Painter General Store in HO scale
Painter General Store in HO scale
Painter General Store in HO Scale by Conowingo Models
This kit is based on a small building we noticed while passing through Painter, VA. At the time, we weren’t able to determine whether it was occupied or what it was used for, and the design is based on poor-quality photos found online.
About a year before the building was torn down, we were able to visit the site and take better photos. A few of these are included in the instructions, along with updated signage. The signage sheet contains both a photo of the original sign and a ChatGPT-enhanced version, which we found appealing, even though it doesn’t exactly match the original.
If you view the location on Google Maps (Painter, VA - US Rt. 13 and VA Rt. 1203), you’ll see a similar brown structure—currently Savage Taxidermy—still standing next door.
One of the pleasures of model railroading is giving new life to lost structures. While the real building is gone, it can live on in many forms. We think it would make a great coffee shop, and we’ve adapted it as a bait shop (not produced) and as a Gold Dust series background flat. As of this writing, it’s also being considered for a motel office.
The kit includes laser-cut wood and Tichy details.