Without wanting to suggest that you are doing anything wrong
Brian, I'd suggest that anyone wanting to learn to produce artwork
for etching avoids using Paintshop Pro or any other bitmap based
software. There are two reasons for this 1) bitmap based drawings
can be difficult to edit, especially scaling and 2) most companies
will refuse to take bitmap artwork for etching now. Brian, I
assume you have a local company you've been using for a while and
as they know your artwork point 2 is slightly less relevant.
For those starting to learn to draw the artwork what you really
want to look at isn't necessarily CAD? (which can be expensive and
difficult to learn) but a vector drawing programme (I use a free
programme called Inkscape: ). The
difference between these two types of programmes is that a bitmap
image just records the colour of each pixel whereas a vector image
is essentially a set of instructions for how to draw the image.
This means that scaling an image becomes easy as you just change
the instructions, and lines etc. remain smooth rather than
becoming jagged as they do in a bitmap. It's also easy to move
parts around as again you just change the instructions so the
starting point for a shape changes (all done through the normal
drawing tool interactions you don't have to worry about the maths
yourself). One of the companies many people in the UK use is PPD
Ltd and they have a set of guides for producing artwork that are a
good starting point for understanding the process:
All this of course only refers to how you produce the drawings,
and so anyone starting out would do well to avail themselves of
Brian's very kind offer to help with basic techniques and issues
like fold points etc. that can easily catch out the unwary.
If you are going to ExpoNG then talking to Stephen on the Narrow
Planet stand might be a good idea as he's been producing etch
artwork for a number of years, not only for name/number plates but
also for their range of kits, as well as custom pieces -- I'm
slightly biased here as I designed their OO9 kit of the 24hp
Hudson-Hunslet diesel loco.
Hope that helps,
Mark
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?
Colin,
Making your own etchings isn’t as hard to do as you
may think, the set up cost for the basic items will
cost you about AUD$600 or about 300UK pound, the hard
part is learning to design your own artwork, instead
of using CAD I use Paintshop Pro7 and instead of
actually working is a scale I simply use pixels at
72000 resolution each pixel is equal to .1mm. so I can
etch components as accurate as within .1mm.
Anyone who would like to learn how to accurately
draw there artwork you can contact me, I can teach you
the basic techniques of how I start to work out how to
establish the fold points etc.
?
Brian
Rawbelle County Workshops
Qld. Aust.
?
Sent: Wednesday, October 12, 2016 9:32
AM
Subject: Re: [O14] Re: The
Stronalacher Saga
?
?
Thanks Guys
?
We have Expong
coming up so I hope to be able to talk to a few
people who are making 3D prints in 009, I realise
that if making a brass etch kit was easy we would
all be doing them, that said, I do take my hat off
to you guys who spend your time making these kits
for the rest of us to b***er up, I am not going to
promise anything as it could all change over night
so to speak, but the idea behind this thread was
to see if any of the locos I listed where produced
in brass for 014, I think I have the answer is
generally no.
?
That said, I am
sure Wrightlines used to do Prince and the
Darjeeling B tank and we know that EDM will have
the L&BR 2-6-2 kit at some stage, and I think
chivers fines lines used to do a 7mm scale Vale of
Rheidol 2-6-2 as well, but I am sure the others
don't have kits, so there is a lot of scratch
building to do in that case.????
?
There is one photo
of the 4mm version of Stronalacher which always
makes me go Wow after all this time and the
Darjeeling Garrett with a long slate train on a
Wooden trestle bridge, I think that would look
really cool in 014, it was about 5ft in 009, that
would be somewhere near 2.6 metres in length in
014.
?
Regards
?
Colin
?
?
?
?
?
???????
----- Original
Message -----
Sent: Tuesday,
October 11, 2016 9:01 PM
Subject: Re:
[O14] Re: The Stronalacher Saga
?
From what I have seen and heard, a lot of
etchings that have been done in the past, they
have tried to use too thick of a material
which means it is very hard to get folds
correct, all of the etching I do is designed
to use .4mm. brass sheet, sometimes after
spending countless hours designing the
artwork, the first test etch will reveal some
problems, mainly because I got mixed up with
which side some fold points had to be on. Take
a look at the photos of a 91 Class SAR loco I
am building, and study the steps, one photos
shows both sides of the steps as etched and
also what the steps look like after being
folded, all one piece each.
<>
?
Brian
Rawbelle County Workshops
Qld. Aust.
?
Sent: Wednesday, October 12,
2016 1:11 AM
Subject: Re: [O14] Re: The
Stronalacher Saga
?
Very true.
Producing a
working CAD drawing that can be turned in to
a pattern or an etch takes a bit of doing
for 3D parts you need to add shrinkage
factors these change depending on the
material being used to cast the item.
?
For etches you
have to flatten the part add bending lines
which change depending on thickness of
material and the level of distortion you
need.
?
I have lost count
of the number of etches I have ditched and
started again with.
And if you want to just produce a 3D print
all parts have interlock or be drawn from a
solid as if it's just touching and unioned
the printer will see two parts not one.
?
I produced our
first kit in 1999 and I'm still getting
things wrong on test etches and you would
never know until you build the prototype.
Marc
?
Colin,
I think you'll find a
major difference between a drawing
of a loco even in CAD and what is
needed for an etched kit. The 7mm
Narrow Gauge Association has books
of drawings but most predate home
CAD systems and were probably done
originally by someone to scratch
build a model. A lot of the ones
published in NG&IRMR are
proper works drawings. Both
sources need treating with care,
in the former case one doesn't
know how much information the
draughtsman had and in the latter
you need to watch what was
actually built as opposed to what
was designed. All of course,
thanks to someone's, efforts far
better than nothing at all.
Nothing like publishing
anything for some further
information to crawl out of the
woodwork and make a fool of you.
Frank
?
I might
be wrong in thinking this,
but for me an 014 loco kit
will need to have weight,
I would guess that if I
had a half decent computer
and the Auto Cad programme
I would have a go at
producing 7mm drawings to
make up brass etched kits
and to also make the
masters for the 3D Cad
castings as well.
I think
014 has a lot going for
it, and if I had the space
then I would consider
building a model in this
size, One thing which I am
surprised with and that is
the lack of narrow gauge
loco and rolling stock Cad
drawings which are
available (you watch, some
one will come on here now
and tell me where I can
find them), but why stop
there? as you are half way
to getting an etch of that
item done.
May be it
is just me getting older
and trying to cope with
all this new technology.
-----
Original Message -----
Sent:
Tuesday, October 11,
2016 12:20 PM
Subject:
Re: [O14] Re: The
Stronalacher Saga
There was a kit
actually for the
Darjeeling Garratt in
7mm scale and I have
seen the etchings and
resin castings, now in
the possession of a
friend and 7mm NGA
member.? BUT this was, I
gather, one of just two
test etches and has
never been released.? If
anyone can track? down
its heritage then the
possibility remains!!
