f2k
New Member
- Joined
- Apr 2, 2011
- Messages
- 301
I’m not sure if there’s much interest in 1:100 scale terrain here, but I’ll try anyway...
This is a table I’m currently working on. The basic idea was to do make a table suitable for a Flames of War early war battle. And when we’re talking early war, what could be more iconic that the German attack on the Maginot line?
This then, is a representation of the area around Gros Ouvrage de Fermont – one of the larger, though still incomplete at the onset of war, fortresses in the Maginot line.
I started by gathering a lot of pictures of the area as it is today. In addition, I took the basic plan over the entire complex and overlaid it onto a Google Earth image in order to gain an idea of the terrain and how the individual bunkers were situated.
And then I started cutting...
Oh my... The pain...
I cut and cut and cut and cut... Three days were spent cutting, sanding, and grinding the polystyrene framework into a basic shape. I was, quite literally, covered in tiny polystyrene pellets from top to bottom. And, to make it even worse, in the dry atmosphere of the cellar where I was working (the local model train club) I build up such a big charge of electricity that I made some highly impressive white-blue electrical arches whenever I get within five inches of a metal surface.
I tell you: I’ll never ever do that again...
But I finally managed to get the polystyrene cut to a somewhat satisfactory shape. And even though I took some liberties in order to produce a good table to battle on, it did end up with a good resemblance of the actual fortress.
Right now I’m working with grass mats. My original plan was to cover some large areas in different colours of grass and then use static grass in-between to tie it all together. But by now I’ve concluded that it just won’t work – the polystyrene surface is way too rough. So either I need to continue with the grass mats or else I’ll have to somehow smooth out the surface.
The basic frame of the table was originally an attempt to build a cheap and light 4’ x 6’ table. However, it turned out to be a bit to unstable. However, with some polystyrene added...
... the table became extremely stiff while retaining its lightness. The entire assembly weighs in at some 20 pounds or thereabout.
This is the table after I had cut the polystyrene down to the final shape.
Block four and seven was cut out of polystyrene, holes cut into the terrain and the whole thing clued together.
I sealed the edge of the table with newspaper soaked in a mix of wall filler, white glue and water. Once that was dry I went over it again, this time with a mix of white glue, water and black paint, in order to seal it completely.
(Sorry ‘bout the strange perspecktive, at that point in time the table was leaning against a wall to give me better access to the fortress)
The two blocks were coated with a thick mix of wall filler, white glue, and water before being airbrushed with several different tones of grey, ranging from dark gray to bluish-grey and greenish-grey. This created a nice concrete-like surface.
And here’s the table as it’s looking now. I’ve begun adding grass mats but there’s still a lot of area to cover...
This is a table I’m currently working on. The basic idea was to do make a table suitable for a Flames of War early war battle. And when we’re talking early war, what could be more iconic that the German attack on the Maginot line?
This then, is a representation of the area around Gros Ouvrage de Fermont – one of the larger, though still incomplete at the onset of war, fortresses in the Maginot line.
I started by gathering a lot of pictures of the area as it is today. In addition, I took the basic plan over the entire complex and overlaid it onto a Google Earth image in order to gain an idea of the terrain and how the individual bunkers were situated.
And then I started cutting...
Oh my... The pain...
I cut and cut and cut and cut... Three days were spent cutting, sanding, and grinding the polystyrene framework into a basic shape. I was, quite literally, covered in tiny polystyrene pellets from top to bottom. And, to make it even worse, in the dry atmosphere of the cellar where I was working (the local model train club) I build up such a big charge of electricity that I made some highly impressive white-blue electrical arches whenever I get within five inches of a metal surface.
I tell you: I’ll never ever do that again...
But I finally managed to get the polystyrene cut to a somewhat satisfactory shape. And even though I took some liberties in order to produce a good table to battle on, it did end up with a good resemblance of the actual fortress.
Right now I’m working with grass mats. My original plan was to cover some large areas in different colours of grass and then use static grass in-between to tie it all together. But by now I’ve concluded that it just won’t work – the polystyrene surface is way too rough. So either I need to continue with the grass mats or else I’ll have to somehow smooth out the surface.
The basic frame of the table was originally an attempt to build a cheap and light 4’ x 6’ table. However, it turned out to be a bit to unstable. However, with some polystyrene added...
... the table became extremely stiff while retaining its lightness. The entire assembly weighs in at some 20 pounds or thereabout.
This is the table after I had cut the polystyrene down to the final shape.
Block four and seven was cut out of polystyrene, holes cut into the terrain and the whole thing clued together.
I sealed the edge of the table with newspaper soaked in a mix of wall filler, white glue and water. Once that was dry I went over it again, this time with a mix of white glue, water and black paint, in order to seal it completely.
(Sorry ‘bout the strange perspecktive, at that point in time the table was leaning against a wall to give me better access to the fortress)
The two blocks were coated with a thick mix of wall filler, white glue, and water before being airbrushed with several different tones of grey, ranging from dark gray to bluish-grey and greenish-grey. This created a nice concrete-like surface.
And here’s the table as it’s looking now. I’ve begun adding grass mats but there’s still a lot of area to cover...