Post by mph on Feb 5, 2023 15:42:29 GMT -5
Woodland Scenics Landmark Structures - Records and Recruiting.
This is a pre-built, pre-lit building and something that I swore I would never buy. I can build and customize buildings myself for a lot less money than the pre-built buildings cost. So why did I buy this? My parents gave be a gift certificate to a LHS store close to them. It's a place I rarely visit because there are 2 much closer to me and both of them are more to my liking. This is big, bright, very sterile and has very few used items. After wandering around the place for 15-20 minutes this is what I walked out with. I thought about buying paint and other supplies, but I didn't think that would be a good answer if they asked me what I used the gift certificate for.
Now that I have one, what do I think?
Pros
Good detail, including stuff outside of the building
Obviously didn't take any time to build
While not as nice as an actual interior, the printed interior looks pretty good.
The painted signs on the sides of the building are a nice touch and not something I'm sure I could have pulled off.
Cons
While there are separate bulbs for each business, they are wired together so you can't illuminate each business individually
The outside details are attached to the building, so another building cannot be abutted against this one without ruining these details
The light over the 1884 on the front of the building and the light over the back door are dummy fixtures, which blows my mind since Woodland Scenics makes working light fixtures for this purpose
Only the2 businesses are lit. For extra realism, I would have thought that a window or 2 on the second floor should have been lit.
No front sidewalk. I may be old school on this item, but the "downtown" buildings I have all came with sidewalks. This one doesn't even have the landing for the front door.
For those curious minds, Labor Omnia Vincit means Work Conquers All.
This leaves me with a prebuilt building that I'll have to do some work on. I will attempt replacing the two fake fixtures with working one and create a room on the second floor to light, which should be no surprise to anyone who has seen my posts. I do have a lighting obsession in my modeling. Obviously, I have to add a front walk and figure out how I am going to deal with the scenery around the building. But, I don't see anything I need to paint or details I want to add.
As for the ultimate question: now that I have one, would I buy another one? The answer is maybe. Obviously, for me these are not a straight out of the box onto the layout item which appeals to me because I like to put my stamp on most of the items I model. Another reason for is that they make some unique buildings which are not available in kits. The building that has my attention at the moment is: The Toy and Hobby Junction. I love the mural of the steam engine on the side.
The big downside that I didn't list in the Cons section is the cost. I guess time will tell.
This is a pre-built, pre-lit building and something that I swore I would never buy. I can build and customize buildings myself for a lot less money than the pre-built buildings cost. So why did I buy this? My parents gave be a gift certificate to a LHS store close to them. It's a place I rarely visit because there are 2 much closer to me and both of them are more to my liking. This is big, bright, very sterile and has very few used items. After wandering around the place for 15-20 minutes this is what I walked out with. I thought about buying paint and other supplies, but I didn't think that would be a good answer if they asked me what I used the gift certificate for.
Now that I have one, what do I think?
Pros
Good detail, including stuff outside of the building
Obviously didn't take any time to build
While not as nice as an actual interior, the printed interior looks pretty good.
The painted signs on the sides of the building are a nice touch and not something I'm sure I could have pulled off.
Cons
While there are separate bulbs for each business, they are wired together so you can't illuminate each business individually
The outside details are attached to the building, so another building cannot be abutted against this one without ruining these details
The light over the 1884 on the front of the building and the light over the back door are dummy fixtures, which blows my mind since Woodland Scenics makes working light fixtures for this purpose
Only the2 businesses are lit. For extra realism, I would have thought that a window or 2 on the second floor should have been lit.
No front sidewalk. I may be old school on this item, but the "downtown" buildings I have all came with sidewalks. This one doesn't even have the landing for the front door.
For those curious minds, Labor Omnia Vincit means Work Conquers All.
This leaves me with a prebuilt building that I'll have to do some work on. I will attempt replacing the two fake fixtures with working one and create a room on the second floor to light, which should be no surprise to anyone who has seen my posts. I do have a lighting obsession in my modeling. Obviously, I have to add a front walk and figure out how I am going to deal with the scenery around the building. But, I don't see anything I need to paint or details I want to add.
As for the ultimate question: now that I have one, would I buy another one? The answer is maybe. Obviously, for me these are not a straight out of the box onto the layout item which appeals to me because I like to put my stamp on most of the items I model. Another reason for is that they make some unique buildings which are not available in kits. The building that has my attention at the moment is: The Toy and Hobby Junction. I love the mural of the steam engine on the side.
The big downside that I didn't list in the Cons section is the cost. I guess time will tell.
