1:16th 1944 Belgian mechanic/work shop

[marc_reusser]

M

[marc_reusser]

Mind you none of the above are absolutes....things always varied depending or region, builder preference, site conditions, quality of construction (wealth of building owner), function/type of structure etc.

M

[Philip Smith]

Marc, Great library!

I thought the new floor looked similar to this street scene photo.



I also remember at Daley Barrack (Bad Kissingen) there were these beautiful intersecting sweeping arches
in the motor pool made from local quarried pavers I suppose.

Philip

[pwranta193]

Magnifique!  Marc, What a great collection... let me know if there is a "sticky" point for stuff like this - I'll post some of my stuff and some of the references that I've found on the net as well here.  I've got a bunch of Italian buildings and some rail stations as well - mostly smaller ones, IIRC.  I also have some of the great span designed by Eifel in the same area as my farm pics below.

I especially dig the "how to make a cellar"... let's see, we'll have Klaus and Herbert dig that out by hand as we don't want them laying around all Spring...

Good catch on the high points/edges.  I was looking at them now in place and worrying about the seams - but that wouldn't fix the high edges (I especially want to avoid looking like tiles).  I'll be dremel-ing off those high corners and edges this evening... they are a result of my high tech A+B putty cutting process.  In the future I would add an extra step:

1. Roll out the putty
2. Lay out on wax paper
3. Cut to size - at this point the edges corners lift as they stick to the blade and didn't flatten back down
4. Cover with wax paper and flip over - this is the missing step, as your "tiles" will be now be slightly mounded (worn edges and corners)
5. Then Add texture and irregularities

Thank you!  More pics to follow...

[pwranta193]

Okay - first some shots of the Central Massif of France... just a hodge podge of decent wall shots (some of the better ones feature my kids, who don't get posted on the web  )

We stayed with a terrific family in their restored 1862 farmhouse.  Most of the houses within this small village were like this.  The three story section was the home attached to the two story barn... while theirs was not a functioning farm house - the one immediately across the road was - with tractors and livestock still housed adjacent to the family quarters.

Also some misc shots from nearby St Flour and the area...
(Note - photo follies - a couple of these appear to be just a bit larger than 200 KB - so I'll have to edit/add from my other computer later).

[pwranta193]

St Vith 1900's shots from the town's modern day website and one of a building in nearby Stavelot from a GI's photo album.

[marc_reusser]

Bunch of great new pics guys. Much fun.

Philip; Good find. I agree that Pauls floor matches that very well. Personally I was just feeling that this is not something that would be too common on the interior of a structure, and for the space he was using it in, it seemed a bit ridgid, and staid...especially with the already more regular shaped wall blocks.....that's why I was angling for some broken and irregular pieces.


Paul; Nice structure photos. Sounds like a fun trip. The top image is what I believe is broadly termed a "longhouse" or "telescoping house" plan, this type of plan/massing were common in areas of rural France (and parts of England, such as the Cotswolds...and even in Spain, and Italy); it stemmed basically from subsequent additions to and original structure, either as the wealth of the farmer grew, his family grew, livestock increased, or by subsequent owners. (Just looking at this, my guess would be that in the top photo the right hand/lower structure was likely the first one...with livestock below, and living quarters above....then at some point the two story attached "residence" was added (note the difference in masonry size/shape construction on the two, and the slight change/interweaving in the stone in the wall where the two meet). The open floating doorway (probably the entry to thr original living quarters), likely at some point had stone steps that led up from the grade (small window under it would have been a later addition) ....but all just a guess from looking at the photo.)

Marc

[pwranta193]

Grumble... one of those 45 minute posting efforts gone south, so I'll now go with the reader's Digest version:

Thanks Marc and Philip... I'll respond with a more thoughtfull follow up once I'm done pouting (the first one was Pulitzer ready - really  ), and not trying to race out the door for dinner.

Cobbles with base paint of Tamiya Dark Yellow, Dark Grey and a touch of Khaki Brown over a light sponging of Olive Drab.  Here you can see the need for a grouting... I was going to use a mix of pigments and hydrocal brushed into the voids and activated using an water spritzer.  Some local friends think it won't be robust enough, and have suggested a gel medium wash - but I'm afraid I wont be able to get it off of the cobbles... and ideas are welcome, and I'll be doing some experimenting late tonight.

Second concern is wheather to use a Future coat after the problems I had getting the last floor to go flat - but I really think that oils are the way to bring out the depth and texture in the stones.  I know some of you guys forego the Future coat - again, any ideas are welcome.

Again thank you and I'll tune up my reply when I get back this evening.

[artizen]

I am using casting plaster for bricks on my buildings and cement oxides for colouring. I use two coats of spray matte varnish out of a pressure tin to seal them completely before adding grout. That way, the grout does not stain the surface. The downside is that the varnish and the grout repel each other and air bubbles need to be filled later with small applications of grout or dirt. If you make each batch of grout slightly different in colour, you get that random unevenness that I think makes it look more prototypical. Adding oils, dirt and detritus later will only add to the lived-in look these places had in real life.

