Just AMAZING Mate'!!!!!!
..I'd take my hat off to ya!! But I'd probably blind everyone!! LOL...
Some of your pix .... look...well..so absolutely "REAL"....

.....yep... incredible work and lots of thought there Ray!

Thanks again!!
Dirk

 

That looks so authentic. Well done!

 

Ray, That is looking superb! I'd like to know more about your sign printing on vinyl. Thanks, Winn

 

The vinyl I use is inkjet-printable. I don't know if there are other sources for it, but I've been getting from this seller on ebay:

http://stores.ebay.com/MAMMY-MAGNET...-Vinyl-White-Matte-/_i.html?_fsub=2298861016&_sid=9062726&_trksid=p4634.c0.m322

She has a lot of different stuff (including decal paper, which I also use sometimes.) The vinyl I use is the "inkjet white adhesive vinyl".

BTW the vinyl can be applied directly to the building if the surface is smooth.

 

Well, I managed to squeeze in a tiny bit of modeling recently. Here's an update...

I started making some old-fashioned radios to decorate the interior of the radio repair shop. Across the top in this photo are the basic shapes for some large, tabletop radios. These were made from 6mm Sintra and some styrene. Later they will be painted and detailed.

In the lower half of the photo you can see the beginnings of some smaller radios. To make these, I found photos of old radios online, reduced them to scale, and printed them on self-adhesive vinyl. Then I stuck them onto 6mm Sintra, and cut them out. Later, they'll be painted on the sides and top:

Here are the completed tabletop radios. I printed the faces on vinyl and stuck them onto the fronts. Next I added knobs made of tiny slices of styrene rod. Then I painted the exposed surfaces, blending it into the edges of the vinyl images. I finished them off with a coat of Krylon UV-resistant gloss clear:

I cut out an opening for a door in the rear wall of the radio shop. I cut down the plug from the opening and added some styrene strips to it, to make a door. The doorframe is from Grandt Line:

Here's a close up of the doorknob. I made the knob by holding the end of a styrene rod near a flame:

Then I made a workbench out of 1mm Sintra and some styrene bits. The drawer handles are slices of 1/4" styrene channel:

I "weathered" the interior with thin washes of craft acrylics to give the walls and floor a little grime and wear:

Here's a test shot showing the placement of the workbench and counter:

I also made some shelves out of styrene. The brackets were made by slicing a thin piece from a 1/4" angle, then gluing on some .010" strips:

That's all for now. Enjoy!

 

Wow Ray! That is interior modeling to endth degree!!! That last shot could easily be of a 1/1 room. That degree of realism is amazing to me. I am satisfied to just get the outside of the buildings looking reasonable.

 

Ray, that is some crazy detail! WOW! I assume you've won some modeling competitions?

-Jim

 

Thanks, Winn and Jim!

So far I haven't had the opportunity to enter any modeling contests. I would really love to go to one of the NG conventions someday, but unless they have one in San Diego, I don't know if I'll ever get to.

 

Excellent work! You could really make some money selling radios to the dollhouse folks. They pay top dollar for that kind of stuff. I don't want to know what my wife paid for some of that stuff in the bakery. I know she bought all the casework and shelving. Next time I will get her to hire you. Great idea for 3D items.

 

Here's another brief update…I've been working on some more interior details...

I found a photo online of a stack of vacuum tube boxes, so I scaled it down and printed it onto self-adhesive vinyl. Then I stuck it to a scrap of 6mm Sintra and cut it out. To give it a bit of dimensionality, I used a tiny jeweler's screwdriver to create indentations between the boxes.

Since this cut into the vinyl a bit, and I was concerned about such tiny piece potentially peeling up later, I brushed a coat of acrylic matte medium over the whole thing, working it down into the crevices:

Later I glued styrene strips around the edges to simulate wooden shelving. This will go on top of the workbench. I made some more of these, sized to fit into the shelves below the workbench.

I also made some oscilloscopes and other instruments, using the same basic technique. To these I added bits of small styrene rod for dials and knobs. I also made some parts drawers too. Here's a shot of some of these things under construction:

And here are a couple shots of the finished workbench, with some of the details added on top:

It's hard to tell with this lighting, but I used a simple trick that made these items look less "flat" and much more realistic. I coated the "glass" scopes and dials with acrylic gloss medium. I did the same with the face of each little plastic bin in the parts drawers. When complete, this should show up better under the scale lighting.

I still have more details to add to the work bench area, and many more details to make for the rest of the shop.

