Discussion on The Miniatures Page encouraged me to descend into the crypt and dig out my old 25mm aerial gunboats. These had been used for a single game of Sky Galleons of Mars back in the mid-to-late 90s.
Above is a comparison of the Ironclad Aeronef vs the smallest British "Aphid" - although I think I was building the "Penelope" as I note the plethora of Hotchkiss Revolving Cannon and a rather prominent ram.
These are made of card stock and foam core on blue DIY/Dow insulation board formers, with thin wood decking. Ship plans are available in GDWs "Cloudships and Gunboats", now available from Heliograph Publishing Inc.
I am a little embarrassed at the poor quality and lack of important detail on these scratchbuilt models - my only defense is, in may callow youth, I was rushing to finish and we only played once, because we had issues keeping the stands upright.
Later on, a friend of mine welded the pipes to steel railway washers, which gave them more stability. Adding a few more washers, usually of a larger size, also increased stability - though these stands shown are not yet safe for any kind of carpet. A larger 4" OD washer is needed.
Being older and wiser, nowadays I would use a flange and pipe arrangement, or else cut these from clear Lucite. I will probably exchange the black rods for clear Lucite ones.
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| "Look Sarge, he didn't even paint the stacks..." "...typical..." |
The current project will be to refinish this and bring it up to spec, along with several others that are currently languishing in mothballs.
- finis -
