new to trains

was this on the supermodels show on discovery channel ?

if so that was me doing the gluing with MEK !

wonwinglo

*** It certainly was ! good to have a professional here,please tell us more about these fascinating models,one question that I have is I noticed that you were working to a drawing,how on earth does anyone design such a thing on paper made from Lego ? I guess that computers come into it,but even so very clever.
Sorry to make this one a busmans holiday for you but we could not get a better person to explain to us here !

__________________
'And there I was oil on my goggles from a broken pipe,then I looked at the altimeter,all I could see was the makers name !'
www.wonwinglo.scale-models.net/

new to trains

no we dont use any computers in the design, everything is draughted by hand onto a graph paper, each square on the paper is the size of a brick, so be basically draw our own instructions, we do these in plan and elevation, each contour of the model has its own plan, ( sort of slice by slice as it were) i suppose its like producing individual sections then stacking them up like a 3 dimensional contour map.
the reason is if we used computers and asked them to plot a line from point A to point B they would do it via the shortest possible route, with LEGO you need to step every contour as you cant do diagonals !
computers also suggest the easiest option so if we are trying to re create a complex feature then we have over 8000 different shaped parts.... we use creative eye to find the best looking item to fit the bill.....how does the computer know which one will best fit the purpose - it has so many choices !!!???

as the majority of the models are outside they are affected by UV and sunlight which means we need to replace them after about 7 years, the other plus about hand done drawings and not computer design packages is we can archive the drawings and plans knowing we can reuse them, not so easy with a computer to go back and use a document produced 7 years previously as software changes so quickly !

all the models where possible are hollow, we often use an internal framework structure to support the models own weight but otherwise its just building like a child would but in a grander scale !

the clever bit is selecting the best part that looks most like the detail you are trying to produce, sometimes you need to think differently, like using a dustbin for a searchlight on a ship or using a knife and fork for brake details on a railway wagon.

every part we use is a standard part, we do not have special parts made just for us, every model is made with bits from the retail range so each element comes from one of the boxes available for purchase in the toy shop... we just use thousands of them !

there is a team of 7 full time model designers/ makers in my dept, i also have 5 specialist animators who work with the designers to make some of the models move, these can be pneumatic, electrically driven or hydraulic, all the mechanisms are in stainless so corrosion is not an issue, but weather affects the majority of our exhibits...

the best bit is we have pretty much built anything you can imagine from scale models of railway locos to space shuttles to life size replicas of triumph motorcycles and the crown jewels, and then there is the fantasy bit, designing and building dinosaurs and monsters.....

childs play but also creative, and basically a job where i get paid to play.....

wonwinglo

NTT many thanks for that excellent description of your very interesting work,it is such a pity that some of these works of art have to live outside but I guess it is all about space,your work very much reminds me of a friend who used to write for the old Meccano company,he was paid in kind because the company could not afford to pay him in real money ! however he used to go to the model building department at Binns Road,Old Swan,Liverpool and fill his car with as many redundant display models as possible,he would then dismantle them and sell the parts at a greatly reduced price to the members of the Meccano guild,he did not make a fortune just cover his costs and as a bonus had spares for himself,most of my collection of parts came from this source.
It is a bit different with your models as I would imagine they fade badly and go brittle as the oil dries out of the plastic material,I know this from experience as I have had a few 'gate guard' plastic models mounted on poles just literally fall apart with the weather.
Will have to visit Legoland and do a write up for Scale-Models sometime in the future.

__________________
'And there I was oil on my goggles from a broken pipe,then I looked at the altimeter,all I could see was the makers name !'
www.wonwinglo.scale-models.net/

new to trains

had to come clean, changed my avatar too ! the phantom bricklayer from the thames valley is out in the open!

wonwinglo

*** Very appropiate,life will never be the same again ! where ever we see a supermodel made from Lego,will wonder if you had a part in it,as they said in the cinema titles 'Only the names have been changed to protect the innocent '!!

__________________
'And there I was oil on my goggles from a broken pipe,then I looked at the altimeter,all I could see was the makers name !'
www.wonwinglo.scale-models.net/

duncan

A young fellow in USA has just finished building a 50ft span electric model out of foam insulation boards (Fanfold in US). Didnt fly on its first outing due to belt-drive problems. He has to go back to school for a wee while but intends to fly it during his next school holiday. Looks like a big trainer. This one is called "Big Floyd", his first ( a 25footer) was called "Pink Floyd" because that is the colour of the foam.

Famous Polish Bob

Memphis Belle was filmed just up the road from where I used to live and during filming we went up there to watch them fly 20ft wingspan R/C B-17s. They were impressive.

duncan

...and the Hughes Hercules (aka Spruce Goose) in "The Aviator" film was quite large too.

wonwinglo

There is a thin divide now between full sized and large models used in films,the advent of modern technology,better engines and specialised companies who work with the film companies means more realism,as ordinary modellers we can only benefit from these models in the long term.

__________________
'And there I was oil on my goggles from a broken pipe,then I looked at the altimeter,all I could see was the makers name !'
www.wonwinglo.scale-models.net/