What happened at your workbench today?

IMG_7890.jpegIMG_7892.jpegThe Harry Potter castle build, so far.....
 
Madman Madman ,Dan, Nice work all round, that is an impressive and imposing structure, you have captured the look and character, the entrance way is especially captivating.
 
To be fair...
Dan has just had new flooring laid, so not really had time to make it look 'lived-in' yet. ;)

There is a little more space to spread out, in the US.
I would guess he marvelled at how we managed, in our quaint little hovels, over here? :D

I especially like the window on the world outside. - It does look a nice environment to make a mess in and be creative?
Then there is his railway upstairs.
:envy::nod:

PhilP
 
dunnyrail said:
Nice work, I am very interested in how you have managed the curved tower bit?
Click to expand...

The curved tower is a section of 3" PVC schedule 40 pipe. To get the horizontal mortar joints, I set the blade on my table saw to about 1/16" above the table. Using the rip guide and crosscut sled in conjunction, I rotated the pipe over the spinning blade. As each joint was finished, I moved the rip guide 1/2", creating a 12" high stone in G scale. The vertical joints are only pencil marks at this point.

I created the horizontal joints on the walls in much the same manner. The vertical joints I made using a cold chisel and hammer. Since the PVC sheet goods are soft, the cold chisel method worked well. However, the PVC pipe is hard, so I am working out a way to create the vertical joints on the tower. My brain hasn't worked it out quite yet.
 
PhilP said:
To be fair...
Dan has just had new flooring laid, so not really had time to make it look 'lived-in' yet. ;)

There is a little more space to spread out, in the US.
I would guess he marvelled at how we managed, in our quaint little hovels, over here? :D

I especially like the window on the world outside. - It does look a nice environment to make a mess in and be creative?
Then there is his railway upstairs.
:envy::nod:

PhilP
Click to expand...

That window was salvaged from a job I was doing at the Germantown Boys and Girls Club in Philadelphia. There were several of these half moon windows at the top of the walls of the auditorium. The window contractor was removing them and replacing them with insulated glass and aluminum windows of the same design. I asked him to save one or two for me, which he did.

While the new windows are more efficient, the muntins are applied to the surface of the glass with a ten year garuntee. That was 1994. A few years later we were doing a job at the Germantown Friends School, just around the corner from the GB&GC. I drove by the GB&GC on the way to work one day and some of the munitions had fallen off.

So the old wood and single glazed windows lasted around 100 years. Granted, they required painting and new putty once in awhile, but the new factory painted green windows are already failing and the green paint is fading.

So let's see, one hundred years of maintaining wood windows, or thirty years and the state of the art windows need to be replaced.....:banghead:
 
PhilP said:
To be fair...
Dan has just had new flooring laid, so not really had time to make it look 'lived-in' yet. ;)

There is a little more space to spread out, in the US.
I would guess he marvelled at how we managed, in our quaint little hovels, over here? :D

I especially like the window on the world outside. - It does look a nice environment to make a mess in and be creative?
Then there is his railway upstairs.
:envy::nod:

PhilP
Click to expand...

I am impressed how you guys do the wonders that you do in the space available. Before Ian Thompson moved to the countryside in the Cotswolds, I visited him in his "Row" or "Town" house. He did some amazing work in that small space. Now he lives in a house that is on the edge of a farm, with a shop that fits his creativity. Here is a photo of us with him and Lucy in their new home, on our recent trip.

IMG_1092.jpeg
 
Paul M said:
A hot chisel pushed into the plastic? Just a thought, I've not tried it
Click to expand...

Some years ago I made an attachment for my soldering iron with a chisel point, cuts (melts) plastic and polystyrene.
 
David1226 said:
Among my tools, I have a cold chisel, but I have never heard of a hot chisel before, I don't want to start a heated debate.

David
Click to expand...
Hot chisel, as the name suggests is used by blacksmiths doing forge work:

www.etsy.com

Blacksmith Hot Chisel - Etsy UK

This Tools item by KensCustomIron has 296 favorites from Etsy shoppers. Ships from United States. Listed on 07 Dec, 2023
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Madman said:
The curved tower is a section of 3" PVC schedule 40 pipe. To get the horizontal mortar joints, I set the blade on my table saw to about 1/16" above the table. Using the rip guide and crosscut sled in conjunction, I rotated the pipe over the spinning blade. As each joint was finished, I moved the rip guide 1/2", creating a 12" high stone in G scale. The vertical joints are only pencil marks at this point.

I created the horizontal joints on the walls in much the same manner. The vertical joints I made using a cold chisel and hammer. Since the PVC sheet goods are soft, the cold chisel method worked well. However, the PVC pipe is hard, so I am working out a way to create the vertical joints on the tower. My brain hasn't worked it out quite yet.
Click to expand...
Oke you are high school with your table saw, but you havent figure out yet for the pvc pipe?
Make some jigs.
Put a sheet of wood on top of your table saw, and fix it steady. push/turn your sawblade higher and higher till you have a decent slot.
Make two pieces of wood or also with plywood of 10x10cm/4x4 inch.
Cut a hole in the centre on the diameter of your pipe.
Fix the whole jig again on your table saw.
Adjust the hight of your blade and run the pvc pipe thru.

Or if you have a jig saw, make that one into a table.
Ill hope you understand what i tried to explane

Dremel? router? small endmill in a standing drill?
Wood chisel and a small stroke with a hamer?

With kind regards Igor
 
justme igor said:
IMG_7893.jpegIMG_7894.jpegOke you are high school with your table saw, but you havent figure out yet for the pvc pipe?
Make some jigs.
Put a sheet of wood on top of your table saw, and fix it steady. push/turn your sawblade higher and higher till you have a decent slot.
Make two pieces of wood or also with plywood of 10x10cm/4x4 inch.
Cut a hole in the centre on the diameter of your pipe.
Fix the whole jig again on your table saw.
Adjust the hight of your blade and run the pvc pipe thru.

Or if you have a jig saw, make that one into a table.
Ill hope you understand what i tried to explane

Dremel? router? small endmill in a standing drill?
Wood chisel and a small stroke with a hamer?

With kind regards Igor
Click to expand...

Thank you for your input, Igor. I am not sure that I fully understand your instructions. Sometimes the simplest method is the best solution. Most times, when I am working on a project and hit a roadblock, I take a break from the project. Even if it is just to get a cup of coffee and relax. That is when new ideas seem to pop into my head. I took my Dremel tool with a small circular blade and made the vertical joints, one at a time.
 
IMG_7895.jpegIMG_7896.jpegIMG_7897.jpegYesterday, I made more progress on harry Potter's castle. I always make sketches prior to starting a project. I will add these to my binder of drawings made over many years. maybe someone in the future will appreciate them.....:wondering:
 
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