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Old 08-02-2016, 09:04 AM   #1
MiB1213
 
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Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: Piscataway, NJ
Default First attempt at making Car Wars Miniatures and a 3D playing field.

Hey all~

I don't consider myself to be a proficient model maker, with that being said I want to venture out into the world of miniatures for Car Wars. I love this game. I've played it for as long as I can remember, BUT, I have always used the paper pieces.
Can anyone give me some tips on how to start about this??
I went to a local model train store and bought 2 automobiles at 1/160 scale. They seem to be about right for the turn key. What are some other options...

What size cars?
Ideas on scenery??
Etc...

Thank you
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Old 08-02-2016, 10:14 AM   #2
Magesmiley
 
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Snohomish, WA
Default Re: First attempt at making Car Wars Miniatures and a 3D playing field.

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Originally Posted by MiB1213 View Post
Hey all~

I don't consider myself to be a proficient model maker, with that being said I want to venture out into the world of miniatures for Car Wars. I love this game. I've played it for as long as I can remember, BUT, I have always used the paper pieces.
Can anyone give me some tips on how to start about this??
I went to a local model train store and bought 2 automobiles at 1/160 scale. They seem to be about right for the turn key. What are some other options...

What size cars?
Ideas on scenery??
Etc...

Thank you
Most players either go with the classic (1x) scale or 3x (with a few folks using 1.5x). I'm assuming that you're after 1x here.

It sounds like you've found the model train bits. 1/192 is probably closer to the right scale. Here are a couple of other options that are currently available for 1x Scale:

Irregular Miniatures

Howard Models (the 1/16" Scale cars are just about perfect).

Some of the above painted.

If you're lucky and willing to spend a bit, you might be able to find some of the old Grenadier Autoduel miniatures on EBay. They show up every now and then.

The cars from the Formula D game are also about the right size.

One other often overlooked item that can improve the look of figures is the bases. I'd suggest either a magnet or a clear acrylic (check Litko.net for their base maker). If you really want to go all-out, consider also getting enough to do some dropped weapons too.

For scenery...
I use foam core for arenas at this scale. It's fairly easy to work with and lightweight, but somewhat sturdy. Arenas are nice in that they are fairly contained and can built with a couple of sheets of foam core. A good color printer is also very helpful.

Another toy that can be handy for creating bridges, ramps, and city buildings are the old Girder and Panel sets.

If you're looking for outdoors scenery, definitely focus on the model train lines, they've got a lot of stuff for this, and tons of how-to manuals.
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Old 08-02-2016, 10:55 AM   #3
MIB 9966
 
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Long Island, NY
Default Re: First attempt at making Car Wars Miniatures and a 3D playing field.

While not exactly what you are doing (since you're planning on using 1" scale), I can tell you what I did in the (distant) past with 3x scale.

At 3X scale, you can use most Hot Wheels/Matchbox sized cars. I used a 1.5"x3" rectangular piece of comic backer board and glued the cars to that base to replicate the 1"x0.5" counter.

Making other 1.5"x3" rectangles (or 1.5"x1.5" squares) for the hazards and dropped weapons helps too. Some people used painted cotton to replicate the smoke and paint, for example, and used small plastic mines and plastic toy jacks for the mines and caltrops.

The 5th Edition Car Wars books contain a scaled up turning key that you can use, and I manually drew and cut out a scaled up key back then onto the full sized board.

Numbering the cardboard base and matching it to people's car sheets helped, but we did have to keep going over what actual weapons each car had since I didn't have small weapons to glue onto the cars.

As for terrain, it depends on the scenario you want to use. With arenas, I used the simple "edge of the table is the outer wall" rule and some standup fences from some Fischer Price farm set, I think to represent internal walls to keep it reasonably simple.
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Old 08-03-2016, 07:14 AM   #4
Skunkape
 
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Default Re: First attempt at making Car Wars Miniatures and a 3D playing field.

The 1.5x3 inch bases for my Hot Wheels cars as well. Good idea to do the same with debris, etc.
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Old 08-04-2016, 10:26 PM   #5
rdeis
 
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Default Re: First attempt at making Car Wars Miniatures and a 3D playing field.

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Originally Posted by Skunkape View Post
The 1.5x3 inch bases for my Hot Wheels cars as well. Good idea to do the same with debris, etc.
Tinsnips make old hot wheels cars into obstacles. Mount on 1.5"/1.5" bases.

Metallic confetti makes good debris.

Look at fabric shops for studs and buttons or snaps to make mines and spikes.

Fabric paint on 3"x1.5" bases make good slicks.

You'll also want a set of "dot" stickers for marking "on fire" and the like. We used smaller stickers on every miniature to identify weapon ports, ram plates, etc, etc.

Put lines and dots on your bases that show the firing arcs and centers of sides.
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Old 08-05-2016, 07:08 AM   #6
rdeis
 
Join Date: Aug 2016
Default Re: First attempt at making Car Wars Miniatures and a 3D playing field.

3x Turn key graphic from my archives:

https://web.archive.org/web/20020131...RMADA/3xScale/
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Old 08-05-2016, 07:39 AM   #7
Parody
 
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Location: Twin Cities, MN
Default Re: First attempt at making Car Wars Miniatures and a 3D playing field.

The SPARK downloads page has 3x turning keys and counters. We play at 1.5x; I printed the counters and keys on full sheet label paper and stuck the sheets to cardboard boxes.

Link to our site is in my signature.
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Old 08-06-2016, 06:26 PM   #8
AnnouncerJoe
 
Join Date: Aug 2016
Location: NW Indiana
Default Re: First attempt at making Car Wars Miniatures and a 3D playing field.

We actually used 1/32 and 1/24 scale models for 3D gaming. 1/32 scale is common for slot cars and modelling so there are usually lots of resources available in those scales.
We used conference tables pushed together for a playing surface and even used the floor for larger arenas.
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Old 08-12-2016, 12:38 PM   #9
MiB1213
 
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Default Re: First attempt at making Car Wars Miniatures and a 3D playing field.

I'm trying something small first ... I'll use 6mm cars since they fit the original TK almost perfect. I found a model railroad shop near me. The guy sold me something called SMOOTH-IT http://woodlandscenics.woodlandsceni.../ST1452/page/1

I tried contacting some of those links for post apocalyptic style cars and haven't had any luck yet.
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Old 08-17-2016, 01:04 PM   #10
TheAmishStig
 
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: Lancaster, PA
Default Re: First attempt at making Car Wars Miniatures and a 3D playing field.

If you're looking for 1:1 models, have a look at Microform Models' 1/16" section. A couple of them are just a touch too long, but clever mounting or a little trimming will take care of that. At less than a buck a piece they're also a ton cheaper than trying to chase down Micro Machines, which now tend to command a small fortune thanks to the original sets being out of print and are now purely a collector's market.

The only real downside is the $20 minimum order, but by the time you get a full compliment of cars [16], you're close...a little bit of scenery to help with the 3D arena, or a few spares to cut up and really push the dystopia and you're there.
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