Useful info to some, I hope

[thor]

Whilst waiting for my ship to come in (I think it got torpedoed again) I decided to build a few things myself, such as lineside buildings and maybe an English style short wagon so I went off in search of the right materials. Obviously a couple of hobby shops were the first stop but they didnt have all that much in the way of scratch building materials and I suspected the prices were a bit high.

So I tried a big local Craft Shop - the sort of place that caters to people who make decorative doodads and I discovered that they not only stocked the basswood and balsa I wanted at better prices, they had foam core board at better prices than Staples.

However what they ALSO had was a huge range of stuff for people who make scrap books and such. Little bags containing reproduction Victorian posters, and photographs, tiny plastic facsimiles of too much to list, antique garden seats for example, watering cans, ships wheels, bicycles and a lot of it is more or less 0 scale/size.

Its exactly this sort of miniaturized 'clutter' that makes a scene look good and is the devils own pain to make, if you even can. I imagine that craft shops in general must stock a similar range, mine has hundreds of them and they're very reasonably priced too.

They also sell a huge range of miniature wooden do it yourself kits and tiny little hinges and other such stuff that can be adapted easily to our hobby.

I'm sure that many of you are aware of such resources but hopefully some newbie out there will benefit from this. Have fun!

I'm building my own version of a clerestory coach in basswood and I'm hoping to give it operating doors and windows. Thanks to the craft store I'll be able to pad it out with everything from Tiffany table lamps to cutlery and crockery!

[Jumijo]

Great tips, Thor.

My kids have some of the Thomas the Tank Engine Lionel locos and cars. I'd love to add on with more european O gauge freight cars to not only extend the trains, but to add some variety. To be honest, I think the european stuff has a certain pleasing look to it. I've seen ACE Trains rolling stock, but am not sure it will hook up to our Lionels. Got any suggestions?

Jim

[phillyreading]

Thanks for the info! Also a craft shop is where you can buy materials to model snow, also needed for snow is an application of hair spray when almost finished.
As for buildings another source is Walthers catalog.
Lee in south Florida

[Anonymous]

Michaels even carries some of the 3 and 5 ply mini plywood. Only complaint I have with these types of stores is they are organized by "areas of interest". You will find scissors in 4 sections with the scissors "appropriate" for that use in that particular area. You might have to wonder through the whole store to find something that you need/want.

[Anonymous]

Thor,
Thanks for the info. As we all know "clutter" is hard to make....Tim

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the info,clutter is always needed on a layout for realism, and to make my work room look clean in comparion.[:D]

[oscaletrains]

question for thor, you the guy that runs the all gauge rr page

[crip]

Thanks for the info. you got my creative juices flowing.

[pbjwilson]

QUOTE: [i]. You might have to wonder through the whole store to find something that you need/want.

That's called good merchandising. It's almost impossible to "run in" to Michaels to buy something. You have to wonder through and look at everything before you find what it is you are looking for.

[mickey4479]

Hobby Lobby in my area has some of the things you mentioned. They also have great sales from time to time with as much as 50% off!

[thor]

QUOTE: Originally posted by oscaletrains

question for thor, you the guy that runs the all gauge rr page

No, my hats off to him! Its just a handle

[Dave Farquhar]

If there's a Hobby Lobby in your area, it's worth it to get on their weekly mailing list (hobbylobby.com) to get their sale items in e-mail every week. About once a month they have something useful on sale, whether it's paint, craft wood (which usually includes basswood, just ask), or whatever. And sometimes they'll do a coupon for 40 or 50% off any single item. Tag along with your wife/SO sometime when she goes, and be sure to wander the dollhouse and scrapbooking aisles, in addition to the paint aisle, plastic models, trains (which are mostly HO and N), and diecast cars (mostly 1:64).

Michael's does a 40% off coupon in the Sunday paper just about every week. They don't carry trains anymore (they did 20 years ago :( ) but they're still a very good source for raw materials. Oh, and look in the cake aisle. Sometimes you'll find cake decorations that are sized about right for O or S scale.

[Anonymous]

ACE trains are one of very few manufacturers serving the coarse-scale O market over here - ETS do as well but their stock is more European. I'd guess they should run on Lionel track but the couplers will be different (the prices may be a shock too!). If you try www.modelfair.com you should find ample stocks of ACE models both used and new (many people buy these as collectables rather than to run, so used items will probably have little or no milage). Hope this is of use!

There are also Parkside Dundas and Slaters, amongst others, selling plastic wagon kits. P-D kits come with everything to complete except glue and paint and are very enjoyable to build, the only snag may be that they come with finescale wheelsets though Slaters will sell coarser ones as an alternative.