TS Travestein

[Don Boose]

Nice work.

To my eye, that's the way a cargo ship is supposed to look.

Don

[paulmackie]

Hi,
I am building the Travestein as my first paper model and was wondering:

I have completed the basic hull and strengthened with heavy corrugated cardboard and it is quite solid, and am wondering if I fit the deck as is from the sheet or strengthen it with bristol board?

What parts did you strengthen with cardboard?
My thinking is to strengthen all the parts with bristol board?

Did you buy the portholes, square windows, railings, and all doors, or did you make your own?
If you made your own, what did you use to make them?

Can you buy any detail parts, if so where from?

Did you strengthen the hull or fit as is from the sheet paper?

I am making the Travestein and fitting it into the Hamburg diorama. I am picking up the basics of making a paper model, but am unsure which parts to strengthen and which parts to use as is direct from the sheets.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks
Paul in Calgary.

[Bluenoser]

Hi Paul, how are you. I grew up in Calgary. In Dover specifically and went to highschool at ForestLawn and then SAIT.

Then hull and deck are the only things I strengthend with additional cardboard. Any unsupported span of 2.5"-3.0" or greater is usually a candidate for bristolboard especially if you need to frequently handle this space when building the model. Spray adhesive is good for doubling up as it does not cause warpage when setting up as does a water based glue.

I typically strengthen the decks with Bristolboard, especially big ones like the Travestein. If you don't, you will get a lot of warpage on the deck. I assemble the deck parts first and then use Elmer's spray adhesive and glue it to the bristol board as a sinlge, continuous piece. I prefer the deck as a single component.

The hull also got the bristol board treatment, which would normally be done the same way as the deck, but since I wanted the hull plating look, I mounted these on after. I paint the models with crafters tole paints where touchup or complete painting is needed. They come in a gazillion colors, are esay to mix for new colors and are totaly dry within 10 minutes. Great for hiding mistakes and sloppy assembly too.

I made all the window and porthole frames. I just used ordinary card stock. You can buy a block of this from staples and it will build you hundreds of models straight out of your printer too.

I did buy the railings. That would just be too much insanity to try and build those from scratch. I bought mine from the internet, but the vendor I bought them from sadly doesn't produce these anymore. The railings I used on the model are at a scale of 1:200 where as the model is 1:250. That wasn't a big enough difference for me to get worked up over, besides 1:200 card rails are a lot more readily available. Just Google it, you will find numerous vendors, most are overseas.

Good luck on the diorama. That is a big project!

[Scifimodelfan]

Absolutly beautiful work, thank you for sharing this with all of us.

[Bluenoser]

Glad you are enjoying the thread.

I think it was 110 lb Card stock. My stash is at home and I'm surfing/answering this at work (hope the Boss isn't on this Forum!). This is good for making the window frames and other trim stuff.


I just hand painted it. The craft tole paints give a pretty clean finish with little to no visible brush strokes. If you're uncertain about the paint you have, just do a couple practice spots on your 65 or 110 lb card stock to see the results. Note that the tole paints are water based so if you use too much or a second coat when the first isn't dry, you will warp the card.


The windows went on before bending since they were small enough that there would be no problem. The long trim pieces around the superstructure however went on after bending.


The secret to small parts is patience, which you already have.... and good eyesight or maybe a nice magnifying glass on a stand. Otherwise, very sharp pointed blade for those tiny cuts and very pointy tweezers. Sometimes even the tweezers are difficult to manage some parts. When I encounter this, I usually dip the pointy end of a bamboo skewer or toothpick into a bit of white glue, dry most of it off so that the point is tacky and then press it to the tiny part to pick it up and glue it on the model.

[Bluenoser]

By the way, all the masts and booms have bamboo skewers inside. I don't roll long small diameter hollow tubes very well. Stronger this way too.