b - Re-basing the Gliders

I suppose that someone, somewhere, knows the perfect solution for basing "flying" models. I think I might have heard of the perfect technique once... but I didn't put it to use, and now I've forgotten it. :-)

Clear plastic bases (such as the ones which are provided with the Bat) give a fair illusion that the model is suspended in mid-air. Unfortunately, the attachment point consists of a plastic pin inserted into the bottom of the model - and it's far too easy for the pin to snap off.

To re-attach the bases, I suppose I could have carved enough of the base-top away to form a new pin. However, I wanted something more durable.

The solution I chose was to "pin" the models to the bases. In theory, this involves drilling holes into both the base stem and the model, and inserting a wire into the joint when you glue them together.

The first step was to find some wire and cut off some small lengths. The second step was to drill a hole in the base of the model. (I used a hand-drill - a pin vise - for this.)

I wanted to go for a durable joint, so my next step was to glue the wire into the model using two-part epoxy. That meant setting the model on its back, adding small drops of epoxy to fill the hole, and inserting the pin. Since the hole was a little larger than the wire, I had to hold the pin upright until the epoxy turned tacky enough for the pin to stay in place.

Next, I turned my attention to the base stems. I filed the tops smooth, then drilled holes down the stems.

I waited a day to make sure the epoxy had hardened, then test fit the models and bases together. I trimmed the wires to the right side to fit into the stem-holes. Then I put some superglue into the stem-holes and attached the bases to the models. I held the assembly together until the superglue set, then rested the models on their backs (with the bases in the air) while the superglue did its thing.

One important thing to keep track of (and it's easy to forget while gluing! is to get the base and the model pointed in the same direction. For Demonworld, this means one of the base "points" should line up with the front of the Bat. (This is different from the usual gaming convention of having a "flat" side pointing front-ward.)

Now you may be wondering - why use epoxy for one part of the joint, and superglue for the other? My experience is that superglue works well for gluing wire to plastic, particularly when I've drilled a long enough hole to give lots of attachment area for the glue.

However, since I thought it would be educational, I used epoxy to attach Lyondri's base. This took a bit more planning, since epoxy doesn't set as quickly as superglue. I didn't want it dribbling out of the hole, which meant I'd need to glue the pieces in an upright position.

I used a bit of paper towel roll (the cardboard roll in the center of the paper towels) to make a jig for holding the Bat in position (wings level) as the epoxy dried. Then I put the epoxy into the base, placed the base in the jig, lowered the Bat into place, and hoped for the best.

And failed. About ten minutes later, I carefully pulled the Bat from the jig and found I'd made an error. It was hard to see how I was lining up the base and model inside the jig, and I'd screwed up - the model was pointing the wrong direction. (I lined up the gun muzzle over the front of the base... but that's not the front of the model.) I twisted the base into the correct position, discovering that the epoxy was still tacky enough to let me do that, and hoping that I wasn't weakening the joint by doing so...

The end result has been interesting - and I'm going to see how the different models handle gaming wear-and-tear before making a final judgment. Superglue, as we all know, tends to be brittle and easily "snaps." However, what I'd forgotten is that epoxy hardens to a "rubbery" consistency. Normally, that doesn't cause a problem. In this case, however, Lyondri's model has ended up with a "rubbery" joint between model and base.

I don't know if this is a good thing or not. I mean, the model doesn't seem to be going anywhere, so in that sense it works. The base has flex in the joint, and the model has developed a slight tilt to one side (I suppose there's more weight on that side?). On the other hand, the flex in the glue joint may mean that the model is less likely to snap off its base.

So - I think I'll stick with superglue for attaching bases when pinning, but I'll see how Lyondri's Bat holds up on the tabletop.

In the case of Jana Wang's model, she had originally pinned the base in place. As you may recall, she had problems with a wobbling wing, and suspected her superglue had exceeded its shelf life. Apparently so - the base looks to have just "pulled off" the wire during shipping.

Her model was easy to remedy - I redrilled the hole, cleaned the old glue off the wire, and re-attached with fresh superglue. Voila, c'est fini!

As I mentioned earlier, Finalist Cmdr G forgot to return his base when he sent his glider back. Rumaging through my bins, I discovered a flight stand that's an exact match for the ones Hobby Products uses. It was even pre-drilled and ready to go (apparently something else had already broken off it...)

As a last step, I touched up paint chips on the gliders.

All the chips were on the "woodwork" areas. I used Games Workshop's Scorched Brown. The only unchipped glider was Jana Wang's - I think her "shinier" final coat was a better protectant.