Building Textures from Family Garden Trains(tm)


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Written by Paul D. Race for Family Garden Trains(tm)

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This section started out with some graphic files I created to use on buildings I built or trashbashed, that is, created from non-models such as toys and bird feeders. Early versions of this page featured low-resolution graphics that could quickly be downloaded and printed on cheap printers. However, since more people have access to better networks, computers, and printers, I've replaced the graphics with commercial-grade graphic files. I have also captured several other interesting "textures" that I hope to post here as soon as I get the chance to format them properly, so check back once in a while. Also, please let us know if there's some particular texture you need. We may have a preliminary version available that we could "move up in the queue" for your benefit.

Since I started posting them, these files have been resized and used by modelers of all scales. Mostly they are used as "brick paper," to provide "texture" to scratchbuilt buildings for model railroads. But the brick and stone textures have also been used by folks with temporary indoor displays such as Collectible and Holiday Villages to provide "street surfaces" that can be cut to fit and look better than white styrofoam or the top of the buffet.

Also, one "master builder" of traditional cardboard Christmas decoration houses sometimes called Glitterhouses is experimenting with some of these textures for a more playful effect. Many of his projects can be adapted for indoor model railroads as well.

New for 2008! "Rough Tin Roof" and three new paver patterns! - In early February, I captured three entirely different "looks" of paving blocks within a block of each other near Dayton's Webster Street market, and spent hours trying to get them to look right in a printout. The tin roof photo is one of several I took later that week near New Carlisle, Ohio. Other roof patterns may follow if there is demand. Can you say "vintage"?

Note: Many of the files are large. If you have a dial-up connection, some of them will take a few minutes to download--that's why we provided small versions you could review before you clicked. In addition, when you view these files on your system, they will also seem several sizes too large, although most of them are actually the right size for printing on a 600dpi printer. The reason for this discrepancy is that your monitor shows things at 72dpi, eight times larger than the same file will print on a 600dpi printer.

If you have a 300dpi printer, or if you need the graphics for another scale than the 1:22.5 most of them were designed for, you will need to be able to make the graphic print smaller on the page than it would otherwise.

In most cases, you can use Microsoft Word to do this. Open a blank Word ".doc" file, then paste the image into the file. Resize the image to whatever size you need before printing.

I used to use an ALPS printer, which printed waterproof ink, but is now on its last legs. You might have good luck with the color lasers which are starting to come down in price. New plastic-surfaced papers and label sheets which are supposed to be weather resistant are also reaching the stores. Still, before I used any printed paper sheet outside, I would coat it with a clear acrylic spray, starting very lightly so as not to cause the ink to run and applying enough coats to make it waterproof.

Legalese

Note: All of these images are the copyrighted property of Family Garden Trains(tm). By downloading a graphic resource from this web site, you accept the following conditions:

You are allowed to download it for your own use and to make signs for your friends.
You may not alter these image except for resizing them for own use. You may not load them on any web page or resell artwork made with this artwork.
If you wish to share this resource on a web page, please link to this page, rather than copying these images to your site, which will be an infringement of copyright, and not a very nice way of rewarding our hard work.

