Walter M. Clark wrote

My current adventure<g> is modeling sill steps for Harriman
SP box cars.

Many of Al's kits use similar methods using flat brass 'wire'.
Personally I'd like to see someone do an etched sheet of strip
brass in several scale widths, each piece 3-4" long. It would
be generic material, thinner than the Detail Associates flat
strips, easier to bend and twist, for many applications. Easy
to cut too, because the cuts are not lengthwise -- as you said
it's really hard to cut shim material so narrowly.

Tim O'Connor