Modern Chevron Gas Station

[Arlaghan]

Thanks guys. And to keep the ball rolling...

Here is another progress shot. The pumps are now 90% finished. Here is a zoomed in shot of one. All the needs to be done is: 1) make the nozzle housing for each octane rated gasoline, and of course 2) the hoses coming down from the top. Other details will be the squeegee compartment and perhaps some potted shrub in the center.

Sorry for the grainy look, but rather than the usual image reduction by 50% to 640x480, I cropped it to 640x480 instead, keeping the original zoom level. The Ford Woody is somewhat of an anachronism, but I don't own any modern true N-scale vehicles.

 

[Arlaghan]

Railway Jim: $10 on the Ford Woody at pump 8
Attendant: Would you like anything else?
Railway Jim: Well, yes... where are the nozzles?
Attendant: Probably the same place where my store interior is at... still stuck inside someone's imagination!

I think you can guess what's coming next!

 

[Arlaghan]

*Gasp* *Blush* ops:

Wow, thanks! I had no idea. It's never occured to me to do an article for MR... I don't even get any of the magazines (I'd like to, just haven't gotten around to ordering any) and wouldn't know the first thing to do to go about that. Has anyone ever done something similar? I think it would be neat to get into a publication! I should probably finish it first, though, right?

A progress note: (No pics yet) I'm thinking of using copper wire for the gas hoses... 20 awg stranded, separated... each strand measures 0.012" in diameter which comes out to approx 2" in N scale - seems about right to me. I hope it can take a coat of black paint without cracking... I will pre-form it beforehand.

 

[Arlaghan]

Ok, the painting of the copper wire didn't work out very well. Instead, I took a black Sharpie permanent marker to it and it came out nice. Here is the finished pumps:

 

[Arlaghan]

Another small step...

When you gotta go - You gotta GO! At least you've got a PLACE to go.

Nothing special about the door, but the handle is made from another strand of copper wire. And... how convenient, pick up a Pepsi on your way out!

 

[Arlaghan]

Thanks everyone. Good motivation to keep the ball rolling! Clark, in my hunt for gas station photos, I did come across one kit by one of those "German" companies... Don't remember if it was Vollmer or Faller or what. At any rate, it looks kind of modern for me, and prime material for kitbashing...

 

[Arlaghan]

Mark,

Sorry I haven't posted any updates on this project... been working on a few things simultaneously, and "thinking" on how to do the interior on this one. I'm a little stumped on that right now, and until I get the inside done (I'm revisiting how I will be lighting the structure) I hadn't planned to close off the doors yet.

But at least I DO have a plan for them: Basically they will be the same as the windows (the thin strips of gunmetal painted basswood trim) with the addition of maybe a little handle like on the restroom door. The glass will be acetate glued on the inside wall (the same piece will also serve as the windows along that same wall - a single piece of acetate the length of the building from the inside).

I've also decided that once the inside is completed, I don't really need any access to it, so I will likely glue the structure to it's sidewalk base. This will make adding the doors easier (and also explains why I need to wait to finish the inside).

 

[Arlaghan]

Time For a Tease!!!
Well, now that the holiday mayhem is over, I was able to concentrate on this project once again... while I haven't got a whole lot done, here's a little bit of foreshadow of what's to come!

In this picture you see the interior of the store. I added the following items:

Refrigerator units along the walls
An aisle of "stuff" down the center
A counter with a "lift out" for checkout
Cabinets with a counter behind the checkout

I've also started putting the glass in. You can barely tell by the photo (the scratches on my piece of plexiglass don't show up in the picture) but if you look closely, you can see the reflection of the "ICE" box. I need to do the other side and then put the "doors" and I'm put little people inside and the food mart is completed.

 

[Arlaghan]

And on with the teasing...

I know a lot of you are thinking "LIGHTITUPALREADYWILLYOU" and those of you who are anxious, here's a little look "inside."

I made "circuit boards" out of cardstock and inserted white LEDs. I folded down the leads for PARALLEL wiring of the LEDs. there are 6 LEDs underneath that poke out of the canopy and one angled LED that will backlight the Chevron sign. This is repeated on the other side and lights up the opposite Chevron sign as well. As I said before, I was disappointed with the incandescent light bulbs but now I can say I am completely satisfied with the LEDs level of brightness. The electrical tape is to insulate the top bulb from the leads of the bottom bulbs. Since they are "wired" in parallel, I only need one set of feeder wires per half, so a pair of wires goes through one of the columns one each end. The twisty tie you see is holding the wires in place underneath.

 

[Arlaghan]

Another view of the backlighting of the Chevron sign. Since LEDs work like flashlights, it works out rather well and having room inside to place it at a distance enables me to light up the whole thing pretty well. Sorry folks... no lit pictures until the very end!

