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Click the images below to see larger versions.
| You'd be surprised how easy it can be to make 3D Space
Hulk sections with the help of a few co-opted building materials.
The bulk of the supplies for this room ("compartment"
for all you naval types) came from the roof gutter section,
the ventilation section, and the lighting section of our local
home-improvement store. With a little plasticard, a few metal
bitz from the GW inventory, and a plastic crochet grid from
a nearby craft store, we put the following three-door room board
section together. |
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| Step
1 |
Vinyl gutter joints
come in all shapes and sizes, and they
cost
less than $10 each. We found a drain drop
joint that would work great as a compartment
with three entry points. What's more, vinyl
is fairly easy to work with (though it
can
warp a bit when it's manufactured –
try to pick straight pieces). As you can
see in the pictures above, the side wall
of the
drain will serve as your compartment floor.
Mark off a line where the "overhang"
of the gutter starts to curve up dramatically.
You want to clear enough room for you to
reach
in and place models on the section while
maintaining the feel of a room. |
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| Step
2 |
Following the mark you just
made, cut off the overhang with your cutting
tool. You can use a variety of cutting tools
to accomplish this step, from a hack saw to
a band saw. Regardless of the tool you employ,
make sure you take the necessary precautions
(kids, ask your folks for help). We used a
Dremel rotary tool with a disc cutting tool
attachment – it took a while, but it
worked just fine. Also cut off the small U-shaped
connectors on the floor of the room. |
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| Step
3 |
Crochet grid is great for 40K
grating – the only problem is that primer
won't always stick to it right off the shelf.
We found that a good scrubbing with soap and
water eliminated this problem (they must use
a releasing agent when they make it). With
a permanent marker, delineate the room section
area on the grid. Cut out this area with scissors. |
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| Step
4 |
Now that you have the
crochet grid cut out, it can serve as a floor template
while you work. Centre it over the floor of the
room with the middle entry point lined up in the
"doorway" like shown in the image above.
Mark off the edges on the gutter drain with a permanent
marker. |
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| Step
5 |
With your cutting tool, cut off the
edges of the room along the lines you made. While
you're at it, remove the screw brackets from the
floor of the room so it lies flat on the tabletop. |
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| Step
6 |
Though you could leave the rectangular
frame around the doorway, it will make moving models
nearly impossible when you play games. Remove this
frame with your cutting tool. |
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| Step
7 |
There are several building
materials you can use for doorways, but the
ones
we thought would work best are gutter C-clamps
like those shown above. They look like cross-sections
of doorways, have a built-in "door control"
recess, and won't block model movement. You can
get these for about $2 each. |
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| Step
8 |
Glue these to the floor of the room
section with super glue. Make sure you use your
crochet grid as a guide on how far back along the
floor to place them. |
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| Step
9 |
Find some 2" wall vents like
those above. You can get a six-pack for about
$10. The ones we found had a slightly rough texture
to the plastic, which will be ideal for drybrushing
later. |
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