writes:I enjoy building Victorian Science Fiction (VSF) flying craft (see earlier Workbench articles and my own modelling blog: dampfpanzerwagon.blogspot.com), which - although based on the GDW game Space 1889 - also owe a lot to the game Aeronef by Steve Blease and Matthew Hartley. My latest scratchbuilding project was inspired by a model posted on The Lead Adventure forum and featured a Brigade Models Aeronef - the Japanese Patrol Nef (VAN-601) painted by Rabbitz.
This particular model - and the beautifully scratchbuilt 28mm scale reproduction - inspired me to build a 1/300th scale version of the same miniature, and to name it Moni.
The 1/1200th scale metal model is available from Brigade Models.
Construction
Once I had a rough sketch produced to scale, I firstly built the hull from some scrap plastic which was originally intended as cladding for uPVC windows. The material is easy to work and holds detail very well. (I really must try to pick up some more.) The pictures tell most of the story. The hull is 10mm deep, 35mm wide and 132mm long. I tend to cut the plastic oversize and sand it back to the correct dimensions, using a hardened glass chopping board onto which I have attached sandpaper with double-sided tape.
Photo One
Shows the plastic block already cut to width. In addition, the nose chamfer has also been added, cut to shape with a large modelling knife and then sanded smooth.