Very interesting technique for creating structures. I much appreciated Bill's safety tips and the push sticks he uses. I have two friends - experienced carpenters - who lost parts of fingers using table saws without blade guards and another fellow in town who was severely injured by a flying scrap of wood off his saw. Terrific video all-around. Thanks to both of you for producing it.
You are welcome Richard. One must be extremely careful working with such equipment. I remember when I was a wee lad my neighbor lost several fingers while using a table saw. Thanks for watching.
Hey fella's! Thank you! Finally, someone has made a video of this technique! I've been using this method for a couple of years now to build several of the buildings on my layout. It can be kind of expensive to purchase some of the quality craftsman kits nowadays. Fortunately I've had those same power tools, and more, for decades. I just retired less than a year ago & living on a very modest SSI income now & I don't own a smart phone or digital camera or Go Pro that I can use to pass along my buildings and experience to others we share this wonderful hobby with so, great job and Thanks again! (mike)
I REALLY enjoy the posts that you make! You are the main reason that I got back into this hobby. I'm taking my time in building the layout...I'm in no rush. I hope to get it finished this weekend and then decide what kind of companies to put around it and then figure out the best track layout. Keep up the great work and keep the posts coming!
Thanks John, good to know all these videos are helping some folks in some small way. And very glad you got back into the hobby and are progressing well on your own layout! I'll keep posting away as long as I am able.
1 hour 17 - that's the Rob we know and love! Bill's comments at 7:53 were my thoughts exactly - how many times have I struggled to get everything square (even with a magnetic jig I made for the job!) when, as long as your block is square, you're half way there! I will most definitely be copying this excellent technique. Another excellent little building for the layout.
What a neat project! And you don't even need a quare to keep all the walls right. I think this is even good for DPM buildings too. It just keeps things square and plumb. Thanks for doing this! I'm sure the watchers will take off running with this idea. Doug
You are welcome Doug. I would be interested to see if others run with it and what they can come up with- we have lots of very creative people out there.
Man oh man! You surround yourself with wonderful artist,and modellers. This video is Awesome! Learned alot, as usual. Thank you for this channel,and your generosity of knowledge, and skills! Can't wait for the next one.-Thanks Mr!
Most welcome Chad- was a fun project and Bill is indeed an extremely talented modeler (though he won't admit it!) Stay tuned for the next "block head" project!
Brilliant technique and so much to learn from this video, so will have to rewatch. Keep em coming !! PS you think you have sometimes have crap wood, come to this side of the ‘Pond’ ......
Only the best. Accurate and durable as hell. I've had mine forever. Wish it was easier to find the 8 footers though. Tough to locate, but sometimes they'll pop up on a shelf.
OMG! The D&H Yard, in North Albany, NY, had that exact building, except the broken away gutter was split and drooping at the middle connection of the run. Though the wood structure, at one time, had D&H blue and yellow by the time the mid/late 50's hit the brands colors faded to a Blue/Gray and FILTHY chipped yellow. Also sticking out of the, accurately placed, garage door was, from time to time, a Hy-Rail for track inspection. Also the vent stack was attached, inside, to a Franklin Stove, and it belched THICK BLACK smoke. SPOT ON Bill & Steve. To be prototypical, with No. Alb. yard, the "Kitchen" or break room was a rusted up NYC Hard Body Dinner Car (from the WW2 era), off it trucks. It sat on part of the concrete slab. But suspension springs were left in place. Lastly, the "Reading Room" was an outhouse. It was positioned atop a small rickety wooden bridge like structure. More than just a dock. Less than safe. This allowed the 2-holer outhouse to empty it's output to a local stream which fed into the Hudson River. Great job guys. Catch you DOWN THE LINE.
That is interesting- how a Pennsy building from the Shamokin Branch in a small coal town is the same as a building on the D&H. Thanks for the info on the D&H stuff- and thanks for watching!
I have never seen a solid block scratch build. Nice video. AlthoughI would have liked to seen your finishing techniques. Thanks for taking the time to post.
Two suggestions: First, when cutting to height, use the table saw instead of the miter/chop saw by placing the peak of the roof against the table saw guide and apply pressure to keep the side against the top of the table. Second, when cutting the siding (depending on the length/width, of course), cut the peaked pieces first - with the demonstration building shed, you could have made both the sides and the peaked end(s) from the same cut of the siding - use a T-square to make the cut at the top of the peak for the ends so your "scrap" piece is square, trim the roof angles, and then cut the side from the "scrap". EXCELLENT way to make buildings if you don't want to detail the interior AND/OR no one makes a kit for them!
Awesome job! You guys should contact Ken Paterson from the Whats Neat show and Model Railroad Hobbyist Magazine and let him do a segment featuring you guys doing this incredible work!
