Buildings with giant bases.

[gavino200]

There doesn't seem to be a uniform base thickness for Tomytec/Kato/Tomex buildings. Some like the Tomix garage are thin. Some, like the Tomytec warehouse have none. The Tomytec police station (below) has a giant base. It reaches the hood of the cars, and is up to the chest level of this N-scale figure.

 

How to people deal with this? Do you make your roads of material that's this thick, to even things up? Or do you cut a plot into the foamboard to sink the base down a bit? Do any of you just not use the base?

 

[katoftw]

Use a 5mm sheet of foam for example and cut rhe base square into the foam.

 

If building base is 4mm deep for example, use a 1mm thick styene sheet to bring it up to 5mm.

[railsquid]

I usually create roads from 3mm foamboard, and ensure buildings can be placed at the correct height to match the edge of the road. Sometimes I remove the bases, like with the (somewhat modified) Tomytec office building here. Creating the roads separately makes it easier to introduce minor height variations too.

road-construction by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

BTW ended up looking like this:

street-scene-crossing by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

street-lighting-tram by Rail Squid, on Flickr

 

Elsewhere I'm  using a lot of tram track, which is 6mm so road surfaces are made of 2x3mm sheets of foamboard, it's very easy to adjust building heights to match.

[gavino200]

Cool! Those look amazing. I'll be shopping for thin foamboard this weekend. Hopefully the local art supply store has it. I'll try this technique on a T-Trak type situation first before it's ready for primetime. Besides, I have to work out a credible town plan to fit my layout first. I'm going to start a "Gavin's layout" thread soon to get some imput on the big picture.

[cteno4]

Gavin,

 

check the local craft store for fun foam. It's thin flexible foam rubber about 2mm thick. Cheap and perfect for building up like this.  Usually comes in 8.5x11 and 11x17 sheets. Also in the dollar store in a big pile at like 6x4.

 

theres a fun road technique to use fun foam and then paint with thick acrylics. The. You can push down to make concrete or asphalt cracks in the paint. Also can pick out pot holes easily.

 

jeff

[katoftw]

I scanned this off the Tomix Layout Support Guide.

 

[JR 500系]

Yes the raised floor boards of recent Tomytec buildings are to cater for the moving bus system and the tram tracks, so that all may look like the same street level when put together.... hence, a foam board is required to bring up the level of the road, or you can remove the base board of the building and let it stand on the ground directly, but you will need to cut off the studs that hold the walls to the base plate, and also the building loses its stability and strength...

 

I personally use a base board to raise up... since I have both the moving bus system and the tram... the official one by Tomytec is here , but you can also use other sources so long the thickness is the same ~

[Pashina12]

9 hours ago, katoftw said:

I scanned this off the Tomix Layout Support Guide.

 

 

I need those houses on the bottom right...

[JR 500系]

10 hours ago, Pashina12 said:

 

I need those houses on the bottom right...

 

these?

[railsquid]

One of the classic Tomix building designs.

[Pashina12]

Yes! Most of the houses in the villages along the Aizu Line seem to have been houses like that in the 60s and 70s.

[gavino200]

On 11/30/2017 at 9:11 PM, Pashina12 said:

Yes! Most of the houses in the villages along the Aizu Line seem to have been houses like that in the 60s and 70s.

 

This one's also a similar style.

 

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10300883

[Pashina12]

9 minutes ago, gavino200 said:

 

This one's also a similar style.

 

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10300883

 

Oh, perfect, thanks! Variety is good!

[cteno4]

Xenia, 

 

also some sankei as well

 

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10092442

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10092439

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10092403

 

you could use some fiber material to make a more 3d thatched roof if you want.

 

jeff

[Kiha66]

TGW also makes a old style farm house.

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10031894

[Pashina12]

Ooh, thanks for those, guys!

 

And good idea with the fibrous material... that just reminded me of something. One of the cars we had when I was a kid - either the 1968 Rover or the 1964 Mercedes - had the seats filled with a coarse hair(-like substance)... thinking something like that could work? By extension, I wonder if human head-hair could work... maybe worth a try next time I re-shave my chelsea, though I think it might be a bit too fine. Hmmmmm... the bristles off a shoe brush, perhaps?

[cteno4]

Do the walkaround in the craft store! I'm always doing this and usually find something. Maybe something in the dry floral area. Yep a natural bristle brush, those may be a bit large scale wise, but stay stiff and straight. Maybe tape and lay the fibers out on the tape, then clear coat. Issue will be keeping all the fibers straight until you seal them up!

 

maybe just some cheap chip brushes and slide a piece of 010 styrene in like 1mm into the brush and comb the bristles out straight then hit with some diluted Pva glue to fix to the styrene (rough it up for some to stick better) or thin ac glue. Cut off that layer from the brush, then Airbrush or alcohol marker to color. Could also do small bundles like this peaks. 

 

https://www.homedepot.com/p/3-in-Chip-Brush-1500-3/100626859

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1Pcs-Nylon-Acrylic-Oil-Paint-Brushes-for-Art-Artist-Painting-Pen-Supplies/331874537485?hash=item4d4543900d:m:mbw6Cpwc5FmIC4mdPF4i5Pg

 

Btw paint brush fibers are great for small modeling bits. Stay pretty stiff but thin! Easily colored with markers.

 

cheers

 

jeff

[cteno4]

Maybe a couple of layers of something like this natural fiber hat ribbon. They look like 6-10" bundles of reeds

 

https://www.petershams.com/products/vintage-swiss-natural-woven-fiber-crinoline-crin-horsehair-braid-1-wide-hat-trim-ribbon-3-yards

 

jeff

[cteno4]

So I did some fiddling with a chip brush. While you can glue to a small strip and then try to layer these like shingles, it would be really a tedious project to scratch build this way!

 

jeff

[Kiha66]

Perhaps just a coat of flat tan, or some very light texture paint would do it.

[cteno4]

yeah i was thinking dry brushing some thicker acrylic might give the effect. its a pretty wild pattern the way these are done. could try to inkjet print onto a textured paper. its a challenge!

 

jeff