Hello from Holland

[ShadowHawk141]

Hi,


I'm Elko from Holland and I'm new to Papermodeling.
When I was young(er) I have been doing alot of plastic modeling especially Star Wars. Thrue time most of my models have somehow dissapeared and now that I grow older and have a bit more time on my hands I realy want to pick-up my hobby again (collecting and building Star Wars models).
Two problems come up :

1. The models I like are very hard to get these days.
2. If you find one, on ebay for instance, the prices are way to high
for my wallet.

While I was searching the internet I noticed some hits in google regarding papermodeling. At first I thought naaah that's just paper !!
Wow was I wrong. When I searched a bit further I came across various sites and this forum realy got me interrested. I read some topics and saw some examples of what you guys make. I'm stumped to say the least.
The models you guys make are fantastic and got me all exited.
Finaly a way to restart my hobby and make the models I like the best and at a reasonable and affordable price.

I have made some paper models in the past as a kid, a couple ships, the Eifeltower, the sort you could buy at toystores.
So I'm not totaly unfamilliar with papermodeling and I know I liked making them back then.

I'm realy looking forward to start my fist model the only question I have is, can I print those models on my Canon printer ? and what kind of paper should I use ?

Anyways,

I'm allready thankfull for the exitement you guys gave me eventhough you haven't said a word to me yet

I know I have to learn a lot yet but I hope I can contribute to this forum as much as I can learn from reading it.

Cheers,
Elko

 

[Rogerio Silva]

Welcome

HI and welcome!

First of all, our moderators will answer your introduction message, and tell you where to find rules and all related stuff. Make sure you follow their instructions, but don't worry! Although they "run a tight ship", they will soon become your best buddies here. Zealot is a FANTASTIC environment to learn and share experiences.
I have recently joined Zealot and the world of papercraft. I have a past just like yours, and the best now is paper models get people even more stunned than plastic, because they just can't believe what you did! After all, just like you wrote, it's just paper...:-o
Answering your questions, paper usually varies, depending on the complexity and (mainly) the size and final weight of the model. The bigger, the heavier, and you'll need some thicker paper (150 gsm, 180 gsm...). For more detailed, smaller pieces, you may want to use thinner paper (110, 120 gsm).
I have built a few models now, and the results have been very good, using 120-150 gsm paper. If you want to build armors and helmets that you can later fiberglass, paint and wear, than 180gsm would be the minimum, IMHO (in my humble opinion).

 

[Rhaven Blaack]

Welcome to the forum.
You have come to the right place for Star Wars (and anything else SCI-FI for that matter).
There are many members here that are heavily into Star Wars and are willing to give you all the advice that you need (and want for that matter).

To get you started though, here are a few sites that have GREAT Star Wars models:

http://starwars.pl/stuff_tf_modele_slawek.php (For these models, you will need pepakura viewer. Which can be found here: http://www.tamasoft.co.jp/pepakura-en/download/viewer.html)

http://www7a.biglobe.ne.jp/~sf-papercraft/index.html (just look in the Sci-fi section)

http://www.papercraftmuseum.com/?s=Star+Wars (This site only hosts others models, so you may find that other websites may have the same thing.)

Thank should keep you busy for a few days. If there is a specific model that you are looking for, we can help you find it.

As for printing, the best printers are inkjet printer. Laserjet really is not that good for such.

What Rogerio said about the paper is pretty spot on.

If you have any further questions, please feel free to ask and we will do what we can to help you (or at least point you in the right direction.

Once again welcome aboard, and I hope you enjoy yourself here.

I look forward to seeing your work.

 

[johanvanacker]

The more time I spent reading threads on this forum, the more worried I get ...
Not enough time to build all these beautiful models !
Aaaarrrgh, so many choices to make !

 

[silveroxide]

Be-lated welcome. One of the things about this forum, is that it is Sci-fi heavy but there is an abundance of the other topics as well. Even the railroad section which is as old as the site, is a smaller forum but there are so many other items that can be transferable over to the railroad section as well, like the architecture and almost all of the vehicle, heck, even though there are so many models to choose from, they can all compliment each other in a diorama setting. Enjoy what the forum has to offer and see you around the forum.

 

[Zathros]

Your Canon printer should have no problem, unless it is a very small photographic one. 67 lb. and 119 lb. stock paper works well as both can be laminated to make anything thicker ou made need. Laminating paper is best doe using a plastic wrap to protect a heavy book from squeezing the paper together. Welcome aboard!

 

[ShadowHawk141]

Thank you everyone for the warm welcome.

Today I have purchased a couple things I still needed to get started.
Problem is there are so many fantastic models out there that it's hard to choose my first model.

When I made my pick and and there's some progress I'll try and post some pictures.

Thanks also for the tips and url's it's much appreciated.

Cheers,
Elko