A buildings update

 I seem to be operating in extreme summer mode at the moment, spending very little time on the blog. One project I am getting on with is building card models for a 20/25mm Newhaven to supplement the 28mm version.

This is the base model. I'm experimenting all the time as to how to do these - main idea is red brick buildings with a range of doors/windows, including shops. My intention at the moment is to have 12 - 16 of this standard design. 

This is where I am up to with larger buildings - tower blocks, factories, etc. Roughly joining three of these into an 'H' shape will give me a basis for the university or possibly a hospital. Well, the H design is based on Norman's Riding, so a hospital building is a given!

I considered different ways of doing doors and windows but finally just decided to make most buildings with various clipart doors and windows - many of these have been modified to increase the range, for example a stretched window can become a door, two doors (one a reverse image) put together to make double doors!

Starting 20/25mm Newhaven buildings

 Sarissa (and others) produce excellent mdf buildings though the biggest ranges are for 28mm - as are all the ones I have. However, most of my figures tend to be 20mm or 25mm, So I thought, why not start building up a load of homemade 20/25mm card models to expand on the 28mm ranges? Apart from anything else, smaller so I can cram more of them on a table.

So I've got a load of buildings under construction, but the one I finished first is this church. The windows are from a load of bits I bought years ago - some were used to refurbish a load of other buildings a while back. The windows show worshippers of a god that came from the sky... it's Newhaven, Christian churches not such a big thing there.

I probably made it a bit too wide and the roof looks oversize as a result.  Drawing the roof tiles was a bit of a pain.

Clocks are simply painted mdf bases. The building itself doesn't look this lopsided on the table!

Gold window and door frames of course.

Seaford museum

Got back from our annual visit to Brighton a couple of days ago, during which we had hopped on the bus to Seaford. This time we walked up to the Martello Tower (number 74) and were surprised to find it was a museum... as in, saw the sign on the gun!

So, couple of pictures of the mounting.

Which extends below what you can see from the promenade...

There's a lot more to it than you would think at a distance... most of it being below ground.

As the sign says, it's bigger on the inside than on the outside.

Couple more signs, don't think I need to explain these further.

It does have a lot more than just the gun - a few models of local interest.

I admit this one was more for personal reference.

This is a model of what the local railway station looked like.

And lots more of course -this is a model of a Victorian bathing hut! There is a lot more than I've shown here - early computers/games consoles, for example.

Well worth a visit, meanwhile it has a website and is on Facebook.

Note, all photos taken by my wife Sandra.

Warrior Greek Army Review

 

Added to just act as a record...

Warrior Thracians and other light infantry

 

I put the Thracians together as two units 18 strong - my 'standard' 6 element units.

I kept the flesh and black tunic, everything else was overpainted. I originally considered painting the cloaks in a tartan scheme but remembered that I wasn't out to do complicated designs... the original figures had a rather strange hair design. I painted hair underneath and the original 'hair' I did in red leather to represent fox skin caps!

There were also a few other odd figures...

I left the weird flesh colour... also added a shield to give a couple of elements of long spear/shield armed peltasts. I should probably have given these fox skin caps but left it so they could represent any Greek peltast, not just Thracians.

Not really anything to say about these two elements...

Finally, some archers. These were the only figures I didn't do any further work on.

Second Warrior pike unit

 

Doesn't look very impressive at this angle!

Put the two units together 8  deep and it looks a bit better.

Even better with an overhead view - spoiled a bit by the difficulty in putting these things together in a light box - those pikes really get in the way!

Warrior Greek cavalry

 

I have a few Warrior cavalry, just about enough to do a couple of bases...

Not bad, though spears would have been better if replaced - they aren't good. Horse legs a bit iffy - tried bending them back into shape a bit. Design of the horses is pretty reasonable though.