 

[Arlaghan]

OK, this is the last one for now...

Here is a view from below the canopy, showing the 12 LEDs poking through little openings. Looking underneath the base, you see the feeder wires coming down the bottom and out the back. I put these feeders together into those "U" shaped electrical connectors, keeping everything in parallel. I will probably screw a terminal strip to the bottom of the base or to the module where power will be fed in. I still need to light up the interior of the food mart.

That's it for now. Enjoy!

 

[Arlaghan]

OK, I hope this is a better shot of the interior. Part of the interior is glued to the base, and part is glued to the structure, so if I separate them, you won't get a true feel of the things inside... hopefully from this picture you can.

Also, I've finished up the glass all around. I'm not 100% satisfied with the results and I have to admit that I got carried away with one thing or another and this aspect has slipped my attention. I think it shows.

At any rate, I did up on side of the building with the door to get in. I know someone was curious as to how I was going to do it. I pretty much did it the same way I framed with windows, plus I put little holes to allow me to insert another wire strand door handle. Here it is:

 

[Arlaghan]

Here you can see where the wires will be running up. 2 sets up the columns for the LEDs in the canopy, and 1 set through the restroom for the incandescent bulbs in the food mart. I am thinking up a way to replace these with LEDs as the yellow glow they emit, though bright enough, looks off with the white from the LEDs outside.

 

[Arlaghan]

TWO WEEKS LATE!!!

When store operator Rob got part of his money from silent partner Val, he didn't expect his opening day to be so far delayed. He was hoping for a grand opening in November but as we all know it's already into January of the following year - and there's still lots left to do! You can't open a gas station without installing the computer system that monitors the pumps, and the street sign still hasn't arrived from his franchise distributors!!!

Not to mention, two weeks after the scheduled date Mike's landscaping crew finally arrives to begin their work. They blame the delay on general contractor Larry, who was supposed to install the retaining wall, but Rob and Val know Larry was not at fault - the city would not process the permit necessary for the wall in time so it all had to wait. Meanwhile the bank expects to get paid back on its loan, and neither Val or Rob have seen a penny for their investments! Well, I guess two weeks late is better than never, and as you can see, Mike's crew stands behind their work. Here they are enjoying their lunch break. Mike was even kind enough to pose and wave to the photographer. And how lucky, the white blossoms are even in bloom!

Disclaimer: All characters in this short story are fictitious. Any similarity to actual persons, either living or otherwise, is purely coincidental!

 

[Arlaghan]

aartwmich, took a look at your website! You've got several cool hobbies going on there.

Val, silent partner is the best position to be in! You've already done your research and the location Rob has secured is great for this business! He does all the work and you share in the profits!

The sign will be exactly there, on that corner. I haven't decided how I'm going to go about it - it needs to be lit up... I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. For now, I still need to bring up the other walls and landscaping areas. I can finally see light at the end of the tunnel! (But with my luck, it's oncoming train!)

 

[Arlaghan]

Well, folks... The landscaping is completed and I put in the price portion of the street sign (Chevron logo is missing, but it's already all over the place). There's a few things I would like to add to this model, but in the spirit of "moving on" I will leave those to a time when I can dedicate myself to detailing. For now, I dub this puppy "COMPLETE"! (WOOO! Never thought the day would come!)

 

[Arlaghan]

And the moment several of you have been waiting for... the "Grand Lit Finale" or better known as "LIGHTITUPALREADYWILLYOU" time. Gosh... I sure hope it lives up to all the hype! ops:

 

[Arlaghan]

And last but not least, a closer up view showing the lights from underneath the canopy. I really am pleased with my new digital camera... this picture was taken in complete darkness and the light from the LEDs is nice and white. The yellow glow from the incandescent bulbs in the interior is very apparent in this pictures. Well... Enjoy!

 

[Arlaghan]

Originally posted by Freelancer
The only problem I see is that if it is supposed to be a modern gas station, the prices at the pump are much too cheap.

It's funny you should say that... someone on the Atlas forum said the prices were 20 cents too cheap as well. These prices came straight from one of my research photos that I took about 2 - 3 weeks ago... Gosh, how much is gas in other parts of the country!!!

 

[Arlaghan]

Gas prices certainly have soared lately. 93 octane was $2.04/gal today!

Anyway, here's an update: I put the components I got at radio shack. Now, with the wires going INTO the blue clip, all my LEDs are wired in parallel. Then FROM the blue clip, it's in series with a 470ohm resistor with the wires pointing down feeding DC power at 12 volts. So now, to change out a "light-board" I unscrew the little screws, take out the wires, and pull it out. I still need to figure out what to do with the 1.5v bulbs.