Thanks Robert, and thanks Dan I'm sure it would work for some but maybe too ethereal for me – I’m fidgety so need a beat to focus down into that zone. The section from the 7 minute mark onwards of this classic takes me there every time, unbelievably for nearly 50 years;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBca3xf-j3o

For sure a classic. Still remember my "godmother" asking me what I want for my birthday, Ummagumma. Ok, what is that? Her daughter explained, saved the day.
She actually listened to the double player at that time at the record shop, she was confused. I got it for my 16th birthday. After that she gave me "a fist full of money" to do what like with it.

Kind regards,

Robert Jan

And the hits keep comin' !!
J

OK so as the Floyd-fueled tram rolls on (despite groans from rockers in the back row no doubt) the cabs got tidied up & finally benched, their windows & retaining frames can wait until later because…



…the compartment windows must be done to keep up some momentum on overall progress. As laborious as Tram 1, this side alone taking too many hours over several days…



Improvement #’s whatever were to make the frames slightly finer & the outer window ledge more accurate.



I managed to slightly improve technique for making the frames & frame-surrounds by ditching the ruler altogether. Although blessed with good eyesight (needing just 1.5 reading lenses for close work according to a recent eye test) some days I can’t seem to measure my way out of a paper bag due to some kind of dyslexia reading millimeters off a steel ruler. So I just put each styrene strip against the framework & marked/cut it directly instead. Alas this still didn’t eliminate slight variations of typically 0.5mm which means each frame only fits perfectly in its own surround, so they all have to be individually numbered again. If I was enjoying this more I might be amused that a side-effect of ruler-less marking is that the frames & panes fall out under gravity, but I’m gambling a couple of layers of primer & paint will wedge them in place. Reminds me of an ancient joke about not telling the difference between putty & vaseline & the windows falling out, but that’s not important right now.

For late-comers to this project the frames need to be glue-free/removable, because in the diorama narrative the windows on at least one side of this tram will need to be replaced (half way through the final photo-shoot) by alternates shattered by the grenade blast, which is why I needed to test this product early…



The Limonene didn’t stick but PVA/Elmers works perfectly. The picture reference shows blast damage on ordinary glass in an office block & I’m assuming inter-war tram glass was no different…



Child’s play, just throw any old shards into a frame in 2 minutes right? Well no, this first trial took over an hour & I still need more practice to make it look right, there’s a whole world of shattered-glass dynamics to discover…and then replicate for 6 or 7 more panes with reasonable uniformity yet also variability. The damage had two causes, pressure wave plus shrapnel…it’s just occurred to me this means I’ll also need to inflict shrapnel hits on the coachwork & woodwork mid-shoot. Ouch, that realization’s about as welcome as a fart in a spacesuit because it’ll mean using some rough handling on a relatively fragile structure at a critical moment. Hmmm…



Artefakt product review: Easy to glue, trim, and scratch cracks onto - you’re the ultimate judge regarding appearance & how I’ve used it, but I’m giving it 10/10 as a great diorama accessory

Just awesome work going on here as usual. I may sound redundant in my comments but I feel the need to not be a lurker.
The newest work leaves me,well...shattered.
J

Yes,shattered,just like one of my favorite Stones songs,
J

Glass looks really good Tim .
I was gonna make a Debbie Harry reference but ....... never mind .

https://youtu.be/49SRGhL3i3Y

Thanks guys for the um wisecracks, it was always a contest between Debbie Harry & Annie Lennox for relevant soundtrack so good choice, the former not such a pane. After this update it’ll be time for a windows shutdown, I’m sure everyone’s eyes are glazing over (I know mine are) so with apologies to only-moderately interested lurkers, another visit to the tram-shed to review Tram 2’s progress. Compartment frames done:



The cab outer-window frames are probably the worst job of all – if 0.5 mm off on measuring or cutting, bin it & start again…



Cab A done, Cab B done soon after…



For some reason I'm being prevented from completing this post. I Shall Return...

