{"id":57,"date":"2023-07-22T21:33:44","date_gmt":"2023-07-22T21:33:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/david.reisdorf.org\/site\/?p=57"},"modified":"2023-07-26T23:57:40","modified_gmt":"2023-07-26T23:57:40","slug":"creating-a-stucco-post-office","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/david.reisdorf.org\/site\/creating-a-stucco-post-office\/","title":{"rendered":"Creating a Stucco Post Office"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Image<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In June 2023, I built a post office for my model train layout. The building is somewhat representative of a post office near Odessa, Texas. It is built with around 58 pieces of wood, as well as cardstock (for the roof) and plastic molded windows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Assembling the Walls<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I used wall panels that had already been partially die-cut from a piece of thin plywood (from an old kit). After using a chisel to remove the wall pieces, I used a Dremel-style rotary tool to smooth the edges of the components.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To reinforce corners, I cut short lengths of stripwood (like tiny dimensional lumber) to provide an additional gluing surface. Stripwood was also used to reinforce longer wall lengths. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stripwood was added at the base perimeter of the structure to create the appearance of a concrete foundation and a sidewalk lining the front. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other Wall Components and Doors<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The black-colored section at the front of the building is built exclusively with different dimensions of stripwood, as are the grey-colored doors. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Removing Imperfections on Walls<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Imperfections on the walls (gaps, chipped corners, etc.) were covered after assembly with joint compound. It was smoothed before paint was applied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wall Texture and Color<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The tan-colored wall sections were covered with two somewhat thick coat of acrylic interior home paint, which was stippled on with a foam brush. This paint provided color and a stucco-like texture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The black-colored section was painted with a thinner black acrylic craft paint to replicate the appropriate weathered wood look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adding the Roof<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The roof is made with two pieces of cardstock cut to shape and scribed with the side of a screwdriver. To add further depth, stripwood was glued to the edges of the cardstock. The roof was painted with acrylic paints and weathered with washes of acrylic paint and chalks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Asphalt Parking Lot<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The parking lot consists of joint compound smoothed over a plaster foundation. It was painted with a coat of acrylic paint (stippled on with a foam brush). A white charcoal pencil was used to replicate the lines separating parking spaces. Black-colored chalk was used to replicate the oil spots and grime often found in these areas. Stripwood (painted yellow) was used to create the ramp and the parking blocks. I had the mailbox on hand already.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sign<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The sign is based off one found in Presidio, Texas. Stripwood (for support) is sandwiched between two pieces of printed paper.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In June 2023, I built a post office for my model train layout. The building is somewhat representative of a post office near Odessa, Texas. It is built with around 58 pieces of wood, as well as cardstock (for the roof) and plastic molded windows. Assembling the Walls I used wall panels that had already […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":59,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-57","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-building-the-model-railroad"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/david.reisdorf.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/david.reisdorf.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/david.reisdorf.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/david.reisdorf.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/david.reisdorf.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/david.reisdorf.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":114,"href":"https:\/\/david.reisdorf.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57\/revisions\/114"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/david.reisdorf.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/david.reisdorf.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/david.reisdorf.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/david.reisdorf.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}