McKinnon Beverage Co. - 1:87-Scale Paper Model

 This is a fictional building & tenant that I built for a diorama I'm working on. I started with just the archway -- a photo of a larger-scale model that I found on the Web. I used several copies of the photo to create three-dimensional detail, then added the rest of the building to fit the space I needed. The brick walls are from Clever Models' textures. The windows and wall signs are from my "digital parts box." The window grills are from Tichy Train Group. I didn't detail the back wall because it won't be visible on the diorama.

Pinzgauer Heavy Shuttle Paper Model

This is an older build. The VT-3 Pinzgauer Heavy Shutte is a free download from Genet Models. The file includes three different color schemes. I repainted it as a United Nations vehicle and added 3-diimensional panel detail. I created a base from sci-fi textures available on the Internet. Other models on the Genet Models site provided the ground vehicle, repainted as a UN ambulance, and other details. At 1:60 scale, the shuttle model is about a foot long. It is a nice kit with an operating (or posable) cargo bay and ramp. Both models are begging for scratch-built interiors. And both files have enough resolution to be scaled up. The shuttle flight deck could be an especially interesting project.

M-25 Quad Mount with Scratchbuilt Trailer - 1:25 Scale Paper Model

The .50-caliber quad mount comes from an M16 MGMC US Halftrack paper model kit published by WAK of Poland. I scrapped the guns in the kit and scratchbuilt the .50-cals in paper from line drawings of the gun found online. I substituted my own sling seat and built the trigger post from plastic rod.

The trailer is scratchbuilt in cardstock using wheels & tires from another paper kit (the water trailer described in my earlier post). The heavy tow bar is Plastruct tube, the tow ring is brass rod, and the jacks are scratchbuilt from cardstock. Photos from Google were used as reference.

I used Photoshop to apply the "Kilroy" graffiti. At 1:25 scale, the model is 5 inches long and about 3 inches tall. Build time was about 35 hours, I think.

Midwestern Model Ships & Boats Contest - May 2025

I attended the 2025 Midwestern Model Ships & Boats Contest, held at the Wisconsin Maritime Museum in Manitowoc. I gave a 45-minute workshop on paper scale model ships. It was well-attended and well-received.

Two and a half years ago, I convinced the contest organizers to include contest categories for paper models. They created two: for kitbuilt and for scratchbuilt.

This year, I entered three kit-built paper models in the contest:

— David Bushnell's "Turtle" from Heinkel Models

— CSS "Pioneer" from Heinkel Models (more than 600 individual rivet heads!!)

— "Molch German Midget Submarine from GPM

I took home three Gold Awards.

US Army Water Trailer -- 1:25-scale paper model

 This is a 1:25-scale paper model from a printed kit published by Orlik (Poland). I'm waiting for the 1:25-scale Dodge WWII ambulance paper mode kit from WAK (Poland). That kit has British markings. I will scan it and change it to an American ambulance. I want a trailer to haul behind it, so I went looking through my stash of paper model kits.

I found the Orik kit of a Zis-5 water truck and trailer. I scanned the trailer into Photoshop and added LAR ("looks about right") U.S. Army markings. Then I built the kit according to instructions . . . mostly. It's a Russian prototype, but it's what I had in 1/25 scale, and LAR.

I scratchbuilt the jackstand to hold up the trailer until I can hang it on the back of the ambulance. Construction of the trailer was fussy but only moderately difficult. I made some substitutions for some parts and ignored the ridiculously small stuff. You'd need a magnifying glass and an attitude to know they are missing. The build took about 18 hours.

"Clyde Puffer" - 1:87-Scale Paper Model from Scalescenes.com

I reduced Scalescenes' "Clyde Puffer" from 1:76 to 1:87 scale and added four figures. I rate the difficulty of the model as "moderate," although the rigging was "difficult." Overall, it builds into a very nice model. At 1:87 scale, the ship is9-3/4 inches long at the waterline.

Waterfall & Rapids for the Model RR Club

 

The rockwork, track, & bridges were already in place. Working around the tall viaduct was a challenge. 

Before installing the falls, I painted some of the rockface with clear gloss medium to simulate moisture, and I added foliage and moss around the drop. The waterfall is clear silicone calk. I followed a well-established process:  I laid it out in strips of calk on freezer paper (the plastic side), then used a piece of stripwood to randomly tease the strips together. I let it cure for 24 hours, dry brushed it with gloss white craft paint, and peeled it off the paper in one long piece. I glued it to the rock at the top using matte medium gel with T-pins to hold it in place. I added a few T-pins on the rockface where the falls hit a ledge.

The rapids were built with gloss medium gel applied and stippled with a flat 1-inch brush and then painted with gloss white craft paint. Since the photo was taken, I've added dense foliage and a bear to the areas closest to the layout edge and added trees and foliage to the cliff top.

The drop from cliff top to rapids is about 20 inches. The track in this section is one of the two scenicked helixes that connect the upper and lower levels of the layout to create a 400-foot continuous main line.