I Have Returned. Very strange, it's still blocking me. I'll try again later.

Tim, please don’t forsake us. Our island is counting on you!
And after all, you’ve got the best soundtracks!😁 ... “Heart of Glaas”🎶 — good one, Stuart!

Very enthusiastic lurker!🍺
—mike

https://youtu.be/JwYX52BP2Sk

Regards,

Robert Jan

Aw shucks Mike & thanks Robert Jan for keeping up the standard, a timeless classic if ever there was. Last night I began to think the Editors had installed a secret anti-wordplay device to shut me down, the text box just stopped accepting any inputs, words or images. But if this post loads, the fault must have been that I’d used the “less than” symbol in the text & it didn’t recognize it or anything else thereafter. Anyhow...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAgnJDJN4VA

and as I was saying…

As with the compartment frames, even an error of less than 0.5 mm means a cab frame will only fit properly in its designated place – the contrast between the white retaining frame and wooden outer frame will find it out every time, so they might as well be all individuals…



…and just in case anyone suspected I was fake-modelling i.e. recycling Tram 1 photos…



Cabs & compartment just dry-fitted but so far I’m content because it’s a far neater job & aligned all the way on both sides. The impossible tangle I got into with Tram 1’s cab side + diagonal windows is laid bare here, Tram 2’s are a big improvement. The coming week looks like doors, then internal finishing & then much wood-effect painting

Tim

Just got caught up on this massive undertaking. All I can say is wow. The detail and scratch building that you are doing here is epic. You, sir are a amazing modeler.

Shawn

Thanks Shawn, well as we can see some of the AFV & train guys in the other forums leave me for dead along with several Diorama exponents in this forum – they seem to know what they’re doing whereas I’m more of an accidental modeler blundering into problems & trying to scratch my way out. I got too cranky with it all & walked away last week but eventually got back in the cab.





Despite every effort at precision, check out the concave compartment walls…



…which have since almost straightened out all by themselves, wish I knew how. After finishing the compartment interior & painting, the tricky part – bonding the cabs to the compartment with exact 90° angles for the doors. Because the early surgery to shorten the cabs had irretrievably destroyed the original bracing, the cabs were liable to sag & reinforcing the joint underneath with anything less than steel rods wasn’t going to work so did some er lateral thinking. Step 1, cut accurate panels representing the doors…



Step 2 – glue the cab to the compartment letting gravity be my friend…



Step 3 – check alignment both sides & ends…



Step 4 – glue two 24mm cross-beams (forming the top frames for the doors) to hold the cabs in perfect horizontality…



yeah why not -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHOrpFeXUao



Result…



Then all doors & all windows/frames were dry-fitted (except in the wonkily-wedged entry doors which will wait until post-painting) & passed the fit test, the two central vertical poles await fixing-points in the ceiling…







I missed out scratching the window-catches in Tram 1…



I don’t mind the windows having a few streaks & scratches but for final dio photography looks like they’ll need anti-static treatment…



Avian Diorama Threats # 2 – while the rainbow lorikeets assembled expectantly in a nearby tree this kookaburra flew in for a closer look at the tram during this photo set on the balcony, presumably sourcing potential nesting material…



Its mate soon joined it & they volunteered a demoralizing review of my progress, something like this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VsPX1SjTsKk

Beautiful work Tim , very cool !! Yet there you go again making me cringe using that vise and balancing objects . Surely if I tried that all would crash and burn , an accidental brush with the elbow , an earthquake , a sneeze , a T-rex walking by the front of the house .......

Tim,
Love the bird video!
I'm sure they were laughing with you, not at you!
Dan

Very impressive work as always,
J

As if I were a passenger on the Tram, seeing it up-on-end leaves me quite dizzy! Yet somehow, I have faith that you, the conductor, will get it off of the MiniArt box+vise support concoction and will settle it onto its right track.🚊
And those birds are hilarious!🤣

Cheers!🍺
—mike

Been following your stunning work on this from the start, but was always told that one shouldn't interrupt an artist while he's creating a masterpiece. After all, who would dare to pester Picasso,, distract Da Vinci,, or f*** with Frankenstein?? Stunning work all around & look forward to seeing more progress!! Oh, may I also suggest a few tunes by "Men At Work?"

