Summit USA HO scale strip mall structure kit

Modern-era modelers can now add a strip mall to their layouts without taking up much space thanks to Summit USA’s new low-relief structure kit. The laser-milled styrene building captures the look of malls commonly found throughout the United States and even includes signs for such chain stores as RadioShack, Books-A-Million, and Foot Locker.

The strip mall features tab-and-slot construction, which makes assembly a breeze. As the instructions recommend, I lightly sanded the tabs to get the parts to fit tightly. I also used a no. 11 blade to open the slots so the tabs would seat properly.

The upper trim piece and the six columns are multi-piece laminations. To help conceal the joints between the styrene strips, I sanded the columns and trim with a succession of 320-, 400-, and 600-grit sandpaper.

The storefront window frames are milled from black styrene and have separately applied white styrene doors. I used a jeweler’s file and sandpaper to remove styrene fragments left over from the milling process. Then I attached the doors to the window frames with Plastruct Plastic Weld.

Though the kit includes 1/16″ acrylic plastic window glazing, I used .010″ clear styrene sheet because it’s thinner. I attached the styrene to the window frames with Testor’s Clear Parts Cement. Microscale’s Krystal Klear would also work. Then I added the store interiors. (Three are real photos and two are dark blue blanks.)

Last, I attached the signs to the front wall. Two of the signs are peel-and-stick, while three are milled styrene. The instructions recommend coloring the styrene signs with a permanent marker. If you do this and plan to spray the building with Testor’s Dullcote, attach the signs (and window glazing) after applying the flat finish. Dullcote will cause the
ink to run and frost the window glazing. I opted to brush-paint
the store signs with Polly Scale acrylic paints.

Summit USA’s low-relief strip mall kit was fun to build. The milled styrene parts were easy to work with, and with a footprint of only 11/2″ x 31/2″ x 141/2″, the structure doesn’t require much space. The styrene signs and real photo interiors are nice touches, too. Strip malls can be found every-where from small towns to sprawling suburbs. Now they can be found on your layout as well.

HO scale strip mall
Price: $39.95

Manufacturer
Summit USA
12 Ford St.
Lake Charles, LA 70601
http://summit-customcuts.com
Description: Milled styrene
structure kit