	Building Textures *Antique Brick* (344K) This was the first "brick" paper I posted on this web site, and it has been very popular. I originally created it to use on the sides of some shallow buildings that would basically only be seen from the front. To make it fairly weather-resistant, I used an Alps 2000 printer, which prints waterproof copy (at $1-$2 a page for a full-color photo). I also printed these on .010" white plastic, which not every printer will handle. If you print this with an ink-jet, don't use it outside unless you've coated it with a waterproof acrylic spray or something similar first. This texture is also useful to add temporary "streets" to inside railroads or collectible villages. It isn't as nice as the products made for that purpose, but it's pretty much free and it looks better than the top of the buffet. Resize them larger or smaller to suit the scale of your trains and buildings.
	*Regular Pavers* - I harvested this image in the old industrial district just east of downtown Dayton (near the Webster Street Market). It consists of old pavers, probably a century old, that were reset on a street near a shopping district to provide an old-timey feel. If you want old pavers that have stayed down for their entire lifetime, try the next graphic down. To make this graphic as useful as possible to most people, I have created three different versions. Dollhouse Scale Version (2.4meg file size) Large Scale Version (2.2meg file size) Small Scale Version (2.1meg file size)
	*Coarse Pavers* - I harvested this image near the roadbed shown above. This roadway has probably not be significantly disturbed for a century. The courses that run the opposite direction have probably replaced an open drain, not a trolley line, although there were the remnants of trolley tracks in the same block. If you want a coarse, broken-down, and patched-up look for an old factory or city street, this pattern will do it for you. To make this graphic as useful as possible to most people, I have created three different versions. Dollhouse Scale Version (2.5meg file size) Large Scale Version (1.9meg file size) Small Scale Version (2.3meg file size)
	*Hocking Valley Pavers* - I harvested this image a block away from the image above. This section of road has also been repaved with rescued antique pavers to keep the "old-timey" look near the adjacent shopping district. Like the "regular pavers" above, the pavers may be old, but the work is new, as you can tell from the fact that the paver manufacturer's name is on the top, which only happened by accident in the old days. Still it is a unique look, and the yellow and blue pavers make a nice change from the more traditional red ones. To make this graphic as useful as possible to most people, I have created three different versions. Dollhouse Scale Version (1.5meg file size) Large Scale Version (2.2meg file size) Small Scale Version (2.2meg file size)
	*Flagstone Veneer* - Although this looks like the flagstones you see on patios, it is actually a vertical "veneer" used on the wall of an office building in Vandalia, Ohio. Of course that shouldn't keep anyone with an indoor railroad or collectible villages from using it for a street or patio surface as well. To make this graphic as useful as possible to most people, I have created a version suitable for smaller (indoor) scales as well as a version suitable for larger scales. Large Scale Version (625K file size) Smaller Scale Version (694K file size)
	*T111 Siding* - Although you could probably use this for antique barn siding, it is actually based on a weather-blasted utility building at a storage rental in Vandalia, Ohio. In addition to making your own weather-blasted-looking buildings, this texture is also useful indoors for making wooden sidewalks or station platforms. This texture is available in a Dollhouse Scale Version as well as a version suitable for smaller scales. Dollhouse Scale Version (447K file size) Large Scale Version (435K file size) Smaller Scale Version (371K file size)
	*Stacked Stone* - The historic section of the Southern Hills neighborhood of Kettering, Ohio has undergone many recent restorations, including rebuilding of several retaining walls. They used new rough-quarried stone, stacked two deep with enough mortar in the cracks between the front and back layer to hold it together, but not enough to show too obviously from the front. This is ideal "stone wall" material that could also be used to represent pioneer-era building construction. The "wall top" file contains shots of the top of the walls. That file isn't pretty, as you mostly see mortar that obscures the stones, but it may be useful to anyone using this to represent stone walls per se. Note: I took this photo with a 6mp camera, so the resolution was ridiculously high to begin with. I've had to reduce the resolution somewhat to get the files to reasonable size, but they're still pretty large. The "Smaller Scale Version" is just a "shrunk"-down version, so folks who want to use these for O or smaller scales don't have to download the big version and shrink it themselves. Please let me know of you find these higher-resolution files helpful, or if you think they are overkill. Also, you might keep in mind that making files this large downloadable increases my cost of running this page, hint, hint. . . :-) Dollhouse Scale Version (1093K file size) Large Scale Version (1257K file size) Smaller Scale Version (682K file size) Top of the Wall (154K file size)
	*Rough Tin Roof* - So-called tin roofs are really sheet steel that is either galvanized (like buckets) or plated with a tin alloy (like "tin cans") . To protect them further or keep them from blinding passersby, they are often painted, usually green or silver. The first paint job usually lasts ten year or so; after that, they need to be repainted every few years to keep from rusting through (and once water can get to the underside, all bets are off, regardless). Fortunately for folks who like rustic-looking finishes on their buildings, not everybody keeps their tin roof painted like they should. This roof is on a barn at a plant nursery near New Carlisle Ohio. Large Scale version for 1:20.3 or larger models. (1.4M file size) (print this file at 170% for 1:12 "dollhouse" scale) Large Scale Version for 1:29 or 1:32 models (1.6M file size) Smaller Scale Version for 1:48 or smaller models (1.8M file size) (print this file at 75% for S scale or 50% for HO scale)
	*Rough Cedar Shakes* - If you ever wondered what happened to a cedar shake roof that was totally neglected, you have your answer, as well as a totally unique surface to add to any deserted barn or shed on your indoor railroad. Note: Like the Stacked Stone shots above, I took this photo with a 6mp camera, so the resolution was ridiculously high to begin with. I've had to reduce the resolution somewhat to get the files to reasonable size, but they're still pretty large. Again, the "Smaller Scale Version" is just a "shrunk"-down version, so folks who want to use these for O or smaller scales don't have to download the big version and shrink it themselves. Please let me know of you find these higher-resolution files helpful, or if you think they are overkill. Also, you might keep in mind that making files this large downloadable increases my cost of running this page, hint, hint. . . :-) Large (1721K file size) Large Scale Version (980K file size) Smaller Scale Version (672K file size)
	*Faded White Painted Barn Siding* - A barn in Medway Ohio that had a good coat of paint on it is starting to look a little weather-weary. In addition to the fading and peeling paint, almost every board is beginning to show a vertical depression or crack, which makes many of the boards look half as wide as they usually are. That said, I've provided several versions so you can get one you like. Again, the "Smaller Scale Version" is just a "shrunk"-down version, so folks who want to use these for O or smaller scales don't have to download the big version and shrink it themselves. Large (13201K file size) Large Scale Version (1184K file size) Smaller Scale Version (554K file size)

Please stop by every once in a while - we have several other textures to upload when we get a chance. Again, please contact us if you would like to see a particular texture.

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