[quoteThe damage had two causes, pressure wave plus shrapnel…it’s just occurred to me this means I’ll also need to inflict shrapnel hits on the coachwork & woodwork mid-shoot.][/quote]
Will you need to build another tram to show all the broken glass that will have showered the insides ? Just a thought, your work is outstanding Tim. I look forward to each update.
Paul

Thanks as always guys – ain’t no thang about the vi*e, it was gently gripping low down the side walls so the pressure was mostly distributed along the joint with the floor – maybe that’s what almost straightened up the side walls. Sorry to up-end y’all on the launch pad, those chipmunk-like cries of alarm must have been everyone sliding down & squashing some lurkers against the end walls. The kookies are cute, it’s the last second of that clip that really cracks me up when one looks at the other as though to say “I don’t get it”. OK pertinent Men at Work soon – hmm “Overkill” or “It’s a mistake”?...tough choice!

Paul – yikes a FOURTH tram?? no the men in the white coats would take me away long before that ever happened. During the photoshoot after the grenade’s gone off I’ll whip off this tram’s roof (and its trailer’s), replace most of the window frames with substitute ones with broken glass on the side next to the limo, & sprinkle shards over the seats & floor. And replace the seated passengers with injured/fleeing ones. The best idea I can come up with about the associated damaged coachwork is to do that in advance to the other side of the tram which won’t be seen in pre-bomb shots, then spin it around for post-bomb shots…handily the tram’s construction’s virtually identical both sides/ends

After the recent bumpy ride we’ve accelerated into a smoother section, the hack’n’slash roof. My Tram 1 notes saved a lot of time although I’ve modified - hopefully improved - the modifications further. So for the legions of lurkers out there also building Prague trams here’s some more tips…



Forget the roof’s front lip, useless for conversion purposes. The above’s showing how much roof needs to be lost to centre above the “V” – 11mm. Below, the necessary surgery/bonding completed and on top of the walls a sturdier (than Tram 1’s) roofline support all the way round– thick along the sides (and a thinner strip continuing round the cab so that it’s easier to bend), the bonus being the still slightly concave compartment walls are forced straight…



This is a departure from Tram 1 where I glued the surrounding strip to the roof. At that time I was hedging my bets – the roof of the tram nearest Heydrich’s limo must be removable & I didn’t know if Tram 1 would turn out better than Tram 2. The problem with Tram 1 is that the roof doesn’t quite sit flush on top of the walls & it can show in close-ups, so for Tram 2 the strip’s glued to the body…



Held with tape I gradually glued the strip to its contact points round the cab so that after removing the tape for the final trim/glue-point the strip didn’t fly off.…



Now the whole roof assembly drops inside the surrounding strip and any unresolved fit imperfections will be hidden from 1/35th street-level. In fact I managed a much better job of the roof too so it sits 98% flat on top…



…and those dual-purpose centre-tabs on the underside of the roof wedge the roof down and further prevent the compartment walls from going concave like they keep wanting to.



Those little roof-window frames were a serious pain to measure/cut/glue again…



Now for various gauges of Evergreen paneling inside & over the roof & the power-pole apparatus. What these photos don’t show is how much reinforcing I’ve been able to dispense with having replaced the Limonene with standard extra-thin cement for this tram, I just can’t help bursting into song when I reach for the glue…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9EbR0ckb40

I think I’ve still got that white suit & brogues somewhere…

Hey Tim.
Beautiful work you do on those Trams (with a capital T) because they really stand out. Top modeling it is. If you share this to a site like: http://www.buntbahn.de/modellbau/viewforum.php?f=2 they probably fall off their seats.
Will be following this build, it's more than incredible to see this shape up.

Kind regards,

Robert Jan