The Very Last White River and Northern Railroad

[peteski]

How does one file a hair off a hair?

Just ask DKS. 

[wazzou]

How does one file a hair off a hair?

You may not recognize sarcasm because I didn't use the right font.

It was more a lighthearted ode to DKS's modeling in miniature.
And, I think filing "off" a hair would be quite easy.
Reducing its thickness with a file would be difficult.

[CRL]

You may not recognize sarcasm because I didn't use the right font.

It was more a lighthearted ode to DKS's modeling in miniature.
And, I think filing "off" a hair would be quite easy.
Reducing its thickness with a file would be difficult.

Sarcasm? Surely you weren’t intending that although it’s hard to recognize sarcasm with the 😷 on. I’m sure DKS could split the hair, but I’ve never been able to split hairs without introducing excessive curvature.

[Sokramiketes]

Possibly, but I kind of doubt it. Need some material that will flex on its own at about 3/16 long. I'll have a look...

I picture a streamer, maybe 3 times as long as the kite, and in that case maybe silk thread would give enough bounce?  Some of those kite streamers get really long.

[davefoxx]

Would Fine White EZ Line from Berkshire Junction work as a kite's tail?  It's marketed as 0.010" or 0.25 mm in thickness.

DFF

[DKS]

This morning, @Philip H jazz bar, Phil's Bayou Another, got its sign. It measures less than a quarter of an inch wide.



This is the art I generated to make it:

[DKS]

I picture a streamer, maybe 3 times as long as the kite, and in that case maybe silk thread would give enough bounce?  Some of those kite streamers get really long.

I've got some silk thread, I'll give it a try.

[DKS]

OK, so I tried a whole bunch of stuff. Regular thread, silk thread, monofilament thread, rubber wire... they all just hung there like an overstarched shirt. I even tried a micro-fan (which I'd hide in a nearby tree) to give them a kick...



The fan did create a little movement, but it looked awful because of physics. Same problem functional model cranes have: a pendulum swings at a rate proportional to its length. So even when I got some movement, it jiggled rapidly, instead of flowed.

I may (or may not) leave some sort of streamer attached, as it does add a classic touch, and just live with it being stiff as a board. Dunno. We'll see.

[davefoxx]

Did you see my prior post about EZ Line?  And, if all else fails, could you model a "box kite" that doesn't require a tail?

DFF

[DKS]

Did you see my prior post about EZ Line?  And, if all else fails, could you model a "box kite" that doesn't require a tail?

DFF

Yes, I did see that post, and that's indeed why I gave "rubber wire" a try this morning.

[wazzou]

Sarcasm? Surely you weren’t intending that...

That's why there is a wink emoji.

[Sokramiketes]

The fan did create a little movement, but it looked awful because of physics. Same problem functional model cranes have: a pendulum swings at a rate proportional to its length. So even when I got some movement, it jiggled rapidly, instead of flowed.

I may (or may not) leave some sort of streamer attached, as it does add a classic touch, and just live with it being stiff as a board. Dunno. We'll see.

Darn.  Yeah, better to leave it off entirely rather than highlight the lack of movement.

[DKS]

Darn.

Yeah, physics is a bitch, ain't it?

It's a constant battle for me, and one of the reasons I don't do things like loading cars with coal or whatever--everything happens 160 times faster than it should. I try to stick with things that either don't involve movement that looks awkward, or where I can strictly control the movement (like the waterfall). It's tough.

[Mark W]

To me, in the spirit of a classic kite, a lack of streamer is more distracting than a static streamer.   Sure we know streamers are supposed to flutter in the wind, but on the macro level when a kite is up there, the streamers often appear rather stable.

[DKS]

Sure we know streamers are supposed to flutter in the wind, but on the macro level when a kite is up there, the streamers often appear rather stable.

Or, they disappear. It's a tough call, like oversize rivets versus none.