A snapshot in time. A glimpse of the Plettenberger Kleinbahn in 1/22.5 scale.

[Hydrostat]

Bill, Stuart, Darryl, Russ and Ray,

thank you.

Awesome, Volker. The tiles, the bit of corrosion on the plumbing, the wear on the bath stove!
I don't know what the hot & cold labels ought to look like, but but could you use tiny alphabet decals for individual letters?

I appreciate your trust in my capabilities, but the white spot's diameter is roundabout 0.045'. I'm afraid that's not within my comfort zone.

With regard to creating your own decals, I have had some experience with that.

Stuart,

thank you very much for your comprehensive explanation. I'm familiar with graphic artwork. I'd rather like to know how well the material is printable, if it is capable of the printer's resolution, how stable/color proof the prints remain and so on. Could you please go a bit deeper into your experience regarding those aspects?

Thanks and cheers,
Volker

[Stuart]

Here's my best shot at answering your question.

My printer is capable of printing at 600 dpi.  I have attached a photo showing a small sign I created for my fuel pumps, printed on white decal paper.

The "CONTAINS" lettering measures .0625" or 1.5875 mm in height.
The "LEAD" lettering measures .0781" or 1.98374 mm in height
The small lines of lettering measure .0312" or .79248 mm in height
 


As far as decals remaining color fast, I have had some of my decals for 10 years or better with no apparent color fading or color shift occurring.  However, my models and their decals have not been exposed to bright lighting or sunlight.  I feel fairly certain that bright lighting will eventually cause fading to some degree.

Hope this helps.

Stuart

[Stuart]

This may also provide some additional help. 

Notice that the expanded view in my previous post looks a little rough, but, when viewed in its actual size, as seen in this photo, the human eye does not detect the irregularities.  Also, notice the even smaller lettering on other decal pieces.  Even though they are too tiny to be read clearly, at least it adds to the true character of the graphic.

[Hydrostat]

Stuart,

I'm building my models rather for taking pictures than presenting them at exhibitions, which means sometimes to get closer to objects than with bare eye, so printing resolution matters a lot. I once had an Epson Stylus CX5400, which printed with resolutions up to 5760 x 1440dpi (x-y axis). Unfortunately there's been a hard decline in consumer printers, which mostly stop at 600 dpi now. Even professional digital printing machines don't have higher resolutions than 1.200 dpi anymore. I was really lucky to find a printing plant in my hometown that is able to print at that rate.

My printer at highest resolution on photo glossy paper, one sign is roundabout 3.9 x 3.9 mm:



And the same file from the professional machine with 1.200dpi:



Letter height of the 'Leer' word is 0.4 mm. So your prints are quite good!

Do you know the easels I made some years ago?







The drawings on the board were printed with that epson, far beyond the capabilities of my current HP printer. A and H letters have a height of 0.6 mm. This YT-Video gives an idea of the easel's size:

Your answer helps a lot. My concern was rather that the decal paper itself might have a too rough surface for print details, but obviously printer resolution is the earlier end of the line. Thank you Stuart - much appreciated!

[Lawrence@NZFinescale]

I once had an Epson Stylus CX5400, which printed with resolutions up to 5760 x 1440dpi (x-y axis). Unfortunately there's been a hard decline in consumer printers, which mostly stop at 600 dpi now. Even professional digital printing machines don't have higher resolutions than 1.200 dpi anymore. I was really lucky to find a printing plant in my hometown that is able to print at that rate.

An interesting read.  I was somewhere the other day where the reduction in the urge/need to print things was discussed. Doubtless that impacts the commercial offerings.

You did prompt me to check out what's available and I see Epson still offer 5760 x 1440 machines. Not too expensive, but if you are only printing a few decals then possibly unjustified. It may be possible to find somebody local who has one.

I've had good decals made from my artwork by Bill at https://www.pdc.ca/rr/custom_decals/. I believe these are printed at 1200dpi on a CMYK+W laser. The resolution may be insufficient for you, but for most modelling uses they provide a fast and quality service tailored to modellers.

