Very nice Randy!

I've a Diorama build from Rodney Walker with your structures. I love the textures and details. Keep up your good work.

WOW!!

That is an impressive model.  And the whole photobucket album is amazing

busted links?

Love to be able to see what is coming up new, alas the links don't appear to be working. I did a copy and paste. 

images

Amazing Work Randy!

Moderator note: Moved the images up to the OP.

VHS Heaven? Love it!

How could that business model ever have failed?

Were They Insured?

I love the irony of the fire damage to the insurance company. Wonder if they were covered?

Nice pics!

These are some great models--beautiful!

Kind of Depressing

Nice models, although a bit depressing to see.  Wonder why there isn't a hobby shop on the block?

Nice models, excellent

Nice models, excellent detail, very realistic. Looks like one of the many reasons I left the rust belt years ago. It turned out that in some areas whole towns were nearly closed up and nearly the only folks left were on pensions or welfare as the jobs went away, other than the few that were providing services to that crowd.

Those models sure do capture the look of those areas. In one of those nearly closed up towns over a thousand people applied for a janitors job at one of the local schools, and it was not considered a good paying job.

Rob in Texas

Great Looking

Thanks for fix Bill. Details look great. I agree though that it does look depressing. On the otherhand depending on the era modeled and the location they would fit right in. Kit bashing idea...Paste a big sold sign and have a couple of suits out front hashing out how to bring them back to life.

Jack

As an additional idea

sell a kit of just the signs.  In N and HO.  I'd buy one.

If you were to get rid of the

If you were to get rid of the VCR signs and rename that business or include some alternative your kits could have a wider time frame to appeal to. They could then be closed for urban renewal of the 60s, and show some hope for the new business that would be taking their place, say a shopping center opening soon.

The detail on the structures is really great. It would also be nice to have them in a newer and occupied state as well as they would really add to a scene along the tracks for some not too high rent buildings with viable business. In looking at them it would be great if the steel curtain was in the up position and the trash cans were not in the front of the door ways.

It just might be a way to turn your pilot model in to two different kits with a minor adjustment. I have admired the detail on your kits in the past but never wanted to model the run down side of things that most of them seem to portray, quite well I might add.

One other thing I would suggest to builders of kits for the rest of us to buy. Over head space is generally free. Eastern cities were always full of structures that were 4 to 6 stories tall in many blocks of the business district. Those buildings are almost never modeled and involve a good bit of kitbashing to achieve. Those taller buildings pack more into the same foot print as the smaller buildings and give a town a reason for being. I am always looking for buildings like that. City classics makes some that are inexpensive and a bit taller than some others. The taller buildings also have the advantage of being view blocks on layouts closer to eye level viewing.

Beautiful work on your kit it is very realistic. If you ever do some that have the look of prosperity and could be in the 50s I will likely become a customer.

Rob in Texas

Really nice

Great looking kits, with your usual touch of irony, Randy!

Expanding the time frame

http://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/13965

On this Downtown Deco kit I printed my own signs created in Microsoft Word. Some other signs I did image searches for and printed off the images after resizing them in Word. 

Compare this:

To the as built by Randy version:

Ironically for me it would appear that in this latest offering Randy has moved forward in time to about when I was trying to achieve when I modeled Addams Ave to my vision. 

An Idea

Rob you just lit up a solution for me. I have 3 of Randy's kits, 2 of which are waiting for a potential home before I build them. So a bash/scratch job, come up with some more floors for the next 2. One of them has a 2nd floor already. Same basic kit but unlike anyone elses.

Thanks

All too real - great job

All it needs is a little speaker in one of the buildings playing James McMurtry's (Larry's kid) "We Can't Make It Here Anymore", and a Vietnam vet in a wheelchair on the corner.

In O scale too?

Nice!

Hey Rustman I have a question

VectorCut is the company you are looking for

http://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/13891is my write-up on their products.

Red VW

My first car 1962.