I've been working on a block of buildings loosely based on the battle scarred photos of Juarez online... working in foamcore I'm at the stage where I can begin to add balsa and match wooden windows, doors and shutters. The exposed foamcore has been sculpted with a propelling pencil to create the adobe bricks and pierced to create shrapnel damage... finescale milliput will add smooth and rough render texture and tidy up joins and create additional 3D brick details in due course.
A step by step guide in the Jan Ed of 15 Mill is planned...
Looks good, very talented
Stewart
Very nice - I'm looking forward to reading that article!
Simon
Looking forward to reading the step by step guide.
Great work again.
Nick
Looking good so far Neil. Never worked with polystyrene apart from hills, love the brick and stone effect you have done.
Keep us informed.
Terry
They look spot on Neil.
I too look forward to the article.
Much impressed.
martin :)
Terrific detail on those even at this early stage. Will make a great article in the Mill which I look forward to reading.
The final result is going to be terrific !!!
Amazing work...
After a flurry of activity a couple of w.i.p. shots after basic undercoating and some rudimentary dry brushing to bring out the brickwork detailing. Further painting and detailing is required before I can glue the building to the base and begin the groundwork. Doorsteps and further detailing will be added. A rudimentary sandbag emplacement has been added on the corner of the roof and I've experimented with adding a metal grille with florists wire and some wooden shuttering. The crude white distemper is for this block only. I will be experimenting with painted door surrounds and house colours on the more affluent second block that is planned.
Those look fab, Neil - I look forward to the next steps.
Simon
@Neil--getting better every time,I admire your modelling skills.
Terry
Admin - Perhaps this topic would be best moved to the 'Terrain and Figures' section?
That can be arranged, Neil ;)
Just as soon as I'm back at something with a bigger screen.
Simon
Really beautiful.
I like very much the way you designed and painted these buildings.
Superb !
Just watching Simon using his god given powers-------------------------------------LOL.
Thanks Simon...
I'm thinking of a max of 4 blocks in all to make up a couple of street scenes with a Mission church at one end and a station at the other. Each block will have a different look... #2 will be a terrace of buildings much like the first but slightly more affluent with better windows, doors and general decor. #3 with a cantina on the corner... and possibly #4 a parade of shops with a verandah at the front.
I'm also picking up work on the church and station...
Quote from: Spartacus on December 13, 2020, 08:29:02 PM
Just watching Simon using his god given powers-------------------------------------LOL.
Yup - it's that feeling of some small degree of power here (Simon C gets to do all the clever stuff) that keeps me going :)
Simon
Neil,
It's getting better all the time!
How many hours of work do you think you've put in so far?
Simon
Quote from: Colonel Kilgore on December 13, 2020, 10:12:01 PM
How many hours of work do you think you've put in so far?
A very good question to which I don't have a good answer... mainly because of all the additional combing through online sources of old photos which has muddied the waters somewhat. That and the 'a little bit here, a little bit there' approach. A good few hours invested so far, that's for sure!
I'm working on a step-by-step article for the 15 mill, so I'll try and get some idea of time spent when I quantify the stages.
This is something of an unusual departure for me doing the scenery first before getting the figures!
So Neil what is your basic workflow from when you find you photograph for inspiration how do you from there to your finished building.
After finding a few photos;
Work up a sketch with some of the salient features I want to include.
Calculate the rough dimensions to incorporate - door & window size, proportions and overall height etc.
Adopt a suitable sized footprint for the model based around the scale etc.
Come up with a concept that incorporates the features I want.
Put scalpel to card!
I'm putting together a more detailed step-by-step guide atm which I hope will be in the Jan edition of 'The 15 Mill'
That will be of interest Neil. I have never tried buildings from scratch. I have always fancied building "The Alamo" as the original film was brilliant.
Oh dammit--that would mean a new series of figures and I have 3 armies on the painting table now!
Terry
You've probably got time before we're out of this pandemic, Terry!
I'm also looking forward to Neil's article.
Simon
That will be an interesting article Neil.
Even though they have a way to go with detailing because of their size the Mission church has a lot of blank wall and tile roof so as part incentive to finish and part morale boost I've painted some sections. The same goes for the station canopy and platform. The gouache white I'm using seems quite transparent so I'm having to build up the limewash effect in several layers. Both are coming along nicely though. The houses are now ready to glue to the base...
@Neil---I am stunned at your work. I just wish I had some talent, Any talent would do.
Terry
Lovely job Neil
martin :)
Also wanting to say how nice those look Neil....great work.
Bob
Very nice, Neil. The stonework in the bell tower in particular looks great.
Simon
Thanks all,
I think the key is to have good textures to work with and not to worry too much about sticking to scale. The tiles and roofing I use are Wills railway scenic accessories so are actually 20mm scale. By making the Milliput stonework far deeper than scale and by treating all the surfaces with more 'theatrical' painting effects with ink wash lowlights and drybrushing highlights you can get a pleasing effect for 15mm scale.
I think your right, when you use 20mm buildings for 15mm, I think the biggest problem is the doors and especially door frames. If they look too big and you can scale them down ? Everything else doesn't really matter.
Miles
I tend not to use 20mm buildings in their entirety but I do use the detailing kits and building accessories and component parts with some success. The shack in this 15mm PP Back of Beyond scenario is adapted from the Dapol/Airfix railway accessories weighbridge office, with two layers of the horizontal boards removed to reduce the overall height and substitute 'corrugated iron' plastic roofing and a matchstick and balsa verandah added...
That shack certainly looks the part, Neil!
Simon
I've been experimenting with some seasonal ingredients...
Defunct plastic Christmas tree parts - cropped with a scalpel.
The tips will make passable yucca/agave plants.
The stems will make the basis for large cacti like seguaro and Mexican giant cacti (and even have handy holes for pegged basing)
The loose leaves can be glued into clumps to make patches of tall grasses ideal for revolutionaries to hide behind...
They look good, Neil. But aren't you supposed to wait until after Christmas to cut the tree down?
Or have you taken Mr Johnson's cancellation of Christmas literally? ;)
Simon
;D ;D ;D ;D retasking old plastic Christmas tree bits seems very much like a lockdown activity, Simon...
My modelling plans are still very much weather dependent since the wife hates solvent based glues stinking out the joint...
Neil
Fair enough, Neil. There's a dwindling list of things we are currently allowed to do!
Simon
It's Christmas and the cacti are growing! - the agaves are being planted and the brush is springing up high enough to hide a sombrero-wearing zapatista...
Well done Neil
What you feeding them on?
Are they nails + Milliput, Neil?
Simon
Saguaro Cacti are indeed nails glued to a base with high-grab glue, then clad in finescale milliput and sculpted. Branches will be added using florist wire armatures. The agaves are tips from redundant plastic christmas tree parts.
A teaser photo of the village and church now the basic block shells are constructed - comprising 4 blocks - a poor terrace block, a somewhat better-off terrace with a patio to rear, a cantina with shops and a n other quarter with a mix of shops and houses.
At the other end will be the railway station, yard and water tower with telegraph poles etc. the village will have a scatter of single houses around the periphery...
Nice work Neil.... have been enjoying the pictures & ideas a great deal.
Bob
Those buildings are coming along very well indeed!
Simon
My southern rebels would fight and die over that lovely scenery Neil
martin :)
This is something of a departure for me - doing most of the scenery first before I have ANY figures! Until then the only thing that will be moving down these streets are model tumbleweeds!
To complete the scene there has to be a couple of old boys seated somewhere in the shade putting the world to rights or at least a solitary sombrero wearing hombre propping up a wall asleep...
Looking very nice, are they built to fit 6 inc Square? Or 12x6 template ?
Miles
Quote from: Smiley Miley 66 on December 24, 2020, 03:06:40 AM
are they built to fit 6 inc Square? Or 12x6 template ?
Miles
Actually slightly larger. I had some spare panettone boxes I'd kept for scenery storage that worked out at 7x7 inch (internal) so the bases are maxed out at that. The larger building blocks are 6.5 x 6.5 inches so with a little tweaking it should be entirely possible to make something similar fit a stricter 6x6 template should the rules call for it.
Hello Neil
The squares in FM an be stretched easily because the whole game is a series of zones and not measurement. just call it a "Neil" square.
martin :)
So who has some ideas for creating, not buying, cactus?
Looking for some ideas as to the materials I could use.
