Just picked this up on the cheap for its night lighting possibilities.
I am going to give it a nice paint scheme and remove the sidewalks and sign.
I was thinking of making it a T.V. repair shop, dentist office or clinic. As a clinic I could add an outdoor garden to the first floor roof. Other ideas are for a lighted billboard there.
I am open to other suggestions. Era is late 70’s - 80’s.
what scale is it? looks like it was built for dwarfs or midgets. may be just the camera angle.
grizlump
It was advertised as N scale. Looks O.K. To me but I won’t know for sure until I get it.
I think I would cut out the door/window fronts on the right side and replace them with large glass panes. Put a couple of cars inside and it would look like an auto dealership.
My first thought on seeing it (other than remembering a really neat tin toy I had as a kid that was a “parking lot” with an elevator for the cars so they could park on the roof!) was “tire dealer.”
Too bad your era is not the 1960s. Tire dealers all seemed to have aluminum Christmas trees set up in December, with a color wheel making the tree change colors. Firestone dealers even sold Christmas music LPs back then.
All that glass cries out for a large air conditioner on the flat roof.
Dave Nelson
First thoughts - laundromat, mechanic’s garage (turn the windows to the left and right into garage doors).
Also, I know it’s not exactly prototypical, but making it an arcade just seemed right. I know arcades normally don’t have a lot of windows, but it might be an interesting addition with a few machines, some people, and a bunch of flashing lights.
Looks like a good candidate for an auto service shop, tire store, or lube & oil. Might also make a good diner with tables and patrons all light up for night.
Somehow I just can’t see it as an airport unless it’s a small local county airport. That would work. Make a sign advertising flying lessons and park a few single engine two seater aircraft near it. My first thought though was for a Greyhound bus depot with a restaurant in the single story part. You can get some nice models of Greyhound busses. That would work better than a county flying field for night lighting. Have fun hiding the light bulbs!
As for it possibly being out of scale, my acid test for scale is to put a person of the correct scale at the door and see how the door compares to its height.
Some great suggestions here. I am glad I posted for some help. Its going be be tough making a final decision. Whichever idea I go with I will try to incorporate that persons name into the building somehow.
Seamonster ~ You probably did not see the last paragraph of my post. I think it looks silly as an Airport Terminal as well. I think many others did also as I scooped it up for a pretty good price.
As for hiding light bulbs I have some things in mind. Here are some pics of some things I have done so far on my layout:
Most all of my buildings will have individual floors and rooms with corresponding night lighting. I am also going to try to utilize some UV LEDs to create some neon signs some how.
I agree. Either an auto dealer, or chop off the top floor and make it an auto shop.
I think it looks perfectly reasonable as a regional airport terminal from the past 50 years.
I agree with many of the suggestions so far. The big problem to me is that second floor. It just doesn’t make sense for many of the ideas floated. Although, I know of at least a few auto dealerships that are in urban areas that put their showrooms partially on the first floor partially on the roof. With either a ramp or an car elevator for access. Or, if in a mountainous city, the second story just exists as the street climbs the hill.
I think that could be an interesting idea if you have the urban area and/or mountains to justify it.
Please tell us more about your “track lighting.” What materials, how fabricated, etc.
Fancy restaurant, with the upscale dining room on the second level. Blank most of the windows on the one story (kitchen) end and put a big HVAC package and several exhaust pipes, fans and stacks on the roof. Then, those big windows just cry out for interior detailing.
If you can locate it where there would be a nice view from the dining room end, even better.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964 - with restaurants that aren’t at all similar)
The glass windows are perfect for a hillside, or hilltop restaurant. The 2nd story could even have an outdoor dining cafe plus tourist viewing telescopes.
See the Johnstown Inclined Plane & Restaurant beside the world’s steepest inclined plane at a 70.9% degree grade, in Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
The hillside railroad is standard guage (4’-8.5").
Going with the restaurant theme for the first floor, how about a nightclub or disco or dance-club on the second floor (depending on your era). The lighting themes can be intense for such usage, especially if you go for a 1960s or later era disco (in the original sense of the word - a dance club where DJ’s playing music provide the main entertainment, not necessarily the Disco music genre of the mid-late '70s). Since dance-clubs exist today, such a use would fit any era from 1960 to now, and you can play with fibre optics light piping colors onto the dance floor, as well as spot area lighting. Add era-appropiate music (as described in the ‘model a record store’ thread) and, well Presier of course has figures dancing but not sure how you’d animate that - vibrating floor like the old electric football game sets? Actually, thanks to the 1970s British Service industry documentary ‘Are You Being Served’, I learned that my experience in 1990s dance-club life was the same as the 1970s experience - the women danced together in a circle surrounding a pile of their pocketbooks, while the men stood around watching them. That should be easy to model [:P]. And you can add a Mirror Ball - used even today w/ Intelligent Lighting.
If you’re modeling the 1940s-1950s, add brighter lighting (no spots or cans really), Chrome and glitter, and a live band (and model men figures in suits and women figures in gowns, unless you’re catering to the teen scene). Hey, it’s a catering hall! And that outdoor deck just cries out for an outdoor bar, some metal tables and chairs, maybe an outdoor stage/dance floor like the old Sprats On the Water, and people (couples and otherwise) hanging out looking over the ledge. Modern era, probably add a hotdog cart or other such venue to sell cheap greasy comfort food to th
Thanks for all the great ideas everyone! I decided to go with a Sushi Bar or Seafood joint. It is definately a 1:50 scale building so I had to modify it a bit.
I am using brass rod and tubing along with Circuitron 3V LEDs. I’ll post pictures on how I incorporate them into this building.
Anyway here is what I have done so far. I stretched the floors vertically, added base planters, and a Tiki bar to the deck. I used real bamboo for the roof. The 2 brass poles will carry current for lighting. I will be adding 5 green LEDs to the soffits on each side. A lighted sign will be placed over the stores entrance. I am also going to remove the silver detail paint from the windows.
Right now its almost all ready for painting:
1:50? It looks like you’re modeling in HO, right? 1:50 would look too big. Maybe 1:100?
Other than that esoteric question, I think the Sushi bar is a great idea. It’s not something you see modeled anywhere else.
I have a couple of those little umbrellas that come with fruity mixed drinks at some Oriental restaurants. I thought of using them as table umbrellas, after cutting them down, but never got around to it. Would those work for you?
I am modeling in N. Sorry I meant to to say 1:160. Don’t know why I put 1:150. I’ll have to see if those umbrellas would look. Thanks for the suggestion. I’ll let you know if they work out.
Thanks for this thread, GrooveRider. I learned some neat tricks just from your photos. This is why I check these forums - looking for good ideas.
MisterBeasley - what is that neat graphic at the bottom of your post? The one that looks almost like a subway station, three parts?
Dick / Bozeman
Your 1:150 Freudian slip is easily explained. Your final take is a Japanese-themed business.
(Japanese model their home-grown prototypes in Nj - 1:150 scale on 9mm gauge track.)
The sushi joint in Haruyama is nowhere near as modern-looking as yours. Of course, its prototype was built about two centuries ago…
Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)