Irrational Number Line Games, LLC
free-stuff stuff-to-buy about-us home contact
What a Bunch of Junks!
This week we look at a couple of inexpensive balsa wood 3D puzzles and give a go at
using them for 28mm skirmishing. The two boats pictured here sell for about $10
each. The
big one
So assembly is pretty straightforward. "Puzzle" is apparently a very loosely used term. The kits even come with instructions you can follow. The big thing for going beyond a display model is to decide whether or not to glue it. I recommend doing so. While mostly the pieces fit tightly together there are a few that do not. Also, during play you are likely to bump parts of them, so having it glued will help.
Another important decision is whether to paint first and assemble later or assemble first and paint later. I recommend paint first. yes, yes, I know. But, nooks and crannies abound on these things. I did one each way, and the paint first was much quicker and more enjoyable. And if you can't tell which is which, ha!
The last little tip from this experience is that you will want to cover over some of the slot pieces. It is kind of up to you which ones to do and which ones to leave. I left a few showing and think they give it a more realistic effect. Some of them, most notably the ones along the sides of the big boat, needed to be covered. I used tape and repainting. If you have time, you could spackle and sand down.
I also chose to draw planking on the decks. There are probably other places you could do this for more realism, but I think if you cover the large horizontal surfaces, you end up with a nice effect.
You might have noticed that the junk has some blue stuff under it. I glued it into a base of crinkled up tin foil. Since it wasn't designed to stand on its own, it needed a support. I painted it blue with white highlights so it would look somewhat like a ship's wake.
So ... so what? Well, I think they look decent, even considering the limitations of
my painting skill. The photos show off a little of the opportunity for a little boarding
at sea operation. I think they would also work well in port, next to a dock, as seen
in many kung-fu movies.
There are, however, some limitations. While the footprint of the model is pretty big, the usable gaming space is fairly small. This can be good or bad, depending on what effect you are going for. I was a bit disappointed that I can't fit a figure along the sides of the dragon boat along the main deck. It's just too narrow.
The insides of the boats are big enough to station figures. Snipers or reserve forces
or maybe even some pirate loot. Neither one has a main deck inside. This is not
necessarily a bad thing - it opens up a lot of space for figures or other stuff. But
if you want snipers peering out of the windows of the main deck house of either one, you
will need to arrange for a ledge for them to stand on.
And a couple of points beyond the end:
- I think the junk has opportunities for having several on a board. Different paint schemes, maybe a little modding moving the sails around.
- I don't think two dragon boats would work unless you were willing to kludge two of them together into a mega-dragon-boat.
- I went back later and made the roofs so they can be removed. This is much better than trying to push figures around inside.