The March Challenge

For March's challenge I was to build four scale structures from materials I have on hand. I mainly wanted to make use the thin balsa boards I had recently aquired. I also want to build two structures primarily from card stock. I am making this post with the two structures that I have completed and although I still have ten days to complete the other two I wanted to make sure this post was posted in March.(This will be my last post for March).

Below. Two of the four structures from the March challenge.

This is outhouse and measures 4 by 5 scale feet in HO scale. The shed is constructed primarily from 1.5mmm thick balsa sheet. The roof was constructed from card stock and top sheet of corrugated cardboard.The foundation was created from several pieces of match sticks that have been glued to the bottom of the stucture.The out building was painted with a series of darker colors and then weathered with swathes of paints and washes.

I have started to experiment with using a wood burning iron to 'score' individual boards. I haven't came to any conclustions yet. The second structure a storage or tool shed is created from that same sheet of balsa I used above and measures a square nine scale feet. The windows are from my scratch box. The foundation was made by glueing bits of leftover paper rock textured material on pieces of matboard and the roof of a thick black construction paper cut into strips to represent tarpaper. I didn't mention it but a set of steps were created for each of these two structures.

A Corrugated Privy in 1/87

Here is the completed structure I had been working on, a corrugated outhouse. I haven't decided what color I want to paint the structure.

Although I used wood to sure it up it is made from one business card and was clad using some odd corrugated material.

The structure measures a square four feet and stands nine feet at its peak.

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Satisfaction Scale: 4 out 5

In Small Dimensions - Business Card Structures Challenge

Strictly speaking the whole structure should be built from one business card. A business card measures 14.5H by 25.5L, in HO scale. You can build something smaller, but if you planning on building a small shack like an outhouse or shed, to have enough materials for the walls and sub-roof you will have limit your structures width to approximately four foot wide. And to have some material leftover for some trim you have to limit your height to nine feet.

The structure would be modeled as a simple board on board structure. Individual boards can be scored into the surface and nail holes and board ends can be added to each board. Using a verity of methods I have tried to add wood grain to the individual boards. This works only if you are carefull not to go too deep into the cardstock. I still wasn't happy with the outcome and I don't believe this was worth the effort.

The Spring House (an update)

At the beginning of this month I posted the Plans for a Spring House. As you can see I have completed the structure.

I like building out-buildings. Whether it be an outhouse, a tool shed, a smoke house, a hobo shack, or a pump house. I feel these small structures add to overall scene especially when they are coupled with other small buildings. They are easy to build and are quickly constructed.

I made a few adjustments to my build. I had wanted to add the lintel above the door during construction. It would have been easy enough to cut away a little of sub-walling and add the lintel, however I got to thinking. I might not have enough head room for the plank door. So I added a smaller lintel above the door once I affixed the embossed paper to the sub-wall.

Instead of using the piece of styrene iron roofing material I decided to use corrugated material from the inner layer of a cardboard box lid. After doing the measurements for the roof, the plastic piece was a few scale inches short. The corrugation may not be to exact scale, but is close enough for me. So, what I have left is a structure built mostly from paper. This is what I had originally imagined for this structure in the first place.

I have been experiment with paper for some time and have had mixed results. Most of my other structures look okay, but there were errors during the construction process and even though you may not notice I know things didn’t go so well. This structure is square and well braced from within. With its sub-walling and roof it has a fair amount of bulk and feels sturdy.

Satisfaction Scale: 3 out of 5.

Bandai Starblazer Model

This is one of Bandai’s Star Blazer #2206, a Karakrum Class Combatant Ship. Although I did use plastic model glue this model could have simply been snapped together. The instructions are in Japanese, however using the included instructions printed on the inside the box the model fit together nicely.

The models 21 parts are connected to X number of sprue and are molded in olive green polystyrene.

Since I was planning on using glue to add to the overall strength of the model, I was extra careful to make sure that I had the correct part in hand. There were a couple of times when I had to study the exploded illustrations and the box art to ensure that I did have the correct part.

My motto for this year is get something done and after seven months I really do not have too much to show for it. I have another Bandai model on my workbench that needs some finishing touches, a HO scale smoke house that is waiting on a few small details to be painted and placed, and lastly I have a HO scale outhouse that needs to be laid out and completed.

Miniature Outhouse for your Miniature Population, #6

This is number six for my shack collection posts. I don’t know the manufacturer of this out-building, but it was a very easy to build.

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To a set of outhouses

Projects for November

1) Woodland Scenic’s Outhouse with Man

This is the more detailed structure of the three, which are supplied, in this Woodland Scenic’s #D212 kit. As they say, a model railroad layout is never really finished and I can always use another outbuilding placed behind some industrial building, a barn or some farm house. Clustering several building close together adds just as much, if not more, interest to ones layout than those large showcase structures.