[Malachi Constant]

Paul --

Another grouting option -- Liquitex ceramic stucco medium -- it's gritty and can be colored to any desired shade with acrylic paints.  And you can clean up the stone surfaces with a wet brush/cloth/whatever (before it's fully set).   Think I used a sponge along the way in the clean-up ... damp sponge, initial pass, rinse sponge, repeat ... not sure ... I'm getting older and I forget things! 

The stuff is available at Michaels or art stores -- look for it alongside the acrylic paints.  It comes in a little screw-top tub.  AND ... most importantly ... if you do decide to try that, try it on some scrap cobbles first to see if it's what you want!  

I used it on the stone floor of my garage, which has rather shallow mortar lines and it worked well for me.  My floor still needs dirt, grime, etc, but you can catch a glimpse of it with the mortar done here:
http://www.finescalerr.com/smf/index.php?topic=876.msg14165#msg14165

I like the two tomatoes and the cantaloupe!  

Cheers,
Dallas

[pwranta193]

Okay - settled in for intelligent response (or as close as I can get with that Oblelisk/Ape man thing going on in my head).

Marc - to your comment:

I was just feeling that this is not something that would be too common on the interior of a structure, and for the space he was using it in, it seemed a bit ridgid, and staid...especially with the already more regular shaped wall blocks.....that's why I was angling for some broken and irregular pieces.

Agreed... somewhere in my evolution of the idea to now, the area being modeled was to have represented an outside area that ended up becoming covered and then enclosed as the building/operation expanded.  Unfortunately, the exterior wall and especially the doorway that I ended up with made my recent addition idea a little clunky - at this point the cobbles are more about providing a better look than the store bought sheeting - and trying out something a little more natural looking.  If I was starting from scratch, I'd think knowing what I know now, I'd have gone with a combo of poured concrete (in the areas that a vehicle would have pulled into) and aged planking along the lines of your earlier barn comments.  I very much like the yard picture you added - and can see that cropping up in the future - especially now that I can make stones and the like

Philip - I think I missed Bad Kissingen... but have always loved those old school Kasernes... Graf, Hoenfehls, Bad Tolz, and Wildflikken was a favorite  Some of of those places had housed regiments over centuries, and had some amazing architecture.

Art - I've not tried sealing with a matte before,,, interesting.  I'll take a look at the cement oxides... is this something that comes in 40 kilo bag? 

Dallas - I swear that "Liquitex ceramic stucco medium" sounds super familiar... I'm going to check the garage - as I'm almost sure that I've used it before - possibly for something that it was actually intended for.

Tomatoes and Cantaloupe, eh... yeah the Divisional Trains just got in a shipment from Imperial Valley  .  I'll get started on that repainting job... 

Thanks all... sounds like a potential trip to Michael's in the AM...

[artizen]

The cement oxides I am using are available at the local discount hardware stores in Australia in small plastic bottles ranging in weight from 225g to around 300g (the cement oxides vary in density depending on colour). The price varies according to the colour as well - browns and black being cheap, blue being really expensive. The casting plaster comes in a 20kg bag over here (as does cement and mortar as it has something to do with WH&S and insurance etc). So far I have created nearly 10,000 bricks and used about 25% of the plaster and three bottles of oxide out of the eight colours I originally purchased. So the first building cost me around $94 for materials including the silicone moulds, plaster, oxides, styrene for the brick masters, etc but the following buildings are almost free (only the address stickers I use for brick templates). Of course, any sane modeller would have used faster methods such as scribed foamcore etc, but I love self-flagellation!!! BTW - I am working in 1:24.

[pwranta193]

Okay - a couple of real quick shots (and not real good) of two experiments:

First, ran aground with my efforts using the liquitex stucco... while the small test was okay - I rushed ahead (with some acrylic colors now mixed in).  When i went to sponge off the high/surface areas the grit took down the earlier sealed base coats (well, Duh ).  causing some repainting, resealing with future, some intitial washes, and a quick dull coat.  I will want to do some additional selective washes and  then dust in/over with pigments, but hopefully you get the picture.  Not delighted, and will sit back and think on it for a day or two.

Second, picked up some Ranger line "picket fence" - tossed it on a door that was an early item on the project made from coffee stir sticks and popsicle bones.  If used it would have needed nails - but ended up on the idea editor's floor.  It had a green paint job over some light grey weathering.  I've got to say, the crackle stuff is as easy to use as everyone has said.  I can see using this in the future in 35th scale even, especially if you can get the small crackling this easy... another great tip learned here.

[finescalerr]

In both cases the work, to my eye, needs toning down and cleaning up; crispness and subtlety. It reminds me of the way a model looks when Marc or Virgil or one of the guys applies shading but hasn't yet put on the finish coat. That's a good thing because it means you can fix it pretty easily. -- Russ

[jacq01]

  Sorry for the late reply..   I use for filling gaps between cobble stones seeved sand and for the smaller scales dust.  After applying it I wet it with water + dishwashing liquid, after which I glue it with a mix of water, carpenter glue an dish washing liquid ( thin as milk)  very little to no effect on surface or colours.

Jacq