| Tarped Loads From The Garbage Tom Fassett |
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| As with any project I detail, I first have to give a little "background." I am always having "friendly" arguments with compatriots about the differences between enjoying the hobby as a modeler or an operator. Not only do I see myself involved as a modeler first, but I also find it challenging to think up ways to accomplish something in a manner other than running to the hobby shop and buying ready made items. I have been accused of being "cheap" quite often, and I consider this to be a compliment... ;- ) That said, I offer another project in the "Didn't Spend More That A few Pennies" series. In fact, the biggest job here is rummaging through the garbage for parts. A few years back I got irritated with the cat for his constant habit of exploring the garbage can and finding "alternate uses" for the contents. As I often try to see things from another's perspective, I decided to join him to see what he found so darn fascinating about all the detritus of daily living (at least for humans). I considered it an exercise in Zen behavior... ;- ) To my surprise, there were quite a few interesting things in there, when viewed from a different perspective. I must admit, batting things around like a mouse got tiresome after a few hours, so I began to look for other ways to use all those little "treasures." One thing I hade been planning to get to was to build some tarped loads for flatcars. I travel a lot and began looking with a critical eye at all the various things carried on the back of commercial trucks. The first thing that I realized is that the stuff they haul around covered with tarps is pretty much unrecognizable under all that canvas. The only real notable details were all the "protuberances" that created waves and bumps in the tarps. I began to realize that all one had to do was create some "non descript" forms and cover them with "model" tarp material to recreate the same look in miniature. Thus, the following "how to..." |
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| Here are all the parts used to create the project. I went to great lengths to be sure that every scrap I used really did come from the garbage. On the extreme left are a couple of cotton swabs. In the upper left are various little bits of junk that no longer had any "original" value--a broken knob, a cracked mirror tab, an old strainer off the faucet, a drinking straw and a, um, thingamabob from something... ;- ) The card stock from the glue package is used for the base, cellophane for the tarp. |  FIGURE 1 |
| The first step is to glue all the little bits together into something that might resemble a piece of machinery. The important thing to consider here is where things can be placed to create "elevations" in the tarp. As you can see from the picture to the right, what we have would be pretty "toy like" if we just painted it and stuck it on a flatcar. Fortunately, we have another important step to go... |  FIGURE 2 |
| The next step is to cut off
a piece of cellophane that when draped over the model leaves about a half
inch on each side. Start by wrapping the edge of the cellophane
under one side and glue it to the base. Then do the other side,
stretching it a bit as you go. Try not to keep it too smooth or you
will end up with a perfectly even surface (works good for hamburger
patties, but not here). Next, do the ends in a fashion similar to
what one does when wrapping a gift. Basically, push in the center,
then fold the sides in and over the center and pull down around the
base. Glue each fold as you go. Next, I poke around creating
"ripples" in the cellophane by stretching certain little areas
that border details glued on the model. I do this by carefully
stretching the cellophane with my fingertip. This reduces the
"perfection" of the wrap. The next step is use a hair blow-drier (or other mild heat source) to warp and stretch the cellophane further. Be careful as too much heat will melt holes in the thin plastic. Finally, I spray paint the tarped load with a flat oil based paint. I use cheap spray paint as it has a tendency to "craze" plastic due to its caustic nature. Here, this is a good thing. It will add more detail to the tarp. I then add a final layour of Dullcoat. |
 FIGURE 3 |
| Here is the finished
project sitting on a flatcar. Total amount of time spent on
it? About 5 minutes (not counting the time it took for the paint and
decals to dry). Notice that most of the detail of the original model
is covered up. all that is showing is the indistinct shape of the
original piece with a few things sticking out here and there. Another great thing about this project is it allows one to use all those little bits of decals left over that just don't seem to have a use on specific models. I have noticed that tarps have all sorts of things stenciled on them that only make sense to the user or shipper. I also try not to get the decals lined up too squarely as they are rarely even on a tarp that has been wrapped around am "imperfect" shape. This particular load is painted olive drab and is one of a set of military loads I am working on for my nephew as he has a layout based loosely on a military base. I use a lot of numbers on military tarp loads as this is what I see going down the highway. |
 FIGURE 4 |
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Enjoy, |
