Woods Warehouse Craftsman Kit Build

Looking very good Mel.

great work. I especially like the weathered wood platform and steps. I am a sucker for old weathered wood. I used several old house planks as shelves for my trains in closed in back deck.

Mel - Excellent work

Joe

Woods Warehouse Craftsman Kit Build – Post 9

I aligned the porch, glued it to the model, and let the glue dry overnight. With the porch in place, I cut a small piece of scribed basswood to complete the floor just inside the door and added a threshold board (a mere sliver on the model). These pieces strengthened the fragile attachment between the porch and the model and aided in the alignment of the porch planking (by the side doorway), which was added next.

Then came the windows and doors. I removed and inspected the window sashes, inner and outer door parts, door and window frames, sills, and attic vents. The upper and lower window sashes were especially delicate, even by the standards of craftsman kits, and they were somewhat too small (vertically) to fill the window openings. Therefore, I closely inspected the fit of the windows, doors and vents in their respective openings. This helped me to assemble the window sashes so they would best fit the openings. I also filed the window openings to get the closest possible fit with the window, and did the same for the doors and vents. Then, I repainted the sides of the openings, and painted all the door, window and vent parts.

I glued the window sills into their frames and mounted them to the outside of the building before installing the windows. The sills helped to center the frames in the openings and also allowed me to insert the windows from the inside and press them into position against the frames. I usually install windows before frames but, in this case, doing it in reverse made it easier to align the slightly too small windows with the frames and openings. I then laminated the two-layer doors, beveled the “hinged” edges so they could be glued solidly into a half-open position, and then installed them, their frames, and the attic vents. Assembling and installing craftsman kit windows requires patience and attention to detail. Plastic windows simplify the task but, in my opinion, don’t look as realistic as well-assembled and neatly-painted built-up windows and frames.

Since I am building this model for a friend and it has only two windows, I installed the glazing with a bit more care than usual. First, I cut two pieces of clear styrene slightly larger than the window openings. Ordinarily, I would then just glue the styrene to the interior wall and be done with it. In this case, I wanted to improve the looks of the windows from inside the building, so I cut sixteen strips of wood, painted them brown, and glued them (with styrene cement) around the front and rear edges of the glazing. Then, I cut two window shades, glued them to the insides of the frames (again styrene cement) and then glued the frames to the walls with yellow carpenter’s glue. I also added a piece of trim on each of the gable ends to cover the seams between the upper and lower exterior siding. 

Next steps will be:

1) Cut, paint and apply corner trims and loading door trims

2) Cut and paint loading door headers, mount loading doors and headers

3) Cut and apply foundation bricks beneath loading dock

Photos by:

MELGAR

Woods Warehouse Craftsman Kit Build – Post 10

Four corner trims were cut from basswood strips having an “L-shaped” cross section and painted (Hunter Green), as were four flat trim strips to be placed on the walls next to the openings for the loading doors. After these were applied, I cut two headers and mounted them on the inner walls above the loading doors to form a slot in which the doors are free to slide. To complete this stage of the construction, I cut six short sections of brick foundation and glued them to the building beneath the loading dock. The kit instructions say that it is not necessary to finish these parts of the foundation as they are not readily visible when the model is on a layout. I felt that they should be finished since this building is being made to go on someone else’s layout. I then took photos of the model from each corner.

Next steps will be:

1) Prepare loading dock roof and supports, apply roofing and column supports

2) Decide whether roof assembly will be removable, assemble roof and internal supports,

3) Apply roof shingles

4) Mount LEDs

Photos by:

MELGAR

thank you for showing the progression on this fabulous looking structure and great job.

Woods Warehouse Craftsman Kit Build – Post 11

The next step, according to the kit instructions, is to install the roof over the loading dock. I began by placing the loading dock roof piece into the slots in the upper front wall but I immediately saw that it would block the view of the building front when placed on the layout. I discussed this with the model recipient and we decided to omit the loading dock roof. Then, I prepared a trim piece to go at the top of the front wall, painted it green, and glued it in place. I also added a piece on the inside of the wall to prevent light leaks at the bottoms of the slots.

My OGR Forum friend, for whom I’m building this model, plans to detail the interior and wants to have the LEDs easily replaceable. Therefore, at least a part of the roof will have to be removable. Initially, I thought that the movable loading doors would serve this purpose, but they are not large enough to permit easy replacement of the LEDs, so I spent some time considering how to build the roof. Eventually, I decided that the front panel will be glued into position and the rear panel will be removable. This should provide satisfactory access to the LEDs and for detailing the interior.

The first step with the roof was to bevel the top edges of the front and rear walls so that the roof panels lay flat onto the gable ends. I then added a ¼-inch square stringer at the ridge (and two gussets). The top of the front roof panel will be glued to this stringer. I attached framing to the inside of the rear roof panel so that it is located accurately and fits snugly between the rear wall, ridge support and gable ends. I then painted the edges and eaves (roof brown) of both roof panels and glued the stovepipe (painted tarnished black) to the front panel. Finally, with the rear roof panel in position, I glued the front panel to the model.

Next steps will be:

1) Apply roof shingles

2) Mount LEDs

3) Build porch/stair railings

Photos by:

MELGAR

Nice work Mel.

