I'm new to card modeling so bear with me. I'm attempting to build the turbine house and so far the attempt ain't going too well. First, the base has two cut outs. One appears to be for the front door and the other for the loading dock at the rear. Problem is, the pictures of the building don't show either door being recessed. Second, Once I have completed the walls, what is the best sequence of build. Do I join the four walls and slip the walls over the base or do I apply the walls one by one to the base. I'm impressed with the quality and contents of the kits, but the total lack of directions makes it a very frustrating endeavor. Any help that can be provided is appreciated.
Good luck, Peter B! I'm no expert with cardstock, but I've enjoyed using Clever Bros files. I found the "Tips and Trick" section helpful, and there's a construction hits file on "Get Freebies" that will give some insight. There is probably no "right" way to build these models. It depends on how you want to approach them -- e. g., are you modifying them in any way, are you going to back them with foamcore or something like that (I never have and my 2-3 year old models are doing fine)?
There's a good illustration for construction of the signal tower in the construction tips at "Get Freebies" -- Ben Streeter's file. I have yet to build the tower, but seeing these steps gave me an idea of how to work with cardstock. Check it out and have fun!
Peter, it's a challenging building for sure but we will get you through it. All of the windows and doors are inset and mounted from the back of the walls. I will post a drawing or two later today Thom
I tend to vary the assembly sequence, but generally, I put the base into the assembled walls, one piece at a time. This allows me to trim the base pieces as needed, which I sometimes have to do because I've laminated the interior walls with cardboard. When I do that, it slightly reduces the amount of room I have for the base.
If you're not laminating the pieces, you should be able to slip the completed base into the walls.
I just took a quick tour of your blog. You are without a doubt a very accomplished modeler. I need to go back and take a closer look at what you are doing. In fact all who visit the 'Clever' site should take a long hard look at your blog. So much to be learned.
I also like the fact that you are putting a lot of model railroading in a small space. Now I don't feel alone. (3X16 HO scale).
Hi Peter Don't let those cut out areas bother you too much. They are there to clear the inset and layered doors. If you don't know what insetting and layering are, you need to stop building and download the file labeled A), from the FREEBIES page of the website. You will get a lot of insight into paper modeling there. The thing is, we really don't know how many interior stiffeners you will put in or where you will place them, so we leave "cutouts" for clearance, in the most likely places. E.G. If you place a stiffener higher than the bottom of the windows, YOU will have to make clearance cutouts because all of the windows extend into the building "inset" about 1/8" in O scale, obviously less in the smaller scales. As someone else mentioned, if you add reinforcing lamination's inside the walls, YOU will have to make allowance for them also. Don't be too up tight about doing it the RIGHT way. Do it YOUR way.
Thanks to all for your advice and input. I understand what you are saying, but I still have some problems. I have read the general instructions several times. However, this doesn't help me with specifics like where some pieces go on the model. I have looked at pieces for several of the models that I have downloaded and there are some I just can't figure out where the pieces go. I agree that a lot of it is intuitive, but some of it isn't. I guess if it comes down to it, I'll just dump the unknown pieces in the trash and move on.
Peter, I am creating some exploded views that I will send you. If I knew specifically what your having a problem with that would help.. The 2 areas I that I think would be the most unclear would be how the side walls fold at the top to attach to the roof and the inside edge of the front and back walls and how they attach to the roof. The flattened parts look odd and confusing but fold them as indicated. The folded parts will make more sense to you. This is an older kit. We had not yet refined our design process, however all the parts fit as they should and the finished build is excellent.
DON'T throw anything in the trash! If you don't use it on this project, it may come in handy for your next project. I have to admit it took me a while to get into the "Clever Mode". Most of us are used to building structures with specific written instructions that we tend to follow "religiously". The Clever kits are a combination of kit building & scratch building. There is no right or wrong way to proceed as long as you are satisfied with the results. The brothers seem to be more creative than the average building so they leave many opportunities for you to do your own thing. I tend to overbrace which makes modifications necessary on many parts for correct fit. Sometime we do make a mistake & seem to be lost...if that happens people in this group will do all we can to help you..don't hesitate to ask. Every model has been built by someone here & we are glad to help.
Thanks again for your encouragement and advice. I will keep plodding along. It sounds like there is a lot of latitude in how one goes about building these critters. I have always been willing to modify and improvise, so I guess card models are no exception. Thankks again!
