Go down to your local "Dollar Store" or equivalent; bamboo skewers are usually around a buck for a package of one hundred. I've used them as HO scale fence-posts and they really stand up to the
occasional elbow on the layout [you won't put your elbow there again]
Little Jack
Use just common nylon net on a wire frame. Looks great!
Gene
Better yet, get some tulle (wedding-veil) material from the fabric store. I use styrene rod for the rails and posts and glue it, but you could solder wire if you like. Looks just like chain-link
("cyclone") fencing!
David Nebenzahl
I need barbed wire for my fence any ideas or manufactueres?
If your into country and westren modeling and want to effectively model those wide open spaces, you need barbed-wire fences.You can make barbed wire on the work bench using 8lb. test monofilament
fishing line.
Tie a knot in the monofilament every scale 24 inches to represent the the barbs twisted on the wire.
To help with the knot tying , make a fence jig using seven headless pins pushed into the jig 24 scale inches apart (if you have a lot of patience make a jig with 30 pins-your fence making will go
faster). The jig also has holes for the proper spacing of the fence posts.
To start cut a piece of fishing line 2 feet in length and tie an overhand knot close to one end. Slip the knot over the right-most pin and pull it tight.
Working to the left, tie a loose overhand knot around the next pin and pull it tight. Repeat until all the pins have knots on them.
Slip the knots fromthe pins and pull tight except the last one place it over the first pin and begin again, keep doing this until you have enough berbed wire for your fence.
Now paint with Polly-S Stainless Steel paint and weather it with a wash of Rustall.
Typical barbed wire fences are 4'6" high and have 3 or 4 strands of wire spaced 10" to 16" apart. (Three strand fences look best). Fence posts are place on 12' to 15' centers. To place the wire on
the posts tie one end of the line to the first post and place a drop of super glue to the wire and allow to dry.
Now pull the wire past the last post and clamp in place with the line pulled tight. Apply a drop of super glue where the line crosses each post.
Repeat this process for the next set of wire untill finished.
What kind of fence? Chain link fences are pretty easy. Picket and split rail fences would have to be modeled with wood and glue -- build them just like the real ones. I would go with etched brass
if I needed a picket fence though. The picket fence products are cheaper than doing it yourself and the final result is better IMHO. Barbed wire fence can't be modeled all that realistically, but you
can get the effect by using thin wire and then wrapping a few bits of short wire every so often. It's more of a caricacture of barbed wire, but it makes the point. Use wood or metal for the posts.
For a stone fence, take a broom to a paved parking lot. Sift out the stones (dropping the stuff in water will have the stones and metal sink to the bottom, then just pick out the metal or dry the
mess in the oven (to kill growing things) and then pick out the stones as you need. Use white glue or matte medium to attach the stones. Weather with washes and cover bits of it with ground foam for
a realistic stone fence!
The easiest of all? Those electronic fences they use to keep dogs in the yard :-) Model yard, install little triangular pennant flags every so often around the perimeter :-)
Dave M..Bott
Can anyone suggest an inexpensive source of spiral fence for HO? I would prefer to purchase pre-made, because my model building skills are minimal. My financial resources are also minimal, so I
would be willing to build if someone has a good idea of what material and method to use.
A good way is to take paperclips and use them as posts, or small styrene ones for that matter and take some tight knit window screen from your hard ares store, cut it to scale and bam fence
Travis Yohler
I find that fine tulle works well. Also if you check out ribbons you may find very interesting stuff. I was lucky this year and found some great mesh ribbon that imitates screen for windows in HO
scale very well.
Claudette
You might try a spring of the proper diameter, and stretch it out.
Frank Rosenbaum