Woods Warehouse Craftsman Kit Build – Post 12

Instead of the rolled roofing (tissue paper) supplied in the kit, I covered the roof panels with 3-tab shingles for a more interesting appearance. Shingles of this type come in strips one-quarter-inch wide and are applied one course at a time beginning at the eaves and working toward the ridge – a tedious process. The shingles I used had an adhesive on the back from which a paper backing had to be removed before positioning each strip onto the roof – a process called peel-and-stick. I now prefer the adhesive backing rather than just gluing plain shingle strips to the roof with diluted yellow glue, as I used to do. However, I also did apply glue to the adhesive to assure a firm bond. Applying the shingles is a time-consuming process because the courses must be parallel, equally spaced at one-eighth inch and alternately offset by half a shingle-width. The shingles were applied right up to the ridge, front and back. I laid the strips starting at one end and let them overhang at the other end. Once the glue was dry, I trimmed the overhanging ends with a single-edge razor blade. It took me about four hours to apply the shingles to each roof panel. Eventually, the shingles looked better to me when painted with a coat of black acrylic. I also painted a strip with an “L-shaped” cross-section and glued it to the removable rear roof panel to cover the ridge.

Next steps will be:

1) Mount LEDs

2) Build porch/stair railings

Photos by:

MELGAR

Those shingles look like the real thing! Very nice and realistic looking building! 

Excellent work. You forgot to use felt paper under the shingles!

Beautifully done!

The two remaining tasks were to install the LEDs for interior lighting and to build the porch/stair railings near the side door.

I built two small mounts for the LEDs and glued them to insides of the the gable-end walls. I then passed the wires through the mounts and the floor and checked the installation as shown. The LEDs are located in position without glue or adhesive so they can easily be removed if they need to be replaced. I then removed the LEDs (with their lengthy wires) so I can finish the items that remain.

I added trim boards at the gable-ends just below the roof.

Next, I began to build the porch and stair railings. The first step was to cut, stain and glue the three porch posts that support the railings. One post was glued firmly to the side wall but the other two were notched at the bottom (for vertical alignment) before gluing to the sides of the porch. The porch floorboards also were notched to allow the posts to fit against the sides of the porch.

The posts are fragile and vulnerable so I began installing the horizontal rails, which strengthen the assembly, as soon as the glue was dry.

I repeated the procedure by installing the (vertical) post at the bottom step, followed by the two stair rails.

At this point, my work on the model is complete. Construction took about sixty-two hours. Model building is an enjoyable activity for me so I work leisurely at it. The OGR Forum friend for whom I made the model plans to collect it at my house in a few days and then add details. I hope that he will add to this thread by showing the additional work that he does and the lighted model installed on his layout. Now, I have to find another modeling project to keep myself occupied. That is not so easy because both of my layouts are 100% complete and there is no room for anything else.

Photos by:

MELGAR

simply beautiful

Last summer, MELGAR was vacationing not far from my house in the Poconos and he stopped by to see my layout. While we were running some trains, he very kindly offered to build a structure of my choosing for the layout. After some thought, I decided that I really needed a freight station just up the line from my passenger station. Over the last few weeks, MELGAR has generously shared his expertise in building the warehouse. Just before our trip to the Big E, I got to visit MELGAR’s layouts, run some trains, and pick up the completed building. Today, I finally got a chance to begin placing it on the layout. Hopefully, over the next week, I’ll get the triangle inside the wye sceniced and complete the installation.

Here is the area before...

And here is the area with the warehouse in place...

After I get the area sceniced, I have a number of things to add inside and outside of the warehouse...

Thanks for your beautiful addition to my layout, MELGAR   

Good evening,

 Nice job Melgar ,that is a great looking warehouse   !!!!!

Paul,

Thanks for posting. Please post again when the area is finished. That is an impressive interlocking behind the wye.

MELGAR

I guess I have been sleeping since Thanksgiving!!  This is the first I have seen of your topic, Mel.  You are really making that kit look like the model it was intended to be!  I skimmed through, but will go back and review your notes more carefully!!

Mel, Paul is a lucky man to have a Melgar original on his layout.  Nice work.

MELGAR posted:

The two remaining tasks were to install the LEDs for interior lighting and to build the porch/stair railings near the side door.

I built two small mounts for the LEDs and glued them to insides of the the gable-end walls. I then passed the wires through the mounts and the floor and checked the installation as shown. The LEDs are located in position without glue or adhesive so they can easily be removed if they need to be replaced. I then removed the LEDs (with their lengthy wires) so I can finish the items that remain.

 

Hey Mel......where did you get the LED's with the attached wires? Or did you make them? Thanks.

Donald

3rail posted:

MELGAR posted:

The two remaining tasks were to install the LEDs for interior lighting and to build the porch/stair railings near the side door.

I built two small mounts for the LEDs and glued them to insides of the the gable-end walls. I then passed the wires through the mounts and the floor and checked the installation as shown. The LEDs are located in position without glue or adhesive so they can easily be removed if they need to be replaced. I then removed the LEDs (with their lengthy wires) so I can finish the items that remain.

Hey Mel......where did you get the LED's with the attached wires? Or did you make them? Thanks.

Donald

Donald;

I sent those LED’s to MELGAR. They really are a bit of overkill for the warehouse since the wires are 36” long (MELGAR actually didn’t install them since they were so long and made a big bundle under the structure). They actually are for lighting the upper floors in some of the numerous shadow boxes I purchased from Todd’s Architectural (Doug sold me the LED’s).

Thanks Paul. I appreciate the lead. I will check with Doug!

Donald