Asphalt Shingles

[SAH]

What are you folks using to replicate asphalt shingle roofing?  The roof condition will be in good repair.  Some texture to the surface is desirable but I'm not looking for a run down look as with Paper Creek Models offerings.

Steve

[Ian MacMillan]

Northeast scale models has a nice selection of them. They also have new sheets where they are already assembled, and you just have to cut the sheet to fit.

[SAH]

I ordered some from Northeastern, AMB and GCLaser this morning.  Should be interesting to see what the differences are.

Steve

[wm3798]

I use printed sheets.  By the time you scale a shingle down to N, you have an impossibly thin piece of material. 


Not the greatest picture in the world, but you get the idea.

Lee

[bsoplinger]

Just caught the add today when I was reading the current N Scale Railroading for the Northeastern Scale Models offering. Please fill us in on these one you have them in hand.

[Sokramiketes]

I ordered some from Northeastern, AMB and GCLaser this morning.  Should be interesting to see what the differences are.

Steve

AMB are the nicest I've used.  The Northeastern ones look good.  I picked up a few packages at NSC this year, but haven't used them yet.  I'm told you have to be a little carefull cutting small sections out of the assembled sheets since they arn't attached completely along the length, just tacked in a few spots. 

I don't like the GCLaser ones at all.  The laser beam is too wide or something, because there's a lot of air space between adjacent shingles.

[SAH]

Here is a photos of the three brands applied to a test roof.



Northeastern SM is at bottom.  Very good looking but perhaps a bit oversized.  They recco using double sided tape on the  back to keep them from coming apart when cut.  I think they are correct.  My only problem with them is the thickness of the assembly scales out to nearly 6".  After going to the trouble of using etched brass windows and framing them with near scale strip, I'm not about to place a 6" high shingle pile on top of my gabled roof.  If the roof was hipped it would be fine since the thickness would be hidden.

Next is the AMB LaserKit self sticks.  Good scale.  The self stick feature is tough to execute when applying the shingles to a built structure - Keeping them level / parallel is the issue.  Much easier to do if the roof is flat on the work surface I'll bet.  Assembled thickness is not too bad.  I'll be using these on another model eventually.  They must be painted - Might be a drawback for some.  For my sample I used a wash of Polly Scale tarnished black.  Takes paint well.

The GCLaser is next highest on the roof.  Mr. Skibbe hit it right on.  Not as good as the others.  Tough to install and don't look as good.  WAY to thick.  That's too bad too because they have the widest variety of styles, including scalloped shingles in brown that I'll need on another of the Spencer structures.  I'll have to play with them some to see if I can get them to work.  Best insalled with the roof flat on the work surface.

I think I'll play with doing my own on the computer too.  Lee is right about thickness.  Figuring out a way to suggest texture without actually creating it in 3D might be the way to go, at least for gabled roofs.

Steve

[wm3798]

An actual size asphalt shingle is a three foot sheet with three 12" tabs cut in it.  The exposed surface is approximately 5".  That works out to .075" x .03125" for each exposed tab.  Since tabbed shingles are laid out in an alternating pattern, similar to brick, you could use Plastruct brick sheet with some success.  Probably the TT or HO versions.

If you want to use the materials you discuss above, you can disguise the thickness of it by extending your fascias and eave boards up to meet the surface of the roofing.  Typically a fascia/rake board is going to be 6" wide.

Lee

[SAH]

If you want to use the materials you discuss above, you can disguise the thickness of it by extending your fascias and eave boards up to meet the surface of the roofing.  Typically a fascia/rake board is going to be 6" wide.

Lee

That is how I'll probably approach it - on the next model.  The fascia board on the current project are already installed.  If I made it wider it would look pretty funny too.  I guess I shoulda checked into roof material first.   :  I'll figure a way around it somehow.

Steve

[SAH]

Here's a peak at what I've come up with.





Which do you think looks better:  light (top photo) or dark shingles?

Steve

[3rdrail]

Assuming you are going to place the building in a location subject to the normal interior lighting, I believe the lighter roof will look more realistic. Dark colors tend to obscure details and make objects look smaller.

[Chris333]

Steve, I like the patch work. I assume they are both the same just the bottom is darker?

Speaking of shingles...

Does anyone know of High res roofing photo's I could print out? In Z scale even paper seems too thick so a photo printed out would be the way to go.

[SAH]

Steve, I like the patch work. I assume they are both the same just the bottom is darker?

Speaking of shingles...

Does anyone know of High res roofing photo's I could print out? In Z scale even paper seems too thick so a photo printed out would be the way to go.

Correct.  Same image printed on two different color sheets.

You could rent a helicopter and shoot your own roof images.   ;D ;D

You're right though.  In Z, why not build the entire structure from photo images?  Feb and Mar 06 Mainline Modeler had an artcile by Vic Roseman about using using photographs to build structures.  Stunning.  Heck, I've had more than one person tell me the mock-ups I did to determine structure size for my module could easily do as final.  Of course these were HO modelers who in the next breath claimed N scale was too small to see the detail anyway.   :  Will they ever learn?

Steve

[wm3798]

You could try sampling this...  They have blocks like this for a variety of styles and colors at www.owenscorning.com.  Select the product tab from the menu.

Lee

(EDIT)  Here, I did the hard part...
http://www.wmrywesternlines.net/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/Grey_Shingle_Roof.JPG

[Chris333]

Cool idea.

Found this:
http://www.speedimagery.com/sample-downloads/roof_shingles_lead_pattern.jpg