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Comments
this option has way more potential than the etchant and it's easier to use. The etchant was completely unpredictable from piece to piece: temperature of the etchant, age and purity of the etchant, cleanliness of the panels, etc--all affected the final result.
After cranking out 550 pieces with etchant when I did the roof on the Twin Mills (and then, having to re-do most of it) I was convinced there had to be a better way.
Bottom line: control and versatility. That's what this new method offers.
Phil-
Wow…where are you moving? I haven't been able to get into our basement for almost two weeks so blogging about it has been the next best thing. But, I can get back to the bench this weekend.!
Haven't even had a chance to look at the Woodcutter's Shack yet. Let me check it out and post my thoughts tonight.
It's always a good evening reading each of your new posts, there is so much to look for that are in the photos. The roofing looks great and it's tones accurately reflect the age of the building and siding.
Cutting that roofing is one of the trickiest of all the materials to cut. I've gone through a few blades also. If I am just cutting it, without a template, I found stacking a few strips together and using the Chopper 2 made the task bearable. I drop the blade down rather sharply and it makes a nice clean cut.
Marty
The kit looks fantastic and as always beautiful modeling. Is there any reason you use canopy glue rather than a glue like Elmer's waterproof? I used Tight bond waterproof glue initially and was having trouble getting the glue to stick pieces together that had been weathered with caulk so Brett recommended the Elmer's which works well.
Jim
This is great to be following along with.
Thanks for the time taken in these great posts.
Karl. A
try using a pushpin,, regular pin or pounce wheel to 'draw' a rough line in the corrugated roof panels before application, then tear way the unwanted roofing.
It will leave a nice , jagged, rusted away look. I did it first on my Rigging shed roof several years ago.
Quick and easy, no issue.
Karl.A
Jim-I like Canopy glue because it "grabs" and starts to hold in pretty short order, it dries clear, and seems to be waterproof. The real problem I have Tightbond (or any carpenter's glue) is that it can leave some of the residual yellow color if you don't clean it off right away. I can see some spots of yellow on a cedar roof I did a while back and and it makes me crazy! I haven't tried Elemer's waterproof glue, but I think that's also a yellow glue too, right?
One other thing I like with Canopy glue is that you've got a little bit of flex for a good amount of time. While it fully bonds two pieces together, it still has a rubbery quality. That comes in handy for when I'm glueing walls together. The corners are stuck together, but I've got some time to square it up before it sets completely. I know it's a little more expensive, but I'm convinced that it's more than just "overpriced white glue".
Ken & Karl--good points on the chewed up, eaten away look. Thanks for sharing the tear-away idea Karl. I think if you look over the vast majority of models with corrugated roofs, the corroded rotten look has really been overdone. It's almost become a cliche--sort of like having curtains hanging out of window frames. Grrrrrrrrr. I don't think I've EVER seen that in the real world!
Love that picture, by the way! There's a lot of great modeling in that scene.
however, there are some occasions when a rusted out panel is appropriate, and that is an easy way to do it without etchant.
Thanks for the good words on everything else...... back to the mine.
Karl. A
The help from your pictures is really appreciated. I note in some pictures you show "Canopy Glue" which I only use for windows. I was wondering if you are making wider use of it and if so does it have advantages please?
Michael Austalia
A couple of comments, first about Formula 560 canopy glue. It has been my 'go-to' adhesive for about 95% of my modeling for several years. Can't beat it for wood to wood for all the reasons Bill mentioned above. Also great for metal, styrene, resin castings, card stock to wood. Ideal for adhering little people and detail castings to structures or scenery. Very tacky, dries very fast, completely invisible, yet you can undue the bond later without breaking or marring the pieces, and easily peel away the residue. I occasionally will use ACC, 5 minute epoxy, styrene weld, or 3M dry transfer adhesive. About the only thing I don't use canopy glue for is to make windows- I think they look ugly and not like glass. Use acetate or microscope slide glass.
For cutting corrugated metal I found a great little tool at a stamp collecting store several years ago. A miniature paper cutter, it is called a "Showgard" cutter. I paid $10 for a used one. It "shears", not "cuts", very cleanly, and does not leave any bent or curled edges. I cut about 700 panels for the new mill in my Twin Mills dio in about 15 minutes. I tape a paper cutting guide to the top before each job. It is also superb for cutting other surfaces like the new Northeastern wood/paper roof panels. A couple of pics of the Showgard. Google it.
Thank you to responding about the canopy glue. I am going to give it a try. Mike really cool tool for cutting the metal will have to add it to my modeling tools. Sounds like it will come in handy down the road on the Twin Mills kit I have.
Jim
I forgot that you had that handy little cutter. One more tool I need to add to the list!
The ridge cap, tar paper roof, and flashing are made from the paper that's been spray painted black earlier. The instructions call for cutting 1" strips 1/4" wide, then folding the strips in half to cap the roof. I accidentally found an easier way to do this step when cutting pieces for the flashing. Rather than cutting followed by folding those 1/4" pieces, here's what I did...
First, make a fold across the paper and crease it really well (it creased it both directions). Then, color one side with some rust colored chalks.
Now, refold the paper with the chalk on the inside. Measure down from the crease 1/8" and cut across. Then, cut into 1" strips. You'll be left with pieces that are perfectly square and the exact same length without having to try and find the middle to make the crease.
In hindsight, I wish I'd made the pieces for the flashing even thinner. They ride up a little high on the side of the wall.
Only a few more jobs on the Tipple: Installing the railing on the landing is spelled out clearly in the manual and adding the hand wheels. That's also very simple and straight forward.
