card rolling stock

[Chris_nicole]

Whilst I am aboard the card train, I came across the following web site :

<http://www.zioprudenzio.it/fok-train.html>

 

This has several small scale paper models of Italian locomotives to download.

[click on the red downward pointing arrows to download each model as a pdf file]

 

It may be of interest...

 

I am adapting a Builder Plus GWR station building kit for Jenswell atm.

 

Have fun,

 

Chris

 

Black Hat

[JHWestern]

I am quite happy to model in card when I can and am tempted to try rolling stock. What type of card and gauge can people recommed? I am thinking of 4mm panelled coaching stock.

[cornamuse]

Plenty of expertise in here to help you out, also me bodging about to prove anyone can do it

I like 7mm, easier to cut out and glue

 

narrow gauge here : http://www.rmweb.co....-gauge-in-card/

mixed here : http://www.rmweb.co....-charlies-yard/

 

some people use bought w irons, buffers etc., I try to do the whole lot in card.

 

Jims stock : http://www.rmweb.co....ath-7mm-lt-rly/ is pretty impressive, and he uses a lot of card.

 

I have a few links in my threads for models you can have a try at - a panelled coach for instance

 

 

you could always rescale it to 4mm and put a waggon body under it - that is pretty much what the guys restoring it are going to do!

cheers

Andy

[JHWestern]

Many thanks, I have followed the links with great interest and the information will be a great help if I get around to trying a panelled coach.

[laurenceb]

Laurence,

Your description sounds familiar.

I seem to recall seeing a white or cream card model of a steam locomotive.

I don't have a photo of it.

 

Searching the NRM website, the only card model locomotive I found was this one:

 

Model steam locomotive, approx. 1/12 scale, Shutt End Colliery 0-4-0 `Agenoria', prototype built by Foster, Raistrick in 1829, cardboard model by Lloyd Thompson, c.1975

<http://www.flickr.co...N04/5946967134/>

 

Regards,

 

Chris

Hi methinks the golden rule must be -dont visit the nrm without a camera!

Laurence

[Chris_nicole]

I am quite happy to model in card when I can and am tempted to try rolling stock. What type of card and gauge can people recommed? I am thinking of 4mm panelled coaching stock.

 

I would suggest you try some of the printed card kits before scratchbuilding.

Alpahgraphix and Elro both produce kits for card rolling stock, mainly in 7mm or OO scales.

 

Elro are sold via Ebay.

They specialise in Manx railway subjects but also have stock from various British and American railways as well as trams.

Last time I looked at their range, they had an attractive pair of midlands POW open wagons as a single kit.

 

Alphagraphix are mainly mail order, its well worth getting their catalogue.

They stock a great range of building kits as well as locomotive and rolling stock kits:

 

Alphagraphix,

23 Darris Road,

Selly Park,

Birmingham

B29 7QY.

 

Regards,

 

Chris

[siltec]

Glad to find I am not alone.

 

I arrived at card modelling when I wondered if an inkjet printer could be converted to print on tinplate and so produce tinplate models. Did not get far as I realised that card models would do. I like playing around with various chassis in various gauges so have created some simple basic bodies now fro, TT to G gauge.

 

Wanting to keep my modelling simple and compact I realised that trams fulfilled my wish for sing vehicle four wheeled vehicles. Rather than railcars.

 

Some of my efforts can be seen at

 

http://tramweb.yolasite.com/

 

No claims for realism or quality, but feel free to use.

[Chris_nicole]

Glad to find I am not alone.

 

I arrived at card modelling when I wondered if an inkjet printer could be converted to print on tinplate and so produce tinplate models. Did not get far as I realised that card models would do. I like playing around with various chassis in various gauges so have created some simple basic bodies now fro, TT to G gauge.

 

Wanting to keep my modelling simple and compact I realised that trams fulfilled my wish for sing vehicle four wheeled vehicles. Rather than railcars.

 

Some of my efforts can be seen at

 

http://tramweb.yolasite.com/

 

No claims for realism or quality, but feel free to use.

 

Trams seem to be a popular subject for card models.

Most of the card model publishers seem to include a few trams in their range.

 

Also, I'm very pleased to see you found a use for Underground Ernie.

That's a handy chassis unit if you can find a suitable body to go with it!