Buying the PP ones is probably the righteous solution?
martin :)
I think you may need to book Les in for some re-education sessions, Martin? ;)
Simon
Depending on the size you require or amount ? If you wanted bigger ones ? Then maybe 28 mm manufacturers? If not a bit of wire and Milliput and or Green Stuff, I would suggest.
Miles
Quote from: Leslie BT on December 24, 2020, 06:01:24 PM
So who has some ideas for creating, not buying, cactus?
Looking for some ideas as to the materials I could use.
Depends which type you are thinking of.....
Pipe cleaners will give one variety but for say prickly pear I'd use Fimo (you can even get green colour) maybe with wire support.
Neil
There is only two variants Simon and I was not expecting Martin to make more, rather have more figures!
Thanks Neil I can find Fimo in the supermarket to thats what I will be doing as I want 15 or 20.
The F.i.b.u.a. I was planning indeed relies on controlling zones - so clearing an entire block is an objective. Since the buildings are more for show, a flag or stand of figures suggests the defenders and combat is resolved off table using attacking v defending points. As long as the blocks were not too out of scale I was more concerned with storage limitations than playability. This has come back to bite me since my station has ended up a tad longer than the storage boxes I have to hand... :-\
As for cacti - variety is everything, so my desert will indeed be seeded with PP versions as well as those of my own making.
For those who have some skill with whittling/carving you might try free carving cacti from styrofoam chunks (the blue or pink high density insulation widely used by foam modellers). A good way to use up all those chunks left over from other projects.
Prickly pear would be a challenge as would organ-pipe cacti in 15mm but wire supports would be needed for both.
I'm thinking of biting the bullet and investing in some model maize stands from railway modelling scenic suppliers. Even I can't face all that fiddly modelling in 15mm!!!
'Feliz Navidad' to all you MexREv wargamers out there
Neil
PEGASUS do some nice plastic cactii. In several sizes.
martin :)
I did look at the Pegasus cacti but it seems a bit of an expense to splash out on overscale accessories (particularly since I have yet to invest in 2 sides!)
Agreed Neil, I would like to make the few things I can easily and spend money on the items I can not make.
Still w.i.p. but a couple of progress shots of 'San Miguel' with church, streets, cacti, agaves etc. and station yard...
That's all coming together very nicely, Neil!
Simon
I don't have to model tumbleweeds now. The first consignment of PP troops arrived in the post this morning... Government troops to man the barricades and the first part of my supply train...
Very nice Neil.
Would you send me those buildings photos fr the MILL please
Gracias (see what I did there. I could just blend in :-[)
martin :)
Sure thing, Martin - you should get them about now...
N
The cacti sculpts and other plants are coming along nicely.
Made using the nail method: a flat headed nail (corroded for better adhesion) glued to a base with a high grab adhesive. Then clad in finescale white Milliput lightly scored with interrupted parallel longitudinal lines to create the pleats. Additional branches are made using a thinner wire armature which needs to be sufficiently rigid enough to take pressure from applying and sculpting the Milliput while flexible enough to be bent outwards for better access while still wet.
The Saguaros are easy enough but the multi-armed variants such as the Mexican Giant Cactus and thinner Organ Pipe cactus require significantly more work.
Seen here with PP cacti being processed
The agaves are culled tips from plastic Christmas tree sprigs, while the bushes are made up from the leaf-lets of the Christmas tree glued in clumps to the bases.
I can also recommend Model Scenery supplies N gauge maize crops which make up great patches and fields... well worth the extra expense for being too fiddly to attempt oneself but can be visually very effective https://www.modelscenerysupplies.co.uk/Sweetcorn-N-gauge
We need some puns here about Neil's cactii.
I dare you.
martin :)
That could be a thorny subject, but Neil gets the point.
Dave
Sharp as ever, Dave.
Simon
They look very good Neil, need to make some myself.
Quote from: martin goddard on January 11, 2021, 05:40:29 PM
We need some puns here about Neil's cactii.
I dare you.
martin :)
That would be corny....... :)
well I happen to think they look amaizing!
Quote from: sukhe_bator (Neil) on January 11, 2021, 07:13:39 PM
well I happen to think they look amaizing!
I think you are right, Neil - great work!
Simon
I don't want to comment. It seems like it might be a prickly subject.
Nick
Nah - I think Neil has absolutely nailed it.
Simon
ouch ::) - the good Colonel wins that one I think!
More field defences are rolling off the production line - some 15mm 'cheval de frise' ex Hallmark (Magister Militum) https://www.magistermilitum.com/ae11-20mm-cheval-de-frise-x5.html. I've had them for years and they make a useful addition to either sides' repertoire of obstacles...
Rolling stock for the Mex Rev railway. A high sided 'gondola' bogie freight wagon commonly adapted for armoured train usage. This is made from an adapted PP flat wagon, cut in two and 'stretched' to 100mm with 20mm wide insertions from plastic basing. This makes a 30 foot reduced scale version of the standard 40 foot gondolas in use which are deemed too long for wargaming purposes. Sidings and ends are from plasticard, 15mm on the sides with 10mm high ends. Seen here with a standard PP flat wagon for comparison. Strengthening rib detailing to the panels will be added with microstrip. There is room for two 20x40mm bases of 6 standing riflemen manning both sides or either an MG nest or field artillery piece at one end. A removable canvas awning will be added on wire supports...
And the motive power, the beginnings of a scratchbuilt Consolidation class 2-8-0 locomotive ca.1902 built up from balsa and obeche wood scraps and a fat marker barrel as the boiler. The PP Western loco cow catchers have been adapted to make a wider frontage with a gap for a coupling mechanism. The 1/2 pennies are the right diameter for the driving wheel flanges and the rest will be sculpted in green stuff. A tender will be made up from sculpted styrofoam and parts. All I need is a pair of bogie wheel sets to mount it on.
I'm impressed with all the effort you're going to to scratch-build stuff, Neil. Your "bullet train" should be quite something!
Simon
Thanks Colonel! - 'bullet train' I like it!. What with Martin's new Indians and the Dodge car, my shopping list continues to grow... More scenic items are also being added to the mix but the population needed continues to grow...
Taking advantage of the rare good weather - 2 gondola freight cars adapted from the PP Western flat wagon (included for scale). A 20mm insert makes it 100mm long which equates to a 30 foot length. These are scaled down versions of the commonly used 40 foot freight cars. The next task is to create removable canvas awnings...
The cacti field is finally completed with a scratchbuilt barrel cactus and two multi-branch Mexican Giant Cacti. The smaller one was supposed to be an Organ Pipe cactus but I couldn't model the branches slender enough. The tall ones are Saguaro. Some PP cacti complete the prickly parade.
Finally, anticipating those ambush scenarios I dug out my old homemade rock outcrops from about 30 years ago (expanded polysterene covered with polyfilla) and spruced them up for Mex Rev usage.
That's quite a cactus and rock collection you have there, Neil!
All looking very nice, as well as the freight cars - nice work!
Simon
I hope Neil is poping round to my house when we do pictures for the rules (please)?
martin :)
Done these trains for Stewart, remodelled and redetailed a couple of Atlas Editions trains your can buy on EBay mainly ( be careful how much you pay ? £4 thru to £16 with PandP should be the most you pay per engine)some people do have these up for £15-£30 if you want it for display purposes great but for Wargames, I think not.
Miles
(https://i.imgur.com/zpjNT4u.jpg)(https://i.imgur.com/iAse3tt.jpg)
very nice indeed Miles.
I shall shoot holes in them though with my southern rebels
martin :-\
Nice train Stewart, Miles has made a great job of this locomotive.
I know that a lot of work went into these - and mighty fine they do indeed look!
Simon
Those are a fab pair of locos, Miles, well done sir! No.171 is my favourite!
Some great inspirational photos posted in this topic.
Thanks,
Nick
Thanks Miles,
Looking forward to accepting them into my army,
Will run Martins rebels over and make mincemeat of them.
Stewart
Watch out for those sombrero bombers when you run them down... they may scratch the paintwork a little! ;)
First tentative outing for a portion of my Early Government cavalry... a patrol to 'fly the flag' and some Early Govt. infantry behind field defences...
Nice painting Neil, interesting that you have gone for khaki and a light blue grey for the government troops.
Quote from: Leslie BT on February 14, 2021, 03:10:40 PM
Nice painting Neil, interesting that you have gone for khaki and a light blue grey for the government troops.
