Scratch built Hell Blade... sort of

[maverike_prime]

So I had a Chaos Army that I sold recently. I had been planning to build a series of 6 Hell Blades for use in Apoc games. With the cost of Forge World being somewhat prohibitive to acquring Hell Blades in those numbers presently, I turned to scratch building and found a template on the internet. I didn't build it right away. And by chance I was at my local hobby shop and I saw the Forge World model of the hell Blade. I'm sorry, but that thing looks crappy! It looks more like a badly stripped down Imperial fighter or something and if it weren't for the glaringly gold 8-pointed star on the side I don't think it's really be IDed as a chaos fighter. So I decided to make my own Hell Blade.... sort of fighter that will still be the Hell Blade.... and use the Hell Blades rules... but won't be the Hell Blade model.... yeah anyway. Making a ship to use as a Hell Blade. Moving on.

 

Thinking I knew what I was doing, I jumped at the deep end and started using sheet styrene to construct a Hell Talon based on the Paper hammer template I found. I thought it worked alright, so I moved on a second "enhanced" version. I took what I learned from the first attempt and worked to improve the model.

 

I soon discovered a critical weakness in the first Sheet styrene version I built:

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232639.jpg

Absolutely 0 survivability when dropped. Here you see the remains of it.

 

With the second model I worked to make some improvements.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232649.jpg

You can see I built some internal stabilization into it in the form of several sheets of styrene to brace the body a bit more.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232731.jpg

I also took some thinner "Sorry, we're closed" signs (What? They're sheet styrene!), and cut out an arrowed trim pattern similar to the Chaos forces designs.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232710.jpg

Here I crafted a pair of Reaper cannons by removing the barrels from a pair of heavy bolters, replacing them with 2 lengths of plasti-rod and tipping that with Gargoyle heads. Fair victory I say.

 

But honestly, it wasn't good enough. I realized this was going to take a lot more experimentation to get to a level I'm happy with. Even with the comparatively cheap cost of using signs as a source of sheet styrene, I'd still be talking of $20+ per attempt and I was looking at at least 3 more attempts if not more like 6 or 8 more. Hmm, my cheap option suddenly became somewhat less cheap. So I went back to using card stock and cereal boxes for my next round of efforts.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232750.jpg

Here I built the Hell Talons exactly has layed out on the site I found the template on. Not a bad result. Couple problems I have with it though.

 

1: Where's the details? Also, the canopy got torn apart when I tried to cut out the part. Needed to fix that in the next version.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232809.jpg

2: WOW! Did I way over-estimate the cannon barrel lengths or what?!

 

As I built it I did make some improvements.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232801.jpg

Firstly, I installed a pair of cross supports to support the main body and keep the sides a uniform width.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232829.jpg

The engine came out alright, but I can do better. When I get around to building the final version out of plasticard I think I'm just gonna stick Valkyrie engines in there.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232851.jpg

I also changed the upper stabilizer design a little. Instead of a single fin I made it a spread junction, almost like a secondary exhaust.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232820.jpg

I built a set of Ammo-hoppers to feed the main guns. Full success I say. Though I want to build the final ones out of plasticard and plastirod, not tooth picks.

So, with one successful build under my belt I moved to improve on this version.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232905.jpg

And totally borked it all up to high heaven.

 

But I'm too stubborn to quit. So I returned an built another, again hoping to improve on my previous victories.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232927.jpg

Here is my latest effort, completed only a few minutes before I began taking pictures to post in here.

 

I made several improvements, and several messed ups, here.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232942.jpg

I used better bracing for the body. Improvement.

I set the bracing too far forward on the body. messed up.

I added the Choasy pointed edging. Improvement.

I got the canopy built and attached this time. Improvement.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811233014.jpg

I added new details to the engine. Improvement.

I mounted the engine in such a way that the joined in the housing are visible. . messed up.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811233007.jpg

I mounted the engine against the upper body housing with too much space beneath the engine itself. . messed up.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232953.jpg

If you look down the legnth of the body, you see that not only did I not put a pilot in the craft, but I didn't put anything else in either! . messed up.

