General Instructions:
1. Print your building(s) on the right paper! 60# or higher gives your buildings stability. I prefer 110#.
You would think that, especially in Z gauge, small pieces like chimneys and steps would be much
easier to work with at 24# or a light photo paper, but I’ve found the thinner papers bend and fold too
easily to be workable, especially when wet with glue. Another consideration is photo paper. The
extreme flatness can give you better printed detail, but unless your printer is a laser or other fully
waterproof ink, it will smudge more easily to a random touch. On copy paper or card stock the ink
soaks into the paper a bit and usually stays put.
2. Be sure you can see well – the smaller the scale, the more visible a small error will be. A pair of
jeweler’s lenses is good, but an inexpensive pair of reading glasses will work just as well and is
available in a variety of strengths. The smaller the detail, the more magnification you need. In
fact, I sometimes stack several pairs.
3. For cutting out the parts you need either a cutting pad, a
sharp knife – preferably designed for model making – and a
good straight edge – metal is best. For the outer edges you
can also use scissors if they are sharp enough and you are
steady enough. The knife is best for inner edges as even the
best scissors will deform your paper.
4. Paper and ink are inexpensive. If you mess up a part, cut
(or print and cut) another one. If you mess up the whole
model, start over.
5. To fold thin paper, position the fold line over a straight
edge, clamp – if only with your fingers – and fold against
the edge. For thicker paper it’s best to lightly score the line
before folding: use your straight edge to guide the knife and don’t cut through the paper. For folding
toward you, score the back of the paper.
6. To attach parts together, use a good paper glue (white glue is good) sparingly. Too much glue oozes
out of the joints and looks bad if not caught and cleaned up quickly.
7.Glue only one joint at a time. Put glue on one side of joint. Place pieces together carefully and
clamp. For Z scale your best clamps are reverse tweezers (squeeze to open), locking tweezers and,
best, hemostats (locking medical pliers). Let dry before gluing more onto those parts. In a pinch,
normal tweezers can be made to lock with gator clips, but whatever you use for clamps should be flat-
jawed so it doesn't leave wrinkles in the paper surface.
8. Have fun! It’s only a model, but with care you can make something fantastic!
NOTES:
* While the “floors” are optional, they make it much easier to keep the building square.
* On models that need them, I supply several extra chimneys in case of problems.
* I also supply extra doors and windows to cut out and paste over the printed ones for more realism. That’s optional. If you’re really into high scale you could try cutting only the
frames, leaving the doors and windows recessed. Further, you could cut the panes out of the windows (on the base model, too) and glue cellophane behind them. I have not
tried any of this yet. Feel free to add your own create.
* Get some fine soft pencils, pastels or other dry coloring media to cover all exposed edges of your pieces, especially the ones you glue on top of the model. This is not necessary if the piece is white.
Markers and paints, even "hard" acrylics tend to bleed into the paper and discolor the model's edges. While that could be used for "weathering," I expect getting it right to take a lot of work.
3. For cutting out the parts you need either a cutting pad, a