Three-D Modelling for Railways

 This is a church built in the sixties in Rickmansworth, Herts. It has a family connection because my Aunt used to play the organ there. She and her father were Methodist, while her mother and sister (my mother) were Anglican. I only remember going inside once when she was there practicing, and I had a turn on the organ! The model was fairly straightforward, though I was working from Google street view mostly, and the rear is entirely guesswork. The flat rooves all have dips in them made using the cloth modifier. I had some issues printing. In the first run the rooves separated off in places. In the second, one corner warped, but as it wat the back, I decided I could live with that. It might have worked better if tilted.

At a recent event , I was demoing Blender, with the plan to create a virtual model of the venue over the course of the day. As it turned out, I spent too long talking to people, and did not get that far. I did get it finished a few days later, however, so here is a description of the creative process. Preparation I starting by getting some basic dimensions from Google maps. Zoom in as much as you can then right click in one corner of the building, and select "Measure distance", then right click an adjacent corner and select "Distance to here". You can then drag the two points around to get other dimensions. I always round to the nearest even number of feet. You then have to guess the height, which is not too difficult when you are inside the building, but more tricky from Google Street View! Basic Creation Once I had the basic dimensions I fired up Blender. For some general instructions on using Blender, see here: http://www.prestonanddistrictmrs.org.uk/articles/usi

Link to an article I wrote for another web site. http://www.prestonanddistrictmrs.org.uk/articles/creating-water-slide-transfers/

Not quite 3d printing, but something that requires addressing when adding transfers to a model. There are literally thousands of fonts out there, and finding the right one can  be a bit of a minefield. A lot of fonts are really quite funky; because they are different you can readily spot what makes them stand out. What is more tricking is selecting the right font when it is very ordinary. Major Differences So what are the differences to look for?  Here are some example fonts found on most Windows PCs (Apple will have their own equivalents). One obvious difference is serif or sans serif, and fonts are usually categorised on this basis. A serif is a flourish at the end of a curve. They tend to make long passages easier to read, so are used in books and newspapers. Sans serif font have no such flourish, and so look plainer. Another is the vertical weight versus the horizontal weight. Usually the vertical lines are thicker, this is called "stressed", but sometimes the line width

 Yesterday I was at the N Gauge Society Northwest Area Group Members Day. I had stand where I was demonstrating Blender. That is my daughter in the image - I was taking the photo. I had a PC set up with two screens, so anyone could see my progress as I worked. The hope was to create a model of Catterall Village Hall, where the event was, but I spent too long talking to people, and did not get that far! I had numerous models on display too, with three lengths of track to show wagons on - one on a viaduct. I also had some information on a board behind me, but in retrospect I think the posters were too small, and no one seemed to actually read them. The event was only open to N Gauge Society members, so not that busy - probably as many exhibitors as visitors. Talked to a lot of people, including two who do 3d design as part of their job, and so were in the Fusion360 camp. Overall a great day. Hopefully next year it will be open to the public. And I might have a layout with to populate wit

I am doing a demo at the local N Gauge Society members day on Sunday, and will be assembling my viaduct to display it. To get it ready, I have been busy painting the last two days, so more photos. I painted iron arch bridge with bright colours, and it turned out well, I think, though my painting skills are not great. The plate girder bridge I did in plain grey. Similarly the lattice bridge. I am  not so happy with his one; the proportions seem out somehow. An extended brick arch. And some filled in arches, with businesses. Again, very pleased with how these turned out.