Anglia105E

That is such an extremely realistic model that you have built Martin . . . At first glance, I thought you were showing a photo of the real vehicle that your model idea was based upon, so that is how good this is ! Your model building and painting skills are top notch. David

Absolutely brilliant Charles . . . Where do you get such good figures? They must be Shapeways surely? This composition is so well thought out, and executed . . . it just works on every level ! David

Thank you kindly Sir . . . When the loco figures arrive on Thursday I shall need to paint them, which is not an easy task in 1:43 / O scale. David

That is one nicely built model car Tom . . . and your chosen gold paint colour really suits the Foose style of this Chevrolet Impala. David

The 3D printed steam locomotive, having been fully assembled from 42 parts that I have printed, then had one coat of oil based red primer applied. This was followed by one coat of water based satin black, and lastly one coat of a water based satin black / pure grey mix to create a ' dirty ' effect. I placed the loco on the O gauge track, just ahead of the GWR brake end coach . . . Using daylight bulbs for lighting, and two figures for the composition, these are the first few test photos. I am quite pleased with the overall appearance of the 3D printed model loco, which needs some decals, and a two man crew of driver and fireman, arriving later this week. The Hooper & Co. factory diorama in 1:43 scale ( O gauge ) will have a level crossing where the road meets the railway. Hope you like it . . . David

Thanks Paul . . . No, I cannot take credit for building the bus, as it is a 1:43 scale diecast RT London Bus by IXO with excellent detail. There will be some photos of the loco shortly, alongside the GWR coach. David

Looks good Matthew . . . The road surface is very convincing and realistic, especially around the manhole cover. Well done ! David

Charles . . . I would imagine that the snow effect is quite difficult to achieve properly, and clearly you have got it just right. Both the vehicle and trailer, and the diorama setting create a strong feeling of cold and frosty conditions on the ground. Your client will be impressed with the truck model I am sure, and as you say, he may well be interested in purchasing the diorama also . . . It is always a pleasure to view your work, so thank you for yet another project ! The road dirt on the front of the truck is very convincing and realistic. These 1:50 scale models are smaller than the 1:43 scale I am currently working in, but then the truck is a large vehicle anyway, I guess. David

Welcome to Model Cars Magazine forums Ulf . . . I do understand what you are saying, and I find that I really enjoy the building and painting of the model car, and also the research for photos and specifications. Once the model is finished and the build is completed, I just want to move on to the next build, so maybe the finished model is not so important at that stage. I do build dioramas in different scales, and my feeling is that model cars should not always be displayed in glass cabinets or on shelves, but they come to life in a much more interesting way if they are displayed within a diorama setting, that has buildings, figures, trees, roads and streets. David

As far as I am aware Peter, any issues when reading DVD's is more to do with the DVD software than the 32 bit / 64 bit computer. I wanted to play a Genesis concert tour DVD recently with my Windows 10 desktop computer, and it wasn't possible until I eventually found some software that would read the DVD disk. My version of Microsoft Windows 10 Pro is a 64 bit operating system. David

I had a good feeling about this O gauge GWR coach, which was delivered today. I really like the coach and it photographs very well, especially within a diorama scene. This model is by LIMA of Italy, and it is in good original condition. The passenger coach will occupy the 36 inches of track, along with the steam loco assembled from 3D printed parts. Here are some photos of this interesting model, which I am sure will be an important addition to the Hooper & Co. diorama. David

Here it is guys ! https://kalmbachhobbystore.com/product/dvd/15206 Only US $ 49.95 David

I did try mounting a very small spy camera on the rolling chassis of a 1:43 scale model car . . . The chassis was pulled along the roads and streets of the diorama with fishing line, so that the line was not visible on the video footage. By using a nail that was hammered into the baseboard on the far side, I could have one model car being pulled in the opposite direction to the ' camera car ' . . . The second car appeared to be driving towards the camera, and then passing by. This experiment did work surprisingly well at the time, and the two cars were attached to the same piece of fishing line. David

This is a link to one of my recent test videos on YouTube, and I am not using a tripod, so not smooth ! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3FCrk1RZdY David

Excellent video Paul, and there's lots to see in this diorama of yours . . . I like to tinker with YouTube videos, which is yet another enjoyable aspect of our wonderful hobby ! David

