Monday 30 December 2013

Urban Renewal

Christmas has been and gone, but it proved to have been a very nice one! On the wargaming front I was given a few ex JB Models Airfix kits, which will prove useful for Harad. I also received a Kindle Fire which will also prove useful on the gaming front - both for research and for in game referencing of PDFs.

Sometimes potential is rather hidden.
Whilst shopping before Christmas I came across this rather garnish toy house. I presume that it is a knockoff of another item - the main hint being that it has cast on it half a latch and hinge system but not the other half of the item. It screamed potential.

It came with furnishings. I have a plan on how to use these as well...

My plan was to see if I could turn it in to a suitable BUA for AWI Volley and Bayonet games. This meant that I could tinker with the way I left the open space open on the stand. Rather than having enough room for a full Brigade stand on the base, as I normally do, I instead left room for two Regiment stands to be side by side.


Lucky Products Hessians inspect the house.

Plenty of room on the inside.

 I removed the stickers festooning the house inside and outside, and then sprayed the the whole thing with nice brown spray paint - inside and outside!

Now in a less painful brown colour!

I then mounted it on a base after hacking off any overhanging bits and crudely applied some bogging where required.
Quickly added plastic card - My favourite cladding solution!

Some white plastic card was affixed to the back and was hacked to size.While not an elegant solution, it is a very functional one, especially give the constraints of the V&B BUA base size.

A rather more sedate colour scheme!

I then applied paint, wash, and a new white picket fence for the the front of the yard.

A closer look.

The back was painted in a way that I hope will look streaky and washed out, and hopefully drawing attention away from the neat straight up and down lines. I considered making the lines go side to side but decided that vertical would look better.

Poorly white washed at the rear with two stands of Airfix Americans.

Of course the main effort I am looking for is that of troops behind a fence, in front of a white pillared house.

A much better view - the BUA garrisoned by Airfix figures.

So a rather quick and cheerful conversion ready for the tabletop! Now I just have to paint up some more AWI troops!

14 comments:

  1. Amazing transformation! And it does 'fit' one's imagined impression of New World domestic architecture.

    I know it isn't really suited to your project, but I might have gone in for 2 of these with the view to placing them back to back as a complete building. Or they can be placed on the edge of a table to suggest outskirts of a town, the rest of which lies off-table. This would work best on an edge that is placed against a wall, say.

    Cheers,
    Ion

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    1. Alas Ion, they only had one that I could see, otherwise I would be showing off two BUAs! Your idea sounds very good and would create a very good effect. The other idea you have about it being placed up against a wall is making me think about looking for some (or something similar) next time I am in PA and using them on my Father in law's train layout.

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  2. Very well done Brian! I really do like what you have done. Works well!

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    1. Thanks Roger! I figured I needed a more upmarket building for my AWI and this seemed to be just the ticket!

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  3. Now this works Brian. Well picked and converted!

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    1. Thanks Paul! I hope to have it feature in a game soon.

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  4. Replies
    1. Thanks Andras!, it's amazing what a lick of paint can do to a place!

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  5. You have done an excellent work with this toy house !

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    1. Thanks Sam! I am very pleased with how it turned out.

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  6. Replies
    1. Thanks Al! Now i just need to paint up some more AWI troops!

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