Mail Wagon – part 3

Continuing work on the Mail Wagon. I’m starting with the Doctor’s Buggy by Model Trailways. What I like about the kit are the well made parts, the detailed instructions and good pictures. I’m not much of a fan of the huge blueprint sized diagrams, though. I suppose it is easier from a manufacturing standpoint, but there isn’t always a lot of room to spread these things out while working. I have to keep them in another room and walk over to view them since I don’t want to keep clearing my workspace as I move back and forth between steps. As nice as it is to have large diagrams, the huge sheets are cumbersome. As usual, though, I made a photocopy of the regular sized instructions and diagrams so I can mark them up as needed.

Another issue is the lack of numbering on the individual parts on the wood sheets as well as the detailed diagrams. The detailed diagrams call the parts by their functional name but don’t indicate a number, so you have to look for a part that resembles the drawing among the wood sheets. It’s doable but inefficient. If I didn’t have the model building experience I do, this might be a bigger issue.

As noted before, I plan to make the front and rear axle assemblies, including the wheels, and then build my wagon cabin to suit. The instructions start with the axle assemblies, so that’s where I begin. You make a jig to help with drilling an accurate bolt hole. It’s a great feature of the kit.

The laser cut front axle cap is longer than the metal front axle, so I had to trim it to match the photo. The instructions mention nothing about this trimming, so luckily I had studied the photo.

In addition, the laser cut front axle cap and the metal front axle have slightly different bends. While the metal is somewhat pliable, it wasn’t possible to get a bond without gaps. After painting, this should be no issue. Since clamping was not possible without a lot of shifting (I used my fingers to hold the parts until the epoxy set), I glued the middle portion first.

I used Devcon 5 Minute Epoxy from amazon (as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases). This stuff stinks to high heaven with the hardener smelling like rancid, rotten eggs, but it is as advertised.

Once the epoxy set on the middle portion, I was able to go back and glue the ends. I held the pieces until the epoxy set, then for the final curing time, I clamped the hell out of it. :D

The rear axle cap and rear axle fit much better, but I had to trim the ends of the wood part here as well.

I need to swear at the instructions some more to figure out the next steps. Back soon…

Categories: Ivy Hollow RFD, Model Cars, Vehicles
May 25, 2019 | 0 comments

Mail Wagon in real life

After discovering the Wesley W. Jung Carriage Museum, I figured I would try to find the real deal within road trip distance. As luck would have it, there’s one at an old post office about 40 minutes south of me. And, further to my good fortune, a lovely blog reader generously offered me her collection of miniatures magazine and a few books. Since she was also south of me, I made a morning of it. I met with her to pick up the magazines and then headed over to the Oak Park post office. This is a beautiful building, but there is no dedicated parking. Luckily, it was a nice day and the library parking garage was just across the street.

The mail wagon did not disappoint.  :D

I knew the cabin itself would be skinny, but you can see just how wide the wheel axles are in relation.

It’s very shiny, so I had to be mindful of not getting my own reflection.

Now I have detailed pics of the undercarriage and detailing of an actual mail wagon.

Categories: Ivy Hollow RFD, Model Cars, Vehicles
April 6, 2019 | 0 comments

Mail Wagon – part 2

Continuing work on the Mail Wagon. After my visit to the Wesley W. Jung Carriage Museum, I was even more inspired to make the mail wagon as realistic as possible. If you do a google search for RFD mail wagons, you will find a wide array of vehicles. Some are tiny and some are posh, and even the suspensions vary. This is because the carriers were to buy, store and maintain their own vehicles (and horses). I’m choosing to make what appeals to me aesthetically as well as what I think will be a reasonable build to attempt. Since most cabins were basic boxes, the more challenging part is emulating the suspension.

The Rondell mail wagon kit is completely lacking these suspension details, and after seeing the real life examples, I’m thinking the wheels from that kit would be too bulky as well. The farm wagons and other utility vehicles had substantial wheels, but the mail wagon wheels were rather slight and dainty.

During my research this week, I happened upon a 1:12 scale Doctor’s Buggy by Model Trailways. This can be pricey depending on the retailer, but I found a great deal on amazon for $50 plus free shipping (as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases).

It has the exact suspension I need and daintier wheels than the Rondell kit.

Considering the time and effort I would expend to recreate these parts, the kit is worth it for those parts alone.

The springs and axles are actually metal in this kit. The wheels will spin and turn, which is just fabulous! I think it should be fairly straightforward for me to extend the suspension front to back to accommodate a mail cabin that will likely be longer than the kit’s buggy compartment. Those compartment parts are equally fabulous – laser cut and precise.

