Does anybody know how to model a flaming building.
you could build in some steam generators,
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/667-117E
I’ve seen some pretty good looking “synthetic fire” that was made with a light bulb, a small fan and some silky material. The material is cut into a tapered shape, similar to a match flame. You mount several of them over the fan so it flaps them around, then the light (a small orange bulb) shines on from below. The light changes enough on the moving material, it looks like flames flickering.
I have’t seen it in a real small area, but it would be a cheap enough thing to try.
It might be easier to model the aftermath of the fire. Show a damaged structure with blackened framework, some pumpers still soaking the embers with streams of water made from fiber optics aimed at points where you’ve embedded the electronic kits advertised to simulate hobo campfires. You could include a few Seuthe smoke generators that you would only turn on when you have visitors. You could also include a van for the arson investigators and police patrolling the yellow tapes to keep the onlookers at a safe distance. Of course, the flashers on all the emergency vehicles would be flashing to draw the attention of your visitors. Don’t forget a Dalmatian dog investigating the fire hydrants, and use some simulated water in the street gutters for runoff from the fire.
Bob
NMRA Life 0543
Fire? V E R Y C A R E F U L L Y ! ! Actually you can get setups for rapid firing yellow and red LED’s to get a flicker. Some careful placement of crumpled aluminum foil with regard to visibility through windows, doorways etc. will give a very realistic appearance.
Does thease techniques work with the steel mill sets of Walthers?
Don’t I remember A hobo campfire? You could modify it to suit your needs. [Kitbash].
Flip
Here is one of the websites I get my LED’s from and they have these little lamps that use the led/silk method. I’ve seen them before up close and it’s pretty dang impressive if I don’t say so myself. The picture doesn’t do it justice but you can get the idea maybe.
http://www.superbrightleds.com/flame.htm
5150
I once saw a house fire modeled in a layout at a local show, and being a retired firefighter, I had to of course, get more info on how it was built. The builder said he used red, orange and yellow LEDs with a flash device to simulate flames and the smoke was steel wool he thinned out and shaped to look like smoke. Looked pretty good to me. Here are a few pix:
I cut up a bunch of Christmas tree lights with the flashing bulbs and rigged several strings of 3 bulbs per flasher, using yellow and red bulbs. For the smoke, we use the fan driven smoke generator sold by MicroMark and mineral oil. This is for an IRS building on fire, which I believe was originally sold by ConCor, but the original lights were burned out.
There is a “steam generator” available through some florest shops. You put a little water init, and an untrasonic generator causes cold steam to vaporize off. Looks like smoke.
Good Luck!
[:)]
Con Cor has a house on fire building.
Hi Junctionfan
I used the GRS Super Flamemaker (16v and $27.50) for my Blast furnace and the Miniatronics Flame Simulator in my rolling mill. The Miniatronics was nothing more than 4, 12volt, amber and red, Xmas type flasher bulbs. I don’t remember, but I don’t think it cost much more than $5.00.
Although not bad, I was a little disappointed with the GRS in that it did randomly flicker, but the brightness variation was not that noticeable. The Miniatronics, believe it or not, was much more real than the more expensive GRS.
I mounted the GRS beside the blast furnace to get reflection off the inside walls and mounted the Miniatronics high in the cross beams of the rolling mill for the same.
REX [:)]
I little alcohol and a match does wonders[;)][:-^][:)]
Walthers sells a house that is on fire (not realy) so you might look at that one Tim
I once saw the Metropolitan Opera put on one of Wagner’s operas and the had a ship on fire that was so real I thought about bolting for the exit. They used a red light and celephane with a blower to move the celophane. A spare motor from a defunct engine should be capable of putting out quite a draft with a home made paddlewheel impellar mounted under the railroad
Try using the flicker bulbs that are used on electric candles, etc, at Christmas. They can be had in small and regular bases.
You may have to do some deep searching for this one. Several years ago, MR magazine ran an outstanding article on using a cheap radio to mimick an open flame. The audio output goes to yellow and red LEDs or to a small krypton lamp.
When you tune in to a station, avoid repetitive, heavy rhythm (rock and roll) and try to use either talk shows or classical music. The idea is to find a random or natural looking pattern for the flickering effect.
Hide the lamp so that a viewer will only see its effects, not the actual flame.
Good luck,
– Tom –
YES! I’ve used these for 2 “scenics” on my “O” layouts, and they would work for “HO” as well. On both, I mounted the bulb in a cut-down plastic “Christmas candle”, and so far, youv’ve spent about $3… I made a “burning” apartment building with a building “front” and a 1" wood frame for the sides/top. All widows were backed with translucent plastic, except that the one to have the “fire” showing was bowed-out at the bottom to let the smoke escape. The flicker light was mounted behind this, and a $9. smoke unit mounted just under the bowed-out window interior. The smoke unit was hooked up to A.C. posts(used a old dc transformer), and the flame to household current. Connected both plugs to a off-on power strip(you just want this on for a minute or 2). Don’t close the building up permanently, since you’ll have to repleni***he smoke fluid now and then. Also, leave a small opening near the base to create a draft for the smoke to exit the window. I also wrapped a piece of foil around the back uf the bulb to contain the “fire” to one window.
The other use for the flicker bulb is “campfires”, but the bulb would have to be mounted under the layout. Lemax makes some inexpensive Christmas “fire” items that could be kitbashed. Joe