mykids

Hi there,
Im not sure where to post this but Im desperate for some help. Its my Dad's 60th birthday in March and I had arranged for someone to build me a model of the area where he lived when he was a child. However the person has just left to live in America without telling me, giving me my money back or the model that he had started. Can anybody help me please. I will pay for it but I need it before the 1st March. Basically it was gonna be 1foot squared with a few streets and various othere little things i.e lamposts, outside toilet.
PLEASE PLEASE CAN SOMEONEHELP
Thank you!
Lisa

alan2525

Firstly welcome to the forums!

Regarding the model - where are you located and how much did you want to pay for the model? Do you have photos of the location when he lived there and many references for the model? What sort of scale would it be? Would it be modelled down to street level with houses and buildings, pavements etc?

Do you have any pictures of the model that was previously started - as a guide?

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mykids

Hi Alan,
Thanks for the fast reply. Everything I had I gave the guy that was doing it originally. I know nothing about models so just let him do it. He said it would be 1ft squared. It was gonna have a few streets, lamposts, and some other little details like outside toilets etc. I think it was gonna be modelled down to street level. I can get pics again but they are limited as the proper ones were given to the guy. Im near Leeds but will travel far for it. As for the price Im not sure. I was paying the guy £150 for it but since he took my money and pictures Im a little skint but am so DESPERATE. Can you help?
Many thanks
Lisa

alan2525

Can you link to the area you want modelled on google maps? They have a satellite view which would help give an indication of what was required, along with any images you have.

A screenshot from Google Earth would help too, and details of any houses etc that would feature in the model. Can you give an idea about scale - i.e. roughly how large a car would appear if it featured in the model. Would it be like the little matchbox sized cars for example?

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mykids

The area has now changed alot so google maps would be no good. I was in the library about 8 hours over 2 days getting pictures of the area. Ive also spoken to my Dad's siblings who have provided me with a few photos. It was where my Dad grew up and he talks alot about it. I just wanted the 'special' things on the model i.e his street and another 2 streets, a special wall, a factory gates, outside toilets, stump in the road. It just hard as the guy that was doing it had knowledge of it so he kinda knew what I was after. I asked him back in October if he could do one and I didnt imagine there would be a problem. Now its 6 weeks before his birthday and Im stuck. I really appreciate your help and I hope you understand how I imagine I want it. Im useless I know lol.
Lisa

alan2525

What was the area like? Rows of terraced houses? Streets and Fields? Heavy Industry and Factories? Churches? If you could get a map of the actual area you wanted modelled to get an idea of how heavily built up it is - it would help a lot to get an idea of the task in hand. Time is running out so you'll have to get what ever photos you have -scanned in then you could email them to me and I could give you a better answer. If it was more of an ariel image of a large area and the buildings where not much more than monopoly hotels! It'd be a lot different from modelling a single street where the buildings would need to be much finer in detail.

Also would you want the model to be just a representation, a bit like a white clean architectural model, or would you want to see the colours of the bricks and slates on roofs etc and modelled with scenic grass and other sort of details?

If it was only certain areas you wanted to portray would you want those in greater detail than the surrounding streets? Would you want any labels or indications of the street names etc?

Regarding google maps - has the area changed entirely or are any of the surrounding streets still to the same plan - if one or two buildings are still in existence and the road layout is the same it would still help a fair deal to get an idea of the model.

As a very rough sense of scale - the below is a Z Gauge railway fitted into a Guitar Case - would the buildings in the model be around this sort of size or much smaller / larger?

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mykids

Hi Alan,
Sorry I didnt reply last night one of my kids was up and I ended up falling to sleep. I dont have a scanner but my husband's work does so Ill ask him if he can scan the pics and plan and email you them.
The model in the pic is brilliant. I personally wouldnt have the patience to do something that precise and fantastic. Ill try to give as much info as possible,
They were terraced houses with steps leading up to each house, the backs were cobbled (I think) with 1 toilet at the end of the street. There was a factory around the corner which my Dad and his siblings used to get licquorice from. Just before the toilet there was a stump in the road which everyone used to fall over when they went to the toilet on a night. Ill draw a plan up and get my husband to scan it and send it to you, I thik that will be the best way.
I would have liked to have detail on the houses but with time running out I know that may not be possible.
I really appreciate your help. Many thanks
Lisa

alan2525

I can't promise anything - I'd need to really get much more of an idea of what is involved and the numbers of houses required etc. As far as the terraced houses go - do you have a good photo of the front, back of an example house? Are they bay fronted terraces with a half width rear extension? what are the outside toilets and is there a coal bunker with access from a rear alley between the adjoining terraces? Any pubs on the corner? Post boxes other street details? An example of a lamp post would help too! And what period did you want the model to represent? Seeing as he's 60 now I imagine it was as he was when he was 10 or so? So if my maths is correct....it'd be mid - late 50's? / early 60's so would you need a few old morris oxfords or a morris 1000 gpo van parked in the road?

You'd have to supply as much detail as possible - is there any way of asking your dad to maybe fill in some of the blanks too - without ruining the whole suprise? Also is it possible to get some pictures of any of the types of building which still remain and give an idea of colours of brick, window frames etc etc?

It'd be much simpler if I wasn't working in complete darkness...also any flexibility on the deadline - i'm aware it's his 60th on that date which can't be changed! - but a suprise birthday gift is still a suprise even if it's received a little after the big day!

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Bunkerbarge

Can you give us the original address? Although things may have changed over the years you can still get street plans from the planning office and it might be possible to use pictures of houses that still survive in other areas as guidance for the models.

I am in Halifax and we still have a lot of stone built terraced houses here from a similar period to the ones your Dad may have lived in.

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“Dirty British coaster with a salt-caked smoke stack, Butting through the Channel in the mad March days"

alan2525

Yeah, I'm sure that even though the area has changed a lot there must still be a lot of period properties remaining, also any aditional maps would help to give more of an understanding of the area to aid the research needed to help model the details.

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