Uncle Trav's miniature tiki huts....Small Paradise. Diving into a new project

Trav, that looks like the beginning of a Mai-Kai A-frame, an exceptional challenge!

-Tom

Trav, as attractive as "work slowdown" sounds I bet it's not all it's cracked up to be. Glad you're doing a new project, they always turn out so cool.

Just strolled through your thread. What a talent for making magical miniatures! I will look forwards to seeing more of your work...it's like little menehunes got together to start on a village. :wink:

Thanks for the kind words everyone. Here is a pic of half of the ridge beam being glued up. It is being held down by a 12" framing square until it dries and then the same thing for the other side of the beam.

Here is my attempt at the bare bones structure of the A-frame. The A-frame is ten inches from end to end. Again this thing is small. The two pieces of wood I used for the ridge beam are only 1/16" thick and very fragile. Seems to be working out so far. Now I just have to decide what era to build the model as. As usual these are not meant to be exact detailed copies of original buildings just a fun project.

Have done a little more work on the back end of the A-frame for my attempt at a Mai Kai miniature. This is a shot of what will be the back of the building. I decided to go with a bit of a mix of the building's style over the years but I think it may turn out ok. The bare wood panels with be covered with the same type of thatch that I make for my huts.

Looks like it's working out Trav, gonna be awesome!

Thanks Mike. Construction is ongoing and like so many other projects here in Michigan we have ample time and a zero budget. The hardest part is waiting for the glue to dry. Next up is the skylights. I have ran through a couple of ways to do this and have settled on the one I think will work. Here is a progress shot. Now I have to figure out how to build out the wings on the sides. Thanks for taking a look.

_________"Anyone who has ever seen them is thereafter haunted as if by a feverish dream" Karl Woermann

[ Edited by: uncle trav 2011-11-13 06:25 ]

Aloha uncle trav,
I'm so glad I found your thread again, I just love what you've done with the place! :)

Uncle Trav,
It makes me so happy to see your progress. Wish I could get some actual work done on some structures.
Really looking forward to your work.
~kele

Thanks Kele. Here are some shots at my attempt at the skylights for the A-frame. I had to take a little artistic license with the framing for the glass. At this small of a scale I couldn't pull of an exact copy of the actual framing.

I used clear plastic sheets for the skylight. Roughed it up with some sandpaper on the front to give it a worn opaque look and the framing is very very thin pin stripping. Here is a shot of my layout for the framing. Thanks for taking a look.

Wow, Trav! Those panels are awesome! You are a true artist in this craft.

-Tom

Thanks Tom. I'm no artist just a construction worker on another small project.

I like it! Gonna be awesome!

This is a remarkable build! I love it! :)

Thanks guys. Here is a shot of my first attempt at the street side end of the A-frame. This would have to be shortened up a bit before I glue it up. Not sure how it will look though. This is the first time I have painted anything other than a house in twenty five years.

I think it is marvelous! :)

where's the LIKE button??

Eh uncle, dat's awesome brada!!
The detail work is amazing, great job on that pin striping..
Can't wait to see it finished.
:tiki:

Awesome... wonderful... fantastic... (is there an internet equivalent to a standing ovation?)
~kele

WOW !! Thank you very much everyone. I am glad you enjoy the build and progress pics. Here is another shot with the start of the wings off the sides of the A-frame. This part of the model is going to be tough to build because I have to hide all of the larger material that I use for strength in the interior. Thanks again for all of the kind words and comments.

Wow - these are some seriously cool miniatures! and I'll be damned if your bbq skewers don't look JUST like bamboo! these are awesome!

I'm very glad you're having success with selling these on ebay, I wouldn't be surprised if you could find a marked for your miniatures outside our "diorama behind the tiki bar" frame of reference and into the worlds of model railroaders and miniature wargamers. I bet they'd sell very well at those conventions.

Great progress and I'm looking forward to seeing more!

Love this new one...heck they all look great! Love the skylights! Fun!

Trav, that's awesome! I love it.

Thank you for taking a look and enjoying the build. I started on the thatch for the covered part of the A-frame. I am using the same process that I have used in the past and it takes forever to get done. All done free hand the ruler is just for scale. The thatch will be stained later.

Here is a 360 degree progress roundup.

I'm very impressed Trav, gonna look too cool!

Each new view is better than the last!
Keep 'em coming please!
~kele

Beautiful work!

awesome work

Can't wait to see this one finished. All the others have been great but this is your best so far.

Thank you very much for the encouragement everyone. The mini Mai Kai has taken allot of hours. Working with the different materials has been a learning experience. Trying to make the model strong while keeping the scale small is a tough nut to crack. I am not even sure what the scale size is as I do all of it be eye. Thanks again for taking a look.

I love watching you work, this is such a different and fun thread, Wendy

uncle trav, this build is one for the ages, absolutely fantastic! :) You know I am going to need a Kahiki, when my outrigger comes in! :lol: You've become a Master!

A bit of an update. I think I finally have the install for the windows on the side wings figured out. The next step is making the framework for the windows and that stuff is very very small. I also did some work on the thatch. And a special thanks to my wife for letting me turn our vintage 1958 Formica kitchen table into a major construction site.

wow, thats all I can muster for a comment pre coffee, But WOW sooOOoo neato and perfect.

Thanks for all of the nice comments. Still have to tweak the vertical framing for the side windows. These pieces are the size of a wooden matchstick and a real pain to work with. Not an exact copy but I think folks will know it's the Mai Kai when they see it. Thanks for looking.

Trav, exceptional and beautiful! I'm running out of superlatives to describe your work, so pardon the redundancies in praise of it.

-Tom

I can't believe how tiny these things are. Wonderful work I can't wait to see how it all looks completed. :wink:

Thank you for all of the kind compliments. Here is a shot from the workbench. A whole lot of thatching going on. It's hard to make out in these photos but each row of thatch has hundreds of tiny cuts to make the detail of the thatch. Thanks again for taking a look.

lookin good trav, you crazy sum-bitch!!!!

Crazy is right! This thing is sucking up a ton of time! Two Mai Kai restaurants in this world and one is on my kitchen table. I still have some work to do but I hope folks will recognize this model when they see it. Once again not an exact copy but a blend of my imagination and the real thing. I am going to do a sign for this one if I can figure out how. Thanks for taking a look.

Wow, sweet! And now, for the foliage... :wink:

Love it! Nice work, my friend.

WOW. Incredible. What did you use to do the coloring on the thatching? I really like how it is uneven varying tones...just like the real thing!

Thanks guys. Haven't even thought about foliage yet. I used amber shellac for the thatch. I think this works best on the paper I used. The amber light is from a small C7 bulb I installed in the base. All hand built and many many hours of work but it has been a fun project. Here is a pop can for scale and a look at the guts.

"Anyone who has ever seen them is thereafter haunted as if by a feverish dream" Karl Woermann

[ Edited by: uncle trav 2011-12-16 07:11 ]

Unreal Trav!
So Brada... What time Happy Hour start??? :)

No happy hour just yet. I still have to get the sign built but it is coming along.