Now, the reviews say these are challenging kits, but I’m up for it. :D Plus, I’ve made many model cars, so I’m used to confusing, vague and outright erroneous instructions. I’ll start by making the front and back assemblies independently, including the wheels, then build my mail cabin to fit before I make adjustments to the length of the suspension. I’ll need to be mindful of adding too much weight in case the metal parts are more delicate than they seem. I’ll weigh the doctor’s buggy parts as a guide.

Categories: Ivy Hollow RFD, Model Cars, Vehicles
March 15, 2019 | 0 comments

Mail Wagon – part 1

Today, I did a dry fit of the mail wagon. To say the instructions are lacking is an understatement. You are given a blueprint drawing and a typed list of instructions.

There are no photos or diagrams of the steps, and the kit photo is minuscule and not at all detailed.

I blundered my way through a dry fit, and one piece still made no sense and didn’t seem to fit properly. But, it does give me a good basis for size and how far away the wheels are supposed to be from the passenger compartment. It’s a very simplistic kit, so you know me…I’ll probably end up building most of it from scratch and using this as only a guide.

The wheels are incredibly detailed in their assembly, much like the real deal. If I can get them to work, the wheels alone will be worth having bought the kit.

However, this is the extent of the chassis – two wood blocks. The front wheels will turn, but the lack of detail is disappointing.

Here’s a real life mail wagon for example. This is more complicated than I want to attempt, but there has to be a happy medium.

The inexpensive wagon kit I put together for Baslow Ranch has better detailing without being overly complicated.

It’s longer than the mail wagon, but I could likely customize something better than two simple wood blocks. I do have another of these kits, but I could cut pieces myself using the general pattern.

I’m checking some other sources for ideas. Plus, I’m planning a trip to a local museum that has carriages for in-person study and better photographs.

Categories: Ivy Hollow RFD, Model Cars, Vehicles
March 2, 2019 | 0 comments

RX-7 in half scale, hitting the road…

Work has been completed on the RX-7 in half scale. This lovely auto is on its way to Florida where it will be placed on the cake table at a friend’s wedding. This was a side commission and a super fun project to boot!

I’ve included some photos of the original car we were trying to emulate. Fingers crossed that it travels safely and provides some mini wow for the cake table. Sending out a huge congrats to the happy couple! I am honored to have contributed to your special day.

The original:

Categories: Model Cars, Vehicles
October 26, 2018 | 0 comments

Half scale is nutters!

Continuing work on the RX-7 in half scale. I am making tiny half scale soda cans. Why? We’ll get to that.

This is a kit from Mr. Model in Brazil.

It comes with four turned metal cans, photo etched tops (open and closed) and labels for beer and soda (clear and white decals).

I had to use my 4X magnifying readers and even still I was cross-eyed. I am ever in awe of those who can work so small.

I had considered making them with the open tops since empty cans make more sense for my purpose, but drilling was not easy for lack of being able to hold the can well and I didn’t want to risk the glue not taking if I painted under the opening. Good luck telling the difference with the naked eye, anyway!

After gluing the top to the can, I needed a hand, but no one was available. So, out came the Cricut tweezers. They are the kind that you squeeze to open, then they close and hold until you release them (or they shoot the mini across the table like a wet watermelon seed).

With the thick rope tied around (yeah, that’s plain sewing thread).

Then came the tiny water slide decal that liked my fingers better than the can.  :\

One down, three to go…

Categories: Model Cars, Vehicles
October 25, 2018 | 0 comments

RX-7 in half scale – lights, part 2

Continuing work on the RX-7 in half scale. After letting the paint rest awhile, I decided to tackle the few dust particles on the hood. The second attempt at painting brought the finish from a 95% to a 95%, just different. The hood looked great, but the sides were orange peeled. :\ I let it rest again, then tried a third time. This time, the hood and sides were 98% and the back end was 60%. Oy. Instead of risking the entire car, I masked the back along the panel lines and painted only the damaged portion, just like a real auto. Now the whole thing is a 98%, and I would have to say that’s the best paint job I’ve ever achieved.

Now, when tackling the LED headlights (using 3V pico cool white from Evan Designs), I had to be mindful of where my fingers were on the finish at all times. One slight brush of glue, and it’s all over! I did as much as I could while the lights were separate from the body. First, I drilled holes for the LEDs (headlamps only, not the high beams).

I fed in the LED, then secured it on the back with electrical tape. I don’t want light escaping through any cracks; the light needs to be forward only.

You may recall, I had to cut away the body panels for the inset light customization.

Since the front skirts are a separate piece, you’re going to get only so close in alignment. There were gaps around the piece since it’s not exactly the shape I need on either side.

The light assembly is glued into the car, but there are contact points on only two of the four sides. Yeah, that’s glue overrun you see below since you have to work from the back. After everything dried, I touched up the flat black paint as best I could. These marks should be concealed once the clear covers are on, but I wanted to prep it just in case.

I cut a larger piece of electrical tape and supplemented the adhesion with super glue gel. I want this patch to stay put.