Peter You are correct in your statement that there is a lot of latitude, but not necessarily in how the kit works. All of the kits go together in the same basic way. Here's a basic battle plan. After downloading, print all the sheets. Sit and look at them for a while, using the pictures as a reference for "generally" what goes where. Once you have an idea of where the major components go, think whether you want to build the most basic of structures or add a little of yourself. Lets assume you are going for most basic. Pick a wall to start with. Cut it out and any pieces that "obviously" go with it. I'm referring to things like door & window parts that mach what is printed on the basic wall. Detail that wall by layering or insetting the doors & windows. There may be some items that need to be added to the outside of the wall. Usually items like additional layers that produce a more 3D piece. If you wish to add more stiffness to the wall, add more cardstock layers or cardboard or foam core or whatever to the inside. Be aware of how this might affect any tabs that are part of the wall you are working on or might need to attach to that wall. Generally you leave those areas without additional layers. Move on to the 2nd. wall. Then the third and fourth. Next join the walls together. If there are interior stiffeners, add them next, trimming as needed to clear any interior obstructions. Now that you have a basic box, add the additional pieces that span two walls, like wrap-around corner trim on wood buildings or quoins on brick buildings. Not all kits have these. Add the foundation pieces, if they are separate pieces. Add roofs and roof details. This is a very gross oversimplification, but it pretty much works every time. Just understand that we provide a lot of options. You don't have to use any of them.
For your specific question, I usually glue the four walls to each other then put in the "stiffeners" -- top and bottom -- for rectangular buildings. This may not help too much, but check out http://blacktop-crossing.blogspot.com/2015/01/a-boiler-house-for-smokestack.html
There's a good illustration for construction of the signal tower in the construction tips at "Get Freebies" -- Ben Streeter's file. I have yet to build the tower, but seeing these steps gave me an idea of how to work with cardstock. Check it out and have fun!
Thom
If you're not laminating the pieces, you should be able to slip the completed base into the walls.
I just took a quick tour of your blog. You are without a doubt a very accomplished modeler. I need to go back and take a closer look at what you are doing. In fact all who visit the 'Clever' site should take a long hard look at your blog. So much to be learned.
I also like the fact that you are putting a lot of model railroading in a small space. Now I don't feel alone. (3X16 HO scale).
Thank you for providing the link.
John
Don't let those cut out areas bother you too much. They are there to clear the inset and layered doors. If you don't know what insetting and layering are, you need to stop building and download the file labeled A), from the FREEBIES page of the website. You will get a lot of insight into paper modeling there. The thing is, we really don't know how many interior stiffeners you will put in or where you will place them, so we leave "cutouts" for clearance, in the most likely places. E.G. If you place a stiffener higher than the bottom of the windows, YOU will have to make clearance cutouts because all of the windows extend into the building "inset" about 1/8" in O scale, obviously less in the smaller scales. As someone else mentioned, if you add reinforcing lamination's inside the walls, YOU will have to make allowance for them also. Don't be too up tight about doing it the RIGHT way. Do it YOUR way.
The 2 areas I that I think would be the most unclear would be how the side walls fold at the top to attach to the roof and the inside edge of the front and back walls and how they attach to the roof. The flattened parts look odd and confusing but fold them as indicated. The folded parts will make more sense to you.
This is an older kit. We had not yet refined our design process, however all the parts fit as they should and the finished build is excellent.
I tend to overbrace which makes modifications necessary on many parts for correct fit.
Sometime we do make a mistake & seem to be lost...if that happens people in this group will do all we can to help you..don't hesitate to ask. Every model has been built by someone here & we are glad to help.
And thanks, John, for the comments about the blog. Obviously, I've enjoyed the construction of the layout over several years!
Hang in there Peter B.
You are correct in your statement that there is a lot of latitude, but not necessarily in how the kit works. All of the kits go together in the same basic way.
Here's a basic battle plan.
After downloading, print all the sheets. Sit and look at them for a while, using the pictures as a reference for "generally" what goes where. Once you have an idea of where the major components go, think whether you want to build the most basic of structures or add a little of yourself. Lets assume you are going for most basic. Pick a wall to start with. Cut it out and any pieces that "obviously" go with it. I'm referring to things like door & window parts that mach what is printed on the basic wall. Detail that wall by layering or insetting the doors & windows. There may be some items that need to be added to the outside of the wall. Usually items like additional layers that produce a more 3D piece. If you wish to add more stiffness to the wall, add more cardstock layers or cardboard or foam core or whatever to the inside. Be aware of how this might affect any tabs that are part of the wall you are working on or might need to attach to that wall. Generally you leave those areas without additional layers. Move on to the 2nd. wall. Then the third and fourth. Next join the walls together. If there are interior stiffeners, add them next, trimming as needed to clear any interior obstructions. Now that you have a basic box, add the additional pieces that span two walls, like wrap-around corner trim on wood buildings or quoins on brick buildings. Not all kits have these. Add the foundation pieces, if they are separate pieces. Add roofs and roof details.
This is a very gross oversimplification, but it pretty much works every time. Just understand that we provide a lot of options. You don't have to use any of them.