Started Building My Own Village.....

[Old Moparz]

.....Seriously. 


My son has these tiny plastic people that look to be the same scale as a Matchbox car. They were homeless, so I decided to help out & build them a house. Now I started something I have to go further with, which is to build a small layout on a piece of plywood. He said the house has no steps & it needs them. I said it's ground level & doesn't need them, but He wants steps. Now I have to cut a piece of wood to raise the house up & then carve some steps.

I made two styles of houses in the "Paint" program, a 2 story colonial & a 1 story ranch. I then changed the colors & printed several of them so they look different. I cut up some scrap wood, made a little wooden house, & then cut out & glued the printed paper onto it. He eagerly watched me make it, but got impatient & asked "When will it be done, Daddy?" I said "It'll be done when it's done, I never made one before & don't know." I asked him if he wanted a garage to go with the house, but rolled his eyes & said "No, I don't need one."   

I'll make one anyway. 

[Just 6T9 CHGR]

very ingenious sir

[moparguy01]

Make the garage at least twice as big as the house. That'll show her. 

[Afflyer]

Wow!  Now THAT is cool!  I would just make sure that the houses are in pretty good proportion to the Matchbox cars. 

Great work!

[Charger_Fan]

She said the house has no steps & it needs them. I said it's ground level & doesn't need them, but she wants steps. Now I have to cut a piece of wood to raise the house up & then carve some steps.

Remember...to help preserve sanity, keep saying to yourself "one day some other 'lucky' guy will have to put up with this crap" .

Make the garage at least twice as big as the house. That'll show her. 

That's a no-brainer...because hopefully that 'lucky guy' will also be a car guy!

[Judhudson]

Make her an auto restoration shop for your hot wheels

[Charger_Fan]

By the way Moparz... you have no room to complain...  




Once you put a "porch" on something like this, then you have room to bitch.
At least I didn't get suckered into a garage...although...if I did, it would have been made to fit something cooler than a Barbie Jeep.

[Arthu®]

"No, I don't need one."   

I'll make one anyway. 

can I say you do awesome stuff with your kid I never had anything to complain about but they never were that ingenious. Good job!

Arthur

[Old Moparz]

I think I'm having more fun making this stuff than my son will have playing with it.   

I used to love building things for my model railroad & I still have the HO scale accessories & my trains packed up in the attic. I showed them to him, but he's a little young to risk giving it to him to play with just yet. I can trust him with not breaking them, but it's his friends that I worry about. Every time I had given him something in the past, like a GI Joe jeep, as soon as a friend went home I'd discover something broken.

Anyway, I made a small layout with roads, parking, & grass on Saturday afternoon. He likes it so far, & convinced me to place one of the roads at one end with the parking spaces. I was going to do something different, but it's his, so that's the way it is, lol. I already had a 24"x 48"x 1/4" thick piece of OSB, so I went to the store to get some supplies. (That's 61 cm x 122 cm x 0.635 cm for you metric people.) I bought a cheap piece of thin carpet at the dollar store, a few cans of cheap spray paint, & started to pencil in the layout.

Once I had that done, I cut the carpet, painted it green, then painted the OSB piece flat black. I couldn't find a cheap piece of carpet that was green, so I ended up with this universal auto carpet that's easy to work with & doesn't come apart at the edges when you cut it. I glued down the carpet the next morning, then placed a sheet of plywood on it with some weight on it & let it sit until it was dry. Then I painted some striping on it with some disposable brushes, & added a few strips of wood for a sidewalk.

It was funny, I had taken a few matchbox cars to use for measuring, like place them on the OSB to see how wide I needed the road to be, & my son sees this & asks, "Daddy, are you playing with my Matchbox cars?"   

Almost ready to drive on, but here's a pic of what I have so far.

[Judhudson]

Heh, that's great

[69bronzeT5]

Heh, that's great

i still play around with hot wheels

[Brock Samson]

next it'll be street lights then they will have to work,..  and pretty soon....   

