Hello again,
I guess I did not make mysely clear. After you design one wall in Model Builder copy it and paste it into another program(Serif pageplus, Adobe,etc.) Then design the next wall copy and paste again and align it next to the first one. If it is a square building just copy and paste in the program. This will give you a building with one seam. Will model Builder let you copy?Your work is quite good.
Jerry
I
Model Builder only allots you what you can fit on four pages -- two on top and two on the bottom. You can work landscape or portrait and "overflow" the design onto the other three pages. You cannot -- as far as I'm aware -- go beyond this, which means you cannot print out a continuous building as you suggest. And with my large hotel, 81/2 wouldn't have worked anyway. It's 14 inches high by 19 long.
It would be a nice feature for the developers to incorporate though.
Blog: www.smallrails.blogspot.com. Pictures, videos and tutorials.
Hello,
Most programs will print up to 8 1/2 x 28 inches. If you cut poster paper (like card stock, 140 pound) to 8 1/2 you will be able to printat least 2 if not 3 sides of a building. Then you score the back side and fold the building and the corner will be without the paper edges.
I handle it with a knife and ruler, though with some planning it wouldn't be too hard to make more natural seams. I've also found that if you make the sections a smidge larger than needed, you can cut through the part of the paper that's been printed on, which eliminates most of the white edge (at least on my printer anyway). Trying to bevel the edge a bit with Xacto blade works decent too. The hotel project was so big, it barely fit on the four pages I had to work with, so I couldn't really do any seam planning.
I've also found that you can print out a thin strip of bricks and make a paper pilaster to hide any bad seams. While it sounds confusing to say to create more seams to hide seams, it works. The tutorial on the software recommends using chalk to darken the white edges of the paper to help hide seams, and that works as well.
What a massive structure! I really liked the way the wall corner 'pieces' dressed the seams so well. Just a beauty of a job all around. When you're making the individual sections on your computer do you try to end a wall section where a natural break in the wall would be, like along a course of bricks? Or do you handle that later with a knife and ruler?
Jarrell
Those are some HUGE buildings! Great work.
Sawyer Berry
Clemson University c/o 2018
Building a protolanced industrial park layout
Here are the answers to the various questions posted:
1) The windows are printed out with the brick sheets. So they are 2D, not 3D.
2) The artwork was one of the pre-provided ones supplied by the software (Evan Designs Model Builder).
3) My opinion of the software: With a good inkjet printer (I use the Epson Workforce 600) and some basic skills, you can do what I've done. I really haven't had any issues with the program. If you are used to photoshop or something more advanced, you will probably find its limitations frustrating, but if you have photoshop and the skills to use it, you don't need this software to begin with. For the average person, I think it will work fine. I would like to be able to rotate some of the objects and some of the artwork libraries are limited (each library would contain things like windows or brick patterns), but I'm happy with it. You can import your own photos (of windows, doors or whatever), but you are somewhat limited as to what you can do with them. If you have a lot of buildings to make, it can produce good results for a low price. It's also good for making temporary place holders until you buy/build a comparable plastic kit. My downtown is a mix of paper and plastic buildings, which I think helps fool the eye into thinking everything is 3D.
4) To get more specific instructions, go to the blog and click on the "tutorial" label on the left. It will bring up all my building tutorials, some of which have a little more detail on how to build the structures. Essentially, I design each wall on screen, print it out and use a glue stick to attach it to black foam core. I then glue the foam core sections together and cut a roof for it and add details. (www.smallrails.blogspot.com)
My next experiment is cutting the windows out of a paper wall print out and adding clear plastic to the windows to give the windows a "shine". I will post results when I'm done with that experiment. I also think you could do good work using Grandt Line/other windows and doors mounted into the printed out walls. I'll try that at some point in the future as well.
Thanks for the nice comments and let me know if there are any other questions (the best place to reach me quickly is on my blog).
Impressive!! Looks like you bought the same Walthers roof top detail kit that I just did. That's a great kit for $10. The air handlers are just a bit too large for my DPM kits. I was going to place mine on ground level behind the buildings. The array of roof top vents are great though! Nice job!
Totally awesome - I bookmarked your website! I have a heavy-industry oriented layout and need some large building fronts to use as view blockers, I'm hoping I can learn a thing or two from you.
I see you used Evans Designs software on your hotel. I was reading a thread about that on the forums a few years ago; many people were saying it was horribly bug-ridden and very frustrating to use for the price [don't remember what they were charging for it]. Have they improved it since then? I'd really like to use that tool to design my own skyscrapers.
-ken
-Ken in Maryland (B&O modeler, former CSX modeler)
Just one question. Who do I call to pre-register? I want a room on an upper floor, back side, directly under the water tower...
Seriously, beautiful job. Really big urban buildings are one of the weak links in available commercial kits. Your methods, and results, are sure to give hope to others.
Well done...
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
I just left a comment on your blog - great job
Mike
Simply amazing! You've done a grand job there! :)
wow that is amazing!!! I'm planning on modeling the music city star in Nasvhille and would love to know how you did all of that and what I need to make my own buildings cost efectifvly for Nashville.
Wow looks terrific! That thing is MASSIVE--I can see how this was a cost effective solution. Can you share more info on how you put together the artwork for these buildings? Or if you already have it posted somewhere let me know so I can look. Jamie
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Wow! The big hotel is very impressive. It's amazing how good the printed paper looks.
Did you make the windows? If so I would be very interested to hear how you did that.
Again, lookin' good.
George V.
I've got two more buildings up on the city section of my layout, including a monster hotel. See the construction photos on my blog. One building is printed out from the computer, the other a basic City Classics model.
www.smallrails.blogspot.com
thanks for looking.