More Stereo Views of My Models

 I went on a bit of a stereoscopic binge over the last few days. It occurred to me that I might document my builds in 3D both to have a record of things I've made, and it's much more portable than carrying delicate models when I meet clients.

I took these by setting the camera on the table, taking one shot, then sliding the camera about 3/4" and taking the second shot.

I printed these on 4x6 photo paper, then trimmed them to fit in a viewer I got from a book.

These are all for free-viewing. 

These two are from Discworld. First the Library:

And the High Energy Magic Building:

This is the Gorre Water Tower by Clever Models:

 

This is a scratch-built wooden depot, based on a Clever Models template:

Finishing the O Scale Bike Shop

Got the last of the pieces cut out and mounted to cardboard, and assembled it today.

Here it is, dryfitted together. No floor or roof yet.

A view inside, with the window shade showing.

AAAND... the views of the completed model in 3D.

For cross-eyed viewing:

For free-viewing:

O Scale Bike Shop Facade Finished

The clapboards look as nice as I'd hoped. The rest of the building is much simpler, and ought to take about as long as I spent on the facade.

O Scale Bike Shop Build Continues...

Today, I did a lot of work on the clapboard siding and front doors of the facade of the bicycle shop.

I printed two copies of the facade and glued them to shirt cardboard with some Aleene's spray adhesive -- the least expensive spray adhesive at the craft store. Then I sliced the boards so they all included a half-board on the top. Once they're glued to the facade, the overlap will create the clapboard texture.

I edged almost all of these with neutral grey gouache. When I got to the painted sign part, I carefully edged the bottoms of the letters with the neutral grey, and the spaces between the letters with a dark grey. When they're stacked on top of each other, it looks like the sign painter got the underside of the clapboards.

The doors are built up out of five layers. From bottom to top, the layers are:

     1. Windows printed on vellum,

     2. Windows printed on transparency, with glossy side facing out,

     3. Door printed on matte photo cardstock, laminated to shirt cardboard, with windows cut out,

     4. Door frame and diagonals printed on matte photo cardstock, laminated to shirt cardboard,

     5. Lintel and jambs printed on matte photo cardstock, laminated to very heavy cardboard from the backing of a sketch pad.

Here is a blurry shot of the door lit from the front:

And here's another blurry shot, this time of the door lit from behind:

 The client said he didn't want to light it, but I'm giving him the option for later.

 O scale is new to me and I'm enjoying it. It's easier in some ways than HO, because it's nearly twice the size. (181% to be exact.) It's tougher in others, because it requires more surface texture to look real.

O Scale Bike Shop Modifications.

Started work on another of Clever Models' fine products. This time, I'm working in O scale, which is going to be a cinch after doing so many HO and N scale models. I'm modifying their cycle shop with a change of signage to push the era back to the 1890s.

Here's the original:

Per my client's request, here are my modifications to the facade:

The lettering for HOLZ & MUELLER is set in an Egyptian font I found in a vintage book for sign painters. BICYCLE REPAIR SHOP was set in an academic/sports font I found online. Slab serifs were pretty common in that era. 

All the posters were found online, and I've printed them on cigarette paper so the thickness will look alright when I peel up the corners a little. I printed the Raleigh and Fowler signs on glossy photo paper so they'll look a bit like enamel signs.

More to follow as the build progresses.

The 387 Paper Model Houses of Peter Fritz

 Here's a set of inspirational miniature buildings, made out of odds and ends and not based on any particular real buildings. After the creator's death, someone found these in a junk shop.  

The Imaginary Town of an Unconscious Architect: The 387 Paper Model Houses of Peter Fritz