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Miniatures Adventure => The Great War => Topic started by: Captain Blood on March 02, 2008, 08:48:10 PM

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Captain Blood on March 02, 2008, 08:48:10 PM

Made this week with my 14 year old son for his school project.

Basically matchstick pathways laid onto PVA, pink foam offcuts to create the blocks of earth, matchstick revetments (you glue these onto paper instrips then cut up to make the walls). Then a dab of Tetrion over the top of the groundwork and finished with the usual sand / grit / PVA / paint gloop mix. Then titivated a bit!

The sandbags are from Milliput.
The corrugated iron is erm... a bit of dissected cardboard box, PVA'd and painted.  
I had to pay £2 GBP for a big bag of matchsticks, and an outrageous £1.35 GBP for 24 yards of 28 gauge jewellery beading wire ( :wink: ) to make some barbed wire etc. (although the barbed wire isn't actually barbed, but good enough for these purposes)
Few twigs and bits of balsa. That's about it.
Everything else from my modelling store cupboard, including an offcut of MDF to mount it on... Total real cost, I reckon about £5.00 GBP  :mrgreen:

But several evenings of making, and a lot of today spent painting.

I drew inspiration from the Great War minis site, and based the layout on a page found in a Times Atlas of warfare. Not very detailed research I'm afraid, but think we got most of the important features...

I don't have any WW1 figures, so have included a couple of WW2 chaps for scale purposes...

I hope his history teacher likes it!
Junior did most of the donkey work. I did some of the more artistic bits  :wink:


(http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x69/pantomaniac/trench15.jpg)

(http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x69/pantomaniac/trench16.jpg)

(http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x69/pantomaniac/trench17.jpg)

(http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x69/pantomaniac/trench4.jpg)

(http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x69/pantomaniac/trench5.jpg)

(http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x69/pantomaniac/trench6.jpg)

Complete with lift off lid for the company command post dugout...  :wink:

(http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x69/pantomaniac/trench7.jpg)

(http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x69/pantomaniac/trench9.jpg)

(http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x69/pantomaniac/trench11.jpg)

(http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x69/pantomaniac/trench12.jpg)

(http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x69/pantomaniac/trench14.jpg)

(http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x69/pantomaniac/trench10.jpg)

(http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x69/pantomaniac/trench2.jpg)

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Oswald_Thierstein on March 02, 2008, 08:59:57 PM

Hi,
Fantastic  :o
It's very nice.
For me, it's 20/20 or A+

oswald

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: revford on March 02, 2008, 09:00:13 PM

Great stuff, the little details like the road signs really make it.

Once the school have inspected it, do you get to have a game on it?  :)

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Col.Stone on March 02, 2008, 09:09:46 PM

:love:  :love:
most impressive, i'll go back to this when i get around to building my own trenches!!!

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Rufus on March 02, 2008, 09:11:03 PM

Wow ... that looks really great. What kind of school project did you have to make it for?

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Lowtardog on March 02, 2008, 09:11:11 PM

Awesome stuff Captain :love:

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Hammers on March 02, 2008, 09:42:17 PM

Quite the shit!

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Grimm on March 02, 2008, 09:43:15 PM

you are a genius !!! I will game with that !!!! :o  :love:

I must ake also a Trench !!

Grimm

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: dominic on March 02, 2008, 09:45:29 PM

Man!  That is so beautiful!!  :love:  :love:

I spent the whole weekend watching ANZACs and My Boy Jack!  That is exactly what I want to do as well!!  Of course, I'd have to do a whole board - 2 opposing trench lines, no mans land and plan a trench raid scenario!! :D

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Jules on March 02, 2008, 10:02:24 PM

A*

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: archangel1 on March 02, 2008, 10:14:49 PM

Excellent! It's amazing what you can do without spending a fortune on prefab pieces, when you really put your mind to it.

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Operator5 on March 02, 2008, 10:17:47 PM

Excellent work. It really is the little touches that really make the piece.