 

So, I made some progress but I still have some way to go. I need to semi-disassemble my latest effort and figure out how to correct my messed ups and with what. Obviously something inside the body to make it looks like more then flying cardboard. If I drop a Valkryie engine in there in the final version that'll take care of a fair ammount of the space. From there I think I can build in some scanners and auger arrays in the forward segment of the body to account for the rest of the space. I can build braces to both support the body internally, and hold the engine centrally relative to the axis of the body. I also need to build the bracing further into the main body. I want to build the wings so that there's bracing on the inner sides of them. Yeah I know that didn't make any sense. So something like this:

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232953-1.jpg

 

 

As I get better with this I'm thinking

So, thoughts? Suggestions? ideas for more details?

[army310]

very cool what kinda card stock are you using?

[koran]

I have to say I think I like the "wings" of the first one. They look like they are at a slight angle like an upside-down V. Makes the model and outline much more interesting and sleek looking.

[maverike_prime]

very cool what kinda card stock are you using?

 

a combination of cereal box, small gauge corrugated cardboard (I got this stuff from a pots and pan cook ware set my sister bought), heavy gauge scrap booking sheets, and the super thin stuff used in the GW boxes and pop tart boxes.

 

I have to say I think I like the "wings" of the first one. They look like they are at a slight angle like an upside-down V. Makes the model and outline much more interesting and sleek looking.

 

 

If you're referring to the first model that's laying in a heap at the bottom of it's stand.... um those wings aren't at an angle. They're detached. But regardless, I am trying for a angled wing design like your referring to. Just have been able to figure out how to adapt the template to accomplish that yet. Working on it though.

[koran]

If you're referring to the first model that's laying in a heap at the bottom of it's stand.... um those wings aren't at an angle. They're detached. But regardless, I am trying for a angled wing design like your referring to. Just have been able to figure out how to adapt the template to accomplish that yet. Working on it though.

 

Lols! Well maybe the first breaking was for the best. Inspiration and everything.... Honest ..... ^_^

[maverike_prime]

If you're referring to the first model that's laying in a heap at the bottom of it's stand.... um those wings aren't at an angle. They're detached. But regardless, I am trying for a angled wing design like your referring to. Just have been able to figure out how to adapt the template to accomplish that yet. Working on it though.

 

Lols! Well maybe the first breaking was for the best. Inspiration and everything.... Honest ..... ^_^

 

hmm could well be. Like I said, I am going to have 6 Hell Talons in my apoc force, and I don't like the Forge World version. So I am going to build 6 Hell Talon-esq fighters that I like and I'm not going to quit until I have them. and to think, my sister doesn't think I'm a Taurus.

[maverike_prime]

So, latest effort.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/062311234125.jpg

 

First big thing I've address is over all strength of the model.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/062311234137.jpg

That is 11 layers of cardboard glued together and held in place under pressure while the glue set and dried. Let me tell you, that stuff is fracking strong. See, I glued the sheets of cardboard together, then applied the pattern for the inner wings and cut it out of the finished compressed layers of cardboard. hmmmm.... not easy. Next time I'm cutting the pattern out 11 times and gluing those together.

Regardless, this has given the model utterly un-yielding strength in comparison to my prior models.

 

 

I took Koran's suggestion and added a section to the body that angles the wing pylons downward relative to the body.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/062311234148.jpg

[Cheex]

Very cool stuff, I'm in the midst of building a few of my own Hellblades for an upcoming Apoc match. I've been using plasticard which I found reasonably cheaply on eBay, and it typically only uses two A4 sheets of 1mm card to make a single Hellblade. I do like the idea of using support struts, I might fashion a few of those out of cheap plastic tube I have lying around (from party balloons) or somesuch. How long do you recommend the struts to be? That is, how far apart should the wings be?

 

As for tips and suggestions, I've found masking tape a very useful tool when trying to assemble them. They provide a temporary hold while getting the alignments all right. I've also found that the cardboard you get on the back of some exercise books works wonders for "filling", and I have plenty of those from uni and high school that have been very useful.

