Hello everybody! I work in n scale, and I have a few ideas for buildings that I would like to scratchbuild later on that call for some wood siding/sheathing. Does anyone know how to take a sheet of plain styrene and put an n-scale sized wooden texture on it, like what’s on the top half of Atlas’ switch tower kit? I’d prefer to not spent hours scribing hundreds of little lines into the stuff if it’s possible to avoid that (did that on balsa wood a few years back. Ugh.) I know they make sheets of wood-textured styrene, but I have a few sheets of the regular stock stuff laying around and it isn’t going to get used for anything else. I’ve read that a steel-bristled brush works for making weathered wood, but are there any tricks for wood that’s in slightly better shape? Or is there a way to tone down the heavily weathered wood look I’ve seen a lot of people use?
The Atlas Switch Tower I am thinking of has clapboard siding. I haven’t seen that look created out of plain styrene. If that’s the look you want, you could glue some plastruct clapboard on top of the plain.
I dragged a razor saw across this board and batten siding
If you want decent results, use the correct material. Thouse plane sheets will be used up some where, floors, roof, braceing. Besides we are talking only a few bucks here. And as you get into scratch building. Its handy to have some on hand.
IMHO, wood grain in Nsale, is a waste of time, you will never see it.
If you must, I feel a razor saw is too harsh, I think sand paper will do better. But if you don’t want to scribe each board,why bother. You won’t get the wood look by texture alone. As stated above just my thoughs
One clean, firm swipe of a sheet of 20-grit sandpaper. Get the paper from a big-box store or shop that rents vibrating pad sanders for floor stripping/refinishing, cut it to handy size, and wrap it around a piece of 2x4 or block hand sander.
A sheet of plain styrene, even in HO scale. would not represent wood siding of any type, other than, perhaps, plywood, and the raised grain on it would not be realistic in either HO or N scale, even as unsanded plywood.
I’m guessing that your referring to the styrene sheets that represent clapboard/shiplap/novelty siding, along with the scribed sheets suitable for representing wooden freight and passenger cars. None of those have a textured finish, and none are really suitable to be textured with the razor saw or sandpaper method, as they’re meant to represent painted wooden siding in good condition.
This is an HO scale Athearn Pullman, converted into a wooden express car, using Evergreen passenger car siding… (click on the photos to get an enlarged version)
There is no woodgrain visible, because cars of this type were painted and well-maintained. The scribing to denote the individual boards is not overly pronounced, as many real cars of this type used wide boards scribed to look like two narrower boards. No woodgrain in HO, and you wouldn’t see woodgrain on an O scale car of this type either.
If you wish to use styrene to make N scale wooden structures which are well maintained, Evergreen offers a good selection of the siding-types mentioned above, along with sheets of board & batten siding in various widths.
None of these are suitable to have wood grain added to them, whether with a razor saw or sandpaper…not only would it be tedious work, but the results would not be realistic in N scale nor would they be so in HO - the siding is meant to represent p
Northeastern Scale Lumber makes wooden sheets with a variety of textures and sizes. If you would like to try scratch building with real lumber, give them a thought.
I agree with those who think you should save the flat styrene for some other project and just buy a sheet of two of clapboard siding.
Similar to Wayne’s comments, wood is either in good condition or it is not.
Wood used for trim and clapboard siding is perfectly smooth when installed and painted and stays that way unless neglected. You can’t see thewood grain thru the paint. That’s just one of the reasons I hate vinyl siding…
Disclaimer - I restore historic buildings for a living. I hate when people paint over rough old paint or deteriorated wood and think they are “restoring” or “preserving” something, interior or exterior…
People 100 years ago, or 200 years ago, appreciated craftsmanship, and the “fresh new look” as much as anyone today. “old patina” is only approperate is some of what we do.
Too much “old patina” is telling a lie about how people lived centuries ago.
Anyway, back to models.
The restored wood passenger cars from 1900 at the Strasburg Rail Road have paint finishes on them that rival the best automobiles - just like they did when they were new.
So styrene seems to me to be the perfect material in HO or N scale unless you wish to model decay.
Most actual wood grain is way to course to look correct in small modeling scales. Even to model unpainted, deteriorated wood, I would just use color, and some simulated damage.
I model the 1950s and began with Styrene kits back in the 80s for my structures. After acquiring a Laser cut wooden kit about 7 years ago that was the end of Styrene for me. I have replaced all but four plastic structures on my layout with basswood scratch builts. If you want a wood look use wood. I found it much easier to scratch build with basswood than Styrene.
Real wood accepts stain realistically too.
All four structures are basswood, the mine on the upper left and the house on the right are Craftsman kits the other two are scratch builts.
Mel, those are great looking structures, and wood is just as good a medium as plastic.
And just like I was saying, I don’t see any wood grain in your white clapboard siding, which makes it look correct.
I still build lots of wood structures too, but not because the wood grain adds anything to the appearance. So few outdoor things are purposely left with a natural wood finish, most are painted.
Ironicly, in the work I do these days on real houses, we still use wood outdoors sometimes, but mostly we use PVC trim lumber like AZEK and go to great lengths to make the details still look like they are wood.
Then we paint the AZEK to protect it from UV, give it a more uniform finish, and make it look more like wood…
Getting quality wood for exterior use these days is more expensive than AZEK.
This is a small section of the Weimer’s Mill kit I built. It is a wood kit, and these are wooden walls, stained with India Ink wash. The kit is in HO scale.
I think this is the best way to model clapboard siding. Styrene is all right, but this gives more real wood variation, while the styrene, once painted, is pretty flat and just the color of the paint.
I guess it depends on what you are trying to model, a new or well maintained building, or a somewhat neglected building.
I only have minimal interest in modeling the later.
I model enough variations in condition to be realistic, but I prefer to model prosperity over poverty.
Having worked on hundreds of old buildings in real life, I can assure you none of them had any visable wood grain showing when they were first built and painted. Or, even decades later if they were properly cared for to any degree.
And again I will bring up my views about scale, viewing distance, and perception. 3 feet is 270 scale feet in HO, from 270 feet lots of buildings in average condition look pretty pristine.
If you are trying to model neglect and decay, yes wood may work better for wood…
I find the razor saw a bit too harsh for the job. I prefer to use the side of a micro file. I do one good pass and usually get just enough texture to make it look like wood.
Maybe I should add something else here. I understand that in other regions of the country, the southwest in particular, dry conditions allow unpainted would buildings to fair pretty well for a long time.
Not so here in the wet, green, humid, lush, multi temperature mid atlantic.
Even the best types of wood surcum to fungus and rot left unprotected too long.
Around here, fix it, paint it, or it will fall down - or the government will make you take it down…
I model the Transition Era, so an old mill, even then, would be an old mill. A water-powered mill would be long abandoned, no longer working. I have built a few more in-use structures, and for them, styrene is just fine. Dry brushing with some gray paint will simulate a slightly worn wooden building, but my mill is meant to look old and abandoned.
