I thought I'd just mention the method I am using for screen doors and windows on a scratch built apartment building that I have spent far too much time on.
There are ultra-fine mesh materials that are sometimes used for screen but they usually look very oversize to me. What I notice in photos of buildings with screen doors and windows is that you do not see the mesh -- it's too small to see from any kind of distance once beyond 4 or 5 feet. Rather you see the darkened see-through effect of the screen.
I had a supply of clear plastic that was actually part of the packaging of a household item (I am using it for some of the glass windows in this building due to ease of cutting. Where I have the room I am using actual glass slide covers because I prefer the appearance of real glass over plastic). I cut a square of the material. Using a fine grit sanding pad I rubbed repeatedly, perfectly horizontal. Then I turned the material 90 degrees and rubbed horizontal again. This gave the plastic a fine scratched surface at exact 90 degree angles. Avoid any sideways or circular rubbing. I actually turned the material four times and rubbed in every direction.
I then taped or pinned the material flat and sprayed on an india ink/pure alcohol mix. It settles in all the tiny scratches. Once dry it very effectively simulates the darkening effect of screen material. You do NOT see the actual cross hatching -- it is too small and fine. You can see through it, it is darkened, and it is nongloss. And best of all it is, for all intents and purposes, "free" since I had everything at hand anyway.
Dave Nelson
Thanks for the tip.
After what you said about the interior being darker, I started thinking about a tinted type window material.
Elmer.
The above is my opinion, from an active and experienced Model Railroader in N scale and HO since 1961.
(Modeling Freelance, Eastern US, HO scale, in 1962, with NCE DCC for locomotive control and a stand alone LocoNet for block detection and signals.) http://waynes-trains.com/ at home, and N scale at the Club.
If you have a local shop that does silk-screen printing, see if you can scavange some old scraps of the silk screen material. In its raw state it is white in color. I use a black magic marker to color it as the mesh is SO fine, any paint will clog it. To look at it, you'd almost say it was solid, but when held up, you can easily see through it while still having the faint appearance of scale screening.
Cool idea with the scratching method .... would work well for a screen over a closed window !
Mark.
¡ uʍop ǝpısdn sı ǝɹnʇɐuƃıs ʎɯ 'dlǝɥ
This may sound odd, but some of it depends on if the screen you are modeling, is wire screen or a synthetic material like nylon or fiberglass.
Each has it's own properties:
- Wire, tends to grey things out a bit, because it's reflecting some light, get the light shining directly on it and it greys out alot.
- Nylon, can be light in color or dark in color.
- Fiberglass and vinal, tends to usualy be dark, because they need to be treated to resist the effects of UV light.
Just a couple of things to think about.
Some teabags are made of very fine mesh, the tetrahedral or pyramid bags. I colored the mesh with a Sharpie. The mesh is probably too coarse for true accuracy in HO scale, but I think it conveys the effect of window screens well.
Here it is (before I put the window frames over the top) http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=5811939&l=0772a87078&id=647757786
I was a bit surprised to see this old thread of mine get revived but thanks for the tip Andrew. In looking at the photo I think your teabag mesh does a particularly good job of replicating something you used to see on older structures, homes, some barns etc, and that is screen material that would rust. This not only darkened the screening but tended to slightly fill in the screen openings with enlarged corrosion of the metal, making the screens increasingly less "see through" than when they were new. As that material aged it would sometimes deteriorate entirely leaving open gaps. I suspect your teabag mesh could also replicate that rather effectively.
So your idea effectively does add to the model railroader's bag of tricks.
There was another product which you no longer see, something like hardware cloth (meaning very large metal mesh) embedded in a sort of transparent flexible material. It did not allow air to pass through in other words but had a sort of screen like appearance.
Clear plastic sheet like you would use for window "glass" would seem one solution. If only if were tinted slightly gray.
Well there USED TO BE such a material-- gelatin neutral density filter material for photography. Don't know if you can get it any more- there are so few "real" camera stores.
Another method I recall seeing in an old issue of MR ....
Use clear acetate and give it a light dusting with Dullcoat - not a wet coat. Gave the illusion that there was something there, but you could still see through it. Works pretty good for the effect - there's no way we could actually "see" HO scale screen mesh.
By the way for photos and more description of how I use scratched clear plastic to mimic screen windows and doors, see my Frugal Modeler article in the NMRA Midwest Region Waybill from 2009:
http://www.mwr-nmra.org/region/waybill/waybill20092summer.pdf
Mark R.Another method I recall seeing in an old issue of MR .... Use clear acetate and give it a light dusting with Dullcoat - not a wet coat. Gave the illusion that there was something there, but you could still see through it. Works pretty good for the effect - there's no way we could actually "see" HO scale screen mesh. Mark.
A similar tip in MR(??) suggested a light spray of grimy black on acetate or other window material to simulate a screen. They also suggested first paint a narrow border around the edge for the screen frame.
George In Midcoast Maine, 'bout halfway up the Rockland branch
There is silk screen material on sale on ebay (3.00 per yard with 3.00 ship). I would suggest you look at how to pick silk screen material to find out what size you need. I purchased the 120 thread per inch and as mentioned on previous replys the material comes in white. Thanks for the black majic marker tip for coloring. Now I will look for a grey color majic marker.