From: Robin Paul <Robin.Paul@t...>
Date: Sat, 11 May 2002 15:48:17 +0100
Subject: Kitbashing a BDN
My nephews, aged 8 and 6, recently had their first game of Full Thrust (they're already HoTT and Space Hulk players). In the aftermath of their victory (I ensured that they'd win their first game), they said they'd like to make some spaceships, and I promised to devize something they could make. The criteria are: 1) As much as possible should be doable by small persons. 2) It should be cheap enough that if it goes wrong, it's not a disaster. 3) It should be made from readily available bits and pieces. I used a 1/144 Tornado as the basis of a FT battleship. Either the Revell or Academy kit is usable- I'm trying both. Academy is cheaper (£1.99 vs. £2.99) and less complex. I removed the wing pivots and assembled the main fuselage, including the engine nozzles. The intakes on the Academy kit were blocked off. The part of the cockpit between the seats was removed, and the cockpit well was plated over (The Revell kit's cockpit floor is ideal for this). I fitted a rectangular plate of plastic card through the wing slot, equalling the width of the wing gloves. Endplates and assorted details were fitted on this plate to produce sponsons. I inverted the fuselage and fitted a bridge structure (c.15x6x8mm) between and to the rear of the main gear bays. The underside of the Tornado becomes the upper deck of the battleship. All landing gear bays become weapons bays. Location holes etc are covered with small details. Assorted kit parts such as gear doors, plastic card with incised panel lines, Plastruct ABS strip and 1/700 spares (especially Japanese triple 25mm as PDS! I hope it's not an omen.) formed the detail. The result is cheap, quick and pleasing. The Academy prototype is being painted, the Revell version nears completion. Another ship can be made from a 1/144 Havoc attack helo (I'm sure Apaches etc would be equally usable). The fuselage is used inverted and reversed, with incised plates of plastic card on the sides of the "hump" in place of the Havoc's engines and the fin cut off in line with tail boom to produce a "ram bow".