Friday, August 19, 2011

15mm Sci-Fi Terrain Mini-Projects

A great deal of the enjoyment I get out of this hobby derives from simple projects that don't cost much at all in terms of time or treasure.  A few days ago I had in mind to do one of these projects - making some chainlink fences for 15mm gaming.  I love chainlink fences because they're ubiquitous, and add a cool verisimilitude to the table.  plus everyone's got something they need to keep behind a fence!

Components for the project were plasticard, thin styrene rod, door screen material, and basing compound.  Cut the plasticard into strips about 3-4" long and 3/4"-1" wide.  Take an X-acto knife and turn a small hole near each end of the strip, about the same diameter as the styrene rod.  Cut pieces of the rod to use as posts and friction fit these into the holes.  Seal up with a dab of superglue from the top side.
   
Cut pieces of screen material and superglue to the rod posts.  If you find you have problems with adhesion, you can take one of the "strands" of wire and wrap it through the fence and around the post to keep it secure.  Apply basing compound and let dry, then prime black.

Last step is to paint the posts and drybrush the fence with Boltgun Metal, and dab in rust spots with Dark Flesh.  I drybrushed the groundwork with Codex Grey and Fortress Grey, then applied static grass to taste.  Dullcote if desired and they are ready for the gaming table! 


Here's another piece of terrain that I made at the same time, it's a wooden thread spool with some bits box junk attached to it.  I also added some texture to the model with thin card, I cut out shapes for the door, the accent stripe near the top, and a panel on the back, and secured them with white glue.  The entire model was sprayed back and painted in grey tones with some rusty bits added.

Anyway, I enjoyed these small projects and I hope they provide inspiration for some projects of your own!

1 comment:

David said...

Great terrain ideas - I will have to give these a go. Thanks for sharing.