Small Scale Military Headquarters

The 21c 88mm Flak and PAK-40 guns are great models that I really enjoy displaying "in action." The only problem is that a setup of the gun in action with crew and equipment can be a bit messy and is time consuming to dismantle, move, and set up. My solution was to create small diorama baseboards with somewhat realistic "ground". Such boards could display the gun emplacement realistically in one space as well as allow for easy movement and storage.

Then how to create the boards... I thought about getting pre-built diorama mats from Build-a-Rama, but those are expensive and I figured I could create my own using materials I had on hand. Nothing really needed to be fancy, just something that looked like dirt and which could hold the artillery model, figures, and other accessories. To create the boards I did the following:

1) Cut out and glue sections of heavy cardboard together for the base.
2) Use duct tape or something similar to cover and smooth the edges of the cardboard.
3) Spray paint the cardboard on one side with a natural base color (green, tan, etc.)
4) While the paint is still wet, start sprinkling sand/dirt onto the wet paint & press down with a paper towel; let dry.
5) Shake and brush off excess dirt that did not stick.
6) Spray the board heavily with a spray lacquer, like dullcote, and sprinkle on more dirt. Let dry. (A spray glue would work even better).
7) Shake and brush off excess dirt that does not stick.
8 ) Repeat this process until a suitable layer of dirt is affixed to the board and little to none is coming off when handled.
9) Make minor terrain features like pitting, small craters, etc. by pressing into cardboard in between lacquer sprays.
10) Glue on terrain features like pitting, rocks, pebbles, rubble, sticks, foliage, etc.
11) Spray a final coat of lacquer and allow to dry thoroughly.
12) Place artillery model, figures, equipment, other accessories onto board. May wish to use poster putty to hold things in place but allow easy removal or movement.

Again, my process is nothing elaborate, but provides a diorama baseboard that looks real enough... I made several dioramas using the process described above and am happy with the results. Enjoy the pictures

German PAK-40 75mm Gun Diorama:








German MG-34 Machine Gun Anti-Aircraft Diorama:




US M1919 Machine Gun Sandbag Emplacement Diorama:






German FLAK-36 88mm Gun Emplacement Diorama:

Those look great. If you don't mind me asking, where did you get the sandbag and brick walls from?

Tman,
Really looks great.
Seems like an easy way to make a small display.
I too would like to know where you got those sandbags?
Razor

Outstanding placement of everything, especially the figures. And yes, the sandbags are great but look expensive.

Thanks for the kind comments everyone

The sandbags came from Build-a-Rama, long an outfitter of high-quality 1:18 equipment and accessories. I got them about 2 years ago and maybe paid $60 for all the pieces. It looks like they might have been a limited-time deal as those items are no longer on their website: http://build-a-rama.com/catalog_1_18.shtml

The brick ruins in the Pak-40 dio are from the old 21c "Bombed French Building" set. The dirt, rocks, and twigs in all the sets were things found around my backyard.

For anyone wanting to do something similar, there are some decent fortification pieces made by Power Team Elite that can be obtained cheaply like the sandbag walls, trench emplacement walls, and bunkers. Only problem is they're hollow... With a little re-working and weathering, they could be made into a great setup, which is now giving me some more ideas

Tman, great idea for displaying pieces with crew. An entire set up can be moved all at once instead of
piece by piece.
Well done, You've given me some ideas for my displays.

normandy wrote:
Well done, You've given me some ideas for my displays.

This site never lacks inspiration. Displays like these really get you fired up to do something with all that stuff in storage.

Looks great !