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These buildings were made from "O"
(1/48) kits matched to a scratch roof section, attached to the parking garage which is basically just a false front.
The center entrance part is a recent addition. New garages are planned, and will be built deeper and using all MDF instead
of wood.
This particular section is 18' long, with 2 wings
branching off on each end, forming a horseshoe or U-shaped set-up, about 25' in total length.
You can see here that the 1st level rests on folding
tables, but was expanded and connected to the wall shelf supports that make up the second level. Some of the "wings"
on both sides have already been removed, and the third tier has been broken down entirely.
Obviously, this section is modeled after a modern
sub-tropical beach near the waters edge. Most of my collection fits right into this setting. I utilize some of
the more generic highway and commercial set-ups to depict vehicles from other areas across America.
This particular section
is one of 19 or so 8' long, 30" wide levels. You can see the shelf support in the upper right- which doubles
as a billboard pylon. Like most of these set-ups the "building" is just a wooden false front with a hardboard
"sky" backdrop.
This
another of the 8' long, 30" wide levels: the tunnel set-up. The new version will have an actual "tunnel"
at both ends because the painted portals that I tried just don't look right.
This is an O scale Atlas
switching tower- which I "downsized" with a few minor modifications and made them into beach patrol towers.
You can see just how the close the backdrop is on this level, which is only about 3 feet wide.
This
is an O scale MTH building. The door is just a little too large and needed modification, but otherwise I think it works
much better than anything smaller.
This is a Walthers HO scale
(1/87) car shop. It's supposed to fit HO trains so it works well as a 1/87 truck shop- as well as a 1/64 scale garage.
I've used this on several set-ups. I'm not big on putting the buildings together- but you can combine other
kits and modify it if you build it yourself. The top pops on and off, and I modified the supports to be removable for
those interior shots.
This is another of the 8'X30" levels- one of the dealership
set-ups. Since my focus is on the cars, street, and the details, the "building" is just another false front.
All of the doors are scratchbuilt with glass, wood, styrene and craft supplies. This one is wood covered with craft foam.
Newer construction features textured paint on the wood or MDF "wall".
This is one of the medium
shelf type set-ups. I use either 36" or 42" long x 18" wide MDF for these. Most of the rear "walls"
are anchored but a lot of the sides are not permanently attached- so i can switch them around to make it look different and
get angled shots. With the simple change of the sign, a few details and a few magic words that a wandering gypsy once
told me by the light of a full moon... Mustang Corral becomes a Dodge Dealership.
This is another 8'x 30" commercial set up depicting
an area between a tunnel, with an opening on each end of the street. This has been used to create several different
businesses; been featured as the venue of a few auto-shows and was the site of an awful Godzilla attack.
Of course, the "new" set-up, will be bigger, wider,
and hopefully better... once it finds a new home.
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