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How I Build Dioramas(step-by-step)

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Posted by JohnReid on Wednesday, January 25, 2006 9:07 AM

Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Tuesday, January 24, 2006 7:55 AM
This close up of the front end reveals a little more weathering is required.The tires and brake drums are entirely too new and the grill for the rad needs a little more depth(a wash of black or a litlte more pastels)The headlights are also a little cross-eyed.The thickness of the hood could be due to the sheet metal being bent 90deg however I think that maybe I should paint it a different color.

Yesterday,I cut into the rear wall panel and created a new door for the future engine shop.I simply drilled a series of holes around the edge and then with a razor saw cut out the door in one piece.The cutout will become the new door with a little modification.Now I want to finish around all the doors and do a few touchups to the interior of the wall panels while I have easy access.Maybe a few shelves here and there.
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Tuesday, January 24, 2006 7:20 AM

Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Monday, January 23, 2006 9:03 AM
In the picture of the airport above (Toronto in the early days)the hangar at the top of the picture is where I am working now.Behind the R/H sliding door storage structure is the red roofed office building.The rear entrance/WC in hidden from view but next to it at the rear panels L/H corner you can see the sloping roof of the engine shop.The structure attached to the side panel at the rear will not be built as the garage door ramp assembly, that I have already built, gives a great view inside the hangar and it would be blocked if I built this structure.
The red roofed building next to the L/H front sliding door storage structure will be the radio shack/operations room.This would complete the first phase and could be a self contained unit.The other hangar and its attached buildings could be also added in the future.The grounds, airplane,cars are all possible future projects.Man,this is fun!
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Monday, January 23, 2006 8:18 AM

Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Monday, January 23, 2006 7:59 AM
Well yesterday I finished off the WC/rear entrance module(without the WC as you cant see it anyway) and did a little more research on a revised plan for future expansion.With the addition of one more door at the rear of the hangar I can provide for a future engine shop.
Today I will break down the total assembly(Ihope for the last time) and cut in the new door ,finish the workshop and begin furnishing the main hangar floor.
This is the last time that I will have easy access to the rear wall panel so this expansion idea came just at the right time.When I build the engine shop module it will be easily attached from the outside with no danger of screwing up any of the indoor furnishings.
This idea of doing small modular units is really the way to go on a large project of this type.I have the option of finishing whenever I run out of patience or lifetime or both.It takes the pressure off any time to finish once the main structure is finished and future expansion is provided for.I have the option to continue on with this project or do another in between(finish my car dio for example)My goal would be to do the group of buildings that you see in the earlier picture that I posted.
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Sunday, January 22, 2006 8:37 AM
Sorry,I cant edit that stuff from the other site out of here.
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Sunday, January 22, 2006 8:35 AM

Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Sunday, January 22, 2006 7:36 AM
Tow car instrument panel

The Mercedes kit comes with a standard plastic instrument panel that I wanted to make look like wood with silver instrument rings.Rather than make it in wood like I usually would do I decided for fun I would try to simulate the wood with paint.
If you try to paint the panel and then attempt to drive yourself crazy trying to paint small silver circles I decided to take a different approach.First,clean the plastic as usual,then spray it with Gesso and let it set overnight so their is no danger of it lifting off during the next step.
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Old 17 March 2005, 02:41 PM
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Plastic instrument panels cont...

Next,paint the panel silver.Now the fun part.Because my panel design is flat with raised rings for the instrument faces,I took some very thin acrylic burnt sienna paint,the consistency of skim milk ,loaded it into a hyperdermic needle and flooded the spaces between the instruments with paint.Then I took a hairdryer and evaporated the pools of paint until dry.Then I took my finger and using it like fine sandpaper rubbed the panel to take any paint off the silver instrument rings.This was repeated as many times as necessary until the panel took on a irregular shaded wood look.Some of the paint will dry a darker shade close to the sivler rings which tends to make them stand out even nicer.Do not continue painting until everything is the same depth of color (you want to retain this irregular look) Later you can touch up some areas with pastels.The secret is thin paint ,built up in layers.Be sure each layer is thourghly dry before attemting another layer, otherwise your finger rubbing will only succeed in taking all the paint off.
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Old 17 March 2005, 03:12 PM
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Red face Plastic inst. panel cont....../Stunts

(I am doing this in 3 parts because I am having computer problems)

For the instrument faces I used Jtec scale instruments which I picked up at an RC stroe.They are 1/12th scale but can be reduced at the photocopy store to fit any scale.#JT-12 covers WW1, WW2 and modern aircraft faces as well as well as cars and boats.It also includes plastic rims if you want to use them.
I used Humbrol Clearfix to make mine.
In my next set of pics I will include pics of the Mercedes tow car.

Just for fun I have included a price list of stunts that barnstormers of the mid-20s charged Hollywood.

