Thursday, July 26, 2012

Airfix Waterloo Farmhouse


The Classic Airfix Waterloo Farmhouse

I got my paws on one of these relatively recently as part of an online trade. It was an old set rather than the newer version which was re-released bundled with figures. I had one back in the beginning of my wargaming career, but a careless attempt to strip paint from it resulted in it being badly warped and being made unuseable even as a burnout shell. 

Unfortunate - but now made right.The new set cost me the princely sum of €10 and I regarded it with some suspicion when I got it out of the box. What I'd forgotten over the years is that, it's rather big compared to my other building, excluding perhaps Italeri's church which is huge. Now while this makes it a very attractive model it does make it more difficulty to actually use it in a wargame. 

Capability Savage

Enter Capability Savage, graphic designer, mystic and man about town.   His beret was at a jaunty angle, his smock was stained with paint and his breath reeked of white spirit and gin (we'd suggested tonic as a mixer, but apparently that's for girls), he took the lot off my hands and said he would return later. 


Capability Savage, without his usual smock and beret, explaining 
"the plan" to General Du Gourmand

I didn't hear anything from him for a while, so I eventually braved the strange sights and smells of Monto to visit Savage's garret, where in between sips of methylated spirits, he showed me what he'd been working on.




The construction is almost complete, the gate lacks its roof, but otherwise the model is almost ready to take paint. So far, so good. However, the essential problem remains - the model takes up a deal of space and that makes it very difficult to use in a wargame.




Behold, the amazing modular Waterloo Farmhouse. 

My Hotz mat is broken up into five inch hexes. Most of my building will fit in a single hex, but what Savage has managed to do is break the kit up and base it (on 3mm MDF I think) in such a way that for Old School or skirmish gaming, the whole thing can be used as intended.






Should I wish to use the building on my Hotz mat, they can be used singly taking up one hex or in combination, taking up three or four. Note the additional brickwork added to the piece above, the blank plastic walls on the original kit sent Savage into one of his rages, which could only be assuaged with opium.






He also added cobblestone effect plasti-card to the interiors so that the illusion won't be broken during skirmish gaming.





A gable end was added to this large piece, so that it could be used as a stand alone structure without causing comment or leaving a draught.






Note the precisely cut MDF base which allows all the building and walls to be assembled in such as way that everything is flush together.






A farm building soon to be seen all over France and Belgium

I'm very happy with the work that Savage has done and I think that it will look really something when he's done. A nice blend of the Old School and practicality. 

There is of course the added bonus that as a Capability Savage original, it will increase in price substantially after he stabbed by one of the flame haired strumpets that pose for him or he kills himself with laudanum.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

25 comments:

  1. Capability Savage has done an excellent job for you despite his unusual drinking preferences!

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  2. Very nice! Great idea to make it modular. Compliments to CS!

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  3. Very nice! Great idea to make it modular. Compliments to CS!

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  4. oooh! The classic building. I have one of the old model bought when I was a child. I wonder where it might be... I'll search this weekend in my parents' house

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    1. Those expeditions can get dangerous - you never know what you might find.

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  5. A very useful building. I remember mine being used for games set pretty well everywhere from 500BC to the 1970s. But it was never used in a Napoleonic game....

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    1. For shame Master Gow, for shame! And why does the one true period get no love?

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  6. He b a rascal, but a fine model converter. I had the one that came with the figures, I have no idea what became of it

    Ian

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  7. Seems we have all had one in the past at some time, I wonder what became of them. Excellent job, great pics, always brings a smile to my face this blog :-) I like the unique method of playing the C&C command card too!

    Regards,
    Lee.

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    1. Unique is a word that crops up a lot when savage is mentioned.

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  8. Cleverly and ably done. Perhaps I should experiment with consuming white spirits for inspiration?

    Does make me a bit nostalgic. I don't quite recall what happened to mine. I suspect it was one of the things that stayed behind when I graduated from college and went to sea.

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    1. I'd confine myself to the normal run of spirits Ross. Just to be on the safe side.

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  9. Now that´s a brilliant way of kicking life into that set. I wonder if it would work with the other ones..the sahara fort set for example.
    Cheers
    Paul

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    1. I'll be sure to post 'em if I get my hands on them.

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  10. Love the old Airfix farmhouse. Mine is due for a re-do. Might have to steal this idea. Great work CS.

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  11. This is an excellent innovation - I got rid of mine in a fit of pique when I realised it took up the same space as Brussels on the wargames table. Wish I'd thought of this.

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  12. Damned clever of savage. I must dig mine out and steal that idea (the basing, not the spirits).

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  13. try and find old Airfix magazines from Dec 1971 to Jan 1974, for series of articles for converting Airfix buildings by the late Terry Wise also Airfix Annuals for converting FFL Fort and Hougomont
    cheers Old John

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  14. try and find old Airfix magazines from Dec 1971 to Jan 1974, for series of articles for converting Airfix buildings by the late Terry Wise also Airfix Annuals for converting FFL Fort and Hougomont
    cheers Old John

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  15. Interesting - the Airfix farm house is a bit of a dog's breakfast because it is far too small to be accurate (it's about 1/150 scale) yet still too large for anything but skirmish.

    If you look at the real LHS on Google Earth you can see there is little from the Airfix kit worth keeping if LHS is what you're trying to model...

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  16. I wonder if onions might mask the smell of meths? Must try it sometime.

    Kind regards, Chris

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  17. does anybody know how to delete saved games on waterloo napoleons last battle

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