1/2"-Scale Lumber Stacker

[Ken Hamilton]

Thanks, Belg.
Yes....I've seen Grandt Line chain.  In fact, that's what I used on the Lumber Buggy.
It was too big for this application, though.

[Ken Hamilton]

Wow....it's been over a month since my last Slow Progress Report.  (Note: most of what's shown below
has happened within the past 3-or-4 days)

First, the chassis was sprayed with PlastiKote T-235 automotive sandable primer (my one-and-only
choice for primer) and stipled with Jo-Sonja "Earth Brown" artist's acrylic paint. 



A mist of textured Rustoleum "Terra Cotta" was then applied to give the surface a little bite. 
This is typical of how I start just about all weaterhing project.



The result is a somewhat variegated, slightly textured surface:



The next step was done with the old, tried-and-true Rubber Cement technique.  Nothing fancy.
Some dabs of color were added for visual effect, then the rubber cement was stipled on with a
ScotchBrite pad, followed by a wash of cheap, craft store gray.



During all this, I also built the 'see-through" radiator, diamond-plate firewall and floor/seat assembly.
The seat was done by pulling heated plastic over a carved, wooden buck and trimming the excess.



Here are the new components tacked in place for a trial run:



Hopefully the next update will be sooner than a month................

[lab-dad]

Looks good!
How'd you do the radiator?!?!?!
-Marty

[Gordon Ferguson]

I do like that effect on the chassis, looks pretty convincing .... you don't want a crane to paint and rust up do you, even though you obviously don't need the practice ? I presume you just rub off the rubber cement when you have put the top coats on?

I too would like to know a bit more about the radiator please 

[Chuck Doan]

NIce to see you back on this!

[Ken Hamilton]

I presume you just rub off the rubber cement when you have put the top coats on?

That's correct, G.  I rubbed it off with a small piece of Rubber Cement Eraser.  One thing I failed to mention was dabbing on some gray & brown here and there with a small piece of Scotch-Brite to highlight some areas after the rubber cement was peeled off.
The radiator was made by first cutting the piece of screen (some model RR photo-etched diesel vent screen) to fit the grill shell opening.  That served as the "front" grill.  Behind that I glued some vertical styrene strips to the inside of the screen to represent the flow tubes.  Next, I backed that up with a piece of 1/25th-scale photo-etched "Radiator Screen" from Detail Master, a model car aftermarket company.  It's got the zig-zag pattern of a real radiator.  That's about all there was to it.



It might be a little TOO "see-through", but the illusion is there.  Beats looking at a solid piece of plastic.

Chuck: I've been itching to get back to this but Real Life's been getting in the way (you know how THAT works....)

[Scratchman]

Ken, great to see you back at your work bench.

Gordon Birrell

http://www.flickr.com/photos/77318580@N00/

[TRAINS1941]

Ken

Good to see you back at the bench.  Great how to.  Really forward to the next step.

Jerry

[John McGuyer]

Great effects with the rubber cement. I've been playing with hot candle wax to accomplish the same effects. The candle wax you can go back and cut with an X-acto before spraying.

John

[curb]

Awesome  work, as usual ,Ken.

[Ken Hamilton]

I've been playing with hot candle wax to accomplish the same effects. The candle wax you can go back and cut with an X-acto before spraying.
John

...never tried wax, John, but it sounds interesting.  I'd like to see some of your results.
Funny how the rubber cement method was the only game in town for what seems like EVER,
and now there's no end to the experimentation that goes on:  hairspray, salt, wax.....etc.
It's all good!!

[Gordon Ferguson]

Ken, thanks for the info on radiator off to order some of this stuff.

Been back looking at the pictures you posted and going to very cheeky here but I'm not certain on the use of the chequer-plate for the firewall, like the effect its the actual thickness of it that seems to jar with the rest of the modelling. my thoughts might be to thin the plate down and hold it in place with some angle-iron bolted to the chassis

Feel free to give me a verbal blast to tell me to mind my own business, I can take it.... I think?

[Ken Hamilton]

No "Verbal Blasts" from me, G.  Constructive criticism always works.

Thinning the plate from the smooth side isn't a bad idea, providing I can
keep it smooth and even.  It's definitely worth a try.  The angle-iron brace is excellent.   
Another approach might be to make a firewall out of wood for a change of texture, but I
think I would question the prototypical logic behind that.  The simplest fix would be to run
a strap around the current firewall to conceal the out-of-scale thickness, but that might be
sort of a Cop-Out
Hmmmm.....several points to ponder on this one.

....Anybody ELSE got any bright ideas???  (I mean, "constructive criticism"?)

[lab-dad]

I would try some embossing foil or champagne foil and make an original appearing firewall.
Playing on the welded seems and shapes of an original, albeit beat to hek.
Then use some angle, may be a piece of wood for the "dash"
-Marty

[Gordon Ferguson]

Ken, appreciate you taking my comment in the spirit it was made in.

Marty's idea of embossing is worth trying ... I've used thick foil (the type you find in food containers) for this before using the plastic chequer plate as the mould and using a really stiff brush( stencil brush) to burnish the foil.

As for thinning the current plate .. the way I've done this before is to cut a hole in a piece of thin brass( which is the thickness you want to achieve ) so that what I want to thin fits snugly in then stick both to a piece of wood with double sided tape , then sand on bench disc sander. The brass obviously helps to get the thickness you want and also helps keep the overall surface reasonably level - with a bit of care.

You can replace the brass with plasticard  if it easier to cut the shape - in that case I would give it a quick spray with some paint so you can see when you start to sand it !

Been reading the rest of this thread .... would you mind if I had a go at this