Yeah, I'm still experimenting with the mixing of the uniform colours from white, black and havana brown tube acrylics. They are still a tad too khaki for my liking and I will have to add a lighter highlight and drybrushing to make them paler. From my reading I understand the early Govt. troops summer uniform should be an off-white with a bit of Prussian influenced grey coming in for the officers. I'm pleased with the effect of the flags though - which are very impressionistic blobs on a 10x15mm field but they do the trick quite nicely.
Quote from: sukhe_bator (Neil) on February 14, 2021, 02:54:38 PM
First tentative outing for a portion of my Early Government cavalry... a patrol to 'fly the flag' and some Early Govt. infantry behind field defences...
Really good painting
Very nice figures and scenery. I do like those barricade markers.
Simon
Trying something new atm. I bought some Freikorps Spanish from their Spanish American War range. I've headswapped a few with PP sombreros and made a passable Villista limber team and crew. A pack of pack mules have been added to some Irregular Miniatures mules to make a supply train for both Government forces and Villistas with a PP early Govt. NCO figure and Mexican horse holder acting as teamsters. The Hotchkiss mountain guns and Spanish crew will also make useful additions.
Those figures look nice Neil.
Seeing the figures alongside bits of scenery makes the whole period come into consciousness.
martin :)
Thanks Martin,
My mission church is probably a tad overscale since I was guesstimating from a couple of photos but I'm pleased with it and how the troops are shaping up. I will populate my village when my Govt. troops are further along after the latest recruitment drive ;)
I'm planning to raise a small unit of Rurales to go with them.
I hope you will be doing M1895 Colt-Browning MGs and crew in the future? Not just for the US troops. I purchased the Freikorps Roughriders version from their SpAm range as a punt. The MG is a little weedy and lacking in definition and suffering from a little seam offset compared with the crisp PP sculpts of the Hotchkiss and crews we are all used to.
Hello Neil
Good news.
There will be a colt MG.
I have spent a fair bit of time on looking into it.
It will be the first version, with the smooth barrel.
I am making the master and then down the line it will become actual figures.
First apperanace will be with the cowboy hat troops.
martin :)
Aha - a little flattery goes a long way!
That's great news and good to know. Looking forward to seeing the Cowboy hatted troops as they become available. I will probably relegate the Freikorps Colt MGs to a covered railway wagon mounting or somesuch.
The Colt MG is a fairly simple shape so the PP one might not be any better than the offerings of others. ???
martin :)
Ah, but yours will have that certain Piggy je ne sais quoi. Style counts ;)
Simon
Neil a suggestion about an " off white" uniform, paint them white Vallejo have a stencil white, then a light wash then highlight them with some light colours to get to the shade you require?
Miles
Thanks Smiley Miley for the tip. Atm I mix a very pale tan in acrylic tube white and Havana brown, then ink wash with Winsor & Newton Peat brown to get lowlights/grime and highlight in almost pure white. The trick is allowing for the slight change in colour adding the ink... I'm getting better results now with the second intake of troops. The annoying thing is the ammunition pouches and belts on the early Govt. troops were mostly black, so I can't get even close to Pierre's tremendous tan highlighting...
Martin, I'm sure your Colt MG will be fine. It is a bit of a weedy looking design to start with, almost like someone has mounted a Tommy gun on a tripod and tried to pass it off as an HMG. It has none of the presence or gravitas of a Vickers. I like your sculpting solution to the Hotchkiss tripod. The Freikorps version of the Colt tripod has a simple blocked in look making the triangular space underneath look just like... well, a block of wood... ???
I'm just looking at the new Dodge pickup model 11/64 and eyeing up the British EW seated 16/5 and wondering if I can cram a load in the flatbed as MexRev Govt. troops...? ;)
I made an interesting discovery... I have some spare bits of N gauge and 009 gauge items left over from a stalled NG model railway project. In 3mm scale the 9mm wide track equates to 3 foot gauge which just happens to be the NG of choice in Mexico. I can use said track bits and NG accessories to scratchbuild a derelict mine entrance, complete with overgrown spoil heap siding and rusted tipper wagons...
It will make an interesting scenic item and perhaps even a rebel hideout... ;D
Very impressive 👍
Nice tip on the small gauge rail track, never thought of using N gauge?
Miles
The only snag with using N gauge is you are then tied into using model railway stuff - which is expensive when you are using it just for wargaming purposes. Even wheel sets or bogies are pricey.
N gauge is 1:148 - 1:160 scale or approx. 2mm/foot whereas 15mm figure scale is closer to 3mm/foot hence Martin adopting TT gauge (which is a specialist 3mm/foot scale system). Conventional model railway 00 gauge is 4mm/foot and better suits 20mm scale figs. 009 is 20mm 4mm/foot narrow gauge. So basically both scale model railway accessories and rolling stock are either too small or too large for 15mm wargaming without fudging things somewhat...
Talking of the new Dodge cars that have appeared, thank you Martin they do look great !
Could these be converted into other manufacturers? Ford, Chevrolet ?and even European manufacturers For example ? If so how easy would it be ?
Could Martin supply different Grills for example ?
Just a thought ?
Miles
Thanks Neil. I was thinking more on just laying down some track as I have a couple of impressive looking mining buildings/factories that some track running around would look great in this and was thinking more for Westerns. As the Terrain is similar in both games.(because it's the same continent of course- before anyone else points it out )
But as we are talking about this game, ideas from here can be applicable for Westerns and CWB and up to a point PITS.
Miles
Absolutely, some scenic track laying would work well both sides of the border for both western and mexrev settings ;)
I've taken some N gauge flexitrack and cut all the connecting plastic sections between the sleepers. It means I can stagger the smaller sleeper spacings a little wider and more erratically and also allow for tighter curves. Since most US track is covered by dirt with less prominent ballast anyway it should be easy to replicate the right look.
The Durango & Silverton NG Railroad in Colorado operates rolling stock that looks just like the mainline Western versions. I'm flicking thru my father's guidebook and I can't see what gauge it is - presumably 3foot. 'Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid' was filmed on the D&SRR. It should certainly be possible to adapt PP Western RRd cast bogies to a slightly narrower gauge so you could actually have rolling stock on the rails... at a pinch you could probably reduce the width of the Western loco wheels on the resin PP loco too...
Cars of that era do seem similar from our point of view.
The bonnet would indeed be the biggest difference.
I suspect that not enough cars are need by any army to make it worthwhile making a bigger range?
These Dodge cars should look good scattered here and there on the battle ground I hope.
Pancho Villa died in one after the revolution.
The US used a fair few in the Pershing chase.
martin :)
Martin is correct - A simple online search for Model T variants shows a host of possible conversions to the basic chassis... Grey, Green, Blue and Red were all used before the 1914 'all colours as long as it is black' directive was adopted to cut production costs. It was however the Dodge Bros. car that was the star of the MexRev. With Martin's variants and colour variation they should provide all the variety you should require on the battlefield...
The Crossley Staff Car in the WW1 range is c.1914 so is also a possibility for the Mid-Late period of MexRev.
It just so happens that my M-in-Law gave us all a belated Xmas present. I will be investing part of mine in a fleet of Jalopies courtesy of the 'Old Banger'! ;D
I'll be ordering a selection to use for SCW, they look OK to me to be an early 20th century open tourer. Cars like these were manufactured and used for many years.Martin
Best wishes,
Martin Buck
I decided to model a scenic abandoned mine as nod to all the mining concerns in N W Mexico. N gauge/009 gauge track is 9mm wide which equates to 3foot NG in 15mm scale - the most popular NG standard in Mexico. This meant I could potentially use odds and ends from an old model railway project if I fudged the scale a bit to match the PP figures. I've removed the plastic links to the sleepers so I could respace them and make a tight curved incline. The track is for dumping spoil/rubble and will be dressed with rock scree and debris. The mine entrance will be shuttered with wood and corrugated tin and an abandoned tipper wagon is left derelict and rusted on the track. The rocks are styrofoam blocks built up in flattened sections and cut and ripped. Flatter areas will allow for the placement of stands of figures and hopefully I can transform it into a good rebel encampment. The base is my favoured 7x7in size which fits inside Panettone boxes I have kept back for model storage. This is designed for a table end but I can potentially model another mountainous area to go along side.
I do admire all your scratch building efforts and attention to detail, Neil. You're going to have a superb MexRev set!