That is a great modelling Technik. I would try it, but I just do not have the machinery to do it. Thank you and Bill for making this video. Martin. (Thailand)
On a Table saw it is safer if you are cutting items longer than the blade diameter. By changing the order of cuts you can do this by making the basic heights with standard roof slopes and normal roof gable heights by making long stocks sizes for future buildings. Put a permanent sacrificial fence on that chop saw that would make life faster and use clamps to hold those small pieces down but only on one side of the blade. On those small blocks with the Table saw Screw them to a longer pass block to provide longer hold against the fence when cutting those slopes You could even use a piece of 1/2 in MDO ply or laminated with a hand hold to make it a permanent push block for this purpose. A end stop and using hot glue will also work or Double sided tape.
Great video. I have been using balsa sheets of various thickness laminated together as it is easier to sand and cut to shape w/o use of full size major power tools. I do have a miniature 4 inch disc-miter sander which does a great job shaping balsa to size. I've also used in combination with balsa small 1 inch sq. blocks of hard wood from Joannes that come approx. ten per bag. The buildings come out square without all the problems inherent with other methods. Using blocks is also good for making barges. I might add I model 1.87 scale.
Great idea if you don't have the power tools. It solves the same problems as the video's methods do -- buildings out of square, trying to glue little walls together, etc. I would think your idea for making barges is a good one and would work well. I like this concept. Thanks for watching and replying with your idea. Bill S
Very cool Rob. I like to put interior lighting in most of my buildings, not sure how that would work with this method, but I would still like to try this technique sometime in the future. Russ
Just watched your video using Bill's methods. Love the idea of putting the acetate over the black paint. I think you did a great job of putting it together and weathering the paint. Loved the effect with the loose gutter. Did not like the 2x8 under the ridge cap. The vent in the roof should never go through the peak of the roof because it would mean cutting the ridge pole of the roof to allow for passage of the flue pipe causing loss of structural strength of the roof. Also the facia boards on the ends of the roof should have the shingles extending past them to keep them from getting water behind them and causing them to rot. Sorry about this picky stuff! I really do like what you have been doing for your layout. The DCC, the track work, and especially the scenery work! Ben
I never claimed to be a structural engineer or architect- it is just an HO scale model. Close enough for me. But, this is good to know and I will remember this for future buildings so thanks for the information. And if I may be "cheeky" a little bit- check out page 12 of the "Trackside on the Pennsylvania" Standard Plans book. Notice where the roof vent (which they indicate is a smoke Jack) is located...
Rob, I'm glade you didn't take my comments in a bad way. They were not to be bad comments, just ways to help improve your models. I still like what you are doing especially when you put lights and interiors in offices and loading docks. Ben
Very good technique. Lovely house shed block building. Only jarring error is the vent through the crest of the roof. That would never be. It would be off to the side on one roof on the slope or the other. But, other than that… really cool idea.
This came out great! Being a woodworker myself I'm always looking for ways to combine my hobbies, so this block approach really appeals to me! You mentioned you have a plan book for Pennsy structures (if I heard you correctly). Any chance you can provide the title of that book and where it could be found? I'm modeling a Pennsy layout next and I'd love to have some more references for when I scratch build stuff for it. Anyway, this was great and looking forward to the next one!
I always use Aleen's Tacky (or extra tacky) available at any craft store. It sticks as well as carpenters glue without the long setup time of carpenters glue. Rob uses Weldwood in a tube (maybe it is also called Weldbond but I think that is the contact cement) which are both available at any hardwood store. I've used Aleens for years and never had a bond break. Thanks for the compliments and watching, Bill Schopf
For those who don't possess a nice wood working shop. I presume balsa wood blocks would also work? Sometimes Walthers has balsa assortment bags on sale.
Checked the other comments but no-one had asked - where do you get the large sheets of siding wood that was used in the video please ? Great video full of detail and I learned so much. Thanks to both of you for sharing the ideas. 🐈
Northeastern (in Metheun, Massachusetts) has 6 inch wide siding by 24 inches long. You want to get this and not the 3 1/2 wide stuff that most hobby shops carry. The wider stuff allows you a lot more flexibility. Thanks for watching and commenting. Bill S
Bill is correct, and I bought it directly from Northeastern: www.northeasternscalelumber.com/shop/board-batten-6.html. On this building I used the 1/8", item 18BAB6.