Crash ships(fly into trees ,houses etc..) $1,200
Loop with man on each wing standing up $450
Ship change (in midair) $100
Upside down change $500
Change -Car or motorcycle to airplane $150
Fight on upper wing,one man knocked off $225
Upside-down flying with man on landing gear $150
Head-on collision with automobiles $250
and last but not least
Blow up plane in mid-air,pilot chuts out $1,500
I wonder who supplied the plane
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It has been said that the difference between a "pilot" and an "aviator" is that a pilot is a technician,and an aviator is an artist in love with flight.
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Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Sunday, January 22, 2006 7:12 AM
Chase or tow car
This was posted on another site back in March05.
I began working again on the tow car that will be used in the diorama.The basic model is a Minicraft 1/16th scale 1928 Mercedes Benz SS.It looks like it would make a very nice model but I am using it only as a basic motor and frame ,to look like a car used by Upside -Down Clyde Pangborn in his famous stunt at a beach near San Diego in 1920.I beleive that he was one of the fiirst to try the car- to- airplane transfer via rope ladder.On this occasion he failed and almost killed himself in the process.
The Mercedes basic car frame had been around for some time, so I think that I am pretty safe in using it for a diorama of the mid 20s.By the time I finish modifying it, I want it to look something like the car Pangborn used.I got the idea from the Time-Life book Barnstormers and Speedkings.(see page 8)
So far I have the frame and engine finished(except for engine wiring)I built a wooden platform on the back for the stuntman to stand on and am now building some of the chassis.The car will be quite beat up with missing parts and well weathered.I plan to put airshow advertising on the doors and panels and it will be quite colorful but in muted tones as to not draw too much attention from the Jenny. to be cont.....
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Sunday, January 22, 2006 6:48 AM

Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Saturday, January 21, 2006 9:07 AM
Barnstormers Showcar

When looking around for a 1/16th showcar, I closest thing that I could find to what I wanted was, a Minicraft 1928 Mercedes Benz SS.I had noticed when doing my research there was a picture of a Lozier showcar in one of the Time-life Epic of Flight books(Barnstormers & Speedkings).It is shown on a beach in San Diego during a 1920 airshow.It was modified for a stunt called the car to plane transfer.
I coundnt use any other type car of the period because they were not fast enough to keep up with the speed on the aircraft in flight.The 28 Mercedes was highly modified to look more like the Lozier complete with a wood ramp on the back for the stuntman to stand on. to be cont....
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Saturday, January 21, 2006 8:33 AM

Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Saturday, January 21, 2006 8:10 AM
After building the basic rear entrance structure I proceeded to the garage door ramp area.This is also a modular type structure with a base much like the others.The garage doors are actually attached to the module and not the hangar wall.
This is an area that sometime in the future will be modified again to become a garage or machine shop etc...That is after I finish the radio shack/operations building.
Note:through the main hangar doors you can see the front of the workshop.
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Saturday, January 21, 2006 7:25 AM

Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Friday, January 20, 2006 8:38 AM
Does this sound familiar?
We must ask ourselves:why would an otherwise reasonably normal person forsake the pleasures of family,garden,TV,bowling,hunting,fishing,sailing,b arhopping,vacationing,fixing faucets,and playing poker to sit for years at a time,hunched over a cluttered workbench,squinting through an Optivisor,fashioning tiny bits of plastic(or wood)into what eventually emerges as a miniture representation of a long-extinct piece of machinery which few still recall and about which fewer give a damn?

The most rewarding goal is psychic satisfaction:knowledge that the finished product really is good-reflecting the best you had within you.Sure,it was an epic struggle,but it came out well,and now you can rest upon your laurels for awhile.You go out and lie on the hammock all afternoon(or until the bugs find you);rent a few old movies(Test Pilot,Men With Wings,Dawn Patrol-the usual fare);go to the zoo.But before long,the old urge begins to return(no,not that one,this one)and pretty soon you are back at the workbench,happily wailing away on your next masterpiece.

John Alcorn from his book ,Scratchbuilt! A Celebration of the Static Scale Airplane Modellers Craft. Cheers! John.
_______
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Friday, January 20, 2006 8:20 AM
This is something that I posted on another forum in response to a question .I thought you guys might be interested. wink.gif Key ingredients
You are right, Stephen, it is important to please yourself as your creative heart has to be in what you are doing at the moment.I remember once on a trip through St Jean de Port- Joli here in Quebec I once requested a well known woodcarver to do me a copy of a piece that he had done for me, for my cousin, at my cousins request.There just was no comparison between the original and the copy .One he wanted to do ,the other he had to do and that made all the difference.