 

Mouth left agape again by outstanding modeling, as usual Ray, =-O

 

Do you leave these buildings outside?

I have built some cheap Pola buildings that I leave outside.

As soon as it rains, the bottom half are covered in grit and mud from splashing rain. It is impossible to get it all cleaned off and the buildings then look really bad.

I cannot imagine that you would leave these buildings outside, but if you do, how do you cope with rain splashing on them and ruining them?

 

JB
I am not answering for Ray, but if you notice his buildings are all located on some type of concrete, I do the same thing, I can not stand the splatter of dirt on my structures, so all my structures are located on concrete pads. Very inexpensive, very easy to do, easy to make all water to run away from the structure. Easy to mold into different rock formations and to include adding rocks to the platform.

Ray,
If you would add one of your fantastick and realistic figures, they should make you a little extra income, in that radio shop. Because that does not look like any model.
Very very exceptionaly real looking.
thanks for the inspiration
Dennis.

 

Thanks, Vic, JB and Dennis!

Dennis is right, I try to surround my buildings with cement. The town buildings are on concrete foundations, with a paved road in front made from tinted mortar. Other buildings such as the old miner's cabin, I used a mixture of mortar, dirt, small rocks and pigments to create simulated landscape all around the cabin. This also allows me to glue down artificial plants, old steel drums, and other small items.

 

I've been busy making lots of little interior details. Here's a quick look at a few of them...


I made a simple workbench stool out of styrene rod and a piece of 1mm Sintra. I don't have a shot of it painted yet:

I found some photos of various old radio repair manuals online. Then I fussed with them in Photoshop to create cover art. I printed out a bunch of them on self-adhesive vinyl, cut them out, and applied them to cores made of either Sintra or styrene, depending on the thickness required:

I also made a row of books, to be tucked away in the back. I used a shot of books on a shelf, applied it to 6mm Sintra, and cut it to shape. Then I painted the exposed Sintra to match the books:

And I just finished a radio chassis! The vacuum tubes were turned from acrylic rod, using a drill as a crude lathe:

Still have lots more to do.

 

Wow Ray your mind really works in the most unusual artististic and creative way.
Your comparison penny is even old thanks for the ideas
Dennis

 

Thanks Dennis!

 

Ray,

I think you may need another another brick building cause this one will be in your house displayed at eye level! Too cool!

 

Ray;

That is all so neat. I remember when appliance stores had a sales rack of vacuum tubes on their sales floors. A lot of folks would open the radio cover and look for a tube that was not getting any power. Pull the tube, take it to the appliance store, find a match, and give the new tube a try. Most of the time that worked!

Some hearty souls even tried it for TVs, but one could get a good shock from a TV if care were not taken.

Best,
David Meashey

 

Yeah, up until the early '70s there were tube testers, sometimes even in grocery stores. We used to take TV tubes in and test/replace them all the time.

 

More interior details, more modeling madness…

Here are a pair of aerosol cans. To make them, I rounded the end of a 1/8" styrene tube, then glued in a piece of styrene rod. The can on the right has a cap, the one on the left does not. I sanded down the end of the rod to represent the spray nozzle. I didn't bother labeling them for specific products, but just used some leftover labels from when I was detailing my drugstore:

Still more details -- needle nose pliers and a pair of screwdrivers, all made from brass tubes and rod:

I wanted to have some of the radios plugged into outlets, so I came up with these simplified plugs made of brass tubes. They'll be inserted into holes drilled into the outlets:

Here are some shots of how the interior looks so far. There are more details needed but it's getting there. Note the stand for the soldering iron -- I made it from a tiny spring that I pulled out of an old camera:

The stool was painted to look like it had been repainted several times, with layers of old paint showing through where the paint was worn and chipped:

Here you can see two of the power cords from the console radios, plugged into the simulated outlets:

Enjoy!

 

OH I just can't stand this! Wow. Amazing work Ray, just puts me back into the late 50s when I used to hang out at a radio repair shop in NYC . Thanks for sharing

Jerry

 

Wow, that is great work on the small parts Ray. Hope to live up to half of your standards some day.

Keep it up,

Chris

 

So real I can almost smell it. Thanks for the memories.

Harvey C.

 

Harvey I understand exactly what you are saying about the smell. My Uncle was an ardent radio Ham, and had a radio workshop that smelled of hot flux, hot valves/tubes and warm bakerlite. The inside of Ray's store looks just like his.