When you want to put 2 blocks together and not have them move, try a little salt on the glue before clamping them. I find that this keeps them from moving. I don't worry about that as I use a small pnumatic nailer on the blocks...Also, you can take a drop of super glue and use it in 2 places and that will grab right away and prevent the piece from moving and you have to use only a small amount of the super glue with your wood glue...I'm sorry but the insert at 25:46 is not a dado insert but just a straight cutting insert that is the standard one that comes with the saw. I have been working with table saws since i was about 10 years old and now I am 70 and have nicked my flesh one time. At 36:54 you made a cut but I would have always done the cut with the long piece in the back. Also I have a sacrificial fence for all of my saws and I screw the fence to the solid fence that came with the saw so I can use it over and over. It is also much more stable... Nice video because I would have not thought about using solid wood for these buildings but now I am going to try it... Thanks...
Thanks for the tip on the salt. I will try that. I misspoke when I called it a dado insert. You are right. I had to replace the insert I was using with one that would allow the blade to be angled. Obviously you can't do that with a zero clearance insert I was using for the other cuts. I too use sacrifice fences but usually only if the blade is extremely close to the regular fence. The nice thing about woodworking is that there a lots of ways to skin the cat (so to speak ... not too politically correct or a great metaphor for the cat lovers out there!!)
This may be a dumb question (because I'm relatively new to your videos), but why do people call you "Rob," when the "by-line" is Stephen Bennett? I assume they call you Rob because that's your name! But who is/was Stephen Bennett? I'm a big fan of your videos. This one was very interesting--I remember seeing someone else do a structure using a block, but nothing to the extent that Bill does them.
I'm not Rob. I'm Bill. But to explain -- the video series began a few years ago in his son's name, Stephen, who more or less produced a lot of the videos while he was in high school.. As Stephen graduated from high school and developed new interests, the channel became Rob's exclusively. So Rob is the father and the guy you hear talking and who is this fantastic modeler.. Stephen is the son who no longer has much to do with producing the videos. But call him Rob or call him Stephen, and he'll answer to either one.
Norm: Tichy Train Products is the best source for doors, windows, etc. If you want specially made windows and doors for a prototype project, Rob suggests Shapeways. You can contact them via their website. Lumber is Northeastern Scale Lumber (siding, 2x4s, etc.). I believe a company called Kappler still makes scale lumber as does a company called Mt Albert (?). I mostly use stuff from Northeastern and Tichy. Thanks for watching. Bill S
Aleen's Super Tacky glue. It dries very fast and is very permanent and still gives you room to fiddle with it while positioning. Thanks for commenting. Bill S
You can but it's a real pain. You could use a sheet of 1/32 or 1/16 inch balsa or basswood and glue 1x2s every 11 inches or so. That is a real pain. Go to Northeastern Scale Lumber and get theirs. Much easier. Read my reply to Illusion (Classic Rock) just above this.
Vallejo- item number 73.006. The darn stuff is hard to find for some reason, so I purchased a 6 pack of it when I last purchased, which was from Hobbylinc. But, I see now they show it as out of stock! It is included in the Vallejo Traincolor sets, but then you have to get all the other colors included.
Have you found anything in the Vallejo Model Air or Model Color line that comes close to the Train Color line chalk white since it is very difficult to find?
The table saw is pretty critical to the process unless you are very very good with a handsaw (I am definitely not!). I have thought of using 2 inch pink or blue foam as a substitute for wood but haven't yet tried it. Foam would be much easier to cut, but still you would need to be very very exact with your hand cuts to make it work. Maybe a jigsaw and a sanding block to take out the rough edges of the jigsaw cut? Craftsmen 200 years ago (and still today) make the finest of furniture with dovetails and all sorts of fancy moldings without using power tools. So it can be done with hand tools. I'm personally just not good enough to do that. I need the power stuff. Let me know how the hand tools work out for you if you decide to go that way. Thanks for watching and taking interest in the process. Bill Schopf
I bought a used Skip saw (power band saw) at a garage sale for $10. Found a 2' x 2' pc. of plywood and bolted the saw upside down to the bottom. If yo retract the blade before you bolt it down. After it's bolted down, start the saw and plunge it through the board and you have a 7" table saw!
Not sure what you mean. What do you mean by "broken up." It's still there -- just point to point now instead of continuous loop for better operation. Bill
Probably Lowes or Home Depot have them. Certainly Rocklers, McFeeleys, Woodworkers Supply or any of the big woodworking companies. Or just Google "table saw safety push sticks". There are tons of types and variations. Pick ones that feel good in your hand. Bill Schopf
Bobby: Thanks for watching. Try Northeastern Scale Lumber for the siding (I like the 6" x 24" x 1/16 thick best). They have an assortment of sidings. For roofing you can use fine grit sandpaper, thin black paper, paper available at craft stores or try places for shingling like Bar Mills, Rail Scale Models or Minuteman Scale Models. They have nice varieties of shingles in all styles and colors. You can also spray grocery store type paper bags with a cheap flat black primer and get cool looking tarpaper once it's cut into strips. Good luck with your projects. Bill Schopf
@@bschopf1 do you know which part number that Northeastern scale lumber clapboard siding would be? I went to order some from their website and I cannot for the life of me figure out which one to get for HO scale. I would greatly appreciate it! Thanks!!!
