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I wanted to start this post for those of you that have an interest in Scratch Building or Kit Bashing.... So lets start! I have been Scratch Building for some years now and have worked with several diffrent mediums, from Brass to Plastic, Clays and Putties. All work well but each has its own set of skills and tools to use. Reference Material is always a must, even for the most off the wall build. I am going to start with some sample work in progress projects to get things started. Then take you though a complete Scratch Build and the process's that I use. First off my work area, pretty similar to most hobbyist, I also have a Sherline lathe(not pictured) my Proxxon scroll saw. All of my sanding. vacuforming and such are done outside (I only vacuformed once in the house and the wife said no more, so I had to build my own w/heating element) Next I get an idea and do my research, lay out some drawings then work it out on the computer, I use a variety of programs from Photoshop to Sketch Up, I search online for a drawing that I like and go from there. My ideas are very fluid and change on the fly, but I get the basics down and run it from there. As you can see in the next few pictures. Then there is assembly, I cut out the templates and past them to plastic card stock (.020" or .030") I will start to skin the project with .010" (0.25 mm) card stock. Another method I use is Vacuform, and the next pictures will be the start of the project that I will be walking you though from start to finish. The project is a Rail of Race car built from an airframe, there are several of these on the internet but most were Kit Bashed and I want to do something from scratch. To start i made my forms, you can use balsa, balsa-foam or basswood, which ever i decide to use I always seal them with some form of wood filler or spackle, then prime and a last coat of High Temp paint, then lots of sanding for a smooth finish. So today I finished up my forms and went to the garage and did the Vacuform magic everything went well. In the next picture you can see my forms and the finished sheet stock, I also keep the forms as support for the plastic, give the plastic a light sanding for a smooth surface to work on, the forms also give support if I need to scribe or make certain cuts to the plastic, once I start the interior frame work I will no longer need them. Ok, we have this project started. I will make posts on a regular basis about the project along with the details. If you have any "Stop go back one step" questions, fell free to ask or email me.