[Old Moparz]

Thanks guys, I appreciate it. I thought I was going to be able to use old paint I already had, but a couple of spray cans fizzled out on me since I last used them, so I had to get some more. So far, most of the cost on this is just my time.

24"x 48"x 1/4" OSB sheet....... $0.50 in the Home Depot scrap cart
36"x 72" carpet..................... $6.00 at the Big Lot store
3 cans of spreay paint............ $6.00 at Big Lot

Total.................................. $12.50

The house was made from leftover cedar scrap I did a ceiling with, & the 3 disposable foam brushes came in a bag of 20 or so, for like $2.00 from another project in the past.

Here's a couple of more pics:

[Charger_Fan]

My pic was having technical difficulties.

That village looks pretty cool so far, everyone even has an asphalt driveway. Are you building enough houses to fill up the neighborhood, or are they vacant lots?

[Old Moparz]

My pic was having technical difficulties.

That village looks pretty cool so far, everyone even has an asphalt driveway. Are you building enough houses to fill up the neighborhood, or are they vacant lots?

Yes, asphalt for everyone except me, I've had gravel here since 1989.   

No vacant lots, I'm not the typical developer. They'd just fill up with garbage & burnt up, old cars anyway. 

[Old Moparz]

By the way Moparz... you have no room to complain...  




Once you put a "porch" on something like this, then you have room to bitch.
At least I didn't get suckered into a garage...although...if I did, it would have been made to fit something cooler than a Barbie Jeep.

Now I see what your red "x" was all about, lol. That's a cool house, but it takes up more room than my entire village will.   

I see the attic in that house looks packed. 

[tan top]

Thanks guys, I appreciate it. I thought I was going to be able to use old paint I already had, but a couple of spray cans fizzled out on me since I last used them, so I had to get some more. So far, most of the cost on this is just my time.

24"x 48"x 1/4" OSB sheet...... $0.50 in the Home Depot scrap cart
36"x 72" carpet.................... $6.00 at the Big Lot store
3 cans of spreay paint............ $6.00 at Big Lot

Total................................... $12.50

The house was made from leftover cedar scrap I did a ceiling with, & the 3 disposable foam brushes came in a bag of 20 or so, for like $2.00 from another project in the past.

Here's a couple of more pics:

 
               cleaver idea          
   could even build a old barn with a beaten up daytona in there

[Back N Black]

Are you going to put oil stains in the driveway?

[Old Moparz]

               cleaver idea          
   could even build a old barn with a beaten up daytona in there

Then I'd have to find small plastic people with cameras & make them trespass. What kind of example am I supposed to set for my kid? 

Are you going to put oil stains in the driveway?

Just the ones where my kid parks the Chebbies. 

[Charger_Fan]

Now I see what your red "x" was all about, lol. That's a cool house, but it takes up more room than my entire village will.   

I see the attic in that house looks packed. 

Yeah, the attic is packed..with more Barbie things than any 10 kids should own. Since my daughter is now 19, it doesn't really get used very often anymore & spends it's days stuffed in a corner of our unfinished basement.
With the help of my wife & father in law, we made each floor a removable unit. There's biscuits cut into each piece, so the floors won't slide apart. We didn't want half the building to slide off & kill anyone. I was gonna put in small lights in each room, but ran out of steam, carpeting & painting each room was bad enough. I bet it weighs 120 pounds.

[Ponch ®]

I think I'm having more fun making this stuff than my daughter will have playing with it.   

I used to love building things for my model railroad & I still have the HO scale accessories & my trains packed up in the attic. I showed them to her, but she's a little young to risk giving it to her to play with just yet. I can trust her with not breaking them, but it's her friends that I worry about. Everytime I had given her something in the past, like a GI Joe jeep for her Barbie,    As soon as a friend went home I'd discover something broken.

