Disposable plastic appetizer plates, some self-adhesive metal studs for decorating scrapbooks, some plastic self-adhesive rhinestones...
Combat Wombat gun barrels made from turned brass….
And yes, the gun turret on this fetching anti grav flak tanks was a *spork*…
…and now for something in the super heavy assault tank category, just this side of a baby BOLO...
So you start with a 1/72 scale Panzerkampfwagen Maus prototype on clearance sale…
Then you add a plastic hairpin box from Daiso...
Lots of plastic rhinestones, decorative tiles, beads...
…Lego bits, self-adhesive metal studs for scrapbooking, Combat Wombat gun barrels...
…more plastic rhinestones, more plastic tiles...
…a large steel washer where the original turret hole was located...
…magnetic strips on the underside of the new turret to mate with the steel washer and make the turret posable...
…Oh, and don't forget the plastic sample spoon… Holy, s**t!!! There's TWO OF 'EM!!!
And now they've got their primer coat…
Next installment: Two super heavy bad-assed monster tanks in 15mm finished and ready to crush my enemies, and see them driven before me, that I may hear the lamentation of their women! Bwaahahahahaahahahahaaaa!!!!!
Nice, Leland! When my wife let's me get my 15mm Alien Legion, I know whose designs I'm using! Good thing my daughters have beads and rhinestones to spare!
ReplyDeleteWhy, as I live and breath! It's my favorite malevolent, menacing Dark Lord of the Sith Himself! ;)
DeleteYes, indeed, parting one's unsuspecting progeny from their excess plastic bits and such is always sourcing for upcycling… our youngest son went through a Zoids phase back when they were cheap as mud, and when Kristopher lost interest in Zoids, Evil Stepdad was waiting in the wings, steel clippers and X-acto saw in hand… >;)
You know what Leland? to fully place those wonderful Behemoth Tanks into 15mm 'scale' I would have imagined them with railings across the upper turret and artillery/anti-air platforms above it, fully manned, with people coming to and fro...from the manholes carrying ammo and fire extinguishers...just like a mini "land battleship"...
ReplyDeleteSome day I *will* do a VSF project along those lines based on an Edgar Rice Burroughs tale I once read where the principal war machines of the story were gigantic tracked land dreadnoughts battling one another on the open plains of Venus… ;)
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DeleteLOL...you happen to mention the only part of the "Carson of Venus" saga I genuinely liked...I am a diehard John Carter fan but find that Carson of Venus was a bit lame with the over the top anti-Bolshevik angle and the KKK-glorification and the part with effeminate men...however land battleships rocked! :D
DeleteYa know, I'm gonna have to build me some 1930s tech land battleships some day soon.... >;)
Deleteyou damn genius... I'm really impressed!! your scratchbuilt tanks look AWESOME!!
ReplyDeleteWhy, thank you, oh kind lupine! ;)
DeleteLeland those Star Blazers paint jobs are AWESOME!! How about making some Robot Tanks for the Space Marines to take out with there Bopper guns?
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of the devil, I have a mini kit of one of those very tanks, and I'll be posting pix in a few days, so stay tuned.... >;)
DeleteHi! Sorry for the thread necro but I'm just really interested in knowing what are those tiles that you used to plate up the tanks? I'm doing a similar project and this just gave me an idea. I'd really appreciate a response :) thanks!
ReplyDeleteOh, a threadnomancer, eh? Guess I forgot to sacrifice an unblemished PC to ward off such diabolical shenanigans again... >;)
DeleteThose tiles are self adhesive plastic decorative items typically found in scrap booking aisles in Michael's or Joanne's Crafts. I happened upon these being sold in bundles for cents on the dollar at a local Tuesday Morning store over a year ago.
While these specific types of self adhesive tiles may not be available, there are all sorts of similar self adhesive plastic rhinestones or thin metal decorative tiles to be had in the scrap booking aisle at Michael's. Further, our pals at Michael's regularly mark these items down for clearance, so checking weekly is a good idea when you have a project underway. ;)
There's also the fact that if you buy regularly enough from Michael's you'll be given from time to time a discount coupon for your next purchase. This can come in very handy if you have your eye on a higher priced item such as spray paint, a model kit, or some other important item to feed your need.
So check out your local craft stores scrap booking aisles! You never know what may turn up, and that means checking your local Tuesday Morning while you're at it, as they have been carrying all sorts of interesting case out items including craft supplies and tools!
Good hunting! :)
Crap, sacrificial offerings. I didn't get that memo hahaha!
DeleteThanks for the tips! Actually, the main basis of my current project/abomination is one of those horribly crappy plastic toy tanks that scream third-world misery. It was pretty cheap (roughly 3$, converted. I'm not from the US XD) and had impressive bulk. To my surprise, there were a lot of flat surfaces and 'neutral' details that you can sci-fi up and scale down a bit. I'm gonna buy me some barrels and a few AA turrets from Combat Wombat, as well as hatches and doors from The Scene UK. I'm gonna look 1:100 ladders and railings. Add to that my friend has a gundam bits graveyard. Might snag some pieces there hehe.
I should try looking through the art stores here in our area. What you did is truly inspiring! :D Thanks again for the response!
My pleasure. There'll be more pix up soon, as I have not been entirely idle... >;)
DeleteI've said it before, but it bears repeating, shouted from the rooftops in every large city...YOU ARE A CREATIVE GENIUS WITH CRAFT ODDMENTS AND ASSORTED CASTOFFS. I don't see a deodorant stick container, plastic spoons, or pen barrels; all I see is a very convincing future antigrav or hover tank that, at first glance, looks just like an "official" resin war machine, particularly with your wild WW1 camo paint scenes. They're just awesome and worthy of wider attention. Keep on making and/or posting your wonderful custom builds.
ReplyDeleteI save your images in case I get the urge to bash together something similar. Though I don't havea
Why, thank you, kind sentient! Oddly enough, I lecture on the French tank service during the First World War, and that includes a segment on the French invention of disruptive camouflage painting, a practice that the French Army pioneered during the war starting with their artillery, and carried over to their new tank arm straightaway in all of its garish, French cubist glory.
DeleteI'll be posting an article later on delving into the subject, and how I use that as an inspiration for my assorted sci-fi projects to give them a distinctive finish, so stay tuned... :)
Continued...
ReplyDeleteThough I'm not currently playing any wargames, I plan to do as you have, fashioning a highly-camouflaged SF war machine out of stuff I'd either toss out or recycle, and enter it into our midsummer fair's art exhibition.
Excellent. Please do share some photos when you get the beastie done!
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