Since I had used super glue on the headlight assemblies, I let this sit for two days before touching it again. I had had some fogging issues with the Model T and didn’t want to risk it with this one, so I let the glue gas out completely. I glued the tiny circular lenses over the LED headlights and unlighted high beams with Testors Clear Parts Cement. Most of the clear parts are attached with this glue. I lined the edges of the clear covers with a black Sharpie marker.

It’s a cleaner look than just plopping them on top. The one on the left is with the outline, the one on the right is without. You can see it appears more a part of the car with the outline.

I tried using the Testors Clear Parts Cement on the headlight covers, but they would not stay. I ended up using Weldbond, a white glue. It’s not the cleanest if you study it closely, but there is so much going on there, it fades into the background relatively well.

I also glued on the taillight cover.

I taped the taillight wires toward the front to join with the headlamp wires. There is more room in the empty space where there would normally be an engine. The wires are matched up to work as one.

I am using a 3V battery with switch and a remote control unit. However, there is no way to hide the battery and access it in the small auto, so I am also using a connector. I built a base from wood, covered it in adhesive backed cork and painted it black. I drilled a sizeable hole in the base so the connector can be fed through and hidden underneath. It’s not the cleanest solution, but it’s the only way I could have the car disconnect from the base and have the wire relatively hidden. The battery will be housed underneath.

The sensor will need to be mounted on the car outside of the engine compartment, and it has plenty of excess length so I can position it on the chassis after I get the car assembled. It’s easy enough to push any unneeded length of wire back in after assembly. The remaining half of the connector will hang from the car to be plugged into the base. On the inside, there is plenty of electrical tape holding things neatly in place.

Here I am checking the fit without glue.

Checking that the lights work after each step is imperative in working with LEDs. You don’t want to get through the whole ordeal just to backtrack to find your issue.

I know, all this chatter about lights, and I leave you without a photo of the pizzazz? You won’t have to wait long. I want to finish up the build and use the wow photos for the final post.

Categories: Model Cars, Vehicles
October 25, 2018 | 0 comments

RX-7 in half scale – more miscellaneous detailing

Continuing work on the RX-7 in half scale. To detail the front, I added some aluminum mesh by Scale Scenics.

The center required a template since I didn’t want to risk obliterating the skirt trying to remove the excess plastic.

For the two side vents, I just glued the mesh behind the openings. It’s a subtle addition, but it amps up the sports appeal. :D

I got the windows masked and painted. I then added a line of shading with the Tamiya Smoke spray. Have to keep the sun out of our eyes while driving.

I bought Testors Clear Parts Cement for working with any of the clear parts. Usually, any kind of super glue will make clear plastic foggy. I tried it out on a spare clear part to be sure, and it worked as advertised.

You are to paint the rearview mirror silver, so I used a paint pen.

I cleaned up the black outline once I removed the part from the sprue. It gives the impression well enough. I will install this assembly at the end when I put the body on the chassis. These are notoriously bad at staying in place over time, so let’s hope it doesn’t end up rattling around the interior.

The side mirrors have inserts that are also not truly reflective. These I will attach at the end to minimize the risk of breaking them off.

I glued in the various reflectors around the car and installed the upper portion of the rear spoiler. Looks like we’re getting somewhere. :D

I added spare reflectors where I had removed the molded in side lights. Much better than trying to paint tiny nubs of plastic without ruining the body paint.

I also made a tiny license plate. I didn’t think I would be able to emboss a half scale plate, but it worked! (I’ve covered most of the numbers to protect privacy.)

Categories: Model Cars, Vehicles
October 21, 2018 | 0 comments

RX-7 in half scale – lights, part 1

Continuing work on the RX-7 in half scale. Yeah, ever since I wired the Model T for LEDs, I’m going to have a hard time not wiring all my cars going forward.

Since I’m looking to put in only headlights and taillights, I painted the back of the clear reflectors/side lights silver. The paint brings out the detailing and makes them appear brighter.

The rear lights are one continuous clear piece. I colored the red and orange portions with Sharpie markers. There is a slight third brake light in between, but there was no way I could have painted that without getting red all over the rest – it’s a tiny sliver too narrow for my markers. So, we’re not going to worry about it. Picking my battles.  :D

I masked the colored areas with Winsor & Newton Masking Fluid. This is a pricey fluid used for watercolor painting; it covers any space you want to remain white on a painting. You use an eraser to remove it from the paper after the paint has dried. I used a 50% off coupon at Michaels.

I thought it would work well to mask the lights since I didn’t think tape would really seal the area that well if I could even cut circles that small.

The nice thing about the liquid is if you don’t like the mask, you just let it dry and remove it to start over. It dries clear, which is good or bad, depending on how you look at it. Just make sure you are happy with the mask while it’s still white.

