Wire, mesh, fence!

We tested the wire mesh fence made by BUSCH (art.no. 1017)

In our real world, putting up a wire mesh fence is a cheap and quite popular way of demarcating and protecting properties. So it is just consequent to produce a miniaturised version for dioramas and model railway layouts. But for a really satisfying result it needs modern production techniques - remember that even a real chain-link fence is made from thin wire. In 2006 BUSCH, one of the leading German specialists for modelling accessories, presented two wire mesh fence kits for H0 and N scale, but the main difference between the two is the height of the fence and not the thickness of the wire or the mesh size. We tested the H0 scale sample which is suitable for 00 gauge as well.

The spacious and informative package contains 24 round fenceposts, 2 small gate frames (silvery plastic parts) and a transparent bag with 6 fence strips cut from very thin aluminium wire mesh. Each of those strips which look like a very close-meshed fly screen is 16 cm (6.3“) long and 2.5 cm (0.98”) broad. So one can built the 1/87 scale model of an approx. 83.6 m (274 ft) long and 2.18 m (7’ 2”) high fence.

But the first impression you get after you have put up a model fence according to the instructions by BUSCH is quite ambivalent. You will like the very fine accurate mesh but at the same time you have to cope with the chunky fence posts on big round feet. To achieve a more realistic look, advanced modellers will replace the plastic posts by thin steel pins and weather or even paint everything. 

In that case you would not have to care about the irregularly coloured plastic surfaces and some thin ridges either that have remained from the production process. By the way, almost each of the fence posts had been slightly bent which also suggests to replace them with some steel pins instead. Apart from that, some additional sloping support rods next to the posts would make the fence look even more realistic.

Although BUSCH uses an extremely thin aluminium wire for the mesh (only 0.1 mm = 0.0394 in), the model fence - converted to 1/1 scale - would still look rather like a reinforcement steel mat that is used on building sites. But at least it is still better than all the other miniature wire mesh fences available on the common modelling market (maybe except some expensive low volume products by specialised manufacturers). The fence strips can be easily cut to a suitable size and thus be used for many different purposes. 

conclusion

While the very thin mesh looks quite impressive, the chunky fence posts (which were even slightly bent) prevent us from giving the BUSCH set a better mark. We paid 7 Euros for the fence kit (in January 2007) - for some modellers that might be too much for an average product.
 

synopsis*
Packaging (15)	12
'First impression' (15)	9
Originality (15)	9
Closeness to reality (15)	9
Wealth of detail (15)	9
Fineness of detail (15)	9
Closeness to scale (15)	9
Condition of all parts (15)	9
Quality of colours, prints or painting (15)	12
	87 (max. 135)

*Find out more about the test criteria for modelling accessories here.

Tested January 2007        © Volker Labitzke - www.tiny-world-BIG.com - please visit our  main page