A very very modified Metcalfe building -

[Malcolm 0-6-0]

A couple of years ago Railway Modeller issued a free low relief Metcalfe shop front. Now the building style and obviously its low relief nature was not much use to me but the window and door were. So I discarded the rest and used the shop display window and door part to scratch build out of card a single fronted two storey shop to stand at the end of one row of the terrace houses.

The first pic is of the Metcalfe kit packet while the second is what I built from it. Importantly it matches the footprint of the terrace houses so it can back onto the same back lane way. I've still to put a few advertising posters on that large blank wall.

Metcalfe Low Relief Shop Kit 1.JPG

Shop 1 1.JPG

[Bandit Mick]

Lovely modelling Malcolm. I like Metcalfe models. Any suggestions of what I could use and modify to produce a run down country pub adjacent to a colliery? Any ideas would be much appreciated.

[bulleidboy]

That looks very good Malcolm - what would look good on the end wall would be a "ghost" sign - this is one that was put up many years ago and has now faded - the are advertised at the back of Hornby Magazine.
http://www.ghost-signs.com/

[Mr Bones]

Very nicely done. Thanks for sharing, given me ideas.

[Malcolm 0-6-0]

Lovely modelling Malcolm. I like Metcalfe models. Any suggestions of what I could use and modify to produce a run down country pub adjacent to a colliery? Any ideas would be much appreciated.

Now that's a difficult one. I suppose it depends on the location of the colliery in relation to a town. Metcalfe do a couple of pubs - one is a coaching inn which really would be out of place near a colliery while they have a variant of the Corner Store kit that could be used as a base. But the problem with Metcalfe kits is that they are difficult to do in "run down" condition because basically they are quite neat and tidy. Plus being printed card the model surface is very hard to work because any abrasion will quickly remove the printed detail.

I scratchbuilt the pub for my layout from Wills brick and slate etc with Evergreen for trim etc. But while displaying some years of coal smoke induced grime it isn't actually rundown - just dirty. The reason I did that was that I was at the time still uncertain of how I could get away from the inherent 2 dimensionality of the basic Metcalfe kit.

Now that I have found out how to beat that I'd consider the Metcalfe corner pub but with significant changes so that it doesn't just look like the Corner Shop kit with a liquor licence It could perhaps be altered to look rundown but you would really have to find a means of replicating three dimensional stressing of the surface and that isn't easy with card - it's easier with plastic.

[Malcolm 0-6-0]

That looks very good Malcolm - what would look good on the end wall would be a "ghost" sign - this is one that was put up many years ago and has now faded - the are advertised at the back of Hornby Magazine.
http://www.ghost-signs.com/

Thanks BB - those ghost signs are really well done. I've been thinking about them for some time while mulling over the non-railway related structures for the layout.

[Malcolm 0-6-0]

Very nicely done. Thanks for sharing, given me ideas.

Thanks Mr B - it gave me some ideas as well. In fact the other day I bought one of their sets of three low relief shops to consider how parts from them might be used to fill out a developing gap in part of a streetscape. I wouldn't be using the low relief function but creating another larger fronted building. As to what it will be I haven't a clue at the moment. The big problem with the low relief shop fronts is that they don't do low relief shop backs, and as we know not all shops are just terrace houses with a shop tacked on the front.

I was looking at a couple of Superquick kits I have with the idea of using parts of them if possible but the printed plumbing detail etc. plus their different alignment renders them difficult to source parts from. The only usable bits were the printed windows.

[Bandit Mick]

Thanks Malcolm. I may treat myself to the Metcalfe shop/post office and see what I can do with it over the Christmas hols.

[Mountain Goat]

Very nicely done.

[Montfort]