Page 21 - NMRA Roundhouse September October 2020
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 Most liquid cements need only touching the joint at one end. The capillary action draws the cement along the joint and this is usually enough to permanently fix it. I recommend very thin cement like MEK types on styrene. It melts the material around the joint and evaporates almost instantly. Usually it leaves no glue marks at all. On wood, I recommend white or carpenter’s glue applied very sparingly, because the excess will ooze out and leave ugly bubbles if not wiped away instantly. Super glue works best on smaller parts.
On wood, glue acts like a sealer and stains and washes will not penetrate the wood at these spots. Sanding the glue marks away will remedy this, but at tight spots, this might not be possible. So again, use glue sparingly and apply it with a needle or small brush.
Take a close-up picture of your model from all sides and magnify the images on your computer or mobile phone. Examine each picture carefully and you will see the spots you probably want to redo or correct.
Construction involves also a certain degree of complexity. This may range from a simple model to a very complex or difficult to build model.
The amount of effort or hours to fit multiple parts counts here. A Centerflow Hopper is certainly more complex than a simple Boxcar. Compare the effort and complexity of upgrading a kit versus scratchbuilding the same car.
Detail (0-20 Points)
You cannot have enough detail! Here you can really go crazy with detail. The more, the better.
The amount of details added to your model and the degree of refinement are evaluated in this category. Details that are required for the proper functioning of the prototype are more important than cosmetic details, like tools or cargo on the deck.
Also operating features like sliding doors, opening hatches and working brakes (yes, in larger scales you might consider this), receive more points than non-working details of the same type.
Replace cast-on details like bolt heads, hand rails, grab irons with either commercial parts or, better yet, scratchbuild. Add details like brake rigging, uncoupling levers, and air hoses. You could literally strip a kit and replace all the removed castings with detail parts. The amount of detail counts. There are numerous sources of documentations and photographs of builders’ photos you could consult, to know what kind of details you should add.
Making patterns for castings or photo-etchings to make your details adds to the effort and may count towards the scratch- building category.
Conformity (0-25 Points)
Conformity deals with achieving prototypical appearance or following prototype practice in construction and application of parts. If you model a car of your favourite railroad, you probably have plenty of evidence to prove that the model looks like the prototype.
You cannot expect that the evaluators know every detail of every prototype, so here it is up to you to explain and demonstrate conformity. Photographs and drawings of the prototype should be added to your documentation. The amount of detail is not important in this category, but how well what you have added conforms to the prototype. If you model a fictitious or free-lanced prototype, you should supply evidence of conformity to prototype practices such as photographs or drawings of prototypes with similar features.
The model should also be logical. No K-brake systems on a 60’ bulkhead flat or roller bearing trucks on a narrow gauge car.
If the model were built full size, would it do the intended job? Remember: a maximum of only 15 points is awarded if you do not supply photographs or plans/drawings in your documentation.
Finish and Lettering (0-25 Points)
This category deals with the general appearance and proper application of finish and lettering to achieve a specific effect. The finish of a car ranges from painting over decaling to eventually weathering. Most cars, even today, are painted in one single or maybe two colours. Practicing on scrap pieces pays towards a neat application on the model. Before painting, I always wash my model in lukewarm water with a bit of dishwashing agent added to remove the grease from handling with my fingers.
      ROUNDHOUSE - September/October 2020 - 75th Anniversary Issue
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