Just like you Andreas, I am 69 now, but I came back to building scale model cars at the age of 63, having not built any models for 50 years. When I was a 13 year old boy I used to build the 1:32 scale Airfix kits and brush paint them . . . You have done an excellent job on your 1951 Chevy Bel Air engine, and those straight 6 cylinder engines are really interesting, compared to the more widely used V8 engines later. I have built some straight 6 cylinder engines in 1:24 scale for my 1950's Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud model cars, and also a straight 6 for the 1953 Hudson Hornet, which was a Moebius kit from an Ebay seller in Germany . . . You will enjoy building this Chevy kit, which I imagine is a 1:25 scale kit. The British and American motor cars from the 1950's are of special interest to me, so I tend to concentrate on the 1955 to 1959 period of automotive scale model building. Well done ! David

The 1:43 scale Hooper & Co. factory diorama has been brought back onto the worktop, and alongside this baseboard, which is off to the right, there will be the O gauge railway line. The steam locomotive is being built to run on this track, with a 7-plank wagon and a brake van coupled. The image of the map shows the Hooper factory, with Duke's Road to the left of the factory, then Masons Green Lane and then the railway line to the West. This map shows the position of the factory as it was during the 1950's. 3D printed some further brakes parts today. David

Well Martin . . . I agree with Steve Milberry, that your photos instantly led me to believe that I was looking at a 1:1 motor car. This is an exceptional build, and you should be very proud of what you have achieved. Moebius kits are a dream to assemble, but you have gone the extra mile with this one. Having built a Moebius Hudson Hornet myself, there is something in me that would like to build a Chrysler 300B. Well done with your 3D printed parts also . . . I guarantee that you would thoroughly enjoy building the 1953 Hudson Hornet . . . I know I did. David

This is my daily drive . . . 1994 ( grey import ) Mitsubishi Pajero 2.8 TD SWB, auto with overdrive. Newport Metallic Grey - Over 250,000 miles. The speedo and the mileometer no longer work, and haven't worked for several years, so mileage is a guess. Sat Nav tells me my speed on the road. This vehicle is 2 tons in weight, and can easily tow 3 tons, such as my 4-berth sailing yacht and twin-axle trailer ( 300 miles each way to Cornwall ). My Pajero is so strong and reliable, and I would not want to drive any modern car. David

Here are my four replicas of cars that I have owned and driven . . . First up is the 1968 Pontiac Parisienne 4-door RHD, then the 1994 Mitsubishi Pajero SWB, then the 1988 Suzuki SJ413 Samurai, and last but not least is the 1960 Ford Anglia 105E . . . All great cars in their own right ! David

Some nice colourisation going on there . . . The second pour should bring satisfying results. David

Thanks Paul . . . Yes, you are right to point this out, and the instructions on the designer's webpage show this 90° angle as being important. Being very much a car person, my knowledge of steam locomotives is somewhat limited, so I would not have got this driving rod setup correct. David

I like the ice effect on the windscreen of this truck Charles . . . I see from the registration number plate that this Scania is a UK vehicle. You have some interesting techniques for icicles and frost effects. This is quite an unusual idea . . . I like it ! Would this be the Italeri 1:24 scale kit that you have used? David

Having 3D printed the 34 parts that I need to get started on the assembly of this steam loco, in 14 days, work has commenced, with good results so far. As you can see from the following photos, the boiler underside part was not fully printed properly, so I measured and cut two pieces of thin styrene sheet to make the part good. The two side frame parts have been joined together using four spacers, for which I used super glue and baking powder. After selecting one wheel and one driving rod, I then applied some red oxide primer by brush to these few parts. For the top coat of paint I have purchased some Satin Black enamel, to be applied by brush over the red primer. The essential first step was to make sure that the frame sides are square, level and straight, so that when the three axles and six wheels are in place, everything will line up on top and this will also determine the track width. It seems the super glue takes a long time to actually ' grab ' the two parts of PLA printed material, but the bond is stronger later. This is one reason why I chose to use the baking powder to increase the overall strength of the join. David

This is just one of the wonders of technology from this year 2022 . . . What might they come up with next ? David