[maverike_prime]

Very cool stuff, I'm in the midst of building a few of my own Hellblades for an upcoming Apoc match. I've been using plasticard which I found reasonably cheaply on eBay, and it typically only uses two A4 sheets of 1mm card to make a single Hellblade. I do like the idea of using support struts, I might fashion a few of those out of cheap plastic tube I have lying around (from party balloons) or somesuch. How long do you recommend the struts to be? That is, how far apart should the wings be?

I've found 25 mm from side to side to be about right. In the case of the version with the angled wings, that's 25 mm from side to side across the top width.

[maverike_prime]

This will be somewhat of a lengthy update as I will be talking about the later stages of my last carboard mock up and the process of my first sheet styrene version.

 

First up: the paper hammer version.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/070211123833.jpg

 

 

I think this is about as good as I'm going to get with the cardboard work. The body is good and solid, while the angled wings give it a meaner looking profile I think. I also managed to find out how strong the body is when I dropped it down a flight of 14 stares and outside the forward most parts of the prow, what are not themselves supported, being a little bent, the model survived it's downward spiral with out problem.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/070211123846.jpg

I got somewhat more adventurous with the engine on this latest model and gave it a spidery look to it with the addition of a series of claw-like radiator veins around it's axis. Initially this worked real well, untill the veins started bending. Now it looks like it's ready to make a cork-screw maneuver. Using a length of PVC piping I added an inner-structure to the engine.

 

Now, onto my first sheet styrene build. For cost reasons I've used "For sale" and "Do not enter" signs I got at Home Depot. Total cost: about $12.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/070211121341.jpg

 

Here we see an over all shot of the model. The inner wings are 5 layers thick, which like the previous cardboard version. I've also used Green stuff for gap filling. I only applied the putty last night so I have had a chance to file it down yet.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/070211121353.jpg

You can see I've added a Valkyrie engine to this build. It was a very simple process to modify the engine to work with the body. Simply make 2 cuts: One directly behind the forward intake housing, and another about 1/3 of the way down the length of the engine itself. The longer portion gets mounted on the back thanks to a little pinning to the main body while the air-intake gets mounted to the front of the main body.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/070211121403.jpg

the addition of some 1/4 tubing and I managed to make some passable VTOL thrusters under the main body, and yes I know the cannons are crooked. I'll have to fix those.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/070211121414.jpg

The auto-cannons. Nuff said.

 

So what do I have left to do on this model? A bunch of little stuff. I'm still going to add the chaos-pointing detailing like I did in the 2nd version of the cardboard design.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232927.jpg

 

I need to build and add the forward housing for the cockpit as well. I'm also going to be adding more bracing around the body to give it a sort of industrialized, heavy metal kind of feel to it. And if I'm going for heavy metal I'll need to add bolts. Lots and lots of bolts. I'm also going to be adding wiring and piping to the body to make it look more like an actual machine then just an engine with guns.

[maverike_prime]

Well, I think I'm about as done building the Hell Blade as I can get.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/070311001329.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/070311001339.jpg

 

So, thoughts? Comments? Critiques? Criticisms?

[koran]

Im liking that a lot. Just 5 more to go now ^_^ Have you considered casting them up? It is an initial effort but once done you can make as many as you want for not very much (though admittedly not as cheaply as just cardboard) and they will be the same. They will also be pretty strong.

[maverike_prime]

Im liking that a lot. Just 5 more to go now ^_^ Have you considered casting them up? It is an initial effort but once done you can make as many as you want for not very much (though admittedly not as cheaply as just cardboard) and they will be the same. They will also be pretty strong.

 

I've been thinking about casting them just to make building the full squadron easier. But I'm not ready for that yet. A- because I lack the materials to do so and the expertise to accomplish it right now and B- because the model isn't ready. There's a bunch of little things that are irking me. The relative roughness of the lines of the Chaos edging, the obvious layering in the wings, the bad seems along the body. These are things I'd want to address before I start casting. Of course if anyone knows casting and wants to help me learn by all means hit me up.

 

I've also been thinking about building an alternate version with Lascannons. Oh I guess I should mention I've decided to call this fighter the Hell Shrieker.

