At a loss with custom MTH building bases…

Xacto is the wrong tool. Use a saw.

Then file or sand whats left until it's flush to the bottom.

A Dremel with a cut-off wheel works for me.

Peter.......Buco Australia.

@Boilermaker1 posted:

Xacto is the wrong tool. Use a saw.

Then file or sand whats left until it's flush to the bottom.

What kind of saw?

@Buco posted:

A Dremel with a cut-off wheel works for me.

Peter.......Buco Australia.

Is there a certain way you do it to keep the edge straight? I tried it and the wheel kept working its way away from where I wanted.

When I used MTH buildings at the club, I had used homesote as a layer. I traced the building base and cut out the homesote so it was a flush fit.

@Double Check posted:

What kind of saw?

Razor saw - standard tool on the model RR'ers work bench.

@mwb posted:

Razor saw - standard tool on the model RR'ers work bench.

Is this what you’re talking about?

Yeh Max (Double Check).......if it is pulling the wrong way and going off line, cut from the opposite side of the peg. Hold the Dremel steady, and adjust your speed till you get the "feel" when it starts cutting.

Don't try and get a "machine finish" with the Dremel first off.......finish the last couple of millimeters with the good old hand file.

Peter......Buco Australia.

In another thread a few months back, another member kept the pegs there. He marked where they would sit and drilled a hole through the masonite, then screwed the building from underneath into the pegs. I MIGHT do this since both of my Main St areas are on access hatches and will need to be picked up. The masonite WILL also be sitting on foamboard like the rest of my layout. Right now, I am in the process of "aging" those shiny plastic and sometimes too bright buildings.

Mikki

@Mikki posted:

In another thread a few months back, another member kept the pegs there. He marked where they would sit and drilled a hole through the masonite, then screwed the building from underneath into the pegs. I MIGHT do this since both of my Main St areas are on access hatches and will need to be picked up. The masonite WILL also be sitting on foamboard like the rest of my layout. Right now, I am in the process of "aging" those shiny plastic and sometimes too bright buildings.

Mikki

That will work with the ones with pegs, but as shown above, there’s a lot that have that strip along the bottom that sits into the factory base.

When I needed to cut something odd that was made out of plastic, I used a hand-held coping saw, sometimes with the item held in a vise.  Yeah, yeah, it's a crude way to some, but I found it allowed me to take a very deliberate and careful approach to the task at hand.  I used this method several times successfully while building a kit manufactured out of acrylic.  In that case, I was cutting plastic beams to size which were used to reinforce the building's interior corners and walls.  I was able to cut them without breaking or deforming anything.  A few minutes with a hand file to take off a few rough edges and it was time to glue the beam in place.

This is the coping saw I purchased at Menards.  It's pretty typical of what you would find in a big box or hardware store.

I hope this info helps.

@Double Check posted:

That will work with the ones with pegs, but as shown above, there’s a lot that have that strip along the bottom that sits into the factory base.

I've done the type of building you referenced (6-story Dreyfuss, etc) using foam core board, where I create a slit in the foam core board using utility knife and razor saw (front and back of foam core board). I then "pressed" the building's strip into the slit using some amount of force. Note that I also "chiseled" out some of the foam and paper - how careful you are at this stage will determine how good of a fit the building will make. I than painted the foam core board cement gray/tan (before I put the building on). If you're interested in my results, I'll snap some photos and post them.

MTH plastic is thick and very hard.  I have used razor saws where I needed an accurate cosmetic cut, but it is a lot of work and gripping the small handle is fatiguing.  Back Saws, Tenon Saws or Japanese Saws are much more ergonomic and easier to use.

Bob