SEARCH FINESCALE.COM

Enter keywords or a search phrase below:

Diorama base out of recycled materials

5716 views
8 replies
1 rating 2 rating 3 rating 4 rating 5 rating
  • Member since
    July 2003
  • From: Philippines
Diorama base out of recycled materials
Posted by Dwight Ta-ala on Thursday, August 7, 2003 1:30 AM
Eversince I started in the hobby some months back, I have been itching to make a diorama base for some of the kits that I have finished. However, the lack of readily available diorama base (as well as the high cost of available diorama materials) had kept me from it. A few days earlier, I decided to make a diorama base out of whatever suitable material I can find around the house.

A few days later, here it is... my first diorama.

The tank is Tamiya Panther G Steel Wheel Version (out of the box - including the tight rubber tracks...no sag there) including one tank crew. The other tank crew are from Academy. The jerry cans are from Academy.

I carved the base out of the styrofoam material that came with some home appliances and painted it to simulate a roadway and some turfed areas.
I only have one type of turfing material. I used it for the trufing as well as the trees and plants. I air-brushed the trees and turfing to simulate dried and new leaves.
I used old copper wires for the tree trunk and branches.

I carved the fence posts from candle sticks. The debris is also from candle sticks. The iron grill is made from paper clips. The wooden crates are made from cardboard. The stone pavement is a piece of textured wallpaper.

The ammo belt is extra from the Dragon figures I have recently completed. I don't know if it looks right.

I thought this figure looks rather funny or odd (out of proportion?). It is from Academy.

I took the photo in the middle of the night. I have to position the lamp shade very close to the model to get good light. However, it made some parts shiny (the tank paint is actually dull). Anyway, I had fun doing this base. It may not turn out very good but I think it is acceptable for my first try.

  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, August 7, 2003 5:42 AM
brilliant.....a man after my own heart...who needs expensive groundwork / accessories, to make a cracking diorama.. i love it.... i just cant seem to justify spending money on things like celluclay....static grass...rubble..trees...expensive resin buildings...and other diorama accessories that can be made by oneself, for little or no cost..not to mention the advances in scratchbuilding skills that this generates...
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, August 7, 2003 9:26 AM
i cant start a dio. without verlinden static grass, plaster buildings, and a bunch of other expensive stuff, especially celluclayTongue [:P]. nevertheless, nice dio Cool [8D]
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, August 7, 2003 9:33 AM
Great ! An inventive appropriation of existing materials ! If you hadn"t said what the sources were, I would never have guessed ! That's what I call REAL camouflage ! ! ! Well done !
  • Member since
    January 2003
Posted by shermanfreak on Thursday, August 7, 2003 11:11 AM
Great use of on hand materials Dwight !!! Shows that a great looking dio doesn't need to relay on the bank account and that lots of great materials are close at hand.
Good balance in your dio too. Nice work all around.

P.S. Not too sure about that 1 figure though .... he's hurting .... best send him to the Eastern Front.
Happy Modelling and God Bless Robert
  • Member since
    May 2003
  • From: USA, GA
Posted by erush on Thursday, August 7, 2003 11:48 AM
Excellent Dwight!! I never would have guessed the materials if you hadn't stated what you used. Inventive and ingenius use of materials and well done!!

Eric
Hi, I'm Eric and I'm a Modelholic too. I think I have PE poisioning.     "Friendly fire...isn't"
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, August 7, 2003 12:18 PM
dwight:
nice work there ! i don't have a lot of cash, but i've scrounged lots of good stuff for dioramas out of the trash at the museum where my mom works (extruded foam, mdf, wood scraps etc.)...
scavenging and recyling materials is fun, and we have more money left over to buy kits to build !
frostySmile [:)]
  • Member since
    July 2003
  • From: Philippines
Posted by Dwight Ta-ala on Thursday, August 7, 2003 6:36 PM
Thanks for the good words guys. You know it really encourages me more to hear such nice words from experts like yourselves. I sure want to try those verlinden dio bases and materials but it is very hard to find them here in Manila. And if ever you can find any it sure would cost so much. To give you an idea how much, the minimum wage around here is just about US$6 a day, so if you have a dio base costing around, say US$20, that would be like...are you out of your mind?!. I fell in love with the hobby when I was still in college but at that time kits are way above what I can spare from my allowance so I have to wait for some time before I can really get into it. Lately the prices of kits have gone down considerably because of that "free trade" thing and probably because Tamiya put a factory somewhere around here. But the aftermarket accessories are still rare and are considered very expensive for ordinary kit builders. A lot of patience and I guess, imagination is necessary.

Well anyway, Thanks again guys. I have actually started construction of another dio base depicting a ruined street-corner house (something like the one in one FSM issues where a T-34 tank was ambushed by some Germans from the sewers). It may take some time but I'll post pictures here when I am done.

Sherm, that figure's off to the eastern front.

  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: United Kingdom / Belgium
Posted by djmodels1999 on Friday, August 8, 2003 12:54 AM
Candlesticks..! Very ingenious! Well done Dwight. Keep up the good work!
JOIN OUR COMMUNITY!

Our community is FREE to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account.

SEARCH FORUMS
FREE NEWSLETTER
By signing up you may also receive reader surveys and occasional special offers. We do not sell, rent or trade our email lists. View our Privacy Policy.