Need Advice on building my first Laser-Art Wood kit.

[Robertj668]

Jerry
1st time. I was never any good at building any models but at 41 I wanted to try again. The roof is where I need to do the touch ups. Make it look more weathered.

[pdlethbridge]

SEE!  It was so bad.

[NarrowMinded]

Nice Job,
A little dullkote on the roof to take away the shininess and some tissue paper curtains in the windows and your set.

NM

[jonathan]

Very nice, indeed!  Thanks for sharing your work with us.

Sincerely,

Jonathan

[CNE Runner]

I will echo everyone elses' accolades...well done (and much, much better than my first laser-cut attempt). I would suggest that you either: 1) dispense with the plastic kit-supplied shingles and use some shingles from Northeastern Scale Models or Paper Creek, or 2) paint over the kit shingles with an appropriate flat paint. This super model could use a little LIGHT weathering (a subject unto itself). Regarding the interior: Definitely paint the inside of the structure (although black really isn't necessary unless you plan on installing a very bright light...which would look ridiculous. An alternative approach would be to install view blocks (pieces of either black thin foamcore or black construction paper (doubled because it will 'sag' over time). By installing the first floor view block in one diagonal direction, and the second floor block on the opposite diagonal, each blocker can be joined (glue a stained toothpick from the bottom blocker to the top one) and supported on the mid-span.

Great job! Houses are tough because, if they are close to the front of the layout, they really require a detailed interior. BTW: this interior can be made out of hand drawn pictures and wall surfaces that are cut out and glued into 3-D 'furniture'. Remember, the only view the public has of a house interior is through those tiny windows (stores w/large display windows are a different matter). I remember building a small Cape Cod style home, for a client, and used living room (etc) scenes cut out of Better Homes & Gardens magazines...'looked super from the outside.

Keep up the excellent work,
Ray

[jbsmith]

If all else fails,,a little bit of 87 octane gas, a match, WOOOOFF!
Once the flames are out put it up on the layout surrounded by some
fire fighting trucks

Safety Tip-Remember folks, this should be done outdoors!
Or REAL fire trucks might have to show up.
Have a garden hose or bucket o'water handy.

[Robertj668]

For now the house sits on a shelf in my "office" waiting for a prime piece of realestate.  Then I will make my final improvements. I will soon be able to work on  the railroad itself as I am able to pick up things now (Neck Surgery 2 months ago).

Ray
Do you have any examples of interiors I think I know what you are talking about.

Thank you Everyone!

Robert

[CNE Runner]

Well Robert, off hand I don't have anything to show you (something like that I don't keep around). Just scan a scene out of one of your wife's 'home' magazines and scale it down to the proper size. Another source of interiors is the Internet...thousands of websites that feature interior shots. Again, I would scale these to fit your application.

The last choice is to hand draw/color (you did keep your crayons didn't you?) the walls and furniture. Some cutting, coloring, and pasting will produce very serviceable interior furniture that will look great through those tiny windows. I think there was an article in either Model Railroader or Railroad Model Craftsman on this very topic (sorry, but I don't remember which or when).

Spend an evening scanning (or drawing) and see what you come up with. You might just be surprised at how good it will look. The nice thing is that all you have invested is some of your time and some computer paper (unless you decide to print some scenes out on photographic paper...really a waste).

You can make some convincing curtains out of tissue paper (the wrapping kind...the sneeze kind is too fragile) and some white glue. After cutting very roughly to size, soak the tissue paper with white glue and 'bunch up'. When the glue dries, your curtains will look exactly like folded cloth...again try this on the kitchen table and experiment until you get the 'look' you desire.

Good luck and have fun.
Ray

[SteamGene]

Assuming that the roof is not fastened down yet, two things you might want to add are curtains/shades and a view block - unless you are going to build interior walls.   They will add class to a good job!
Gene