I found this building kit at
Papermau, which is a great resource for paper models, a generic 'gun store' from Grand Theft Auto V. I thought it would make a nice addition to my city, and looked like a pretty easy build. As I started building the kit as presented, I decided I wanted an interior as well.
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| Something like that |
After my last game, and after converting the Starbucks coffee shop I am going to make an effort to do detailed interiors for buildings that I make. Of course that means a bit more work, but I think it will be worth it. Little did I know just how much more work this would be, maybe I wouldn't have gone down this road...
I started by printing off the "letter" sheet version of the building (available
here) I had, at first, planned to print on card stock and back it with thick card (from a cereal box) as suggested by Vampifan. I had a bit of failure with the first go - too much glue I suspect, and I scrapped that misfire. I also destroyed all pictures of that attempt, and we'll not speak of it again.
For round two, I decided to go with foam core. I have a few sheets laying around, and I like how sturdy the final product is. I glued the various parts to a sheet and cut them out.
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| And so it begins! |
I am using a floor tile image I found on the internet for the floor. Taking a hint from Mr. Stoelzel (of
Stoelzel's Structures - very awesome buildings) I am going to rabbit the floor and walls. This makes for a much more secure building when complete. It also covers up the unsightly foam portions at joints.
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| Wow. A floor. |
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| Rabbit...Rabbit...Rabbit |
All of the doors will need to be made to open. I am using the wire and wrap the door around it method. As all the wall edges will be covered, pressing through a length of wire (just a straightened paperclip) is pretty easy. It gives pretty decent results I think.
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| The rear door |
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| The front doors |
The front doors look like they should have glass in them, but I don't feel that is best for the gun store. I am leaving them as just a different colored section. Maybe they have armored glass in the doors or something.
The front windows are somewhat barred, and I decide to leave two sections (they look almost like translucent fiberglass panels or maybe hardened glass that you can't really see through) and only put clear plastic in the center portion for a window. I have plenty of clear plastic packaging and I like the look of actual windows on the buildings.
The signs that come with the building are a bit dark, but I don't feel like printing them again in a lighter shade. I get those and the A/C units installed on the walls and it's time to put this together.
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| Front signs |
The walls go up. I use a Sharpie (black marker) to color the edges of the foam core so they don't stand out so much. It doesn't take much time, and really makes the building look better.
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| Back Quarter |
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| Inside, but empty |
The building is pretty small. I don't want to crowd it too much, but it needs a few details. I make a few things in Word to use as a counter and ammo shelves. I also print off some pictures of guns displayed in a gun store, to place on the walls. Finally I find some appropriate posters and such for the walls. I wish some had turned out a bit better, but these work.
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| A selection of details |
Here is the finished building, with Dawn and team exploring it.
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| Is the store still open? |
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| A fair selection |
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| Small, but usable |
The roof looks like a corrugated tin roof. I don't have any objection to it, and it fits, so I just go with that. I reinforced it with a bit of card to keep it flat. I may put it on a piece of foam core in the future, if it turns out to need it.
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| Plenty of Parking |
The kit comes with the small parking area as well. I printed it out, but it is not attached. I may use it if it fits with my street tiles.
So that should have taken just a couple of hours, but turned into a rather long ordeal. I didn't realize how much time it would take to come up with the interior design parts. I like the results, and I am going to try and just make a bunch of various furnishings and such for other buildings.
I am also considering trying this approach with another building...
Tommygun's Andy's Gun Store. It's much larger, and two stories. It would make a great tabletop addition though...
