Used some left over pink foam and an inexpensive wire foam cutter to build some trenches or ditches. Wanted to have enough to go the width of a table; about 6 feet or more. There were some nice resin cast ones on ebay, but didn't want to spend too much. Luckily, there was still some pink foam board, purchased almost a decade ago, in the garage.
Close up to show how they size up. Only used a little bit of static grass as the trench or ditch would be mostly dirt from being built. Tried to keep the incline on the outside to a minimum to allow for figures or vehicles to climb up. Also, didn't line the insides with wood panels or corrugated tin so the pieces could be used in earlier periods too.
Total available length if used with only one side - as a barricade - is over 10 feet; so about 5 feet if used in parallel as shown above.
The triangular pieces are to allow the straight pieces to be formed in irregular lines, if needed.
Right after "cutting" with the hot wire foam cutter - an inexpensive one off of ebay. Word of caution - be sure not to use enamel spray paint on the foam unless given an acrylic or latex paint basecoat. The enamel will melt the foam. I used a spray can thinking it was acrylic - but turned out to be enamel and it melted the first set of triangle pieces I had made. Thankfully, the larger staight pieces had been coated with left over latex house paint first.
Well, my previous post said it was likely my last before taking off for a visit to Hawaii, but had a couple days and this was a quick project. Taking off for Hawaii early Sunday morning - hopefully no delays as the weather has dropped to below freezing. Supposed to warm up a little on Sunday - but the flight to Hawaii today was delayed for almost 3 hours - probably due to the temperatures and icing. I may try to post some pictures of interest while in Hawaii - hopefully. Until my return, hope you all are doing well and having a great start to 2024!
These look great Dean - I liked the ones I made myself with card and matchsticks etc but these look just as good, probably took half the time, and you have twice as much as me, by the sounds of it! I also made that mistake once with spray paint on polystyrene!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Keith. Yes, I saw a Youtube tutorial to line the insides with craft corrugated paper that looked good - but, figured it would take longer and wanted a quick project. Best regards, Dean
DeleteExcellent trenches Dean, they turned out well.
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot, Mike. Yes, they'll do the job well enough. Warmest regards, Dean
DeleteI agree that the trenches turned out nice. Enjoy Hawaii. Wish I was headed somewhere warm too. High today was in single digits with lows in the red. Brrr.
ReplyDeleteThank you very much, Jonathan. Didn't know the temperature would drop so much when we bought the tickets last month. Kindest regards, Dean
DeleteGreat looking trenches Dean.
ReplyDeleteThank you much, Richard. Glad to finally have some in my terrain stash. They should work well in many games. Best regards, Dean
DeleteVery effective looking trench work Dean , nicely done 👍
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot, Matt! Yes, these should work well in many scenarios - either all together, or in smaller sections. Kindest regards, Dean
DeleteThe treanches certainly will come in handy for your Russo-Japanese War games, Dean. Hmmm, I know I have some fancy in the basement.....
ReplyDeleteThanks, Joe! Yes, the project originally came to mind for the RJW game, but they'll also work well in WW1 and other scenarios too. Kindest regards, Dean
DeleteLooking great for me!
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot, Michal! Yes, I'm happy enough with them. I rarely do terrain work, but these will definitely come in handy. Warmest regards, Dean
DeleteNicely done Dean!
ReplyDeleteGreat tutorial.
ReplyDelete