Spray cans and airbrushes are favoured tools with modellers because of the smooth and life-like finishes that they can create on a model. For many newcomers, this can be a tricky art to master and can take time to achieve. Some may be less than...

Wooden parts supplied with some kits can be quite thick and can offer significant resistance when a standard hobby knife is used to cut them. Additionally, modellers may have to contend with the inherent grain of the wood which can also make...

For many modellers, part of the fun of assembling a layout or a diorama is to create their own buildings. Although there are many manufacturers who supply building kits in a variety of mediums, including plastic, resin and card it can be a...

There has been a trend in recent years for plastic kit manufacturers to create what are sometimes called 'multi-media' kits. These generally include a mix of part types including standard injection moulded plastic, resin, photo-etch and sometimes...

There are a number of different types of Cyanoacrylate or CA glue and each type has specific characteristics which help to determine where best to use them. CA Glues are readily identified by their respective viscosities. Regardless of...

The hairspray technique is a process used to add chipping effects to the surface of a model, using a can of aerosol hairspray. Unlike other approaches to chipping, such as the foam sponge technique, the hairspray technique looks to release an...

Photoetched parts are small parts made of metal, manufactured using the photo etching technique. This technique allows very fine and intricate parts to be created. Typical examples are seat belts, buckles, mudguards, rivets, handles, handrails,...

Inevitably in most modelling projects, there is a requirement for the clean-up of parts prior to assembly. This may be as a result of imperfections left over from the moulding process, or simply as a result of unwanted plastic burrs when parts are...

Many modellers like to weather various aspects of their layouts in order to create realistic weather or age-related effects. There are a number of different ways to do this including washes, pigments or specific painted-on effects. These can be...

A feather edge is a soft blending of the demarcation line between different colours or tones so one gently fades into the other. This can be difficult to achieve with brush painting but an airbrush lends itself well to this technique. There are a...

Most modellers tend to underestimate the size of trees. Obviously, the size will depend on the tree but oaks can grow to 30 to 40m (that is 100ft tall), pine trees are 50 to 60m (200ft tall) and beech trees are 12 to 18m (40 to 60ft tall)....

There are four different options for track curve radius for N gauge and the largest is referred to as 'fourth' radius and has an internal radius of 333.4 mm or a little over 13 inches. If larger radius options are required then there is the...