It has been a year since I first tried to make a Quonset Hut. I took a sample to the ECLSTS to see what people would say. Everyone thought it was something they might want to use on their layout.
One of the big problems was getting the trim to bend along the curve of the roof. Every time I tried matching the curve of the roof line the metal on the side edge would kink do to the radius changing.
This can be corrected by putting small bends in the metal just like putting pleat's in material when sewing. This shrinks the inside radius evenly, solving the kink problem.
The first tool I had is used to remove surgical staples. I picked mine up when the staples were removed from my back after surgery. This tool isn't available to everyone, so a tool had to be designed that was easy enough to make, with every day tools, that would do the job.
To make the indentation in the metal edge, you need a tool to push the metal into the slot to indent metal, into what I will call the "Anvil".
I used a ¼" piece of Plexiglas 2-3/8" X 5" for my "Anvil".
For the indent tool a ¼" piece of metal rod will work . I used a old spike I found in the garage for my indent tool.
The Anvil is pretty straightforward, a simple slot in the Plexiglas 3/32" wide by ¾" long. Round the sharp edge of the slot on the top so the metal doesn't break when pushed into the slot.
A ¼" metal rod 5-1/2" long can be used for the Indent Tool. I made mine from a big spike [nail] I found in the garage as there wasn't a ¼" rod handy.
I used a metal hacksaw to rough cut the rod and files for the finish work. The tip is 3/64" deep and 1/16" wide. Round the sharp edges of the tip so the metal doesn't break when pushed into the slot.
The spacing between indents on this building was set at 1/4" it looks more like the example below. I believe the 1/2" spacing would look better for some models.
