(Der H: Well not quite…he isnt that insane…but maybe I am…)
Soon after the crushing defeat that was game 5 of Throne of Skulls day 2 I went to the shop and bought the things…
Now, usually that is how the things would stay for, say, 6-8 months. But this time I wanted to build ALL the things. A day off gave me an afternoon free between the chores of adult life so I sat down to build some models. After a quick character-related warm up, I set about building a Storm Eagle…
As you can see the Krieg were pushed to one side, and the parts clipped, sanded, washed, and bent back into shape. Dreading the warp (Brother Handro: I see what you did there…) so frequently associated with this kit I straightened things during the wash and had both hair drier and heat gun at the ready. The first steps were easy enough, plastics fit into resin panels with ease if they can only fit one way! Pretty soon i was at the vital stage of fitting the door; now comes the serious work.
You may recall that at the Throne of skulls event last month we met Wrights Adventure Guild with an Emperors Children/Alpha Legion combo. James’ Storm Eagle was my new favourite thing ever….and although I’d seen the Shrine of the Aquilla conversion before, I thought James’ was perticularly good.
I had my wish list:
1) Eagle prow (obvs)
2) Maintain the ability to open/close the front door
3) Painted interior (at least the front)
4) Access to the rear interior.
The initial fit, after much swearing, gave a good cosmetic result, but the door wouldn’t really open anymore! The issue was one of the lower edge, and on opening it tended to foul the underside.
A little more whittling gave it the range it needed. At this stage the door was heavier and wouldn’t stay shut…to the magnets!
When approaching the rear I hit a snag. I couldnt seen any way of (easily) making the rear door open/close. The hinge wouldnt be that much of an issue, but the door was oversized by 4 mm, the hinge not the sturdiest, and the rear required some encouragement to align properly - massively helped by gluing the door. This poses two problems:
1) In order to see the inside of the rear portion the rear door must open OR the roof must come off.
2) If the roof comes off it is less sturdy, and the rear is likely to look less well aligned.
Options:
1) Build a new hinge for the rear door, paint separately, glue roof
2) Leave door attached, leave roof detachable, never look at the rear again
3) Leave Door attached and, after painting the front interior, glue it up for ever!
…Tricky descision.
This is how we currently stand! She is looking very tidy (Brother Handro: If you say so yourself…) and the door sits open nicely for a hot ‘combat drop’ from hover mode…
When sitting on her landing struts the door, unfortunately, doesn’t open; Ill have to put this down to a style thing…
She still needs a plan for the rear hatch, lots of filling and a base to be built, but we arn’t that far off! What do you all think?
Der H