Window/Door frames in 15mm. What's your system?

[Smokeyrone]

Unless you are making a centerpiece, Grandt Line and other manufaturer's styrene, injection molded frames are not cost effective for a large table full of buildings.  (3-4 windows, 1-2 doors per structure, x 20, 30 or more buildings, and you are talking 100+ bucks).

Luckilly, I mostly make Sudan/Egypt/NW Frontier/Old Mehico type adobe buildings, where window and door frames are simple and easy to make (just scribing a frame over your adobe finish, and adding a wood strip is often perfect).

But, at times I must have fancier framing (like my Boxer Rebellion project).

In 28mm, you pretty much cant cut corners.  But in 15mm, you can get away with painted card strips or thin balsa strips.   The issue?  It's still not too fast.  Even using my "add one side, add 2nd and cut, add 3rd side and cut, etc", it's tedious. 

Anyone have a system?  I tried cutting out a one piece frame from card,  but its no faster, and kinda technical, and ends up looking like you glued on a one piece cardstock frame. 

I envision a paper punch like tool.  Instead of punching out holes for notebook binders on paper, it punches out a window frame.   Is that a thing?   I know of a styrene punch tool, that punches out a 90 degree angle (for making windows on styrene sheet))

[Captain Canada]

Try photo etching.  There is a cost for setup but micromark makes a complete kit. Shutters, doors signs windows.


KAM

[FifteensAway]

A useful and affordable answer is of great value to me as well.  I have over 100 buildings to add doors and windows to.  Right now, I'm thinking of using paper glued to wood glued to the 'shell' - but that isn't a great alternative.  I'd prefer something in 3D.  I don't mind spending some money on it but not too much.  I have yet to download from Whitewash City which does have some decent elements for doors and windows.  I've also tried creating my own with okay results.  As always, my biggest challenge is having time to spend on my hobbies! 

[Mako]

Hey Smokey!

Good to see you here.

Depends upon the period, size, thickness, etc., etc., desired.

1mm is equivalent to 4" in 1/100th scale, so..............

Professional model-makers, for modern buildings use thin strips of various colors of pin-striping detailing, used for model aircraft, cars, etc., etc..  Sorry, can't remember the technical term, but it is sold in various widths and colors, is self-adhesive on the back, and can be cut to size and shape.  

We used to cut to fit in terms of size, in model building class (professional), and apply to clear acrylic walls/boxes we'd made (used to represent the windows/glass door sections inside the walls).  Over the acrulic was laid a skin of appropriately colored "wall" material, so you didn't have to paint it, made of thin mat board.  

We'd cut 45 degree angles where the sides and horizontal pieces came together at the top of the windows and doors, and 90 degrees at the bottom, where the door sills were (45 degrees again for bottom of windows, in some cases, depending upon design).

The pinstriping is ultra-thin, and works well.  We'd place the angled sections first, and then use a fresh blade to cut to size for the 90 degree cuts, matching to size.  Tricky work, but looks great when properly applied.

Of course, we weren't building scores of buildings, which adds to the time needed.

I'd suggest a couple of options:

1. see if you can get someone to produce what you want/need in 3-D on Shapeways, or independently - probably the easiest and fastest option, and then buy and glue into place.  Make sure to have bottom frames (door sills) for doors, so they will be more rigid (having a thin 0.5mm sheet behind and inside the windows/doorframes would probably be even better, to provide more surface area to glue to, and might not add much to the cost - don't really know for sure, but suspect that);

2. buy a "Chopper" made by X-Acto, or other similar manufacturers, and cut your stock in assembly-line fashion to size/shape, as needed, for your doors and windows, out of styrene stock, and/or balsa/bass wood.

The latter will be tedious, but you should be able to crank out lots of parts in short order.  Gluing them all in place will be the challenge, but that may be cheaper than Shapeways.

3. or, buy the styrene plastic parts in HO scale, from various manufacturers, for your most important, and/or impressive buildings, as needed/desired.  Note - second and third stories and above, and rear building doors/windows are frequently less elaborate than the ones on the front, and first floor, so that can help you save some money.

Hope that helps.

Say hi to Beezer for me.

[FifteensAway]

Mako's Chopper idea is good - if you use styrene strips.  Wood doesn't cut nearly so easily though it will work.  Have to give it some thought.  Used my Chopper to cut strips for my conversion work creating some stock (cattle) cars for my old west railroad.  Time, time, time - never, ever enough.

[Damas]

I've got this problem as well. 

I've been using some Sally4th window frames cut down to size but I was wondering about using a graphic printed onto cardstock and cutting them out, giving the window look quickly.  Anyone tried this?

[Mako]

I've not done it with cardstock, but did consider it, when someone inquired about doing that, when I started creating/selling 1/144th and 1/100th scale WWII German, and West German single-family homes.

It can be done, but like all the other stuff, is a bit tedious, and time consuming, so not sure it is worth the effort.  Would be easier if you didn't have to cut out both the inner and outer frame lines, and just left the center of the windows/doors "raised" as well.  If you do cut out the center of the windows, you can add in some thin, plastic sheeting behind it to make the windows glossy.  Of course, carefully adding a little Modge Podge, or similar might work too.