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Captain Blood on March 02, 2008, 10:44:21 PM

Thanks chaps  :)

Alas, I doubt I'll get it back from the school to game on - if they've got any sense, they'll hang onto it to show future generations  :wink:

It was just a half term history project. Write a story about the trenches, draw a picture or make a model. We chose to make a model naturally!

Dominic - you should go ahead and make a couple of full boards. I don't want to sound smug, but the construction method of the trenches is surprisingly easy. With your modelling prowess, you'll have a whole opposing front done in no time! Check out the Great War Miniatures site - they have a whole trench system board.

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: pbeccas on March 02, 2008, 11:20:48 PM

Excellent work.

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Plynkes on March 02, 2008, 11:32:55 PM

Oustanding. We never got to do cool things like that at school. Never learned about the Great War, let alone got to do cool projects on it.

I once did a project on Princess Di and Prince Charles' wedding, and one about winter sports. I won a prize for both, but I'd rather have done the Somme.

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Trencher on March 02, 2008, 11:43:17 PM

Excellent, Sir! This is superb!  :o   :love:

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: matakishi on March 02, 2008, 11:48:33 PM

Fantastic work!

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: twrchtrwyth on March 02, 2008, 11:59:34 PM

That's really nice. 8)

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: DFlynSqrl on March 03, 2008, 04:27:48 AM

Wow, that looks awesome!

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Malamute on March 03, 2008, 08:52:59 AM

First class, that is excellent stuff Captain :love:  :D

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: white knight on March 03, 2008, 09:15:42 AM

Very inspriring. If I ever get over this newly found "I'm giving up miniatures" phase, I might give it a shot.

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Phil Robinson on March 03, 2008, 09:55:53 AM

Splendid little piece, just the ticket.

Title: Re: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Hammers on March 03, 2008, 10:43:46 AM

Quote from: "Captain Blood"

Made this week with my 14 year old son for his school project.

What a brilliant idea. Give your child top grades by having a lot of fun.

I hope Fiver, son of hammershield, comes home in 14 years time and asks me: "Father dear, I have this assignment from Miss Hjalmarsdotter the history teacher to present to the class the layout of Stone Town of Zanzibar. Can you help?"

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Chairface on March 03, 2008, 06:59:34 PM

A+ for sure.

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: O gato Mortimer on March 03, 2008, 09:12:18 PM

:o  :o  :o

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: pnweerar on March 04, 2008, 02:11:52 AM

Absolutely freaking brilliant.

Title: Re: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Jules on March 04, 2008, 07:59:38 AM

Quote from: "hammershield"

Quote from: "Captain Blood"

Made this week with my 14 year old son for his school project.

What a brilliant idea. Give your child top grades by having a lot of fun.

I hope Fiver, son of hammershield, comes home in 14 years time and asks me: "Father dear, I have this assignment from Miss Hjalmarsdotter the history teacher to present to the class the layout of Stone Town of Zanzibar. Can you help?"

I'm hoping for 'Dad were doing this project on secret Nazi bases in the Antarctic and Himalayas  can you help!!! oh and it must include an airship as well' :)

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: dodge on March 04, 2008, 01:32:27 PM

Fantastic model.

Fantastic price £5 plus your own time.

You have inspired me to attempt some modelling of my own.

Thanks cap'n

Dodge

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: WillieB on March 04, 2008, 07:09:38 PM

Simply fantastic!

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Captain Blood on March 04, 2008, 08:29:58 PM

Thanks all.

Ross is taking it to school with him tomorrow, so we'll see what his history teacher makes of it...

That's if it makes it through the playground first thing, and doesn't get dropped and played football with!  :cry:  :cry:  :cry:

Maybe I'll suggest the Arctic sub base when they get onto WWII...  :wink:

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Overlord on March 04, 2008, 10:28:45 PM

:o  Brilliant

Now why didn't we have projects like that when I was at school?  :cry:

Title: The Trench - or 'fun with matchsticks'
Post by: Helen on March 05, 2008, 03:53:59 AM

Hi Captain Blood,

My heartly congrats too you.

Truly inspirational and thankyou for the "How to construct" instructions an all under five quid :)

God Bless

Helen