Jagannath's 6mm Skim Racing (sort of Gaslands) - First Racer Finished 2/8/20

[Jagannath]

Hullo all,

I'm incredibly busy at the mo, so I've been picking at a little project that only needs short bursts of activity - 6mm scale racers for a Wipeout meets Podracing concept I've wanted to do for a while based on Gaslands.

I love the idea of 6mm Gaslands so I can do 'big' post apocalypse terrain but cars are pretty unimpressive in 6mm so I've gone all sci-fi.

The concept:

Jakuooine is a backwater desert planet, in a galaxy riven by interstellar civil war. Out in the dunes you'll find crashed starships, ruined settlements, abandoned moisture farms and all manner of adventures. You'll also find tonnes of scrapped fighters (those starships didn't crash themselves afterall). Primary industries are salvage, tech scrapping and shipbreaking. For many of the workers, when they're not out in the salvage they're gambling on (or taking part in )skim-races.

Skims are repurposed fighters and ships from the salvage yards, fitted with 'skims' - small dual effect repulsors (originally designed as landing-assists in freighter loading bays) that serve to try and keep the vehicle a fixed distance - roughly 4 foot - from the ground at all times.This removes the requirement for any type of wing leaving many skims to look like starfighter bodies strapped to boost engines (because they are!). Skims vary hugely in design and features - some are nimble craft that excel at handling, others run the course at breakneck speeds hoping to outpace their opponents on the straight. In 'official' skim races (i.e. those run and endorsed by the planetary cartels and unions) weapons are not usually allowed, although at the breakneck speed of skim races the odd dirty trick goes unnoticed. In the unofficial races around the shanties and in the wastes, often anything goes.

Got the creds? Grab a skim and claim your place on start line!

So that's where I'm at - this project is a nice opportunity to:

Paint individual ships whenever I have a free moment, which suits my calendar at the mo.
Finish and make more 6mm desert terrain - I need more anyway!

I'm likely to be 3D printing all the ships, and I'm going to be exercising my modelling skills but digitally, kitbashing Skims from a variety of sources: paid for STLs, Free available models and my own components and models. Models are a bit bigger than 6mm cars - my first skim is just short of 30mm long. Aesthetically I'm going for fighter bodies and racing engines.

As for rules I'll probably use Gaslands (though X-wing might be interesting) - I'm tempted to keep the gaslands templates at 100%, to represent the speed and comparative lack of maneuverability of skims but probably not, I'd rather play on a 3x3 with reduced templates. I've got Blaster issue 1 which had the Martian Racing Federation rules for Gaslands but I must admit, I don't really understand them! Need to read again.

My first ship is about 90% done, so I'll throw a pic up in the next day or two.

[zrunelord]

Sounds like a great idea hatching Jag,
You can do tons of terrain using exp. Foam.
Yes i love the stuff... wish i could lay my hands on some
Of the liquid stuff to pour in moulds but i can't find it
Locally & postage is high...

Just small squirts will go the job.Once hard go over the again
With more small squirts. Leave in the sun until brown then a simple wash.Cheap, effective & virtually indestructible.

You can even do some on a busted model to represent crashes.

Z

[Jagannath]

Thanks mate, that's a great idea actually. I need to get the templates out and work out interesting terrain that won't be too tight to race in.

Here's my first set of ships ready for slicing and printing, and the little 6mm chap I use for scaling everything. Mostly kitbashed digitally from files I found online, with the odd bit of detailing by me. I've actually already printed the 'front right' one (if this was a starting grid) and will post a painted pic tomorrow.



I'm pretty pleased so far, they capture the aesthetic I was thinking of. I'm a bit late to the party with x-wing type files on Thingiverse unfortunately, but I'm sure I can rustle up a fair few more. This is turning into quite an exciting project!

[zrunelord]

Welcome Jag.
Wow i'm impressed 

That's some great models you have there ... i like them & the concept.

Thanks for sharing
Z

[Jagannath]

And here's some not too brilliant pics of my first racer  - that's a 25mm base as a scale reference. This one was a simple tweak of a file from the Terra Conflict kickstarter, to bring the boosters closer to the body.

[Brummie]

Slick! Lovely Skimmers 

[Spinal Tap]

Ooh, I really like that.

[zrunelord]

Ace work Jag,
With thrusters turned to the ground , that would make a great troop transport.
Especially if you put 2 more thrusters on the front.

What prog did you use to modify it?

Keep it up
Z

[Jagannath]

Thanks! Once I’ve got all the ‘parts’ edited (mesh mixer and 3D builder) I assemble in 3D gilder because it’s has a really good split then mirror function so you can easily make them nice and symmetrical.

[CookAndrewB]

Cool. Can't wait to see the rest printed and painted.

[Billchuck]

That skimmer looks great, I can’t wait to see more.

This seems like the sort of game that needs to have the racers leaving giant dust plumes behind them.  And of course, crossing through another racer’s dust plume is not a good idea.

It also seems like the sort of game that has annoyed locals with rifles perched on cliffs and taking potshots as the racers go by.

[Jagannath]

That skimmer looks great, I can’t wait to see more.

This seems like the sort of game that needs to have the racers leaving giant dust plumes behind them.  And of course, crossing through another racer’s dust plume is not a good idea.

It also seems like the sort of game that has annoyed locals with rifles perched on cliffs and taking potshots as the racers go by.

Both ideas I have in the pipeline!