RECREATION TENTS FOR HO SLOT CAR TRACKS: Mostly all of the billboards and signs you see on Vargo Speedway have been produced on a P.C. Designing
patterns on a P.C. gives you the accuracy you need for scale realism. If you have the software, hardware, and skills available, I highly recommend this method.
The tent patterns I am providing were originally designed in 3-D. For this I use a piece of software called trueSpace™. I designed the tent in 3-D as I wanted it to look. Then the outlines of the tent roof pieces were layed flat, and exported as a .DXF AutoCad™ file, which was then imported into CorelDraw
™. The color
pattern was then applied, the pieces were fitted together, and the file was exported as a color .JPG file. Trying
to figure out these angles for the pitch of the tent as one flat piece would be difficult without the use of a P.C.
The 3-D software made it easy. The tent designs you see here took about 2 hours to design. If you have a
P.C. with a decent paint program, you could download the JPG's, and paint the tents to your own preference and size.PRINTING THE TENTS: Click on the TENT ICONS BELOW for the full patterns. Give them a little time to
download since they are a bit large in size. ('Zipping' doesn't help..) You can either download this file, or print it
out right from the window. If you're lucky enough to have a color printer, you're all set!! If not, you could print it
in black & white for a checkered flag look. Or, take the file to an AlphaGraphics Printing facility, and have the tents printed fairly cheaply. (Hey, you're getting the tent files for free..)
BUILDING THE TENTS: After printing the tent 'canvas', carefully cut around the edges. Use a dull piece of
plastic or something similar to scribe the lines where the tent will 'fold'. Make small folds in the paper along the edges, and use a glue stick to glue the tent together. (See Figure 3) For more realism, you can cut triangle
patterns around the edges of the tent that overhang. (I used an old pair of 'pinking shears'.) The ideal frame for
the tent can be made of simple brass doweling supports. Plastic can be used, but is fragile. It's up to you how involved you want to make the construction. Figure 4 shows simple frames for the tent. The tent is 4" square,
and should have 1" high tent poles. For added realism, use small thread and railroad 'track spikes' for tie
downs and stakes, and you're all set. Now fill your tent with people, tables, food, or whatever you like, to make it like a real track side attraction!HAVE FUN- Keep an eye on the Vargo Speedway WebPage for more free info and ideas on building a realistic, detailed HO Scale slot car track. |
