Great North Roads have an extensive range of diorama bases, buildings and ruins, roads and bridges, scenics and accessories for the modeller. They provide bases in 1/76-1/72 scale and 1/35 scale. The kits are made from a tough, dense dental plaster and cover a wide range of choices.
A recent visit to the Open Day at IWM Duxford saw Great North Roads in attendance and resulted in some subsequent purchases for some on-going projects.
This is a look at GNR 052diorama base the Mountain Road in 1/35 scale. (also available in 1.72 scale)
The kit
The kit comes packed in a sturdy box, the item being wrapped in bubble wrap and the box filled with polystyrene pellets for further protection. The box displays a colour picture of the base for reference and contact details for the company.
The base is a simple one piece structure of a bend in a mountain road. The base measures 300mm x235mm and is suitable to take at least two medium size vehicles. The bend in the road effectively allows you to stack up a couple of vehicles one above the other as they move up or down the roadway.
The texture of the road and surrounding rocks/ground work looks good and you are not limited here, as I have seen this kit used for NWE with trees/bushes etc, so don’t think desert only as this base could be used worldwide wherever there is a bend in a hill road.
You can drill, saw or add to these bases easily. You will need something to mount it on but there is a nice display area available for you to have fun with.
Conclusion
Overall a very nice base, the beauty of these being that if you don’t have the time to construct your own then a large part of the work gets done for you and you get to the fun part of detailing and painting quickly. I like the difference in height offered by this diorama base.
SUMMARY
Highs: Paint and go and you’ll have a very nice base for you kit.Lows: Postage cost may be an issue for some.Verdict: Highly Recommended
About Alan McNeilly (AlanL) FROM: ENGLAND - EAST ANGLIA, UNITED KINGDOM
Greying slightly, but young at heart. I've been teaching adults off and on for most of my life. Left the services in 85 and first started modelling in about 87 for a few years. Then I had a long spell when I didn't build anything (too busy) and really just got started again during the summer of ...
I really like the look of this base. It has a pretty decent size and it is really versatile as well as it can be used for a huge load of nationalities, countries and era's. I actually see myself owning one of these. Makes life a lot easier.
Ola Alan
I can imagine that. Problem I Always have with these kind of products is that I like to see them live first. Hold them in my hands and such. So far I haven't seen much of the GNR products on the events I attend. Maybe I have to divert from my usual autism and simply order some products.
Hi Robert,
I'm exactly the same. I'd been thinking about getting the mountain road for quite some time, more than a year, but it wasn't until I could see it 'live' so to speak that I though yes, that will work fine.
It is so much easier to judge when you see thing up close and personal.
Cheers
Al
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