Charlene Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 Help!!! I'm all set to do a clay floor in tile for a conservatory. 1:24 scale. Want the tile to be hexagonal. Do any of you have any suggestions for an object I can use for the outline imprint? Needs to be 1/4 inch or less to be in scale. Everything I've thought of is too big. Aargh! :lol: Are there any full-size tools that would work? Hexnuts have too wide a rim but I can look for other things and I'm, after all, not above raiding the garage. :lol: Any suggestions are welcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hydroped Posted May 5, 2006 Share Posted May 5, 2006 Charlene, What about the end of a pencil.. if you remove the eraser top but leave the eraser in tact.. that sounds confusing but I'm thinking if I remember back to school days correctly - if you pull the eraser out, the metal part is round.. but if you get the metal part off the pencil completely the side that was attached to the pencil should be hexagonal. -David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peggi Posted May 5, 2006 Share Posted May 5, 2006 Do you have any kids around that would have any of the little stop signs as part of the toys? Or can you find a picture of a stop sign in a magazine that you could print out on heavy card stock? Sorry that's all my poor brain can think of at the moment. I'm sure if I went and raided DH stock of screws, nuts, and bolts I might could come up with a better idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlene Posted May 5, 2006 Author Share Posted May 5, 2006 David you're a genuis!!! :lol: Now I just have to find a 'real' pencil -- I only see mechanicals on the desk. Thanks (and my hubby thanks you, too -- no garage raid necessary) Thanks for the idea, Peggi. Never been good at cut and paste, but if David's pencil trick doesn't work I may resort to the magazines & scissors :lol: I'm off to search for a real pencil -- I remember seeing one sometime back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted May 5, 2006 Share Posted May 5, 2006 Charlene, if that doesn't work I found hex nuts, bolts & washers in the hardware stores, small enough to make a working 1:12 scale futon. I'm fairly sure they were metric, but close to 1/4", and Lowes' were in the fastener section (also bagged, but our local hardware store sells them loose). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlene Posted May 5, 2006 Author Share Posted May 5, 2006 Well, I found a pencil. Now through some engineering feat that I couldn't possibly explain -- probably has to do with black holes and atomic fusion -- they've managed to put a round eraser on a hexagonal pencil!Hmmm. :lol: I'm back to the hexnut possibility -- I'll put on my ninja outfit and do a guerilla raid on the garage -- for the amount of time and money DH spends at Lowes and Advance Autoparts there has to be something useful out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dollshousegirl Posted May 5, 2006 Share Posted May 5, 2006 just looking at one of my pencils, yep it too has a round eraser holder on a hexangonal pencil. I would be temepted to use the unsharpend end to make a hexaganol template, out of what I don't know ?????......... do you have thin metal sheets that would bend around the hex bits and make the shape you need. I think i may use this idea for something in the fairfield, so if i work it out then i will get back to you, as the pencil is the ideal shape and size isn't it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doogster Posted May 5, 2006 Share Posted May 5, 2006 How about one of those shape templates you can get at Staples, Business Depot, Office Max etc. I know there's one with a myriad of hexagonal shape sizes, because I got one to mark out certain details on The Betty. Put in place, use the back of an OLD X-acto blade (preferably without the point) to scribe the hexagonal outline into the clay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shakyshaky Posted May 5, 2006 Share Posted May 5, 2006 What about using a metal tealight to make the shape. All you have to do is cut off the side, wrap it aroung a pencil to get the shape, glue or tape closed and you have a cookie cutter. You can make individual tiles or just a print if you don't go all the way through. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlene Posted May 5, 2006 Author Share Posted May 5, 2006 A tealight -- yes, this might work...have plenty of those. Problem with the templates is that none of them are tiny enough for 1:24 so I really need a cookie cutter type thing -- something I can get a grip on. Now where are my tin snips? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hydroped Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 Well, I found a pencil. Now through some engineering feat that I couldn't possibly explain -- probably has to do with black holes and atomic fusion -- they've managed to put a round eraser on a hexagonal pencil!Hmmm. :lol: I'm back to the hexnut possibility -- I'll put on my ninja outfit and do a guerilla raid on the garage -- for the amount of time and money DH spends at Lowes and Advance Autoparts there has to be something useful out there. Yep the erasers are round - that's the tricky part - you leave the eraser in the metal and work the metal part off the wooden pencil. I remember doing this as a kid with all those hours in class that I *should* have been learning but was bored to tears - so all it leaves is a wooden pencil, just wood, no metal cause you pulled the metal off.. then the metal should be hexagonal on the half that came off the pencil, not the half that holds in the eraser..I imagine it would take some ingenuity to get it off the pencil though.. we just used dilligence cause we had nothing better to do heheh. I think the tealight idea might be easier. Shakyshaky alwasy has good ideas :lol: -David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaN Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 Why not buy a small hexagonal specialty paper punch, and punch out the tiles in cardstock and use Quick Seal from Home Depot for your grout? Or a paper template where you could find the hexagon small enough. I know Michael's sells the clay cutters small enough in the polymer clay section, and you could also use a Kemper cutter too, if you are going to use clay. The Quick Seal will work with the clay tiles as well as the cardstock also. If you need a terra cotta floor I would use the DAS clay, this dries pretty quick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlene Posted May 6, 2006 Author Share Posted May 6, 2006 Lisa -- I'm not familiar with Quick Seal -- what exactly is it and how is it applied? I was just going to use trusty old tube spackle for grout but I'm alway open to new stuff and, as the water heater went South and is leaking like a sieve, a trip to Lowes is in the offing anyway so I could pick some up. As we live 3 miles from nowhere, Lowes is the store of choice -- Home Depot doesn't exist in this part of West Virginia. Well my stealth raid on the garage was somewhat of a success. DH has some tiny, tiny sockets which might do the trick as they are perfect hexes. I always knew marrying a mechanic would pay off. I just need to overome the thickness of the rim. If these don't work, I'm considering using a Bic 'stick pen'. When the black plug thingee on the end is removed the outside is 6-sized (and, surprise, a pencil has six sides too) and it has a round center so the grout area would be straight sided and the tile have a raised circle in the center. That looks kind of Victorian to me (the look I'd like) and gives a rather unique look to the tile. I'm using Mexican air-dry clay (white) just because I've had good luck with it since it doesn't have a lot of shrink or warp as it dries. I also have pounds of it in the workshop. Depending on my paint skills, I envision this floor as a deep blue glazed tile, tho it could quickly turn terracotta if I get frustrated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hydroped Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 Hi Charlene, Just browsing through polymer clay stuff and found this Texture sheets 2 of the sets have something looks hexagonal. One is called Lace and comes in 2 sizes the other is called "tile" They're in the Shade Tex Textiles and Shade Tex Archetecture sets. - David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlene Posted May 6, 2006 Author Share Posted May 6, 2006 Thanks David -- I'll check those out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.