2) Campbell #431 Assay Office/Clothing Store

I thoroughly enjoy working with structures from this manufacture. The kit parts are stamped out and cut from sugar pine and just the smell of the pine parts gives me so much delight. This kit may take a good month to complete; not that this kit is all that complicated, I just know how I can get side-tracked.

3) A 1/72 Santa miniature from the Ykreol Nativity set. Yes a Santa was included in this set. Not quite sure about the connection, but this miniature sits on my workbench more than half way finished. Why not complete him?

10 Planned Scratch Built HO Gauge Model Structures

Recently, while rummaging through the files of an old USB drive, I found this list of ten HO gauge structures I had planned to build from scratch. Although, I have no intention of building anything from this list at this time I thought it peculiar finding the list. I thought I would share it with you.

These structures could be built with the materials I have on hand. Perhaps, someday when my interests are drawn back to model railroading, I will build a few of these structures.

1. Stone Spring House

Cardboard sub-walls and roof, stone embossed sheet, plank door from the scrap box with shingled roof.

2. Tarpaper Shack

Cardboard sub-walls and roof, construction paper walls

3. Outhouse on Cement Slab

Board and Batten wood scraps on match stick foundation

4. Storage Tanks and Pump House on Cement Slab

Storage tanks: tape spools glued onto a polystyrene sheet

Pump House: Cardboard sub-walls and roof with brick embossed walls

Cement slab: Cardboard

5. Shingled Potting Shed on Cement Posts

Cardboard sub-walls and roof, construction paper shingles, on strip wood posts

6. Board and Batten Utility Building on Cement Slab

Board and batten plastic sheet, door and three windows from resource box

7. Chicken Coop on Stone Foundation

Scribed sheet, door built-up from Strathmore board, windows from resource box

8. Stone Smoke House

Cardboard sub walls, stone embossed sheet, plank door from the scrap box with shingled roof.

9. Clapboard Utility Building

Polystyrene Clapboard sheet, plastic door and windows (3) from resource box

10. Random Plank Board Barn
Polystyrene sheet, plastic windows, polystyrene “metal” roofing.

Building a Woodland Scenics Outhouse or Two

I enjoy building metal kits. Metal kits have a certain heft and they are constructed ruggedly. Woodland Scenic’s Outhouses kit comes with three individual outhouses. I built the two identical outhouses. The third is more detailed, and I thought I would save this structure for another time.

There were three castings for each of these structures, front, back sides and the roof. I used a file to true-up the edges and to remove casting residue I soaked the parts in denatured alcohol and let dry. Using the cheapest brand I can find I primed the castings (front, back, and roofs) with flat white spray paint.

I let the primer dry thoroughly and then dry fitted the pieces together. After I was satisfied with the placement of these parts t I used a Cyanoacrylate to glue the front and back sections together. I then gave one outhouse and roof edges and front and back a basecoat of Americana Barn Wood, and the other rebasecoat of Folk Art tan. I have been using these very economical water based acrylics for just all my painting needs. Just make sure that you apply these paints over a good base coat.

I was trying for a weathered old paint look on the one structure, so the Barn wood colored outhouse got a dry brushing of light grey. I used two separate applications of the grey paint. After this had dried I painted the door hinges a dark grey and gave the structure a couple washes of a black wash (alcohol and India ink-Two tablespoons of ink to a quart of alcohol).

The roof tops for both models were painted back. To give the tar paper some texture and while the paint was still wet I sprinkled black and dark gray chalk. I was trying to create a perceived randomness so I varied the placement of the black and grey chalk over the area of the roof.

The other outhouse, the one I painted tan received a couple washes of Folk Art oak stain. The wash consistencies were varied. I used one stronger wash and diluted this wash down with some more water and gave the structure another wash of oak. After this had dried I painted the hinges a rust color and gave the structure a couple good black washes. Not really being satisfied with the outcome I dry-brushed this structure with some barnwood.

I added foundations to both of the outhouses. I like the texture of wooden match sticks, which when painted and dry brushed can be perceived as a concrete foundation. I started by cutting the front and back pieces and then fitting the side pieces in. I painted the foundation a dark grey and after this was dry I dried brushed the foundation with a medium gray followed by a dry brushing of light gray.

I added a field stone foundation to other outhouse. I created this from piece of field stone sheet cut to height of a styrene strip. I gave this a grey base coat and dried brushed it with burnt sienna.

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Another sample outhouse can be found here.