Lionel Dobson Victorian House Remodel

[Demay]

All, As some of you may have seen on my layout pictures, there is one of these houses sitting on it. However, based on my limited space and this house's length (14"), it will not fit so well and eat up much space. I am considering splicing about four or five inches out of the house to give it a better fit for the space. I plan to add similar sized row-type homes to the town area. The only issue: I have never done anything like this before. My simple mind tells me to cut the house somewhere behind the windows, remove the excess, and then glue it back together. Somehow, I cannot believe it is that easy. I purchased the house used and it is not in pristine condition so I am not worried about ruining a nice item - unless someone tells me this is a rare item. I do own the latest Greenberg guide which leads me to believe it is not rare. I'm sure some of you have done something similar to this in the past and I'm hoping you can provide me some insight. Specifically, how would I cut it? I have X-acto knives, but I'm not sure if they would get through it. I have a jig saw, but I believe that would tear it apart. I believe I would be able to cover the ensuing seam(s) with some sort of drainage pipe or greenery. I have searched the community but was unable to find any previous posts so I'm sorry if this is a repeat. Regards - Joe

[rtraincollector]

well worst if you do ruin it trainz.com has it for like $38 so you can replace it. now doing it I have no idea as haven't ever done anything like that. Good luck

[Brutus]

I've never done it, but I asked and two guys both said to use a razor saw.  I think you can get one at a local hobby store.  They did something similar, mixing two plasticville buildings together to make a bigger building, in an issue last year I think?

[Demay]

Thanks for the replies fellas.  I was thinking of using a Dremel tool with an attachment similar to those used for cutting track.  There is an Arts and Crafts shop on base here; they might have a nicer, more fine blade I can use.

Joe

[Frank53]

Deleted.

[Roger Bielen]

I shortened one a few years back and used a razor saw.  If I recall correctly, I scored it on both sides till I was able to snap the sheet similar to cutting a piece of styrene.

[SFFlyer]

 I Have 10 of those Victorians on my layout - I put a good deal under the knife for room.

It's true a dremel will melt plastic  - just allow for it and add about 1/4 inch to the length you want .

I cut most of mine to 8 inches and 1 to 7 inches. I used the excess plastic to build an enclosed staitcase in the back of the house. I live in San Francisco and just notice how the real ones look and try to make them realistic as possible.

 Don't worry about cutting it down - until you modify it  - it's not yours!

[Demay]

Thanks SFFlyer,

I haven't had a chance to perform the operation yet; hopefully next weekend.  Did you cut yours while they were assembled or unassembled?  Mine came assembled.  I think I can remove the sidewalk base, which should make the cutting much easier.  Do you have any photos to share?

Joe

[Demay]

Alright everybody, here is where the remodel now stands.  I shortened the length about 3 1/2 inches to a new lenght of just over 11 inches.  I did not have a razor saw so I used a very fine toothed hack saw.  It was cutting the plastic very nicely, but I noticed the blade flexed too much and was not cutting very straight.  I then went at it with a dremmel.  It did melt the plastic, but I went slow and planned for it.  I was able to get a decent separation.  I then used a sanding accessory on the dremmel to smooth out the edges.  The photos do show a few little gaps, but I believe I can use some sort of compound to fill those in.  From more than a foot away they are not very noticable.  One side looks better than the other.  I should be able to lightly sand away some of my excess glue as well.  I still need to reattach the back sidewalk piece.  I am pleased with the results thus far.  I bought this item used and if you look closely you can see it was not put together very cleanly to begin with and it does have some rough spots and chips.  I am either going to weather it or repaint it a different color.  I don't remember too many houses with that color growing up in PA coal country.  I appreciate any comments or suggestions about the ensuing patchwork, painting, or weathering.

Regards,

Joe