1:35 Gramofony a radia

Sound for an interior scene

A crank gramophone and a tabletop radio receiver were part of the furnishing found in almost every inhabited room in the nineteen-thirties and forties, from a farmhouse parlor through a hotel lobby to a staff room requisitioned in a civilian house. A small object like this fixes the period and the social class of a scene faster than a figure's uniform does, because the viewer immediately connects it with what went on in the room.

The package is prepared for 1:35 scale and carries fourteen resin parts together with a fret of photo-etched parts. The number of pieces lets you furnish more than one corner, so besides a single cabinet against a wall you can create a shop counter or a workshop nook where the sets are waiting to be repaired. The receiver can stand on a table by the window, and the gramophone will take being set down on a chest or straight onto the floor beside scattered records.

Preparing the parts and painting

The castings are separated from the casting blocks with a fine saw and the cut then only needs truing up with a sanding sponge. Lukewarm soapy water clears the surface of mold release residue; without that the finish would hold unreliably. The photo-etched pieces are formed over a sharp edge or in a bending tool and joined by a drop of super glue applied with the tip of a piece of wire.

In terms of shade, dark stained wood on the cabinets works well, complemented by a sheen on the metal parts and a milky white tuning scale. A dry brush brings out the edges that a hand touched in use, and a faint veil of dust on the lower surfaces settles the object into its surroundings.