Damocles

Hi Houston, The figure is straight out of the box. One of the new Evolution Miniatures SF Operators. Quality and detail are excellent, with just the hands and M4 to add. Plan is to build up the walls leading to the main entrance gates with two OP's (updated MARS Sangars), one elevated and one surface mounted, with a command unit, ISO container and RAID Mast (comms and EO sensors) behind the wall. Walls will be topped with Razor wire and rocket cages around the MARS Sangars. Picture below of work to date, mainly the road sections leading to the gates. Chris.

Jimbuna, thank you for your comments, they are very much apprecieated. I was thinkning about the making moulds and casting topic, it must have been at least 25 years ago I got a scratchbuildig book by Verlinded (i think its in the garage somewhere, must dig it out) and it has only taken me this long to actually make and cast something. With a bit of trial and error, it is very rewarding Alfisti The biggest problem, I came across was making sure everyting is square, especially as these ones are interlocking. (the main reason I embarked on making my own, was that I got a resin set from Accurate Armour, and they were a little warped, and no matter how hard i tried, I could not line them up). I actually redesigned the mould last night, as there is a slight 'run-off' on the top of the last ones. If you PM me with an email address, I will send you some drawings I got regarding sizes, but saying that there are more variations and size differences in the real items depending on where they where made, what factory them came out of and for what use they where needed, so exact accuracy is not essential. (the ones posted above are a slight 'what-if', with the innerface being slofed and not vertical, but this is specific to my project. If you check out my post on laser cut plasticard in the scratchbuilding section, there is a picture witht the dimensions on it. I used double sided tape to stick the wet-and dry to innerface of the mould, so it stuck fine and did not come off with the plaster. I trialed various wet & dry brands (normal sandpaper ripples with the moisture), and ended using one made by 'Decorators Choice', a bit of a budget brand from my local paint shop, but it was just right for what i wanted. One point of note, you need to make the mould so that it opens, as the wet-and dry texture will stop it from sliding out. I will hopefully be getting my new mould parts within the week, and will cast some more. I am more than happy to send some across if you like. Thanks, Chris.

Cheers Charles, Many thanks for the info. I think a bit of research and planning is in order !. Regards, Chris.

Cheers Steve, Thank you for your comments. Going to give MIG's 'Cool Grey Wash' a go next, the 'Dark Wask', may be a little too dark !. Slowly, slowly, but I am getting there ?. Chris.

Hi Charles, What a selection of excellent builds, very inspirational indeed. What are the two MLRS versions ?, do you by any chance have anyother photographs of these ?. Chris.

Update on progress of my Alaska Wall Sections. After several attempts at cutting perfect sections from plasticard, I gave up and got some plastic laser cut by PES (see scratchbuilding section). Whilst not 100% perfect, they are not far off and will meet my needs, and I want to progress this project as it has stood still for a while. Some pictures below, as always comments are most welcome. uprights uprights with 1/35 figure for scale Close-up showing interlocking joint Close-up showing texture (texture got from placing 240 grit wet & dry sand paper on the inside of the mould. All have been painted with ‘Faller - Grey Roadway Paint’, and a ‘Mig Dark Wash’ applied. Chris.

A quick update, showing the pre-production drawings prepared by PES from the sketches I provided. Sections should be with me in a week or so, so i will update when they land. Chris.

Hi Richard, This figure looks excellent, never done a large scale figure, but may give it a go now after seeing this figure I have been trying for some time to get references for the original CP MultiCam and MTP schemes with no luck. You could try searching for someone with the new vehicle crews by Accurate Armour, as I beleive they come with painting instructions for the MTP scheme, alternatively I am sure if you contacted AA they may tell you the colours. Regards, Chris.

Well, progress has been swift, I drew up my initial sketches and sent them over to Jon on Wednesday morning. Sketches where drawn in 1 to 1 scale and scanned. Jon then drew them up on CAD and sent me a .pdf to confrim dims and quantities. The parts are cut from 1.3mm white/black Rowmark. (i have never used this material before, but it reacts well to plastic-weld and is ridgid, with a gloss black surface to one side and a matt/satin white surface to the other side. With great suprise, the parts arrived this morning in a bubble wrap envelope, taped to a thin, but rigid MDF board. Before saying anymore, big thumbs up for Jon and 'Progressive Engineering Solutions’. Even at this early stage, I cannot recomend him enough, which when you see the pictures below combined with other posts about his paint jar holders/workstations will not be hard to believe. We agreed to do a bit of a trial run. This consisted of the parts to make one mould for my ‘Alaska Wall Sections’, and the parts to form the basis of a MARS Sangar. The mould needs some patience, so I blasted on with the MARS Sangar to see how it would react with plastic weld or Cyano. The plastic weld worked 100%. Below are some pictiures & brief explinations. These are all the laser cut parts. Crisp cuts and perfect angles. This is an overlay of the cut parts for the Alaska Wall section and my original sketches. Absolutely perfect. As above but for the MARS Sangar Close up of some of the parts. This is a picture of a MARS Sangar. These where very common in Northern Ireland in the 1990’s and early 2000’s. I managed to get access to one of the last remaining units in the Province to measure it up. What I have got cut are the main wall and roof sections , with cut-outs for the sliding BRG units. As the BRG units are all the same, I will make up a master with evergreen strip and cast in resin for fitting on each elevation along with the lifting eyes. This is the MARS Sangar made up. Very quickly I might add and is stting on a plaster base. I am more than happy with this. Whilst not beyond my capabilities to cut four squares of plastic card with cut-outs, the accuracy and sharpness of cuts and angles could not easily be reporduced by hand in large quantities, and are worthy of the nominal cost. This is a demonstration of how accurate the cutting is. I specified four 9.5mm square holes on this roof section to house evergreen square tube section. Cant say anymore......fit is perfect. (the black mark, is where a little plastic weld took off the white surface. While no issue, I need to be mour careful in the future. I will post up some pictures of the wall section parts asap. Gereat job Jon !. Regards, Chris.

