Build with plastic card Chris Leigh scratchbuilds an ‘O’ gauge carriage from plastic card.

Chris Leigh explains how to scratchbuild using styrene sheet and strip.

Whenever I’ve exhibited my ‘O’ gauge layout ‘The Railway Children’, I’ve had to use a Gresley ‘teak’ carriage to act as the ‘Old Gentleman’s Saloon’. It’s the right colour, but that’s where any semblance to the real thing ends!

For what could be the layout’s public swan song, at Barnwell next May, I really want a ‘proper’ model of the saloon, which means, since there’s nothing remotely similar available either ready-to-run or in kit form, I will have to scratchbuild it.

Aside from the second-hand bogies

I had in stock and the Markits torpedo roof ventilators, buffers and couplings, the coach is almost entirely built from Evergreen styrene sheet and strip and assembled with Deluxe Materials Plastic Magic liquid adhesive.

Construction is undoubtedly simplified by the fact that the real vehicle has flat sides and ends. There is no tumblehome to be formed and the basic bodyshell is just a ‘box’ with some window openings and some decorative beading.

Construction would be pretty straightforward I thought, but, even so, I was taken by surprise at just how easy and quick this project turned out to be.

The secret when buying plastic sheet is to select a material thickness (in this case 40thou) and buy the same thickness of sheet and strip throughout.

I’m very satisfied with this, my most extensive styrene sheet building project in a long time. The finished model has been successfully test-run but the underframe and running gear is outside the scope of this feature.

At the time of writing, I have yet to complete the interior. I have used 1:48 scale doll’s house furniture for the chairs and made tables from styrene sheet and strip. I just need a couple of glass decanters!