I painted the back of the piece with black acrylic. I used acrylic instead of enamels since I wasn’t able to figure out how to mask the outside well enough to prevent marring the finish. Acrylics clean up easily, and this back side will not be seen.

The exterior surface remains glossy, and the color fills in the back. It looks great like this, but the masking is still in place.

I removed the masking, and you can see how uneven the mask ended up being. Still better than I could have done free hand painting around the circles. I touched up the paint with a tiny brush as best I could (sorry, forgot to take a pic after touching up).

I am using 3V pico LEDs from Evan Designs. These are so wee! I lined up the cover piece with the back of the car to determine where to drill holes for the lights. I painted the area under the light covers silver.

I pushed the pico lights into place and fastened with electrical tape on the inside.

I don’t want to glue the plastic cover on just yet to limit the handling, but it looks like it will work well. :D

I didn’t put in lighting under the orange. Working turn signals are for another time. The headlights are up next.

Categories: Model Cars, Vehicles
October 20, 2018 | 0 comments

RX-7 in half scale – miscellaneous detailing

Continuing work on the RX-7 in half scale. When trying out new techniques, it’s nice to have spare parts to use so you don’t risk ruining the final parts. It doesn’t guarantee that you won’t mess up the final parts, unfortunately. But, it gives you practice that is invaluable.

Many cars have black edge detailing around the windows, and to paint those, you need to make a mask of the area. I use the process detailed in this video (starting at 1:10). I’m using Frog tape and painted with flat black spray paint instead of hand painting with bottled paint. Bottled paint goes on heavier and can wick under the tape whereas spray paint can be put on in light coats that stay put.

You have to get a good mask on the outside to prevent overspray on the “good” side.

The small exposed area is where I sprayed the paint.

The trial worked well. Let’s hope I can replicate the results on the final piece.

I wanted to try tinting the windows as well. I used Tamiya Smoke.

This paint needs to put on sparingly and from a distance on the underside of the window (again you mask the outside to protect the surface). You build up the layers to get the level of tint you want while the outside stays glossy like glass. While the effect is nice, I think it will block too much of the interior detailing. You can’t easily discern the tweezers through the tint in the photo below.

This will be a great resource for dirty windows on other projects, though. :] I usually just use overspray, but this was easier to control.

The side mirrors are molded separately from the body, which makes it easier to get a good finish, but there are mold lines and sprue connections that need to be cleaned before painting.

That also makes it difficult to paint since you have to hold the parts somehow while painting. Here is one mirror after removing the lines and nubs.

I put tape on the end of a bamboo skewer to hold each mirror. Since there will be a simulated mirror in each one, it’s okay to not paint the interiors.

The spoiler top was also problematic in finishing since there is no way to hold it while painting. Well, you can hold it, but putting it down while it dries is the main issue. I masked a clamp and held the part by the ends where it will be glued to the spoiler base already on the car. It was the easiest way to hold the part without ruining the clamp in the process.

Bits and pieces get the job done….

Categories: Model Cars, Vehicles
October 14, 2018 | 0 comments

RX-7 in half scale – body paint

Continuing work on the RX-7 in half scale. For the base coat, I’ve used Model Master Gray Sandable Lacquer Primer Spray (yeah, that’s a mouthful). :D

I then wet-sanded using the Micro-Mesh Sanding Sheets in 4000, 6000, 8000 and 12,000 to get as smooth a surface as possible (as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases).

The better the primed surface, the better the top coat. You can see the sheen in the reflection.

My makeshift holder is made from scraps of builders foam.

My new tattoo.  Looks like I need a longer glove when spray painting. :D

The paint is 95% perfect, which is about the best you can hope for most of the time. Woot! Once it has set, I’ll see if I want to attempt to buff out the few dust particles that invariably get caught in the finish. Sometimes messing with it makes it worse. So far, so good, though. :] The side skirts and new wing look pretty seamless now, which is what I had hoped.

Categories: Model Cars, Vehicles
October 4, 2018 | 0 comments

RX-7 in half scale – interior

Continuing work on the RX-7 in half scale. The interior is fairly straightforward, just tedious and time-consuming. The C-West kit comes with both left- and right-hand driver dashboards, which is fun. However, the seats are lacking. The Tamiya kit has seats that are molded as one piece – much cleaner than trying to get fronts and backs to match seamlessly. So, I swapped out the seats.

Decal placement takes a steady hand and some patience, though there is one thing the instructions don’t mention. Each one has a halo around the actual image that should be removed as close as possible. This is especially important for fitting into depressions made for the decals, such as the dashboard.

If you don’t remove the halos, the decals will simply not fit the spaces. Those three on the left are super tiny.

I glued the various interior pieces…

…and glued the bucket to the chassis.  :D

Categories: Model Cars, Vehicles
September 28, 2018 | 0 comments