Building Blocks Tips for the scales - FineScale.com

1 Converting rk i n gwith and understanding can be even moreconfusing when you re Building fromscratch and the drawings you have are in adifferent scale than the one you want tomodel. If you want to enlarge or reducethe specs or drawings there s a simple for-mula: Divide the scale that appears on theplans by the scale that you want, then usethe result to reduce or enlarge example, if you want to build a1/48 scale tank for your aircraft dioramabut only have 1/35 scale drawings, simplydivide the scale you have by the scale thatyou want:35 48 =.

2 Round up, leaving you with .73 Adjust the decimal placement to 73(you re moving the decimal because on thephotocopier, = 100%, = 150%, etc.).Now just set the copier to make copies at73 percent, and you have your plans in1/48 do the reverse and enlarge 1/48 to1/35: 48 35 = round up, giving you 137% toenlarge the plans popular armor modeling scales ,1/35 and 1/76, might complicate matters most copiers will copy no smaller than50 percent, and you ll need to reduce fur-ther than convert 1/35 scale to 1/76 scale :35 76 =.

3 46 (or 46 percent) Now, since we can t go lower than 50percent, determine the square root of .46,which is .68. Set your copier for 68 per-cent, copy the 1/35 scale plans, then copythose reduced drawings again at 68 per-cent. These will give you the 46 percentreduction, and your plans are now in 1 right: 1/72 scale are the littleplanes, and 1/32 are the great bigones. 1/35 scale is what they makearmor models in, but those huge Airfixairplane are in 1/24? I thought thatwas a car scale !

4 scales can be confusing,especially for beginners in the modelinghobby. Many modelers have never thoughtof collecting just one scale of aircraft, andare even befuddled when they open a kitbox and find the plane half the size of thelast one they purchased. What do thescales mean? What scales are available,and what types of kits are available inwhich scales ?If you re still confused, try taking a lookat the chart below. In it, you should find allof the answers to the questions you ve beenasking concerning what s available outthere in model kits, and in what scalesthey re and converting scale ratiosBy Chris AppoldtSome popular modeling scales1/44"3" " mmFlying models, live-steam trains1/88" 1 1 2" " mmCars, motorcycles, live-steam trains1/121'1" " mmCars, motorcycles, dollhouses1/161'4"3/4".

5 75" mmCars, motorcycles, live-steam trains1/201'8"19/32".6" mmCars1 ' 10 1 2"17/32".53" mmG scale trains1/242'1/2".5" mmCars, trucks, dollhouses1/25 2'1"15/32".48" mmCars, trucks1/322'8"3/8".375" mmAircraft, cars, No. 1 scale trains1/352'11"11/32".343" mmArmor1/433'7"9/32".279" mmCars, trucks1/484'1/4".25" mmAircraft, O scale trains1/645'4"3/16".187" mmAircraft, S scale trains1/726'11/64".167" mmAircraft, armor, boats1/766'4"5/32".158" mmArmor1/877'3" .138" mmArmor, HO scale trains1/968'1/8".125" mm1/8" scale ships, aircraft1/1008'4".

6 120" mmAircraft1/12510'5" .096" mmAircraft1/14412' .083" mmAircraft1/16013'4" .075" mmN scale trains1/19216'1/16".062" mm1/16" scale ships1/20016'8" .06" mmAircraft, ships1/22018'4" .054" mmZ scale trains1/28523'9" .042" mmWargame pieces1/35029'2" .034" mmShips1/70058'4" .017" mmShips1/72060' .016" mmShipsFor figures sized in millimeters, use this formula: 1717 figure size (mm) = scale denominator. This assumes a full- scale height of 5 8 (or 1717mm). For example, 1717 54mm = , so a 54mm figure is approximately 1/32 scale .

7 ForthescalesBuilding BlocksScale1 inch= 1 scale 1 scale foot 1 scale Commentsfoot==(decimal)meter= scale conversion tableYou want this scaleYou have this scale1/41/81/121/161/201/241/251/321/351 /431/481/641/721/761/871/96 1/100 1/125 1/144 1/160 1/192 1/200 1/285 1/350 1/700 1/720 1/12001/24001 numbers as percent of enlargement or reductionAs this photo shows, models come in all shapes, sizes and do scale drawings which often means that you need to con-vert them to the scale you want. You can use a scale rule and acalculator to convert the drawings, or you can use the chart use the chart, locate the scale of the drawings you have in theleftmost column, then read across the top row to find the scale youneed.

8 The box where the row and column intersect shows you thepercentage you need to reduce or enlarge your drawings.