John & Jenko, Many thanks fo the response & guidance, the sign makers sounds a good idea, and I would have a few contacts through work. Unfortunately schools finish here at the end of June so I'll have to wait till september to try that avenue. I will give Jon a stabb at this one, John I got your email addess from your website so will drop you a quick note. Kind Regards, Thanks again folks, I'll update the post and let you all know the outcome. Chris.

Can any one advise of a company who can lazer cut plasticard (2mm thk) in the UK or Ireland ?. I need to make several exact copies of the same shape to make up some molds, and the Mk 1 eyeball just aint good enough anymore. Regards, Chris.

Great work Skii, am looking forward to seeing it 'tooled up'. What are your plans for painting, will it be just of the production line or heavily weathered, Afganistan style ?. Chris.

Mike, Do you know of any UK retailers of the 'Chopper' range ?. dr_gn, The 'Choppers' look good for plastic strip, but don't think they would work for alu or brass sections, without eating blades at a high rate. I have a Proxxon mini chop saw with carborundum cutting disk, think it was about £60, and does the job great for metals, but just melts plastic. Cheers, Chris.

Thanks BB, it is certainly back to basics and great fun !. Update on the master. I am resonably happy with the end result, although I’m not convinced with the texture. I am going to make a new one up with a smoother finish. Chris.

I have been thinking of doing a bit of an Armour diorama of base in Iraq/Afghanistan using the perimeter wall as a key feature. I have done a little research, and the walls come in many sizes and shapes. I have a set of Accurate Armours resin Alaska Wall sections, but in the quantities I am thinking of, it would be to expensive of an option. I decided to take the plunge and make up my own wall sections, using the interlocking design. First stage was to make moulds from plastic card then pour the sections using Plaster of Paris and glued together to make the master shape. Next stage will be to fill a few cracks/chips, square come edges and then apply ‘Tamiya Diorama Textured Paint’ (Pavement Effect Light Gray) applied to a sample section to simulate concrete. Once this is done I will make several rubber moulds and then cast away. All comments are welcome. Chris. Alaska walls in Iraq. Empty moulds Moulds poured Side view (a bit of a clean up needed) From above My Attempt vs. Accurate Armours Resin example 1/35 MIG figure for scale The ‘Tamiya Diorama Textured Paint’ (Pavement Effect Light Gray) applied to a sample section to simulate concrete.

Hi James, Thanks for posting more pictures, I certainly couldn't possible get bored with this bird. Great reference pictures, here is hoping that someone produces a 1/32 kit sometime soon. Chris.

Well what a great service from Vajra. I ordered it the M-ATV on Sunday, It was dispatched from China on Tuesday and arrived in my hands ay 10 am on Friday. Here are some pictures of the kit, qualiy is great and whilst detailed well, has plenty of scope for more. Sturdy Box with well wrapped parts. Only one identifiable broken part, which was the barell from the M240 Machine Gun. Instructions, B&W assemble pictures. Instructions, colour reference pictures. PE parts for the OGPK Cupola. Heavy gauge brass. One piece resin M-ATV cab and bonnet. One piece resin M-ATV cab Close Up Of Front Windows Wheels, 4 + Spare. Good Detail, But Not Sagged. Underside ‘V’ Hull. M240 Machine Gun. Barrel Was The Only Broken Part In The Entire Pack. Transmission Part, crisp detail. Doors Mouldings For Cables That Run To The Brakes On The Rear Wheels Chris.

Cheers Mark, There is a method in my madness ! Chris.

The Vajra Minatures 1/35 M-ATV went on sale yesterday, so I just had to order it !. Link to Vajra Minatures Link to M-ATV page Some Pictures; Chris.

Progress has been painfully slow, but it has started moving again. Hopefully have it finished and ready for painting within 2 weeks. Chris. Rear Rocket Launcher. Top 1 Frontal Leg 1 Leg 2 Turret Cannon Pivot Frontal 2 Archer resin decal welded seam A/C unit on turret 1 A/C unit on turret 2

I was at a meeting today about the redevelopment of the Queens Island/Harland & Wolf site in Belfast, there is a 'signature' building being built costing £70m +, which will house a contemporary museum/gallery charting all the stages from design, build to the maiden voyage and the tragedy. One fact that got my attention, was that they are commissioning a 1/48 scale model of the ship, however a similar model was made several years ago but to a much higher spec (individually lighted cabins etc...) at a cost of ..................... $2.5m. Now that would be a nice commission. The project looks fantastic, a long over due tribute to the feat of engineering that the Titanic and the Olympic before her where. Due for completion early 2012 in time for the anniversary, it will be a magnet for 'Titan-anoraks' world wide. Chris.

Here is a link to the US Army Flickr page. just under 6,000 high-res pictures. Excellent reference source for kit, vehicles & environment. http://www.flickr.com/photos/soldiersmediacenter/ Caution, it takes a while to get through them all !. Chris.

Please add me to the list with an Accurate Armour Oshkosh M107F HET Tank Transporter Tractor as a base for a 'tooled up' gun truck. Chris.

After returning to modelling with a Paolo Parente’s Dust Model ‘Jagdluther’, I decided to have a go at scratch building one, although there will be a little kit-bashing for parts. Some pictures so far, plenty of filler to be rubbed down, and Archer dry decals, resin welding beads to be placed over seams. Tubing on body and turret, will mount weapons, and two tubing sections angled down are the upper limbs of the legs. Chris.

Jullen, Try a company called Netmerchants, they have Stainless Steel Micro blades and PE blades. Chris.