Where to get materials??

I'm just getting into scatchbuilding. I was playing around with coffee stirs and popsickle sticks and built a 10' on30 flat car. Pretty fun. I've built models and balsa planes, but everything always comes with materials. Where do you guys get your scatchbuilding fodder? I've looked at Hobbytown USA, and craft stores, but its either $1plus a stick or generic packs that aren't very useful. Can I buy a pack of scale wood? Is there a good way to rip balsa sheets down to lumber strips that works better than a ruler and knife? How about styrene? Whats the best source? Everybody builds with styrene on here in all shapes and sizes but where can I buy it? I just hate to spend a buck on a 1/8X1/8X3ft piece espesially while learning. Maybe I'm just cheap, but RRing w 3kids makes it that way.
Thanks for any ideas!

BTW: I'm dicovering cardstock and printable windows and doors. great ideas! but i want to build with wood.

 

I can highly recommend Evergreen styrene sheets and many other shapes. A well-equipped hobby shop should stock a good assortment.

I never liked using balsa wood for modeling. It's hard (my experience) to cut very small pieces from it. Basswood is good, and I can't remember the name of the company, but they make lumber cut to scale (HO for sure, not sure about N scale). If you do a search on Walthers' website for scale lumber, you should find it.

Hope this helps a little.

 

Here's an idea-go back to the local Hobby Town (or other hobby shop) and buy a MASTER AIRSCREW BALSA STRIPPER tool, maybe about 6 bucks. Then you can buy sheet bass wood or balsa and make your own "sticks" of any size you want. This tool has a #11 blade set in an adjustable guide and you just set it to the width of the board you want and start cutting. It takes longer to explain than to do. While you're there, look at products and tools made for hobbies OTHER than model railroading, you will find some very useful things to help build your models. Of course, the local store SHOULD have the Evergreen and Plastruct styrene mentioned and some stores may actually have a stock of Grandt, etc. detail parts. (what a concept) Also, look at the store in the military model section, there are many 1:48 and 1:35 scale kits and details that are reasonably priced. I have bought kits with full tool sets for maybe 7 bucks which if marketed to "model railroaders" would be priced at 30 bucks! Look around at the local hobby store, yolu will be suprised at what you will find.
Woodie

 

You can order large sheets of styrene from Home | Plastic Tanks | Plastic Buckets | Plastic Bottles | Labware | Plastic Tubing | PVC Pipe | U.S. Plastic Corp.
. They are the Rubbermaid people, but they also do all kinds of plastic. If you have a company in your town that makes signs, chances are you can pick up a couple of large sheets from them, and save on the shipping. They may even be happy to give you scraps.

For that single piece of styrene to finish a project, get a For Sale or Beware of the Giraffe sign at Wal-Mart. You're going to paint it anyway, right? Styrene is styrene.

You can order pre-cut lumber to HO scale at Northeastern Scale Lumber Company.

 

At your local Wallyworld or similar discount box, generally in the hardware section, but not all stores have in same place, so you may have to ask, get the plastic, garage sale/yard sale/no tresspassing type signs. They come in a couple of sizes, the biggest is around 18" x 30", and is about .70 mm thick.
They only cost a couple of bucks each. use the painted (lettered) side as the interior side of the walls.
Also wander around your local Michaels craft store, the'res loads of good stuff there.

 

What sort of scratch built buildings do you wish to make? That will help determine the material you'll be using. Styrene is good for more modern, metal type buildings. Older, frame, clapboard, or sheathed buildings are better done with wood.

Pre-cut scale lumber is expensive. The balsa stripper is a good investment. You can use it on both wood and styrene.

Your local hobby shop should have selections of Evergreen sheet styrene. IIRC the sheet packs come with 3 sheets in each. More than enough for a few small projects.

Basswood is preferable to balsa as it it more closed grain. When you stain balsa wood vs basswood you'll see the difference right away. Balsa is fine for underlying structure but not the visible portions; basswood is better. As mentioned previously, because balsa is less dense it's harder to cut smaller pieces of it accurately with a knife. The open grained nature makes it prone to crumbling/splintering on real tiny pieces.

If you're going to strip your own scale lumber then you'll need to at least buy several thicknesses of sheet stock (either wood or plastic). Not all lumber is 2" thick. You may need other thicknesses.

Depending on your structure you may end up using mixed media (some plastic, some wood, some paper). Plan how you want to build it and decide what material will be used where. that way you'll only buy what you need rather than spend on excess.

hth

-G-