Beam and Web Material

[Firefly16]

Back in the 90s I had samples of various beams and some web sections made of a new material, matt white in colour and very light. Smooth to the touch, magnified, it seemed to consist of tightly compacted granules/fibres but though relatively 'soft' compared to styrene, cutting left a firm, clean edge. Does anyone else remember these beams and the name of the material of which they were made? I seem to remember that the inventor was based in Birkenhead and I would like to think his product took off - over the years my 'samples' have come in useful for such things as coping stone details, timber posts, etc.

[Bigmet]

Sounds very neat, but never seen it to try out. Possibly couldn't compete with the dominant polystyrene extrusion selection found 'in every model shop', the brand name of which I cannot recall... Got it now - Plastruct!

[Firefly16]

Credit where it's due, Bigmet - Plastruct definitely had the edge when it came to Is and Ts etc., but this product, whatever it was called, made for terrific details such as coping stones and 9" x 9" timber posts. Another one of those things that sadly, didn't quite come off.