Downtown Deco Buildings

They are easy to build, for someone new the biggest challenge is painting and weathering them. The instruction that come with the kits are very good and they tell you how to paint and weather. I believe Down Town Deco has videos on their web site. I would pic a small easy one to build for your first project. There are many details you can also add. They are some of my favorite kits. This "House of Redemption" is an easy kit to put together. I chose to have it abandoned so I installed broken glass, boards across the broken door and used tan nylon stockings for old screen windows. Hope this helps. Don.   

@JimJohnson posted:

I've found some Downtown Deco Buildings on Ebay, that I think would look good on my layout. I'm wondering if anyone has some pictures, or building advice about these kits. Easy to build? Look good on your layout?

 Thanks!

I picked up 4 through Stout a while back. They are quite different than any of the plastic models. They are cast plaster (white) so epoxy is recommended to assemble. My painting and finishing skills are quite rusty so I have been finishing Ameritown and Korber plastic buildings first. There is so much more detail in these cast buildings it it quite amazing. Downtown Deco's website has detailed instructions on how to assemble and finish. The First Timer Bar and The Chop Suey buildings are billed as being easier to build and finish.  The are a couple of sponsors who also sell these. You might want to check them out as a quick check of eBay listings show they are more expensive than buying through a sponsor. I can't wait to start one of mine. BTW if mine end up looking half as good as Don's - I will be a happy fellow!   Jeff

A 1/2 x 1/2 inch piece of wood in the corners helps.  Also, a slanted piece on each side wall will help hold the roof in place.  John

Bought a few, just completed the First Timers Bar.

The pawn shop on the right is an early Downtown Deco building. I added some detail. Don

Downtown Deco kits are my favorite brick structures.  I have finished 8 so far.  I'm still looking for some of the out of production kits (anybody want to sell their burnt-out fireworks factory kit?) The attention to detail in the castings make them the most realistic brick structures in O scale.  Broken bricks, cement patches, and peeling stucco give that well-worn look.   The assembly and finishing instructions are very detailed and easy to follow.  The First-Timer Bar (below) is a great starter kit to get your feet wet.  I finished it using DD's instructions. Kwik Key is the same kit that I finished in a darker red brick finish.  See my article Better Bricks in OGR Magazine Feb/Mar 2020 for more finishing hints.

DD's Bus Depot is out of production but I eventually found one at a show.  I masked and painted it in Greyhound colors and added the letters from an office lobby signboard. I found a laser-cut rooftop sign at York.

Work carefully in gluing the 4 walls together.  You may need to flatten the joining surfaces with a large flat file, then epoxy them together and check for squareness before it dries.  If the castings are warped, don't force them.  Plaster does not bend. You can use downspouts to hide the seams.

Bob

Ive built a number of these. Start with a small one that you can get inexpensively... the First timer, Burkowski Liquors... something like that with 4 plaster walls. They glue together easily, but the fun is in the painting and detailing. Typically they come with signage and stuff, or you can just as easily make your own. Theres lots of ways to paint them up, none of them are wrong, but if you follow Randy's suggestions in the kit box you can get yourself something pretty nice. 

Like everyone said, you cant force the parts, they'll crack. Most of the time you can just glue things back together unless you get something that just explodes. Even then you can make a save with some joint compound or spackle. 

@ScoutingDad posted:

I picked up 4 through Stout a while back. They are quite different than any of the plastic models. They are cast plaster (white) so epoxy is recommended to assemble. My painting and finishing skills are quite rusty so I have been finishing Ameritown and Korber plastic buildings first. There is so much more detail in these cast buildings it it quite amazing. Downtown Deco's website has detailed instructions on how to assemble and finish. The First Timer Bar and The Chop Suey buildings are billed as being easier to build and finish.  The are a couple of sponsors who also sell these. You might want to check them out as a quick check of eBay listings show they are more expensive than buying through a sponsor. I can't wait to start one of mine. BTW if mine end up looking half as good as Don's - I will be a happy fellow!   Jeff

Can you give me a call regarding the Downtown Deco kits?  646-599-7871

i have 20-25 DD built kits on my layout. they are among by the most realistic, yet relatively easy to assemble kits. the key to making them look so good is in the painting and weathering and randy’s instructions will teach you how do do that, step by step. hydrocal provides some of the best casted details and while it’s forgiving in the panting and weathering steps it’s unforgiving in assembly. best to build on a cutting mat so that if you put down a wall casting with too much force, it won’t crack. but if it does, it’s easy to glue together and it adds to the character of the wall. however, if you drop it, it will shatter at which point, it’s probably toast. randy might help you with a replacement wall. you can use tacky glue or even white glue  (but set time for me, is too long). i use 5 minute epoxy and then brace the inside corners with 3/8” stripwood. take it slowly, read ahead on the instructions and you’ll have some structures which you’ll be very proud of on your layout. 

