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Forums - Site / Build Logs

Messages in this Build Logs forum are automatically posted when new Build Logs or Chapters are added. Other modellers can then comment on them. Refer to the Build Logs section for more information.

Topics	81
Messages	3051

Subject:

[Chapter] Chapter 13 - Crew and Base

Date:

Jan 30, 2005

From:

Alex Hill

Chapter 13 - Crew and Base

A gun needs a gun crew, partly to give an impression of scale and partly to add a bit of life to the scene. As usual, I’ve used my favourite combination of Ultracast bodies with Hornet heads. This might seem an expensive choice, but I’m no great figure modeller or painter, and using these top quality parts certainly flatters my limited abilities! Every time a get a new set of Hornet heads I’m staggered by the quality of the sculpting. Full size and cast in bronze they would be better than half the stuff you see in art galleries, in 1/35 they are little short of genius.

I’ve used three figures here, to represent a Gunner, Corporal driver and a Warrant Officer 2nd class. For a full explanation of each I’ve numbered the photo’s below- so, beginning with figure 1, the Gunner. The Hornet head used here is from the ‘smoking heads’ set. There is a small hole between the chap’s lips, presumably for adding a cigarette, but to me, his expression says ‘man wistfully blowing a smoke ring’. To get the pose it was simply a case of angling the head back a little, lifting the arm and placing a cigarette between the fingers of the left hand. This left a little Milliput work to be done in the arm pit area and a non-issue grey woolly jumper collar was added to fill out the round the neck. Last touches of note are the segs and hobnails on the sole of the left boot, a packet of Dioart Camels (pity they don’t do Players or Woodbines) in the up turned Ultracast MkII helmet and of course some hair.

The second, driver, figure represented a bit more of a challenge. It started out as the Ultracast ‘tanker with jerry can’, but I needed a third figure in a recumbent pose, so a bit of modification was required. As I previously stated, figure modelling is not my forte and the finished result seen here went through an awful lot of surgery with the razor saw to end up in that position. Suffice to say, that right leg is at least a mark 5. His cigarette is held in a cupped left hand. Apart from Archer stripes the rest of the insignia are hand painted (including a Milliput Royal Artillery ‘flaming grenade’ cap badge).

The remaining W.O figure (thanks go to Ross Hillman of T.L for supplying this one) is a straightforward head swap, as with the other two, the marks of rank come Archer and the rest is hand painted.

A few last words on the base- I’ve deliberately kept things pretty simple to avoid drawing attention from the Scammell. The rough ground was built up with plaster of paris and the heath like grass , moss and heather was added with scenic scatter material , dried moss, static grass and Guagemaster long grass (as the name suggests, it’s a product intended for railway modellers). To give the impression that the going under foot is a little heavy (to justify the overall tracks) I’ve run a little dark water paint into the areas where the turf has been lifted along the wheelings.

That’s it! A fairly epic and thoroughly enjoyable project completed. I’m sure that in the course of the BLOG there are loads of points I’ve missed, so if anybody has been left scratching their heads at various points, feel free to contact me through the forums and I’ll do my best to fill in any blanks. Pictures of the finished article will (hopefully) be appearing in the gallery soon.