I want to build all my HO buildings out of basswood. I’d be grateful for some advice from the pros who assemble their structures out of wood.
My question is: To create the clapboard effect for the exterior of a structure, is there a template or other device that would allow me to make an impression on the wood to resemble clapboards?
I could, of course, use a ruler and draw a stipling (sp) tool along the rule edge, but I’ve had some problems maintaining equal distances up and down, and acroos the side of the buildings.It look unrealistic.
I tried paining 110-pound paper with gray, broan and off white acrylic paint and cutting narrow slices to resemble clapboard and pasting each across the wood. I must then go back and trim where I have doors and windows.
Surely, there must be a device, template or whatever that would allow me to impress indents on the wood, equally spaced, and give the building at least a semi-realistic appearance.
Just a hint: I tried basswood, it’s pretty nice stuff, especially for carving, it take a careful hand as the wood is thin and small, window openinings are a beast as it can split, my solution?? I now use sheet styrene,easy to use, instant glue up , strong, bendable forgiving, want a wood grain surface?? drag an exacto saw across the surface–perfect, easy to paint too, Sorry I’m not too much help with the basswood but I defy you to tell the difference between the two.
A small straight edge, a sharp knife and lots of practice is all I know. It is a practiced art that most anyone can learn, but your tenth building will look better than your second. ADVICE: If you don’t like the process enough to put in the practice go to the kits that have the proper pieces in the kit. Some of the laser cut are really nice.
You’d be scratchbuilding wood structures, not kitbashing them. Kitbashing infers taking an existing kit and modifying it - kitbashing it - to make something else.
If you are going to do this, get yourself a good supply of #11 blades for an X-Acto knife. Micro Mark sells 100 of them for around $12.00. Change blades often, as a dull blade will not cut properly, it will tear the wood.
To make openings for doors and windows in basswood, cover the back of the opening with masking tape when you are doing the cutting, this will prevent the wood splitting.
Use plain ol white glue to fasten pieces together.
Brace all interior corners, tops, and bottoms with heavy pieces of stripwood - 1/4" or so, to prevent warping.
If you intend to stain your wood structure, do so before assembly, as stain will not absorb into glued areas.
Start small, work your way up to larger more complicated structures.
Find older issues of model magazines, with plans for structures. It’s easier to do if someone else has already done the figuring out for you.
I regret misspoke by saying kitbashing; I meant scratchbuilding. I have loads of basswood and want to use them. Many folks have suggested styrene, but I never delved into the plastic side of structure buyilding. Perhaps I should.
You have loads of basswood and want to use them instead of buying a pre-made sheet. In that case, make your own clapboard sheet. I scratch build / kitbash and I’m always on the lookout for tools. I have yet to see a jig for making clapboard siding. However maybe something like a MAGNETIC GLUING JIG would be useful.
Lay a solid sheeet of basswood or vertical boards (like studs) and, on one side, lay the clapboards out as you would on a real house. See Installing Clapboard Siding. Except use glue instead of nails.
I forgot to ask you the size of your basswood. I assumed it’s cut into clapboard size strips. If not , take a look at Micro Scale’s Strip Wood Cutter to make individual boards
I don’t usually kitkabash with wood… or at all for that fact, but I am kind of new at all of this. Or at least I got out of it for long enough to lose all of the hints and tips. Good luck!
As it happened, I just scratch built my first wooden structure from clapboard sheeting from the Micromark lumber yard. I would think that a fine clapboard in HO would be very hard to make from strips and I needed a fine pattern for the particular structure. My observations from this process.
Paint as much as you can before assembly. Water based acrylics will tend to warp the sheet and this can be corrected when dry under a pile of telephone books.
Pay particular attention to the perpendicular approach of the hobby knife when cutting sheets. It is easy to get a cut that is not perfectly perpendicular and this can play havoc with assembly and result in gaps. A sanding block can help correct this issue.
The wood will split easily in line with the grain. Pay attention to this when close to edges when cutting windows. Tape will help here.
Don’t forget a foundation. Most all wooden structures were sitting on something, that was often not wood. This foundation, in my case made from foamboard and styrene strip painted concrete coloe, can assist greatly in keeping the structure square when being assembled.
I found Titebond wood glue was an excellent adhesive to use. It has more tack than white glue and I found this helpful.
For what it is worth, i just posted some pictures of it in a new thread called “re-creating history on our layouts”