Building dilema

[underworld]

I want to scratch build a building called Book Tower. It is in Detroit. The problem is I will be building in 1/32 scale and it will be over 14 feet tall. My ceiling is just under ten feet. Should I just leave out a few floors? The actual building is 475 feet, 37 floors.



underworld

[:D][:D][:D][:D][:D]

[Anonymous]

just cut a few floors from the middle, nobody will know except for you.

PS: that is a huge scratchbuilding project!!! please post pics of your progress

[underworld]

Thanks Joe. That is kind of what I was thinking. I think I'm going to do sort of a mock up first....using cheap stuff like foam core board and maybe some cardstock/cardboard. Since I have Marklin prewar tinplate I think i'd like to give the finised one a "tinplate' look. Maybe make it from or cover it in metal and enamel it.

underworld

[:D][:D][:D][:D][:D]

[Big_Boy_4005]

I would compress it to 1/48. It is so massive that nobody would notice that it was under scale, unless you told them. Taking floors out may be more noticable.

Ultimately, plexiglass would be my construction material of choice, but then I used to build models of skyscrapers for a living.

[tatans]

Try having the building go right to the ceiling as if it actually protrudes into the room above. I saw a similar layout with a large building looking as if it goes into the floor above and it caused quite a stir, some liked it some didn't , children though, thought it was the proper thing to do,(and so did I) talk about unbiased thoughts from the minds of children.

[Big_Boy_4005]

QUOTE: Originally posted by tatans

Try having the building go right to the ceiling as if it actually protrudes into the room above. I saw a similar layout with a large building looking as if it goes into the floor above and it caused quite a stir, some liked it some didn't , children though, thought it was the proper thing to do,(and so did I) talk about unbiased thoughts from the minds of children.

An interesting idea, but the top of this building has distinctive style, and should really be preserved to capture the flavor.

[tatans]

Gotcha ,Big Boy, The top is unique, I guess the answer is to reduce scale, find the distance from the table top to the ceiling and adapt a scale from that dimension, no use in having it too small just to fit an existing scale (1:48 etc. etc.), I guess it would matter where the building will fit on the layout also, up against a wall, scale would not really be a factor as it is off in the distance, as suggested above make a cardboard mock-up first, this will save you many hours of grief, good luck, like to see some photos of this monster project.

[Roadtrp]

Would using forced perspective work here? Start with the lower floors being full size at 1/32 scale and then reduce the height of the floors as you go up. Doing this you could have the full number of floors in the building and the ground level would still look appropriate to your other buildings.

[dehusman]

If you drop several floors, also drop one "bay" of windows so the height to width is kept closer to proportion.

If you make the building sit behind a row of 1/32 buildings, you could make it 1/48 and nobody would notice. That would also allow you to use more commercial parts or window castings.

You might want to build a section of the wall and then cast the rest from that master.

Dave H.

[underworld]

Lots of good ideas guys, thanks! [:)] In 1:48 it would be about 9.89 feet, so about floor to ceiling. I'd thought about having it as a floor layout due to the fairly large scale.
Big_Boy_4005 I think I need more info from you.....since you used to do this for a living. What thickness of plexi would you use??? Are there other "tricks" to the trade? Did you ever do mock ups with foam core board or some other material. I remember we had a project in Junior High where we designed and built a scale house and foam core was the main material.

Roadtrp An interesting idea.....start at the ground level with 1:32 and gradually decrease scale up to the top of the building....is that what you mean? I think I'll draw something like that out.

tatans, JPM335 I will definately post photos when I can get this underway.

dehusman You mention casting...do you use some type of resin product???

underworld

[:D][:D][:D][:D][:D]

[Jetrock]

The model of the Sears Tower at the Museum of Science and Industry layout, as well as other skyscrapers on that layout, are actually closer to N scale than HO, but still look gargantuan in place--a 1/48 model building on a 1/32 scale layout would still look HUGE.

Wow, a 10 foot ceiling is not bad at all! The ceiling in my layout room (aka my "no-car garage") is about 7' high...

[philnrunt]

There is an interesting article about a type of foamcore called gator board in this months MR. In the article, the author states that regular foam core will warp over time. You might want to consider this, and also consider how much it would cost plexi vs foamcore.
Plexi building are good looking and easy to build, but around here the cost for a project like you are speaking of would be pretty hefty.
Maybe plexi lower floors, and foam upper, that would reduce the weight also.
Anyway, good luck, and post pics.

[Roadtrp]

QUOTE: Originally posted by underworld


Roadtrp An interesting idea.....start at the ground level with 1:32 and gradually decrease scale up to the top of the building....is that what you mean? I think I'll draw something like that out.

Yes, that is what I mean. I'm a big Disney fan, and I got the idea from how they designed the Main Street buildings and Cinderella's Castle in the Magic Kingdom.

They use "forced perspective" making the upper floors smaller scale than the lower floors to make the buildings appear taller than they really are. I thought the same principal might work for you.

[:)]

[underworld]

Jetrock Having a 10 foot ceiling is part of living in a real old building. I just wish I could get an apartment on a lower floor. 2nd floor is a little over 12 feet and 1st floor is over 14 feet!

philnrunt I just saw that article but I haven't had a chance to read it yet. I was thinking of using foamcore more as a template......before cutting more expensive material. Ideally I'd like to build in tin, since the trains are old Marklin tinplate. I think that would probably be too heavy.....but it would look real cool! [:D]

roadtrp Definately a good idea! I guess if it's good enough for Disney it's good enough for me! When I think about it I think that it could make the building more sinister looking.....more ominous. More in the true spirit of the building.

underworld

[:D][:D][:D][:D][:D]

[Javern]

I disagree...I think accuracy is important, I suggest a room remodel and add higher ceilings [:D][:D]

[CNJ831]

Be careful, underworld. Unless your layout is really huge to boot, a model of such gigantic dimensions will completely overpower everything else in the room and, while impressive in itself, will look totally out of place realtive to every other aspect of your layout. I've visited the great FSM layout and even George has a couple of huge, older office buildings on his layout that I find decidely out-of-place due to their size. "Too big" leaves the viewer with a sense that something isn't right with the layout.

I'm currently doing an extensive urban scene myself and have found that in HO (1/87) buildings more 15-20 scale stories tall start to look a bit 'peculiar' in a scene, even when surrounded by other relatively high buildings...and the trains virtually disappear! Were I considering a building like the Book Tower in Detroit, I'd probably make it my most distant background structure, done at even less than half the scale you and others have suggested...maybe 1/60 (I assume you are modeling in some variation of G scale). Best advice - build a rough mockup and see how it fits into the layout before expending all the time necessary to make a finished version.

CNJ831

[Big_Boy_4005]

I'm with CNJ about not creating a structure so large that it upstages your trains. In the real world do the tracks run next to the building? If not, maybe this model should just be a flat on the horizon. How large is your layout? If you try to build a 3 dimensional model of this building, it will take up a lot of space.

As for the plexiglass, it does require a table saw with a special blade to cut it. 1/8" should work for smaller buildings. Larger ones may need 1/4" to keep from warping.