Personally, unless it was a very special building, I'd just print them on, as I did with the above buildings, and, if desired, add in a bit more shading underneath, to make them look a bit more 3-D, when making cardstock ones.  At arms length, you probably will be hard pressed to tell the difference, if you're over the age of 25 - 30, and even the young ones might be too, especially in 15mm scale.

Obviously, that doesn't work for non-cardstock, buildings.

1mm = 4", 1.5mm = 6", and 3mm = 1 foot.  

To my eyes, even up close, 1mm - 1.5mm is really small.  I really noticed that when at the local shop the other day eyeing some styrene strips to make some shipping pallets with, in 1/100th scale.  1mm looked way too small, so might need to bump the pallet frame boards underneath to an overscale size of at least 1.5mm in thickness.  1mm is more realistic, but on the tabletop, I suspect it will look too thin to support the plywood/aluminum decking of the pallets I want to construct.







Apologies for the quality of the photos, but they were taken in marginal lighting, some time ago.

I need to take some newer ones, of better quality, to show off these, and the other 1/100th and 1/144th scale two-story, half-timbered, German/West German village buildings I've now come up with.  

[Smokeyrone]

Found a quick system, that works great for Chinese style buildings (which is nice, as I am making Peking for the boxer Rebellion).

My wood and tarpaper and brick/adobe structures feature cut out windows and doors, then I add the framework, doors, etc after painting and finishing.   Strips of balsa, styrene, card, and yes Mako, ultra thin pin striping tape (which I have a plethora of) are great, BUT, take time, for lots of buildings.  Thus why I made this thread.

The trick is to find a source of ready made framing, just paste over window cut out, etc.

1:   Paint a sheet of card (I used manilla envelopes).  Then cut out squares (cut so many windows out of foamboard, I pretty much have the sizes down, no measuring) corresponding to your windows.   Then, after you have a bunch punched out, cut around the cut out squares.  Four easy cuts with scissors, and boom!  Can crank out 20 in about five minutes.  You can do the same with craft foam sheets as well, if you need thicker frames

2: I raided my boxes of 54mm plastic soldiers (I make and collect playsets).  In the "Trash Box" (full of accessories that come in cheap army men bags, like out of scale fences, barb wire sections, I found that you can cut out sections that make great door and window frames (The cheap Wal Mart plastic Zoo Animals and Farm Animals sets have a bunch of this "cage" like fencing sections).  The trick?  Pick your frames first, THEN draw/cut out your doors/wimdows in accordance. 

3:  Granny mesh, AND this harder plastic, finer detailed and molded plastic piece from Home Depot in the Gutter and Plumbing department (they are mesh drain l.ooking peices that cost like 2 bucks for a 1'x6" section.  VERY nice, looks like purpose casted styrene frames from Evergreen, when cut out)

So, I am finding some new techniques.    Still wish I could buy styrene frames en mass, and not pay Grandt Line prices per piece.   

For doors, I am using very thin balsa, and card.  The trick?  Scribe your wood lines along an entire sheet of said  (Takes a bit, but when done, you have a whole "wooden door" sheet).

Paint black, then drybrush (I use several different colors to drybrush in horizontal sections.

Then, cut out doors as needed. 


Anyway, from now on, when I make buildings, the doors and windows will be designed to fit whatever framing I am using, and NOT vice versa!

[FifteensAway]

Someone should see opportunity here - lots of CHEAP doors and windows in 15 mm will sell!  I'd buy bunches.

[Smokeyrone]

Someone should see opportunity here - lots of CHEAP doors and windows in 15 mm will sell!  I'd buy bunches.

Maybe I'll email the "We So Honest" Company?   They make mass quanity architectural and railroad accessories in all scales (injection molded ho scale tables and chairs in lots of 100 for 5 bucks, etc etc.

That said, any injection molded framing, on sprues, is gonna cost.  Injection molding just never got cheaper.

3d printing?  Can you mass print items cheaply?  

Is laser cut wood to the point where they can stamp out a sheet with lots of tiny frames, which would work?

[Ahistorian]

I use granny-grating too - just remember to sand it a little so your glue has something to grip. Or I leave them closed with little cereal-box-card shutters, 80's GW style.

Is "We So Honest" a real company? I keep looking idly for bulk-buy HO architectural details, but I've never seen owt I'm willing to pay for.

[zemjw]

As well as Granny Grating I have used ho/oo scale and larger plastic ladders (although this was for 6mm SF scenery)

You lose two side pieces per window, so it's a bit wasteful, but doesn't look too bad.

I have wondered about using two craft punches - one for the outside and one for the inside, but lining them up would be tricky without a transparent punch.

I suppose if you drew the outer frame vertical guides on a strip you could punch them out and them just cut out the outer frame, but you'd still need to be able to line up the strip when it's under the opaue part of the punch. Should be doable using graph paper or a printed grid under the punch, maybe something to look into next time I feel the building bug