[Stuart]

Your drawing board and drafting machine are truly exceptional.  And I am equally impressed with the clarity and detail of the mechanical drawing print on the table. I have a road map I have scaled down and want to hang on an interior wall of the gas station but, when I print it on my printer (an Epson ET 3700) clarity is significantly lost. It is difficult to see a definitive road let alone any labeling. 

[Lawton Maner]

For the occasional job where crisp printing is needed what's wrong with the old fashioned darkroom?  features such as the labels on the gas pumps could be done using the full sized pump as the prime source and with graphics micro prints can be had.  True the supplies are a bit scarce these days, but Ilford still makes some very good materials.

[Hydrostat]

Since I haven't been posting as often, the photos of various sub-projects have been piling up, and sometimes I don't even know what to show first. Or what I've already shown  . While at the beginning of the year I still believed the building could be finished by the end of the year, reality has since caught up with me. My plan is to complete the building gradually, starting from the ground floor. In fact, most of the furnishings for the shop are now in place; in addition to the clocks and glasses already shown, there are now vases and busts for the eyeglass fittings. The final design of the objects alone is once again dragging on.

And it remains difficult if you don't plan a project like this from start to finish: I find it quite difficult to retrofit objects onto permanently installed walls. For example, in one room on the ground floor, the surface-mounted cables, switches, and sockets were still missing. The space on site is so tight that I can't work precisely on the open space. In particular, adapting the cables between the individual objects is almost impossible without damaging already finished parts.




I therefore took the measurements from the model and transferred them to a sheet of metal on which I pre-assembled the entire installation. The rear pins of the switches and sockets (the cast parts are from Frithjof's production) are inserted into the holes.






The sheet of metal then also serves as a drilling jig.




In the kitchen, which is also on the ground floor, I had to add a waste pipe because I only later considered installing the bathroom in the room above. To avoid visible butt joints, these parts also had to fit precisely into the ones above. Don't be surprised by the perspective chosen.




The challenge lay in the precise positioning of the holes; I used interlocking pipes to help me achieve the largest outer diameter of the sockets while still achieving a centered hole.




Perfect.




Oh well. Lights out until next time.





Cheers,
Volker

[Bill Gill]

Fantastic, Volker! a terrific solution to retrofitting details into already finished spaces.
I can appreciate the frustration of 'Why didn't I think about doing or adding that before getting this far along?'
Your results are looking incredibly good -like you had planned it that way from the beginning.

[Peter_T1958]

And it remains difficult if you don't plan a project like this from start to finish.

I would argue that it isn't possible at all to plan such a complex project from start to finish! But it looks terrific !!!
And my highest respect for choosing such a tremendous challenge. As I told you once I should also have liked to start some similar work too (a train ferry diorama or some historical buildings in my hometown) but somehow time is running short after sixty. I can't imagine working on a project for the next ten-twenty years... 

[finescalerr]

I agree with Peter, that "it isn't possible at all to plan such a complex project from start to finish." Yet both the result and how you achieved it are superb. -- Russ

[Barney]

OUTSTANDING and neat workmanship its looking great - A quick intake of breath and a small tot of the amber nectar or half a Lager  often stops Headaches !!! it also makes you sleep !!!
Barney

[Stuart]

I too have run into the same problem with my gas station model, trying, after the fact, to add some detail I wish I had thought of before I painted myself into a corner, so to speak. But it seems you have solved your problems admirably. Keep up the fine work.

[fspg2]

Volker, I'm always amazed at how you implement new little ideas. It's just brilliant!

@Peter

I can't imagine working on a project for the next ten-twenty years... 

That's possible - my "light railway module project" consists of around 17 individual projects. If I get bored or annoyed with the production or processing of one part of it, I have plenty of alternatives!
So, for 18 years, I have still had a lot of fun and enjoyment from many small satisfactions when the individual construction sites come together.

[1-32]

Hi Volker,
Great .
Cheers Kim