Joe's 1/22 Artesania Latina San Francisco Cable Car

[spanner570]

That is not a model, it's a work of art, Joe!
Absolutely spot on in every way.

Nice to see a '29'. Minor detail for everyone on the planet, except me. I spent the first 20 odd years of my life at that number house, and seeing it always makes me smile as it brings back great memories of my 'Informative' early days.

[flyjoe180]

That is not a model, it's a work of art, Joe!
Absolutely spot on in every way.

Nice to see a '29'. Minor detail for everyone on the planet, except me. I spent the first 20 odd years of my life at that number house, and seeing it always makes me smile as it brings back great memories of my early days.

Thank you for the very kind words Ron. Glad you like the number :thumb2:

[flyjoe180]

The base was created from polystyrene. I first created a concrete style road surface using Selleys filler, and with a watered brush, brushed in a longitudinal direction to resemble the concrete road surface. I glued cardboard from the box to the base to hold the two halves in place.

I then created rails using lengths of styrene strip. The middle rails either side of cable grip are wider than the outer wheel rails. I primed the base with dark grey and then paint the surface using progressively lighter greys, using misting uneven strokes on outer sections, more solid in track area where concrete is used. I added blemishes using washes to enhance the concrete effect, oil stains etc. The rails have a dark tinge of red or rust to them from photos, so I painted them using using steel and burnt exhaust. I painted a double yellow line marking using tape and thin, almost dry brush) coats of yellow. The surround was created from balsa and oiled with linseed.

Here is the completed base:


No photos seem to show the stains that well, nor the roughness of the yellow lines. But they are there. The base surround can be lifted off, so the cable car's grip can be threaded into the centre section. Once the cable car is in place, the surround is placed over the top.

That completes this long journey. Thanks for following and commenting along the way, I appreciate it. I hope you enjoyed the build as much as I did.


Completed build thread can be found here: https://www.scale-models.co.uk/threa...ble-car.36829/

[Mini Me]

That base will look great once the car is in place....well done Joe. :thumb2:

[scottie3158]

Joe,
That should show it off perfectly.

[Bortig the Viking]

Just caught up with this, read it from start to finish, quite some time to build this but it's been worth it, the result is excellent, just like the real thing but in minature obviously, well done.

[JR]

Top notch work Joe from the start. Really enjoyed following this great build, you must be very proud.

[stillp]

Excellent Joe!
Pete

[flyjoe180]

Thanks guys. I thought about Mike's suggestion for a turn table but it was beyond me with the supplies I had to hand. Glad you enjoyed the build.

[DrDemento]

Hi Joe, as others have said, your work is top notch! Coincidentally I have been working on the same kit for about a year, off and on.
I just joined this blog as I was desperate to get some guidance/answers to my own SF Cable Car build. For reference, I've just today finished the 2 "trucks" (a.k.a. Chassis) and about to begin the roof portion of the project. Like you, I hesitated to install & cement the Grip Ass'y since, w/out a display base, the protruding portion of the grip will create a stability issue when I add the trucks to the body. I will use your example to guide me in fabricating my version of your display base. Thanks very much!

[Bugatti Fan]

Nice work Joe. Such an iconic vehicle!
Tried to look one up on line to buy. Appears that Artesania have discontinued this kit.
There is another company OCCRE who make a SF cable car kit in 1/24th scale.
The closed passenger area is in the middle on their kit.

[DrDemento]

The inner formers for the roof ends were shaped to create a slope for the strips that will later make up the roof ends. The strips either side of the roof edge were blended.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]n1132125[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH=CONFIG]n1132126[/ATTACH]

The roof ends are made up of strips of wood that are attached to the structure and once dry at the ends and middle former, will be bent down to the roof ends. Then they will be sanded smooth to the shape of the roof, and filled with putty as required to create a smooth surface. Much like the cable car cabin walls were earlier. The same bunch of strips are used to build the clerestory roof cover later on.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]n1132127[/ATTACH]

Many strips later
[ATTACH=CONFIG]n1132130[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH=CONFIG]n1132129[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH=CONFIG]n1132128[/ATTACH]

It looks like a dog's breakfast at the moment. Once dry I'll bend the ends down, clamp them while they dry, and once that's complete, sand the new structure to shape.

Joe, I am buidling the same kit and have arrived at the Roof build section. Did you water-mist the 27 (or so) slats at either end in order to soften them for bending to conform to the desired shape? What was your complete process? OR was it just a matter of glue, clips, tape & rubber bands??? Thanks - your blog has given me the confidence to complete this challenging kit!!

[DrDemento]

Joe, I am buidling the same kit and have arrived at the Roof build section. Did you water-mist the 27 (or so) slats at either end in order to soften them for bending to conform to the desired shape? What was your complete process? OR was it just a matter of glue, clips, tape & rubber bands??? Thanks - your blog has given me the confidence to complete this challenging kit!!

Nevermind Joe; I reread your post and it makes sense now.

[flyjoe180]

Hi Joe, as others have said, your work is top notch! Coincidentally I have been working on the same kit for about a year, off and on.
I just joined this blog as I was desperate to get some guidance/answers to my own SF Cable Car build. For reference, I've just today finished the 2 "trucks" (a.k.a. Chassis) and about to begin the roof portion of the project. Like you, I hesitated to install & cement the Grip Ass'y since, w/out a display base, the protruding portion of the grip will create a stability issue when I add the trucks to the body. I will use your example to guide me in fabricating my version of your display base. Thanks very much!

Hi Christopher, I look forward to seeing your rendition of this kit. Thank yo

Nice work Joe. Such an iconic vehicle!
Tried to look one up on line to buy. Appears that Artesania have discontinued this kit.
There is another company OCCRE who make a SF cable car kit in 1/24th scale.
The closed passenger area is in the middle on their kit.

Hi Noel. There are two types of San Francisco cable car, the Powell Street version, and the California Street version. The Powell Street cable cars can only be operated from the front end, and require turn tables at the ends of their routes. The California version can be operated from either end, and has the enclosed passenger area between the two ends as you said. This means the California version doe snot require turn tables, the operator simply gets out and goes to the other end. Be good to see a California version built.

Joe, I am buidling the same kit and have arrived at the Roof build section. Did you water-mist the 27 (or so) slats at either end in order to soften them for bending to conform to the desired shape? What was your complete process? OR was it just a matter of glue, clips, tape & rubber bands??? Thanks - your blog has given me the confidence to complete this challenging kit!!

Hi again Christopher. Sorry, I haven't been getting on the forum as much as I'd like to lately. I see you have resolved the situation and possibly progressed. I'll take a look to see if you have a build log. Happy to help where I can, hoping my build thread is of help to you. Cheers.

[flyjoe180]

Nevermind Joe; I reread your post and it makes sense now.

I can't see your build on here Christopher, I for one would love to see another one being built. :thumb2: