Project Log: Demon Ship, Part 7

Over the weekend, I built the barrels and crates for my Demon Ship board:

 

 

For these elements, I dug out the Sector Imperialis Objectives kit. It contained two crates that are about the correct size for the 1-inch squares on the board. The large artillery shells also looked like they might work as the explosive barrels with a bit of work.

 

 

The first step was to remove the Imperial icon on the crate lid. I used clippers to snip off as much of the detail as I could, and then used a rounded knife blade to chisel the surface smooth.

 

 

I cut some 0.5mm styrene card to fit into the recess on the lid, creating a smooth, clean surface.

 

 

Then, I added thin strips of the same card, and cut some small bits to make the latches on the front. I had tried make the hinges functional by drilling them out and inserting a bit of wire, but they proved too tiny and insufficiently aligned, so I just glued the lids closed. That would have been great for representing which crates had been successfully searched and opened.

 

 

To turn the artillery shells into barrels, I first glued the halves together and then cut off the tips by marking where to cut and slowly rolling my hobby knife along the line.

 

 

The plastic was pretty thick, so I couldn't simply slice all the way through– After getting the cut started, I used clippers to snip off the tip and clip away enough material that I could then use the knife to finish off the cut. With the shells stood on their end, they started to resemble air tanks, and I decided to model them up as some sort of tank containing some sort of volatile gas with a release valve on top.

 

 

To add some framing around the canister, I cut thin strips of 0.5mm styrene and curled it so it could more easily wrap around the cylinder.

 

 

At the top of the canister, I cut notched out of the fins and used 0.75mm styrene strips for the ring.

 

 

The pressure valve on top was made from a a variety of styrene rod, hex rod, and tubes.

 

 

Pressurized air tanks usually have a protective ring around the valve, and I wanted to add one to these canisters. The vertical supports were made from 1.0mm x 1.5mm square styrene rod. I cut a notch out of the end and trimmed them all to the same length, then glued them over three of the fins.

 

 

The ring around the top was made from a ring cut from a piece of 6mm styrene tube. (I used tube rather than a curled strip because it would retain a more consistently round shape.). The ring was cut and fit into the notches atop the supports. 

 

 

Once the glue was dry, I trimmed the ring and sanded the joints to create a smooth surface and added a valve wheel from my Skull Forge Scenics industrial bases.

 

 

The last step was to add magnets underneath the pieces– Since they were hollow underneath, I packed the underside with modeling putty and pressed the magnets into it. Once the putty had cured, I added some fine super glue to secure the magnet.

 

 

And there we have it– Only a couple more accessories and I'll be ready to start painting!

 

 

'Til next time!