Simon
The abandoned mine after an afternoon's progress... unseen is the wooden lintel beams and shuttering built up from modelling matches - but at least the roof is on!
She will be coming round the mountain when she comes.
martin :)
Wow !
It is going to be a beautiful mine !
I like the way it goes... :)
Really inspiring.
What foam did you use there please ? Very effective and creating the Rock surfaces !
Miles
Looking good so far. i can't wait to see your final table for MexRev. It's going to be awesome!
Nick
The foam is styrofoam PIR insulation board by Kingspan or Greenguard and others. It is available in sheets and is the same stuff terrain boards are usually made from. It can be cut, hot cut, sawn, scribed and sanded and it comes in various specs with different colours. I have a variety of green and harder blue offcuts I use that are 25 or 30mm thick. It should be available from a variety of DIY building supply outlets. This is a pale mint green version of the pink stuff commonly seen on popular foam modelling sites. If you want your socks blown off by the modelling talent in foam out there check out the Foam Modelling Workshop on facebook.
One tip - save all your offcuts except the thin shavings. They can be useful in other projects and a little goes a long way, particularly in 15mm!
This 25mm scale fortress seen at Salute in 2010 is made from it and it took about 6 months of lunchtimes and strange looks from work colleagues...
Wow - that is impressive, Neil. Presumably that Salute model is in 28mm "scale"?
Simon
That castle is very nice indeed. Love it!
The colour is really good too.
martin :)
I always wanted to model a castle in the round and when I got a windfall of several sheets of styrofoam I went a little mad. 'Sahyun' is loosely based on my favourite bits of Indian and Crusader castles and grew as I designed it. It was originally made for my extensive 25mm Fantasy collections. I opted for the sandy stone colour since I was sick of grey. It is in 14 sections which makes up into a footprint 3 feet x 4 feet with a donjon 18" high.
Don't get me started on my other 'magnum opi' the Rammas Echor - 12 feet of walls, bastions towers and a gateway (which packs into 12 copy boxes), and the 'Bridge of Osgiliath' at over 2 feet long. Alas, my modelling fervour far outstrips my ability to use them on a table at home... :'( hence my reversion to the one true scale for epic and megalomaniacal projects - 15mm! ;D
Thanks for that.
I always keep 'All my Offcuts" within reason, whatever project or material I use. I have several boxes of things taking up space ! Lol
Miles
What a castle !!
Really impressive... Superb work !
Neil, just saw this mine piece over at LAF. Incredible work!
Yep, its slowly getting there... a ways to go yet though... who'd have thought modelling rocks would be so hard?!!
Well you've certainly got it down to a fine art. My experience is limited to using bark nuggets from the garden shop to represent rocks in my terrain. Cutting pink foam to represent what you've done effectively, seems a daunting task.
-Todd
That's funny, Todd, since I find working with bark harder and the styrofoam far easier.
A trick with the foam is that if you part-cut the foam you can tear the rest of the way which makes for interesting textured surfaces. I know others use a scoring method like making pork crackling to add cracks and fissures to the rock. That's a knack I haven't mastered...
Just some random stone scree and a light set dressing of metal scraps and corrugated tin and my abandoned mine is good to go...
Very nice, Neil!
Will you also be polishing the tops of the rails to indicate recent usage?
Simon
Neil,
Lovely work, the rails look just right for an abandoned mine.
Best wishes,
Martin Buck
I really want to recreate the abandoned look, so the rails will remain rusty and there will be weeds and grass scattered around ( I have some larger tufts on order since my existing stock is too small and not scruffy looking enough). There will be an empty rusted tipper wagon (not this full one which is a proxy). The wagon will require poly cement gluing so I am hoping for a decent weekend to I can do it outside on the patio...
I think the weeds will complete the look, Neil - it will be great!
Simon
A productive but bitty weekend's modelling - lots glued, assembled, undercoated and prepped and the fleet of Dodge cars well underway as well as some mounted Rurales, and other assorted figures but no single piece completed to show for it... save the abandoned mine. I may add more vegetation but I'm happy with the look so far!
That looks excellent
This is a really great looking scenery ! Superb work...
I like it very much.
That looks fabulous, Neil. Those last few touches really finished it off nicely.
Simon
That's a really lovely scenery piece Neil.
Nick
Hi Neil,
That looks very nice, just enough vegetation.
Best wishes,
Martin Buck
A second rock outcrop to act as an independent objective or to go alongside the abandoned mine...
That's a great use of colour Neil - another lovely job!
Simon
Neil, very nice, the mine and rocky outcrop look good together.
Best wishes,
Martin Buck
Been putting my thinking cap on and trying to visualise how I can model a hacienda building complex within my 7" square footprint. The Spanish colonial style is basically unchanged from that of a Roman Villa, with wings, loggia and an enclosed courtyard or combinations thereof, so I'm thinking of an 'I' or 'H' shape. Trouble is the visual sources on the interweb are all modern. or modern US takes on the style which would only be ok if I modelled the 4x4 on the drive and the satellite dishes as well :(. It is hard to find anything but generic non-tourist pics...
Is this what you are looking for Neil?
(https://chambersarchitects.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/15-Spanish-Colonial-Architecture-in-Santa-Fe-New-Mexico-Photo-by-Steve-Chambere-Texas-Architect.jpg)
oooh :) where be that? I was thinking something with a tiled roof and simple adobe ornament with perhaps some lower-tech adobe additions on the sides and back... I'm liking that carved detail above the posts...
on this site https://chambersarchitects.com/blog/spanish-colonial-architecture-new-mexico/
There are some great shots on that site, Les.
Some buildings look as though they have been iced rather than rendered. I now understand that some commercial models that I'd seen in the past and thought rather crude may well have been more accurate than I'd imagined!
Simon
When it comes to buildings and architecture Les is the man to ask !
He usually knows a man who knows a man ? Lol
Miles
I'm wargaming the early Northern rebellion in Chihuahua. I've been looking through Mike Blake's 'Armies of the Mexican Revolution' for into. While there were a few peons, the revolutionaries in the North were more urban and rural middle class, with unemployed workers, miners, military colonists and ex Bandits. The reconstruction drawings and info suggests a preponderance of mixed Western/Europeanized style dress compared with the more traditional dress of the Zapatistas in the South.
So in terms of figure choices I'm thinking more of mixing in some of the Mexicans and Cattlemen from the Western range interspersed with the newer Cowboys and Sombreros from MexRev... A touch more 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid' x 'Magnificent Seven'
The latest scenic project - a scratchbuilt tent line for early Govt. troops from sculpted 30mm thick styrofoam off-cuts.
Before, and after a few hours cutting, forming and sculpting with a pencil.
Wow - they are remarkably effective. Lovely work, Neil!
Simon
Off the production line... the first of the WW1 period scratchbuilt styrofoam tents for my MexRev early Govt. forces. Next up bell tents , HQ tents and a motley assortment suitable for a rebel encampment.
Very nice!
And I like that you've not overdone the patches.
Simon
I figured they'd have simply replaced a whole panel if the tear was too big...
I'm doing a US Pyramid tent as an HQ tent and some British Sibley bell tents. Being slightly taller at 12' - 13' (around 36mm in 3mm scale) I'm going to have to do them in two sections since the styrofoam I have is 30mm thick - the cone/pyramid and a disc and square slab for the low skirt section. I'll probably use a cocktail stick as a central locating pin.
Excellent models Neil.
The final variety of tents off the production line, a US pyramid tent, some British Sibley Bell tents and a Hospital and store tents...
And the final encampment... which will do for a variety of early C20 periods
Lovely stuff, Neil.
Having recently splashed out for some resin tents (albeit quite nice ones), I'd be intrigued to learn how you managed these - perhaps a little article for The 15 Mill in due course, if you have the time and energy?
Simon
Sure think Colonel, I can manage that I reckon...
I still have to get round to sculpting some Mongolian ger and some Turcoman tents for my Back of Beyond collections too... :D
A few motivational w.i.p. pics of my early Govt. forces...
2 Bttns infantry, a battery of field guns, 3 MMGs and 2 squadrons of Govt. cavalry and 1 dismounted in skirmish order. In addition a squadron of Rurales and 1 dismounted in skirmish order. Held horses are gleaned from the Western Mexican horse holders 15/109. Additional mules from Freikorps SpanishAmerican range and Irregular Miniatures. Substitute figures from Federale and Sombrero NCOs.
