Project Log: Skaven Warp-Skryre Tower, Part 5

After a year-long hiatus, I'm back at work on the Skaven tower. In this post, I finish off the top accumulator:

 

If you'd like to catch up on the previous parts of this scenery build, the label "Project Log: Warp-Skryer Tower" at the right will bring up all the posts. Or you can follow this link.

When I left off, I had the engine and gears finished, and the housing for the accumulator constructed. I just needed to detail the exterior with cables and technical greeblies. I sifted through my pile of parts to pull out some elements.

 

 

From the Chaos vehicle accessory sprue, I took some smoke launchers and cut them in half to serve as cable attachments. I added a bolt on top with some hex- shaped styrene rod and round rod. I trimmed the launcher tubes and drilled them out so I could insert the cables.

 

 

These were glued around the perimeter of the accumulator.

 

 

At the top, I added a piece of warpstone. This was made from part of a Dreadnought leg, a circle of thin styrene, punched out with a hole puncher, and the warpstone tip from the Warp Lightning Cannon.

 

 

For the cables themselves, I initially considered using the leftover plastic cables from the Stormfiend kit.

 

 

In the end, the plastic cables were too fragile and their shape limited the points where they could attach. So, I used 16-gauge floral wire instead. The wire was bent into shape with a pair of flat needle-nosed pliers.

 

 

In my parts box, I had some spare pieces that I had sculpted back when I scratch-built my Skaven doom-flayers. I used them as attachment points on the accumulator. The wire was inserted into a hole drilled in the center.

 

 

To make the cuffs on the ends of the cables, I cut some rings from a length of 3/32" styrene tube. Then I cut through one side to make a "C" shape.

 

 

The cuffs were then clipped over the ends of the tubes and glued in place.

 

 

To create some variety in the cables, I used guitar wire in a few places.

 

 

One last bit of wire was added to the lens array. This small bit of cable was left over from my Hell Pit Abomination.

 

 

I also added a little more tech to the large gear. Those arms (legs, actually) were from the Chaos Defiler.

 

 

I added a few more details, like the bit from the Celestial Hurricanum, a wire made from a paper clip, and some gears that I had made a press-mold of.

 

 

There was one repair that I had to make to my previous work– I had used a glass bead as part of the construction:

 

Super glue doesn't really adhere to glass, so the bead kept coming loose. I replaced it with a ball of modeling putty.

 

 

Here's a look at the whole warp-accumulator assembly:

 

 

That's the top of the tower completed. Now to turn my attention to the bottom of the rock spire. That will get covered with rickety walkways and the orrery from the Celectial Hurricanum. I also need to figure out what I'm going to do with that big hole...

 

 

'Til next time!