Building supply co work shop

This is the building supply company work shop.  It will be located to the right of the lumber shed.  The reason it is tall its there is a traveling crane inside to move materials around the shop  (it is not actually modeled since it cannot be seen).

There will be an open shed extending out from this side with machinery and materials inside.

The figure inside the door is again a modified Plasticville figure.

In this view you can see the vent fan installed and below the side window is a compressed gas container located outside of the building for safety.  Below is a photo I took years ago that was the inspiration for this gas container model.  The model was made using a cheap commercial tank and scratch built details on the top.

Above is the prototype tank taken long ago at a forgotten location.

This is the end of the year and I would like to wish all of my viewers a very Happy New Year!  My wife and I will be celebrating at home with a bottle of sparkling wine.  Tomorrow we will be going out for our traditional new years day brunch with our kids and grand kids.  I expect 2017 to be a good year with lots more modeling.  😄

Disc wheel exhaust fan model

I have constructed a vintage style disc wheel exhaust fan for the side wall of the next structure I am building.  This took a lot more time than I thought it would.  This next structure is a combination storage and work shop structure for the building supply company.

I built this starting with a ring cut from a piece of plastic tubing about 4 scale feet in diameter.  I then added cross supports for the fan hub using small wire scraps.  Lastly I made some fan blades from paper.  I made several attempts at this.  The result is OK and should look decent in the building side on the layout.

Above is a prototype of this style fan.

Above is another version of this fan in a wood frame with a steam driven motor attached.  I will have a similar frame inside my building.

I am not aware of any commercial detail part for a vent fan of this type.

Electric platform truck model

I have built a battery operated  electric platform truck with a crane for my building supply company.  It is used to move supplies around the facility and to load and unload trucks.  Units of this type were common in the 1920's and 1930's for moving all sorts of goods.  Some trucks ere specially fitted to haul bulk items.

Above is a Crescent Crane truck which is what I based my model on.  It could carry a payload of up to 4000 lbs and lift up to 1500 lbs.  It could also tow a trailer.  The battery was located under the platform.

Above is a Elwell-Parker platform truck. This one had a smaller battery located on the platform ahead of the operator.

Below are several photos of my model.

This model is made from a hodgepodge of commercial parts and wood scraps.

The boom on the crane "supposedly" moves up and down and swivels slightly from side to side.

Next I will start on the last building which will be a somewhat smaller structure located to the right of the lumber shed and it will have an open shed attached.  After that I will place all of the components on the layout and add lots of building supply details.

Meanwhile, for all of you who celebrate it -

Have a Merry Christmas!

Building Supply Co main bldg complete

I have completed the main building of the building supply company.  This is primarily a warehouse but has a small office in the lower right corner of the building.  There is a hoist in the open doorway of the upper floor to move materials up and down.  Many of the supplies will be located in the open yard area.  The end you do not see is blank as it will fit against the room wall.

I have added several figures in the open doorways.  For these interior figures I usually use cheap Plasticville figures - I have a lot of them.  I don't have much use for female figures so I often just modify them to use as male figures.  The rear figure in the upper doorway was a female figure.

There is an external stairway at the left rear for access to the upper floor by personnel.

A few days ago I spent several hours sorting through several drawers of electrical and electronic parts - many acquired from various estates I dealt with.  Some I discarded and the rest were sorted into coherent groups.  I have LOTS of "gain of wheat" style bulbs and LOTS of electric wire connecting blocks.  I will likely use very little of this stuff but I am reluctant to throw them away.

Building supply co main bldg start

This is the main building in the building supply company - it is partially completed.  I have installed a floor on the bottom to allow installation of some details that will be visible through the open freight door.  The floor is card stock.  The building is made with commercial wood clapboard siding.  The windows and office door are by Tichy.

There will be a vestige of an upper floor as will be seen through the open top floor door, and which will have a hoist installed.  Both floors will have supplies stacked inside the doors.

I received a comment on my prior post which seems to question whether or not I read the comments to my blog.  Not only do I read them, they are moderated which means I must approve them before they are posted.  I welcome comments and will only reject spam or questionable comments.  In  addition to leaving comments, you can contact me using the Gmail address at the top of the blog page.    I will be more than happy to respond to Gmail questions.

Building supply lumber shed

The first structure I have built for the building supply company is the lumber shed.  This shed will be located between two larger structures so the shed ends are not detailed.  The shed was made using wood scraps and card stock.

The floor boards on both levels are 12 scale inch wide strips of manila card folders painted.  No need to waste strip wood where it cannot be seen.  The shingles are Campbell product card stock strip.  There are various sizes of wood boards in the various shed sections.  The lower left is simulated plywood sheets.  There is a ladder on the left side to climb to the upper platform.  Chain sections are hung between the posts so they can be removed to allow the the yard loader to remove or fill the stalls.

The above photo better shows the platform and chain.  The shed is 40 scale feet wide and 10 scale feet deep at the base.

Building supply company planning

My next industry model will be a building supply company.  My modeling philosophy is to build models prototypically as best I can though I usually do not model any specific prototype.  My models are usually much smaller than a typical prototype.  One of the biggest problems I usually have is to decide what to build - that takes time.  I have a lot of different industries on my layout already so it is challenging to select something different that fits with the area where it will be located.  This building supply company will be located to the right of the soap factory and will be the last industry on this layout section before the end of layout hill.  As usual, I did a quick concept design shown below.

The size was designed to fit the available area.  I sketched the model with some brief dimensions.  This is as much of a plan as I usually make.  I have already decided to eliminate the pictured crane and will instead build a battery powered traveling lift device.  The building supplies will be designed to supply industrial buildings rather than residential buildings.  Maybe they will supply the replacement for the building under destruction.

Above is a building supply yard image, but not exactly what I will be constructing.

Since I have reached the end of the current L shaped layout extension, I am already planning an addition that will create a C shaped layout extension.

I frequently look at the blog statistics to see what viewers are interested in and how many views I get on my postings and what countries they are from.  Over the last few days I have had hundreds of "views" from Russia - I guess I have fans there.