Yūrakuchō

[Kamome442]

The base colour is now on. It has been many years since I have used an airbrush for it's intended purpose so I am rather pleased with the finish. The next step will be spray a slightly darker shade as a fine mist to get a speckled texture. I will need to spend an afternoon practicing on some paper first.

 

I will also need to paint some individual bricks to build up a patchwork look. Again I will need to practice some techniques as I would rather not have to mask off each brick. I am thinking the easiest way would be to dry brush some bricks by hand using masking tape to isolate each course.

 

I have also finished an upgraded street light, this one uses the tiny 0201 LED. Seeing as the wires are 0.1mm I can fit both comfortably through the brass tube. It is not quite as bright as the 0402 however it still kicks out an impressive amount of light for its size.

 

Using the smaller LED has halved the time it takes to make a street light without having to make the tube the negative connection. Now I just need to feed the wires down the tube, glue on the top and cover the LED in clear resin.

[Kamome442]

A bit of a step forward and a step backwards this week. I have decided upon a technique for painting the bricks. I am going to mask of a row of bricks at a time and then hand paint each brick. I tested using an old brush with the bristles cut back to the base, this allowed me to get a nice stippled effect. For the this practice strip I alternated three  earthy colours applying two colours randomly to each brick. 

 

As for the step backwards I decided to paint the shop fronts with a pot of metallic black paint I found. As it turns out it was a little past its best, despite mixing perfectly well it did not dry evenly or quickly. It was also meant to have a satin finish however it left a blotchy gloss/satin finish. I have ordered a new pot of paint and I will need to strip them and respray them next week. In the meantime here is one of the front windows in place to get a sense of how they will look when complete.

 

[Kamome442]

I spent the best part of a day mixing paints in bunch of combinations and ratios to find the colours for arch bricks. I didn't want to reference the colours directly from the computer screen. I uploaded several pictures into an online hex code finder, by clicking on the image it give the hex code from that spot. I used this to make a colour chart I could print to compare with my samples. As colour doesn't scale well I will need to tone down each of the colours so that it is not too dark.

 

The 3D printer has been lending a hand too, this time making legs to sit under the bridges. 

 

After a carefully cutting away the base and supports all that was needed was a little sanding and an additional printed bollard to stop distracted Tomytec drivers crashing into them.

 

[cteno4]

24 minutes ago, Kamome442 said:

As colour doesn't scale well I will need to tone down each of the colours so that it is not too dark.

Yeah it’s always intrigued me how color changes with scale. At times colors get too bold and other times when small more bold contrasts are needed to make some effects work. But I’ve never been a super good colorist to get a good intuitive feeling of how color works at scale, so I just do it by trial and error.

 

jeff

[Kamome442]

@cteno4 I had always imagined it like painting a landscape where the colours of distant objects are washed out and faded to create a perspective. Seeing as my wall is 1:150 scale it is small however it's like looking at the full scale wall as if it were far away.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vbd3E6tK2U

 

But you are totally right some colours seem to scale perfectly well while others need lots of adjustment and there doesn't seem to be simple answer. It must be a nightmare for manufactures, the Kato and Tomix 500 Series Shinkansen side by side is a pretty good example. I can however use my colourblindness as a get out of jail free card if it goes terribly wrong!

[Kamome442]

Fancy Paving

 

I have been working on a few other projects recently however this week I finally got a chance to work on the layout again. I have been finishing of the last piece of pavement ready to paint the road. This is the section with a decorative brick pattern.

 

A close up of the finished design. The section is missing the tactiles, I will try 3D printing these first failing that I will get them etched.

 

I tried a different technique for making this pavement.

Step 1: Take measurements from drawings I used to laser cut the baseboards to make sure all the drop curbs lined up perfectly with the arches.

Step 2: Carefully construct the each of the parts cut by the silhouette cutter.

Step 3: Place the finished strip in position before swearing under my breath when I remembered I had repositioned the arches slightly when building the board but had not updated the original drawings.

Step 4: Repeating the first 3 steps using the actual measurements. 

 

Checking the fit of the second pavement.

 

 

[Kamome442]

HI, it's been a while since I last posted, for the past few weeks most of my time has been taken up with writing school reports. Now that is all done I can get back to some model making. It wasn't all work, lots of procrastination too as I did manage to complete the road that runs along the back of the layout. 

I started out by taking measurements from photos, marking out the positions of curbs, crossings, drains, manhole covers and so forth.

 

The parts were cut on the silhouette cutter and positioned on the layout.

 

Once fixed in place joins were filled and sanded.

 

A quick coat of primer was added.

 

The next step will be to spray base colour then airbrush some speckles of a few different shades to add some texture.

 

I also painted up a couple of basic streetlights ready to install along the alley once the road is painted.

 

Finally made up the first of 4 stubby little lights what will fit under the bridges.

 

My project for this week is to attach the catwalks to the front of the first bridge and get a base colour on the road.

Joe

[Kamome442]

I managed to get the the catwalk attached to the first bridge over the weekend.

 

The final part count was 288 separate pieces for this bridge and a further 11 for the catwalk, there is still the handrail to add taking the total to 12. I am not going to add this until everything is glued in place and the track is down, otherwise I know I will accidentally damage it. A close up of the finer details.

 

A coat of primer later and this little guy is ready for some green paint. 

[Martijn Meerts]

That's a next level bridge 😄

 

 

[JR East]

Pure Whaou effect ! that's incredible accurate, not a rivet is missing ... it drives me mad !