[maverike_prime]

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/071611234842.jpg

So I'm still at it. Haven't quit gotten to a level I'm really happy with but I'm making improvements. There you see the first completed scratch Built Hell Shrieker I built. Moderate success over all. Little primer, little paint and doesn't look out of place on the board. But I can do better.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/071611234850.jpg

And I'm working on it. I've begun work on the second Hell Shrieker. in the previous model I built the wings and the body and then attached them together and then the engine components to that. That lead to some spacing trouble as well structural problems. So this time I'm building out from the main body.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/071611234902.jpg

By building the inner section and leaving it un-closed I was able to VERY securely build the engine parts onto the body. Not that I intend to test it, but I think I could chuck this down the stairs and not worry about the engine parts coming loose from the body.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/071611234912.jpg

With more 40k flyers being released I'm working on making my Hell Shriekers work with the same stands. In this case I magnetized the body and the base.

 

Tommorow I'm going to build the inner sections for the wings and work on adding more detail to the engine workings.

 

My plans for improvements on this model are detail related. I'm going to try etching some panel lines in the wings, adding Rivets to the frame, fuel lines to the undersides, fan-blades to the VTOL jets, that sort of thing.

[DeathByFear]

Accidental post. If someone could delete. Thanks.

[DeathByFear]

Looking good! I will begin my work with the hellblades shortly. I had them printed off by a friend and now I have to just go pick them up. Probably in a day or two. One thing that I'm noticing however, is that the inside of your wings look a little rough. Maybe its just me. My idea would be just to throw either a small strip of plasticard on there or else green stuff and sand them down, etc.

Really cant wait to see it finished.

[maverike_prime]

Looking good! I will begin my work with the hellblades shortly. I had them printed off by a friend and now I have to just go pick them up. Probably in a day or two. One thing that I'm noticing however, is that the inside of your wings look a little rough. Maybe its just me. My idea would be just to throw either a small strip of plasticard on there or else green stuff and sand them down, etc.

Really cant wait to see it finished.

 

Yeah I thought I had smoothed it out with a layer of green stuff. Like I said, Each version is an improvement.

 

Hell, look at version 0.02: (second one I ever built)

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/061811232649.jpg

 

And compare it to version 1.0 (The Black one)

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/071611234842.jpg

 

If that isn't an example of improvement in the design I don't know what is.

[maverike_prime]

Making progress. Finished one inner wing section:

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/071711185950.jpg

 

Initially I tried using a belt sander to even out the sides. Piece of advice: Sheet Styren doesn't like being sanded on a High-speed sander.The Friction of the belt against the styren actually gets hot enough to partially melt the particals of styren that are sanded off resulting a thick... I dunno what to really call it. It's almost like cotten candy for a second before it cools enough to become hard. So I took Death's suggestion and went back in with sheets of plastic to even out of the edges. I'm going to go back with green stuff to fill in gaps as needed:

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/071711190011.jpg

 

I'm working on building up the engine a bit as well to difereniate it from the Valkyrie a bit. Here's a shot of the added cables.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/071711190021.jpg

[maverike_prime]

Another day, another update.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/071911034700.jpg

Finished both inner-wing sections, and completed most of the green stuff gap filling. You can see the Canopy there by the base drying. I've begun adding the details to the body. You can see the Chaos Arrows on the upper part of the wings.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/071911034717.jpg

I really liked the armature blades I added to a prior Cardboard mock up so I decided to try adding them to this model.

 

Good time/Bad time.

 

I added the blades. Good time.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/071911034736.jpg

I mounted the engine off center. Very bad time.

The mis-mounted engine sadly has effected the entire length of the model's model. You can see it's off-centering look here. Next version I'm going to build braces into the main body before I mount the engine.

[DeathByFear]

Dang that is looking nice! Should only be one or two more prototypes I would say. I Don't know much else you will be able to do. Gonna start working on mine tomorrow. (Finally got my defiler to a point where I'm happy with it.) And if you're gonna use greenstuff to fill the gaps in the plasticard just take sandpaper or even just a blade and file it down slightly.

