07 August 2018
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We show you the perfect beginner project: how to model a cardboard coal office.
This is the perfect starter project for anyone who fancies having a go at scratch-building their own buildings. Even in 7mm scale, a coal office is not very big, so little in the way of materials is required and the job shouldn't take too long. Since the real building would have weathered a bit over time, this will only add character.
Taking inspiration from John Ahern's 1950 book ‘Miniature Building Construction’, cardboard has been used as much as possible. While not a fashionable material, card is easy to work with and very cheap. Buying a sheet of Daler board will set you back around six pounds, and there's enough material for dozens of little huts or even a couple of OO warehouses.
If this is too rich, cereal packets are worth a look. The card is surprisingly high quality, although a bit thin, so more bracing will be needed, but most people will have regular, free supplies to hand.
Of course, once you've made your first few buildings this way, the world is your oyster. Bigger models just need more cardboard. Who said railway modelling was expensive?
What you’ll need
- Daler Board – A 2mm thick cardboard available from art shops in A0 size sheets. Picture framers use it too and will often sell offcuts big enough for our purposes.
- Bristol Board – Smooth, white card sold for illustration and watercolour work in A4 pads. Basically, a very high quality card that cuts cleanly with a sharp knife. Found in art shops and online.
- Slater's PlastiKard – A proprietary plastic product normally sold in A4 sheets by model shops and traders. Cuts cleanly and can be stuck with liquid glue such as the firm's Mek-Pak.
- Sharp knife
- Steel rule
- Engineers square
- Sharp scriber
- Blunt scribing tool (an old ballpoint pen will work)
Expert Tip: Try to print the plan out the size you intended to build the model. It's much easier to transfer dimensions to parts if you can read them off with a rule. It’s certainly easier than trying to work out how long 4 3/16” is when you grew up in a metric system!
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Expert Tip
Not every project goes right the first time. What you see here is a second attempt at this model. The first one didn't seem to be working out properly, so it ended up in the bin. This is an important aspect of scratch-building – don't keep any pieces you aren't happy with. Make the part again, and you won’t regret it in the long run. Eventually, the practice means that your bin fills up more slowly.
Want to read more step-by-step kit building articles? Of course you do, just click here.