I have developed a design sketch for the tire recapping shop and built the four walls. I am making this model from styrene. My inspiration for this was a photo on Shorpy - one of my favorite sites as they frequently have vintage photos that are useful for modeling purposes. Below is the link.
http://www.shorpy.com/node/19061?size=_original#caption
This is an interior view and shows the shop has wood walls and a brick heat source - perhaps a chimney - on the right side.
Above are the walls with the window and door opening cut out. I have temporarily inserted the Grandt Line window castings into the window openings. The rear wall is planned to be very plain as it will be very hard to see. The front wall is clapboard and the other walls are vertical boards. If you look at the Shorpy photo the walls are vertical boards. In my model this shop area is on the right side with the left side being an office. I am planning to build a brick chimney on the right side rear with a corresponding brick area inside the shop. All of the walls have been braced on the back.
I plan to detail the interior of the shop area with machinery and tires, and also to provide lighting so the interior can be seen.
This model will be located near the front of the layout next to the Bettern-air model I previously built. They will all have a street running in front of them.
Pneumatic tires were first made for automobiles in 1898. The first tires were crude and subject to frequent flats. When I was a young child I remember taking automobile trips with my parents with flat tires being not uncommon. As a young man with a tight budget I sometimes purchased recapped tires as they were less expensive than new tires. One time on a trip the recap began to separate with a resulting rough ride, and I had to pull into a service station and replace the tire. Below is a photo showing a section of an early cord pneumaticity tire.
In the early 1900s rubber was used for many products in addition to tires and the rubber then was not as durable as it is these days. This resulted in a strong business in reclaimed rubber scrap as is shown in the photo below.
My next process will be to create a floor and interior wall upon which I will build the interior details before doing final assembly.
Thanks for the tip about Shorpy! I think I've found my new (second) favorite website.
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