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Post by tjdreams on Sept 6, 2017 20:54:13 GMT -5
Time to build the Kits First on the menu is Kit #701 Town House #1 I decided to start with this kit for a few reasons the main one being i have 3 of them so if i screw it up i still have 2 more to chances to get it right. That and it seamed to be the simplest with fewer parts and less bends than the others. For those who are not familiar with the Micro Structures Kits, Miller Engineering produced 2 series of photo etched brass kits The "Downtown series" which was a group of buildings you might expect to find on main street or around town in most any town and a series of Victorian Houses. Along with a few accessory kits to go along with them. This one took me a few tries to get it to this point. After painting and stripping it a few times i finally found a combination that seams to have worked. First soak the parts in vinegar for a good hour Rinse clean with cold water only touching the edges. Air dry for a few hours use a good metal primer applying in several very light coats then paint with a Airbrush again using several light coats. The interior plastic windows didn't survive the repeated stripping and re painting. i'll have to pickup some clear plastic sheet to replace them with. Anyway here are a couple pictures of of how it looks now, aka; repaint #4
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Post by mgatdog on Sept 6, 2017 21:09:40 GMT -5
It looks great TJ. I have some of these building and yet to build them. Hopefully soon when l get the nerve to do so.
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Post by tjdreams on Sept 6, 2017 21:31:25 GMT -5
Next on the menu is one of the Victorian Houses. Micro Structures Kit # V404 - The Seattle and the F-303 Victorian Fence kit to go along with it. Using what i leaned on the town house this one was both easier (only painted it once) and harder a lot more small intricate parts to paint, bend, and assemble. Plus i added a few additional details that didn't come with the kit Like window shades and curtains. It still needs a little touch up here and thee and one of the handrails needs to be re positioned. But i'm happy with the results. I bent and soldered the larger parts together but most of the smaller parts like the window trim curtains and such were assembled using Micro Bond. And the Grass was planted using the Grassinator from Raildig which by the way works Great.
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Post by tjdreams on Sept 6, 2017 21:43:40 GMT -5
The F-303 Fence kit comes with 2 drilling templates along the outer edges of the brass fret which will help with the fence post spacing.
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Post by markm on Sept 6, 2017 21:49:15 GMT -5
They look great. Have you given any thought to lighting them?
Mark
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Post by tjdreams on Sept 6, 2017 21:49:28 GMT -5
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Post by neverland on Sept 7, 2017 8:39:49 GMT -5
I started on the same townhouse last night & used the window template per .the instructions. Have already stripped the paint as the template did a lousy job masking the facade. I can hand paint better than that.
I plan to prime the building shell with Tamiya white primer. I used Tamiya's black lacquer on the Victorian fencing that turned out really well.
I bought two finished brass structures and studied them before deciding to try my own. Next up is the Marlet House, which looks really complex.
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Post by strummer on Sept 7, 2017 9:15:59 GMT -5
Those look really nice... Mark in Oregon
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Post by emaley on Sept 7, 2017 10:50:59 GMT -5
Nice job on both kits. I built the townhouse and was very pleased. I have been sitting on the Victorian house while I do other projects and procrastinate.
Trey
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Post by neverland on Sept 8, 2017 14:06:37 GMT -5
Sadly these kits are increasingly difficult to find. I ordered the one car Victorian garage listed on eBay only to be notified the item was not available from both the online retailer & the company. ☹️
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Post by zscalehobo on Sept 8, 2017 15:00:07 GMT -5
Checking Miller's Microstru.com website, they are down to the following (at the manufacturer): Victorians: NONE Downtown: 701 Townhouse, 901 Fire Station, 970 St. Mary's Church, 100-D Parkway Diner & Interior Lighting Small Kits/Extras: F303 Victorian Fencing, F404 Gothic Fencing, Rooftop AC, and Single Fire Escape The dealer you worked with has all of those plus Z-SC-100 City Scoop Ice Cream, Z-100 Adams Dairy Farm, Telephone Poles and he said to say he was sorry for the out of stock garage.
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Post by neverland on Sept 10, 2017 10:35:11 GMT -5
Shame Miller has stopped making these kits. They are quality kits that assemble & finish beautifully.
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Post by zdave on Sept 10, 2017 11:21:11 GMT -5
Shame Miller has stopped making these kits. They are quality kits that assemble & finish beautifully. They are nice. I did the diner, with lighting, several years back. Got it from zscalemonster, who still has some kits, with some listed as "on sale." www.zscalemonster.com/miller_eng/miller_eng.htmOh, and nice job, tjdreams!
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Post by smr on Sept 11, 2017 4:55:38 GMT -5
I am a big fan of Micro Structures and luckily could get hold of some here in Switzerland. I used them in prominent positions on my layout "Niles Junction" Here are a few examples:
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Post by smr on Sept 11, 2017 5:04:07 GMT -5
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