Tuesday 16 December 2008

070 Box of Tricks Blueprints

Crumbs - seventy posts already!

Thanks for your interest in my travelling paint station from post 069 and for your kind suggestions and requests for construction details. Here they are - fresh from my essential hobby notebook, my Book of Arcane Scribblings (Vol. IV):
Here are my four planning pages. Frustratingly, the squares in this notebook are 7mm, so for Vol. V I'll have to try to steal an exercise book with 5mm squares (I have a pad of 5mm squares too, and it's tremendously useful for foamcard blueprints - I love squared paper). You'll note that at times I've used the printed grid for 7/10 scale sketches (all images can be clicked on):
Here are the quantities and dimensions of each basic piece, which I've labelled on the diagram beneath [NB: this is for material with a 5mm thickness]:
2 x A (base and lid): 190 x 150mm
4 x B (long sides): 180 x 45mm
4 x C (short sides): 150 x 45mm
4 x D (lugs or brackets): right-angled triangle with 10mm sides
1 x E (baseboard): 180* x 140mm
2 x F (back and front walls): 180* x 40mm
2 x G (sloping sides): take a piece 140 x 40mm, mark 50mm along from opposite corners and cut on what should be a 45 degree angle to make two. The flat top edge is 50mm and the bottom edge is 90mm.
* I had to cut these lengths down to about 175mm on my mock-up.
I shan't insult your intelligence by telling you how to put it together: it's pretty simple - just two open boxes hinged on one long edge with a removable tray - the diagram'll make it clear, anyway. I joined mine with PVA/white glue and sellotape, and the whole thing took about an hour to knock together.

The details you can fiddle with yourselves.
Oh, the central conceit is that all GW paintpots fit into a space 45 x 35 x 35mm. That was my jumping-off point.

Here's some more pages of scribbling, just for the hell of it. They include concept sketches for a sentinel-headed quadrupedal walker, amongst other things!
The book lives by my bed, beside my candle, and travels with me. It's currently three exercise books bound together and is a source of constant comfort in my old age!

- Drax.

9 comments:

  1. I think i might have to steal your idea of having an 'arcane scribbling book' although i may call it 'random stuff from the webway' for my eldar :P
    Your paint thing is a great idea but wouldn't work for me, i very rarely use out of the pot colours I mostly mix ALL of my colours (it takes the... Mick (trying not to be rude here :P )) It's hard work but it gives quite a unique feel to my models... also blogger LEARN HOW TO SPELL COLOUR!!!!!

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  2. Thanks, Peter.

    I can barely use the ones they put in the pots adequately - I haven't a chance at mixing them!

    Er...what was that about colour?

    - Drax

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  3. It's just whenever you spell Colour (properly not color) it comes up with the red line under it saying it's run and I put it in the dictionary EVERY SINGLE TIME!!! it's just annoying me, My you tube, disqus and Google mail have stopped working like that they don't keep me logged in after i close Firefox or turn off my computer it's just really getting on my nerves!

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  4. Thanks for the blueprints and the insight into your little book.

    I keep my book with me all the time too.

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  5. ooooo... whats yours called Ron? :P
    (I'm gonna end up beating my record for comments on a single post at this rate)

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  6. Sweet, thanks! Gonna have to put one of these together some time.

    I oughta carry around a notebook too... I get tonnes of nifty little ideas when I'm out and about then forget 'em by the time I get home. Ah well..

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  7. I have several notebooks that I scribble thoughts down in, though any I have when I'm not home are saved on my mobile phone for later use.

    I really like the idea of a travel paintbox, its something I may have to create for myself in future. I spend all my time between Aberdeen and Carlisle and so having something that I can transport stuff in as well as use for painting is just too attractive a prospect not to follow up.

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  8. The book will be the first (last and only) thing the Inquisitors will introduce during your trial
    ;-)

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  9. Hey all,

    I'm currently visiting my dad in Portsmouth, and I used my prototype box of tricks tonight for the first time - hooray!

    Feedback: even though it's padded with tissue rather than foam, it's working extremely well. It's worth noting the following though:

    (1) The brushes only just fit in the lid, but they travelled fine;
    (2) the slot at the back ought to be a little wider in the proper version - especially if lined with foam. Still big enough for 10 troops though...!
    (3) the paint tray could be lined with padding of some kind (foam is the obvious choice, of course) to limit rattling.

    Otherwise, it's GREAT!

    - Drax.

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Thanks for taking the time to comment!