Anyway, I made a small layout with roads, parking, & grass on Saturday afternoon. She likes it so far, & convinced me to place one of the roads at one end with the parking spaces. I was going to do something different, but it's hers, so that's the way it is, lol. I already had a 24"x 48"x 1/4" thick piece of OSB, so I went to the store to get some supplies. (That's 61 cm x 122 cm x 0.635 cm for you metric people.) I bought a cheap piece of thin carpet at the dollar store, a few cans of cheap spray paint, & stated to pencil in the layout.

Once I had that done, I cut the carpet, painted it green, then painted the OSB piece flat black. I couldn't find a cheap piece of carpet that was green, so I ended up with this universal auto carpet that's easy to work with & doesn't come apart at the edges when you cut it. I glued down the carpet the next morning, then placed a sheet of plywood on it with some weight on it & let it sit until it was dry. Then I painted some striping on it with some disposable brushes, & added a few strips of wood for a sidewalk.

It was funny, I had taken a few matchbox cars to use for measuring, like place them on the OSB to see how wide I needed the road to be, & my daughter sees this & asks, "Daddy, are you playing with my Matchbox cars?"   

Almost ready to drive on, but here's a pic of what I have so far.

pretty cool. Now all you need is a action figure of Silver 68 for the village idiot. Maybe one of Bronze, as a back up.

[Old Moparz]

pretty cool. Now all you need is a action figure of Silver 68 for the village idiot. Maybe one of Bronze, as a back up.

   I didn't say it.

[69bronzeT5]

I think I'm having more fun making this stuff than my daughter will have playing with it.   

I used to love building things for my model railroad & I still have the HO scale accessories & my trains packed up in the attic. I showed them to her, but she's a little young to risk giving it to her to play with just yet. I can trust her with not breaking them, but it's her friends that I worry about. Everytime I had given her something in the past, like a GI Joe jeep for her Barbie,    As soon as a friend went home I'd discover something broken.

Anyway, I made a small layout with roads, parking, & grass on Saturday afternoon. She likes it so far, & convinced me to place one of the roads at one end with the parking spaces. I was going to do something different, but it's hers, so that's the way it is, lol. I already had a 24"x 48"x 1/4" thick piece of OSB, so I went to the store to get some supplies. (That's 61 cm x 122 cm x 0.635 cm for you metric people.) I bought a cheap piece of thin carpet at the dollar store, a few cans of cheap spray paint, & stated to pencil in the layout.

Once I had that done, I cut the carpet, painted it green, then painted the OSB piece flat black. I couldn't find a cheap piece of carpet that was green, so I ended up with this universal auto carpet that's easy to work with & doesn't come apart at the edges when you cut it. I glued down the carpet the next morning, then placed a sheet of plywood on it with some weight on it & let it sit until it was dry. Then I painted some striping on it with some disposable brushes, & added a few strips of wood for a sidewalk.

It was funny, I had taken a few matchbox cars to use for measuring, like place them on the OSB to see how wide I needed the road to be, & my daughter sees this & asks, "Daddy, are you playing with my Matchbox cars?"   

Almost ready to drive on, but here's a pic of what I have so far.

pretty cool. Now all you need is a action figure of Silver 68 for the village idiot. Maybe one of Bronze, as a back up.

[Mean 318]

 

[69bronzeT5]

Hey, I didnt deserve that. I havent done anything stupid for a while now. Why is everybody picking on me and not Charger Punk, he still hasnt come up with those pics and he already passed his deadline!

[Arthu®]

Hey, I didnt deserve that. I havent done anything stupid for a while now. Why is everybody picking on me and not Charger Punk, he still hasnt come up with those pics and he already passed his deadline!

A The keyword = for a while. We give you a chance but we don't forget that fast. Meanwhile it is pretty much legal to have some fun about it...
B Whining why you are being picked on = seriously uncool (in Top Gear terms)
C Even trying to put all the attention on someone else is even uncooler. What did he ever do to you?