There is still a lot of highlighting and basing detail to add to come anywhere close to Pierre's standard ;) but at least the forces are now all assembled including a Federale General in sequestered Dodge staff car. I may add a small command pennant to the bonnet of the Dodge in due course.
Looking good, Neil!
Simon
Superb work !
Really beautiful.
I'm liking my Rurales... and the field guns, limber and Generale in the Dodge are looking good too.
The dismounted cavalry all need to be hiding behind scrub and bushes etc. yet.
Despite being quite generic, the impressionist flags of the infantry Battalions came out well
A sunhat wearing artillery officer and a kneeling Colonial period equivalent from Irregular miniatures make an nice artillery spotting group.
The sun came out as I was taking these... :)
Agree with you : this is a great looking army !
Really beautiful and inspiring.
Cheers,
Xavier
Marvellous. I especially like the blue staff car. Worthy of a nice drive in the countryside Miguel?
martin :)
Royal blue bodywork, with black convertible roof, black wings and wheel arches, tan leather interior, walnut dash, natural wooden spokes and polished chrome fittings - one careless owner - shot by firing squad by current owner (sadistic Federale Colonel with handlebar moustache!) what's not to like?! ;)
I am sure the car should have gold trim line ? Lol
Very nice indeed.
Miles
A little bit of gentle vexillology on a Sunday afternoon concentrates the mind. I find allocating factions to figures early on in the process helps coalesce my thoughts on paint schemes, particularly when mixing and matching figures. I thought painting tricolour hat bands was hard but the hand painting (in particular the lettering) is hard on something only 12x18mm... and then to have to repeat it on the other side! :o
I now have four cavalry squadrons on the go - 1 representing a Villista 'Gringo Legion' (skull and crossbones) and 1 Red Flag for an Orozquista/Colorado unit. A further 2 units will represent Villistas/Maderistas under Abraham Gonzalez (Governor of Chihuahua and friend of Pancho Villa) and a generic Bandito/Ranchero unit.
Nice flags, Neil - I think the effort was well worth it!
Simon
Very nice Neil
Are you going to crumple the flags a bit?
martin :)
Indeed, Martin,
I always model my flags flying and then apply shaded highlights and lowlights accordingly. I was so pleased with the lettering though that I thought I'd share. Having now crumpled them you can't really appreciate the detail... I had the same problem with ECW Cornets - you spend ages getting them right only to not see them flying :(
I'll give you three guesses what the next modelling project is going to be...?
These are the major ingredients...
A very large naval gun in a concrete bunker? :D
Simon
A radar station for a Normandy raid.......obviously ????
martin :)
Aha - not quite - still Mex Rev but think more vertically... ;)
I've been looking through the source material to recreate Orozquistas (who attracted a proportion of Federale deserters to the cause) a unit of the Gringo Legion, and Villistas and Bandits in both European and Vaquero dress for the other Northern Mexican Revolutionary factions. I'm more and more leaning towards gleaning more figures from the Western range to blend in with the MexRev options. This will no doubt be good news to Martin.
My next order will include some of the excellent Wild West characters. The mounted elements will go towards a Gringo Legion/The Professionals style Merc unit, while I'll mix n match the foot options with cattlemen, gunmen, posse and Mexicans among MexRev Cowboy and sombrero options to get the appropriate misc. look.
Ah, so, I guess the bunker must be up in the air - defenders climb a ladder to get up to it and slide down the greasy pole to evacuate? :D
You are too earthbound in your surmising, Colonel. Try thinking of another element...
I'd thought you were doing a water tower initially, but that would have been plain wrong as martin does a nice one (which you may or course already have).
So you really are going for an observation balloon?
Simon
A radar station near the fjords?
I am definitely close.
martin :)
I'd guess at oil refinery......
Neil
Maybe one of those boats with a torpedo on the end of a long stick...
Simon
Martin does indeed have a nice example. The ubiquitous tanque de agua seen at every estacione during the steam era in Mexico almost always appears to be the round tower pattern with a stone built base. This example was photographed in 1961...
Does look like a radar station though?
martin :)
It's camouflage, Martin.... ;)
Even more inspirational are documentary discoveries like this one...
revolutionaries and federal troops https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pimWvoDov9c
and the US punitive expedition https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byL6QIDRY6o
Revolutionary flags are gradually taking shape. Progressing slowly and still on the painting bench though due to an eye infection... grrr
A red Orozquista 'REFORMA LIBERTAD Y PROVINCIA', The red and white skull & crossbones of the 'Gringo Legion' and two speculative revolutionary banners under the 'EJERCITO LIBERTADO' (the Pre-Constitutionalist Liberation Army) and commanders Maclavio Herrera 'M HERRERA' and Pancho Villa 'BRIGADA VILLA'
Stirring looking cavalry with very threatening flags.
It seems a bit back-to-front, but I find doing the banners first for the troops to rally around helps establish the identity of the figure selection and helps to get the rank and file painted.
Simon your editorial control seems to be slipping, we seem to have various threads being taken over by FfM!!
Les - you are right - it's like a new pandemic...
Simon
Yep Simon Mexican revolution is popping up in all the threads!!
I may have to do some serious surgery on some of these to get us back to normal...
Simon
Yes I think you have lost your grip on several threads!!
Barons wars, PBI, Pirates and FfM seem to be popping up all over. Its a bit like the moles in the garden.
You are sadly right, Les. The lack of discipline in the ranks on this matter is shocking.
Maybe we need a sin bin for repeat offenders?
I'll look into this when I'm back on my PC.
Simon
If I'm at fault, my apologies, gents. I tend to treat my new projects holistically and post progress on all fronts... Mex Rev is no different, so I have scenery, figures and research on the go at the same time... :)
Not at all Neil - just mucking around.
I'll have a little tidy up . Martin's usually the worst offender :)
Simon
Simon,
There's more than one Martin on here, please can you be specific or should we all take the blame?
Best wishes,
Martin Buck
Sorry Martin, I did of course mean Mr Pig himself :D. Although I saw that I too was recently "guilty" of posting something where it shouldn't quite have gone...
But this is simply all light-hearted ribbing, with Les gently chiding me for not having done the housekeeping to try and make things as easy to find for future reference. I do hope that no-one has been offended in any way.
Simon
I cannot think anyone would be offended Simon unless they are a bit ********?
Please carry on Simon.
If folk take offence at this then they need to find a safer place.
martin :)
I'm good, and will try to restrain my butterfly leanings to go off at a tangent and be a bit more focused so other folks can keep track... talking of track, I've been tinkering with another modelling project... terrain (sort of), figures (check), Mex Rev (check)...
Thanks, Neil. I think I can see where you're going with this one...!
Simon
I found a good use for the foil from wine bottles... strips embossed with 'rivets' using a propelling pencil to create the panels on an iron water tank... seen here in the rough and after a quick undercoat in black.
And a n other project... what ranch in an arid region would be complete without the ubiquitous wind pump... seen here after an afternoon's tinkering with 3mm balsa strip, white glue and card.
Absolutely marvellous Neil
Look forward to seeing it with some figures next to t too??
martin :)
That's some nice modelling, Neil!
Simon
Hopefully it won't take until next Bank Holiday to progress these AND have some Mex Rev figures about to keep them company. I'm still mentally gearing up to tackling the scratchbuilding of the Baldwin Consolidation loco. - the main user of said water tower.
Excellent work. The detail of the grill on the window is particularly impressive. This is not a road I've been down myself, but I wouldn't mind giving it a go.
The trick with doing grilles on windows is to plan to do them BEFORE you glue the building to the base... otherwise you can't bend the ends over and fix them on the inside - As I discovered a while back! - Doh ::)
Thanks for the tip. Also really like the water tank and wind pump.
A raid on the 'bits box' and some superglue later and the wind pump is now good to go...
with some Villistas for scale, as per Martin's request ;)
Superb !!
Very nice, Neil. That looks to be properly engineered too!
Looking forward to seeing the painted outcome.
Simon
Think I may have shot myself in the foot a bit with the painting. I'm very much an assembly-then-paint kinda guy, so fiddlier builds tend to be more challenging...
Quote from: sukhe_bator (Neil) on May 05, 2021, 10:05:12 PM
Think I may have shot myself in the foot a bit with the painting. I'm very much an assembly-then-paint kinda guy, so fiddlier builds tend to be more challenging...
Maybe a medium brown spray undercoat / primer that should get to most places, and then paint the bits you can easily reach / readily see?