 

Regards,

 

Chris

[JCL]

There's some great modelling here!

 

I was just wondering about that craft Robo Cutter. There seems to be a lot of different sorts and a huge price range. Can anyone recommend one in particular? Will some of the "cheaper" ones do the job?

[Metalhip]

I bought a Cameo Silhouette in February and I've used it quite a bit for my N gauge Scalescenes stuff. I've just got the Scalescenes N gauge large station canopy cutting lines ready to cut it all out.

 

I'm very pleased with it and it's a boon for cutting window and door openings out,especially curved top ones as in the Scalescenes factory and all the buttress base layers.

The Silhouette has superseded the Craft Robo cutter and will tackle thicker card up to 350gsm or approx 0.5mm thick.Thick parts can be laminated easily because each part is identical and lines up easily.

 

It seemed an expensive investment/toy to buy at the time,but I wouldn't like to go back to manual cutting out now and I'm really pleased with mine.

 

 

Allan

[Etched Pixels]

If you want to just do model stuff I'd say Silhouette right now. There is a huge price range because the range includes "professional" kit that can turn out 30' long 2' wide banners for shop windows.

[siltec]

The automated card cutters look the business. Couple of questions.

 

1 How accurately does it cut around a pre-printed image.

2 Does the software accept .dxf files from a CAD programme

 

At the moment I draw the outlines using DeltaCAD and then save the .dxf file. I then load this into Serif draw to add colour. So I would assume that I have my printed card ready to be cut out to cutting outline on cutting machine software. Assume there is a way of aligning the two for an accurate cut out of model template.

[siltec]

Trams are popular because any particular type was likely to have have been used by a number of operators. Consequently one physical design can be printed out in a variety of colours.

 

The other option for card models are rail cars. I have had a look at the 1938 LMS three car unit. A nice rounded front so fairly easy to do in card. Trouble is there are very few pictures, and certainly no line drawings of it that I have found.

 

Personally though I like to do my own thing and design my own tram bodies. I decided that the best way was do resurrect my long gone local tramway, keighley. When I discovered it had been a 4' gauge I was really quite pleased as 00 gauge track is nearer 4' than it is 4' 8.5". It also fits in with the 3' 6" gauge, long gone also, from my town of origin, Dover.

 

I have actually had a go at making a card steam body. Narrow gauge for 16.5mm. Intended to fit onto an 0-4-0 chassis. managed it, but a lot of work so I decided to stick to railcar bodies.

 

Regarding the UnderGround Ernie stuff. There was a load a while back in Yorkshire trading. £4.99 for a trolley and £9.99 for a two car unit. Wish I had bought a few more trolleys, although come to think of it there might have only been the 3 left I bought. The main snag in using the Bo-Bo chassis for a tram is the turning radius capability. As the worm drive gear pivots below the worm it is a bit limited. The trolley units are brilliant.

 

I also have an assortment of Hornby, Triang and Trix bogies to be used as card bodied tram chassis.

[PLD]

Trams are popular because any particular type was likely to have have been used by a number of operators. Consequently one physical design can be printed out in a variety of colours.

Exactly the oposite actually. It was very rare to find identical trams delivered new to any two UK systems. In something build by hand and is small batches there is so much scope for detail differences, even between two batches from the same builder for the same system built to supposedly the same spec...

 

This is often quoted as a primary reason why there is a lack of ready-to-run trams...

[Metalhip]

The automated card cutters look the business. Couple of questions.

 

1 How accurately does it cut around a pre-printed image.

2 Does the software accept .dxf files from a CAD programme

 

At the moment I draw the outlines using DeltaCAD and then save the .dxf file. I then load this into Serif draw to add colour. So I would assume that I have my printed card ready to be cut out to cutting outline on cutting machine software. Assume there is a way of aligning the two for an accurate cut out of model template.

 

Hi,

The following is from the manual.....

 

The Silhouette Studio software uses a proprietary .STUDIO file format, which consist of vector art for line and color/gradient fill type data intended for printing and/or cutting. The Silhouette also is able to open* the following vector file formats in a Ready to Cut format:

• ï‚· GSD/GST (ROBO Master program files)
  
• ï‚· DXF
  The Silhouette Studio software can also import some other vector and raster file formats for the purpose of being able to trace these images to create cut lines for Print and Cut images. The following additional file types can be imported:
  

• ï‚· JPG
  
• ï‚· BMP
  
• ï‚· PNG
  
• ï‚· GIF
  
• ï‚· WMF
  

If you're importing DXF files into Serif Draw to add colour it might be best to then save it as a PNG file,I do all my parts in photo editing software and save as a PNG file,no information is lost.

