of U.S. Navy bases in the Deep South during the Second World War as a guide for my new hangar structure and then sketched my design. Since I did not have an ex- act prototype hangar to use for my model measurements, I estimated dimensions and heights by using vehicles or individuals included in the old photos as a measure of scale. After arriving at the correct proportions for the large building, I measured the layout area where the building would be located to make sure it would fit. I used blue painter’s tape to get a visual for the final footprint.
I drew the building’s O-scale dimensions onto 2 x 3-foot sheets of black foamcore board pur- chased at a local arts and crafts store. With a metal straight edge, a hobby knife with a supply of fresh blades, and a flat cutting surface beneath, I cut out the various walls, roof section, and interior support panels for the mock-up. I did not cut out openings for win- dows, entrance doors, or the long line of loading dock doors — these would all be represented by print- ed materials. I cut front and rear hangar door openings from the foamcore material to allow spot- ting of railcars inside. I saved the leftover pieces from the doorway
for use later as the actual doors. Because I ran out of foamcore, I cut the 28-and-a-half-inch-long roof sections from high-quality cardboard. With care not to burn my fin- gers or melt the foam center, I used a hot glue gun to assemble the various foamcore wall sections into the basic structure. As I as- sembled the mock-up, I placed it
on the pier area to test-fit for track clearance. With the large mock-up base structure complete, it was set aside while I headed to the com- puter to print my siding, roofing, doors, and windows.
I searched through hundreds of images on the Internet and picked only non-copyrighted, royalty-free photos of weathered corrugated steel siding, roofing materials, and industrial win- dows. I saved ones that looked to be in the right scale and perspective needed. I used some O-scale shop window cast- ings I had in my parts drawer and made a 1:1 scan on my computer for use on the structure mock-up.
If you don't want to spend the time searching, copying, sizing, and print- ing materials, you can purchase simi- lar printed mate- rials from one of several model struc- ture manufactur-
Footprint After studying the pro- totype photographs, my space needs, and car lengths, I sized my struc- ture and marked its foot- print on the layout top with blue painter’s tape. I also created rough di- mensional drawings that acted as a height-to- width reference, aiding in the proportions of the structure.
Major
Form I built the center section of the structure first using the railhead, open- ing, and footprint for my guides. The overall shape and design of the structure was dictated by photographs and draw- ings I have created and gathered.
JUNE 2015 57
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