Re: Telltale construction

"P. Roehling" <nowayjose@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
news:484b7192$0$7070$4c368faf@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 "Michael Valinis" <valinis.1@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote
:
: >I would like to build a few telltales as warnings at tunnel
approaches
: > on my layout.  Now comes the (I hope not too dumb) question.
What is
: > the hanging part of the telltale made of?
:
<Snip>

: Believe it or not, telltales are difficult to model realistically.
The
: frames are a snap, but if you use thread to duplicate the dangling
ropes, it
: always seems to want to hang in a slight curve rather than
extending
: straight down as did the prototypes, and if you use wire instead it
ends up
: looking like, well, wire.
:
: Should you find an easy solution to this problem you will no doubt
be
: awarded the plaudits of a grateful newsgroup.
:

I use a trick for getting the curl out of the line I use to make
rigging for my full rigged ****p modeling.
For that I made a rack where I could hang multiple threads, but a
closet doorway will do for a few
threads to make tell-tales.

Take length of thread (18 - 24in is handy to work with) and run it
through a cake of bee's wax.

Attach a 1or 2oz weight to one end of the line

Use a push pin on the other end to hang it from the inside sill of a
closet doorway.
(SWMBO doesn't like holes on the outside sill). You want the weight
free hanging.

Leave it for 12 - 24hrs to let the spool curl, and natural twist come
out.

Take it down, and cut into the lengths you need for your tell-tale.

Len