Simon
That was very much my plan of action. I'll have to be fairly rigorous with the spraying to reach all those important little places - last thing I want is a patch of nekked balsa I can't reach with a paintbrush! I'm thinking a pale silvery-grey bare wood overall with blackened (presumably greased) mechanism and rusting pipework, with patches of grass at the base where moisture might accumulate. I was thinking of having a separate small base adjacent to the pipe outlet for a cistern or set of watering troughs for livestock. Mmmm, I will probably have to add a pack of Longhorns to my PP shopping list...
Fresh off the production line...
Well that turned out rather well, after all your previous concerns, Neil!
Simon
That looks very good Neil.
Impressive as always Neil.
Nick
The size would make it stand out, which is excellent!
Nice job Neil.
martin :)
Thx guys, I'm pleased with the result (tho not my camera work)
the dims are based around an 1889 patent that I found online. The topmost storey ended up a bit tall but I can live with that.
I wanted to model a few taller scenic items as the battlefields tend to be a bit low level otherwise...
I agree with you Neil about the height aspect. A bit of variety adds variety.
martin :)
Though not as tall as my Marconi radio array!
I was sad to learn that wireless radio did not extend into Mexico until the early 30's. I was itching to use it in MexRev as an unusual objective. I can't believe the Chinese in Central Asia could be a decade ahead of Mexico, right next door to the US!
Well the Chinese were centuries ahead of Mexico in getting their Great Wall too ;D
Simon
This is really inspiring !!
Superb work ! About your paintwork : the effect of old dry wood is great... I was wondering what colours and what techniques did you use to paint this tower?
The painting is very straightforward... ;)
Acrylic spray undercoat dark brown
A base coat of with white/black/havana brown to get a pale brown colour overall
havana brown and white to get the rust colour
black with dark grey for the mechanism
followed by drybrush highlights in increasingly paler tones with almost pure white highlights on exposed corners etc.
Ok... Super... ;)
Thank you, Neil...
Thanks for sharing the secret sauce recipe, Neil - that worked really well. Wood can be so hard to do convincingly!
Simon
So now the scenery is coming together I've been thinking of the overall terrain types I need to come up with to play out my MexRev campaign...
This is my draft campaign map, based loosely on the terrain of Chihuahua, divided into 4 zones; mountainous on the left, desert top and right, with ranch lands on the edge of the desert and cultivated land (plus streams/rivers) sandwiched between. A scattering of villages and settlements is distributed around, as well as 2 mines connected to the railroad network. Each zone is divided into 4 sections which equates to the number of sub-groups in each of the factions I intend to represent. Control of these and settlements will be the basis of the campaign.
Before the Colonel relegates this to campaign/strategy/game play - I find myself devoid of suitable trees for hotter/drier parts. I have a number of Woodland scenics armatures but have never bitten the bullet and tried making them up into suitable candidates... can anyone recommend a method of creating the smaller orchard-type younger trees found in mediterranean style settings? something I could potentially use to stand in for orchard/plantation or more general vegetation scatter? All my other trees are either the 'lollypop' or christmas tree bottlebrush-construction variety and far too lush-looking for the climate!
Do you have access to rubberised horsehair? You can probably pick it up from ebay.
I would use some suitable short gnarly twigs and hot glue some horsehair on top. Then stick a suitable coloured flock to it with PVA.
Love the map!
One idea might be to circumcise larger tress (plastc moulded ones are best) and make these bits into more, but less foliated ones
martin :)
The smallest of these look good too.
"One idea might be to circumcise larger tress (plastc moulded ones are best) and make these bits into more, but less foliated ones"
Martin,
Is this what you meant to write or are you the victim of predictive text..........😊
I'm struggling with the concept of "tree circumcision" (which my predictive text turned into"free") let alone whatever "larger tress circumcision" is. ...(my text turning "tress" into "trees"!).....
Why does the Monty Python "Lumberjack song" pop into my head at this point? 🙂
Neil
Helo Neil
Sadly I did mean that. :-[
Cut the plastic tree into layers.
Then make each layer into a tree.
Works well with the old Britains oak trees.
Use a single layer to make into a new tree.
martin :)
Ah now I understand.......
Perhaps "slicing into rings with branches still attached" is a better description .......... :)
Neil
I'm glad you understand, Neil.
But whichever we you look at it, it makes the eyes water...
Simon
Thank you all for your (if painful sounding) suggestions... :o
Having surgically altered the trunks to the appropriate height have you any hints for the type of adhesive to attach foliage?
Another project on the rails...
(https://i.postimg.cc/686QVXVb/Nde-M-cattle-truck.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/686QVXVb)
Interesting to see those very rectilinear buildings in the background too, Neil.
Simon
Captured from archive footage of the Mex Rev... which translates into this...
An experiment detailing the body of a Cattle truck scribed into a shaped styrofoam block and scaled to match the PP freight car. Guess I'm gonna need to get another 4 wheel casts from Martin to mount this...
I love the sketches (they look proper pro!) - and the finished articles, Neil.
Simon
woodland Scenics do a pack of smaller tree armatures. There are about 40+ in a pack
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51173907512_482442df3a.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51175677595_7369eb83f1.jpg)
Suke-bator try Lukes APS vids he has loads that show different methods for foliage type and how to attach them. You tube has loads
I have some of those small woodland scenics armatures to play with and have just invested in some sea foam and some rubberised horsehair equivalent.
I'll be sure to check out those vids/tutorials.
Thx, all :)
Gen. Obregon's six month drive from Sonora down the coast into Sinaloa along the Western coast of Mexico captured towns and villages along the way. More importantly it was to gain control of the Pacific ports, control goods and trade and to deny them to the Federal Govt. Gaining harbours and supplies along the route march were therefore an important part of the Constitutionalist Army of the Northwest strategy, particularly given the lack of roads along the coast.
The Mexican Navy mostly supported the Federal Govt. so proved a major thorn in Obregon's side, blockading etc. and denying Obregon the largest port, Mazatlan.
As I've mentioned in my Picket boat thread, I'm developing an idea for a small harbour scene, based very loosely on old engravings and photographs of Guaymas on the Pacific coast. Like most other ports on the Pacific coast, Guaymas was sheltered well behind the shoreline inside a large tidal lagoon/bay. It was primarily an offloading point for mining and agriculture hard by the Sonoran desert with few frills, let alone discernible trees. Old photos show the use of lighters or barges presumably to ferry material across the bay and the harbour suggesting trans-shipment to deeper draught vessels at anchor. They also show local fishing boats and small steam passenger ferries.
The idea is to create a shoreline extending the narrower 3' width of the table beyond which I can incorporate other scenic elements to game a number of ship to shore scenarios, from small raids to landings of Federal troops. At the centre a small harbour and quayside with a few buildings including a custom house in the Spanish colonial style, with a promontory overlooking the harbour and flanked on either side by sparse beaches used by local fishermen...
The story so far - 3 main bases from scrap hardboard with applied filler and sculpted styrofoam for the rocks and quayside. The promontory is built up with expanded polysterene ceiling tile scraps onto which sculpted styrofoam rocks will be glued and textured to blend in. A few timber structures such as a small fisherman's jetty are being made up of modelling matches and scraps. The beaches are being detailed and the harbour laid out and building plots identified...
Sounds like the makings of a great little (or maybe not-so-little) article for The Mill, Neil!
Simon
Q. What do you get if you mix;
styrofoam offcuts
fuse wire (2 sizes)
card
plastic lollypop stick
track pins (2 sizes)
balsa rod (2 sizes)
scrap balsa strips
brass jewellery rings
scrap paper
A. A steam launch and a barge of course!
Those are lovely Neil.
I have always wanted to make a ferry.
That would be a real centre piece to a western game.
Surely yet another aryticle that is wanted from you by the MILL Neil.
martin :)
Neil,
I think you are missing "a good dollop of talent" from your list of ingredients ;)
Very nice!
Simon
What a great model. My namesake used one like yours to sink a German WW1 gunboat - terrible waste.
Mike
Everything looks amazing Neil, you are very skilled!
Very very nice indeed.
Miles
Thanks guys, the steam launch and barge have really come together this weekend...
plus I've had a chance to do some more groundwork on the shoreline of my fictitious fishing harbour of 'San Miguel, Sonora'...
More nice progress, Neil - thanks for sharing.
Simon
Very nice Neil, Martin just needs to add a bit into the rules now for naval warfare.