[maverike_prime]

Well I'm as done with this Hell Shrieker as I'm going to get for the next 7 days. My brother and his family are coming for a visit, so we're converting rooms to accommodate them. Which sadly means I loose my work space until they leave. Oh well, I'll deal. But I'm not putting this project on hold with out an update.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/072111011657.jpg

Frankly, I think this is turning out to be my meanest looking Hell Shrieker yet. Which, considering I screwed up on the main body is some level really impressive. I have to say, I think I recovered really well from that particular messed up.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/072111011725.jpg

Here you can see the addition of the armor plate and bolts to the fuselage section. I'm going to add rivets all around the main body and the cockpit, but that will need to wait till another day. I figured out a good way to make the rivits too. Take small Hex-rod, tape it to my metal ruler and then go in and cut 1mm lengths. So long as I don't cut the width of the tape the pieces stay there and I can cut lots of the little buggers quickly. Applying them is still a royal pain in the tookus though. Oh well, time and trial.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/072111011714.jpg

I found that my local hobby store carried Milliput so I picked a carton of it and am trying it out on this Hell Shrieker. The more yellowish green areas are the Milliput. It's similar to green stuff, but isn't as sticky which was good in this case. It's also way cheaper. For $8 I got about 3x what GW sells for $10. Here you can see how I used it for some gap filling.

 

I think Death was right and that I'm looking at perhaps 1 or 2 more prototypes before I reach a level of detail I'm happy with. Of course then I have to build 6 Hell Shriekers.

 

I had an idea as I was writing this. I pulled out all 6 completed models I have for the project, put them all next to each other and made a short video explaining the differences between each and show casing how the design has evolved through the project. Enjoy!

 

[DeathByFear]

Really liking the update on the model. I sent you a PM for a question but since its relevant: What would you recommend for building the base? For example it looked like you built a square rectangle inner chassis that had the sides at an angle so your wings would slope downwards.

One more question. Im using the for sale signs as well and i was just wondering how you kept them from breaking into 2 pieces when you folded them for the angled edges? I was thinking of just throwing them on some masking tape to begin with then super glue/green stuff/reinforce until it fits in place properly.

[maverike_prime]

Really liking the update on the model. I sent you a PM for a question but since its relevant: What would you recommend for building the base? For example it looked like you built a square rectangle inner chassis that had the sides at an angle so your wings would slope downwards.

I'm not quit sure what you're asking here. If you mean the central body of the model itself, that's Trapazoid. The lower face is smaller then the upper facing (though in this particular case I left the upper side open).

 

See:

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/trapazoid.png

 

The wings attach to the sides. The angle of the side forces the wings into the low sweep I've got on my later models.

 

One more question. Im using the for sale signs as well and i was just wondering how you kept them from breaking into 2 pieces when you folded them for the angled edges? I was thinking of just throwing them on some masking tape to begin with then super glue/green stuff/reinforce until it fits in place properly.

 

Simple. I don't fold 'em. I know I've read a dozen tutorials about using Styreen that say make a 3/4 cut and then snap it. I'm sorry, it doesn't work for me. I don't know how/why it works for other people, but it does not work for me, period. Every panel in the model is a separate part that was individually cut and attached.

 

I took one of the images of my latest hell shrieker and made a partial exploded view to help explain what I'm talking about:

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a316/maverike_prime/Warhammer/exploded.jpg

 

The tail of the fuselage is all separate panels. Cut separately. I used masking tape to hold them together in the proper pattern and then use a lump of clay as a support to hold the parts in the proper form while I glued them together.

 

Hope that helps.

[DeathByFear]

One more quick question. How did you do the cockpit/ do you have any tips for the cockpit?

[maverike_prime]

One more quick question. How did you do the cockpit/ do you have any tips for the cockpit?

 

Yeah the cockpit is a bit tricky. So far the best trick I've found is us an exacto blade to trim out the inner-section of the cockpit window first, be VERY VERY careful while cutting this out. One little slip and you can cut through the exact part you don't want to. Go through with the exacto blade making very shallow cuts. Don't try and cut it out in one pass. If you can do 4 or 5 passes you will get a cleaner cut.