¹⁄35

Building a base for a 1/16 scale figure

The base

How I build a base, has remained the same since I first started. Again “Doc`s Dios” influence is apparent. I have noticed recently that Ronny “Roadkill” Noben´s site has two of these excellent articles available as PDF files. His site is worth checking out at : Roadkill's Modeling Corner

Firstly, using balsa sheet, I built up a frame to give some height and show a cross-section of all the rubble that would come from an exploded building. I glued some cork to the glass, to build up the middle area of the photo frame. I then glued the scribed wall to this, in the position I wanted. To fill up the space between the wall and frame, and also to offer more strength, I used polystyrene foam cut to the right shape.
I wedged this in and when the right height was achieved, I made my ground cover.
The area at the front was to be cobbled, so I used cork, cut to a suitable size to simulate a bricked surface. Each brick was super-glued in place. I thinned spackle with white glue and ran this over the bricks to fill out the gaps between them. Then with some tissue I wiped away anything on top of each brick to let the cork show through. Then the rubble was laid in place. White glue was generously brushed over the polystyrene and it seeped into the space between wall, foam and balsa frame. To this was added fine sand, pre-moulded bricks and rubble. I also pushed in some pieces of “I” shaped plastic rod to resemble fallen metal. I let the rubble fold around each side, to frame the area where the figure would be later placed.
To continue the theme of the last man standing, I used one of the extra, unused arms from the Tamiya Römmel figure and an extra machine gun left over from another 1/16 Dragon figure. Finally, some balsa was used to make a damaged window frame.