In case anyone hasn't noticed. found these on EBAY
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/324119170775?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649
Should be good for Mex as well. I have ordered a set. Not too shabby for £5.50
Derek
Good spot Derek
They would do well and at a good low price too
martin :)
Nice looking building, bit more expensive than Martins card ones.
Looking forward to the new ones that Martin is making.
I will throw up some piccies once they arrive.
Derek
Quote from: Moggy on June 14, 2021, 09:58:47 AM
In case anyone hasn't noticed. found these on EBAY
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/324119170775?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649
Should be good for Mex as well. I have ordered a set. Not too shabby for £5.50
Derek
Just arrived, Have put together 1 of each. Don't look too shabby for £5.50 for 3. Will look even better once glued, based and decorated.
30mm base fits nicely on the roof as well without being snug
Derek
(https://i.postimg.cc/62672V2n/DSC-0176-1.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/62672V2n)
Nice - they look very robust too.
Simon
They look like they will do the job very well and at a good price . I like the separate door too.
Are you going to paint them or use them fresh?
martin :)
I was thinking about doing a very light skim on the walls to make them a little rougher. I always find laser cut buildings are just too clean and square. I may even implant some stonework to not skim over for variety then painting.
Bear in mind I am doing them as Arab not Mexican but both would be adobe. May even make little shutters for the windows but don't want to spend too much time on them as have loads of figs to paint.
Derek
My fictional small 'Puerto de San Miguel' on the Pacific coast of Mexico is coming along nicely. There is still a ways to go but apart from the more elaborate colonnaded custom house the other buildings are now made up and getting their first tentative paint jobs... I have to figure out how to do a balcony railings and handrails etc. but it is down to adding personal touches in the form of some variant wall, window and shutter colours to suggest multiple occupancy... I've tried to suggest a change in level by adding steps to the first floor at the rear... The roof tiling is getting any dabs of groundwork paint etc. added randomly to add colour and texture and blend in the Milliput ridge tiles.
This is a wonderful project. It all seems to be coming together very nicely. As for balconies etc, there may be options in the model railway market, or else through a 3D printing service?
Fantastic stuff, Neil!
Simon
I hadn't considered buying in extra bits. Part of the challenge for me is finding homemade solutions and using up the 'shedload' (quite literally) of modelling bits and bobs I have squirreled away. I will have a rummage among my Dad's old model railway supplies for anything useful but I tend to shy away from actively investing commercial solutions. My builds are wargaming versions and while they could benefit from etched brass railing detailing etc... it is beyond my skillset. :D
Neil,
A man after my own heart!
That's looking really good so far Neil.
Nick
Almost there with those buildings (see my post from 25 june). Just some ground cover at the edges left but not going to have time before off to Yorkshire to see the grandkids for first time in 18 months so thought I would post anyway.
Derek
(https://i.postimg.cc/CdNXs7Z7/DSC-0179-1.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/CdNXs7Z7)
Lovely stuff Derek. You've done a great job on them.
A new 'street' develops for Mex Rev FIBUA and a new type of Mex house. The Spanish Colonial style terrace seen at Copala in Sinaloa with a simple colonnade to the street which would not be out of place in a Classical Roman setting... The colonnade is next up now the basic shells have been constructed...
Meanwhile, despite the rain, the landscape gardeners and decorators paid a visit to 'Puerto de San Miguel' over the weekend to add some Mexican touches. Next up the ironmongers to add some window grilles, balconies and railings and a few street lamps for added character...
I enjoyed those Neil. The graffiti is apt too.
martin :)
Coming along very well, Neil.
It's been nice to follow the work in progress.
Simon
After some excellent painting/modelling weather over the weekend...
Some longhorns enjoy the shade of the first of my next gen trees to be completed for more arid games - a woodland scenics armature with sea foam branches added, finally dipped in a bespoke flock mix...
Progress was made on all sorts of other projects as well, the Spanish mission terraced houses, 'Puerto San Miguel' harbour scene, and Mexican Naval ratings, ship's boat crew and carriage mounted gatling...
They do look good, Neil!
Simon
Like it. The trees look especially good.
Wow !
Impressive result ! It will be a "plus" on a table. I like it !!
The longhorns, fencing, water troughs and wind pump complete a 'corral' setting for my MexRev Rancheros, but would sit equally well in a Western game... I just have to complete a Hacienda to go with it!
That is very nice indeed, Neil!
Simon
Really beautiful ! And inspiring...
I like this kind of scenery very much ! It brings a "plus" on a table.
Great work !
A gentle wind is blowing from the North.
The squeak of the water wheel.
So quiet........
martin ???
Somewhere a dog barks ......................
I do like that windmill - very Wizard of Oz.
Puerto San Miguel and the Mexican Naval landing party are now finally close to completion. These w.i.p. shots show the look I am aiming for. There are some minor details on both land and sea to iron out but they are now substantially complete...
I am pleased with the converted boat crews but still have the coxes at the tillers to finish from EW British drivers.
The houses still require ironwork detailing and I plan to add some scrub bushes and foliage above the high water mark and a couple of laid up fishing boats on the beaches...
The landing party needs some uniform detailing and highlighting but are otherwise finished...
That's a lovely project, Neil - it's been fun watching it evolve.
Simon
All the boats and the converted crews look excellent.
Ay caramba !!! ;D
What a scenery !! Another great piece !
Brilliant...
Agreed.
Having purchased some 1:100 aircraft which I can use both in the air and on the ground, my thoughts turn to a small airfield as a juicy target/objective. Trouble is if I remain true to 3mm scale the hangars are way too large...
The Bessonneau hangar (1908-) was a pre-fab timber and canvas hangar. The most common variant in Britain was the 6-bay design, which was 22 metres (72 ft) wide, x 28 metres (91 ft 10 in) long x 7.7 metres (25 ft 5 in) high, excluding picketing ropes. That equates to 21.6cm (8.5 in) W x 27.6cm (~11 in) D x ~7.5cm (3 in) H.
The smaller German tent design 'Type A' was suitable for a sole 2-seater or 2 scouts and according to Cross&Cockade is estimated at 55' 16.5cm (6.5 in) W x 40' 12cm (4.75 in) D. Which is far more feasible.
I will be attempting to model one or two in a combination of styrofoam, paper and wire/balsa...
They really do look very good. I love the exposed brickwork.
For those of you wanting a flavour of the rugged scenery of NW Mexico. The coastal landing scene from The Mask of Zorro (1998) was shot at San Carlos, on the sea of Cortez, Sonora. It is close to Guaymas, formerly a fishing port and the scene of the first attempted aerial bombing of naval vessels in the world (1913). There's a real rocky vs desert vibe with Sonoran cacti aplenty...
And probably my final (and biggest) piece of Mex Rev scenery planned (at least for 2021 that is)... A Spanish colonial Presidio or fort. A base for the Rurales and Provincial Reservists and arsenal to potentially raid or possibly even capture?
They varied in size and set up from a mere camp site to fully fledged fortress.
The concept is a freestyle rectangular enclosure with wall walk, Vaubanesque artillery bastion, gateway with guardroom, barrack block, stables and HQ building. Based on a variety of Presidio types on the Mexican-Texas border and elsewhere, this is modular and makes up into a 12" square footprint. Modular design allows for a variety of other uses such as town walls etc. Architectural cues are taken from a variety of sources.
The main shell is carved expanded polysterene with foamcore, styrofoam and kebab stick/matchstick/balsa detailing... w.i.p. images to follow
For those of you interested the source material is;
https://www.hisour.com/forts-of-loreto-and-guadalupe-puebla-mexico-54380/
https://www.texasbeyondhistory.net/trans-p/images/he4.html
Feliz Navidad, compadres
Neil
Looking forward to seeing that coming to fruition.
Presidio de San Miguel - a speculative recreation of a mid C18 small to medium scale Spanish colonial presidio, now a Federale garrison and base... a work in progress shot of the whole build in 8 sections now that the shell is substantially complete (PP Federales included for scale). It works out at 13" x 15" including the bastion... The tiled verandah to HQ building to rear, stables to L, stores and artillery bastion to R.
Expanded poly ramparts with foamcore battlements and styrofoam detailing with assorted kebab stick, cocktail stick, balsa and modelling match timberwork. Filler will be supplemented with Milliput finescale detailing - both stone and mud brick. I plan to give it a distressed look with small patches of ramparts replaced with sandbags... Still to model - forge, stables, plus scatter detail of a mast-style flagpole to go in the centre and a well head. I already have hitching posts and water troughs.
