Paper rolls: some old things, some incoming and a little tutorial.

Making my model I often use thin paper rolls to create handles, poles, stakes, gun barrels and other elements so I decided to make a little tutorial on how I make them. Below you can some examples of potential use of such paper rolls, and btw some models that lay on my workbench for some time waiting for a better times :).

I used quite a lot of rolls making the Veuglaire model and the gunners tools on the first photo. The hammer is made of two such rolls glued together perpendicularly with proper textured caps. The sponge pole is another with the sponge itself being a roll upon a roll. The powder chamber handles here are also rolled although could be as well just “folded to three”. Another roll here (although not visible) is the wheel axle.

Below you’ll find photos of three more models I used paper rolls with. First is an auto-cannon I made some year ago trying to make equipment for a military checkpoint its barell is a paper roll approx 1mm thick. Never had the time to texture it, but I keep it somewhere visible not to forget about it. (Probably when I will finally get to it I will redesign it anyway.)
On another photo paper rolls are used to support a primitive plank fence. It is a first photo of a set of pre industrial era field and maedow fences and walls I’m working on now. The set is actually almost ready, and I will post some more photos and info soon.
In the last model the paper rolls are used for lamppost and cantilevers (obviously). I made this victorian era gaslight lamp today with no drawing and design (that is why it is a bit crooked and uneven). I will probably make it into a design, as I like the effect pretty much and following the success of Aspasia Achsenberg in Papercuts I intend to make some more steampunk/victorian/gothic stuff.

    

Going back to paper rolls, most elements I used paper rolls for I could probably make of wire, toothpicks or cocktail sticks, but there are several reasons I prefer to make posts and barrels of paper.

First is my paper purism. I like to make my models of paper entirely or at least as far I can make it of paper. There are rational reasons to it. PVA glue bonds differently with different materials. Making models of paper only ensures the bond is even on both glued surfaces. Furthermore I’ve found out that it is easier (for me at least) to destroy by accident a paper model containing rigid non paper components, while smashed 100% paper models can sometimes be straightened up or fixed.

The second thing about paper rolls is that I can always make them when I need them to a diameter I need. I’m usually to lazy to look for wire or sticks to suit my needs – especially when designing and testing models, when I’m  not sure what will I actually need.

Finally printed, textured elements IMHO  look better with printed textured models. Elements made of different materials even painted to suit the colour palette of the model will always look like an alien component that is somehow out of of the set. Of course you can wrap a wire or toothpick with printed texture, and sometimes I do that for stakes or poles 3-4mm thick. For small diameters (below 2,5 mm) it not as easy as it seems, and for diameters larger than 4-5 mm I prefer to make a hollow paper pipe and don’t need a tight roll at all.

Concrete Barriers1.1 – Alternative hues.

Whole July no posts… The month was a nightmare in work but still I managed to make first expansion for Concrete Barriers set. It was uploaded to Wargame Vault yesterday.

Shade of concrete depends on many factors. Many of these factors are based on local conditions. E.g concrete aggregate usually consists of materials (rocks mostly) easily available in the manufacturing area ( you have yellow tinted gravel, or use red tinted crushed granite your concrete will reflect that). Other major factor is lighting. Colour of light reflected form surroundings (yellow desert around will tint even grey concrete yellow etc.) – this is othing new for someone who have done some photography or rendering. Just to name just two. You can also intentionally colourize concrete bay adding pigments to the matrix.

New alternative hues for Concrete Barriers

Now you can simulate many such colour and light effects on your battlefield with alternative concrete hues. You often wage your wars in the middle-east or on distant desert planets – use desert tint. Need to protect an isolated Martian outpost – Martian hue will look best. In some dystopian contaminated industrial area, where slag concrete be enough to keep the strangers away – represent it with black tint. You can also use it for night fighting (in non lit areas). Possibilities are many. So if you have bought Concrete Barriers update your downloads anytime (The old file was also reformatted for smaller size and better quality textures). If you did not, and you need concrete barriers for your battlefield you can get them here.

Concrete precast factory up and running – among other things.

MiniLab is going commercial.

I’m pleased to announce that my concrete barrier set is available on Wargame Vault for anyone who would need them. The set includes eight of each blast walls, jersey barriers and dragon tooth bollards in 30mm gaming scale.

Editing this set to publish it took me quite a long time (prose of life can be annoyingly distractive) but it should go faster now when most of things are set.

It is just first of many sets I have in my plans, as in the mean time many prototypes were born on my desk, and many more ideas in my head. Hopefully I will find some time to grab the camera and update the blog. Next set to follow will be (obviously I guess) the Veuglaire with 2d crew, and then 2-3 sets of some simpler models not sure what it will be exactly but you may expect some note soon.

The horse with cart and limber will be delayed however, as I care to much to make it right and I don’t want to jinx it with haste.

In the mean time you may expect more Manesse miniatures (free as always), and some modding stuff for the barriers.

A full load of concrete

Not much to say actually. I’ve finished assembly of remaining concrete barriers (that is jersey barriers and dragon tooth bollards). The effects you can see on the pics below.

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This is where I leave the theme of concrete for now, although I like the idea of papercraft concrete precasts (papercasts?) and will surely return to the subject, perhaps  with more modular builds. A lot of ideas swarming distant horizon.

Now I need to find some time to playtest the whole set, and that can be more difficult than building it…

Blast walls… and about complexity of simple things.

There is a strange regularity that things that should be simple usually turn out to be more complicated than one might expect. Likewise, sometimes it is most difficult to find time for the things that require least of it. Both of these rules were true  in regard to my work on the military concrete precasts. Creating a concrete wall that is not boring nor repetitive turned out to be quite time-consuming though geometry is simple and texturing concrete is nothing difficult. Finally I made eight skins, but until last weekend I had no time to assemble them (and assembly of single section takes only a few minutes.). Until yesterday I had no time to do the photos and only today I found a moment to post them. Below you can see the effects.

      

Medieval cannon nearly complete.

While working on the design of the veuglaire I have assembled a whole artillery park of subsequent versions. Below you can see models made in the process.

The cannon itself is actually completed and I am quite satisfied how it came out. The wheels are turning, the gun angle can be adjusted with the elevation bracket, as it should. I am still working on the accessories. For now you can see the powder barrel and wedging hammer resting on the hooks on the carriage.

     

Minilab launched

Hello and welcome all,

Finally blog is up.

For a good start a few WIP pictures of projects I work on recently. First is medieval/fantasy cannon (veuglaire to be exact). This is the second prototype I made, and it still require some tweaking (barrel slightly too short, carriage support slightly too long). Texturing is underway approx 75% complete. Veuglaire is planned complete with gunpowder keg, bucket for carrying cannonballs (or whatever), sponge to clean the bore, hammer to wedge the powder chamber tightly, replacement powder chambers and a chest for gunner tools.