Going Underground: Subway Entrance

What with a serious cut in income this Christmas, our efforts went into making sure the children would have as special a Christmas as possible.  So you can imagine my delight when I opened a present from a very dear friend and discovered I had been given some TT Combat City Scenics!  I've spoken about this company in previous posts, so I won't repeat myself here.  Suffice to say, I love their modern city range.  Made in 3mm MDF they are incredibly robust and sturdy, and are unbelievably well priced.  And unlike the scenery I make myself from foamcore, they actually allow me to game inside them.  After discovering a number f items I had made in foamcore had begun to warp, you can see why this range appeals to me so much.

I'm also amazed how much stuff they manage to cram onto an A4 sheet of MDF!  Have a look at what you get on their Subway Entrance set:
 Here are the pieces when they have been removed from the sheet.  They are so well cut that this is a doddle to do.  In fact the only problem I encountered was a couple of places where the pieces were cut so close to the edge of the MDF sheet that it was easier to take off the excess rather than remove the individual part.
 Here we have my first dry fit.  I've always done his.  It makes sense as it allows me to see how the pieces fit together.  I do this when scratch building to make sure that I have designed the build properly. But truth be told, this is how I approach any kit build.  I like to get a feel for how the parts fit together.  I find this to be particularly useful when it comes to deciding how best to paint the model. Some parts may not be as accessible as you think if you don't do this.  And from personal experience, instructions for model kits don't always get this bit right.
I should point out that TT Combat don't provide a set of instructions for their kits.  They d have a lot of photos for each kit on their website which I find helpful.  But if you're not used to making these things, the number of pieces can be confusing.  Thankfully that's not a problem with a small kit like this.
 It's a testament to their models that they fit together and remain so without the use of any glue.

 It quickly became apparent that I would have to paint whole sections of the subway entrance before assembly.  This meant only one thing.  I'd have to size the MDF before assembly.  So with my expensive cloth laid out, I squireted some PVA into an expensive cup, added a few drops of water and set about sealng the wood with the resulltant mixture.
 Yes, yes, okay.  It' a plastic cup and a couple of food recycling bags.  But they have served me faithfully for...well...this is the second MDF kit I've ever made.

Moving on now with some shots of in progress painting of the signs.

 I then began painting over the detailing on the piece in a darker shade of the base colour.
 It kinda reminds me of painting scale model aeroplanes...
 I also began painting the interior sections.


 By now about 80% of thee kit had been painted.  It was now time to start assembly. First up, the inside section.
 Then the outer walls were added, the roof sections, and finally the front pieces.
 They were then left to dry whilst I admired the result.


 With everything dried, and a good sleep under my belt, I set about painting the rest of the model. I also applied some more paint to the few areas where the PVA had left a glossy residue.
 This kit was a real joy to make and paint.
 I'm working on a new set of modern city boards using TT Combat City Scenics.  They'll find use in our games of All Things Zombie, Fear and Faith and its supplement Kooky Teenage Monster Huntersand A Fistful of Kung Fu.

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