The second shot shows the main entrance interior, showing from L to R artillery bastion with magazine underneath, main gate with flanking guard rooms and the basis of the stables which will have an open timber and loose thatch roof.
You have been busy Neil!
I do like the way that the artillery bastion fits in nicely without overpowering the rest.
I look forward to further developments.
Simon
I tried to design the bastion to site two 40mm2 artillery bases while still making it compact enough not to be too overbearing. Most Vaubanesque complexes are sprawling in footprint. I made half an ECW starfort in 25mm many years ago based on the Queens Sconce at Newark but it proved too large to reasonably field in games. Many Presidios had only one or two bastions presumably to cover road or river crossings. The ramparts are set at 30mm high (scale 10 feet high) to allow for adobe buildings to abut them. It means that the height is not too overpowering while still remaining a considerable obstacle.
It was so tempting to 'Go the Full Alamo' and include a Mission church and walled precinct but that would have taken up my entire table... :o
This is fantastic !! Superb work !!
I am really fan of this work... There are so many details in this scenery... It is really inspiring.
Again, great work !
Cheers
Xavier
I am going to need some more guns and bombers.
martin :)
Some senoritas to distract the guards and a few well placed sticks of dynamite seem to work in most films, Martin!
Glad you like it guys. I find the trick is not to plan absolutely everything in advance and then you find you add incidental details as you go which gives it a more lived-in organic feel. Martin's resin buildings have some lovely added details including chimneys and buttresses which I will also have. Some metal hatches around the powder magazine for access, steps to the wall walk, that sort of thing.
I'm having fun with the stables and the forge seen here at the bottom of this picture. The stable stalls are 15mm wide x 25mm deep which looks about right. I plan to populate it using a couple of spare saddled horses and maybe a couple of nekked ones from Irregular. The forge is another matter. I've sculpted the forge and an anvil from styrofoam and have to do a set of bellows, tools etc. Unlike the majority of my other builds I'm going to have to paint it as I go and add in details. Once I add the roofing it will be almost impossible to get at...
Looking at the pic I think I've placed the forge in the wrong corner. It is too close to the stables and sources of ignition for my liking... thank goodness it is modular! ;)
Looks very good all the same.
And a few more days into the project, now 3/4 complete... the main build is complete bar scenic scatter, a few plants and drybrush highlights. I'm adding an approach to suggest a dry moat. Detailing still to do is populating and roofing the stables and the forge...
That's lovely work, Neil. I particularly like your choice of colours and effects for the outer and inner walls.
Simon
Thanks, Simon.
The colour scheme was influenced by the fact that the outer faces of most Spanish colonial style Forts with the typical rolled moulding below the parapet were usually of dressed stone. Images of Forts all over seemed to show that a greyish stone finish was more typical. I shall whiten it further with drybrushed highlights. I should probably have opted for a more brow/tan sandstone to be truer to the geography of my fictitious Northern Mexican town of 'San Miguel'. The interior walls are of the more conventional adobe and will have a brighter whitewash finish by the end of the process.
I have still to create strewn hay for the stable stalls and add a few occupants, add stall doors and an open timber and thatch roof. I've carved an anvil out of styrofoam and have to model a quenching trough, tool rack and bellows etc. for the forge before I add an open beam roof... The final touch will be to add a Mexican flag to the flagpole...
I hope to finish it off by the end of this week, all being well.
Superb ! Really superb !!
The work you did is brillant !!
I really like very much the way this fort is organized, the details you created (the front gate, ...).
So immersive and very inspiring... Bravo !
Cheers,
Xavier
Some more lovely and detailed scenery Neil.
Who's to say that the Mexican government of the time it was built decided that this (fictional) bit of Mexico was so important that it was worth using a stronger rock than sandstone. This is how to counteract wargame show know-alls.
I like your thinking, Andy. A temporary structure would use the local resources readily to hand while a more established fort would be upgraded with imported materials. Kind of like the Normans using timber to start with then importing Caen stone for their buildings...
Anyway I think the Sierra Madre Occidental in N Mexico would be a source for most decent building stone alongside its rich mineral deposits which would help pay for the improvements.
2022 gets underway with two new small to medium sized scenery projects... a hacienda, and a single road engine shed (somewhere for my branch line loco and to keep the station company). Both ways of using up foamcore and modelling scraps from earlier projects. Step one with the hacienda is an imposing gateway, followed by a tree lined avenue or fruit tree plantation (trees are on order), some perimeter walling and a hacienda/ranch building - not too grandiose but with a few Spanish Colonial architectural touches to set it apart from the hoi polloi.
That certainly is an imposing gateway, Neil!
I do like all this stuff you're scratch-building.
Simon
Nice work Neil.
The project goes on.
I will start taking the game to some shows to see if the public like the period?
First outing will be at Bournemouth Beach head show 12/13th feb.
If you can produce a set of photos of your whole Mexican project so far and put it in the MILL 12??
martin :)
Here is something I bought off EBay the other day. Very Western and Mexican style.
Miles
(https://i.postimg.cc/DWJ3mSgH/E6-A4-FC88-30-D7-4419-B9-E5-FF2-BAC6-C7883.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/DWJ3mSgH)
That is an excellent building Miles.
Pale ,worn and dusty?
martin :)
That's a lovely chapel, Miles. In rustic surface treatment it looks a lot like the chapels of Santa Ana or Las Cruces in New Mexico...
I'll see what I can do about photos of my Mex Rev progress so far for Mill 12, Martin. My laying out options are somewhat limited
Sorry, that was Miles not the chapel.
martin ;)
That's my first 3D printed building. I couldn't resist it. How many Western has that type been in ?
Martin is right that's how I feel at the moment? Lol
Miles
3D printing is making great strides forward in finish, price and quality.
Need to be sending Nigel on a 3D printing course soon perhaps Martin.
Finished off an orange grove today so I thought I'd post a pic amongst an assortment of my Mex Rev terrain... Mexican rural idyll before the conflict commences...
Brilliant !!
I can not wait to see pictures of your table with all your sceneries, in a game... They are really beautiful !
A great source of inspiration.
Just a question : did you make the big cactus you use ? They are very nice !!
Cheers,
Xavier
Looking really good. Will be great once its all out on the table.
Derek
Alas I don't have a large terrain board indoors and previously attempts have all been hampered by an invasion of overscale felines! ::) I'll have to wait for the weather to improve before I can set up al-fresco in the garden... I may well have some figures finished by then :o
The large cacti are all scratchbuilt using the nail and milliput method I've outlined in earlier posts... the prickly subject is how to model prickly pear (opuntia) in 15mm... I need a lot, particularly as it grows wild as a weed but is also used extensively as a cash crop. I'm thinking perhaps blobs of greenstuff pressed into fuse wire and twisted together into clumps but in industrial quantities!? I was struck by the idea while trying to untangle strings of Christmas decorations...
Still on the books are some dilapidated mine workings, an engine shed as well as finishing off my coastal village, water tower, presidio, hacienda, trees and sundry other buildings... ;D
That's a lovely terrain collection already, Neil!
Simon
Those buildings paint up really well.
A little weekend whittling... some fishing boats for my Mexican Playa. 60mm long carved from styrofoam with planking detail added with a pencil. Stowed above the high water mark on kebab stick 'logs'
Very clever and nicely done, Neil!
Simon
Excellent and remarkably versatile scenic piece.
When I was doing these I thought they'd be an excellent scenic addition to a Pieces of Eight scenario...
Easy to do too...
Cut a 20mm thick rectangular block to the desired dimensions, cut angles vertically at each end and refine until you have a boat outline. Cut block in half horizontally to make 2 boat shaped blanks.
Working from the underside;
Lightly draw a medial line for reference from front to back (the keel)
Make a downwards angled cut to make the stern. Cut a shallower angle to make the bow.
Starting almost horizontal, make a series of shallow slices away from the keel with a scalpel working progressively downwards and roundwards to create the boat profile. The cuts must almost come to the bow (allow 1-2mm for a stempost).
Use fine emery paper to smooth and even the shape.
Using a pencil draw a pair of parallel lines from stem to stern to create the keel.
Starting at the gunwales draw a series of parallel lines to define the strakes following the curvature of the hull.
Hey presto you have an upturned dinghy.