Ok, I'm looking for some interior lighting for my HO c\scale Union Station. What I want are some chandeliers. I have seen some for doll houses but they seem a little too big. Anyone have any ideas????
Mike
You might be out of luck. Dollhouse miniatures are usually 1" = 1 foot IIRC. You could do a search on Walthers website to see if anything turns up. You might find some stuff available in G size, where (roughly) 1/2" = 1 foot, or O scale where 1/4" = 1 ft., but both would probably be too big for HO. (Possibly a small O chandelier could be a really big HO one??)
Keep in mind they'd be pretty tiny in HO - and if you did find them, I'm not sure how you would light them?? Plus they'd be virtually impossible to see from the outside anyway.
I was thinking of a bundle of fiber optic strands. Take a cone-shaped faucet washer, about a half-inch in diameter, and push a bundle of very thin fiber optic strands through the center. You might need to drill the center hole out a bit to get more in. Push them in from the flat side, and then spread them out and around the cone side. (I'm not sure how tight a turn you can put these through, though.) Light the strands from the far end, which will be in the ceiling, with a bright LED.
A simpler solution might be to build up layers of clear styrene sheet, drill a hole in the middle and insert a light bulb. Or, use a LED, and glue a reflective surface on the bottom so the light is forced back out through the styrene.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
I'd be tempted to hit the bead department of your local craft store and see if there's something that looks like a clear plastic snowflake about 1/2 inch in diameter. Then drill it and epoxy it like a skirt onto a GOW bulb. Run the bulb at about 1/2 its rated voltage to keep it from getting too hot and melting the bead/glue.
I haven't actually tried this, but I think it will work.
Phil, I'm not a rocket scientist; they are my students.
You definitely can't think "off the rack" for this project. The fiberoptic option is interesting, but I don't think it would throw enough light actually illuminate the interior. I like the idea of finding something in the craft store. There's all kinds of beads and jewelry making accessories that might work. You should also check out the dollhouse aisle.
While a 1"-12" chandelier might be too big, there might be a table lamp that can be modified to look more like an HO cieling fixture.
I'll be interested to see how you work through this... post pictures when you have something together.
Lee
Route of the Alpha Jets www.wmrywesternlines.net
I have found some 1/2" round lights at Oak Ridge Hobbies. They are made for doll Houses. I not sure if the dia. is really 1/2". I did email them to see if it might fit. My thinking is that back in the day, big shinny things were the best ti use in fancy buildings.