@Jerrman posted:

i have 20-25 DD built kits on my layout. they are among by the most realistic, yet relatively easy to assemble kits. the key to making them look so good is in the painting and weathering and randy’s instructions will teach you how do do that, step by step. hydrocal provides some of the best casted details and while it’s forgiving in the panting and weathering steps it’s unforgiving in assembly. best to build on a cutting mat so that if you put down a wall casting with too much force, it won’t crack. but if it does, it’s easy to glue together and it adds to the character of the wall. however, if you drop it, it will shatter at which point, it’s probably toast. randy might help you with a replacement wall. you can use tacky glue or even white glue  (but set time for me, is too long). i use 5 minute epoxy and then brace the inside corners with 3/8” stripwood. take it slowly, read ahead on the instructions and you’ll have some structures which you’ll be very proud of on your layout. 

Could you share some close-up pics?  It would be great to see what you did.

@DJEZC posted:

Could you share some close-up pics?  It would be great to see what you did

 most of my pics are of scratch built or kitbashed but i did manage to find a few very old DD photos. except for two, i had trouble leading the large photos but you can see the others by clicking on the small attachments to see the detail you can get with hydrocal castings. (i’d take new photos but i’m out of town for awhile). 

 

@Jerrman posted:

 

Really nice!

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to get some input on painting DD buildings or any building made from plaster (hydrocal). The instructions on the DD kits calls for the walls to be assembled before painting. In speaking with Randy, he prefers this method to achieve a sense of uniformity which seems logical. I would assume most model builders paint and detail buildings, made out of other materials, before assembly.  I know I do so this method will be different for me. I'm relatively new to building these kits and ultimately will experiment until I find a technique that works for me and my goals. In the process, I hope to not damage anything. My concern is losing some control when the walls are assembled. This material is every fragile and I want to handle them as little as possible. It would seem that if the walls are assembled prior to painting you would have a bit more handling to do than if they were pre-painted. Maybe if they are smaller buildings the handling wouldn't be as much of an issue but with larger ones...hmm. I plan to put a fair amount of detail into the buildings which makes me nervous about excess handling and trying to detail the building with the walls assembled. With that being said I would appreciate some input  from those who have crossed this bridge. This is strictly for those who have built hydrocal buildings not buildings made of other materials. If possible, please state if you assembled the building before painting/detailing or the other way around. If a photo is available that would be great.

Thanks,

Dave

Dave,

I have quite a few Downtown Deco buildings.

(I also have the Barber Shop not shown.)

I built these 25 years ago with little talent in painting, airbrushing, constructing little buildings or working in fine detail.  In short, I was walking into this blind. But I religiously followed the excellent, detailed, step-by-step DD instructions. The end result was so gratifying for me!

To jog my memory, I just looked at some of the DD instructions which I saved. They instruct you to put the walls together first. No problem at all. Just follow their instructions.

"If I can do it, so can you!"

@luvindemtrains posted:

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to get some input on painting DD buildings or any building made from plaster (hydrocal). The instructions on the DD kits calls for the walls to be assembled before painting. In speaking with Randy, he prefers this method to achieve a sense of uniformity which seems logical. I would assume most model builders paint and detail buildings, made out of other materials, before assembly.  I know I do so this method will be different for me. I'm relatively new to building these kits and ultimately will experiment until I find a technique that works for me and my goals. In the process, I hope to not damage anything. My concern is losing some control when the walls are assembled. This material is every fragile and I want to handle them as little as possible. It would seem that if the walls are assembled prior to painting you would have a bit more handling to do than if they were pre-painted. Maybe if they are smaller buildings the handling wouldn't be as much of an issue but with larger ones...hmm. I plan to put a fair amount of detail into the buildings which makes me nervous about excess handling and trying to detail the building with the walls assembled. With that being said I would appreciate some input  from those who have crossed this bridge. This is strictly for those who have built hydrocal buildings not buildings made of other materials. If possible, please state if you assembled the building before painting/detailing or the other way around. If a photo is available that would be great.

Thanks,

Dave

Dave

I suggest you look at OGR Run 318- Jun/July 2021.  I wrote an extensive article on how to work with hydrocal buildings. Including painting, weathering and assembly I took a round house kit and turned it into a tractor factory:

https://ogaugerr.com/run-318/

Bruce,

Thank you for your input and the photos. They really did come out nice. They look to be some of the mid-size to smaller DD buildings.

John,

I appreciate you letting me know about your article. I will most definitely check it out.

Dave