I import the PNG image into the Silhouette software to put the cutting lines on and the register marks,then print it from that software,stick it on the cutting mat and have at it.

 

As regards cutting to the printed line,about 99% of the time it does,occasionally it will not quite follow the line in my experience.I don't think in my case it's the cutter but it's my printer not printing exactly right,possibly due to it being a laser printer and printing 225gsm card can warm the card up somewhat and expand it.

 

I'm doing the Scalescenes N gauge large station canopy at the moment and for the large glazed area at the end I've divided it up into IIRC 56 individual panes with mullions and transoms 0.5mm wide.A sticky label is used and then coloured with water colours after cutting out,then I remove all the panes and lift the frame off the backing and place it on the OHP film print out,it all lines up okay.

Takes but a few minutes to cut that lot out.

 

A pic of a Scalescenes N gauge signal box done using a similar technique but the colour is actually printed,you can just make out the OHP film that they're stuck to.The only problem printing them ready coloured is the white edges,using water colours afterwards instead stops this happening.

 

Allan

Edited May 19, 2012 by Metalhip

[Etched Pixels]

Mine seems to be accurate to about 0.2-0.3 of a mm. It's not "accurate" in the sense of giving exactly correct readings and cutting to the stated sizes, but it is accurate once you allow for the small scaling errors in each axis.

 

I believe its possible to recalibrate it but I've never bothered. All the stuff I cut is aligned with the marks in the same spot and same distance so its just a "magic number" by now.

[noiseboy72]

I am cutting windows for Cav (RBE) at the moment for some coaches he is modding.

 

We have got the cut accuracy down to better than 0.1mm with total repeatability. By that I mean I can run the same piece through the machine a few times and the cut will be in exactly the same place to within 0.01mm!

 

Cav makes the files in a CAD programs and imports them into the cutting program. He emails me the file and I cut them. The post office then loses them for a week before Cav gets them to check the fit...

 

The machine to buy must have print registration reading. There was a cut price model sold by one of the home shopping channels that did not have this function. Avoid like the plague! Its has less cutting pressure and I understand poorer accuracy as well.

 

I use a CC2200-20. This is the Craft Robo Mark 2 essentially. The upgrade to the Sillhouette gives a greater cutting pressure, but no more thickness in reality, as the blade has the same cut depth. To cut thicker materials, just run it through the machine again.

 

I paid £90 for it, plus £7 for a new mat and £6 for a new blade.

[Metalhip]

I use a CC2200-20. This is the Craft Robo Mark 2 essentially. The upgrade to the Sillhouette gives a greater cutting pressure, but no more thickness in reality, as the blade has the same cut depth. To cut thicker materials, just run it through the machine again.

 

 

The information I have is that the Craft Robo now uses the same blade as the Silhouette which has ten depth settings,I'm not sure, but I got the impression that the Craft Robo has three settings using different coloured caps.

I've not seen a Craft Robo in the flesh as it were,but the Silhouette software has a setting to choose single or double cut .

The Silhouette will cut 350 gsm A3 card if you can print it,but the bigger mat is dearer and new blades are around £15.00 I think.

 

Allan

[noiseboy72]

The maximum depth of cut is determined by the blade itself. They are all to the same spec, with a cutting face a little over 0.3mm. You are correct that the older blade design with 3 coloured caps has now been superceded by the ratchet design, but the blade is the same. You can buy just the blade itself off ebay for less than £6 each (Buy the Italian made ones, not the Chinese, it makes a big difference) and re-mount them into the blade carrier.

 

There is no need to set single or double cutting. Without removing the cut work from the machine, check to see if the cut has gone correctly. If it needs another run through, just re-run the job.

 

Both machines are excellent and the extra cutting size of the Silhouette is worth having if you can afford it, as will cut to the edge of A4, something the Craft Robo cannot when in print registration mode.