Here's how I handled the chute extensions: the 3 pieces are removed from the carrier, painted dark brown and folded into a "u" shape. For the flat surface on top, I wanted them to look as if they are still in service. I wanted a shiny worn metal appearance (almost like a kid's slide at a park). To do that, I brushed on some powdered graphite then rubbed it in and "shined" it up with a Q-tip. You can find powdered graphite in the door lock section at a hardware store.
For the sides, I built up layers of brown chalks (working from dark to light) and alcohol. I used a really small amount of alcohol and worked the chalk into sort of a paste, then dabbed it on. By building up multiple layers, I got the walls to have a flaky rusted appearance:
Then, I added just a touch of some light chalk down the center of the chutes to represent dust or dirt left behind:
Prior to gluing them in place, I added some chalks to the wooden chutes. Really dark chalks in the corners (with even a little black--very little) and then lighter shades and highlights running down the middle.
The chute extensions are held in place with super glue and positioned keeping the ends as close to parallel as possible.
So here's a final look at the completed ore bin & tipple:
Bill, can I nit pik. The one section of tar paper roof just looks off. The colors maybe or the size. I just say this compared to roofs you have done before.
I hope I haven't over stepped.
Thanks for pointing it out. Not sure how I missed it, but I appreciate the input!
This is another reason to post here: extra sets of eyes double checking our work. Mine too!
Thank you!
The next major component in this kit is the Headframe. It's a very intricate, complicated looking structure. It's one of those structures people will see and will say to you "I'd NEVER have the patience to build that". BUT, once again, Brett has simplified the construction with detailed instructions and helpful tools.
I've got a couple weeks invested in building it while working at a leisurely pace. Follow the manual closely and I'll try to add a few hints along the way. Take your time, and have fun!
We begin with the wood from bag #3. I laid all of it out, grouped everything together, and took a picture of the different pieces and their dimensions. The large pile of wood on the left is flooring material for the hoist house and won't be used now.
I went ahead and added color and texture to all of the other pieces at this time. Here's the result I got following the manual's recommended color combinations:
By the way, I'm not the only person who swipes rubber bands from their kids' orthodontist, right? They're great for organizing stripwood by size (Thanks, Dr. Mack!)
5/32" square stock is used to make the outside legs, headers, and main braces. I put the header in the jig first followed by the two outside legs. That way, you can adjust their length slightly wit the tru-sander and insure a snug fit in the jig (Again--my aim was to get them snug, but not quite as tight as puzzle pieces fitting together).
When satisfied with the fit, I took the legs out of the jig so the holes for the truss rods could be added. Both pieces are squared up on the truss rod guide template and held in place with a little double sided tape.
On template K, there's a truss hole guide that gets cut out and folded in order to locate the placement of the holes for the truss rods. I made the holes fairly deep (about a third of the way into the leg) to allow room when it comes time to install the rods.
With the holes added, the legs and header can be placed in the jig and glued. Again, I used a piece of wax paper in between the jig and the template to keep paper from sticking to the glue. Three sub-braces and a main brace are added next. I found that using a couple machinist squares helped keep the thinner sub-braces perfectly in line with the etched marks on the jig.
A total of 20 truss rods are needed: 6 in each of the two headframe assemblies and then 8 more when the two assemblies are...assembled! Use the same cutting guide at the bottom of K. After blackening, carefully install the rods. I put a drop of super glue on only one end of the rod. I then inserted the opposite end into a hole deep enough so that the end with CA could be inserted without bending the wire. If you bend the wire too much, it will retain the slight curve and look odd.
Next comes the angle braces. They're cut using a chipboard jig. For each of the two assemblies, you need four pieces cut from angle jig #1, two from jig #2, and four from jig #3. I made sure the piece was tight up against the end with the smaller blade slots (red arrow). I made the first two angle cuts at the opposite end, then the second pair of angle cuts near the end with the red arrow. By cutting them in that order and keeping pressure toward the red arrow, it insured that there was no play withing the jig.
Braces are added to one side and then the assembly is removed from the jig.
Now, the remaining braces are added to the opposite side forming an "x". After completing, another identical headframe assembly is constructed.
After constructing both headframes, once again holes are made for the remaining truss rods (see pg. 49). After that, it's time to assemble the full headframe. That begins by spot gluing an alignment jig and allowing it to dry.
There's another assembly jig that's sort of a "+" shape which is used to help locate and space the placement of the two main braces. I tried to make sure that the jig was flat on all 4 sides and the braces were glued solidly in place. Get a look at the assembly from all around; high and low.
At this point, take a break and STOP working. Allow the glue to dry 100% before going any further. Once dry, the jig is removed by cutting it in half with a pair of scissors. cut carefully so they don't bend or bow. Hold on to these two jig pieces to use for the install of the flat sub-braces (there are six to install). Once again, I was careful to inspect the position of the braces from various angles to make sure they were positioned in alignment with the neighboring pieces.
It gets a little tight in some spots when trying to get these jigs into position (especially around the truss rods). In an attempt to save you some time, I found this to be the simplest pattern to get them into place without doing any damage to the rods or the jig:
I know, I know. It's probably overkill if you're just reading and following along. But after knocking a rod out and repeatedly asking myself "how the heck did I get this in here last time??" I decided to take pictures. If you were never good at Tetris (like me), these pics will be helpful!
The remaining cross braces are added per template L. You will need 8 pieces cut with jig #4 and 12 pieces cut using jig #5. (note: on my cutting jig, there is a cut slot missing from jig #5--see dashed line. This won't be an issue for the majority of you since Brett caught it on all but the very earliest kits)
The smaller pieces (cut with jig #4) are added first. Two are glued into position flush with the inside, followed by a truss rod, and finally two more small pieces on top. This process is repeated on the opposite side and then again up the structure using the jig #5 pieces.
Jim
David U