@@illusionclassicrock6742 Hi. I went back to the video because honestly I forgot what we used. What Rob used was not clapboard siding, but board and batten. I'm pretty sure it was Northeastern Scale Lumber Co. part #521-451 (Walthers number). That is board and batten 1/8 inch spacing which comes out to eleven inches between the battens or what Northeastern calls caps. This would be a typical construction technique. Vertically layer 1x12s and then nail the 1x2 battens vertically to cover up the joint between the 1x12s. I would not think typical construction would use 1/16 spacing which comes down to spacing every six inches (part # 521-450). I'm sure it was done, but this Pennsy building looks as if consists of 1x12s with the bats added on. A lot of this is simply up to your visual preference. But I think the #451 part will look much more realistic and less crowded than if you used the 450. Just remember that in HO scale 1/16 inch breaks down to 6 scale inches, 3/32 breaks down to 9 scale inches and 1/8 breaks down to 12 scale inches (approximately). The scribed siding is sort of like the board and batten, but without the raised battens or caps. We definitely used board and batten. Go with Northeastern #451 (I would get the 6x24 instead of the 3 1/2x24 (Walthers part #521-70404) so you don't have to splice pieces together. A six inch wide piece covered the length of any wall on this structure.) One caution: I just ordered some Northeastern clapboard siding and was told the plant is shut down now because of the Covid and probably won't reopen until Feb so you might have to prowl around some to find what you want. The #70404 will work for you and might be more available but you'll have to spice pieces together if your wall exceeds 3 1/2 in length. Not a big deal, but the 6 inch wide stuff makes it easier. Best of luck to you in your modeling and thanks for watching. If you need any more help, let me know and I'll do my best to confuse you. Bill Schopf
Using wooden blocks for making buildings is a good idea but using heavy duty power tools for such small pieces is not without its risks. What's wrong with using hand saws and planes or have they been banned?
William: It certainly does come with risks but is very do-able (with caution, care and common sense). Guess you could use hand saws and planes, but then you run the risk of not getting everything perfectly in line and square. I'm just not that good with hand tools to use them. Since then, I have thought about doing this with blocks of two inch blue foam glued together and cut. This could be done with hand tools and then quickly sanded into shape. But yes you are absolutely right. And that is the whole point of the middle part of the video. You have to know what you're doing and watch what you're doing. It is not for the first-time table saw user. Thanks for responding. Bill S
Thank you for your reply. I have worked for several years with table saws and that is why I err on the side of caution (I've still got all my pinkies!). I would pitch the accuracy of my hand mitre saw against a power mitre saw any day and my hand sawing and planing is as good if not better than a machine. You use whatever skills you have but in the end it's all about enjoying the hobby and for me part of the enjoyment is taking my time. Anyway thanks once again for your posting and will be watching more posts from you. All the best, William.
Use smaller blocks...but seriously, it is just a matter of scaling out the size of the building and using appropriate sized blocks. Now, there is the practical matter of cutting smaller blocks, as you do use a miter and table saw. At some point the blocks would be too small for safe use- I am not sure I would attempt a Z scale building.
I don't know if anybody else caught it but pertaining to the added section between the shed and the main building you guys accidently reversed the positions of the door and the winow. In the picture, the window is on the right and the door is on the left. But whien you guys cut out the holes for door and the window you accidently reversed their positions and in your replica the door is now on the right side and the window is on the left side. I originally noticed this mistake at the time you were cutting out the holes, but I didn't say anything because I wanted to finish watching the video and see if you guys had caught that mistake yourselves and would correct that mistake later on towards the end of the vidio. I also scanned the comments but I did not see where anybody else had commented upon this accidental reversing procedure mistake but did not see any comments petaining to that mistake. So, after watching the video I decided to bring it to your attention. But, as you said you are not creating an exact duplicate and that accidental mistake does create a personal unique appearance not to mention it it is too late to correct that mistake at this time. But, HEY, To each his own, and thanks to the both of you for producing such a great video with an unlimited supply of ideas for others to use already built in to it. I wasn't critisizing the build or your techniques. I was just merely pointing out a possible accidental mistake of which happens quite often when you are working in reverse. Been there, done that many times myself so I cannot criticize others for the same mistakes I have done myself in the past. Cheers, Keep up the great work, and many thanks for additional ideas. May the "Model Railroading Bug" keep biting otherwise the Model Railroading hobby itself may derail and fall by the wayside into ancient history.
Well, you can do it by leve parital part of the building open where the lighted rooms are make new walls of styrene or wood place the lights and there you go. But not every building are having lights on so usung this techic works perfect.