 

JM

[Madsing]

Wow, 300 parts! And the result is stunning!

Edited June 25, 2022 by Madsing

[Kamome442]

Thank you for the lovely comments @Martijn Meerts and @JR East, I am very pleased with the finished model.

@Madsing yeah 300 parts was a little excessive, it was a fun experience to replicate the real bridge piece by piece. I think going forward I will streamline the designs for my own sanity!

 

Today is the anniversary of Yurakucho Station opening and the second year of this thread. I am working on another little paper model to download, it is taking longer than expected but I will post it as soon as it's done.

 

[Kamome442]

Create your own brick arch.

This one was a little tricker than I had expected, it seems my computer really really does't like bricks! Still better late than never.

 

I have attached 2 versions (black and white or colour). 

Brick Arches Black and White.pdfBrick Arches Colour.pdf

 

Hopefully the it is self explanatory, if there are any errors or if you would like instructions let me know and I will update the file. The finished wall should look something like this.

 

It will need to be printing or backed on card to give each layer some depth. Happy modelling!

Joe

 

[Kamome442]

Another etch arrived yesterday, always a good day!

I didn't get a chance to do much with them then so I set aside this afternoon the carefully cut all the parts free. From here I will group them and store them in sealable plastic bags to keep them safe. Most of the space was taken up with store fronts for the next board however I did get to fill plenty of gaps with some fun little test pieces.

 

First up are the Tactiles, these came out really well, I will get some paint on them this week. I haven't attempted a printed version yet however having seen the etch I am pretty sure these will make it onto the layout.

 

A while back I made up some street signs (nothing more than basic shapes; circles, triangles, rectangles). They always felt a little featureless so I added brackets on the back to give them a bit more character.

 

Once I get done with street lights I will be moving on to traffic lights.

 

I also included the next batch of manhole cover designs (I must be getting into double figures by now).

 

It included the biggest (5mmØ) and smallest (1mmØ) variants that I have designed so far.

 

There was also a window frame test for the X-Press building but I will get the gazing done before I share the pictures.

Joe

 

 

Edited June 26, 2022 by Kamome442
Added image of traffic lights

[cteno4]

Wow Joe amazing detail on the manhole covers! Would not have thought you could get that resolution with standard etching, but it’s the same basic process they made microchips before using beams.

 

jeff

[Kamome442]

@cteno4 It is really impressive, even I was surprised how much of the detail shows up. Most of the detail is below the minimum recommended thickness of 0.18mm. I used 0.15mm and messaged the company to say I was willing to accept the results. I was expecting to see a bunch of blank circles and rectangles but almost all of the detail etched perfectly.

[Englehart]

wow those are just wow next level of detailing

[Martijn Meerts]

I definitely need to get into etching for some of the detailing I want to add to the H0 layout 🙂

 

[Madsing]

It’s really impressive and inspiring!

What’s the material and thickness you have used here?

Thanks for sharing.

[Kamome442]

Thank you @Englehart

@Martijn Meerts you would get some really nice detail in a HO scale etch, I will look forward to seeing the pictures!

Hi @Madsing I used nickel silver for these prints with a thickness of 0.25mm

[cteno4]

Joe,

 

I hate to ask, but what does primering and painting do to the etched details on the manhole covers?

 

jeff

[Kamome442]

@cteno4 It will definitely have an effect, the wobbly part is priming. I am using an acid etch spray and I have quite the talent for being heavy handed when using a spray can! Here are some manhole covers I have already primed.

 

I should note these are some of the earlier designs that don't have such fine detail. While the primer has softened the edges a little it hasn't overly spoilt the look. Going forward I will apply paint with an airbrush to try and get the thinnest coat of paint that I can. On a 0.25mm etch the recess is around 0.12-0.13mm I am hoping a little dirt wash will highlight the details.

 

I honestly don't mind if some of the details are lost it will just like the covers are worn down.

Joe

[cteno4]

Wow, that’s way better than I thought you would get with a rattle can! 
 

i agree the little softening of edges just look like ware and the wash should also help stuff pop some.

 

wonder what it would look like to rub off the top surface paint down to metal like it might be on a road. 

 

you going to get out the single hair paint brush and do detail painting on some of the flower patterns? 😜

 

https://www.japan-experience.com/plan-your-trip/to-know/understanding-japan/manhole-covers
 

you need to start a mail order business on these! At least shipping would be very easy.

 

cheers,

 

jeff

[Kamome442]

Thanks Jeff, I tried very hard to be gentle!

 

I am probably going to spray them gunmetal to get a metallic look, nickel silver a silver grey and and I think it might be too bright to leave bare. I have considered using chemical black to darken them if the paint doesn't work.

 

I already have a single hair brush waiting in the wings 😁, sadly the covers around Yurakucho are unpainted however the 4 little hexagons (they are blatantly octagons! I teach 4 year olds, we don't get past 4 sided shapes, give me a break 😂) in the middle of these covers are coloured with some code know only to sewer workers and maybe the odd secret society.

Seen here from my trip:

If anyone in the area wants to sneak out at night with a paint brush and colour some in I will obviously replicate them, just saying!

 

I genuinely would love to sell some of these designs. My only concern would be the cost of postage from the UK, I am not sure it would be worth while.

Joe

Edited June 28, 2022 by Kamome442
Photo, shape recognition added

[Claude_Dreyfus]

These are impressive etchings. I am sure they would prove very popular if you were to offer them for sale...irrespective of postage. Especially the tactiles and the manholes.