If you are like me you started scratchbuilding back in the days when as kids we would go around in the summer months picking up popsicle sticks and with a pen knife, string some wire maybe and some rubber cement build things. Nothing ever lasted as the rubber cement we used just wasn't up to the task. From that very humble beginning I graduated into balsa wood then into bass wood with white glue and then the newer wood glues. Somewhere along the line I started with styrene and lately all of my scratch building has been with styrene. With all the styrene scratchbuilding supplies available it is a lot faster and easier to say the least. My biggest problem with wood was warpage. I kept a large assortment of bricks and other heavy objects to use as weight to keep a part from warping before the glue dried. Even then I wasn't out of the woods because the part could warp when you painted it. For the most part styrene doesnt have those problems. Does anyone scratchbuild in wood anymore?
Yes, I do. Not so much though with N scale, but I do! In HO scale right now....I am building logging flats out of wood to match the prototype. I enjoy working with wood, and the resulting "real wood" look is worth the effort! In N scale I have built a couple of small shed like buildings and because of the small size didn't get the warping! I also like old wooden kits...they are so much fun to build!
