is a craft and skill in doing that - as well as discipline.

David, I think you will beat me to the painting unless I get a chance to paint this weekend!

Craig W

Blimey! That bicycle and stuff is some of the most exquisite scale modelling I think I have ever seen. Finer than a flea hair.
Well done indeed, inspirational stuff right there.

Responding to Craig's earlier post, I have painted / decorated my Ice Cream Trike (Southwark Bridge Models).

The main tub has been papered. I did the artwork ten times required size at 300dpi but left off the red border because it was very difficult to get the exact size for each panel. The artwork was reduced to 10% and adjusted (I think it eventually worked out at about 9% of the drawn size) then printed on a colour laser. This is why, with the close-up photo, you see the dots. These are not obvious at all on the model which measures just 25mm long, 15mm high & 10mm wide.

The red line I drew using a very fine spirit marker and touched the corner in with Citadel Khorne Red (acrylic from Games Workshop). The top was painted using Vallejo buff (70.976) and the two lids with Citadel's wonderfully named Leadbelcher.

If doing this again, I would find a better way of doing the red line on the edges and corners. It looks better on the model than in the photos. Alternatively, there are other liveries that can be copied, the easiest being all-over black with white printing.

David,

That is absolutely brilliant. Having one on my bench, I realise how small the things really are!

I have to say that I really do like these bikes and barrows from SBM. They are fun to build but also challenging and a great way to tidy up your soldering skills.

Congratulations on the ice cream bike, i love it!

regards,

Craig

The more I look at the images, the more dissatisfied I am with the result. I have therefore re-drawn each side with the border, scaled them down and printed.

Here, I have found a snag. The grainy appearance seems to be a problem when printing from Photoshop, which I used for the drawings. When I printed, even though I had a transparent background, the whole page was covered with very fine dots. I talked this over with Xerox, the printer manufacturer, and it seems the problem is with Photoshop so I will have to try printing from another application.

When I manage to do this and have re-papered the trike (assuming I get a decent print), I will post the results.

Has anyone else had a similar problem printing from Photoshop? My version is CS6.

Obvious question, without getting into your PS settings*, have you tried outputting to an inkjet (since unlike lasers which actually works in dots, inkjets only approximate to dpi, using instead a droplet spray - and in Epson's case, drops of variable size, which they claim reduces the 'dot' appearance in light areas)?

*But can't resist it entirely - assume you have stayed with RGB throughout (because although I'm not a CS6 user, I believe dots within PS result from using a CMYK image as part of the color separation process)?

Have to say, though, I think you're being hypercritical of your results, they look magnificant from here, bearing mind the size of the trike. Never mind the 3-foot test, I reckon it would pass a 6-inch one with flying colours!

I take the point you are making, David, but the photograph you have posted is effectively a most cruel enlargement, showing the very fine model many times it's normal size.

Is it really worth the aggro, when at 'normal viewing distances' you may not be able to notice the difference (well, I wouldn't, anyway!).

After some time and mishaps, I am calling time on this. There are faults in the build, not least that the front top board does not line up properly with the front of the box. The side boards are flush with the sides but the 'bump' at the front, to me, jars. I used Life Colour 'Tyre Black' on the tyres which I think is an improvement.

The printing, though, is better. I did not use any Adobe software for this (though I made the images in Photoshop) but printed from Affinity, a photo editing app for Macs which I am just getting to grips with.

One day, I might make another having learned from this one. Over to you, Craig.

David,

I think you have made more than a fair fist of it myself. Being partway through the build of mine I would certainly agree that it is a bit of a challenge to build. Some of the arts seem like you are trying to solder strands of hair.

Me thinks that I need to get back to mine and face up to the challenge of finishing it off. Have not even thought of that part yet.

Congratulations on a splendid model David.

As someone who is very prone to the trait, may I suggest trying to look at what is good with the model rather than what isn't?

Regards,

Craig