getting ready for the Indy O scale show

I’m looking forward to getting back into show season. The Indy show was one of our first shows and we have been back every year. We wont be taking the layout this year it need a serious refurb but we will have a new “First street” display.

We have been doing this a long time now. we will go into our 8th year this Nov. We have learned a lot about cardstock engineering and i hope the newer kits reflect that. As we go forward I want to introduse new techniques to make our kits even more dimensional. new ways to brace models. New ways to splice and wrap. etc. etc. Brother dave has started working with thinner papers. wrapping them around cardboard and he’s getting great results. I want to go back and update a few textures and of course lots of new kits. I have a killer lighthouse, some north eastern style shop buildings a couple of new factories. The list keeps growing. (I havent forgotten about Chama)

More soon

Thom

OK, I admit it I'm procrastinating

I have to announce a winner in our contest and I will. The fact is it’s almost an impossible task. Every entry is worthy but If I just say everyone wins, well that kind of waters down the value of a compitition, (is compitition appropriate in an art form ?) (I’m not sure it is..) So here’s what were going to do.

Evereyone who entered will have a new kit named in their honor. (You will all be asked what kind of kit that should be) Each one of you will also recieve That kit in advance of it’s official release (in any scale you request) I will reproduce your entry as a kit if you wish. Otherwise one of the many kits that are now in development will be renamed in your honor.

With that said there is a “Grand winner” That not only showed great use of our materials but excellent craftsmanship and a considerable amount of  paper engineering.

The winner is………………………………………..Jim Gore for his “Diamond bar”

Once again I have to be clear how hard this decision was to make. My brother and I both felt that all of the models are fantastic. The sheer creativity of Larry Bradstreets “Slippery Oil” and Wes Morland’s “Miller welding”, The excellent charecter and depth defying effectivness of Marc Whitten and Lyn Zelmers’ “Warehouse flats”

We are eternally thankful to have modelers like you as a part of the Clever model’s community.

Thom and Dave

the fifth and last entry is from Jim Gore

Jim has built a faithful reproduction of the “Diamond bar” Jim has helped us out several times with test builds and often gives workshops on building with paper. no surprise that the craftsmanship is top shelf.

Notes from Jim, Enjoy. Now how do we choose a winner?????

For the record, the Diamond Bar is designed after the real one in Como, Colorado.   It stands across the street from the DSP&P depot.  At various times, it was a bar, an assay office, a bar and brothel, and, finally, a gas station into the mid-1903’s.  It’s been abandoned since then.  I decided to make mine as if it were the bar and brothel.  There were a lot of blanked out windows so I put them back in.

  Here’s sort of a list of the parts I used:

 Siding – textures disc, modified the color slightly on my printer settings

 Roof – metal siding from the textures disc, with individually applied spines

 Front Door – from the Branchline Station (not an exact match, but close enough)

 Red Door (behind the hooker) – back door of the hobby shop

 Windows – from several kits but also on the textures disc

 The gutters are reversed from the roof caps of the cannery

 Trim – from the cannery

 Rear doors – from garage kits

 Detail parts from the scrap box

 The towel hanging out the front window (bar) and the red union suit hanging out of the window on the side are aluminum foil, cut and painted.

 I designed the “Diamond Bar” symbol on the computer and just printed it on cardstock

 Hope this is useful.

  Jim

The Unofficial entry

Perhaps one of the most respected builders and writers in contemporary model railroading, Dave Frary sent this in. there has been a lot of forum chatter about his new waterfront module. we are happy to play a part in it. Dave writes:

My unofficial entry in your contest is the little building next to the shingled shack. All made from Clever paper with wood strip trim. From 24” you can’t tell what’s it’s made from.

Now is a great time to get into the custom building and kit-making business. It seems like everyone has a laser but only a few are doing really quality work - the more people who know about you and your work, the more customers you’ll get. I wish you well and will be happy to provide referrals.