 

These machines come up regularly on ebay for a good price, as scrap bookers buy them and then discover that you do need a level of technical knowledge to get the best out of them and many are not willing to invest the time. A micrometer for measuring the thickness of the material is a must if you want a decent cut and good blade life as many will simply increase the blade depth if a material is not cutting. This causes damage to the cutting mat and blunts the blades very quickly. The trick is to get the depth right and repeat the cut.

 

Just a thought, do the cutting community want to consider a sub forum to allow us to exchange cut and print files ? I have made up cut files for a number of Charlie Connor's kits, including the Docklands Light Rail Train and a few others, plus I am working on some of the Scalescenes designs as well. Any takers ?

[Metalhip]

It's a nice idea but do you think exchanging cut files might be against copying and distributing such as the Scalescenes files? Are Craft Robo and Silhouette files even compatible?

It would mean anyone that got a cut file would not necessarily purchase the original,personally I don't want to go there,although without the instructions it could be awkward to actually construct any of the buildings.

 

A link to the replacement blades would be handy,but I've looked at my blade holder and it isn't readily apparent how it fits together for dismantling,I'll have to have a closer look when I need to replace the one I've got.

 

I have a list of all the settings for different thicknesses of card I cut after doing test cuts so it's automatic whether I tick the double cut box or not. Occasionally I'll see that I need to adjust the cutting depth by one or two clicks either way of the 33 depths of the ten blade length settings available,but that's done in the software anyway.

 

Allan

Edited May 20, 2012 by Metalhip

[steammad]

I have the craft robo cc200‑20 and the 330-20, I am about to upgrade to an a3 Version. Both my machines have been using the old style of blade all there life. Recently I replaced one of the blades with an original type blade (my old blade had had over two years hard labor). Then I replaced the other, as I had discovered the new type blade. I put the new style blade in my machine on its maximum setting and cut straight through the cutting matt with it. So be warned to try out the settings with the software and the blade notch depth.

 

There are sellers on ebay that sell very good cutting matts at a very low price.

 

 

Is there any one out there that has serviced there machines, as mine does make a whining noise sometimes. Can it be oiled?

[noiseboy72]

It's a nice idea but do you think exchanging cut files might be against copying and distributing such as the Scalescenes files? Are Craft Robo and Silhouette files even compatible?

It would mean anyone that got a cut file would not necessarily purchase the original,personally I don't want to go there,although without the instructions it could be awkward to actually construct any of the buildings.

 

A link to the replacement blades would be handy,but I've looked at my blade holder and it isn't readily apparent how it fits together for dismantling,I'll have to have a closer look when I need to replace the one I've got.

 

I have a list of all the settings for different thicknesses of card I cut after doing test cuts so it's automatic whether I tick the double cut box or not. Occasionally I'll see that I need to adjust the cutting depth by one or two clicks either way of the 33 depths of the ten blade length settings available,but that's done in the software anyway.

 

Allan

 

My suggestion would be to circulate cutting files only, not the print. So long as the print is done at 100%, the cut file should fit over without issue. The cutting files are compatible between machines, as the software is the same. The only change would be between A4 and A3, so a common size would need to be agreed.

 

I must confess, I only use the older blade type, but the blase supplier mentioned on their ad that their blade fitted all mounts. I don't have an active listing to point you to at the moment, but will keep a lookout.

[Metalhip]

It's worth a try with cutting files,but all mine are N gauge and bear little resemblance to the original PDF prints because I move stuff about for printing onto new A4 sheets.

 

I had a look on ebay yesterday and to me it looks like the older style blades are a different construction and won't fit the Cameo.The Cameo blades were dearer on ebay than where I got my machine from.

 

I did find this supplier who also has some useful information on the site.

http://www.edwardmat...tterblades.html

 

Allan

[JCL]

There's more information here than I could ask for. Thanks for answering my question. I think I'll get the Cameo as to start off with I'll be cutting windows in card. It looks like it's only limited by your imagination. Has anyone used styrene sheet with the Cameo at all?

 

Jason

Edited May 24, 2012 by JCL

[steammad]

There's more information here than I could ask for. Thanks for answering my question. I think I'll get the Cameo as to start off with I'll be cutting windows in card. It looks like it's only limited by your imagination. Has anyone used styrene sheet with the Cameo at all?

 

Jason

 

I have with the robo. It has to have several pases & then it snaps away easily.