Small Scale Military Headquarters

For whomever was previously marketing the plastic table stands; how about a floor standing display about 4-5.5 ft tall for displaying the upcoming F-4? I think many of us are short of flat surfaces to display and who wants to be the first to post how durable their F-4 is after it hits the floor? Those of us with kids or pets will, of course, ignore this post.

I have already lost my wall closest to this hobby, and the top of all the furniture I have, so when the F-4 comes, I will be losing my TV.

After that, yes, I need a stand of some sort.

I've had good luck with the plastic 5 shelf system form WM or HomeDepot.
They are 72"Hx36"Wx18"deep. They go for around $30 at WM. They dont all match, due to them stocking different manufactures, but the measurments are the same. Get some 1/8" thin board and cut to fit for the shelfs. And then mount some Under Cabinet lights(from HomeDepot for $20) under the shelfs and have a nice set-up that holds 3 planes. Plus they are light to move if you have to.



Bulb burnt out over the Apache

Hello WW2 Collector. Great looking display room. What scale is that Dr-1 and the SPAD ?

pickelhaube wrote:Hello WW2 Collector. Great looking display room. What scale is that Dr-1 and the SPAD ?

Those are Lego Kits. Little bigger then 1:18

Nice! Here is my display <a href="http://imageshack.us"><img src="http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/6947/roomom5.jpg" border="0" alt="Image Hosted by ImageShack.us"></a><a href="http://imageshack.us"><img src="http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/1020/workareamt3.jpg" border="0" alt="Image Hosted by ImageShack.us"></a>[img]

Hi ww2collector.

I've bought some of the same shelves from Lowe's that you have for your display. They are great but I have a few sets from the same manufacturer that are bigger. The bigger ones have shelves that are 36"Lx24"D. They are about $50 a set. I haven't added lights to them yet, but I will one day. The extra six inches gives you alot more room and is perfect for the big jets.

I used the 1/8" wood like you did and they look great. Thanks for sharing that idea...

Birddog wrote:Hi ww2collector.

I've bought some of the same shelves from Lowe's that you have for your display. They are great but I have a few sets from the same manufacturer that are bigger. The bigger ones have shelves that are 36"Lx24"D. They are about $50 a set. I haven't added lights to them yet, but I will one day. The extra six inches gives you alot more room and is perfect for the big jets.

I used the 1/8" wood like you did and they look great. Thanks for sharing that idea...

Good point.
I know w/ the jets, they have to be at the right angle so the front gear don't fall off and the inside wing tip is not crammed against the wall.
With the release of the F-4, I might have to move up

ww2 collector, that is very smart. Also I like how you have a whole room just for Your military stuff. Very nice! I wish I had room for a setup like that. I am almost completely out of room for anything in my room (it is very small, with very low ceilings). I could start putting them in my computer room, or office whatever you want to call it but I really don't want to split my collection up. True I am more centered on the cars, but I like my aircraft too. You have gave me some good ideas on displaying them though. Great collection!

The larger shelves are a little more space taking, but you can fit three Hueys on one shelf...

They're great for displaying many ground vehicles too.

All my planes are hung, and it really bugs me that I do not have any flat displays for them, hey ww2collector, where did you get those awesome lighted Display stands, I would kill for one of those!!!

You can find them at Lowe's, Home Depot, or Wal-Mart. You have to add the lights and the 1/8" wood board on each shelf.

oh thanks i didnt read the quote under ww2collectors picture, but dang thats a good deal!!!

I don't know about you ww2collector but I found the fun part, not, was cutting the wood board to fit perfectly in the shelf.

If anybody chooses to make some of these shelves here's how I did it.

1. Flip the shelf over onto the wood board and trace the inside of the
shelf with a pencil onto the wood board.

2. Next use a Jig Saw (I used my Dremmel with a Jig Saw attachment) to
cut the pattern you traced out of the wood board.

3. Check the fit once you have done this and then sand the wood board to
make as perfect a fit as possible. I used a sanding attachment on my
Dremmel to do this.

4. Once you have achieved the fit you desire, use some type of glue that
bonds wood and plastic together well. I used good old Gorilla Glue.

5. Repeat steps 1 through 4 for all the other shelves. Let them dry for
24 hours to get a good hold and the assemble shelves.

6. Last and more importantly, place your models.

I have another set to finish and I'll post WIP pictures when I do it.

I haven't added lights to mine yet so ww2collector will have to key you in on that step.

If you have an easier way to build these than the one I described please share with us ww2collector.

Thanks again for having the original idea...

@WWIICOLLECTOR....

the room is cool, but what impresses me is that you have ACTUAL ceiling TILES!

havent seen that in a HOME before..

just had to throw that in! bitchin!

and look at all that space to goof around with your planes and ground vehicles!

GAU-8 wrote:@WWIICOLLECTOR....

the room is cool, but what impresses me is that you have ACTUAL ceiling TILES!

havent seen that in a HOME before..

just had to throw that in! bitchin!

Sorry, I forgot to add, that area is part of our finished basement.

Birddog, Yea cutting the board sucks. I kinda of cheated and just cut big enough to cover the egg-grate in the shelfs. I then use 2 small screws to attach the board to the shelf.
One thing that would be cool, but I never got around to it, actually customizing each board. The ones for the tanks, have track marks in the grass or make it look like a street.
For the planes, a tarmac, grassy field, or carrier deck. It would add a little more realism instead of a wooden look.

Whenever you get ready for the lights let me know.

Anthony

Looking at that set up is giving me an idea - space permitting. Depending on how you arrange the units, you could make a Carrier Diorama using one level to represent the hangar bay and the top level can be made to resemble the flat top. One could take it further and scratch build a side elevator. If its a WWII style carrier, naturally you won't have to do that. You're lucky to have that entire room. It looks so much like a public gallery.