About Key ingredients in a diorama, on another level the first thing I look for in a great diorama is,is it believable?Does it look natural?When I taught decorative bird carving ,the hardest thing to get across to my students was to avoid lining things up in a row,having things equi-distant or 90deg to each other.In fact, even today when I am working on a piece, I willoften have to go back and screw things up a bit to make it look more natural.What may look perfectly natural has sometimes taken hours of thought,placing and replacing things until they look just right. Only man plants trees in rows.It is a human tendency that I find that I have to be constantly aware of when I am working.It cannot look too staged,too square,too correct ,to be believable.In life things get dirty,dusty,worn and a good diorama must reflect this. What do you think,Stephen? Cheers! John.
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It h
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Friday, January 20, 2006 7:15 AM
Another view.
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Thursday, January 19, 2006 11:04 AM
This is the beginnings of the office module.Lots of doors and windows!
The roof is medium emory cloth glued to foamboard,trimmed with wood battens .It is painted with Cadmium Med Red with a touch of Pine Green added to tone it down a little.(Always use the color opposite on the color wheel to tone down a color)
The sheathing is the standard batten and board method,painted with a thin wash of white gesso with a little Raw Umber in the mix to take the starkness out of the white and warm it up a little(you can do the same with Black by adding Burnt umber)
If you look closely through the office door you will see the entrance to the hangar and next to it a window to the workshop.
I have decided that this will be strictly an office and later I will build a seperate structure as a radio shack/operation room.
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Thursday, January 19, 2006 10:28 AM

Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Wednesday, January 18, 2006 3:57 PM
Sorry I dont have any pic to show you of the office module in foamboard but I have one of the rear entrance/WC module which is basically the same method of construction.
In this pic you can clearly see the base,floor,wall panels and roof.If you look through the rear door you can see the door to the WC.The small opening on the side panel will be a coal shute.
If you look through the window in the rear panel of the hangar wall you can just see the window and edge of the workshop.
It just so happens that I have been working on this module today installing the windows and doors.
The next couple of pics will be of the office Module after sheathing.
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Wednesday, January 18, 2006 3:34 PM

Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Wednesday, January 18, 2006 7:28 AM
This shot of the R/H side panel and rear panel is where all the action has been taking place for the last while.The workshop is situated where you see the 2 lower windows.The office is located on the side panel between the high windows and the low workshop window.It is in this area that I put in the new door and window/heating port.
The rear entrance was already provided for and the rear entrance/WC module is located between the lower shop window and the high hangar window on the rear panel.
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Wednesday, January 18, 2006 6:27 AM

Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Tuesday, January 17, 2006 7:24 PM

This is the R/H side panel that was modified to provide for the new office module.As you can see this module was an afterthought ,so I had to bore through the side panel to create a new door and window in the hangars side.Because of the foamboard type construction this was not very difficult to do with a small handsaw.
Because the office is so small I could not provide it with a seperate heating stove,so to allow for heat I cut a new window between the office and the workshop .
The office module is located between the high hangar windows and the lower workshop window.
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Tuesday, January 17, 2006 6:54 PM

Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Tuesday, January 17, 2006 7:16 AM
Here is kind of an interesting shot through the garage door into the hangar,through the workshop window and then the other window into the far wall of the office.This covers a distance of about 55 inches.

The following I posted on another thread in response to why I do dioramas.I thought you guys might be interested.

Why I do it!
To me its all about the viewer.My goal is to have the viewer lose themselves,if only for a moment, in another reality.It is a kind of magical world of the spirit where kids are privledged to live a lot of the time.It is still there in all of us and it is the dioramaists or moviemakers or other visual type of artists role, to take the viewer by the hand and lead him back to that wonderful world of childhood, where everything is possible.When I am working,I try to think like a child.What would please the imagination of a child.How can I draw them into my work? if I can hold the attention of a child for any length of time,the grownups are easy.When kids first see my work ,I make it a point to study their faces.Most of the time they wont say a thing and that is when I know Ive got them.Usually, I am the first to speak and I can tell that they are usually lost in my world,in this little world that I have created.Its the look on their faces,thats why I do dioramas. Someone once said, All kids are artisits,the trick is to stay an artist when we grow up.Hope I havent been too heavy in my response but that is the way I feel.Cheers! John.
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It has been said that the difference between a "pilot" and an "aviator" is that a pilot is a technician,and an aviator is an artist in love with flight.
JohnReid (Aviator)
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Tuesday, January 17, 2006 6:38 AM

Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Monday, January 16, 2006 8:28 AM
Thanks Jim! What kind of diorama do you plan to do?
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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Posted by JohnReid on Monday, January 16, 2006 8:26 AM
Finished workshop exterior( except for windows)
Guide my hand in your work today.JWRR. My goal in life is to be as good a person as my dog already thinks I am. My Photoshop: http://s6.photobucket.com/albums/y250/JohnReid/
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