[69bronzeT5]

Hey, I didnt deserve that. I havent done anything stupid for a while now. Why is everybody picking on me and not Charger Punk, he still hasnt come up with those pics and he already passed his deadline!

A The keyword = for a while. We give you a chance but we don't forget that fast. Meanwhile it is pretty much legal to have some fun about it...
B Whining why you are being picked on = seriously uncool (in Top Gear terms)
C Even trying to put all the attention on someone else is even uncooler. What did he ever do to you?

He knows Im just screwing around with him. Im not serious

[Old Moparz]

He knows Im just screwing around with him. Im not serious

Don't worry about me getting any action figures of you or anyone else for the village, I'm working on a deal to get the licensing rights for.....








SPATULA MAN!



He comes to the aid of all those in need of being saved from the evil Dr. Salmonella who threatens the world.


.

[Arthu®]

One question, all in all how much time did it take you to build this? Just curious. It is looking great btw!

Arthur

[Old Moparz]

One question, all in all how much time did it take you to build this? Just curious. It is looking great btw!

Arthur

I think the house took about 2 hours, but that is probably because I wasn't sure what I'd make it with when I started. I wanted it strong enough to hold up against kids playing with it, but not too detailed where it would take too long to make. I rummaged through some materials I had hoping to find some rigid cardboard, but ended up using some 1/4" thick cedar scraps. I used to build architectural models professionally, & also have some woodworking tools & a lot of carpentry experience, so it was fairly easy to me. A table saw, some glue, brad nails, & patience is all you need to build it.

The hardest & longest part was making the paper covering on the paint program. (I did that a few years ago when it was slow at work.) They are saved in the computer now, & takes only a few minutes to change color & print more. Once it's printed, I cut it out, fold it at the corners to make the covering for the wood house. I also found that I had to cover the cedar with thin cardboard from a shoe box first because it's very porous & has a rough surface. It would make the paper distorted looking by simply gluing right on it. I may make the next one out of just cardboard, but will have to see how strong it is.

Maybe I'll take photos of the process & post those too if anyone is interested. 

The OSB sheet is only primed & painted with spray paint which took about 20 minutes or so. The carpet was also spray painted & took the same time. The layout could be more intricate, but less is more, meaning I get it done quicker & my daughter plays with it right away. I put the roads at the outer edge for a couple of reasons. One, it's easier to drive small cars around without reaching over everything. Two, the board can be lifted at the edge without wearing on the carpet which is only glued to the surface. The carpet was cut with a straight edge & a utility knife, then white glue, like Elmer's Glue spread on it. This may have taken about 1 hour.

(Rough guesses on time)
Design House on Paint Program.......................4 hours?
Hunt for & buy building materials.....................2 hours
Build cedar house..........................................2 hours
Cut out cardboard & paper, glue & finish..........1 hour
Measure & sketch layout on OSB.....................1 hour
Play, I mean test drive matchbox cars..............1 hour
Cut, Paint, & Glue OSB & Carpet.....................2 hours
Hand paint pavement striping.........................1 hour
Do-over some smeared pavement striping........1 hour   

Total Time............................................ 15 hours +/-

Well worth the time to see my daughter set up everything & ask me to play along on the living room floor.   

[Brock Samson]

very sweet bob. 

should'nt you beout in the garage.. lol.. 

[Old Moparz]

very sweet bob. 

should'nt you beout in the garage.. lol.. 

I'll take freeze your ass off for fifty, Dave.   

[Ponch ®]

very sweet bob. 

should'nt you beout in the garage.. lol.. 

I'll take freeze your ass off for fifty, Dave.   

damn...and to think I was just complaining about having to wear a short sleeve shirt to work today...

[Neal_J]

I havent done anything stupid for a while now.

I agree totally.  By "a while" you mean the last five minutes, right?

Neal